TOWARDS A PEOPLE'S PEACE: How Social Movements Can Help Create Just and Non-Violent Futures by Global Platforms

TOWARDS A PEOPLE’S PEACE

Barbed wire stands as a stark symbol of exclusion and confinement— a barrier designed to wound, to keep out, or to imprison them within.

Yet perched upon it is the sparrow, a small but powerful emblem of resilience, adaptability, and defiance.

We think it’s planning its next move. The sparrow does not surrender to the wire; instead, it perches lightly, embodying joy, community, freedom, protection and hope.

It reminds us that even in the face of restriction and harm, life finds a way to persist, to resist and to soar.

We know social movements are the most powerful catalyst for the future we deserve. For decades, the ActionAid federation has been collaborating with movements directly involved in social change struggles, based on a shared vision of secularism, democracy, feminism, and economic and social justice. The Global Social Movement Center (MOVE) was set up in 2022 to deepen and expand this work. Today, MOVE consists of 5 regional hubs located in West Africa, East Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe, and Latin America. MOVE provides an ecosystem for Human Rights Defenders and their movements to be supported in all aspects of their work through the different phases of their struggles. Currently, it entails an integrated set of capacity strengthening activities for activists in social movements, core movement support functions to social movements, including funding and action research on relevant movements trends. MOVE also focuses on building an ecosystem of actors that can and should support movements, including international convenings, and developing resources for civil society organizations, decision makers and donor communities to be better and more relevant allies.

MOVE is a collaboration between ActionAid Nigeria, MS TCDC, Tanzania, ActionAid Denmark and ActionAid Association, India.

TOWARDS A PEOPLE’S PEACE: HOW

SOCIAL MOVEMENTS CAN HELP CREATE JUST AND NON-VIOLENT FUTURES

A series of deliberations

Social justice movements worldwide navigate a complex terrain, facing multiple forms of violence; from war to oppression, surveillance to discrimination and beyond. How do people organise and resist in such realities? How can they succeed? In a series of critical webinar conversations, we have invited activists, scholars, policymakers, and the public to explore the complex roots, manifestations and dynamics of violence, and the transformative role of social movements in achieving justice and building peace.

Each conversation has deliberated on multiple facets of violence, and the strategic approaches that movements employ to resist and organize. Through the course of these deliberations we sought to move from a critical examination, towards practical and strategic dimensions of non-violent action, learning how to effectively support and amplify these efforts, fostering broader solidarity and systemic transformation towards more just and peaceful societies. From deconstruction to re-construction; from a tapestry of violence to a tapestry of just peace.

What you hold in your hands is not a complete account of the rich and layered deliberations that were held, but rather an effort to distill key insights and perspectives— bridging the specific to the universal. These takeaways are not meant to be ready-made, actionable solutions in and of themselves, but rather sources of inspiration—a starting point for deep, critical and meaningful conversations.

C0NTRIBUT0RS

This webinar series has been shaped by the voices, experiences, and insights of remarkable contributors who have generously shared their knowledge, grassroots expertise, and reflections. Over the past four months, we have had the privilege of learning from speakers from across the world in each session, each of whom has deepened our collective understanding of the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.

Throughout this booklet, you will find quotes and perspectives drawn from these conversations. Rather than attributing individual statements, we recognize these contributions as part of a shared commons—a collective offering that belongs to all who are engaged in this work. We honor the movements, activists, and thinkers who have enriched this dialogue and continue to shape struggles for justice and peace across the globe. Your work does not go unnoticed, and we thank you for your commitment to building a more

FACILITATED BY GINO GOVINDER

International Board Member, Vice Chair and Convenor of the human resources and organizational sub-committee, ActionAid International. South Africa.

PROF. RADHA KUMAR

Feminist, Academic and Author, focusing on ethnic conflicts and peace processes

HASSAN TAIWO SOWETO

Coordinator, Education Rights Campaign

RANIA MASRI

Co-Director, NC Environmental Justice Network. Organizing for justice and against systems of oppression and wars.

The Artificially Divided Land of Greater Syria.

FELIP DAZA SIERRA

NITCHAKARN RAKWONGRIT (MEMEE)

Feminist Activist, engaged in gender justice and feminist collective movements such as Milk Tea Alliance. Thailand.

SHREEN SAROOR

Peace and women's rights activist. Recipient of the N-Peace Award and the Franco-German Prize for Human Rights and the Rule of Law. Sri Lanka.

ANDREW FEINSTEIN

Writer; Filmmaker; Researcher. Executive Director at Shadow World Investigations. Former ANC Member of Parliament from South Africa under Nelson Mandela. United Kingdom.

GABRIEL LABRADOR

Journalist, El Faro. Former Rapporteur for the Freedom of Expression of the Salvadorean Journalists Association, focused on political issues, human rights abuses and corruption in Latin America. El Salvador.

