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Narratives for the Emergence of Forgiveness, Reparation and Reconciliation in Victims of the Armed Conflict in Colombia

Elsy Mercedes Domínguez De la Ossa
María Angélica Aleán Romero
All your life you’re told forgiveness is for you. But we’re never told why it’s for you. It means you’re working on owning your life.
Shani Tran
Therapist and Founder, The Shani Project
Forgiveness is nothing less than the way we heal the world. We heal the world by healing each and every one of our hearts. The process is simple, but it is not easy.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu
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Narratives for the Emergence of Forgiveness, Reparation and Reconciliation in Victims of the Armed Conflict in Colombia

Elsy Mercedes Domínguez De la Ossa
María Angélica Aleán Romero
NO. of participants
Date
2020
Type of Evidence
Type of Paper
Primary Empirical Study
Empiricism
open access
Yes
No
sample size
40

In peacebuilding processes in Colombia, forgiving, reconciling and seeking reparations for victims become necessary and decisive conditions. Previous studies indicate that when negative feelings that arise after a grievance are not addressed, the risks of becoming ill are increased and affect the processes of reparation and reconciliation. In this work we sought to understand the perspective of the victims, in relation to the action of forgiveness and the implications for reparation and reconciliation. The methodology was narrative, with the participation of 40 people who have suffered the effects of displacement. The results indicate that for the victims, although the action of forgiving allows to alleviate the evil caused, it is conditioned by several processes such as the repair of the damages, the repentance of the aggressors and the readiness to tell the truth about the conflict. These results have implications for the construction of a new history.

Research
South America
Policy Makers
Supporting Research
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