Peace Building and Reconciliation –European

Transcript:Peace Building and Reconciliation –European:
Peace Building and Reconciliation –European experience Peace Building and Reconciliation –European experience Conflict resolution and peacebuilding may be considered complementary activities whereby one is hardly sustainable without the other. Reconciliation concerns how two countries deal with their unhappy past; it is a process in which two former adversaries reach agreement on perceiving and treating their hostile history. Peace building indicates the actions to upgrade the state of peace; it is the process of reducing the probability of war between two countries significantly. Three States of Reconciliation: non-reconciliation means a relationship without rapprochement between the former adversaries. shallow reconciliation refers to a relationship between former adversaries characterized by such actions as words of apology from the perpetrator, negotiation on war reparation, and forgiving gestures from the victim. deep reconciliation refers to a relationship characterized by common narration of history, de-sensitization of historical issues, and restoration of affection between two nations. France-German Case The reconciliation process between France and Germany after the Second World War illustrates the changes in beliefs about goals. From continuous violent conflict and competition emerged new goals for the two societies, which stressed cooperation and common interest. Both nations envisioned the political and economic union of Europe, with a Franco-German pillar as its foundation. Starting from the 1950s, to eradicate the possibility of conflict, Germany and France actively pushed for regional integration to deepen their economic and diplomatic cooperation. For example, in 1951, France, Germany, and four other European countries signed the Treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC). France-German Case- continuation After the left-wing Social Democratic Party gained power in the late 1960s, the German government increasingly expressed contrition for the Nazi crimes in its official speeches. As a result, starting from the 1960s, France and Germany have reached mutual understanding of their unhappy pasts. By 1965, according to a French public opinion poll, West Germany was ranked as the best friend of France, gaining 20 % of the respondents’ votes. The successful reconciliation between France and Germany indicates that regional institutions have provided reassurance for former foes-antagonist parties, so that they no longer view each other as threats, and regime change and democratization in postwar West Germany have paved way for reflections on the past. France-German Case- continuation In January 2019, France and Germany “renewed their marriage vows” in the Treaty of Aachen, whose goals were two-fold: to intensify the two countries’ cooperation, including