Jaffna Social Action Centre

This organisation works with people displaced by the Sri Lankan conflict and the communities hosting these Internally Displaced Persons; it works at a community level to improve conditions by providing infrastructure and transforming lives through training.

Overview

Jaffna Social Action Centre aims to protect civilians from all kinds of human rights violations. Our target groups are mainly women and children, often in displaced communities. With children, we work to promote awareness on child rights and take action against rights violations such as child abuse, child labour, sexual abuse, child soldier recruitments and corporal punishments.

With women, we conduct awareness programmes on gender and equality, conflict management, coping mechanisms to deal with alcoholism, and we facilitate the provision of loans. These loans pay for income generation projects in order to reduce the local conflicts which arise due to competition for resources – such as families fighting for food or shelter – and are exacerbated by the national conflict.

By launching joint programmes with the internally displaced communities and their host communities, we have been able to improve their relationship. As these programmes progress, we assist both communities to transform the stereotypes each has of the other. This means individuals recognise and reach for the humanity in each person through the barriers of false enemy images constructed on different ethnicities. We believe this is essential for ground-level peace building.

Our experiences have taught us that ‘do no harm’ theory is extremely important when approaching communities. The theory cautions social workers on the concerns and dangers which have to be taken in to consideration when working with people for the best impact. In following this theory we are sensitive to the relationships among the group members and the community attitude. These conditions differ from group to group so each one requires a new approach tailored to its own characteristics. If these are not taken into consideration, the initiatives can do more harm than good. The people involved live in a potentially volatile environment where danger can be triggered very easily; therefore sensitivity to the different conditions prevalent in different groups is vital for those seeking a positive impact in peace building.

In this way, we have realised that we have to be very careful when providing support for families and individuals. The external support a family receives might result in them being marginalised by the rest of the community, who have not received such support. We endeavour to choose who and what to support wisely through a body of our staff that we have set up which works closely with the local community and with local civil servants. Similarly we have realised that if one trains more people in a job or trade than are demanded by the market to perform that job or trade, one creates unnecessary competition for employment and risks increasing conflicts. Strategies have to be found for dealing with this either at the training level – by training people in different vocations – or at the marketing level – by selling products in a different area.

What Services Are Provided?

· Training in conflict transformation.

· Gender and equality awareness.

· A safe house for women.

· Facilitating communication between Sinhalese and Tamils.

· Psychosocial (counselling) and healing support.

· Vocational training.

Geographical Area of Operation

Jaffna

What Further Information Would You Like?

Information on teaching methods for teaching non-violent approaches to youth other than workshops and similar direct approaches. Innovative mechanisms to teach and practice conflict resolution, vocational training and training in marketing.

What New Contacts Would You Like To Make?

People who work with grassroots communities in direct conflict situations, people with expertise in power sharing and decentralisation strategies.

Associated Organisations

TRRO, WHC, Women In Need