DEVELOPMENT OF PRACTICE

Abstract

In this paper it is described how the work of the Balay Rehabilitation Centre in the Philippines has changed over time as the political and human rights conditions of the country's affected areas have changed. Balay's psychosocial rehabilitation programmes address the needs of individuals and communities and offer support and healing. Originally Balay focused on individual and family-level psychological and social intervention in accordance with clinical diagnoses; however, as the political and human rights situation of the Philippines changed and large numbers of people became victims of trauma and displacement the intervention strategies changed. Balay became increasingly interested in assisting communities to become empowered to participate in their own healing and the frameworks of community research and participatory action research (PAR) are now being explored by Balay as valid methods of integrating research with rehabilitation activities on the community level.

Dans cet article nous décrivons comment le travail de Balay dans les Phillipines a changé avec le temps, comme les conditions des droits humains et politiques dans les zones touchées ont changé. Leurs programmes psychosociaux de réhabilitation s'adressent aux besoins des individus et des communautés, offrant l'appui et la guérison. Au début Balay se focalisait sur l'intervention psychologique et sociale au niveau familial et individuel, en accord avec des diagnostics cliniques; pourtant, comme la situation des droits humains et politiques changeaient et beaucoup de gens devenaient des victimes traumatisés et déplacés, les strategies d'intervention ont changé. De plus en plus Balay s'est interessé à assister des communautés afin qu'ils soient capable de participer à leur propre guérison. Maintenant Balay explore le cadre de la recherche des communautés et celui de la Recherche Action Participative (RAP) comme des méthodes valables quant à intégrer la recherche dans les activités de réhabilitation au niveau communautaire.

Keywords:

• The Philippines
• armed conflict
• internal displaced people
• psychosocial rehabilitation
• empowerment
• participatory action research

Most-clés:

• Les Philippines
• victimes traumatisés et déplacés
• psychosociause de rehabilitation
• empowerment
• Recherche Action Participative

Notes

1. The term development aggression was originally coined by human rights activists in the Philippines to mean attacks on the people's lives in the name of development, which result in the deprivation of their basic needs as human beings. This means large-scale systematic suppression of the people's civil and political rights as a consequence of development imperatives (Casiple, 1996).