Mustering up his skills in conflict resolution, Francis goes first to the communities, such as those in the Freetown districts of Calaba and Kissy. He sets up public meetings where victims can release their built-up anger in a controlled environment. One technique to help people express and help deal with their experiences is drama. Villagers act out scenes of rebel atrocities, with amputees describing how armed gangs cut off their limbs. Victims act out their flight from the rebel incursions, and amputees carry out mock assaults on ex-combatants who earlier cut off their hands or legs.
People are angry, and they have been hurt.
If they keep that anger locked up inside, they will lose their balance and will start exploding from nowhere. Outbursts can come in the form of irrational domestic violence. When this happens, something within the person has not been addressed, he says. Many of the former rebels make public confessions of their wrongdoings in such places as churches and mosques. Although the people are still coming to grips with a turbulent past, they are showing their willingness to listen, and even forgive.