2014 Africa Workshops

Drones: Remotely Operated Armed Foreign Relations

Saturday, Mar 22, 2014, 11:00 am

(This workshop was previously scheduled for Saturday 2:45 p.m.; note new time above)

This workshop will focus on the United States’ militarization of Africa, particularly via the proliferation of drones. How will drones, both armed and surveillance, change the way the US operates militarily in Africa? Who is ultimately benefitting and profiting? As the US increases its presence and training, we will examine ways to promote genuine human security and advocate for non-military solutions.

Speakers:

  • Medea Benjamin, Co-Founder, CODEPINK

Moderator:

  • Melaura Homan- Smith, AFJN

Enhancing Unarmed Civilian Peacekeeping: Nonviolent Peaceforce in South Sudan

Saturday, Mar 22, 2014, 11:00 am

This workshop will focus on the cutting edge developments in a “just peace” approach to engaging conflict in the form of unarmed civilian peacekeeping. The Nonviolent Peaceforce has been successfully experimenting with this practice for over 10 years. They’ve been in South Sudan since 2010. They’ve trained local Sudanese and have empowered a women-based peace team. We’ll take lessons from this team, which the UN relies on, and see how far a force for peace can go.

Speakers:

  • Mel Duncan, Co-founder & Director of Special Projects, Nonviolent Peaceforce

Moderator:

  • Eli S. McCarthy, Director, CMSM Justice and Peace Office

Irresponsible Corporate Investors: How Tax Aversion and Trade Rules Harm Communities

Saturday, Mar 22, 2014, 2:45 pm

Corporations are rewriting the rules from international trade to taxes. For every $10 that a country receives in aid, it loses $15 as a result of corporate tax aversion. The reliance of corporations upon corporate tax loopholes and offshore tax havens deprives developed and developing countries alike the resources they need to bring people out of poverty. Tax shifting is estimated to cost the U.S. and Europe approximately $100 billion per year in lost tax revenue. Additionally, we find these same corporations included in the decision making for international trade agreements that impact the lives of millions of people. Is this the kind of power people of faith want to see corporations wield?

Speakers:

  • Celeste Drake, (invited), Trade and Policy Specialist at the American Federation of Labor and congress of Industrial Organizations
  • Lori Wallach (invited), Trade Lawyer, Author and Director of Global Trade Watch at Public Citizen

Restorative Justice Learnings and Opportunities

Saturday, Mar 22, 2014, 2:45 pm

This workshop will focus on the great contributions Africa has made to the development of restorative (as opposed to punitive, as in the US) justice practices. Another key component of a “just peace” lens, these practices have notable impact in South Africa with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Rwanda with the gacaca approach, and in Sierra Leone with fambul tok. What can we learn from these RJ strategies, and what opportunities are there today for advancing RJ practices in spaces of conflict in Africa?

Speakers:

  • Carl S Stauffer, Co-Director, Zehr Institute for Restorative Justice Center for Justice & Peacebuilding, Eastern Mennonite University

The G8 New Alliance, Herakles Farms, & Land-Grabbing: Stopping Conflicts Before they Start

Saturday, Mar 22, 2014, 2:45 pm

As land-grabbing has gained notoriety over the past decade, land grabbers have gotten more sophisticated in their methods of sweeping up key resources and forcing conflict. In Tanzania and Mozambique, the World Economic Forum has held up land in agricultural growth corridors as a prime opportunity for international investors. This initiative gave rise to the G8’s New Alliance, led by the Obama Administration, which pays lip-service to the UN’s land tenure guidelines while creating incentives for large scale mechanized agriculture in the style of land-grabbing. What would Africa look like under the New Alliance? What can we do to prevent resource-scarcity related violence?

Speakers:

  • Doug Hertzler, Senior Policy Analyst ActionAid USA
  • Jacques Bahati, Policy Analyst, Africa Faith & Justice Network (AFJN)
  • Godfrey Eliseus Massay, HAKIARDHI, Tanzania

Roots of African Conflicts: What Role Can Americans and Faith Communities Play?

Sunday, Mar 23, 2014, 1:30 pm

“Oh, Africa has so much conflict!” is an often-heard phrase, but why do Africans fight? What creates these cycles of violence? The workshop will examine the root (internal and external) causes of war in Africa and peace-making roles that American citizens and faith communities can play.

Speakers:

  • Nii Akuetteh, Independent Analyst of US-Africa relations

Moderator:  

  • Aniedi Okure, AFJN Executive Director

Contributing Sponsors & Partner Organizations