Interdisciplinary Centre Herzliya

Raphael Recanati International School

Lauder School of Government, Diplomacy and Strategy

Chilean Education Conflict

Proposal of a Citizen’s Diplomacy Initiative to the Organization of Ibero-American States

Stephan Zivec (000095076)

August 15, 2013

IN COLLABORATION WITH PROPOSAL FOR

This citizen’s diplomacy initiative was successfully completed in collaboration with Universidad Alberto Hurtado. The proposed track II initiative will be presented to Organization of Ibero-American States for Education, Science and Culture.

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

A so called Track II Diplomacy initiative is intended to bring non-officials in order to

engage in dialogue with the aim of conflict resolution. In this case, as noted by Professor

Kaufman (2003: page 183), this initiative will be referred as Citizen’s Diplomacy instead of

Track II Diplomacy because it intends to bring together the partners in conflict of the Chilean

education conflict. The Chilean education conflict has affected the lives of millions of

Chileans, especially of those who are currently studying. It has marked the Chilean society as

it began three years ago, with no clear intentions of ceasing the protests or acknowledging

the students’ demands. This citizen’s diplomacy initiative proposes a 10-day workshop in

which the partners in conflict will be brought together and be induced to build trust among

them. Afterwards, the initiative intends to teach them different methods and skills of

conflict resolution and consensus building in order to attempt to achieve a document of

consensus which must be signed by all participants.

This initiative is supported and performed in collaboration with the Universidad

Alberto Hurtado, a private Jesuit university in the center of Santiago de Chile, who has in the

past resolved similar conflict with its own students by dialogue and engaging directly with

the student federation. It is a proposal for the Organization of Ibero-American States as it

brings together all Spanish- and Portuguese- speaking countries together for

intergovernmental cooperation in the field of education among others in the context of the

integral development and democracy.

A citizen’s diplomacy initiative focused on the Chilean education conflict could help

the next government (elected in the next presidential elections on November 2013) by

providing an alternative solution reached through consensus. It will also raise awareness in

the Chilean society that grassroots diplomacy initiatives can provide to current Track I

negotiations a more plausible and effective solution which is not constrained by any

ideological, societal, religious or any kind of pressure. However, this initiative is not

intended to replace current or future official negotiations that may occur.

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PART I

CONFLICT ASSESSMENT

1.1. Brief historical overview of the conflict

The origin of the current Chilean conflict between students and the government of Chile

can be traced down to 2011. Thousands, if not millions, of students over the past few years

have gathered, marched, and protested in various creative ways against the existing

educational system ‘defended’ by the government. These manifestations are the biggest ever

since the return of democracy three decades ago. However, the educational conflict in Chile

is not new for the country, as similar protests nationwide occurred in the near past. In 2006,

high school students all over the country began protesting demanding quality education fully

subsidized by the government and prohibition on profit private education (Smink, 2011).

These protests were popularly referred as La Revolución de los Pingüinos, a symbolic

representation of the students’ uniforms. Nowadays, 25% of the education system is financed

by the government and the other 75% is dependent on tuition fees the students have to pay

(Smink, 2011). While free education is only guaranteed for primary school, secondary

schools can charge fees (Smink, 2011). Moreover, all institutions of higher education, both

public and private, charge tuition fees (Smink, 2011).

There are two factors that contributed to the formation of the current educational system

in Chile, which incentive students’ dissatisfaction. The first factor was the reform of the

university system in 1981, which eliminated free tertiary education. Thereafter, students who

wish to attend university but do not have the necessary funds to afford it must request

governmental loans (to attend public traditional universities – which receive some state

subsidies) or bank loans (to attend private educational institutions) (Smink, 2011). The

second factor was the Ley Orgánica Constitucional de Enseñanza, or LOCE (Smink, 2011).

The LOCE law was approved in 1990 by Dictator Augusto Pinochet right before he handed

the presidency to democratically elected President Aylwin. This law reduced the

government’s role in education to only as a supervisor and protector entity, passing the

responsibility to private corporations, and reducing students’ and non-academic staff

participation in the decision-making process within the educational institutions (Smink,

2011). Also, LOCE laid down basic requirements to establish educational centers and did not

established basic supervising measures (Smink, 2011). This law was replaced in 2009 by Ley

General de Educacion, which students claim it brought minor, if any, changes to LOCE

(Estrada, 2009). Students argue that these two factors opened the door to profit in education

thus reducing the quality of education and that 70% of students took a form of loan to pay for

their education, putting students in debt for the next 20 years approximately (Smink, 2011;

Chavez, 2011). The creation of the so called ‘education business’ led to the constitutional

removal of recent Minister of Education Herald Beyer (BBC Mundo, 2013). Furthermore,

although the Chilean economy has shown a steadily and greater growth due to the record

prices of the Chilean main export copper, in neighboring countries, such as Argentina and

Uruguay, all citizens have access to quality free higher education. Thus, students and scholars

argue that the government has the means like its neighboring countries to provide quality free

education (Smink, 2011).

