Towards peace of mind

On March 29 2011, a special War Trauma Foundation programme was held during the Movies that Matter Film Festival in The Hague. Two movies were shown, followed by a debate about the usefulness and necessity, methodology and effectiveness of psychosocial care in (post) conflict areas, with experts from Uganda, Burundi and Southern Sudan participating.

The afternoon began with a welcome from WTF Director Marieke Schouten and an introduction to the film "Towards Peace of Mind"; a personal travelogue by the former newsreader Pia Dijkstra of her visit to two WTF projects in Burundi and the Palestinian Territories. After the film, the specific WTF approach was discussed by Frère Emmanuel Ntakarutimana (Burundi) and WTF staff psychiatrist, Mrs. Leslie Snider.

The other film in the programme, "Children of War”, focussed on the care and support of former child soldiers in Uganda. The screening was followed by an open discussion between the audience and a panel consisting of: Jane Ekayu (Uganda: trauma counsellor for children and human rights activist), David Majur from South Sudan (who as a child was abducted by the rebels of The Sudan People Liberation Army and is now advisor for War Child Netherlands), Frère Emmanuel from Burundi (Director of Centre Ubuntu) and Marjolein Duijl (Dutch psychiatrist and researcher with experience in Uganda). The debate was mediated by the Dutch anthropologist and psychiatrist Peter Vent Bird, who provides psychosocial care in Burundi, Afghanistan and the Netherlands, and clearly illustrated the various forms of psychosocial assistance in (post) conflict areas.

also: www.moviesthatmatterfestival.nl/nieuws/nieuwsbericht/220