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Given the impossibility of holding an awards ceremony for the 4th Hip Hop for Peace Contest due to the SARS-CoV-2 emergency, ICIP has released this video in institutional recognition of the work done by these young contest winners.

The piece features cultural activities coordinated by the Llobregat Block Party group and the participation of ICIP president, Xavier Masllorens; the director of the Catalan Youth Agency, Cesc Poch; and the director of the Catalan Agency for Development Cooperation, Carme Gual. Several of the young winners along with well-known hip hop artists from Catalonia and from countries such as Colombia and Brazil also took part.

The ICIP Hip Hop for Peace Contest aims to promote creativity and draw attention to the commitment of young people in the field of peace. In this fourth edition, the award-winning entries address issues such as the denunciation of bullying and racism, the vindication of the feminist struggle and solidarity with refugees. The winning groups will be able to record their piece in a professional recording studio or participate in a rap workshop conducted by a hip hop artist.

The contest takes place annually and is aimed at youth in Catalonia between the ages of 12 and 25. It receives support from the Department of Education, the Catalan Youth Agency and the Catalan Agency for Development Cooperation.

Democratic societies are immersed in a process of increasing politicization. Political mobilization around highly divisive matters has resulted in a questioning of the fundamental pillars of our political systems, as well as the polarization of the societies we live in. Antagonistic ideological projects are currently generating greater confrontation in societies that are seeing the emergence of new dividing lines due to socioeconomic disparities, migrations, rejection of traditional political institutions or the interrelationship between territories.

Such divisive dynamics often lead to an oversimplification of increasingly complex realities, in the form of populism, and they can give rise to processes of retrogression that endanger the foundations of liberal democracies. The slow, deliberate and constructive debate between antagonistic political positions increasingly becomes the first victim in a climate of constant polarization. Confrontation grows while the prospect for compromise dwindles. The democratic quality of our societies and institutions is degraded, and thus the possibility of advancing constructive dialogues that effectively address the current concerns of democratic societies.

In this context, ICIP, CIDOB, the Club of Rome and the Fundación Cultura de Paz are organizing a lecture series entitled “Polarization and Dialogue in Democratic Societies,” which will take place between January and May 2020, in Barcelona and Madrid. The series addresses the division surrounding Brexit, Trump or Salvini, as well as the situation in Catalonia, where social and political polarization surrounding the bid for independence has been increasing.

Session 1: “Conflict, Polarization and Dialogue in the United Kingdom: Brexit, Northern Ireland and Scotland.” Barcelona, 20 January 2020.

Session 2: “The Case of Italy: The New Conte Government as a Response to the Threat of Populism and Euroscepticism.” Madrid, 18 February 2020.

Session 3: “The Trump Era: Polarizing Factors and the Growth of Populism in the United States.” Barcelona, 16 March 2020.

Session 4: “Protest and Social Dialogue in the France of Macron and the Yellow Vests.” Madrid, 15 April 2020.

Session 5: “Catalonia Inwards: Dialogue as a Mechanism to Strengthen Internal Cohesion.” Barcelona, 11 May 2020.

Session 6: “Catalonia Outwards: Political Dialogue to Channel the Conflict.” Madrid, 25-26 May 2020.

The Colombian Truth Commission has an innovative mandate without precedent in other truth commissions, which involves working with people who had to flee the country during the five decades of armed conflict.

In the case of Europe, in May 2019, the Commission signed a collaboration agreement with the International Catalan Institute for Peace to act as Technical Secretariat, with the aim of facilitating work with Colombian victims, social organizations and institutions in the European countries where these people reside.

The centrality of the victims and their active participation in this whole experience means that the process of working with them can in itself constitute an act of recognition towards them and, at the same time, have the effect of healing and closing the wounds brought about by the conflict. Therefore, for ICIP as technical secretariat, this process with the victims is the main focus of the work, and has been conceived and addressed as an objective in itself.