SORETI B KADIR

Political Organiser, Journalist and Storyteller. Founder of the Oromo Democratic Revolution- ary Party, a Pan African Party organizing towards multi-national class revolution. Ethiopia.

CEO, ActionAid Ireland. Formerly, Global Head of Peacebuilding, Christian Aid (2016-2021), focusing on women’s rights, systems change for economic and climate justice, addressing the structural causes of gender-based violence and women’s leadership in emergencies. Ireland.

NADINE BLOCH

STEWARD MUHINDO

Activist, LUCHA (Lutte pour le Changement, Struggle for Change). Lawyer by training, Researcher on human rights and armed conflict. The Democratic Republic of

Training Director, Beautiful Trouble. Artist, political organizer, direct action trainer, and puppetista. Her work explores the potent intersection of art and politics. USA.

LAURA LEMA SILVA

Science Director, the Institut Pour la Paix (Institute for Peace IPP), Associate member of the LCE (Literature and Foreign Civilizations) laboratory, Université Lyon 2, and the "Pluralizing Peace" think tank, the National Univer- sity of Colombia. Columbia.

Peace and justice activist. Conscientious Objector. Homeopath. South Africa.

DR. RICHARD STEELE

KAROL BALFE

SPEAKING OF VIOLENCE: MAPPING THE TERRAIN

How do we understand organised violence and its pervasive presence, more pronounced and obvious in certain parts of the world, less visible and evident in others? What accounts for the differentials in the levels of violence over histories and geographies? What are the different manifestations.of such violence?

True, just, and sustainable peace cannot be possible in the face of inequalities and discrimination. In this webinar, we explored different categories of structural and collective violence and how it is understood and challenged by social movements. Understanding the conditions that often lead to violence, and the many forms in which it manifests can help us to de-escalate and dismantle.

The long geographical arc of experience, of both conflict and the possible paths to resolution that the contributors brought to the discussion marked the necessary beginning of new stories to be told, stories about the ruthless man and his ruthless machine, of pointless deaths in pointless conflicts, of places soaked in blood, of grief and mourning, of the will to resist and to protect, of wisdom and compassion, courage and loyalty, of honour and respect, dignity and grace, and so onward and onward to the peace, justice and happiness in other possible futures.

“... if we are fighting to change society within the parameters of capitalism we are not going to be able to surmount the contradictions of the present times because what is fundamentally wrong with society is class division and exploitation..”

“...colonialism that imposed not only an economic and physical subjugation but also cultural and spiritual violence that broke connection with nature and the connection with reality and displaced ways of knowing and ways of being.”

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Properties of violence and the violence of property

Systemic violence is not class neutral. Understanding systemic violence requires attention to power and how society and state are organised.

The three territoriesviolated

Contemporary systemic violence intersects with poverty and violates three territories— the body, the land and the digital space. Violence breaks the inviolability of the physical body and undermines personal autonomy, self-ownership and self-determination of human beings over their own bodies. It destroys our relationship with land – our connection with everything that sustains us and where life’s interactions take place. It eliminates public spaces and the digital commons.

Violence of the lambs

The legal right to self defence is universally acknowledged. The violence of aggression and the violence of self defence may not always be equivalent or morally symmetrical.

The clash of symbols

Violence is not simply its direct physical manifestation. Violence operates symbolically by dehumanising and stripping victims of their dignity and controlling people through narrative tropes of exclusion and non-belonging.

Talking love to hate

Violence on the bedrocks of colonialism, capitalism and patriarchy are interconnected. Combating this pervasive kind of violence requires solidarity without borders to restore humanity and create spaces for healing using the transformative power of love. Ends do not justify the means, so the question is, what justifies the means.

Desirable States

Through the course of history states have created the institutions of violence and the institutions of peace according to context, contingency and circumstance. The desirable state mediates peaceful solutions to conflict in the interest of general welfare.

IN ANOTHER’S LAND: WAR AND

MILITARIZATION

In this conversation we explored the dynamics of war, militarization and the influence of private companies and business interests in contemporary geopolitics.

An extraordinarily large part of global public expenditure is spent on militarisation and the purchase of armaments. This has created large monopolistic corporations, with interests in other lucrative trades.The global trade in weapons accounts for 40 percent of all global corruption.

Direct private commercial involvement and participation in the war has been growing since Afghanistan 2001 and Iraq 2003. Mercenary military and security services are being used by governments to guard borders, by extractive multinational companies to protect sites, and by defence forces for combat operations on the battlefield. Other ancillary services include cyber mercenary activities in mass surveillance, espionage, intelligence, misinformation and pro-war propaganda. Privatising war and associated services enable the government to evade the law.

