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Distribution of complimentary copies of: Arai, T., S. Goto, and Z. Wang, eds. 2015. Contested Memories and Reconciliation Challenges: Japan and the Asia-Pacific on the 70th Anniversary of World War II. Washington DC: Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. Distribution on a first come, first served basis.
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6:30-7:30
Toward a Buddhist Theory of Conflict Transformation: Lessons from Experiential Learning and Capacity-Building Initiatives in Myanmar
This presentation will report on the findings from the past three years of field-based participatory research in Myanmar designed to develop a Buddhist-inspired theory of conflict analysis and transformation. The research aims to further diversify and globalize the discourses and practices of conflict transformation by identifying distinctly non-western worldviews as a basis of theory building. Findings from dozens of in-depth interviews and exploratory workshops with Burmese Buddhist leaders suggest that a Buddhist approach to conflict transformation requires an integrated process of deep self-reflection on human suffering (dukkha) and karma, on the one hand, and active relationship-building between parties, on the other. The findings also suggest that to overcome a deeply structural conflict, Buddhist-inspired practice in conflict transformation must cultivate and act on structural awareness, which is defined as educated, enlightened consciousness capable of perceiving a complex web of cause and effect relationships in which one’s well-intended action can inadvertently generate the sufferings of others. (Conflicts associated with climate change and socio-economic deprivation as examples.) The presenter will examine implications of these findings for building peaceful Muslim-Buddhist relations in Myanmar, as well as for conflict transformation in today’s increasingly globalized, interconnected world in general.
Afghanistan: Equity in Development, Governance, and Security
7:30-8:30pm
The Government of National Unity (GNU) in Afghanistan continues to face significant challenges in security, transitional justice, development, and foreign relations today. While the stalled negotiations with the Taliban and the ever-deepening civil strife between GNU and the Taliban in the country’s northern and eastern regions attract international attention, neither Kabul, Washington, nor Islamabad is prepared to develop and implement a credible and mutually-satisfactory political process capable of transforming the roots of the underlying conflict in the long run. Based on a series of in-depth interviews and focus-group discussions that the presenter conducted in Kabul, Herat (west), and Mazr-i-Sharif (north) in 2014-15 with diverse political, ethnic, religious, youth, and women leaders (including former Taliban leaders), this seminar will outline what these Afghans view as a possible way of managing and transforming their conflicts inside and outside Afghanistan. At the heart of their views of their conflicts are Afghan people’s fears and aspirations for the future of Afghan-Pakistan-US relations, a necessary yet difficult transition in the existing structures of their ethnic, tribal, and regional leadership, and the imperative of a more equitable allocation of resources and opportunities for Afghanistan’s livelihood development.
Tatsushi (Tats) Araireceived a PhD from S-CAR/ICAR in 2005. He is currently a fellow of S-CAR’s Center for Peacemaking Practice and an associate professor of peacebuilding and conflict transformation at the School for International Training (SIT) Graduate Institute is Vermont. Over the past two decades, Tats has worked in diverse conflict-affected societies as a mediator, dialogue facilitator, trainer, coach, and consultant. He is an adviser to Afghan Peace Initiatives (API), a Kabul-based NGO conducting peace research and training.