In Europe, participation has been structured on three levels:

• Nodes or support groups for the Commission. There are 15 support groups in 10 countries: Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Spain (Andalusia, Catalonia, Madrid, Basque Country and Valencia), France and South of France, Italy, Norway, United Kingdom, Sweden and Switzerland;
• Intermodal working groups or coordination spaces throughout Europe in relation to thematic areas: gender, psychosocial accompaniment, recognition of victims, relatives of victims of enforced disappearance, second and third generations in exile;
• Taking testimonies, for which some 90 people have been trained and have contributed to the work of clarification with victims living in European countries.

Specifically, in its role as Technical Secretariat in Europe, ICIP has the following duties:

• Accompany, advise, facilitate and coordinate the interviewers, the nodes and the working groups in Europe.
• To serve as a liaison between the initiatives in Europe and the Commission.
• To inform the Commission on the processes of participation in Europe and to make proposals to strengthen them.
• Assist the Commission in the logistical and methodological organization of activities and events in Europe.

The mandate of the Colombian Truth Commission is to contribute to the clarification of the events that took place within the framework of the Colombian armed conflict for over 50 years; to promote the recognition of the victims and the responsibilities of those who participated directly and indirectly in the conflict; and to promote coexistence in the territories in order to guarantee non-recurrence.

In addition, in a way that is unprecedented in transitional justice processes, the Commission works directly with the Colombian community living abroad, as an actor-subject deserving attention and participation. According to the Commission itself, at least 500,000 Colombians living abroad have requested international protection, and this does not include the second generation or people who left the country without requesting protection status.

The Commission recognizes the importance of including the experiences and voices of this Colombia living outside Colombia in the story of the country that is being shaped. It has therefore generated a territorial deployment at the international level that has involved processes of support for the Commission in 23 countries in Europe, North America, Central America, the Andean region and South America.

In Europe, the work has been guided by ICIP, in its role as the Commission’s technical secretariat, and participation has basically been structured on three levels:

• Nodes or support groups for the Commission;
• Internodal working groups;
• Interviewers for the taking of testimonies.

In this process, the Commission has trained around 90 people to take testimonies from victims of the armed conflict residing in Europe, in order to contribute to the clarification of the facts through a unique methodology with a psychosocial approach.

To promote this support network, one of the main methodological concepts in the process has been to create spaces for participation and coordination among diverse actors: victims of various armed actors who are not organized, organizations of Colombian victims, peace and human rights activists, organizations in host countries, and people from the arts world and from academia, among others.

Along these lines, in Europe, there are 15 support groups in 10 countries: Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Spain (Andalusia, Catalonia, Madrid, Basque Country and Valencia), France and South of France, Italy, Norway, United Kingdom, Sweden and Switzerland. These nodes are spaces for the convergence of people and organizations that meet to join efforts and previous experiences in memory and peacebuilding in support of the Commission’s mandate.

In addition, there are intermodal groups, as coordinating spaces throughout Europe in relation to specific thematic areas: gender, psychosocial accompaniment, recognition of victims, relatives of victims of enforced disappearance, and second and third generations in exile.

On 26 September 2016, the Final Agreement to End the Armed Conflict and Build a Stable and Lasting Peace, between the Government of Colombia and the FARC-EP (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia – Ejército del Pueblo), was signed.

As a result of the Peace Agreement, a series of Transitional Justice mechanisms were created that are part of a Comprehensive System for Truth, Justice, Reparations and Non-Recurrence. One of these instruments is the Commission for the Clarification of Truth, Coexistence and Non-Recurrence, which formally began its work with a three-year mandate in November 2018.  The objectives of the Commission are as follows:

• To clarify the patterns of Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law violations; the causes and factors of persistence, impacts and forms of resistance; as well as the relationship between drug trafficking, paramilitarism and land dispossession in relation to the internal armed conflict.
• To promote the recognition of the victims as important subjects for the transformation of the country; the voluntary acknowledgement of responsibilities by the perpetrators (direct and indirect); and the recognition by society that these violations must not be repeated.
• To contribute to coexistence in the territories, providing an opportunity to regain trust, to learn to engage in dialogue with opponents and to relate to each other peacefully.

In addition, it has the mandate to work with the Colombian community living abroad, as an actor-subject that deserves attention and participation.  According to the Commission itself, of the more than five million Colombians living abroad, at least 500,000 have requested international protection, which does not include the second generation or people who left the country without requesting protection status.

