Centre for Peacebuilding and Reconciliation (CPBR)

CPBR aims to bridge divisions in Sri Lanka by creating networked peacebuilding groups in diverse areas of the country, simultaneously empowering communities to address their own needs and raising awareness of the similarity of such needs across the country's ethnic boundaries.

Interview

Check out the Sri Lanka Conflict Profile to listen to an interview between Nilanjana Premaratna, an associate with CPBR and our former Local Correspondent on Sri Lanka, and Conflict Expert Sanjana Hattotuwa.

Overview

CPBR Colombo conducts workshops, dialogues, gatherings and camps on peacebuilding and conflict transformation. Through these methods they aim to promote awareness, empower, mobilise, strengthen and unite different groups of people belonging to all ethnicities and religions from different parts of the country in achieving a just, acceptable political solution to the ethnic conflict. The organisation is known as a 'Home for Diversity' based on its theme 'Diversity for Unity' and its workshops that emphasise the importance of inclusion without homogenisation.

CPBR’s approach is to select groups that can make a powerful impact on the conflict and to work with them, enabling them to gradually expand through widespread networking to make their shared vision come true.

CPBR works with the university community, the grassroots community (one dominantly Muslim and two dominantly Tamil villages in the eastern province and one dominantly Sinhalese village in the southern province), media personnel and Buddhist monks. CPBR Colombo focuses on the university community while the three CPBR offices in the Eastern Province and the office in the Southern Province focus on the villages.

CPBR aims to strengthen, mobilise and network these particular multi-ethnic, multi-religious groups around the country to promote and demand a political solution to the ethnic conflict, based on equality, justice and inclusion. The aim is that each groups will take responsibility for the task initiated by CPBR and create a social movement for peace. A social movement for peace emerging from the people is CPBR's ultimate objective.

Through interacting with civil society groups, other NGOs and politicians on matters related to the ethnic conflict, CPBR has realised that the conflict has come to define power relations between the various groups and political parties involved. One group's action or inaction can seriously hamper other groups' efforts towards peace. Effectively combining political power and united civil society power is therefore essential in making an observable impact on the conflict.

CPBR believes that the best way to approach the Sinhalese majority in the south is to promote a power-sharing solution to the ethnic conflict. CPBR designs and conducts programmes that address problems familiar to the Sinhalese from the south such as poverty, unemployment and ignorance of more humanitarian methods of resolving or transforming conflicts. They then connect them with similar programmes in areas to the north or east which are more directly affected by the war. This leads to a gradual process of experience-sharing and exposure that is direct, natural and therefore even more powerful than the awareness given within an artificial workshop environment. CPBR believes this to be the best way to encourage one community to be sensitive to the hardships faced by another community.

What Services Are Provided?

Facilitation, peacebuilding and conflict transformation training, programme design, community mobilisation and consultancy. They also provide resource persons to organisations that work in related fields.

Geographical Area of Operation

CPBR Colombo is based in Colombo but works across Sri Lanka with emphasis on the war affected areas.

CPBR Southern and Eastern offices focus directly on their communities in the Northern (Thirukkovil, Periyaneelavanei, Ninthavur) and Southern (Madiha) parts of the country.

Funding Resources

USAID, UNDP, Mercy Corps, CARE, Peace Direct, Sri Lanka Association of New England, CSWM (Community foundation of Massachusetts).

What Further Information Would You Like?

• Information on institutional funding sources;
• Information on international student peace movements; and
• Innovative methods of combining peace and development, technology and aesthetics.

What New Contacts Would You Like To Make?

• Organisations that work with students and those that conduct projects combining technology, art (as a healing and a communication method), development and other relevant concepts with peace;
• Universities interested in linking with student peace groups in Sri Lanka;
• Universities that conduct peace and conflict transformation education;
• Institutions that organise community and student exchange programmes;
• Volunteer service programmes; and
• Foundations that support new and innovative work.

Associated Organisations

Sussipra/ Koottu Inter-University Student Peace Association, Karuna Centre for Peace, USA.