Peace and conflict resolution: Indigenous Peoples, anthropology and mediation

Peace, justice, conflict and violence are notions related to human rights that are often thought of as universal categories. However, different current research shows how these categories are a Western construction that often contradicts other perspectives, such as those of indigenous peoples. This does not mean that there are no mechanisms in place in all societies to avoid conflict or to solve it, but we may have to look for them in different places. It is necessary to know both the ontologies and the forms of local social organization before initiating international or national processes of restitution of peace and of transitional justice. This text sets out recent aspects of studies on ways to maintain peace in indigenous societies in Central and South America (Panama, Colombia, Ecuador) and in the analysis of peace processes in Guatemala and Colombia, where critical perspectives of anthropology impel to consider the local forms of restitution of balance in the resolution of traumatic conflicts.