Vernal Violence as a political discourse is often disguised in the garb of a truth seeking weapon. It is, however, important to understand its essence. Truth is a heavily loaded term that can have many layered implications. In a conflict, the real intention loses its way in a maze of complicated understandings of truth. There can never be an Absolute Truth. So, what is the Truth? And whose truth is it anyway? Also, how is the notion of truth constructed? These are a few fundamental questions that are significant to our understanding of a conflicting situation.
The north eastern region has been plagued with violent social and political movements over the past several decades. Many a time, ethnic and social discontents have taken on a violent hue resulting in large scale clashes amongst hostile groups. In the aftermath of a conflict, the knee jerk reaction of the political establishment has been to constitute a Commission of Enquiry. At the end of a stated period, they submit a report of the incident but beyond that, they seem to do no more. These Commissions have not been able to address the root causes of the conflicts, thus allowing the growth of already existing fault lines within the communities. Are these Commissions then, just a smokescreen—a veiled attempt to seek the truth although in reality, they are nothing but a facade creating a distraction from the real goal of reconciliation?
In the aftermath of a conflict, the wounds emerge afresh. In such a scenario, are committees of enquiry enough? Have they emerged as exercises in futility? Or have they only succeeded in opening the wounds of those affected, to be trampled upon by others, instead of providing an element of healing and solace to them? Most importantly, have they been able to create spaces of closure, for the victims concerned?
For a closure of sorts, it is of great significance that individuals revisit their wounds, reconcile with their past and pick up the pieces of their lives. The process of fostering the essence of reconciliation in a conflicting scenario is very intensive. The world over, several Truth and Reconciliation Commissions have been constituted post-conflict, to address the grievances of the victims, bring the perpetrators to book and dispense justice (both punitive and restorative) to the victims. One of the most recent examples of such a Tribunal is the Extraordinary Courts in the Chambers of Cambodia (ECCC) that has been constituted and is currently in progress, to bring the ailing Khmer Rouge leaders to book ‘for crimes against humanity and genocide’ perpetrated between 1975 and ’79 .
Reconciliation is an enabling agent allowing the individuals to move out of their victimhood. It is a precursor to peaceful existence although one cannot rush through the process. It is a long drawn process, involving multiple actors, continuous negotiations and re-engagements with the contexts of the past and the present, to create a more coherent understanding of the future and what it would entail for them.
Truth, forgiveness, trust, tolerance and empathy are major elements of the process. Cultivating a sense of detachment from the construction of victimhood is a labored process that requires an immense amount of endurance and dedication. It is also a continuously evolving process– relationally as well as emotionally. In the aftermath of the conflict, the perpetrator becomes a known, unmasked entity playing upon the consciousness of the individual, compelling one to engage with it. This process can be very emotionally draining, pushing the victims to the edge as they try to pick up the remnants of-what they have of their lives.
Accountability is an important component of reconciliation. All the actors involved in the hostilities need to be transparent with their motivations and allow the space for introspection and reflection. Without it, much cannot be achieved. Acknowledgement of the past can also strengthen and improve the chances of healing. More often than not, there is an attempt to forget the past and sweep it under the carpet of historical insignificance. Reconciliatory processes must be born from within the community, so as to enable greater involvement and participation.
Reconciliation has several aspects to it– legal, psychological and structural. According to Amson, Corm , Ledarach et al, “In cases when the rival groups must live in one state, the formal acts for establishing stable and lasting peaceful relations are different. “They aim at internal institutional reforms, mostly in the political and economic systems. The structural outcome of reconciliation requires political integration, meaning the inclusion of all groups in the power system, the establishment of structural equality and justice, and the observance of human and civil rights as well as democratic rules of political governance.”
Reconciliation requires the cultivation of a shared understanding of the past. Each party in conflict will have a differing view of the incident that took place. For reconciliation to truly occur, acknowledgement of the past incident as well as acceptance of the existence of multiple narratives by the actors in conflict, are of utmost necessity. Only then can a common understanding of the past he generated and worked upon.
Theorists have offered varying views on what constitutes Reconciliation. While some are of the view that elements such as truth, justice, mercy and peace are integral to the process of reconciliation (Ledarach, 1997), there are others who focus on the cognitive aspect especially on the notion of psychological changes (Bar-Tal, 2000) in the belief systems of the groups in conflict. There are still others like Kelman (1999) who emphasises on ‘positive peace’ as a component of reconciliation and Marrow (1999) who talks about the establishment of friendship and trust as pre-requisites for a process of reconciliation to be underway.
The need of the hour is to cultivate an understanding of going beyond the mundane and ensuring that the larger issues be addressed. Subsequent to the exposure to decades of aggression and hostility, a culture of violence has become embedded in the society today. It is high time that one considered the ramifications of the cycle of violence in the communities and the impact it has had on the psyche of the youth and the future generations. The process of Reconciliation can have a facilitative Potential for the Peaceful reconstruction of a torn society. Hence, concerted efforts need to be taken by the political establishment as well as the civil society groups to incorporate elements of reconciliation in the post-conflict scenario, so as to pave the way forward for the victims and the groups engaged in hostility.
(The writer is a Rotary Peace Fellow and a Research Associate at Yugantar, Hyderabad)