13 Mediation in Matters Involving Sorcery in PNG Villages and Remote Australian Indigenous

13 Mediation in Matters Involving Sorcery in PNG Villages and Remote Australian Indigenous

21 Aug 2024

The authority of the local mediator to be involved in the management of the conflict, the respect the community has for them in terms of their knowledge and relationship to the community, along with knowledge and application of local systems, is a starting point for successful management of conflict. [...] The concepts of empowerment and that the parties should be the authors of the resolution of their conflict or the solutions to their problems are key concepts in the traditional conceptualisation of mediation and mediation practice and are also key elements in the ‘transitional design’ approach (Escobar and Rocheleau 2018) taken by both authors in the delivery of mediation in Australia and PNG. [...] Another technique to achieve the shifting of the parties from the continuation or enactment of the violence of the conflict to working on the issues behind the conflict, and knowing where to move to with those issues, is the use of Bertholt Brecht’s epic theatre techniques (Wilson 2017). [...] The first relates to the initial intake stage, where the framing of the process and the empowerment of the parties is central to the chances of a successful outcome. [...] This step is important in setting up the success of the mediation through outlining the process, empowering the party to participate in the process, enabling effective 93 Volume 13 (3) 2024 Jones and Wagambie discussion of the problem or story about the conflict and building a relationship between the party and the mediator.

Authors

Tracy Creagh

Related Organizations

Duke University
Queensland University of Technology
Syracuse University
Pages
12
Published in
Australia

Table of Contents