Johan Galtung at the "Peace Talks with Johan Galtung" forum. More photos

Johan Galtung, father of peace and conflict studies, visited Balay Mindanaw Peace Center on October 26. He is involved in the efforts to resolve 20 conflicts around the world and has brought with him 50 years of experience in conflict transformation work. His presence gathered around peacebuilders from Mindanao, Philippines and even all over Asia who were eager to hear from a seasoned peacebuilder.

Johan's talk was about “Bridging Global Peace Process With Mindanao Peace Initiatives.” This is very relevant for the six peace processes currently ongoing in the Philippines, especially for the GRP-RPMM peace process in which Balay Mindanaw is the independent secretariat. People from non-government organizations, the academe, churches and local government units listened and were mesmerized by the talk. Reactors for the activity were Balay Mindanao chair Sylvia “Ibing” Okinlay-Paraguya (who is also member of the governmet panel in the GRP-MILF peace talks); Franklin Quijano, chair of the government panel in the GRP-RPMM talks, and Rudy “Ompong” Rodil, vice chair of the government panel in the GRP-MILF talks.

Johan's visit set the tone as the take-off activity for the First Action Asia Peacebuilders Forum held at the Balay Mindanaw Peace Center.

The "Peace Talks with Johan Galtung" started with a Balay Mindanaw song which Johan said would be incorporated in the “Songs Without Borders,” a collection of peace songs from all over the world. Charlito Z. Manlupig, president of Balay Mindanaw Group of NGOs, gave a warm welcome address and recalled how Johan’s visit was made possible. Emma Leslie, head of Action Asia, introduced the speaker as a multi-tasker known for his creativity. Johan Galtung is the founder of Transcend Network.

	L-R: Franklin Quijano, Ompong Rodil, Ibing Okinlay-Paraguya listen to Johan. More photos

Galtung told the peace advocates that “You are not alone.” That there are many like them everywhere struggling to build peace. He also pointed some tips for the peace processes here in Mindanao, that it is critical to have “joint projects” for both parties and try to achieve “positive peace.” By positive peace he means that both parties can say “your well-being is my well-being and your suffering is my suffering.” He also said that “a ceasefire without a peace process won’t work.” Ceasefire, he says, is “negative peace,” which is like saying “let us not destroy each other” but does not resolve the root causes of the conflict. Throughout the talk he cited concrete examples from his experience in mediating conflicts from around the world.

He recommended a federal form of government but warned that proponents must be more creative in achieving it. He said “that between devolution and federation, there is room for creativity.”