The theoretical approach to peace is difficult because many variables, including domestic and external considerations, are involved in making peace. What is needed is a comprehensive assessment of the dimensions of moral, strategic, and physical security in peacemaking.
One has to develop a clearer understanding of the limits of peacemaking because of factors of national interests and different perceptions of what constitutes security and peace.
The peacemaking process can be strengthened by support structures, namely peacekeeping and peacebuilding.
Experience has shown that peacekeeping is important in the sense of avoiding a relapse into armed conflicts. This is a necessary condition for establishing the foundations of an enduring and just peace.
Once peace has been established, peacebuilding involves activities including restoration of civil law and order, local administration, health, education, and general attempts to return society to some sense of normality.
In that sense, peacebuilding means the reconstruction of an armed conflict-ravaged country and refers to a post-conflict situation.
For example, the reconstruction of Iraq after the 2003 war should be a process of peacebuilding.
However, the process has been halted because peace has not prevailed in Iraq.
One of the frequent diplomatic expressions used in peacemaking is that the outcome of a settlement must be “mutually beneficial.” This means that benefits obtained from a peace deal or negotiations must be equal or at least more or less equal to both parties.
5 Theories of Peace
Theories of peace are essentially the conditions conducive to peace. Eminent author Johan Galtung described five conditions appropriate for peace;
- symmetry,
- homology,
- symbiosis,
- entropy, and
- Institution-building.
Symmetry
Of them, he considers the crucial condition to be that of symmetry. Among the five conditions in exploring peace, the first one is symmetry or some degree of equality between two states.
If one state is larger in territory, population, and resources than those of the other state, an asymmetrical relationship will exist because the larger state threatens the smaller state.
In other words, for geopolitical reasons, the smaller state will likely suffer from insecurity and bring in an external power to balance the asymmetrical relationship.
One of Canada’s Prime Ministers, Pierre Trudeau, once said that living next to the US “is like sleeping with an elephant; no matter how friendly and even-tempered the beast is, one is affected by every twitch and grunt.” Nature has fashioned one state larger than the other state, and human beings cannot refashion nature.
The stark reality is that a country can change its friends but not its neighbors. Neighboring countries have to live with such differences.
In South Asia, the population of India is larger than the combined populations of the other six countries (Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, and the Maldives).
Homology
Homology means some degree of structural similarity between the two states. This implies the same level of socio-economic development, government and corporate institutions, culture, and shared history. People more or less come from the same origin, and their languages are similar.
Symbiosis
Symbiosis means a close association of two entities that are dependent on one another. In the context of states, symbiosis will imply that cooperation is important for both states.
Entropy
Entropy means that cooperation between the two states should exist at all levels – governmental and non-governmental.
The relationship between the two states is essentially to promote interaction between the peoples of the two countries, and this relationship may exist independently of governments and their official policies.
Institutional Frameworks in Peacemaking
“Institution-building” means the existence or creation of a common institution at the supra-national level, such as the European Union.
A supranational authority exercises some degree of authority over states. It is composed of states and is created to perform specific functions. It has been invested with power to make decisions binding on the member-states, whether or not the members participate in the decision. This means states sacrifice or surrender a limited portion of sovereignty to supranational authority.
Often, the supranational authority intervenes in conflict situations among members and restores peace in the region.