ABSTRACT
When I fi rst started to commit to serious research in Laos, I asked myself three questions: (1) How can culturally specifi c confl ict resolution processes at the grassroots level be used to promote equality, justice, and freedom in places where formal legal systems are unfamiliar, undeveloped, and are not a compelling force in promoting social justice? (2) How can traditional confl ict resolution processes and rituals assist in the maintenance and reparation of relationships between parties in confl ict? and (3) How can these processes be used and adapted in cross-cultural confl ict resolution to establish relationships between groups? In looking through the confl ict resolution processes presented, these questions have largely been answered through various examples. Like every other confl ict resolution system, it has its imperfections. However, it is a system that is effective, accessible, familiar, and respected by the communities it serves.
