Emotional Influences And Mediation Strategies In Religious Conflict Resolution: Insights From Pakistan - India Relations

Abstract

Conflicts involve opposition, disagreement or incompatibility; that adds to the intensity of belligerence to further complicate the process of management and resolution of the conflicts. In order to curtail the far-reaching effects of conflict, it is important for the conflicting parties to resolve their disputes in a peaceful manner. Mediation assists in negotiating a mutually acceptable resolution of the conflict. A mediator, while maintaining a neutral stance, is expected to practice effective skills and strategies for resolving a conflict. One of the key skills of a mediator is the ability to manage the emotions of the disputants. Disputants often come to the negotiation table with high intensity emotions because of some grievance or wrong done to them, and specifically in conflicts revolving around religion. It is therefore important to understand the relevance and impact of emotions in the field of religious conflict resolution at the international level because religion-based conflicts involve high intensity emotions that require expert mediation in order to reach a peaceful settlement. The international dynamics portray a less hopeful image because the world of today is moving towards religious fascism and the possibility of reconciliation with India on religious grounds is found to be very rare. This is mainly because of the majoritarianism that breeds on the extremist Hindutva ideology in India and the hatred that they have for Islam. Their idea that India is a bigger country has always created a notion of discrimination where it has become almost impossible for Pakistan to make decisions of compromise on their terms.