Miss. Nwamaka Asuzu is one of staff who recently graduated from the Imo State University and has a degree in political science. On Monday I gave her an assignment to do a research on the possibility of achieving peace in a society torn apart by conflicts and the outcome f the extensive research she conducted from a variety of online sources were unprecedented and were substantially in support of my fundamental belief that social justice and equity were imperative if peace must be achieved in a society torn apart by tumultuous civil/religious conflicts like Jos, the Plateau state capital.
Nwamaka Asuzu found out from her research that the greatest challenge that the human race has ever faced still remains: to live in a world free of the threat of violence. Violence is not restricted to times of war, it exists everywhere, in homes, schools and communities, where there is injustice, there is conflict.
Nwamaka Asuzu found out from her research that the greatest challenge that the human race has ever faced still remains: to live in a world free of the threat of violence. Violence is not restricted to times of war, it exists everywhere, in homes, schools and communities, where there is injustice, there is conflict.
Some argue that much of the conflict in the world can be attributed to the existence of an oppressive social system of power that reinforces differences between groups and allows one group to have power or privilege over another group, conflict at the local and international level can stem from exploitation, poverty, corrupt governance, resources scarcity, and dehumanizing belief among other salient causative factors identified by the variety of experts she consulted while doing the research which was basically set out to provide possible guide on how to achieve transparent peace in Jos, Plateau state and other North Eastern parts of Nigeria.
She dicovered that one popular theory states that as long as the global system relies on exploitive, oppressive and hierarchical relationships, there will likely exist conflict and peace not possible to achieve. Another prevailing conflict theory says that conflict is inherent and constant, but when positively managed it can be a productive force.
My research assistant found out that at a level, many grassroots organizations work directly with their communities to counter conflict with preventive strategies through educational campaigns as well as support services for those recovering from violence. Whether individually or in a group, we as global citizens have a responsibility to promote a culture of peace, and resolve differences without resorting to conflict. These measures are hereby recommended to the political, religious and ethnic leaders in Nigeria so as to achieve real peace in most troubled spots in Northern Nigeria and all across the entire country.
One way people have been addressing atrocities of the past is through the use of apologies and reparations, according to her findings.
Experts believe that an apology in this case, is a statement of regret that publicly acknowledges the occurrence and severity of the act of injustice committed and reparations refers to a practical action that has been taken, such as paying money to the victims, to remedy the wrong that has been done.
She discovered that apologies however, can only symbolically address wrongs that have been committed, while reparations are more tangible representations of the offenders willingness to begin repairing the relationship between offenders and offended.
Experts believe that an apology in this case, is a statement of regret that publicly acknowledges the occurrence and severity of the act of injustice committed and reparations refers to a practical action that has been taken, such as paying money to the victims, to remedy the wrong that has been done.
She discovered that apologies however, can only symbolically address wrongs that have been committed, while reparations are more tangible representations of the offenders willingness to begin repairing the relationship between offenders and offended.
A number of conflict theorist and practitioners, including Paul Lederach advocates the pursuit of “conflict transformation” as opposed to conflict management.
According to this expert, “Conflict resolution” implies that conflict is bad-hence something that should be ended. It also assumes that conflict is a short term phenomenon that can be ‘resolved’ permanently through mediation or other intervention processes. “Conflict management” correctly assumes that conflict are long term processes that often cannot be quickly resolved, but the notion of “management” suggests that people can be directed or controlled as though they were physical objects. In addition, the notion of management suggests that the goal is the reduction or control of volatility more than dealing with the real source of the problem.
According to this expert, “Conflict resolution” implies that conflict is bad-hence something that should be ended. It also assumes that conflict is a short term phenomenon that can be ‘resolved’ permanently through mediation or other intervention processes. “Conflict management” correctly assumes that conflict are long term processes that often cannot be quickly resolved, but the notion of “management” suggests that people can be directed or controlled as though they were physical objects. In addition, the notion of management suggests that the goal is the reduction or control of volatility more than dealing with the real source of the problem.
Conflict transformation, as described by Lededrach, does not suggest that we simply eliminate or control conflict, but recognize and work with its dialectic nature; by this he means that conflict is naturally created by humans who are involved in relationships yet once it occurs it changes (i.e. transforms) those event, people, and relationships that created the initial conflict, thus it describes a natural occurrence.
According to Paul Lederach, he believes that peace making involves systemic transformation. The process of increasing justice and equality in the social system as a whole. This may involve the eliminations of oppression, improved sharing of resources, and the non-violent resolution of conflict between groups of people each of these actions reinforces the others.
* Emmanuel Onwubiko heads HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS' ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA AND WRITES FROM www.huriwa.blogspot.com.
27/2/2012
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