Dealing with the past
Trauma healing means a process of restoring the physical and psychological health of the injured/wounded person as well as restoring the
victim’s relationship to the community, nature, and the unseen world. The vicious cycles of violence parts of Kenya have experienced left individuals
and communities with both physical and psychological wounds most of which have not been attended to. As a result, for decades,
communities stand divided along ethnic lines suspicious and distrustful of one another. Over the decades, feelings of intercommunity distrust and hatred
have festered mainly because of historical injustices and other violations having largely remained unresolved. Painful memories have been passed from one generation to another, and as a consequence, present generations continue to hold grudges for violations and historical injustices meted against their forefathers and mothers.
Unfortunately, in post conflict situations, there are always voices urging communities emerging from conflicts to forgive and forget and move on. This according to peace practitioners is superficial and simplistic. Forgiveness and healing come through remembering and facing up to what happened and working through it. It is not burying it under the carpet or in our souls where it will fester and damage. Due to the impact of armed conflicts, many victims and communities at large continue to live with feelings of mistrust, shock, loss through death or disappearance, fear, despair in life because of the violence. A trauma-healing intervention is indeed justified as a way of assisting community members to gain control of their lives shuttered by the experiences of various violent conflicts and as a way of breaking the vicious cycles of violence. So long as people continue living in anxiety, fear, anger, and despair, due to trauma,
people will not participate in any meaningful development however much funds are channelled towards development.
Our Strategic Areas
- Creating, holding and transforming safe and trusted spaces for both individual and communal healing through social healing circle meetings
- Building relationships for peaceful co-existence through dialogue circle meetings
- Promoting sustainable livelihood through community-centred initiatives