Knowledge Bank

Community peacebuilding processes are integral to societal transition after civil wars and other violent conflict. In the last few decades, scholars have identified rituals in community peacebuilding activities as an important part of transitional justice and healing processes for survivors of violence. This study examines the presence and role of ritual in a peacebuilding context, using a peace circle program for women healing from intimate partner violence (IPV) in post-civil war Lira, Uganda as a case study. Drawing from 22.5 hours of participant observations of peace circles and eight in-depth semi-structured interviews with peace circle participants, the study identifies three ritual elements: 1) space, 2) dialogue, and 3) beading/making. The study also identifies two perceived impacts of these ritual elements on peace circle participants: 1) positive changes in emotions and 2) increased connections with other participants. These findings contribute to existing scholarship on ritual in peacebuilding, highlighting that ritual is present in this context. Findings expand scholarship in the field beyond examining immediate post-conflict peacebuilding efforts and formal rituals, highlighting the presence of informal ritual in a longer-term peacebuilding effort that extends beyond immediate post-conflict transitional justice mechanisms. This research serves to draw together scholarship on ritual and the broader field of grassroots peacebuilding, underscoring the role of ritual in impacting personal and relational conflict transformation. Findings overall suggest that ritual elements of the peace circles, at least in the short-term, have positive impacts for this particular group of IPV survivors.