The United Nations Support Mission in Libya organized a two-day forum in the Tunisian capital, in which Libyan notables, notables and public figures from all over Libya participated, to discuss enhancing ways to reduce the intensity of societal violence in addition to efforts to prevent the outbreak of conflicts.
The official website of the UN mission stated that this initiative falls within the framework of the efforts made by the mission to enhance ways to mitigate societal violence as an essential means of peacebuilding for sustainable peace in the country.
The United Nations mission indicated that Libya has endured conflicts for more than a decade, which led to the outbreak of major conflicts between armed groups, resulting in loss of life, displacement and economic hardship.
This forum, which was held on December 26 and 27, brought together influential leadership figures in society, notables, wise men, academics, women, youth, and community activists from all over Libya, and the participants examined some of these problems that their societies suffer from, some or perhaps most of them.
During the discussions that took place between the groups, facilitated by the Mission’s Security Institutions Division, in addition to Libyan experts in the field of mediation, the participants examined the causes of conflicts, looking into the possibility of finding solutions to them, and also examined the skills and knowledge that community leaders should possess in order to play the role of mediation and resolution. Conflicts that may arise at the local level.
While the participants stressed that mediation is an effective means of preventing the outbreak of conflicts, one of the participants from social circles stressed the importance of the state tightening its control over weapons and the necessity of unifying the military and security institutions.
The participants highlighted the importance of benefiting from past mediation experiences in different contexts while proposing practical means of negotiation and welcomed the strategies that were presented, which focus on building bonds of trust between the conflicting parties, promoting constructive dialogue, and advancing ways to prevent the outbreak of conflicts.
This forum included interactive sessions, working groups, and opportunities to exchange experiences among counterparts. Participants also listened to the opinions of experts in the field to advance current capabilities in the field of mediation and dispute resolution. The mission’s efforts in the field of mediation throughout Libya were also reviewed, including its role in the experimental approach that Follow to reduce community violence in Ubari and the role of community police throughout Libya in resolving conflicts.
The participants urged the mission to organize more forums and consultations of this kind, unanimously agreeing to prepare a framework to intensify communication and cooperation among them.
Among the most prominent outcomes of this forum were:
- Preparing a guiding charter on mediation and resolving disputes and conflicts in Libyan society, which specifies steps that can assist those in charge of mediation. This charter will be published at a later date.
- Working on drafting legislation that regulates mediation and dispute resolution mechanisms, enhancing the role of mediators, and promoting the implementation of the results of mediation efforts.
- Calling on the mission to intensify its work in building capabilities in the field of reducing societal violence and mediation, and to harness international expertise through more forums to intensify research on the topics addressed in this forum.
- Emphasizing the importance of strengthening the capabilities of national institutions by identifying the challenges that stand in the way of limiting the responsible use of force to the state and unifying security and military institutions.
- Promoting the appropriate climate for the political process.
- Emphasis on programs to reduce the severity of community violence in support of calm and preventing the outbreak of conflicts.
- Requesting the Libyan authorities to support mediation efforts and the results they reach.
- Create channels of communication between participants to complete their discussions and share their experiences.
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