How does this impact world peace and how can non-violent movements organise against weaponization and war? How can we systematically resist and transform this lopsided system and introduce a peaceful and just turn on the workings of the world?

The profits of loss

All the losses of the occupied—lives, land, infrastructure and resources—swell the coffers of the occupier, modern warfare is waged to sell the merchandise of destruction, occupation and reconstruction.

The stranglehold

A handful of large armament corporations are large investors in fossil fuel, banks and the most prominent media establishments. Twisting the truth is obligatory, spreading the lie is easy.

the wars they manufacture stand a long line of intermediaries—advocates, agents, abettors and politico-administrative functionaries, all of whom share in the profits of loss. The weapons industry oils the wheels of the political system.

The price we pay

Budgets are diverted from social spending to military expenditures, with inevitable consequences. As military preparedness increases, large sections of the world’s population are barely able to

The avenues of resistance

Ordinary people do not want war. They are tired of it. Despite the power of the proponents of war, there are many possible avenues of resistance; Through upward and downward alliances, taking inspiration from the values of the Palestinian Sumud, co-creating the space for civil disobedience, forming alliances between organised solidarities—trade unions, local resistance committees, women’s groups—to forge networks of transnational opposition, establishing alternative digital avenues and regaining control of our creative imagination to think of different futures and tell other stories.

THE VIOLENT STATE:

DEALING WITH REPRESSION

“A growing number of political leaders have actively and systematically propagated narratives of demonization for political gain and strong men leaders have made a comeback... peddling simplistic and extreme solutions to complex societal problems.”

What is the nature of, and what are the mechanisms of state violence? What role do social movements play in confronting it and how can they be supported in their efforts?

Over the last two decades, states, irrespective of their professed ideologies, have amassed greater power, correspondingly diminishing the civic rights and freedoms of their own citizenry. Though outward textures may vary, there is a de facto convergence in methods of governance across many parts of the world. International law has been steadily vitiated, more often than not by the very architects of the post-45 world order. Substantive democracy has

UNCIVIL SOCIETY:

ENDING VIOLENCE IN PEOPLE VS. PEOPLE CONFLICTS

This conversation explored both the impact of historical legacies of colonialism and current forces within society and communities that disrupt harmony and democracy and spur civil conflict. How do social movements navigate and respond to these challenges?

Normative definitions of civil society often depict it as “good society”, embodying and promoting virtues like freedom, justice, fairness and equality and the defence of human rights. Uncivil society broadly describes the forces, groups and organisations within fractured public spheres that actively oppose democratic values, social cohesion and inclusive dialogue, forcing extreme choices on ordinary people and destroying the social fabric that holds people together in societies and communities.

Such tendencies are quite common in former colonies, mostly in the global south. Colonialism destroyed the foundations of the polities and societies that it encountered. Small numbers of people ruling vast populations by force used various methods of rule, including deliberately creating division in society through the selective distribution of benefits. When the former rulers left, they had also left behind their tools and techniques, their laws and institutions to be used for the same purposes. Elites that emerged from the colonial foundry carried the legacy forward, making the necessary adjustments.

Unavoidably, contradictions sharpened, disgruntled segments withdrew their loyalties, dissidents grew in numbers and became more vocal. Some took up arms, some created militias, some morphed into gangs and networks of organised crime, all in the shadow of failing states and contested legitimacies. Force and counter force created violence of magnitudes that the mechanisms of order were unable to contain.

Yet in those very societies afflicted by the uncivil malady, merely surviving and continuing to exist amidst all the horrors is the first basis of resistance. Activists and social movements asking insistent questions, critiquing the past, agitating for change, demanding peace and articulating new and relevant visions of the future. From that first resistance comes all subsequent forms of resistance, such as peace committees, agitations, blockades, boycotts and mass movements.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

A grotesque architecture

Many post-colonial states were built upon arbitrary borders and inherited governance structures designed for exploitation rather than inclusion.When the edifice and its foundations are misaligned the resulting architecture is a travesty. Lacking organic foundations, these were lopsided arrangements, commandeered by some and coveted by others.

Neither free nor fair

States and structures devised to extract and exploit stayed in place and served the few. It lacked deep roots across the diversity of their respective societies. Thinly fabricated national identities wore away and old bonds resurfaced as the basis of political affiliation.

Inevitable consequences

Cycles of upheaval, coups d’etat, rebellion, extortion, wars of secession, brutal repression, mass internal displacements and cross-border migrations as well as extreme economic and social disparities are the familiar narratives of former colonies that inherited unreconstructed colonial authority. The consequences disrupted societies and polities, often spilling over into neighbouring countries.

Beyond division

“In our social justice movements we should be careful not to prosecute our nonviolence with a mainstream ideological approach to change, which is competitive and which is dehumanizing of the other and my own view is that this can actually still result in the same patterns of domination and of power and of hierarchy.”

