Summary Mediation seminar (Brdo, 11 March 2014)

58 Pages·2014·0.25 MB·English

INITIATIVE ON MEDIATION IN
THE MEDITERRANEAN REGION
"Promoting a Culture of Mediation
and Prevention in the Mediterranean"
Executive Summary

Brdo, Slovenia
11 March 2014

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 4
....................................................................................................................................................................
PROGRAMME 7
.............................................................................................................................................................................
I. OPENING 11
.........................................................................................................................................................................................
Welcoming Address by the Minister of Foreign Aff airs
of the Republic of Slovenia Karl Erjavec 11
...............................................................................
Address by the Minister of Foreign Aff airs and Cooperation
of the Kingdom of Spain José Manuel García-Margallo 13
..........................
Address by the Delegate Minister for Foreign Aff airs and
Cooperation of the Kingdom of Morocco Mbarka Bouaida 16
...............
Address by the Deputy Secretary General
of the United Nations Jan Eliasson 20
..............................................................................................
Address by the Secretary General of the Organization for
Security and Co-Operation in Europe Lamberto Zannier 27
...................
II. ACHIEVING DURABLE PEACE AND RECONCILIATION
THROUGH EFFECTIVE MEDIATION – BUILDING ON
LESSONS LEARNED 31
...................................................................................................................................................
III. RESPONSIBILITY TO PROTECT AND MEDIATION:
FRIENDS OR FOES? 38
...................................................................................................................................................
IV. ENSURING GREATER INVOLVEMENT OF WOMEN IN
MEDIATION: FROM RHETORIC TO REALITY 41
.................................................................
V. PROMOTING THE VALUE OF MEDIATION AND PEACEFUL
COEXISTENCE THROUGH EDUCATION, ENGAGING
YOUTH AND CIVIL SOCIETY 47
........................................................................................................................
VI. CONCLUSION 53
.........................................................................................................................................................................
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INTRODUCTION
Background
In the past few years signifi cant progress was achieved in promot-
ing mediation as an important and eff ective tool for the peaceful
settlements of disputes and confl icts. Two UN General Assembly
resolutions on “Strengthening the role of mediation in the peace-
ful settlement of disputes, confl ict prevention and resolution”1
have been adopted. In 2012, the report by the Secretary General of
the United Nations2 was issued and the United Nations Guidance
for Eff ective Mediation published. In 2014, we expect the adoption
of a third GA Resolution. Prevention of confl icts, including media-
tion and early-warning mechanisms, is also one of UN Secretary-
General Ban Ki-Moon’s fi ve priority actions in his second term.
In September 2010, the Group of Friends of Mediation was formed
under the leadership of Finland and Turkey. The Group has sig-
nifi cantly contributed to raising awareness of mediation as an
eff ective tool for confl ict prevention and resolution, enhancing
mediation-related cooperation and capacity building.
Spain and Morocco launched the Initiative on Mediation in the
Mediterranean in September 2012. By focusing on a specifi c re-
gion, the Initiative complements the work of the Group of Friends
and is part of a broader international endeavour to encourage
national and regional actors to promote mediation as a tool for
confl ict prevention, resolution and peace-building.
1 Strengthening the role of mediation in the peaceful settlement of disputes, confl ict prevention and
resolution (65/283 of 22 June 2011 and 66/291 of 13 September 2012)
2 Report of the Secretary-General on Strengthening the role of mediation in the peaceful settlement
of disputes, confl ict prevention and resolution (66/811 of 25 June 2012) containing an annex with The
United Nations Guidance for Eff ective Mediation
4
It is within this framework that Slovenia, as a member of both the
Group of Friends and the Initiative on Mediation in the Mediterra-
nean, hosted the 3rd seminar of the Initiative entitled “Promoting
a Culture of Mediation and Prevention in the Mediterranean”.
Purpose of the seminar
The seminar was part of a series of events launched in February
2013 with the 1st seminar of the Initiative held in Madrid and con-
tinued in July 2013 with the 2nd seminar in Rabat. The seminar in
Brdo is the only seminar of the Initiative to take place in 2014.
Its goal was to continue promoting and strengthening mediation
in the Meditteranean to help eliminate causes of tensions, pre-
vent confl icts and search for lasting solutions through peaceful
means. While the Mediterranean region has witnessed numer-
ous and protracted confl icts, including the recent turbulence and
