At UN, Bangladesh floats four ideas to engage youths in mediation for lasting peace

Bangladesh has placed four ideas to engage youths in the mediation of conflicts for lasting peace as the role of youths in peace building is being recognised by the UN.

State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam spoke at the UN high-level meeting of the Group of Friends of Mediation in New York on Thursday and shared those ideas for conflict prevention, resolutions and mediation processes.

First, he said, community projects can be developed to train and equip young women and men in mediation, ICTs, life skills and entrepreneurship. With these new skills they can become peace leaders who work within their communities to cultivate peace.

Second, he said, cultural context is also important while mediating for conflict resolution.

"The intergenerational gap that we see in today’s world makes the difference in the way we view a conflict situation and the post-conflict implications attached to it."

“Young men and women have their own view in their cultural milieu. They focus more on their interests in a post-conflict situation, not on the sources of conflict. This world view could have the potential to innovate new mediation technique,” Shahriar said.

Third, the state minister said, there could be initiative at regional and global level. All actors at sub-regional and regional level can also be motivated to play their roles.

“The international community should work to create opportunity for the young people from different regions to meet and share their ideas and exchange evidence and lessons learned.”

Fourth, he said, awareness can be built in the nations to reach out to the young people. The idea of mediation can be included in the academic curricula.

“The curricula may include ownership, leadership, and accountability of the youth in peace building. The national path of actions incorporates this idea.”

The state minster said global events “continue to remind us of the urgent need to engage the largest sections of our societies in peace building efforts.”

“We cannot simply ignore 1.8 billion young minds of our society which includes 600 million young persons who live in a conflict affected area.

"There is no denying that some young people are involved in violence and they are portrayed as a threat to global security and stability.

“Despite this dark side, the majority of youth remain non-violent. Moreover, a growing body of evidence suggests that young women and men can and do play active roles as agents of positive change,” he said.

The UN regards mediation as one of the most effective methods of preventing, managing and resolving conflicts.