LaOnf, Arabic for “No Violence,” is a coalition of Iraqi civil society organizations which is working to bring peace to Iraq through nonviolent actions that gain and amplify popular support among Iraqis of all religious and ethnic backgrounds. The coalition’s hopeful message is being acted on in all of Iraq’s18 governorates (provinces) during a “Week of Nonviolence,” October 11-16. The week will see locally-organized activities created to spread support for LaOnf’s goals: ending sectarian violence and foreign occupation, and promoting transparent and accountable governance.

The message of this Week -- it is the third annual Week of Nonviolence for LaOnf since its inception in 2006 -- focuses on how the upcoming elections in the governorates can be made safe, free and inclusive of all of Iraq’s peoples, so that the nation’s civil society can function effectively and democratically. Provincial elections are scheduled to be held by January 31, 2009, according to the compromise legislation passed by the Iraqi Parliament earlier this month.

LaOnf has called for the elections to consist of an open list of individual candidates rather than having political parties as the only voting options, as was the case in the last election. The importance of personal safety at the polls is paramount, and LaOnf specifies that polls should be guarded by Iraqi police, with the Iraqi Army as back-up, to maintain neutrality at the polls and allow everyone to vote regardless of sectarian, ethnic or religious affiliation or gender. Iraqi militias and US troops must be kept away from polling places, LaOnf says, to ensure fair and open elections.

LaOnf is also calling on the candidates to fully explain to the voters each of their programs for rebuilding the country’s infrastructure, their plans for creating employment, as well as explaining their positions on the rights of women, the right of free speech, and how a culture of nonviolence can be promoted in Iraq.

In all governorates of Iraq, democratically elected LaOnf coordinators have organized myriad activities to bring these goals to their fellow citizens. From Anbar to Basra and Kurdistan to Muthanna, most of the Week’s activities are to be substantive: they include conferences and workshops, youth soccer games, radio and television programs, community meetings, some aimed specifically at youth and women, cultural festivals, distribution of posters and literature, art exhibitions, visits to religious figures, meetings with provincial governors and other officials, and visits with party officials and clan chiefs. Others are symbolic: in Kirkuk and Erbil, community participants will release flocks of doves to signal their hopes for a peaceful future.

Rapid growth has marked the organization’s membership in the two years since its inception, and over 100 groups have joined.  With no barriers to membership other than an acceptance of their basic tenets concerning nonviolence, members are Sunni, Shia, Kurd, Turkman, Christian, and include both men and women in the membership and governing body.

Since its founding in 2006 by a few individuals, LaOnf’s influence has spread from Baghdad throughout all the governorates, where they conduct nonviolence training sessions and workshops on a continuing basis and distribute literature and posters. Specific campaigns have targeted problem areas. One such campaign against life-like war toys began by trading soccer balls for toy guns, and then expanded to lobbying efforts. In too many instances soldiers shot and killed children carrying life-like toy weapons. LaOnf’s campaign has now resulted in legislation banning the sale of war toys in Muthanna. LaOnf activists hope to see national legislation passed in the near future.

LaOnf’s activities take place in an atmosphere of constant strife, often threatening the activities and the lives of members on a daily basis. To aid them in their mission, September Eleventh Families for Peaceful Tomorrows has undertaken to broadcast LaOnf’s story to Americans. Peaceful Tomorrows, founded by family members of 9/11 victims, seeks just and effective nonviolent responses to violence, and works with people similarly affected by violence throughout the world.

For further information: www.peacefultomorrows.org     www.laonf.org