NEGOTIATION FOR CMR

“Let us never negotiate out of fear.

But, let us never fear to negotiate.”
John F Kennedy

SESSION FIVE
LECTURE BY EUNICE AKULLO (PHD)
 INTRODUCTION
Those who are skilled in executing a strategy, Bend
the strategy of others without conflict; Uproot the
fortifications of others without Attacking; Absorb
the organisations of others without prolonged
operations. San Tzu.

Negotiation are part of Diplomacy – an essential

skill for preventing and resolving conflict in society.
Conflicts occur in society because of struggles
between individuals or collectivities - many of
which are linked to a desire on need to survive (stay
alive)
The need for survival may manifest through
aggression – as a response to a certain
environment, frustrations or response to
conquest.

Negotiations may fail either because of high

risk factors and/or low organizational
capacity. Successful negotiation requires that:

First, the complex must be made simple and

that necessary intelligence is gathered to make
the situation more understandable and
hopefully, more manageable.
Second, irrationality must be
reduced to a so problem solving
becomes possible. This depends on
the breaking of the complex
situation. Peter Sarna 1997

A very important skill in negotiation

is COMMUNICATION between or
among conflicting parties.
The nature of the communication
may be cordial or adversarial.

The first relies on free exchange of

information and cooperation.

The second, depends on withholding

information and seeking to destroy
the adversary’s ability to achieve their
interests in the conflict.
Furthermore, conflict resolution
requires an understanding of the nature
of a conflicts. This may be over:

a) “Structure” – which applies to the

processes through which things get
done.

b) “Data” - concerned with the

interpretation of available facts.
c) “Relationships” - real or perceived
reputation of the other.

d)“Worldview”– people’s assessment

of events around them – often in light
of their culture.

e)“Priorities”-the importance people

place on things or ideas.
 SELECTED QUOTES
“The collective existence of a nation, of
society in general, expresses itself
through its relations with others –
relations which, while adapting to
circumstances, are ordered around the
constant themes of affirming its
existence, expressing the need to protect
itself against danger or threat and
sometimes also conveying its
willingness to resort to aggression in
order to claim its rights. Plantey, 2007:5
“Negotiation transcends simple
dialogue: it is the best way of
leading parties towards an
agreement. It embraces all the
practices that permit the peaceful
accommodation of the
antagonistic or divergent interests
of independent social groups and
entities. Plantey, 2007:9
Military missions involved in PKOs need to have
both military and non-military advantages. This
includes the ability to build trust and alliances with
local groups and individuals involved in the
conflict. Winning “hearts and minds”

Third, there is need for developing collaborative

relationships with local civilians in order to
advance peace and stability

Forth, this process requires negotiators to ne

involved in the collection of information, or to
align local support necessary to succeed in both
warfighting and low intensity operations. (US
Army report, 2007:1)
In most negotiations, the parties first verbalize
contradictory demands, and at least one of them
attempts to persuade the other to change his/her
demands or ideas. Successful negotiations occur
when the parties move towards finding common
ground and agreement by a process of exchange
and concession-making and/or through a search
for new alternatives. Negotiations become cross-
cultural when the parties involved belong to
different cultures and, as a result, have
culturally-influenced differences in the way they
interpret and execute the fundamental processes
of bargaining (US Army report, 2007:1)
“Military leaders do not operate in
isolation. Because of our professional
duties and our social natures, we
constantly interact with others in many
contexts. Often the interaction’s purpose
is to solve a problem; getting two or
more people (or groups of people) to
decide on a course of action to
accomplish a goal. Virtually every
problem solving process we attempt
involves some aspect of negotiations”.
Dr Stefan Eisen, Page 2
Those who negotiate at the extremes
of human social behaviour are often
forced to work outside acceptable
norms and values, facing negotiating
parties who may be inherently
hostile and aggressive, and have to
face the fact that the negotiation
dynamic is significantly different
from that in more usual
circumstances. Dr Deborah
Goodwin, September 2009: 4
 DIPLOMATIC NEGOTIATION
Negotiation requires both Willingness and
ability to conduct a task set before the
person.

He/she needs to be Flexible and open to

exploring various alternatives to problem
solving. This also implies that the person
needs to be aware of, and responsive to any
changes in the environment of the problem.
A good negotiator plans and acts with a
long-term vision of the solution to the
problem at hand. This makes negotiation a
calculated-risk.

Acting with moderation and “in good faith”

may be essential for effective problem
solving. It is important to bear in mind that
the results of negotiations may not produce
the same results all the time and in all
situations that seem similar.
 NEGOTIATION VERSUS USE OF FORCE
Diplomacy may not always involve the use of
conciliation, sometimes the threat of or actual use
of force maybe necessary. This is because, “the
purpose of negotiation, like war, is to acquire,
conquer and preserve” Page 34

This means that negotiation happens across a

spectrum from soft power to hard power. The link
between negotiation and force(war) is explained
in the view of Clausewitz that argues thus;
Negotiation is to diplomacy what battle is to
war, the principle means by which it is
carried on.
 SKILLS OF NEGOTIATION
 Negotiation involves:

1) Active Listening so as to capture expressed wants of

conflicting parties.