The degree of involvement and participation of the diaspora in the Colombian Truth Commission is unprecedented in transitional justice contexts. This work with victims abroad has led to the creation of support groups for the Commission’s work (also called nodes) in 23 countries worldwide, 10 of them in Europe.

The pandemic of COVID-19 is directly, or indirectly, affecting millions of people across the planet. Although the challenge is shared around the world, each country, each community and each person experiences is it from their own circumstances and uncertainties and, thus, the futures they face are different. Wherever it is present, COVID-19 is disruptive to social dynamics and public policies. This disruption may provoke additional threats to peace and security. However, it could also generate reflections and responses that could construct new realities that are supportive, sustainable and just.

The series “Covid Impacts on Peace and Security” aims at sharing reflections on the consequences of the pandemic around the world from a peacebuilding perspective.

On 28 March, the Colombian guerrilla group ELN announced a unilateral cessation of activities during the month of April as a humanitarian gesture in light of the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This announcement followed the appeal made to that effect by UN Secretary-General António Guterres. The ceasefire officially ended on Thursday 30 April.

In view of this situation, ICIP and the Fundación Ideas para la Paz (Ideas for Peace Foundation) of Colombia have developed infographics that analyze the background of the ceasefire, its implications and possible future scenarios for the country.

The ICIP has announced the call for nominations for the tenth edition of the ICIP Peace in Progress Award. This prize aims to publicly recognize individuals, entities or institutions that, in an outstanding and extensive manner, have worked and contributed to the promotion and building of peace.
The deadline for submitting nominations is July 1st. Submission of applications can be registered electronically, provided that a digital compatible certificate is available, or at any administrative register of the Spanish state, and at an embassy or consulate outside Spain.
The ICIP Peace in Progress Award consists of public recognition, a sculpture created by the Nobel Peace Prize winner, artist and activist, Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, called Porta del sol, and 6,000 euros.
In previous editions, the award was granted to the Coalition of Families of the Disappeared in Algeria (2019), the Mexican organization Cauce Ciudadano (2018), the activist Arcadi Oliveres (2017), Peace Brigades International (2016), the Capuchin friar Joan Botam (2015), WILPF (2014), the ex-general Jovan Divjak (2013), Madres de Soacha (2012), and the struggle of conscientious objectors and “insubmisos” (people who refuse to do military service or any substitute social work) represented by Pepe Beúnza (2011). The same year, 2011, in an extraordinary edition of the award, the Parliament of Catalonia was honored for representing the continuity and legacy of the institutions “Pau i Treva” and “Consolat de Mar.”

The call for entries for the fifth edition of the ICIP Hip Hop for Peace Contest was launched in September. The contest aims to give visibility to the commitment and creativity of young people in the field of peace culture.
As in previous editions, the contest has two categories. The first one is open to students in secondary school, vocational training school and senior high school in Catalonia; the second category is open to young people between the ages of 12 and 25 who participate in youth, cultural, civic or social-educational action centers or organizations in Catalonia. In both cases, participating groups must have at least three members.

To participate, groups must compose a hip-hop piece with original rhymes and make a video recording of its performance lasting no more than four minutes. The lyrics of the songs must be related to the celebration of diversity; coexistence in urban areas or schools; criticism of violence; the denunciation of human rights violations; solidarity with people who are trapped by, or fleeing, armed conflict; or the role of youth in peacebuilding.

The deadline for submitting videos is 1st February 2021, coinciding with the commemoration of the School Day of Nonviolence and Peace (DENIP).

The contest is being organized in conjunction with the Department of Education, the Directorate-General for Youth of the Generalitat of Catalonia, and the Catalan Agency for Cooperation to the Development.

The Coalition of Families of the Disappeared in Algeria (CDFA) was created in Paris in May 1998 by a group of mothers of disappeared persons in Algeria in order to raise national and international awareness about the cases of enforced disappearances that took place during the Algerian Civil War in the 1990s. That same year the association organized a demonstration in front of the National Observatory of Human Rights in Algiers which, since then, has become a weekly event.

