Volume 9 – 2016, No. 2

Under the ius cogens and effective judicial protection precepts, this article addresses two different aspects: a) the possibility to attempt solving a dispute through mediation as a procedural requirement when filing a legal action; and b) the need to verify compliance with the principle of litis fair composition, and that the implementation of mediation is not free from obstacles; even if effective judicial protection is not an obstacle, it is important to study the impact of conflict mediation in order to guarantee the necessary legal security under the rule of law so that the final result is none respecting the principles and liberties of constitutionally recognized rights.

The gender perspective in conflict resolution has significantly gained in importance over the last years, after the publication of the Resolution 1325 of the United Nations Security Council. In this regard, this paper addresses the specificities of current conflicts and how they specifically affect women involved in conflicts as «victims» and «agents of change». This paper deals not only with the particularities of this impact but also the negotiation and mediation role of women for conflict resolution, which contribute to build stable societies in political transition processes. This political and social claim seeks to resist the discrimination behaviors societies in conflict usually implement, which contributes to the social, moral and economic reconstruction of countries.

Jimmy Carter won the Nobel Peace Prize 21 years after failing in his bid to be reelected as President of the United States. He has served as Mediator in a large number of conflicts around the world, several of them in Latin America. Francisco Diez worked with Carter in various roles for 20 years and offers a set of stories and lessons learned relevant for building the role of a mediator. He presents here the importance of personal relationship and the building of trust as well as the conviction that reality is built from the decisions of people. The stories and anecdotes give us the profile of an exceptional human being who published almost 50 books and who at 92 years of age is still taking care of the world. Carter has all the virtues that a Mediator needs, and here many of them are revealed, firsthand.

Dag Hammarskjöld es considerado uno de los mejores Secretarios Generales de las Naciones Unidas, entre los más dinámicos e influyentes. Es uno de los diplomáticos más proactivos cuyo legado duradero se centra en la diplomacia tranquila, el mantenimiento de la paz y la ayuda al desarrollo. Estas tres características fundamentales de las Naciones Unidas de hoy en día son el resultado de las ideas de Hammarskjöld. Su legado en las Naciones Unidas se considera un faro y una leyenda para aquellos que busquen el camino hacia la paz y la seguridad internacional, y una brújula moral para los funcionarios internacionales. Este artículo intenta captar parte de la contribución a su conocida «diplomacia tranquila» (mediación privada informal) para resolver algunas de las peores crisis que ha visto el mundo.

After years of negotiations, with the support of the Peace Conference of Buenos Aires, and the key contribution of Dr. Carlos Saavedra Lamas, a Nobel Peace Laureate, the Peace, Friendship and Border Treaty was signed by Bolivia and Paraguay, with the mediation of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru, Uruguay and the United States. The Chaco War was a tough test of the democratic principles upheld by the American continent.

This article introduces one of the most important figures of the peace movement, Bertha von Suttner, a woman that lived between the 19thand the 20thcenturies and showed with her life and deeds that «the fight» for peace can be waged and wined over with determination, resources and conviction. She was the creator and promotor of several peace associations and conferences, and her actions focused on the dissemination of the ideals for peace that were later taken on by the Organization of the United Nations, among other. Her life and endeavors are still alive today, and some international organizations owe their existence to her.