Supporting Inclusive Peace Processes

Amid today’s dynamic and fast-changing world of conflict resolution, it is no longer viable to resolve major conflicts through a simple deal between the opposing armed groups or elites within a country. Dealing with the deep-seated challenges within a society, today’s peace processes – from negotiations, through to the signing of a peace agreement and its implementation – need to be inclusive. Of course, the armed groups and their rank and file are also to be included in the peace process and must also share the peace dividends that come from it.
“Thus, any serious conflict resolution efforts to achieve sustainable peace need to ensure that all groups in society have the opportunity to be heard and have their concerns addressed,” writes ELDRIDGE ADOLFO in ‘Supporting Inclusive Peace Processes’, a brief published by the Folke Bernadotte Academy – Swedish Agency for Peace, Security and Development.
“The inclusion and voices of the various constituencies from women, to youth, minorities, business communities and more, are now an essential ingredient in achieving sustainable peace. Diplomats, governments, rebel groups and mediators all need to adjust to this new reality of complex peacemaking,” the author states.
Challenges undoubtedly come with new reality, he adds, but research and communities of practice are working to fill the gaps in knowledge on how to best work with inclusive peace processes.
The professionalization of the dialogue and mediation field over the last two decades has meant that there now exists a core body of expertise and a community of practitioners that have gained significant and chartered knowledge on how to work with these issues.
“Another significant step to move forward is to increasingly inform and gain acceptance for inclusive peace processes more widely among conflict parties and stakeholders – including victims, the regional and international community,” ADOLFO states. An understanding of the value of inclusion and its long-term effects on sustaining peace needs to be pronounced more often to create societal acceptance.
Peace processes are costly and inclusive peace processes even more so as they consist of the participation of a much larger community that includes various segments of society. It also requires much larger efforts to run inclusive peace processes, which also cost more in terms of resources.
“Those paying the bill for a peace process must make a cost-benefit analysis of a failed peace process that reverts to armed conflict and the significantly higher costs that creates, against the increased but significantly lower costs of an inclusive peace process.”