INTRODUCTION TO PEACE AND CONFLICT STUDIES L#1

INTRODUCTION TO PEACE AND CONFLICT STUDIES

PEACE

Peace occurs between various social groups and is characterized by a lack of conflict and freedom from fear of violence. Commonly understood as the absence of hostility, peace often involves compromise, and therefore is initiated with thoughtful listening and communication to enhance and create mutual understanding. Peace can be defined in a positive direction and in a negative sense. Positively, peace is a state of calmness and stillness; however, in a negative sense, peace is the absence of war or violence.

The term 'peace' originates most recently from the Anglo-French Pes, and the Old French Pais, meaning "peace, reconciliation, silence, agreement" But, Pes itself comes from the Latin Pax, meaning "peace, compact, agreement, treaty of peace, tranquility, absence of hostility, harmony."

CONFLICT

Literally Conflict means the clash of interest. Or can be said it emerge between two parties when they come in relations where their interest of one or the other party suffers due to each other actions or desires. Every individual as well as state has its own interests and wants to retain and safeguard these interests at every cost which leads to conflicts sometimes.

There is no universal definition regarding conflict. To Bryant Wedg conflict is "incompatible interests," i.e., "what one party wants, the other has, and so on. “According to him when one party interest suffers the interests of the other one, conflict arises.

Conflict in this context can be seen on minor as well as on major level. On minor level we can see it between two or more individual and on major level it can be between two or more states. Robert Woito describes it as “inevitably merged into any society in which economic resources is scarce, prestige or status limited or inaccurately perceived; or in which individuals misunderstand each other”. The term conflicts cannot be simply defined in terms of violence and hostility, it also include incompatibility, slash of interests and so on.

PEACE AND CONFLICT STUDIES

Peace and conflict studies is an academic field which identifies and analyses violent and nonviolent behaviors, as well as the structural mechanisms attending violent and nonviolent social conflicts.

Conflict is part of our shared human experience, and commonly exists within our own minds, as well as in our families, institutions, and local and global communities. The P&CS program helps students develop the knowledge, skills, and values that empower them to resolve conflict peacefully. The Peace and Conflict Studies (P&CS) Program is an interdisciplinary program that deals with conflicts ranging from the interpersonal to the global level. The program enables students to understand the dynamics of peace and conflict and to contribute to the creation of more just and peaceable conditions in the home, the workplace, and the world. Students choose from an interdisciplinary menu of courses that explore such topics as conflict theory, war and terrorism, just war theory, the history of peace efforts and nonviolent social movements, community-based conflict management and resolution, and human rights. Students also take practical courses that challenge them to develop greater self-awareness, communication skills, and dialogue facilitation skills.

Conflict as a fundamental part of life forms the (invisible) background of the continuum. Conflicts are part and parcel of life. The decisive question, however, is whether these conflicts are resolved by the use of violence or not. The continuum has been divided into two halves with the civilization of the conflict forming the central pivot. War and peace represent the two extremes. The decisive factor is the degree to which violence exists: If a great deal of violence is present, it's war. If non-violence is the main characteristic - whatever that might mean - it's peace. Actual and structural violence on the left-hand side are opposed by cooperation and integration on the right-hand side.

IMPORTANCE OF PEACE AND CONFLICT STUDIES:

As far as its development is concerned, peace education experienced a number of overlapping phases following the end of the Second World War; some of these phases now stand side-by-side:

·         The first phase, 'individualistic idealistic peace education', was characterized by its individualistic approach to explanation: 'War begins in people's minds'.

·         The second phase, an approach based on political-science, understood war as a political problem caused by the international system.

·         The third phase was influenced by the conflict between East and West, which has since been resolved.

·         Environmental problems with regard to reducing comprehensively violence against the natural environment were also taken up as important objectives for peace and environmental campaigners.

Peace education is understood as social and political education; Social learning as the implementation of the 'teaching principle' to dismantle 'power structures' and to develop participation and involvement of all those involved in institutes. Political (peace) learning should be structured around "key issues.

