From conflict to ownership: Participatory approaches to the re-integration of ex-combatants in Sierra Leone

The demobilisation and re-integration of ex-combatants has become an important element in peace-building. The need for a more holistic, integrated approach, in which there is greater local ownership of the process, has long been recognised. However, putting this into practice remains a challenge. Re-integration ultimately takes place in the community, merging with development and post-conflict reconstruction. This study of re-integration in Sierra Leone uses the concept of ‘participation’ from development discourse, meaning the extent to which potential stakeholders have a say in how interventions are designed and implemented. It finds that participation and ownership are only seen to a limited extent, and only in certain situations.Many of the ex-combatants who participated in this study felt they did not receive adequate or accurate information regarding the re-integration process. This undermines the contribution that re-integration can have to the peace-building project. Participation proves to be a useful framework for assessing re-integration programmes, and for planning the more integrated approach that has long been advocated

Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration: The co-evolution of concepts, practices, and understanding

Programs for the Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration (DDR) of ex-combatants have become more common as an element in the peacebuilder’s toolkit. They have evolved over the last 15 years, and can interact positively with an ongoing peace process. The literature assessing DDR is reviewed in this paper. Results have not always been positive, however. Despite recognition of the need for a more holistic, integrated approach, there are real challenges in implementing such a complex program in a post-conflict environment. Qualitative studies have highlighted these difficulties, and the few quantitative assessments of the outcomes are mixed. However, understanding of DDR is being advanced by a rich policy literature, together with specific “best practice” studies. Recognition of the importance of a participatory approach, and ownership of the process by the beneficiaries, has added to this understanding. The paper concludes that DDR is set to remain an important tool, and that it is most effective when used flexibly, appropriately, and with the genuine participation of those it is supposed to benefit

Disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) as a participatory process: involving communities and beneficiaries in post-conflict disarmament programmes

Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) programmes are a structured approach to returning soldiers and militia members to civilian life. One of the aims is to support implementation of the peace process, by addressing their interests and reducing the chance of them becoming “spoilers”. Since the early 90s, DDR has been implemented in countries emerging from conflict, such as Sierra Leone, Liberia, Angola and Afghanistan. They are now underway in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan. The results have been mixed, and the agencies responsible for designing and implementing DDR are still developing best practice. This study aims to identify the role of a participatory approach as a factor in ensuring success in a DDR programme. Ex-combatants, receiving communities, local implementing partners, and newlyestablished national structures can all be involved to a greater or lesser degree in the process. The argument for greater involvement – a participatory approach – includes better outcomes in terms of ownership of the process and political will, improved likelihood that real needs are addressed, greater relevance for female ex-combatants and children, sustainability in reintegration and economic initiatives, and capacity building

Never Myles from the News: the \u27Meta-Journalism\u27 of Myles na gCopaleen

This chapter will interrogate and assess the substantial body of journalistic work of Irish novelist Brian O’Nolan, considered to be one of the founding fathers of the postmodern novel, as exemplified in his classic works At-Swim-Two-Birds and The Third Policeman. Locating his satirical journalism in the context of the Swiftian tradition from which it stems, O’Nolan’s journalism will be read in the societal content in which it was produced: namely 1940s, 1950s and 1960s Ireland, decades in which the country was marked by widespread censorship, increased Church influence on the affairs of state, economic stagnation and sexual repression. Concentrating on O’Nolan’s ‘Cruiskeen Lawn’ column, which appeared regularly in the Irish Times from 1940 to 1966, under the pseudonym Myles na gCoplaeen, the incredible breath of of this body of work will be considered as ‘literary journalism’. In what sense does it confirm and subvert the ‘literary’ genre of journalistic writing? How is the work journalistic and/or literary? Indeed, does this amount to journalism at all or is ‘Cruiskeen Lawn’ primarily a literary intervention through the popular press by an ambitious writer of fiction? These questions will be considered though a reading of the hilarious journalistic output of O\u27Nolan, as he satirized the emerging Irish state in the pages of the Irish Times, a traditionally Unionist newspaper trying to reposition itself in the new realities of the fledgling Irish Republic

Nothing can Replace our Son

‘Nothing Can Replace Our Son’ is about US casualties in the war in Iraq that began in March 2003. It features parents who have lost children fighting for the US side

Book review: remote avant-garde: aboriginal art under occupation by Jennifer Loureide Biddle

In Remote Avant-Garde: Aboriginal Art Under Occupation, Jennifer Loureide Biddle focuses on the emergence of an avant-garde Indigenous aesthetics in ‘remote’ Australia in the context of the parallel instantiation of governmental policy aimed at targeting perceived levels of delinquency and dysfunction in Aboriginal communities. Peter Kilroy praises the knowledge, breadth and complexity of this refreshingly energetic, sensitive and nuanced work

Zebrafish as a Model to Understand the Impact of Inactivity and Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation on Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

Skeletal muscle plasticity is imperative for functional adaptation to changing demands in activity. Although a great deal is known about the structural and functional plasticity of healthy skeletal muscle, far less is known about plasticity in diseased muscle. Here, we combined the power of the zebrafish model with the adaptability of neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) to study the basic mechanisms of plasticity in the zebrafish model of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD). Four NMES paradigms, defined by their frequency, delay, and voltage, were designed to emulate the repetition and load schemes of human resistance training programs. Additionally, two inactivity paradigms were designed to emulate activity patterns in individuals with DMD. Three sessions of endurance NMES improve muscle structure, increase swim velocity and distance traveled, and extend survival. Endurance NMES significantly increased the number and length of branching for neuromuscular junctions. Nuclear surface area and volume also significantly increased following endurance NMES. Time-lapse imaging suggests less degeneration and improved regeneration of the fast-twitch muscle fibers. Conversely, three days of inactivity worsen muscle structure and decreases survival. Strikingly, inactivity followed by a single session of endurance or power NMES obliterates muscle resilience. Therefore, our data clearly indicate that, at least in the zebrafish model, some resistance training is beneficial whereas inactivity is deleterious for dystrophic muscle. More importantly, though, our data provide a new methodology with which to study muscle plasticity in healthy and diseased muscle