Nonviolent Peaceforce

NP is an implementing organization of the ongoing peace process between the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and the Philippine government. Our mandate for implementing the peace process includes:

- Monitoring and reporting individuals’ concerns about safety.

- Protective accompaniment for civilians and organizations in areas of conflict, including NP team members accompanying hostage survivors to reunite with their families.

- NP monitors whether conflicting parties are abiding by ceasefire agreements, and it verifies and reports compliance and noncompliance of agreements.

- NP creates safe spaces for peaceful dialogue between different stakeholders in the country, including local institutions, for community-based conflict prevention and conflict resolution.

- Training local leaders and organizations in UCP methodologies for monitoring, unarmed peacekeeping and civilian protection.

NP uses a mix of strategies to prevent violence, enhance the safety and security of civilians, build and strengthen local peace infrastructures, and devise and implement locally-led peace and protection strategies. By doing so, NP is able to protect civilians and support the cohesion, resilience, and the adaptive capacity and recovery of communities affected by violence and insecurity.

Some of NP's activities in South Sudan include:

- Direct protection and presence, including patrols and protective accompaniment for those at risk of violence.

- Referring survivors of sexual and gender-based violence or other protection concerns to relevant services.
Supporting peace dialogues within and between communities experiencing or at-risk of violent conflict.

- Creating and maintaining early warning/early response systems.

- Forming and strengthening Women’s Protection Teams to enable women to take leading roles in the protection and peace of their communities.

In early 2017, NP began working in Iraq to protect people fleeing violence. As the situation in the country evolved, a critical need emerged to protect vulnerable IDPs in camps, people returning to contested and high-risk areas, and people located in tense regions near the Syrian and Turkish borders, in Northern Iraq.

NP’s work in Iraq is centered around protecting civilians, preventing violence and building peace side-by-side with local communities. We do this through a range of activities, including:

- providing protective presence, such as through patrols and accompaniments;
- helping communities build safe spaces – particularly for women and youth – that allow communities to address protection concerns and work on peace initiatives;
- providing mentoring in Unarmed Civilian Protection; and
- facilitating rumor control and awareness-raising sessions to reduce tensions and foster peaceful coexistence.

Grounded in the strengths and needs of local community partners, NP is building relationships with community members, leaders, and organizations to identify gaps and approach safety and security from a holistic perspective. Our work is informed by understanding what communities need to feel safe and secure—to feel affirmed and a sense of belonging— which includes and goes beyond physical safety.

NP's activities in the U.S. include:

- Providing direct protection: NP continues to train new staff and volunteers to deescalate conflicts without weapons, liaise between groups, accompany vulnerable communities, and more.

- Strengthening community protection capacities: We provide ongoing training, mentoring, and support to communities who have invited us to support their safety work.

- Reimagining school safety: NP is partnering with the Minneapolis School District to develop a Student Peace Advisory Group to help students take the lead in creating new school safety initiatives.

NP is working in Sudan to deepen the implementation of Unarmed Civilian Protection (UCP) in Darfuri communities. Our first team there has been training and coaching local leaders in peacebuilding and civilian protection. NP is also building relationships with conflict-affected communities to identify needs and priorities for the work. The team is conducting orientation workshops about UCP for women, youth or marginalized communities that explore how UCP can strengthen existing community self-protection efforts.

NP’s work in Sudan is just beginning. Our goal is to enhance safety and security of high-risk communities in Darfur by supporting and strengthening local peace initiatives such as:

- Locally-brokered peace agreements
- Serving as an intermediary between groups in a dispute
- Supporting communities to actively engage in regional and national peace processes

Our work in Thailand began in 2015, when NP teamed up with Rotary Clubs of St. Paul, Minnesota, U.S. and Khuanlang-Hatyai, Thailand for three workshops on civilian engagement in peace processes. From these workshops, our Thai relationships grew.

Civil society groups have been crucial in providing various support and services to victims and survivors of violence. From 2016 to the present, most of NP's work has been in Southern Thailand—in Patani, Yala and Narathiwat Provinces—through collaboration with local partners.

During our rapid response and start-up phase, NP has been meeting with key people on the ground around the country—such as women’s shelters, student groups, and humanitarian partners—to collaborate on how and what way these groups would welcome UCP strategies. In violent conflict, there are a lot of unknown factors, but the strength of NP is we adapt to context and needs by listening to local people.

From connecting an elderly man named Yuri to the medical services he needed in Kharkiv, to assisting a woman with heat sickness in Mykolaiv, NP is advocating for civilian needs and capabilities to the international community.