Beyond Intractability: A Free Knowledge Base on More Constructive Approaches to Destructive Conflict
Introduction:
"If we don't coexist, we all co-destruct," says Angela Khaminwa quoting Susan Collin Marx. Coexistence, she goes on to explain, is essential for human security.
This rough transcript provides a text alternative to audio. We apologize for occasional errors and unintelligible sections (which are marked with ???).
Co-Destruction
Angela Khaminwa and Sarah Peterson
Program Officer for Outreach and Communication, The Coexistence Initiative
A: Susan Colin Marx has a wonderful sound byte, she says and I'm not sure if
she originated it anyway, "If we don't coexist we all co-destruct." In
situations where you have unequal power the person with the power is obviously
going to say, "Well why should I?" There are security implications to
not coexisting, and I think that's clear if you look at any conflict in the
world right now.
S: Or coexisting in the way that TCI talks about, as the active embrace of
diversity, because, again, during the apartheid period in South Africa, why
would the apartheid government want to change things? They had everything
exactly the way the wanted it. What was the incentive to actually dismantle the
apartheid regime? It was for the very reasons that you talked about. Without
having the active engagement of diversity you don't have human security intact.
Men, their rights, and nothing more; women, their rights, and nothing less. -- Susan B. Anthony
Other Resources from Beyond Intractability Taming Intractable Conflicts The trick for the mediator is identifying what conflicts it pays to become involved in, how to go about it, and when. Crocker et al. explore some limitations and pitfalls for mediators and go on to suggest how they may most effectively contribute at different stages of the conflict.
The Beyond Intractability Knowledge Base Project Guy Burgess and Heidi Burgess, Co-Directors and Editors c/o Conflict Information Consortium(Formerly Conflict Research Consortium), University of Colorado Campus Box 580, Boulder, CO 80309 Phone: (303) 492-1635; Fax: (303) 492-2154; Contact
