MDRP Note d'information n° 3

Questions psychosociales dans le cadre de la démobilisation et de la réintégration des ex-combattants

Juin - Juillet 2008

La note sera prochainement traduite en anglais.

This note is based on the proceedings of an MDRP Technical Coordination Group (TCG) meeting on the psychological effects of conflict on ex-combatants, which took place in Kigali, Rwanda, on June 28 – 30, 2007. Representatives from seven MDRP countries participated in the meeting, which brought together international and national experts and program implementers dealing with the important issue of psychosocial support.

The TCG followed a national confer-ence in Rwanda that looked at the impact of psychological trauma among various vulnerable categories of
persons including ex-combatants. The Rwanda conference resulted in a draft national strategy and actions to be undertaken by the Rwanda Demobilization and Reintegration Commission (RDRC).

When ex-combatants return to their communities of origin, they often discover that their prolonged absence and suspected anti-social acts have given birth to a sense of mistrust within the community towards them, even leading to rejection in some contexts. Confronted by difficulties in reintegrating in their communities, some ex-combatants require psy-chosocial assistance.

In most cases, the local capacity needed to deal with psychosocial concerns of the community and of the ex-combatants is inadequate. At times, there is also a lack of coordination among service providers. The difficulties that ex-combatants face in their reintegration also affect the local communities - poverty, lack of information and ignorance about the resources available to address psychosocial concerns.

It is clear that the creation of psy-chosocial assistance capacities or their reinforcement, as well as the coordination of the various entities in charge of psychosocial support, would result in higher rates of rehabilitation of ex-combatants. The process should be designed to instill a sense of confid-ence in the ex-combatants and positive-ly affect their behavior in society.

Psychosocial interventions require the involvement of every level in the community: government ministries, education and training institutions, the ex-combatants themselves, their families, their communities, inter-national and national service providers, and religious and civil institutions.

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