Negotiating

Let's say there is a problem between you and another person. What do you do if the other person simply refuses to discuss the problem with you? Refuses to even listen? I faced such a situation today and I admit I was deeply hurt and stunned because this person is someone I respected and looked up to.

I am a strong believer in the power of negotiation, especially in conflict resolution.

My country, Sri Lanka, is suffering under the burden of over 2 decades of conflict between the government and the L.T.T.E. The L.T.T.E. leader Velupillai Prabhakaran refuses to come to the negotiating table with the current government.

http://www.hindu.com/fline/fl2313/stories/20060714005300500.htm

Because the L.T.T.E. is unwilling to compromise and to even discuss matters with the government the war continues in the north and the death toll rises, hundreds of thousands of people are internally displaced and people of Sri Lanka live their lives under the continuous sufferings of WAR.

How can 2 parties solve their differences if one party refuses to talk with the other? Most of us must know at least one such conflict where one person stubbornly refuses to talk to the other and as a result the problem between them festers. Whether the matter is related to work, relationships or any other matter the final result will be the same, aggravating the problem instead of solving it.

In the end all I can say is that I have totally lost the respect I had for this person..