Do you see polarization between political parties getting worse? So much that you fear upcoming elections might be violent? This was exactly the situation in Burundi ahead of the 2015 elections. Things had worsened after the contested 2010 elections, and the idea of dialogue between political parties seemed impossible.
That’s when Search-Burundi launched an audacious program, Intamenwa—the Indivisibles in Kirundi language—bringing together young members of the main opposing political parties with the aim of ensuring the elections would be peaceful.
In this episode of Breakthroughs, you’ll hear how Burundian Searchers used intra- and inter-group dialogue-to-action approaches to engage young political leaders to build trust, uncover shared interests, and collaborate to prevent election violence.
In just 14 minutes, Sabrina Bigirimana, Search’s Design, Monitoring, and Evaluation Manager in Burundi, explains how Searchers engaged this controversial but influential group from across the political spectrum by strengthening their understanding of and ability to resist political manipulation. This enabled them to engage constructively with their own political party leaders, as well as with other young people in their communities. I think you’ll enjoy following their journey from enemies to allies and discover the powerful results we achieved—and measured—in this program.
Breakthroughs is produced by Search for Common Ground, the world’s largest peacebuilding organization. Each episode highlights the stories of activists on the frontlines of violent conflict. We’ll discover how they tackled tough problems around the world, by building collaboration.
Hosted by Lena Slachmuijlder. Produced by Lena Slachmuijlder, Massimiliano Colonna, and Omar Salem. Learn more about Search for Common Ground at sfcg.org, follow us on Twitter at @SFCG_.
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