Overlapping Topics
30 Apr 2007
Mediating Peace Agreements
Photo by Jenni-Justiina Niemi. Republished with permission from CMI.
This section investigates with issues related to conflict analysis, armed groups, third parties and peace agreements. Conflict analysis, conflict warning systems and conflict indicators (conflict analysis and geopolitics) study the emergence, escalation and de-escalation of tensions. Special focus is given to the various state and non-state actors using violent means in trying to reach their political interests, as well as the various third-party actors that become involved in the conflict to assist the parties in negotiating an agreement. The most typical products of third-party-assisted negotiations are cease-fire agreements ending hostilities and the more complex peace agreements outlining new structures and institutions on how to share power and deal with differences in a non-violent manner.
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Economy and Environment
Source: REUTERS/Mohammad Shahidullah.
Aspects of wealth sharing, resources, unsustainable development and "war economies" create particular dynamics that need to be tackled to find effective solutions to ongoing conflicts. Development aid and the role of business can create situations in which conflicts escalate or continue, despite the best of intentions. On the positive side, however, they can also create incentives for peace and are essential in rebuilding economies and a stable society.
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Justice and Governance
Source: Chip Beck, Neuchatel 2005, external pageHouse of Nationalitiescall_made
The role of international law in the settlement of intrastate or interstate conflicts is becoming increasingly important. Transitional justice and dealing with the past is key to creating cultures of peace. The same people and institutions that must create peace have often perpetrated grave injustice in the conflict. How to integrate notions of human rights and functioning institutions into the governance model is a challenge that requires an in-depth understanding of local codes and practices, and how they integrate into international norms. Building strong institutions and governance structures plays a critical component in preventing a return to violence and creating the conditions for long-term stability.
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Security
Photo courtesy of the United Nations
Creating the security necessary for the emergence of peace requires guarantees that violence will not return. Frequently the UN, among other partier, has played a central role in this through the deployment of peacekeeping and/or peace-enforcement forces. Disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) of combatants, as well as security sector reform (SSR) are two essential processes in stabilizing a post-peace agreement situation. Both DDR and SSR typically require the support – but not the imposition – of the international community to assist this process and give the assurances necessary for it to be successful.
Society
Republished with Permission from Mey Eltayeb Ahmed.
Mediation and negotiation typically occur between a few elite people who represent groups with divergent interests. However, violent conflict impacts everyone in the broader society. Engaging the public and broader society to accept and work with a settlement negotiated by an elite is often a key challenge. If this does not occur, any settlement will lack legitimacy and will find limited acceptance by the larger populations. Forced migration creates tensions both in the recipient communities and societies, as well as when those forced to migrate return "home." Gendered perspectives of mediation and negotiation processes increase effectiveness in finding solutions to violent conflicts, as women and men play different roles and have different needs – be they actors or victims. A violent conflict's impact on children can create a situation that results in conflict resurgence years in the future. Furthermore, conflict can become embedded in the various cultural norms, which are often neglected in an increasing standardization of peace processes. The role of religion can often be a means to allow for acceptance and understanding of differences, or at the other extreme, it can be used as a means to instigate conflict.