These are young Christians and Muslims from all the territories and cities of North Kivu who were sensitized this Monday, May 17, 2021 on the fight against the illicit circulation of weapons and small items.
The activity organized by the organization of young Christians for development OJCD aimed to equip these young people from different youth peace clubs with knowledge of the Nairobi protocol and the Kinshasa convention on the fight against trafficking. small arms and light weapons within the community in order to advocate with the authorities for a lasting peace in the province of North Kivu long scarred by the throes of war.
According to AIMÉE BALIBUNO, coordinator of OJCD, young people are big players and play a very important role in the peace process which must be obtained by blocking the road to the illicit trafficking of arms.
“We chose these young people because we know that young people are first of all the actors, the peacemakers. So for example when a young person is unemployed, he does not have to do it is easy for him to be manipulated, which is why we are in the process of equipping them with knowledge of the Nairobi protocol and the Kinshasa Convention on the fight against the circulation of small arms and light weapons but also to see how to make a plea to the authorities so that there is security and a lasting peace in North Kivu in particular and in the DRC in general ”indicated Mrs. AIMÉE BALIBUNO
The young people chosen, certainly do not work in armed groups, but they have the ability to convey the message until it reaches their peers who are in the bush, thinks the coordinator of OJCD. Thought also shared by ANWARITE MATHE, young participant from Beni. This one promises to go relocate all the learned nations in its region of Beni indicating that all the young people without any distinction, are all living the consequences of the war.
« We are all living the consequences and I think that from what the war has imposed on us, everyone can from that, make a decision to live in peace and no longer illicitly use them. weapons because they are among the sources and causes of the wars we live in. «
« I am committed to fighting against illicit arms trafficking » is what was the theme of this training workshop, the participant Anwarite Mathe, invite young people to overcome any manipulation in this direction because according to her, they have this power to say « no » to this manipulation, while disorienting all these people who manipulate them.
Note that the organization plans to expand its awareness to other layers of the population with the same types of activities in the future. In 2018, she managed to recover several young people from the hands of the groups and since then, these demobilized young people have been supervised in community reintegration activities called AVEC, a satisfactory result éstime the coordinator of OJCD.
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