Custom «The Peace Process» Essay Paper Sample

The social, economic and political stability of a nation depends on its peace and tranquility. According to Burgees, the peace process is a political process that is resolved using peaceful means and there are several stages involved in this process (Burgees, 2004). In addition to Ury has stated that the peace process involves three parties, the two sides in conflict and the third party which helps in negotiating for peace (Ury, 1999). To understand this better, the paper will give an example of the peace process that took place in Kenya in 2008. After the hotly disputed general elections of 27^th December 2007, the nation erupted in post election violence between the supporters of the current president Honourable Mwai Kibaki and those of his main opposition rival who now holds the office of the Prime Minister, Honourable Raila Odinga.

According to Ouellet, the peace making process involves bringing the parties in conflict on a round table in order to negotiate the way forward (Ouellet, 2003). This is accomplishes by the use of a mediator. In the situation of Kenya, the former United Nations Secretary General Koffi Annan, current Tanzanian President Hon. Jakaya Kikwete and former Tanzanian President Hon. Benjamin Mkapa were the chief mediators. Their mandate was to turn the violence conflict into non violence conflict. The next step according to Ouellet is the peacekeeping process where security personnel are deployed in the hostile areas to construct a “buffer zone” between the fighting communities (Ouellet, 2003). All this happens when the peace making process is undergoing.

Peace building process is what follows after the two crucial process are have been rolled out (Maiese, 2003). This is because the outcome of peace building is determined by how effective the peace making and peace keeping process are. In the situation of Kenya, the peace building process was held at the Serena hotel and it involved a serious of meetings between the two politicians at war and the mediators. The end of the peace building process ushers in the process of signing the peace agreements (Oullet & Yawanarajah, 2003). In the Kenya, the two principles signed a power sharing agreement and formed a coalition government with the Hon Mwai Kibaki being the president and Hon. Raila Odinga taking the position of the Prime Minister. One of the clauses of the peace agreement is the ceasefire agreement where the supporters of the two principles are required to calm down their supporters.

According to Hauss, the reconciliation process is one that can take years to accomplish (Hauss, 2003). This is because of the hostility that was caused as result of the conflict. This is where religious leaders and counselors play a vital role. They are required to preach peace and help in counseling those affected by the violence. After having looked at the different stages of the peace process, focusing on Kenya, we can conclude that the peace process involves three different parties as indicated by Ury.