By Maria Fiorio | International Alert
Dear friends,
As you may know, the situation in Lebanon is unstable at the moment. We have had to stop for a short time in October the peace education sessions due to demonstrations in different parts of Lebanon. However, we see that this type of support is even more important under these circumstances. Indeed, these sessions are taking place in the North governorate in one of the most underprivileged and undeserved regions in Lebanon, with severe poverty levels and high numbers of refugees. The programme focused therefore on information the children on what rights they have, as well as developing tools to resolve conflict in a peaceful way. Thanks to them, the children strengthened their self-confidence, highlighted their role in the decision-making process, played an active role within their community, and appeared as individuals who are capable of creating change within their surroundings. We clearly saw the impact and success of these social initiatives: the parents were proud and engaged in all the topics the children addressed.
I wanted to share with you Mohammad’s story to show the small but very important change this project brings at the community level:
Mohammad is an 11-year-old boy, coming from a poor family who has lot of problems. His parents’ relationship is under a lot of strain and this causes tension inside the household and stress for Mohammad. Refugees in Lebanon often face problems in accessing jobs and services, as well as discrimination, which can have a detrimental impact on the family unit. After attending the sessions, the child went to his mother and said:" Mama relax and sit down. Take a deep breath. Inhale and exhale. Close your eyes and imagine good things. You must do this twice a day where it will decrease your nervousness”. Relaxation is a technique that facilitators use in every session and now Mohammad was practicing this with his mother. This technique helped relieve her stress and strengthen positive bonds between family members.
Once again, thank you all for your support which enables children build peace from the playground up.
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