Members of the UN Security Council, 2012. Demotix/VIEW Press. All rights reserved.In January of last year, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman drew the UN Security Council's attention to the fact that, while it had recognized Iraq's progress in various resolutions, the country's communities had sharply differing historical and political narratives. This inhibited their ability to achieve common goals, including the fight against terrorism. In light of the spectacular rise of ISIS, it is hard not to acknowledge the prescience of his remarks. It was pronounced during a debate initiated by the Jordanian presidency, lyrically entitled "War, its Lessons and the Search for Permanent Peace". Focused on dealing with the past in order to forge genuine reconciliation after war, it dealt with a topic the Council rarely takes the time to discuss in depth, usually satisfied with empty calls for dialogue in the conflicts under consideration.
But research shows that countries having experienced a civil war have up to a 50 percent chance of relapsing into conflict within ten years. Examples abound of elections held too early, fanning on the flames of entrenched wartime narratives. If reconciliation can take many forms, from healing to transitional justice, through to truth-telling and reparations, sustainable peace cannot happen without it.
It does not seem to be the Council's favourite agenda item. While the topic had been discussed once in 2004, the ensuing laconic presidential statement reflected the members' inability to agree on much beyond the "vital importance" of the matter. As noted by the Jordanian representative, states are so sensitive to the use and misuse of historical accounts that they have not wanted to "play with such a figurative bomb". The latter almost exploded in his hands, with countries seizing the opportunity to bring up their own wounds and settle scores, China with Japan, Israel with Iran, Georgia with Russia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo with Rwanda. Some were so busy arguing that they forgot to state their position on the concrete proposals to be discussed, and the meeting concluded without any agreement on a way forward.
