Nowadays, there are a lot of inter-state and intra-state violent conflicts and wars that can jeopardize the peace and security of the world. The world has passed through two deadly World Wars that affected almost all nations in the world in one way or another. The United Nations Organization was established in 1945 to avoid a third world war and maintain peace and security.
The United Nations has crafted various dispute settlement mechanisms to avert another world war. According to Article 33 of the Charter of the United Nations, "The parties to any dispute, the continuance of which is likely to endanger the maintenance of international peace and security, shall, first of all, seek a solution by negotiation, enquiry, mediation, conciliation, arbitration, judicial settlement...".
To implement these dispute settlement methods, various international organizations are established. The International Court of Justice is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. Similarly, the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) is an intergovernmental organization to solve disputes through arbitration. The PCA provides services for resolving disputes involving states, intergovernmental organizations, and private parties.
However, so far there is no established intergovernmental organization for mediation method of dispute settlement. This gap is identified by China which takes the initiative in 2022 to establish the International Organization for Mediation (IOMed). Mediation, which combines both legal and diplomatic methods, helps to resolve disputes between states through equal-footed constructive dialogue, trust and consultation.
Mediation is not new to many cultures in the world. Especially the role of elders in mediation activities is significant. But this experience is not yet elevated to the international level of mediation to solve violent conflicts of states through established international organization. Mediation helps to resolve a wide range of disputes such as border conflicts, trans-boundary resource conflicts, diplomatic conflicts, commercial disputes, and the like.
The initiative of China aligns with the Charter and basic principles of the United Nations Organizations. For the last two years, China has organized four major sessions to discuss with various governments so as to establish an intergovernmental organization that works on mediation. About nineteen developing governments have supported this innovative idea of establishing mediation organization. Ten of them are from African countries. At the end of the sessions, these countries developed a Joint Statement. Based on the statement, the Preparatory Office was established in 2023 in Hong Kong. The main objective of the office was to coordinate, promote, and prepare draft convention and related instruments of IOMed. Hence, the office has prepared a draft convention of IOMed.
The last session was held in Ethiopia on 24 September 2024 in which Ambassadors of African countries, representatives from the African Union, and other international organizations presented. Ethiopia, which is actively working on the establishment of the organization, is the co-organizer of the session. These sessions helped other countries to discuss the establishment of the organization. In the last session, a lot of ideas have also been ventilated. The fifth session will be held in Hong Kong, China.
The draft convention has incorporated a preamble, establishment clause, government council, secretariat, panel of mediation, scope of cases, procedures, settlement agreements, capacity building, financing, privileges and immunity, and final clause. The convention of IOMed is translated into English, French, Arabic, Spanish, Chinese, and Russian languages. All versions are equal to be used by members. According to the draft convention, the Headquarters of the organization will be in Hong Kong, China. There will be a signing ceremony for the convention in Hong Kong and IOMed will start executing its mandate by 2025.
The mediation method is quite different from litigation. In mediation, parties are encouraged to negotiate based on interests than potions. In the case of court (ICJ) and Arbitration (PCA) parties to the dispute will present their files and conduct arguments, but they do not know what will be the outcome or decisions to be given by judges or arbitrators. Moreover, in the case of ICJ and PCA, there will be a winner and loser of the decision i.e. zero-sum game. Because of such negative impacts of litigation, there is a growing demand for mediation in the international communities. Mediation transcends the drawbacks of arbitration and court methods of dispute settlement.
In the case of mediation (IOMed), however, both sides of the disputed parties will sign on what is agreeable to them i.e. the outcome will be a "Win-Win". In the first two decisions (ICJ and PCA), parties can be relapsed into violent conflicts and wars. But in the case of IOMed, there is little possibility of a return to disputes. According to various sources, the possibility of getting a satisfactory solution from mediation is more than 80%. The outcome of mediation will bring satisfaction to parties in conflict. This is to mean that parties can choose their destiny in the mediation. Mediation doesn't simply solve the immediate problem. Since it is not an adversarial method, it reduces the stresses of parties in conflict. It also helps the preservation of good relationships of parties.
