In Afghanistan traditional assemblies have been recreated with young people in order to encourage citizenship and motivate people to participate in local government elections as candidates.

In Iraq, tremendous work was being done with women’s groups in exposing them to constitutional debates and enabling them to visit other countries in the run up to their postwar constitution, referenda and elections.

In Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the focus was largely on elections, but some constitutional education was also undertaken.

In Bosnia Civitas established a school based civic education programme using local co-ordinators.

In Sierra Leone, key institutions of democracy such as the National Commission for Democracy and the National Electoral Commission have undertaken programmes focused on peace education and elections with the youth as the key target.

Postwar societies which have been able to develop an international or domestically supported reconstruction programme are able to introduce a range of educational programmes.

These are often linked, as in Angola, with civil society strengthening programmes – where domestic organisations start to take up the space that has been created by a peace agreement or ceasefire. In some, they are linked with the creation of new election management bodies or statutory institutions. And of course it is essential that civic education programmes are a part of any demobilization activities, especially but not only for child soldiers.

All these programmes battle against the conditions in the country after the war – damaged people and infrastructure, embryonic institutions, and inevitably unresolved fighting in certain regions. These conditions were no different after the World War II, and there are lessons to be gained by looking at Europe and Japan in the early days after this particular war – whether for educational interventions, constitutional debates and processes, or for developing visions of hope in societies which are perhaps closer to their immediate conflicts.

Education will often focus on the peace arrangements and peace treaties, on building tolerance between previously warring factions, and on the proposed transitional arrangements. Often these include waves of elections and referenda – on timetables necessary to keep a treaty alive but invariably under strain which adds to citizen confusion and insecurity.