Reconciliation Now!: Difference between revisions

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==Project background and justification==
Over the last year, a series of political developments have once again attracted international attention and paved the way for new, grassroots peace building initiatives that aim at reaching a lasting solution to the Cyprus problem.
The collapse of the talks between the leaders of the two communities at The Hague in December 2002, an unprecedented popular mobilization of Turkish Cypriots, and the signing of the Cyprus Accession Treaty by the European Union (EU) all created pressure that eventually led to a partial opening of the border.  This has allowed crossings of the Green Line beginning in late April 2003.  More than half a million Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots crossed for the first time since 1974.  Most of them visited their previous homes, a very painful process that was handled with extreme responsibility by the majority of Cypriots.  Out of hundreds of thousands of crossings, only on a few occasions were tensions or expressions of violence observed.  This positive public behavior can be partly attributed to the dedicated and persistent work of peace-builders that took place during the past ten years. 
Because of a 30-year economic embargo against the Denktas regime, the economy of Northern Cyprus remains severely depressed.  Thus, another important outcome of the border opening is that citizens have now also begun thousands of cross-community economic transactions.  This small capital injection has boosted the morale of Turkish Cypriots, and may be contributing to the reduction of the number leaving the island in search of better living conditions.  More significantly, the United Nations and the EU have also begun to provide some resources for economic collaboration and promoting interactions between the Turkish and Greek Cypriot business communities.  In the next few years, with Cyprus’s accession to the EU, resource commitments in support of economic advancement programs are expected to continue to grow significantly, although the amount flowing into Northern Cyprus will ultimately depend upon whether Cyprus accedes to the EU as a divided or a united nation.
Overall, Cypriot citizens’ actions during the past months have demonstrated their strong desire to live together in cooperation and harmony, sending a message to politicians that is becoming harder to ignore.  Many activists and observers believe that the window of opportunity to solve the Cyprus problem is once again open, but for a limited time. Civil society groups are faced with the challenge of intensifying and becoming more strategic in their peace efforts, ensuring that a culture of peace and cooperation survives and flourishes in the post-settlement era. Our project, "Reconciliation Now intends to do exactly that. The project, as noted above concetrates on three pillars: <br>
During the implementation of the '''Reconciliation Now!''' contract, a number of different sub-projects were implemented:
# Media Literacy Project (including follow-up projects/activities related to the 2002 Young Journalists Project)
# North-South Economic Cooperation Project
# Improving the Capacity of Cypriot NGOs to Plan and Manage Bicommunal Projects
The goal of the Reconciliation Now! program was to contribute to the peace and reconciliation process in Cyprus by supporting projects that expand opportunities for Greek and Turkish Cypriots to cooperate in three strategic areas, namely:
* Media development and responsible journalism;
* Economic cooperation (ie. training and technical assistance to support joint business ventures); and
* Strengthening the capabilities of Cypriot civil society to plan and manage bicommunal programs that will create opportunities for Cypriots throughout the island to participate in citizen dialogue and access conflict resolution training and mediation opportunities.
==Reconciliation Now-Project objectives==
==Reconciliation Now-Project objectives==


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Public Forums, Group Discussions and Promoting Media Literacy: Open forums and presentations will be organized in locations throughout the country on current and “hot issues” with the purpose of increasing public awareness, facilitating structured citizen dialogue and promoting media literacy.  Citizens will also be given opportunities to participate in conflict resolution training programs, facilitated by a core group of senior trainers, through these public forums.   
Public Forums, Group Discussions and Promoting Media Literacy: Open forums and presentations will be organized in locations throughout the country on current and “hot issues” with the purpose of increasing public awareness, facilitating structured citizen dialogue and promoting media literacy.  Citizens will also be given opportunities to participate in conflict resolution training programs, facilitated by a core group of senior trainers, through these public forums.   


==Project background and justification==
Over the last year, a series of political developments have once again attracted international attention and paved the way for new, grassroots peace building initiatives that aim at reaching a lasting solution to the Cyprus problem.
The collapse of the talks between the leaders of the two communities at The Hague in December 2002, an unprecedented popular mobilization of Turkish Cypriots, and the signing of the Cyprus Accession Treaty by the European Union (EU) all created pressure that eventually led to a partial opening of the border.  This has allowed crossings of the Green Line beginning in late April 2003.  More than half a million Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots crossed for the first time since 1974.  Most of them visited their previous homes, a very painful process that was handled with extreme responsibility by the majority of Cypriots.  Out of hundreds of thousands of crossings, only on a few occasions were tensions or expressions of violence observed.  This positive public behavior can be partly attributed to the dedicated and persistent work of peace-builders that took place during the past ten years. 
Because of a 30-year economic embargo against the Denktas regime, the economy of Northern Cyprus remains severely depressed.  Thus, another important outcome of the border opening is that citizens have now also begun thousands of cross-community economic transactions.  This small capital injection has boosted the morale of Turkish Cypriots, and may be contributing to the reduction of the number leaving the island in search of better living conditions.  More significantly, the United Nations and the EU have also begun to provide some resources for economic collaboration and promoting interactions between the Turkish and Greek Cypriot business communities.  In the next few years, with Cyprus’s accession to the EU, resource commitments in support of economic advancement programs are expected to continue to grow significantly, although the amount flowing into Northern Cyprus will ultimately depend upon whether Cyprus accedes to the EU as a divided or a united nation.
Overall, Cypriot citizens’ actions during the past months have demonstrated their strong desire to live together in cooperation and harmony, sending a message to politicians that is becoming harder to ignore.  Many activists and observers believe that the window of opportunity to solve the Cyprus problem is once again open, but for a limited time. Civil society groups are faced with the challenge of intensifying and becoming more strategic in their peace efforts, ensuring that a culture of peace and cooperation survives and flourishes in the post-settlement era. Our project, "Reconciliation Now intends to do exactly that. The project, as noted above concetrates on three pillars: <br>
During the implementation of the '''Reconciliation Now!''' contract, a number of different sub-projects were implemented:


# Media Literacy Project (including follow-up projects/activities related to the 2002 Young Journalists Project)
# North-South Economic Cooperation Project
# Improving the Capacity of Cypriot NGOs to Plan and Manage Bicommunal Projects
The goal of the Reconciliation Now! program was to contribute to the peace and reconciliation process in Cyprus by supporting projects that expand opportunities for Greek and Turkish Cypriots to cooperate in three strategic areas, namely:
* Media development and responsible journalism;
* Economic cooperation (ie. training and technical assistance to support joint business ventures); and
* Strengthening the capabilities of Cypriot civil society to plan and manage bicommunal programs that will create opportunities for Cypriots throughout the island to participate in citizen dialogue and access conflict resolution training and mediation opportunities.


==Media Literacy==
==Media Literacy==
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