transformations, it is also an area of cooperation and dialogue,
with a long history of mediation eff orts.
The seminar focused on sharing of experience, expertise and les-
sons learned among participants, thus contributing to better un-
derstanding of mediation, its potential and challenges. Fostering
synergies, coordination and coherence among diff erent actors is
of paramount importance for eff ective mediation. The inclusiv-
ity of the process is equally important for achieving sustainable
results, as it increases legitimacy and national ownership. The
seminar promoted mediation as an alternative method of dispute
resolution in society as a whole.
Various topics have been addressed aimed at promoting a cul-
ture of mediation and prevention in the Mediterranean, focusing
on achieving durable peace and reconciliation through eff ective
mediation – building on lessons learned, ensuring greater involve-
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ment of women in mediation and promoting the value of media-
tion and peaceful coexistence through education, engagement of
youth and civil society. The seminar also addressed the link be-
tween the responsibility to protect and mediation as part of over-
all confl ict prevention eff orts.
Participants
The event was attended by more than 100 participants, high-level
guests, experienced mediators, representatives from the Mediter-
ranean and other interested countries, relevant international and
regional organisations, as well as representatives of civil society,
think tanks and academia. The participation of national focal
points on mediation and those with knowledge and expertise in
mediation was encouraged.
Venue
The seminar took place at the Brdo Congress Center and Brdo
Castle, renowned as a venue for numerous high-level meetings
and conferences. It is also a place where the Brdo Process was
launched as a forum of dialogue aimed at enhancing relations,
mutual trust and reconciliation among the countries of the West-
ern Balkans.
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PROGRAMME
Opening
Welcoming address by Karl Erjavec, Deputy Prime Minister and
Minister of Foreign Aff airs of the Republic of Slovenia
Address by José Manuel García-Margallo, Minister of Foreign
Aff airs and Cooperation of the Kingdom of Spain
Address by Mbarka Bouaida, Minister Delegate for Foreign
Aff airs and Cooperation of the Kingdom of Morocco
Address by Jan Eliasson, Deputy Secretary General of the United
Nations
Address by Lamberto Zannier, Secretary General of the
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
Achieving durable peace and reconciliation through
eff ective mediation – building on lessons learned
Keynote address by Samir AL Kassir, Assistant Secretary
General, League of Arab States
Moderated by Danilo Türk, Former President of the Republic of
Slovenia
Álvaro de Soto, Visiting Professor, Sciences Po; Former Under
Secretary General of the United Nations
Marc Otte, Director General of EGMONT – the Royal Institute for
International Relations
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Ian Martin, Former Special Representative of the UN Secretary
General and Head of the UN Support Mission in Libya
Mauro Garofalo, Head of International Relations, Community of
Sant’Egidio
Levent Bilman, Director of the Policy and Mediation Support
Division, Department of Political Aff airs (DPA), United Nations
Responsibility to Protect and Mediation:
Friends or Foes?
Keynote address by Jennifer Welsh, Special Adviser to the UN
Secretary General for the Responsibility to Protect
Remarks by Stephen Rapp, Ambassador-at-Large for War
Crimes Issues in the Offi ce of Global Criminal Justice at the US
Department of State
Moderated by Enzo Maria Le Fevre Cervini, Director of Research
and Cooperation, Budapest Centre for the International
Prevention of Genocide and Mass Atrocities
Ensuring greater involvement of women in mediation:
from rhetoric to reality
Keynote address by Rina Amiri, Co-founding member of Women
Waging Peace Network; Expert on Gender and Social Inclusion,
UN Mediation Team of Experts
Moderated by Vasu Gounden, Founder and Executive Director
of the African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes
(ACCORD)
8
Carlos Westendorp, Secretary General of the Club de Madrid
Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir, Regional Director for Europe and
Central Asia, UN Women
Peter van Tuijl, Executive Director of the Global Partnership for
the Prevention of Armed Confl ict (GPPAC)
Jacqui Hunt, Director, London offi ce, Equality Now
Promoting the value of mediation and peaceful
coexistence through education, engaging youth and the
civil society
Keynote address by Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, High
Representative of the Alliance of Civilizations
Moderated by Brendan McAllister, mediatEUr Senior Associate
Ahmad Alhendawi, United Nations Secretary General’s
Envoy on Youth
Bernardino León, EU Special Representative for the Southern
Mediterranean region
Abdelhamid El-Zoheiry, President of the Euro-Mediterranean
University (EMUNI)
Aleš Zalar, President of the European Centre for Dispute
Resolution (ECDR)
Abou El Mahassine Fassi-Fihri, Regional Director, Middle East
and North Africa (MENA), Search for Common Ground
Ljuljjeta Goranci Brkić, Nansen Dialogue Center, Sarajevo
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