Educating For Peace: The Sociocultural Dimensions of Grassroots Peace Education as a Tool for National Reconciliation and Social Forgetting in Sierra Leone

Abstract

The prevention of violence in countries in transition is a central focus in policymaking. However, how to remember the past-how it is regarded and dealt with-remains a major challenge especially where the agendas of different actors and their underlying concepts of justice, peace, and reconciliation do not always go hand in hand. In this paper we explore how the local framing of peace education, and the cultural contextualization of reconciliation have helped the people of Sierra Leone come to terms with the past and transcend their individual experiences as they work to promote national reconciliation. This paper discusses the sociocultural context of peace education in Sierra Leone. It traces and explores the nature of the power of the people and their agency and representation not just in the design and conduct of grassroots peace education in the country, but also in (re)shaping their social ideals and values, belief systems and cultural norms that was created by their local institutions.