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10/25/2009
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If you’re interested in peace and human rights issues, be sure to read the new Berghof Handbook article on this topic, Rethinking Conflict Transformation from a Human Rights Perspective. Written by Michelle Parlevliet, this recent publication from Berghof Conflict Research addresses one of the most prevalent stereotypes in the debate about human rights and conflict transformation—that of two fields clashing. This tension is expressed in the idea that the normative nature of human rights standards may complicate the practical demands of peacemaking.
Working to overcome this, Parlevliet’s article moves beyond the prevailing ‘Justice vs. Peace’ paradigm and instead proposes an integrated approach. She argues that applying a perspective of human rights in conflict transformation can serve to bring it closer to its aims – by enabling greater emphasis on structural conditions, especially the role of the state, systems of governance and issues of power.
Discussing the practical demands and dilemmas of an integrated approach, the article offers a wealth of examples drawn from the author’s own work in South Africa, Nepal and Northern Ireland.
It also includes an annex with an extensive review of previous literature on human rights and conflict resolution.
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