From Johan Galtung's Thought to the Pedagogy on testimony in conflicts in Colombia

Abstract

Introduction: The armed conflict in Colombia has left nearly ten million victims over more than fifty years, which calls for proposals to listen to the testimony of the victims where art, ethics, and education contribute to hearing their voices to reinterpret that reality and find new meaning in their lives. We start from Galtung's thinking to understand peace processes and the importance of generating a culture of peace.

Method: The research is of a hermeneutic and narrative biographical nature and has used a qualitative approach. The objectives have been: To demonstrate the value that victims place on testimony from a perspective that integrates art, ethics, and education, and to identify the relationship between art, ethics, and education for the construction of a pedagogy of testimony. The study population has been the victims of the conflict, and 15 key informants were selected. Semi-structured interviews were conducted, where empathetic and respectful listening was the ethical criterion that grounded the dialogue.

Results: Among the results, the importance of listening to the victims and developing strategies that integrate art, ethics, and education to access their testimony and advance in the construction of stable and lasting peace with social justice stands out.

Conclusions: A pedagogy of testimony is the possibility of configuring educational, artistic, and ethical strategies that allow survivors to give testimony based on respect for their word and the processes they, as individuals and members of communities, have designed and carry out in defense of their rights. It is about promoting their autonomy and respecting their self-managed processes to re-signify tragic events and enhance their resilience capacity.