Description
Intractable conflicts and post-conflict processes, including transitional justice, are seen as zero-sum situations. People view war crimes trials, reconciliation processes, reparations and many of the other central processes of transitional justice as zero-sum, where one party’s gains is offset by other parties’ losses. This can cause an aversion to the process, since individuals tend to avoid situations they believe to be zero-sum. Regardless of whether or not it is, viewing transitional justice as such can aggravate interactions between people involved in the process. This stunts the conflict transformation process by building a shallow peace. Studies show that zero-sum beliefs are asymmetric, context-specific and defined by identity politics, but this has yet to be applied to transitional justice. We do not understand under what conditions zero-sum beliefs become salient and no studies have examined zero-sum constructs of transitional justice interactionally. This paper ask, under what interactional contexts is transitional justice viewed as zero-sum? The paper draws on data from twelve inter-ethnic focus groups conducted with youths on topics of transitional justice in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo and Serbia. The paper uses Conversation Analysis, a micro-analytic approach to the analysis of turns in conversations, to analyse zero-sum beliefs in transitional justice interactions. The findings show that in some situations, transitional justice is viewed as zero-sum, but in others it is not. This depends on the regional and national political context surrounding the discussions; the perception of who individuals believe is gaining; and, whether the discussion is focused on macro issues (tribunals, recognition of statehood and lands swaps) or micro, everyday issues. By understanding when zero-sum beliefs are salient in interactions, we better understand under what conditions individuals are prepared to engage in transitional justice. This can help better promote the development of a deeper, more sustainable peace.
