Introduction
Although international conflicts have never been simple, the international and internal conflicts of the post–Cold War world tend to be especial y complex. They typical y involve ethnic disputes; many actors; numerous apparently incompatible interests and needs; long, violent histories; and complex international entanglements. Confronted by intractable conflicts whose roots extend deep into the fabric of society, lone mediators (or even teams of mediators) have seldom been able to make and keep the peace. Nor have military forces, by themselves, been particularly successful in such situations. In recognition of the nature and scale of the challenge, national and multinational actors have begun to launch “complex operations”—loosely coordinated peace efforts that involve not only diplomats and soldiers but also development specialists, human rights activists, trauma-healing practitioners, humanitarian relief workers, and conflict resolution experts.
In the conflict resolution realm, “track II” peacemaking or diplomacy has become increasingly common, complementing “track I” peacemaking efforts in myriad ways and at various points throughout a peace process. Track II practitioners bring parties together across conflict lines to talk, build relationships, engage in joint civic projects, or even develop new ideas about potential political solutions to the conflict. Track II efforts can be particularly valuable in preparing the ground for track I initiatives and building broad support for agreements reached by the parties, but track II can also be valuable if conducted simultaneously with track I efforts.
“Track I” is used here to describe any activities that bring the parties to a conflict into direct negotiation to achieve an agreement or a resolution. “Track II” refers to any activities that support, directly or indirectly, track I efforts. Track II practitioners are sometimes referred to as “intervenors” when they come in from the outside; elsewhere in this handbook we refer Step 1: Assess the Track II Environment to them as “practitioners” or “actors.” “Peacemaking” refers to the process of negotiating a peace agreement rather than to efforts to avert conflict, to implement an agreement, or to rebuild societies emerging from conflict. Conflict prevention and post-conflict activities are discussed in the following chapters only insofar as they relate to the peacemaking process.
Some practitioners and scholars within the fields of diplomacy and conflict resolution use alternative definitions. Track I, for instance, is often defined in terms of the participation of official actors such as UN envoys or representatives of individual states, while track II is often equated with the participation of unofficial actors such as nongovernmental organizations or private individuals. Stil others break down track II peacemaking into multiple tracks.1 This handbook, however, does not subdivide track II in that fashion, and it makes no distinction between track II activities performed by officials and those performed by unofficial actors.
Written for both track I and track II actors, this handbook il uminates the role and importance of track II activities; charts a wide range of track II activities, from assessment, conception, and planning to implementation and evaluation; and discusses the need for ensuring that different peacemaking efforts complement and reinforce one another. Creating such synergy involves not only aligning track I and track II efforts, but also coordinating various track II efforts to maximize their positive impacts.
For the sake of analytical clarity, this handbook presents the process of track II intervention as a series of steps: assess the track II environment, develop a strategic plan, design the process, conduct track II activities, and undertake follow-up activities and evaluation. For the sake of analytical precision, however, it should be explained that the process is not as linear as the notion of steps might suggest. While each track II actor will undertake a similar series of steps with each activity, different track II practitioners are likely to be conducting many different track II efforts simultaneously in any one conflict setting. In addition, each track II intervenor is likely to repeat the same steps within the context of a single intervention, conducting the same process with different audiences or modifying the process as the situation on the ground changes. Further, some steps actually take place throughout the process. Evaluation, for instance, is presented in the handbook as the last step, but in fact it should occur throughout the planning and implementation process. Similarly, the intervention plan that a track II actor initial y designs may well need to be 6 revised several times throughout the peacemaking period as circumstances change or if the plan fails to work as expected.
