Strengthening Peace in the Balkans: Quest for Transformative Energy and Prospects for Change

This paper examines the potential of post-conflict societies to move forward to achieve peace in spite of psychological and structural obstacles. The proposal for change is that human energy and vision can be the engines in overcoming problems through the development of visionary leaders. The paper is based on data obtained in a study of the post-conflict Balkans region.

The document discusses a variety of methods used to bring resolution to conflict and reconstruction to post-conflict societies, including apologies from perpetrators and forgiveness of victims and truth commissions, as well as instruments of justice such as the international court system and the Gacaca trials of Rwanda, some of which included compensation for losses in their decisions. The author reviews psychological factors which impede the route to reconciliation, emphasising their importance in the international political arena which tends to prioritise structural, political, economic, security, and other factors. Factors on strengthening peace and reconciliation, as stated here, include the announcement of truth, confession by perpetrators, expression of regret, and request for forgiveness. Restoration through compensation is another possibility - all of these aimed to create equity, fairness, and "right relationships". Education can contribute to fostering reconciliation. Among barriers to fostering reconciliation are lack of goodwill among leaders and continued conflict-based rhetoric.

The promotion of positive leadership, as stated here, can counter these barriers through inspirational and positive messaging from “extraordinary personalities". Examples include Nelson Mandela, Anwar al-Sadat, and pop music stars like Bob Dylan and John Lennon. Leaders should attend to peacebuilding in a middle social range in their communities, accomplished by cultivating leadership among young and educated people who will be influencers of students, clients, patients, readers, and constituents. Qualities to be sought or cultivated for leadership include a willingness to exchange ideas, empathy, responsibility for actions, honesty, vision, understanding of challenges, and a focus on potential strengths, along with cognisance of history and of weaknesses. The similarities to religious leadership and teachings are noted here, but the role of recognised religions and their identity-based allegiances in conflict are also noted.

The path for leaders includes the following: "unfreezing" societies to develop a new openness, moving societies to transition, "refreezing" new beliefs and behaviours, and strengthening social institutions. Communication, in this analysis, is more effective in face-to-face communication with influential peers than through mass media. However, training in positive mass media messaging is also critical. Partnerships and joint programming for change, including media campaigns, require developing networks and follow-up that stimulate actual change, for example, the development of new opportunities or institutions where change can be practised.

The document recommends leadership training through workshops that are both experiential and experimental; curricular suggestions offered on pages 17 - 19 of the document. Data are presented to show that hopefulness in groups is an indicator of readiness for reconciliation, with the converse being true of hopelessness among interviewees who self-identified as Serbs, Croats, and Bosniaks.

The author points to the role of media in the socialisation of children, a role formerly occupied by parents and family members. Thus, the content of media messages is considered to be a way to communicate principles of justice and morality to young people. It is noted that ensuring that moral claims are evidence-based, rather than opinion-based, can reduce prejudice and support the promotion of justice. The author cites data on post-World War II German adolescents to support the argument that education and media, including positive leadership messaging about hope and values, can impact the traditional beliefs of a society and move its beliefs towards a focus on justice and the acceptance of social values that support reconciliation and peace.