A training workshop on Non Violent Communication (NVC) was held for community members of the Navakkenikadu and Sumedankarapura villages in Seruwila in the Trincomalee district under NPC’s project Social Cohesion and Reconciliation (SCORE) Activity.

Navakkenikadu village borders Sumedankarapura village, which consists of Sinhala and Muslim families. At the initial stage, NPC conducted a series of dialogues for both communities separately. The mixed community dialogue was a result of an agreement between the communities to come onto one platform to discuss their issues.

During the second phase of the mixed community dialogue, the participants identified the root causes which had led to the situation. Both parties accepted the fact that the wrongdoings were done by a small group while emphasising the fact that the others were honest and respectable people.

As the third and last phase, the NVC training strengthened understanding between the two villages and reduced the threat of violent communication in future. During the session leading members of community were trained in the main aspects of NVC with the support of a trainer from the Centre for Communication Training to guide them on how they express themselves. how they hear others and resolve conflicts on their own.