Mediation as a bridge for cooperation: ACT strengthens the partnership between community policing and the local community

Ramallah – As part of the leading role played by ACT for Conflict Resolution in strengthening civil peace, the organisation held the fourth meeting of the Mediators and Peacebuilders Network in Palestine, with the participation of representatives of community policing, to discuss the role of community councils in strengthening the partnership between the police and the local community, as part of the activities of the “Mediation as a Tool for Community Peacebuilding” project.

The workshop aimed to develop mechanisms for managing community conflicts and to encourage the adoption of peaceful solutions based on dialogue and cooperation.

The workshop served as an interactive platform for examining the roles of official and community bodies in early intervention to resolve conflicts. Colonel Mohammad Badwan, Deputy Director of Community Policing in the Jerusalem suburbs, and Lieutenant Colonel Mohammad al-Aidi, Director of Public Relations, presented the experience of the community councils in dealing with conflicts.

In the same context, ACT for Conflict Resolution stressed the importance of complementary roles between official institutions and the local community, noting that, on the basis of its practical experience, negotiation and mediation constitute strategic tools for limiting the escalation of conflicts and strengthening community stability.

The workshop also provided space for an in-depth discussion with participants, addressing ways of developing coordination and cooperation, putting forward practical perspectives for strengthening the role of community councils in managing conflicts, and tipping the balance towards peaceful solutions rather than resorting to legal procedures.

This workshop reflects ACT’s approach of strengthening effective partnerships between the various official and community bodies and of establishing mediation as a strategic tool for managing conflicts. It comes as part of the organisation’s ongoing efforts to support civil peace and to build communities that are more cohesive and better able to address challenges in peaceful and sustainable ways.