Mats Utas

Traditional Healing of Young Sexual Abuse Survivors: Global Prospects in the Aftermath of an African War (Nordic Africa Institute Policy Dialogues) Mats Utas

The international aid community has in their efforts to aid post-conflict communities in Africa actively promoted projects catering for the psycho-social healing of people traumatized during wars and violent conflict. To a large degree these projects have been established in the tradition of Western psychology. However a more recent realization has been that in order to efficiently help survivors of war it is necessary to adapt projects that enhance ?local? psycho-social healing.

This policy report locates the structures?that have local legitimacy?which are available to young sexual abuse survivors in the Sierra Leone civil war (1991-2002). To this end, the book discusses a healing complex that comprises a number of overlapping actors, including herbalists, Zoe Mammies (heads of the female secret societies), Mori-men (Muslim healers); Karamokos (Muslim teachers), and Christian pastors.