The capacity for peace is important in being able to understand interrelationships, classify developments and develop independent analyses and strategies for confronting war and violence. In our understand, the capacity for peace is primarily a matter of the capacity to function: among other things, this involves knowledge concerning the causes of war and force, the individual requirements for peace skills and the social and international determining factors relating to these. The capacity for peace also involves attaining an insight into one's own potential and capabilities. This capacity to function can be communicated as a factor of targeted educational work in schools and adult education, or within the bounds of the individually organized learning process in grass-roots organizations. Without the capacity to function, responsible peace education is not possible.

At the same time however, it cannot suffice alone, and further skills must be attained.
Peace activity aims to influence political decisions and development at community, state and international level and can take various forms. In the narrow sense it means taking part in passive acts of civil insubordination against war and the preparations for war. This ranges from blockading rocket bases, which comprised a major part of peace movement activity in the eighties, and fasting, which is used is draw attention to the problems of atomic testing, to refusing to pay your taxes. Today, transnational peace activity is particularly important and ranges from international educational projects to passive intervention in crisis regions. Peace education has the task of encouraging political commitment, in particular because it visualizes the limitations of peace activity and provides the leeway necessary for tangible action.

But peace education must contribute to giving as many citizens as possible with normal jobs and family lives the opportunity to commit, and not just a few especially dedicated individuals who can 'afford' to commit to peace because of their financial or personal circumstances. Peace activity in everyday life can take many forms. It involves finding out information and the courage to oppose intolerant talk at institute, work or the sports club, or oppose violent fancy concerning the effectiveness of military intervention.

The extent to which the capacity for peace, the art of peace and peace activity are harnessed is now becoming clear. What is also becoming clear is the degree of effort required to meet the challenge of peace education.

"Dealing with conflicts constructively is one of the core elements of dealing with war and peace. In peace education, the agreement exists that based on human rights, conflicts needs to be settled without violence or the threat of it. The orientation to established legal norms and conciliatory and mediatory procedures plays a central role in this.

Irrespective of whether one considers conflict to be a facility of mankind’s social disposition, or rather the consequence of varying social interests, the method in which conflicts are settled will continue to be a decisive criterium for the art of peace. Peace researcher Johan Galtung characterizes this relation perfectly with the comment, "Tell me, how you behave in a conflict, and I'll tell you how much peace culture you have".

However, the way and form in which conflicts are settled depends amongst other things on the manner in which the 'essence' of conflict is understood and the functions ascribed to it within mankind’s cohesive existence. If conflict is considered to be an essential driving force in social change, it fulfills an important and positive role - and its dynamics should be used for positive change. If conflict is seen rather as disruptive to the existing order of things or even felt to be a threat, it is more likely to be suppressed and approached as a disruptive component.

New methods of thinking and acting are necessary and called for today, which take several truths into consideration, namely that of 'yours, mine and something else', which draw up a balance between everyone involved winning in a conflict, but that is it possible that all will lose, and that the dignity of the other continually needs to be maintained, even in conflict.

Dealing with conflicts and learning from and through them can make you more sensitive to the conflicts, and contribute to a broader understanding of the dynamics of conflict and help to comprehend the way we react to it.

Peace education can make a contribution to children and young people (and also adults) losing their fear of conflict.

Furthermore, it can also make a contribution to stopping the dynamics of conflict escalating to the point of violence being used in human relationships and between groups, and can also contribute to transforming basic knowledge on settling conflict constructively into common property.

However, peace education cannot create the conditions needed by society to raise violence to a taboo and dam the competitive principle that is so clearly is out of hand. It depends on a variety of supporting and safeguarding initiatives to achieve this."

Peace Education creates the following skills

•           The ability to cooperate

•           The ability to communicate

•           To respect agreed rules

•           To deal with conflicts constructively

•           Understanding

•           Relationships to others

•           Leadership qualities

•           Respect for others

•           Appreciation of effort

•           The ability to win