Communicate with compassion and courtesy
-message of two-day workshop
Stabroek News
May 21, 2003
A workshop, which promotes the use of non-violent communication (NVC) and aims to transform expressions such as 'you stupid idiot!' into life-giving messages, was yesterday opened at the National Cultural Centre.
The two-day event, titled 'The Marshall Rosenberg Seminar on how NVC transforms conflict', teaches persons to resolve dissension by using language that does not send hostile messages.
According to the organisers, NVC facilitates openness and clarity, being honest without insulting, hearing complaints constructively, giving and receiving feedback that supports self-esteem, acting out of choice rather than fear or guilt and responding with compassion in difficult situations. The best kind of communication seeks to transform the concepts of blame (it's your fault...), criticism (that's not good enough), labels (lazy, dishonest), insults (you stupid idiot), threats (if you don't I'm going to...), feelings of self-diminishment including guilt, depression, anger and shame, into live-giving messages.
Mike McCormack of the Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA) in his opening remarks said, "We have been living dangerously in Guyana. We can continue in this vein and go into a political and social free-fall or we can undertake a journey with strangers."
The Guyana NVC Project is supported by various faith-based organisations in the United Kingdom and was arranged by the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport.
The seminar's main facilitator Dr. Marshall Rosenberg is the Director of Education Services at the Center for Non-Violent Communication based in La Crescenta, California. According to Rosenberg, his organisation is trying to encourage the use of NVC in schools and prisons. He was also of the opinion that through the use of such communication, financial and other public institutions would be better able to serve their customers.
Desiree Howells, a Guyanese living in the United Kingdom, planned the workshop for some 15 months.
Dunia Hategekimana, who has worked as a Human Rights Activist in Rwanda, is part of the team of facilitators. He was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo and grew up in Rwanda. He has done work on NVC in many African countries.
Teixeira told the gathering that she hoped to get the Police, Army and Fire Service involved in the project. Staff at her ministry would also be involved.
The Minister made the point that in the process of change, there would be disagreements and how well those disagreements were handled would make the difference.
