AOAV: What does the Peace and Democracy Corporation do?
Ivan Darío Ramírez: We have an observatory in Medellín, Colombia, that looks at the impacts that violence and conflict have upon the population. We publish reports, document cases and we also do political incidence with the local government in order for them to assume their own responsibilities on preventive actions.
We also work on the anti-drugs policy, which has had a great impact on violence.
In terms of the Central American experience, we are working with groups of people, offering psycho-sociological attention, ecological, popular education, using Chinese and alternative medicine. It is not possible to provide individual support due to the high number of victims, therefore we also have various support groups.
Consequently we have been assisting important experiences of resilience and the recovery of self-esteem. We are convinced that, at least in the civil society we work in, we can and have been promoting a resistance response and alternatives to violence.
There are so many groups and stories in the city regarding the promotion and strengthening of initiatives that permit the youth to participate in this type of activities as an alternative to violence.
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