Conflict Resolution in Asia

Reviews / Votes

This book reflects a creative time for conflict resolution in Asia, with examples and lessons of value for the rest of the world. This all invites continued study in coming years. * Peace Review: A Journal of Justice Studies * [A] timely and important work. . . . Each chapter offers a significant contribution, but it is in the grand sweep of the work as a whole where the greatest value can be found. . . . In its breadth and quality the work has opened the door for a range of studies that hopefully not only push our awareness of the myriad ways that conflict is resolved, but will also make decisive steps in how peace and conflict studies specifically, and political science more generally, understands these practices. Stobbe and her contributors are to be congratulated on providing such a decisive step towards these ends. * Pacific Affairs * This collection of research on mediation and conflict practices in Asia is a significant contribution to scholarship that de-centers Western approaches and models. The cultural and regional knowledge systems and practices of Asia are needed to develop the human potential for building local and global peace. This fascinating and rich body of scholarship draws attention to how societies negotiate traditional, national, and global structures in their systems for addressing conflict. -- Jessica Senehi, University of Manitoba This collection is a very welcome addition to the literature on conflict resolution. With careful description and thoughtful analysis of material drawn from nine Asian societies, Stephanie P. Stobbe and her contributors demonstrate the diversity of approaches to managing conflict in this huge region, some indigenous and some not. The many strengths of this volume include its grounding in local realities, hence making clear that introduced Western methods often fit local Asian contexts very badly. This is not merely a result of imposing insufficiently tweaked processes and rules, but rather a failure to recognize the cultural assumptions inevitably built into all methods of conflict management. All those interested in conflict resolution theory and/or practice should find this very interesting book highly rewarding. -- Peter Black, George Mason University Conflict Resolution in Asia: Mediation and Other Cultural Models provides valuable insights into building peace and practicing non-colonial problem solving in the diverse continent of Asia from indigenous perspectives. It furthers multilateral understanding and appreciation for sustainability of grassroots mediation and innovative ADR. -- Honggang Yang, Nova Southeastern University As former US Ambassador to Azerbaijan and Bosnia and Herzegovina, I have been involved for several decades in mediation and conflict resolution efforts developed in a Western context. Where mediation has not succeeded, failure to understand traditional conflict resolution processes in these societies is an important element. This volume offers an opportunity to learn lessons from Asia where the rich cultural and historical context provides a different framework for understanding the role of mediation in conflict resolution. Only by learning lessons in both a Western and Asian context can we develop new mediation approaches to resolve conflicts in the twenty-first century. -- Richard D. Kauzlarich, George Mason University