IMAGINE COUNTRIES A AND B MAKING EFFORTS TO MOVE beyond bitter conflicts and toward a peaceful coexistence. The atmosphere at the negotiating table is stiff with hatred and suspicion; thousands of citizens on both sides of the border have fled, been killed, or been deported during the conflict. Only a slim majority of either society yearns for a compromising peace. But delegates, endeavoring to demonstrate such compromise, meticulously negotiate a new border.
Negotiations emphasize traditional peacemaking parameters relating to the deployment of armies away from the border, the monitoring of troop deployment, and the stationing of UN peacekeeping forces along the border. The countries establish diplomatic and commercial relations and facilitate visitation rights for their respective citizens. The international community provides aid to both countries, simultaneously applauding the success of the agreement. Rumors drift around the globe that the leaders of the two countries are likely candidates for the Nobel Peace Prize.
The above scenario paints a promising and familiar picture. Let us continue on this hypothetical path with the following realistic developments occurring in both countries:
Such a scenario is not farfetched; indeed, it features actual events from several international situations. Years are spent negotiating hundreds of pages of agreements, outlining new borders and intended diplomatic and commercial relations. More time is squandered in deliberating troop deployment, and intelligence technology is installed for its monitoring. Such agreements present a combination of legal jargon and technical, security, and diplomatic arrangements. Yet, even with all the meticulous work that negotiations of this nature entail, neither peace nor stability can be ensured. Peace applies to two societies, not simply to two armies and two foreign ministries.
Our theoretical scenario can be transformed into a different picture by adding elements after the peace agreement is signed:
With these cooperative elements in place, peace has a better chance of being stable and sustainable. However, to move effectively from security-centric concepts to joint social, economic, and cultural components, we must systematically analyze the main areas of participatory peace and decide how to treat them during negotiations, agreements, and implementation. In other words, we need a new peacemaking model that treats these issues as central to the process instead of peripheral.
This book presents just such a model, starting with the four pillars that must be central to every peace process:
These pillars are discussed in detail in the following chapters, along with practical guidance for implementation and real-life case studies that integrate these concepts into peacemaking initiatives.
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