Reconciliation as a Foundation of Culture of Peace

Abstract

One of the most important challenges facing the international community is the peaceful resolution of numerous harsh and violent conflicts. The challenge is posed on two levels. The first involves the temporary management of the conflict; it usually involves negotiation, meditation and arbitration, and rests on leaders and elites, although it still requires support by the general population. The second, deeper, level involves reconciliation. This requires change in the societal repertoire shared by society members. The repertoire that feeds the conflict must evolve into a new repertoire that can serve as a basis for a culture of peace. This latter challenge is of great importance because it both lays the foundations for successful conflict resolution and at the same time prepares the society members to live in lasting peace. This chapter elaborates on the nature of reconciliation as a foundation of a culture of peace. It begins by describing the nature of a culture of conflict, then elaborates on the nature of the reconciliation needed for a culture of peace, and finally describes the needed process of achieving reconciliation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)