In focusing on children whose lives have been devastated by conflict and deprivation, in attempting to return to them the childhood they have been denied and unite them with the families they lost, and especially in emphasizing and reemphasizing the validity of their rights and humanity, Casa Alianza demonstrates a long-term approach to the problems of conflict recovery, justice and stability. The health of a society can be judged by the way it treats its children. Many in Guatemala have had a great deal to say about the threat of street children to society, but Casa Alianza had the courage to speak out and demand that society assume its responsibility for their plight and, more important, for their recovery. Conflict is perpetuated through children, as combatants, and as carriers of the prejudices that are its growth medium. But the resilient souls of children can be even more fertile ground for peace and reconciliation.
Conflict hurts children most, but children can be a vital part of the solution to conflict.
Reconciliation can be one of the greatest challenges of conflict recovery, but it is essential in order to prevent conflict recurring. As we have seen with bitter clarity in recent events in my region, it is very hard at times like this it can seem almost hopeless to hold out one s hand to an old enemy. But it is it must be possible. Often the most useful way sometimes, it seems, the only way to overcome the enmity of previous generations is to enable the next generation, our young people, the future guardians of peace, to meet and interact in a secure atmosphere of trust. Seeds is producing a new crop of young people who form a significant network of future leaders who value communication over confrontation.