K O F F Newsletter Nr. 47 / 01.05.2006

How can NGOs mediate in violent conflicts?

At the beginning of April the Mediation Support Project (MSP) of swisspeace in Bern organized a Roundtable on the question of how non-governmental organizations (NGOs) could take on a mediation role in violent conflicts. The guest speaker was Don Matteo Zuppi, co-founder and member of the Catholic Community of Sant'Egidio, founded in Rome in 1968. Today the Community is a lay movement with more than 50,000 members. it works on behalf of the poor in over 70 countries and is also active in peace-building. Sant'Egidio has participated in several peace processes as an official mediator, for example in Mozambique. In most cases according to Zuppi it is the parties to the conflict themselves who request its services as mediator. In fact the community benefits from its religious background, which earns it respect and trust.
The Roundtable touched upon every possible aspect with regard to the role and the potential of NGOs in mediation processes, discussing them in a critical light. In Zuppi's opinion it is advantageous for NGOs that become active in peace and mediation processes when the state backs up their efforts through diplomatic activities. In Zuppi's opinion the key to a successful mediation process is in-depth knowledge of the conflict in question, long years of personal contact with the leaders of the parties to the conflict, and unflagging commitment. In the past 20 years Sant'Egidio has managed to establish a great many contacts through the structures of the Catholic Church. Although at first these did not seem particularly useful, in later years they have proven their worth, when it comes to bringing the conflict parties to the negotiating table. Zuppi felt that there was a lack of critical reflection between mediators and he welcomed the MSP Rountable as a useful instrument for this.

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