and have a voice in rebuilding their country—both of which are crucial to helping society heal from trauma and believe that peace is possible. The impact of GIJTR demonstrates that putting the victim or survivor at the center of the process promotes their recovery, reinforces their agency and self-determination, and reduces the risk of further harm. Practicing a victim-centered approach means establishing a relationship with the victim that prioritizes their psychosocial and physical safety, builds trust and helps them to restore some control over their life. The impact of GIJTR’s commitment to MHPSS is evidenced in the following examples: In Guinea, GIJTR extended psychosocial interventions to support the creation of a victim support center where victims can go to see their stories reflected as well as access services. As one survivor and GIJTR workshop participant there put it, “One of the main achievements of the project was the liberation of speech and the disappearance of pessimism that had possessed the victims.” As a result of the center, victims have a dedicated and secure space to collaborate on peacebuilding initiatives, access mental health services and assist in supporting others in their community to do the same. In South Sudan, where the largely Western notion of individual MHPSS support is mostly unknown, GIJTR focuses on building the capacity of civil society actors to provide MHPSS support to groups of victims. As a result of GIJTR’s work there are now 48 well-trained individuals in South Sudan who can provide support to victims of violence. The sustainability of this program is enhanced through “training of trainer” programs that ensure this number will grow, as well as by GIJTR-supported referral networks that make victim support accessible from a cohort of organizations that attend to different types of needs. This approach has been replicated by GIJTR successfully in multiple contexts, including Sri Lanka, creating a cadre of MHPSS support persons in post-conflict settings who can mobilize local and contextualized understandings to provide the most effective support for victims’ mental health and psychosocial needs.
“The podcast project helped to share the voices of San Basilio de Palenque... people who did not dare to speak about the conflict. This project gave a voice to those who had no voice in the community, those who hadn’t had the opportunity to share the feelings that they had buried in silence deep inside their soul.” —Project participant, Colombia
A staff member of the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation, a GIJTR Consortium partner in South Africa, leads a GIJTR session on self-care and MHPSS for local partners in Guinea in 2018.
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Transforming Transitional Justice: A Decade of Change, Growth & Sustained Impact—A Summary Report
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