2) Interest identification of the things people say they

care about, value and need.

3) The recognition of effective psychological influencers

 The practical negotiation process is such that expressed

wants reflect interests – which are discovered through
active listen skills and changed through Influencers.
 TACTICS OF NEGOTIATION
Negotiation as a tactic, focused on
dispute settlement or resolution
without a resort to outright hostility.

They can also be referred to as

diplomatic tactics – involving the
choice and use of various tools,
ranging from conciliation, to
settlement.
The tactics can EITHER be used
as a tactic of force can be observed
through domination (where each
protagonist seeks to impose its will
on another and subjugate it) OR an
expression of conflict (what
Clausewitz describes as an
escalation of extremes of violence
and cruelty by conflicting parties).
Psychological factors are important in
negotiation because they reflect each
protagonist’s thoughts of themselves and their
adversaries. This also influences how they
respond to the other.

The following tactics of negotiation shall be

introduced in this session:
1) Cooperate
2) Comply
3) Evade
4) Insist
5) Settle
Part of tact, is the ability to verify and
corroborate intelligence information.
This allows those involved to consider
the broader scope of the event during
negotiation.

It is important to bear in mind, that the

outcome of negotiation does not always
produce positive results and possibly
not as expected. It may lead to losses or
wins.
 NEGOTIATIONS DURING PEACE TALKS

“When experience has combined

knowledge and insight with an
understanding of the negotiating
process, military officers can
sometimes be the means to solving
seemingly intractable problems
originating from cultural
differences”. Marley. 1996
Negotiators need to balance between the
interests of the actors they represent with
those of the conflicting parties.

Furthermore, analysing the positions of the

various parties to the negotiations also
considers the nature of the personalities
representing each party.

A good solution to a conflict is one that to a

greater extent accommodates as many
interests of each party as possible. Some of the
issues may actually be of a military nature.
 MILITARY NEGOTIATION ISSUES
1) Cease-fire and Disengagement of Forces

2) Encampment and Disarmament

3) Integration of Forces

4) Demobilization

5) De-mining Operations
 CEASE-FIRE AND DISENGAGEMENT OF FORCES
 Careful step-by-step planning is important for realizing
success or failure. The details include the deployment of
cease-fire monitors; the enumeration of permissible and
proscribed activities; the determination of how alleged
cease-fire violations will be handled; and the
establishment of a peacekeeping force.

 Lessons learned from UN-PKOs indicate that failure may

be attributed to:

i. An ambiguous or unclear mandate for the cease-fire

monitors
ii. A poor terrain that inhibits mobility and observation lack
of a clear cease-fire line,
iii. Ready availability of weapons to
civilian personnel

iv. Poorly disciplined chains of

command among the warring
factions

v. poorly educated or illiterate

populace in the country in
question,.
vi. Poor comprehension of the purpose
for the cease-fire monitors, their
mission, authority, and
responsibilities, and their neutrality
concerning the conflict in question

 The military negotiator should keep

these limiting factors in mind when
the cease-fire and disengagement
process is discussed during
negotiations.
 ENCAMPMENT AND DISARMAMENT
These include planning of camps for each
faction, identifying partners in the process,
having timelines, ensuring security,
providing logistics and disposal of weapons
obtained in disarmament.

NGOs and other useful actors needs to be

included in planning and implementation.
Any gaps that can’t be filled by these
partners then need to get on the list of what
negotiators have to address.
 INTEGRATION OF FORCES

One of the long-term goals of

ensuring peace after a civil war, is to
integrate warring factions into a
single national army.

The role of the negotiator is to

ensure that the various interests and
issues of the various factions form
part of the process of negotiation.
Some of the issues may include: quotas and
representation, conscription criteria, the
military governance system (trainings,
promotions) and the timeline of integration.

As part of capacity building, it may be

important to contribute to the
professionalization of the defense forces
following integration.

The negotiations should determine how personnel

will be trained during the integration process in a
manner that facilitates the restoration of peace and
security.
The negotiations should determine
whether the police forces and other
paramilitary organizations will be
integrated as part of the peace
process.

The factions also should decide

whether ex-soldiers will be allowed
to join the police force
 DEMOBILIZATION

This is an important step

towards integration of military
forces and other persons who
may be attached to them.

Often the details form part of

the peace talks and agreements
reached by parties in conflict.
The actual demobilization process is
conducted by both state and non-state
actors

The political and military leadership

needs to ensure that promises made are
feasible and also be aware of the
context within which reintegration
may occur – sometimes of a different
expectation from those planning.
 De-mining Operations

Landmines and other

unexploded devices are part of
what a negotiator needs to deal
with.

Confidence building is
necessary in ensuring that mine-
related issues are discussed
during negotiation.
Parties need to cooperate in
providing essential information
that is useful for identifying and
destroying the mines.

The exercise may need

cooperation of the factions, the
PKOs and the community
members.