Peace and Conflict Resolution

The main idea put forward in film, The Fog of War directed by Errol Morris explores whether those who took part in the Vietnam War are contrite, or excusatory for the negative effects brought about by the war. The director supports his claims by staging a series of interviews with the then secretary of defense. He also uses other media resources such as television news and press reports dating back to the time of the war.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Peace and Conflict Resolution specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Through these sources, the audience gets direct information about how the war started, proceeded, and ended. Through interviews, the director vividly brings out McNamara’s character and life history. McNamara’s endeavor to avoid the one question that seeks to know whether he was really doing the will of the people when he masterminded the war that killed many, shows some guilt or fear of judgment (Holden Para.9). He responds by saying that his actions always hinged on tall orders from the president of people-by-people; therefore, obeying everything that the president said, meant doing the will of the people. McNamara’s career during the time he was the president of central bank, his family life including death of his wife, and his tenure as defense secretary are valuable pieces of information that the director explores. Through the interaction between the director, McNamara, and a series of events like numerous phone calls during the interview describing events during the war, the audience is able to get a clear view of the Vietnam War and its effects. Morris, the director of the film is concerned about the historical, economic, and social setting that prevailed during the Vietnam War. During the interview with McNamara, the director’s choice of questions seeks to unveil the historical events that accompanied the Vietnam War. The mention of the fire ly nching of Japanese nationals by firebombs and the bizarre bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki brings out the historical setting of the film. The life of McNamara at this historical time also underscores the social setting that Morris seeks to explore. At one point during the numerous series of interviews, McNamara talks about his social life. He talks about the hard family life he led before engaging in any government duty or his time as a Defense Secretary. He talks of a tumultuous life that subjected his family to depression; something he believes accelerated the unfortunate demise of his wife (Powell Para.16). His life after serving as the President of Central bank also comes out.Advertising Looking for essay on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More A revelation comes out pointing out that during this period; he spent most of his time in activities to benefit the poor, as well as those inclined at making the world a better place. Conventional wisdom holds that, the Vietnam War caused mass destruction and downward slump of the economy (Risen Para.9). This fact underscores the director’s interest in the then economic setting as shown when Morris and McNamara talk about issues such as comparison of bombing of a series of Japanese towns to bombing of an equal number of U.S towns that are of similar size. In this comparison, Morris seeks to explain the extent of damage to the Japanese economy courtesy of the war. The film finds a lot of relevance in contemporary happenings. All over the world, political enmity exists between different nations and absence of an amicable solution to the same would result in similar war as the Vietnam War. The statement by McNamara, which explains why he did what he did, finds significance in the current society. It shows how those working under powerful men are torn between doing what is right and wrong, since they act under directions from their superiors (Ka plan Para.12). When asked why he willingly, as a Defense Secretary, approved the war, he categorically says that he was carrying out the orders of a democratically chosen president; after all, a president chosen by people would represent the people so his/her will is the will of the people. True to the theme of this film, peace between nations is an important tool for coexistence. In the current world, there exist states that are purely enemies to one another; for example, the recent enmity between Iraq and the United States led to the death of thousands of Iraqis and U.S soldiers. Failure to resolve the impeding animosity resulted in forceful entry of the U.S soldiers into Iraq and bloodshed resembling the Vietnam War case ensued. This phenomenon indicates the importance of international peace. The Fog of War film is relevant to peace and conflict studies since it carries the theme of conflict and peace. During an interview in the film, McNamara says that in the period preceding th e Vietnam War, there had been a long period of cold wars.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Peace and Conflict Resolution specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In other words, McNamara implies that even though there was nothing direct to insinuate war, there was tension between the two nations. The presence of cold war means absence of peace, which is a subject of discussion in the peace and conflict resolution studies. Learning the failures by those engaged in this war, students would learn how the concerned parties should have resolved the conflict that led to the war as a way of conflict resolution. Works Cited Errol, Morris, dir. The Fog War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara. Radical Media, 2003. Film. Holden, Stephen. â€Å"The Fog War.† The New York Times, 2003. Web. Kaplan, Fred. The Evasions of Robert McNamara: What’s true and what’s a lie in  The Fog of War, 2003. Web. Powell, Bonnie. â€Å"Robert McNamara, Errol Morris returns to Berkeley to share lessons Learned from Fog of War.† UC Berkeley News, 2004. Web. Risen, Clay. â€Å"The Fog of War.† Flak Magazine, 2003. Web.Advertising Looking for essay on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This essay on Peace and Conflict Resolution was written and submitted by user Aubrianna Mccarthy to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here. Peace and Conflict Resolution Introduction In the world there have been many conflicts in human interactions. These usually result from struggle for getting access and control over various natural resources such as land, minerals and water among others and due to differing political interests. There are usually disagreements between the parties involved which sometimes lead to wars.