ABSTRACT
Fundamental to the concepts of enhanced peaceful settlement of international disputes or an international peace force is the idea that such a framework would serve to further shift the geopolitical balance away from a calculus of military might and towards more just legal, ethical and humanitarian outcomes. Such designs for global governance, however, have often been called impracticable and unworkable, unable to mobilise the necessary ‘political will’ of major powers, as well as those seeking to change power balances. This chapter addresses a different and arguably more important challenge to ‘workability’—that of inclusion in the form of ‘bottom-up’ incorporation of voices and perspectives, from the inception of global designs to their implementation and evaluation. Inclusive and egalitarian dialogues, plans and partnerships are crucial to achieving effective, positive outcomes for ensuring the peaceful settlement of disputes. In this chapter, three aspects of inclusion are discussed: (1) stakeholder inclusion (regarding the range of actors affected by conflict), (2) temporal inclusion (regarding when such actors are included) and (3) epistemological inclusion (regarding expanding the kinds of knowledge that inform designs for peaceful settlement). The chapter also connects such radical inclusion to the possibilities for strengthened peaceful dispute settlement/peace force deliberations (e.g., under a renewed UN Charter framework) and for addressing relevant issues in the world today that affect conflict.
