Angola

In Angola, Post-war reconstruction entails interrelated tasks of economic, political, and social reconstruction. Psychosocial intervention is a small but essential part of post-conflict reconstruction.  Important tasks of psychosocial reconstruction include healing wounds of war; the social reintegration of former soldiers; community mobilization; social integration of displaced people; assistance to mine victims and mine-awareness training; cross-conflict dialogue and cooperation; fear-reduction; tolerance building; truth-telling; forgiveness and reconciliation; and the reestablishment of normal patterns and routines, among others (Wessells & Monteiro, 2001).

Moreover, Western-trained psychologists tend to enter war zones focusing on clinical problems such as trauma. Although many Angolan children present symptoms characteristic of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Large percentages of children had experienced attack and starvation, seen dead and wounded people, or suffered loss of relatives and belongings (Wessells & Monteiro, 2001). Because of the extreme poverty, the anarchic environment in many rural areas, and the involvement of many education deprived youths in the military, many youths have turned to banditry, which remains one of the biggest security problems in Angola today. Socialization for fighting is both a psychosocial impact of war and a source of continued violence. 

In addition, The wider problem, however, is cultural. As constructed in Western psychology, terms such as “trauma” usually have few spiritual connotations. But in Angola, as in many Bantu areas of Africa, spirituality is at the center of life, and spiritual attributions regarding life events have profound psychological implications. Traditional healing in Angola remains poorly documented and must be approached cautiously and without romanticizing or essentializing it (Wessells & Monteiro, 2001).