What is negative peace and positive peace? What is a stable, unstable and lasting peace?
Civil Education Brochure on Peace, the Constitution and Elections
Prepare: Road Center
Translated by moatinoon
Negative peace is the prevention of war, means the cessation of war, hostilities and security without addressing the root causes of the conflicts recurrence. Negative peace prevails when all the conflicting parties maintain their military forces because they view each other as enemies and confidence has not yet been built.
Positive or stable peace is addressing the structural or structural causes of war within society. Activities and programmes aimed at addressing the root causes of conflict are therefore conducive to lasting peace, which is what is meant by welcome peace. Negative peace is therefore linked to peacekeeping, while positive peace is linked to peacebuilding.
Many people mingle the distinction between terminology used in conflict resolution intervention processes and methods and the extent to which it relates to past concepts, such as peacemaking concepts, peacekeeping, peacebuilding and a culture of peace. How can we differentiate between these terms used?
Peacekeeping and conflict resolution (Peace Keeping and Conflict Resolution) is the process of preventing conflicting parties from fighting, conflict or violence from spreading through the intervention of third parties such as the military or the police. Peacekeeping focuses on conflict or violence, although it can be part of a lengthy process of peacekeeping in conflict-free societies, or peacekeeping in war-affected societies.
Peacekeeping may aim at stopping violence and creating a post-conflict climate for the peacebuilding process. (e.g., peacekeepers in Darfur or Abyei), and efforts could include monitoring of the ceasefire. Conflict resolution is a step that usually follows the process of conflict management, is the process of assisting parties in understanding the sources of conflict and the needs and themes of other parties (such as recognition of ethnic or religious identity, access to resources, form of governance, etc.), and is working to create the necessary arrangements for the sustainability of conflict resolution.
Peacemaking and Conflict Management: Helping the parties to reach a negotiating agreement by focusing on a specific conflict resolution. Peacemaking occurs when the parties acquiesce in resolving specific issues through negotiations or/and other ways such as dialogue. Activities include formal negotiations or efforts to bring in disputing parties and assist them in reaching a solution. Sometimes intervention is made to impose the peace process under the name of peacemaking (such as the Juba Peace Agreement). Conflict management is to assist the disputing parties in reaching an understanding leading to a cessation of hostile or violent behaviour. Work to calm complex conditions to reach the appropriate point for targeting sources of conflict.
Peacebuilding and conflict transformation: focuses on transforming societys relationships and structures to mitigate the likelihood of conflicts occurring in a similar way to the future. Peacebuilding is defined as the process of intensifying efforts to address the root causes of conflicts in a way that does not allow those conflicts to repeat the process of violence or war again. Peacebuilding is also an initiative based on steps to build relationships and mutual interests, provide integrated development to benefit constructively from differences, while at the same time building structures, institutions, and systems and creating conditions that encourage, learn and guide those steps.
For some years, peacebuilding has been seen as a post-conflict and post-violence process. They include, for example, dialogue processes, reconciliation efforts and institution-building. Therefore, over the past two decades, peacebuilding has replaced conflict resolution as a more comprehensive term. This has become a special reality for practitioners of the peace process, and for policymakers who sometimes shorten the conflict resolution process into specific tools, including negotiation, mediation, facilitation, conflict analysis, communication skills and theoretical basis. In contrast, the peacebuilding process is seen as a broader approach to consolidating long-term relations and the structural change required to move them towards peace. The peacebuilding process is linked to the transformation of conflict and is the transformation of the parties relations from negative to positive or friendly by targeting the sources and subjects of conflict. Through problem-solving workshops, the formation of reconciliation committees, fact-finding, capacity-building and training of the parties involved in the conflict in conflict conversion techniques.
Peacebuilding is a three-pronged process:
First, peacebuilding is a specialized process linked to individuals working in government institutions, multipurpose organizations and specialists in peacebuilding and conflict prevention.
Second: Peacebuilding is a sectoral process involving different sectors including development, humanitarian assistance, democracy and human rights.
Third: The peacebuilding process includes a package of tools linked to the way programmes are implemented across sectors.
Culture and peacebuilding: A culture of peace is inseparable from peacebuilding. While the peacebuilding methodology works to rebuild structures and relationships within society, a culture of peace makes peace a dynamic structure, preventing conflict or making it possible to resolve it peacefully without resorting to violence. Some have focused on rejecting the culture of violence in childrens upbringing and emerging. Others, notably the United Nations, have focused on the overall concept of a culture of peace. A culture of peace is defined as a set of values, attitudes, traditions, behaviours and lifestyles based on:
• Respect for life, reject violence and promote the practice of non-violence through education, dialogue and cooperation.
• Full respect for the principles of sovereignty, regional integrity and political independence of States and non-interference in matters that are essentially within the domestic jurisdiction of any State.
• Full respect for and promotion of all human rights and fundamental freedoms
• Commitment to resolve conflicts by peaceful means.
• Make efforts to meet the development and environmental needs of present and future generations.
• Respect and promote the right to development.
• Respect for and promotion of equal rights and opportunities for women and men.
• Recognition of everyones right to freedom of expression, opinion and information.
Uphold the principles of freedom, justice, democracy, tolerance, solidarity, cooperation, pluralism, cultural diversity, dialogue and understanding at all levels of society and among nations, supported by an enabling national and international environment that promotes peace.
