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Book Review: Reconciliation, Justice, and Coexistence: Theory & Practice
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This book describes restorative process in massive conflicts at the State level.
Reviewed by Gregory Strong.
While researchers and practitioners in general have focused more on the pre-negotiation and negotiation phases of response to conflict, less focus has been placed on the post-settlement reconstruction phase. In recent years however, the focus of research and practice has begun to expand to include post-conflict conditions and processes.
An essential element in this post-settlement phase concerns the parties’ ability to reconcile and reconstruct a new relationship. Much has been written on justice and forgiveness, particularly from theological and philosophical perspectives, yet comparatively little research has been done on ideas and processes of justice, reconciliation, and coexistence. This book, therefore, consists of a number of essays intended to advance the state of knowledge on concepts and practices related to reconciliation, justice, and coexistence.
The book is organized into two main parts. The essays in Part I focus on the theoretical framework for reconciliation in peacebuilding. The essays in Part II focus on practices related to reconciliation, justice, and coexistence in areas of conflict; these essays highlight case studies from around the world (e.g., South Africa, Ghana, Northern Ireland, and Cambodia). Contributors represent much of the pioneering work being done by scholars and practitioners in the field of peacebuilding.
Chapter Summaries:
After Violence, Reconciliation and Resolution
Social-Psychological Processes in Interactive Conflict Analysis and Reconciliation
Changing Forms of Coexistence
The Attainment of Justice through Restoration, Not Litigation
Forgiveness as an Element of Conflict Resolution in Religious Cultures
Negotiating a Revolution
Justice and the Burdens of History
Ritual Reconciliation
Coexistence and Reconciliation in the Northern Region of Ghana
Reconciliation and Justice in South Africa
The Case of Land in Zimbabwe
Education for Coexistence in Israel
The Challenge to History
Understanding Majority and Minority Participation in Interracial and Interethnic Dialogue
Refugee Return in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Justice and Reconciliation
The Long Road to Reconciliation
December 2001
Last modified 2005-05-10 10:16