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Peace and Conflict Resolution specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More When these wars arise, sometimes the member parties require external intervention in bringing it to an end. There are various means of preventing arise of conflicts. The method of approach to each conflict is usually different from each other. This is mainly due to the root cause of the conflict in reference to internal and external factors and the possible consequences of the intervention to the parties involved, citizen and the world as a whole. Thus in undertaking any intervention, it is good to observe the best way out of the conflict. This paper seeks to look into peace and conflict resolution taking critical analysis of the cases in Rwanda and Libya. It is to evaluate whether intervention by external organizations such as the UN was necessary citing the similarity and differences in both cases. Rwanda Genocide The Rwandan genocide was as a result of conflict between the Hutus and the Tutsi. There had been power competition in Rwanda with the tribe in power being oppressive. It was easy to identify the ethnicity of a person from the national identification card. There had been other conflicts before the genocide that left many people dead. They played significant role in dividing the people in ethnic lines. Rwanda was a dictatorial country by the end of 1980’s. There were even regulations restricting interaction between the Hutus and Tutsi for example in the military forces. There were many refugees outside Rwanda who were denied access back to their mother country. This led them to organize themselves into various groups and find their way back. These troops such as the Rwandan patriotic front attacked Rwandan government from outside the country in 1990-1992. This led to the rise of more ethnic tensions, displacement and the death of so many Tutsi.Advertising Looking for essay on international relations? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The death of the Rwandan president in 1994 from an assassination led to the eruption of the massacre. The Hutus attacked the Tutsi killing them. In response to the attacks, the Rwandan patriotic front fought for about three months to overcome the Hutus. This led to more than half a million people dying. There were meeting on how to settle the disagreement in Tanzania before the genocide. France was observed to take side in support of the government. The international intervention to stop the genocide was not present despite t he information about the planning. This led to the killings of many civilians in respect to the tribe they belonged to. This was because there was information about the planning of the massacre yet nothing significant was done. Libya Crisis Muamar Gaddafi has been the leader in Libya for over forty years. During this time he has strengthened his political strength by appointing selected member to be in charge of crucial sectors of his government. There has been uneven distribution of resources and power. This led to the emergence of rival groups. The country is well developed. There have been the revolution movements in most of the North African nations aimed at initiating change in the governance but stopped when it landed on Libya. There was a delay in provision of housing by the government to the citizens and allegations of misuse of power that led to the protest. In response to the protest Gadaffi used his military on the civilians. The rebels on the other hand started fighting aiming to capturing the oil towns. This has led to the death of many in the struggle for power. The civil fighting in Libya has attracted the intervention of the western country. These countries have deployed military intervention in Libya to help in calming the situation. The military intervention was backed up by the United Nations. This intervention has led to the destruction of many properties. In the case of Libya, other means of solving the problem could have been used with the military intervention being the last option. Despite the intervention bringing peace in the country, there are many other repercussions that follow. This is evident in cases of Iraq and Afghanistan.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Peace and Conflict Resolution specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More There have been intentions by the some countries arming the rebels with more weapons. This step is not right as it is likely to encourage the continuous persistent and development of the war. This means that more people are to lose their lives and that this will create more and more separation (Simpson 1). The civil wars in Rwanda and Libya have similarity. In both there were specific persons who were at power and denied the others their rights. This led to the emergence of opposition and eventually civil war which caused loss of lives to many. In the Rwanda genocide, there was no intervention by the United Nations despite the information about the planning. In the Libya crisis, the United Nation intervention was very fast. It has taken sides and though intervention is good, on the other side it has its repercussions. The bloodshed in Libya is less than that of the Rwandan genocide with both parties armed with warfare machinery such as grenade and missile launchers. The intent of civil war in Rwanda was due to ethnical differences which is not the case in Libya. There are argument that the quick intervention is based on t he oil that is present in Libya and the lack of cooperation between Gaddafi and the west. Work Cited Rwanda. Rwanda: How the genocide happened. BBC, 2008. Web. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/1288230.stm Simpson, John. Halt to rebel advancing creates Libya divide. New Africa, 2011. Web. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-12901820 This essay on Peace and Conflict Resolution was written and submitted by user Ella Salinas to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. 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