Among their creative and peaceful demonstrations, they resorted to massive flash mobs of

the song ‘Thriller’ of Micheal Jackson in front of the presidential palace La Moneda on 25

June, 2011 stating that the education system is ‘rotten’ and ‘dead’ (Huffington Post, 2011),

symbolic and collective ‘suicides’ under the motto “they’ve died waiting for a better

education” (El Dinamo a, 2011), cosplay-flash mob of ‘superheroes’ and ‘villains’ joining

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forces to save the education (Bernal, 2011) and the ‘Besaton por la Educacion’ where around

3,000 students gathered to protest via a massive kissing parade (Maturana, 2011). However,

most of these protests end up in violent clashes with the armed forces, known in Chile as

Carabineros, due to public disturbance made by the encapuchados. Since the beginning of

the protests, only 1 student was reported dead after being shot by Carabineros on August 26,

2011, more than 1,700 detainees and unknown number of injured students and Carabineros

(Barreno, 2013). The media coverage of the protests emphasizes and highlights these violent

endings, negatively impacting the success of the protests, and undermining the students’

demands and actions. But, both parties strongly condemn students who resort to violent acts,

and students also condemn the severe police repression.

As of today (August 15, 2013), the conflict is in low-level violence. Few occupations of

educational institutions are still on place and some minor protests were organized in the last

few months. It has to be noted that the Chilean academic world is in winter recession, thus

students do not feel the urgent need to protest, and the 2013 presidential elections are getting

closer, which media attention is being directed to this event.

1.2. Parties of the conflict and their demands

This conflict is clearly represented by two opposing sides, the government of Chile and

the students who are represented by the Confederation of Chilean Students (popularly known

as CONFECH for its Spanish acronym). Also, in most instances the students were supported

by labour unions, professors, social organizations and the majority of the Chilean society as

the majority of the families have someone studying or are still paying their loans (Smink b,

2011). For this initiative, 20 female participants will be selected – 10 from each side –

preferably people who in the past played a determinant role in the conflict and/or in the failed

negotiations. Examples would be Camila Vallejo (former president of the University of Chile

Student Federation) and Ximena Muñoz (former president of the University of Valparaiso

Student Federation) representing the students, and Yasna Provoste (Minister of Education

under the presidency of Michelle Bachelet) and Monica Jimenez (also Minister of Education

under the presidency of Michelle Bachelet) representing the government. Also,

considerations should be made to those who represent secondary parties, such as professors,

deans of universities, regional/municipal offices working on education, and/or teacher-

parents organizations (CODEPA). Selected participants apart of being leaders or have worked

in the decision-making process of their respective sides, would all be female in order to

achieve an explicit common denominator.

The government is constantly affected by repeatedly protests which most end up in

hostilities between the armed forces and students, as well as bringing down the popularity of

President Sebastian Piñera. The students have been affected by the educational system which

they deem ‘unfair’ as the middle class (or the working class) cannot access to government or

bank loans and cannot fully pay university’s tuition fees, too costly compared to other

universities’ tuition fees in neighboring South American nations leading to many students in

debt. Moreover, many students had to suspend their studies for a semester or entire year due

to the protests and occupations of educational institutions around the country. In late 2011,

the government and educational institutions had to prolong the academic year due to the

many lost days throughout the year.

Regarding each party’s demands, the students demand from the government free and

quality higher education for everyone, as well as the end of for-profit education being

replaced by non-profit educational institutions. The end of for-profit education entails

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nationalizing municipal schools, which have shown low-quality educational standards. It has

to be noted that a plebiscite presented to the government with more than 1.5 million people

taken part, showing 88.7% voting in favor of free, public, high quality education (BBC World

c, 2011). Under President Piñera’s government, they have clearly stated that free higher

education cannot be met, and demanded students to choose peaceful protests and refrain in

resorting to violence. However, these demands and/or needs (and others not considered)

should be identified by the participants taking part in the workshop proposed in this paper.