International Organization for Mediation (IOMed) can also fill the gap of global governance injustice which is dominated by the Western countries. Even if there are many international criminal activities in the world to be investigated, the International Criminal Court (ICC) is being criticized for putting pressure on Africa and other least-developed countries. IOMed can mitigate such unnecessary pressure from global governance injustices.
IOMed has a lot of significant importance to maintain peace and security in the world. To begin with, it is one of the instruments of peace-making in the world. It also upholds international order and works based on the basic principles of the United Nations. It can also amplify the voices of countries in the Global South. Moreover, it can serve as a valuable complement to existing international dispute resolution mechanisms.
IOMed doesn't aim to replace the current conflict resolution mechanisms; instead, it will enrich it. IOMed gives priority to harmony, equality, justice, and respect. It is flexible, cost-effective, voluntary, and confidential, far from prejudice, preserves relationships of parties, and is convenient.
Even if China took the initiative, the organization belongs to the Global South and nations of the world at large. Membership will be open to all countries of the world. To make this initiative realistic, China will shoulder much of the financial burden at the time of establishment until it gets ample finances from member states and other organizations. Member states will also contribute relatively little money to the organization.
There are various reasons to join IOMed. These include the organization paving the way towards a more peaceful, harmonious and prosperous future, solving disputes through a fair and a "Win-Win" approach rather than a "Win-Lose Or Lose-Lose" approach and establishing sustainable peace and security; the financial burden for members being very minimal; eligibility to be officials of the IOMed secretariat; it will be a good opportunity of participation in the international law-making process; the presence of various capacity building programmes for the staff of the organization; it will also be a platform for sharing experiences and best practices of various countries; it also helps to advance justice and rule of law; it complements international dispute settlement mechanisms; it will give quicker solution than courts; it respects the principle of sovereignty and equality of states and the like.
IOMed is a good opportunity for Africa and the Global South at large. Currently, there are many violent conflicts in Africa. Most of them can be solved through IOMed. Parties to conflicts can get faster solutions to their problems. Through the mediation process, both sides can get common ground that may lead them to reach voluntary and mutually acceptable agreements. The process of mediation is not as complex as that of international court and arbitration. This makes IOMed convenient for African countries.
In my opinion, some of the mediation can also be conducted through online systems. As long as there are preferences by the parties mediation can be done using state-of-the-art technology. This is because of the flexibility of mediation mechanisms. Such an approach will save time and cost for parties in conflicts.
Litigation is no longer the first option to solve disputes. Resolving problems through court should be the last resort. Before using the option of court, mediation can solve many problems in the world. Hence, mediation can ease the file burdens in international arbitration and the International Court of Justice. This will complement the peace and security activities of the United Nations Organization. If mediation fails to solve the problem of the parties, there will be the option of arbitration and court which are costly, and time-consuming, and the outcome can disappoint one or both parties.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
For the mediation process, there should be a third party who is neutral and facilitates negotiations between and among various contending parties. IOMed will have such neutral mediators who can provide proposals by using creative approaches to solve problems. These mediators do not take sides; rather they facilitate the negotiations between parties and also help to get clarification of issues at hand. Impartiality is the heart and soul of IOMed. Its members can designate mediators of their own.
Not all dispute resolution mechanisms are perfect by themselves. Similarly, not all problems can be solved by the mediation method. However, it is possible to say that mediation is one of the best methods to solve violent conflicts of states, and between other entities.
To sum up, IOMed is another prominent action in the world of diplomacy. This convention is open to be signed by governments of the world. It is inclusive to all nations who believe in the establishment of such an important intergovernmental legal organization. Africa and other countries in the Global South should grab this great opportunity to solve their problems. The first signatories of the convention will be the founding members of the IOMed. They will be at the forefront of making global history. Those who join later will get the right of accession to the organization.
Editor's Note: The views entertained in this article do not necessarily reflect the stance of The Ethiopian Herald
BY MELAKU MULUALEM (a Director General at Institute of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia Training Directorate. He can be reached at melakumulu@yahoo.com )
