A PEACE PROCESS IS A VERY COMPLEXE PROCEDURE – NOT ONLY A QUESTION OF LEADERSHIP

There is ample evidence, however, that third-party involvement and facilitation are effective ways to make a peace process sustainable, so that both parties keep their pledges. We know each peace process contains its own complex and contextual particularities. We have seen this in Israel and Palestine, in Banda Ache, in the Philippines, and in Ireland.

According to Ambassador Thomas Greminger, the Head of the Political Affairs and Human Security for the Swiss Federal Department of Foreigner Affairs, a peace process can be divided into three phases: the pre-negotiation, the negotiation, and the implementation phases. In the pre-negotiation phase a third-party will try to build trust between each of the conflicting parties and attempt to understand their positions, demands, and interests. In the negotiation phase the parties are actually sitting at the table and talking with each other. At this point the parties work through the issues and then sign an agreement. In the implementation phase the agreement is then put into practice. That is the hardest phase, yet the most important part of the negotiation.

Dr. Aland Mizell