The Jah and Kay simulation activity can help us with peacebuilding in many ways. For example; one of the key takeaways from it was that everyone has their own point of view, opinions, and personal context/history. The Kayns were told that their country was prosperous and wealthy; while Jah was corrupt and impoverished. The Jahns were told that they were colonised and finally independent, and were suspicious of the Kayns; despite the good intentions. And it didn’t matter how the Kayns acted or even communicated – because the fundamental basis of our knowledge is in conflict. Personally, I recognised that communication would never be effective – which often caused frustration in the group and for myself too.
Both groups also had good intentions (arguably) but they differed in their interpretations and this was bound to cause tension. Neither of us had the fortune of understanding the other groups’ perspective – and as such we only had a very limited scope out of the whole picture. This is important to remember in peacebuilding activities as we can be so focused on ourselves and our own ideas + priorities without stopping to think about the other group’s view. It sounds really obvious but it’s easy to forget in practice. Furthermore, we all get very defensive very quickly and it’s important to keep a cool head and act on thoughts rather than feelings. It can be really important when you’re dealing with people for whom this can be very personal and conflict is very usual for them.
