Coordinating Committee
The Conference appointed the following Coordinating Committee to implement immediate measures and to put steps in place toward the longer-term actions:
Ex-officio:
Immediate crisis-intervention measures
Political crisis:
- Issue a public statement from this Conference
- Use the media to publicize messages of peace and reconciliation
- Document and disseminate stories of people acting in courageous non-violent ways
- Engage in non-violent direct action to stop violence and retaliation in our communities
Humanitarian crisis – internally displaced people:
- Shelter, accommodation
- Food, water, fuel
- Clothing
- Medication, first aid, health care
- Security and safety
- Sanitation
- Trauma counseling
- Bible distribution
- Activities, games
- Access to schooling
Inter-communal crisis:
- Mediate in situations of acute conflict
- Assist in reconciliation between displaced people and those who threatened them
- Reintegrate displaced people into the community, rebuild trust between neighbors
Psychological and spiritual crisis:
- Crisis-intervention counselling
- Train primary school teachers on the effects of trauma on young children
- Offer trauma counselling for IDPs
- Reach the “disaffected” youth, e.g. boda boda drivers, touts, the unemployed
- Scale up AVP to reach as many places as possible
- Establish “listening programmes” for people to tell their stories in a safe environment
- Preach the gospel of peace, educate our own people on the teachings of our church
Crisis of youth in this country:
- Begin a pilot programme for civic and peace education in Quaker schools
- Organize youth work camps to help with humanitarian work and rebuilding
Organizational capacity:
- Establish a national coordination body for the short-term work
- Address need for personnel, including placement of volunteers
- Networking and communications
- Guarantee integrity and transparency in use of funds, to maintain our good reputation
Possible cluster areas for longer-term work, and potential activities
Youth Empowerment
- Create a fund for youth empowerment
- Youth programmes, e.g. volunteer training and action, work camps, vocational training
- Seriously examine the involvement of youth in the structures of the
- Re-engage with our Quaker schools
- Peer-mediation and AVP in the schools
Economic Development
- Income generating activities
- Teach practical business skills, entrepreneurship
Humanitarian Relief
- Relief Fund for future disasters
- Peace, justice and non-violence – a movement for social transformation toward a culture of peace
- Peace Research Institute (at the University)
- Peace Radio, other publications
- Workshops, mediation, trauma healing, AVP, listening
- Restorative justice movement
- Peace curriculum through the Ministry of Education
- Training for non-violent direct action for social change
Advocacy
- Establish an organization which can organize the Friends voice on Public Policy matters
- Build the capacity of Friends to be involved in the civic agenda at all levels
- Use the model of QUNO “quiet diplomacy”
Spiritual development of the Peace Testimony
- Review and improve the content of the membership class curricula
- Strengthen the peace and justice programmes at
Organizational capacity
- National Management Committee – develop institutional capacity
- Network with other peace organization in
Resources
Friends United Meeting and Friends World Committee for Consultation are both active in raising overseas funds for relief and reconstruction. The Conference urges all Kenyans to raise local funds and to deposit them in the account of Friends United Meeting, Barclays Bank, Kisumu Branch #2007332. All money will be used efficiently and effectively, with transparency and integrity.
