Mourning ceremony co-organized by the National Union of Somali

Journalists (NUSOJ) and Somali National Women Organization (SNWO) was

held at the Somali National Youth Center in Mogadishu on Friday 23

December 2011, meanwhile the government announced the arrest of a

suspect linked to the killing of the journalist.



The remembrance ceremony, which was attended by members from the

Somalia's Transitional Federal Parliament, Somali National Women

Organization,…

Work-in-Progress Update (with 28 selected links)

for “IPCR Critical Challenges Assessment 2011” Project

Since July (2011), the main focus of The IPCR Initiative has been on compiling evidence and creating draft versions of a document to be titled “IPCR Critical Challenges Assessment 2011-2012” (as the project is carrying into 2012).  There is an IPCR webpage for this project , which makes accessible draft versions of sections--and posts…

• On Saturday, the Sunni-backed bloc suspended its participation in Iraq’s Parliament after accusing PM al-Maliki’s Shi’ite led government of concentrating power. On Sunday, the last of the US combat troops in Iraq crossed the border into Kuwait after nearly nine years of war, and…

RETHINKING CHRISTMAS: AN ARCHEOLOGY OF MEANINGS

Erle Frayne Argonza

[See: http://erleargonza.blogspot.com/2007_12_01_archive.html]

A Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone else!

That I started with a goodwill greeting associated with the Christmas occasion doesn’t make me a church devotee of which I definitely am not. I have departed a long time ago yet…

Folks, I’d like to reflect on the amazing, whirlwind year that’s coming to a close.  We officially became the New York Peace Institute this year, building upon three decades as a …

http://www.ted.com/talks/karen_tse_how_to_stop_torture.html

• The trial of Breanna (nee Bradley) Manning, the soldier allegedly responsible for leaking hundreds of thousands of secret state documents to WikiLeaks began this week in the United States. Manning is charged with 23 counts, including…

This time of year is ideal for reflecting on the miracle of Christmas 1914, that famous temporary truce and friendship between opposing sides in the midst of a war. Here was a new type of slaughter confronted with a new type of humanism, the leading edges of two opposing trends.

An op-ed in the New York Times last week by…

• Relatives of inmates on a hunger strike in Kyrgyzstanpicketed a pretrial detention centre on Wednesday to demand their relatives’ demands be met. The protesters are calling upon reviews for the inmates’ cases, who they claim have been sentenced for crimes they didn’t commit. On Tuesday, the Kyrgyz Parliament…

Call for Submissions: Peace Education in Action Online Resource

Dear Peace Education Colleagues,

Teachers Without Borders is seeking contributions of narrative case…

Hello, hope all is well!

This week’s conflict reports will be a little thinner than usual, as I have been feeling a bit under the weather the last couple days and haven’t been reading as extensively as normal. Please be sure to add anything I have missed in the comments below or send via email to apeaceofconflict@gmail.com.

Thanks!

Rebecca

• The New…

Summary of story from Georgetown Patch, December 19, 2011

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton this week announced a new effort by government agencies to engage women in the critical processes of peacemaking, prevention programs and nation building in conflict zones.

“Women are not…

''Identity isn't given once and for all: It is built up and changes throughout a person's lifetime...not many of the elements that go to make up our identity are already in us at birth. A few physical characteristics of course-sex, colour and so on. And even at this point not everything is innate. Although, obviously, social environment doesn't determine sex, it does determine its significance. To be born a girl is not the same in Kabul as it is in Oslo: the…

I took a Latin American politics course in college, and the prof told us, à la Jeff Foxworthy, that if a leader wears sunglasses indoors, he's probably a despot. Here are some ostensible reasons why some dictators might've rocked the shades:

-- Kim Jong Il, North Korean Dear Leader:  His lady-who-lunches specs added some compensatory bling to his polyester…

Models of Standards For Mediator Certification Programs

The Model Standards for Mediator Certification Programs stands on the shoulders of those who have previously designed and…

• Fatima Bensouda was formally elected as chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Court on Monday. Bensouda was the only candidate running for the election and will take over from Luis Moreno-Ocampo in June.
• The UNDP has released its 2011 Human Development Report. This report projects a…