One hundred youth around the Lumley community last Saturday gathered at the Lumley Community Centre to pledge that they would remain peaceful throughout the August elections.
These youth also received awareness messages on anti-violence from Global Rescue Mission, an NGO working with the Lumley community.
The country director, Mohamed Jaward, told Awoko that the sensitization drive was aimed at reconstructing the minds of young people in the country-to move away from violence to political tolerance.
He said the workshop for the Lumley community youth was to educate them on critical thinking and its relevance to political decision, educate them on their civic rights and responsibilities and encourage them to be peaceful throughout the 2007 polls.
Mr Jaward said these youth would also sign on a big banner with the pledge “all hands for peace” and that they would remain peaceful throughout the general elections.
He said the banner would be displayed at the Lumley roundabout and that it would serve as a visual message that young people of that community had pledged to be peaceful and tolerant.
The Global Rescue Mission’s director also said that after the workshop they would recruit some members from the Lumley community to become members of a grand alliance of youth who would be accredited to monitor the August elections.
He revealed that they had conducted workshops on non-violence in Kenema recently with funds from the British Global Rescue Mission.
 “Youths have the tenacity to be violent and they are mostly being used by politicians, if their awareness level is raised to the extent that they can be constructive and sensible, then we are assured of peaceful elections and a peaceful state even after,” said he.