In societies already facing momentous hurdles in pulling themselves out of hate, agony, and sheer chaos to achieve some level of reconciliation and forgiveness that provides a future to the region, the pervasive presence of such a large segment of traumatized members in all areas of these societies poses perhaps the most formidable barrier to peace. Currently many NGO and official governmental efforts are underway to meet the physical needs of medical care, food, shelter, and clothing. There is, however, a dire lack of services addressing the effects of deep emotional trauma on individuals, their families, and ultimately their communities. Without these urgently needed services it is expected the trauma of violent physical, sexual and emotional abuse, loss of loved ones and neighbors, loss of homes, and dramatic decline in daily life, will continue for each person, and in doing so into the next generations and future of the societies in general. It is imperative to not only the present but to the future that victims on all sides are assisted in healing and recovering from their tragic experiences.
True recovery can then better lead to lasting peace.
As a result of a special 3 hour roundtable on the Balkans held during the 7th Annual International Conference on Conflict Resolution in St. Petersburg, Russia in May. 1999, and subsequent dialogues with key representatives participating from each of the Balkan countries, trauma recovery in particular was acutely accented and Common Bond Institute was asked to assist in addressing it. The latest assessment conducted by the United Nations Inter-Agency Needs Assessment Mission highlights widespread psychological trauma in the population and the unmet need for both direct treatment and training local workers in trauma recovery. A rapidly growing number of NGO and government authorities in the Balkans , officially support and assist this project. Local NGO's cooperate as site hosts to provide and coordinate site logistics, access to refugee locations, and identifying trainees. Municipal and regional governmental authorities endorse and lend official support to the project.