History of Past Unrightable Wrongs
3. Factors That Make Conflict Intractable
A term first coined to refer to genocides, "unrightable wrongs" are wrongs that are so severe that they cannot be fully remedied, no matter what is done. Obvious examples include the Holocaust, the Rwandan genocide, the Killing Fields in Cambodia, and the sadly common mass killing events that have occurred all over the world.
Other examples of "unrightable wrongs" include slavery, forced displacement of indigenous peoples, wrongful imprisonment or executions, and severe environmental destruction (such as the Chernobyl nuclear accident, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the drying of the Aral Sea) all of which caused irreparable environmental damage.
On a smaller scale, any murder or attack on an individual person that is so severe that it cannot be remedied (causing, for instance, long-lasting psychological trauma) can be considered an "unrightable wrong."
In all of these cases, no matter what is done, total repair is impossible. You cannot bring back the dead, restore lost cultures, or erase trauma. Because of that, these wrongs tend to last from one generation to the next, and cause anger, resentment, and sometimes a thirst for revenge that keeps conflicts alive for years, even decades.
However, partial remedies can be attempted, though such processes as truth and reconciliation commissions, reparations, apologies, memorials, and institutional reforms that diminish the likelihood that such an event would happen again. Restorative justice strategies are particularly useful in diminishing the chance of long-term conflict, as they work to restore relationships to a healthier state.
Resources on this Topic
To see all Guide Resources on this topic, scroll within the resource box.
Stars indicate resources that we think are especially useful.
