ABC Triangle Rizal Panggabean

Origins and Use ABC Triangle, or the triangle of conflict, is one of the most popular and useful way to investigate and to illustrate the complexities of conflict. First developed by Johan Galtung, based on his research on the definitions of conflict, the triangle summarizes the elements or dimensions of conflict. ABC Triangle provides a useful framework to analyze the stakeholders/actors in a conflict situation, by going deeper into three important aspects of conflict dynamics: context, attitudes, and behavior.

C: Context and Contradiction Refers to the incompatibility of goals (needs, interests) between parties to the conflict. Possible sources of incompatibility is different from conflict to conflict. Examples: Social structure vs. social values (caste system; patriarchy; rich-poor; ethnicity; religion) Scarcity (of oil, water, elected offices) Competition (for market share; in election; for power) Migration (rural to urban; north African countries to Europe) Change (social; political; economic; globalization; climate) Sources of incompatibility may overlap, creating more tension and increasing the stakes. Questions: What contradiction precedes the conflict you are dealing with? How is the contradiction built into the society? What are the contentious issues emerged from the incompatibility? How development programs build incompatibility into the society?

A: Attitudes Refers to parties’ perception and other psychological conditions experienced by the parties in a conflict situation. Attitudes include cognitive aspects such as misperception, enemy construction, negative stereotypes, and feelings such as anger, hate, suspicion, Possible sources of conflict attitudes: Aggressive drives Intra-personel tensions Aggregate frustrations Dehumanization Parties to a conflict develop different feelings, emotions, perceptions (and misperception) toward the other. Questions: What negative feelings and emotions developed among parties to the conflict you are dealing with? How do these maintained and sustained and through what processes? Do certain programs and policies created negative attitudes among the parties or beneficiaries?

B: Behavior Refers to the polarizing – and sometimes destructive – activities or actual behavior of the parties in a conflict. Examples: throwing, burning, killing, intimidating, shooting, demonstration, war, &c.&c. Questions: What conflict behaviors are used in a conflict situation you are dealing with? What strategy and tactics are used? What weapons are used in the conflict? What conflict behaviors emerged due to certain development programs and assistance in a community?

Remember: Conflict can be negative/destructive in its process and outcome; it can be positive/constructive. Conflict does not equal violence Possible benefits of conflict: It create or foster social change Transform latent conflict into manifest conflict amenable for resolution and transformation Focus energy and policy to important problems in the society and then to problem-solving The key is whether there is conflict management/transformation and if yes whether it is good or poor and whether it lead to violence or peace

Strategies of Intervention Building a culture of peace Creating a peace constituency Friendship Healing Forgiveness Acceptance and recognition Moderating public discourse Humanitarian pause Cessation of hostilities DDR SALW Leadership Skills in nonviolence Positive social contacts Deal with the attitude Deal with the context and situation Deal with the behavior Democratization Elections Majority rule Minority rights Youth Economic reform/conversion Security sector reform