Page 102 - Empowerment and Protection - Stories of Human Security

advocacy, awareness raising, multi-stakeholder dialogues and direct actions. These are done in partnership with grassroots communities, civil society organisations and networks, non-state actors, and multilateral and state bodies. Within
and across these contexts, core issues such as armed conflict, impunity, culture, ethnicity and identity- based marginalisation, culture of peace, citizens’ participation, peace process, and people-centred security are addressed.
Ukraine
A total of 71 people were interviewed in two culturally and geographically distinct localities: Kyiv, the capital city of Ukraine, with a population that together with the commuters and incoming labour migrants is an estimated 4 million, and Simferopol, the administrative centre of Ukraine’s southernmost region of the Crimea with a population of slightly below 400,000. Fifty-five people were interviewed in Kyiv and sixteen in Simferopol. The interview samples are based on the best local demographic estimates available
for both research sites, and, at least in the case of Kyiv, were also deemed to be proportionally representative. Interviews included three questions:
1. What are the situations that could happen in Kyiv/ Simferopol that you would call insecure?
2. Did any such situation ever happen to you, your friends, people you know?
3. Whom can you turn to for help in such situations?
The analysis of this information involved grouping the responses into the main categories of issues that people raised, and may be read as a collective statement on what people fear, how they cope and the adequacy of the state. On issues related to poverty, the authors point out that both Kyiv and Simferopol have better employment and income opportunities than other areas of the country.
To assess the relevance of freedom from want
as a human security factor in Ukraine in general, specific research would need to be conducted
in other geographic areas with higher levels of poverty such as Ternopil, Rivne, Sumy regions, and Northern Crimea.
Zimbabwe
The Ecumenical Church Leaders Forum (ECLF) team collected the data through in-depth interviews with community individuals. The interviewees were selected on the basis of their positions of leadership and influence in the community, to provide insights on the views
of community members. A total of 153 people were interviewed. To guarantee a variety of responses and to capture the different experiences, the respondents were selected amongst both employed and unemployed people (with
different employment sectors represented). Both consideration of gender and age were taken on board. Interviewees included ordinary members of the community, community leaders, chairpersons of residence associations, as well as traditional leaders, village heads, church leaders, political leaders, chaplains, peacebuilders, and government workers amongst others. To avoid sensitivities
and ensure that participants felt free to share
their views, the ECLF team chose to conduct direct interviews – instead of having focus group discussions – starting by building confidence and trust with the participants. Due to sensitivities, the research team met some challenges in accessing the interviewees, some refusing to have their picture taken, or to sign the consent forms,
while others wanted their testimonies to remain anonymous. It was therefore decided that the identity of the interviewees will be protected in this report.
Before starting the field interview research, it was critical that the ECLF team had a common understanding of human security before delving into an in-depth discussion on the subject. A number of areas which needed investigation
fffffff102 stories of Human security | A Methodology for huMAn Security