“People will not work with us unless they can see themselves as part of the future we are building. If we exclude, or make them feel unwelcome in our vision, they will not stand with us— they will work against us. We need to be very clear and intentional about the kind of community we're building for the future.”

The eternal flame / It’s time to sing the unsung song

The ruins and the remains of terrible histories often propel revenge and retribution. But that is not all of the story. There is another story, an unsung story about unsung people, who by merely existing amid the danger and the fear, disrupt the surrounding violence, like the people who labour so that others may eat and live and love, like the mothers through whom the world is reborn, like those who counsel peace and justice in times of war and devastation. It is the song of the flame that flickers but does not die. It is now time to sing that unsung song.

THE PEACEFUL PLAY OF PEOPLE POWER:

VIOLENCE AND SOCIAL CHANGE

“The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” – Alice Walker

In a world where violence is entrenched in political, economic and social systems, how can people reclaim their power to disrupt injustice and build peace? Non-violent resistance has proved to be the most effective way to confront and change unequal power structures. However, the meaning and limits of violence itself is contested. This webinar explored the strategic and ethical dimensions of non-violent resistance. From civil disobedience and artistic subversion, to cross-cultural solidarity and conscientious objection, we examined ways to erode oppressive systems and sustain movements for change. Peace is not just the absence of war but a continuous, collective effort, one that must acknowledge histories of violence, nurture alternative forms of justice and cultivate a plural, inclusive understanding of peace.

Peace in plural

Peace is a continuous process whose value is refined by the people suffering from conflict. Peace is a word that is often legally defined and subordinated to specific political ends. The transformative potential inherent in the full range of its meanings is thereby obscured. Peace is not a singularly defined steady state that follows the end of conflict. It has multiple cultural and territorial nuances which need to be incorporated into mainstream use and practice if inclusive peace is to be attained. In some indigenous traditions it is both a sensory experience and mental state quite distinct from its limiting and unimaginative legal definition.

Puppets of the people

Art, literature, theatre and performance are powerful catalysts for change. Symbols of hope, memories of triumphs and stories of struggle are the common stock from which an oppressed people can constantly revive their spirits and renew their efforts. The cross-cultural consolidation of the various historical and contemporary traditions of non-violent, life affirming resistance infuses local movements with global strength.

The matrix of resistance

The inner life of civil disobedience

Tactics alone will not suffice. They must be accompanied by a strategy and vision that replaces the present with a different future. But strategy alone will also not suffice. An inner transformation of the resister is necessary condition of the struggle. Those who resist must acquire the mental strength, the acumen, the understanding of the potential inherent in the moment, the willingness to adapt, the ability to sacrifice and the resolve to use only those means that are compatible with the vision of a just peace.

From the overtly political to covertly subversive cultural acts, nonviolent resistance takes many forms. Indigenous communities in Columbia have demonstrated this by shaping post-conflict policies, ensuring indigenous rights and justice were recognized in national peace process and agreements. Similarly in apartheid South Africa, white male conscientious objectors weakened the regime from within through radical pacifist resistance, refusing conscription. Today movements in the USA and beyond continue this tradition, using art, storytelling and direct action to resist authoritarianism and sustain public engagement. These examples and many more- illustrate the resistance is not a singular act but a matrix of interconnected efforts, where different forms of defiance reinforce one another, expanding the scope and impact of nonviolent struggle.

“If you want an apple tree you must plant an apple seed. If we want peace and justice we must practice it in our families, with our partners, with our children, with our employees, with the people we work with, we interact with in the shops and on the street and every day. That's the radical nature of nonviolence and of managing our ethical and moral terrain.”

THE PEACEFUL PLAY OF PEOPLE POWER:

VIOLENCE AND SOCIAL CHANGE

This final event is not a conclusion, but a launching point, an opportunity to weave together the insights, strategies and perspectives that have emerged throughout our deliberations. It will take place at the People Power Conference in Copenhagen (April 2025) and live-streamed for a global audience. At a time when institutional peacebuilding frameworks are in crisis, we recognize movements as essential in shaping sustainable peace rooted in justice and this session will engage conference participants in discussions on the vital role of social movements in conflict and peacebuilding.

We hope to explore promising approaches and examine how people’s movements and local peacebuilders can be effectively supported and reflect on how activists, allies and institutions can work together. This is our moment to move from analysis to action— to chart pathways forward towards a just and inclusive peace.

Join us as we gather to strategize and commit to the work ahead.

PRACTIONERS OF NONVIOLENT STRUGGLE

HAVE AN ENTIRE ARSENAL OF “NONVIOLENT WEAPONS” AT THEIR DISPOSAL