Since its establishment, CFDA has coordinated the movement of the mothers of the disappeared and has promoted the creation of various committees throughout France, including SOS Disparu(e)s. The group is currently the only organization that offers assistance and support to relatives of disappeared persons in Algeria, despite the lack of institutional recognition in the country. The organization strives to achieve a peaceful and democratic transition in Algeria with the establishment of a process for truth, justice and reparation and for the full observance of fundamental human rights and freedoms.

The activity of CFDA and SOS Disparu(e)s includes the production of more than 5,400 dossiers with information related to disappeared persons. As a result of this work, the organization reported around 5,000 cases to the United Nations Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. CFDA is a member of the Euro-Mediterranean Federation Against Enforced Disappearances and has observer status in the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

After evaluating all of the entries submitted, the jury of the third edition of the ICIP Hip-Hop for Peace Contest, corresponding to 2018, has announced the winners. This competition aims to promote creativity and give visibility to the commitment of young people in the field of peace culture. In this third edition, the award-winning entries address very current issues such as the refugee crisis, the defense of feminism and the denunciation of violence against women. There were also messages defending respect, equal opportunity, social inclusion and non-discrimination because of race or sexual orientation.
In Category 1, aimed at students in secondary school, senior high school and vocational training school in Catalonia, the winning video clips are:
Salgamos de esta celda (Let’s leave this cell), a video clip created by “Las fugitivas del silencio,” made up of students from Manuel Vázquez Montalbán Secondary School in Sant Adrià del Besòs (Barcelonès), who have won the possibility of recording in a professional studio. The piece launches a message of solidarity with refugees, especially women.
You say you feel sorry for refugees
Yet in the street you glare at them
(…) All of this, as a woman, is even more complicated
Traveling for their future, with children or while pregnant
Without any protection, at risk of being abused
¡Basta! (Enough!), a video clip created by students from Vilanova del Vallès (Vallès Oriental) Secondary School, winners of a hip-hop workshop. This is a piece denouncing the abuse of women and is based on the “No means no” slogan.
If women say no means no
No, no no! Respect!
Tots som iguals (We are all equal), a video clip created by young people from L’Àngel Special Education Center, in Amposta (Montsià), awarded a special mention. In this case, the piece calls for social inclusion, equal opportunity and respect for people with special needs.
There is only one race, the human race
We are all brothers, even if we don’t share the same blood
The only disability is not realizing that we are all equal
In Category 2, aimed at young people between the ages of 12 and 25 who participate in youth, cultural, civic or socio-educational action centers in Catalonia, the winners are:
Infame, caprichosa y estúpida (Despicable, capricious and stupid), a video clip created by young people from the Vitamina project of the Carta de la Pau Foundation, winners of a recording in a professional studio. The video clip also touches on the subject of solidarity with refugees fleeing military conflicts and calls for the free movement of people.
No one chose place of birth
I am lucky not to be hungry
(…) Closing borders is an act that hurts us
We become prisoners of an imaginary line
Diversitats (Diversities), a video clip created by young people from the Torre Bassas Youth Center in Rubí (Vallès Occidental), winners of a hip-hop workshop. This piece aims to denounce prejudice and discrimination, with a particular emphasis also on gender violence.
I respect your sexuality and your way of thinking
Open your mind so that you can move forward
(…) You judge people unnecessarily
Without knowing what they think or what they do
Reflejos (Reflexes/Reflections), a video clip created by a group of young people in work-linked training at Càritas-Girona, winners of a special mention. In this case, the piece is a cry against racism that denounces, in first person, the discrimination that young people experience.
We want to study, we want to move forward
Nowhere do they let us in
We walk down the street while people glare
Because they think, without looking, that we are terrible
The award-winning groups will be honored at an institutional event that will take place at 12 noon on Thursday 28 February at the ICIP offices (Tapineria, 10, 1st floor, Barcelona). Participants in the event include ICIP president Xavier Masllorens and the head of the Catalan Youth Agency, Cesc Poch. The event is closed to the public and attendance is by invitation only.
The ICIP Hip-Hop for Peace Contest, which has reached its third edition, aims to give visibility to the commitment and creativity of young people in the field of peace culture. The event is organized in conjunction with the Department of Education and the Directorate-General for Youth of the Generalitat of Catalonia. A total of sixteen video clips were submitted in this third edition.

