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Bangladesh

The Peoples Republic of Bangladesh

Grant Approved March 2008

IPF Local Partner: Bangladesh Inter-religious Council for Peace and justice (BICPAJ)

IPF Project: Non Violence Training for Youth in Conflict Resolution

Delivery Dates: 7th 9th August 2008

Location: Dhaka City, Bangladesh

Peacemakers: Brother Jarlath D'Souza Executive Head BICPAJ

1. Country Background

Bangladesh achieved Nation status after a violent liberation struggle from (West) Pakistan in 1971, that resulted in around a million deaths, and 10 million refugees seeking safety in India. Prior to full independence in 1971 the region of Bengal was part of the British Empire until 1947 and the partition of India also created the territory of East Bengal/Pakistan.

Since Independence it has experienced continual political turbulence and military coups, with several assassinations of Heads of State and declarations of states of emergency. The 2009 elections (with a voter turn out of 80%) were considered free and fair and were preceded, the day before the elections, by the lifting of the two year long state of emergency.

With a population of 150 million, Bangladesh is the seventh most populous country in the world, and the world's most densely populated country. More than half the country is within 12m of sea level, and with large area of inland water and deltas, it is particularly vulnerable to the monsoon flooding and cyclones. In September 1998 the most severe floods in modern history resulted in two thirds of the country being underwater, and left thirty million people homeless.

Despite a steady economic growth rate of around 5%, the country is one of the poorest in the world, with over half of its citizens living on less than a US dollar a day.

2. Local Partner - Bangladesh Inter-religious Council for Peace and justice (BICPAJ)

BICPAJ (http://www.bicpaj.org) was founded in 1983 and is a fully inter-faith and human rights oriented organization established by a group of like-minded Muslims and Christians, but not affiliated to any particular . It is based in Dhaka City, with 30 schools for adults primarily concerned with literacy and also runs projects for youth and poor children. BICPAJ's peace education center consists of staff trained in conflict resolution, education, research, women's empowerment and basic training in conflict resolution. BICPAJ runs two training programs each year focusing on young people, women and ethnic tribal people of the Chittagong Hill Tracts.

3. Project - Non Violence Training for Youth in Conflict Resolution

The Conflict Resolution training took place over 7th 9th August 2008 in BICPAJ's training center in Dhaka. 31 young people (aged 19 31) took part in the training. Almost half the participants were women, 11 of the participants came from five Districts outside Dhaka City. Six ethnic tribes and four religions were represented.

The training covered the role of Nonviolence, and looked at its context and application within Bangladeshi society. It is anticipated that the young people who are trained will become potential leaders of groups in their home community in economically-marginalized slums located in ethnic tribal areas.

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