The International Catalan Institute for Peace (ICIP) presented the ICIP Peace in Progress Award 2018 to the Mexican organization Cauce Ciudadano in a ceremony that took place in the Parliament of Catalonia on the evening of Tuesday 12 March. The event was attended by representatives of institutions and organizations dedicated to the promotion of peace and linked to Mexico and Latin America in general. Cauce Ciudadano, an organization founded in 2000 by young people who had been pandilleros (members of criminal gangs) has been awarded “for its work in the prevention of violence and the construction of peaceful alternatives for youth in settings characterized by crime, especially drug trafficking.”
The ceremony was presided over by the president of Parliament, Roger Torrent; the Minister for Foreign Action, Institutional Relations and Transparency, Alfred Bosch; and ICIP president Xavier Masllorens. Masllorens began his speech by expressing “dismay at the democratic decline being experienced in various places in the world, including Spain, and concern for every person who accepts cutbacks in rights and freedoms in the name of security.” He praised the work of Cauce Ciudadano for “providing a preventive and positive response to violence, as opposed to the repressive and securitizing measures of public authorities.”
A video on the history of Cauce Ciudadano was screened during the event and the Colombian journalist and writer Laura Restrepo, author of the commentary, highlighted “the organization’s commitment to peace and reconciliation, moral and civic education, reconciliation between the parties in conflict, reparation for damages, non-repetition and respect for the memory of victims.”
In her award acceptance speech the director of Cauce Ciudadano, Erika Llanos, popular educator and the first female member of the organization who is not a former pandillera, expressed her gratitude for the award and highlighted the commitment of Cauce Ciudadano to “transform fear and re-humanize daily life,” with its work both in schools and in prisons, and “to speak with those involved in crime and bring together victims and victimizers,” with a special emphasis on the fight for gender equality and the recognition of women. For his part, the founder of the organization, Carlos Cruz, in a moving speech, defended “a narrative of justice and peace beyond security” to reverse the climate of violence and crime in Mexico, and the need to “listen and love” to build peace and to organize at the social level to create “peace economies.” Cruz also dedicated a few words to Catalan politicians in prison and in exile, expressing his desire for their return home, the same desire he has for the thousands of disappeared people in Mexico.
In the closing ceremony, the Minister for Foreign Action, Alfred Bosch, defended dialogue and justice to build peace and he highlighted the work of Cauce Ciudadano to “make the world a better place.” The president of Parliament, Roger Torrent, evoked the memory of the politicians in prison and in exile, especially Carme Forcadell and the conseller Raül Romeva, “a woman and a man of peace, builders of peace, accused of violent uprisings that never happened.” Torrent recalled that “peace is not just an absence of violent attitudes; peace is built against repression, impositions and threats.”
Previously granted
The first edition of the award in 2011 recognized the struggle of conscientious objectors and “insubmisos” (people who refuse to do military service or any substitute social work) represented by Pepe Beúnza, the first conscientious objector to compulsory military service for ideological reasons in Spain. The same year, in an extraordinary edition of the award, the Parliament of Catalonia was honored for representing the continuity and legacy of the institutions “Pau i Treva” and “Consolat de Mar.”
Then, in 2012, the ICIP Award was granted to five Madres de Soacha (Mothers of Soacha) for their work in favor of peace and human rights in Colombia. The next year the award was granted to the ex-general born in Belgrade, Jovan Divjak, for his courage in the defense of Sarajevo during the Balkans War and his work in favor of the victims of that conflict.
In 2014, honored the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) for its century-long involvement in the work of women for peace, while in 2015 was granted to the Capuchin friar Joan Botam, promoter of numerous initiatives linked to peace and ecumenism.
In 2016, the ICIP Peace in Progress Award recognized the work carried out by Peace Brigades International in the support and accompaniment of human rights defenders.
In the last edition of the award, in 2017, the ICIP recognized the activist Arcadi Oliveres, for his commitment and tireless dedication to the promotion of peace, social justice and human rights.