1.3. Perceptions and communication channels

As explained previously, although both groups condemn violence, both groups accuse

each other of inciting violence taking the forms of public destruction by encapuchados or

severe police repression. Also, the government has accused the students of not taking an

active role in solving the conflict by rejecting every proposal offered to them, and

undermined the students’ strong support and efficient organizational system. The government

has defended Carabineros’ actions stating they only try to restore peace and order. On the

other hand, students have accused the government of being inflexible in trying to meet the

students’ demands and indirectly linked politicians of profiteering from educational

institutions, as it is against the law. Most student federations have repeatedly stated that they

do not support violence and have called all students for nonparticipation in violent acts.

However, both sides have shown a certain degree of violence towards each other.

Currently, there is no open space or communication channels between both groups, unless

it is in the form of formal negotiations (track I negotiations). In the protests, universities and

other educational institutions, students can gather and discuss among them what the next

steps would be. Some scholars have claimed that the organization of the students is extremely

efficient, transparent and democratic; meaning that each educational center has assemblies

where any student can express their opinion and vote, which this decision is later transferred

to a nationwide student assembly where one unified posture is taken (Smink b, 2011). The

Ministry of Education, responsible for all decisions regarding education, is under direct

control and command of the head of state, in this case President Piñera. Nevertheless, the

Minister of Education has some degree of autonomy of the decisions taken, but due to the

importance of the conflict the president is oftentimes involved in the decision-making

process. In order for both groups to achieve their goals, new channels of communications

should be opened, for example this citizen’s diplomacy initiative. An initiative of this kind

could address the core issues of the conflict and eliminate the misperceptions. This could

possibly lead for both parties being open to the other sides’ position and contribute to the

making of a common agreed solution. Without these spaces, it would be hard to reduce

students’ feelings of injustice and dissatisfaction, and regain public support for the

government.

1.4. Parties’ interests and needs

Both parties have repeatedly expressed their concern regarding the improvement of the

education’s quality. However, the government insists that there should be an improvement in

the lower scale of education, meaning in the pre-school and primary schools curriculum

(“Tolerancia Cero”, 2011). The students, on the other hand, emphasize the need to improve

the quality of higher education, especially of the professors’ conditions (i.e. wages), stricter

control on pedagogy graduates and more research conducted by higher education institutions

(“Tolerancia Cero”, 2011).

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Regarding free higher education, students demand equal opportunities for all citizens,

regardless of their socio-economic background. Chile being one of the countries with higher

socio-economic inequality in the region, it is quite obvious that deep-rooted problems of

inequality among the society are reflected in the educational conflict. A study conducted by

the OECD placed Chile as the second country in the world with most segregation in schools

(Pavez, 2011). Students demand it is a basic need and social right to give everyone the same

opportunity in terms of education; however, the government disagrees as many other

countries around the world do. Since the return of democracy, left-wing and right-wing

governments have supported Pinochet’s neo-liberal approach to education, meaning to leave

the market to regulate the education (Smink, 2011). Recently, presidential candidate Michelle

Bachelet stated that she supports free education, indicating a possible resolution of the

conflict (CNN Chile, 2013). However, students have shown a strong commitment to their

demands and won’t be easily pleased until their demands have been completely met. An

example of this strong commitment was the 2006 protests, when although former President

Bachelet made some reforms to the educational system, the student body continued their

protests. Also, the many failed attempts to resolve the conflict by the current government,

didn’t lessened the intensity of the students’ protests.

In summary, the government and the students share the vision to improve the quality of

education as well as trying to reduce violence by all parties. However, the approach to solve

the quality of education is different and the gratuity of higher education is a need/interest that

is conflicting.

1.5. Previous attempts to settle and willingness to talk

As mentioned previously, there were many unilateral proposals from the government. The

first being made was on July 5, 2011 when President Piñera through national broadcast

proposed the Gran Acuerdo Nacional por la Educacion (GANE) and the creation of Fondo

para la Educacion (FE) (Piñera, 2011). This proposal was rejected by the students and

professors, claiming that their basic demands of nationalizing municipal schools and ending

the for-profit educational institutions were not being addressed (Cooperativa, 2011). Camila

Vallejos stated in a news interview that “there is no national agreement, only a unilateral one.

We will continue fighting to the end, with more force because the government has not been

able to offer an answer to this social movement” (Heredero, 2011).

The second unilateral proposal of the government came on August 1, 2011. On July 27,

the students successfully convinced the political opposition to not attend the planned meeting

with Education Minister Bulnes. The government later called for an unexpected meeting

between Education Minister Bulnes and the students’ representatives on that same day. In

that occasion, Minister Bulnes compromise to a second proposal on 1st August which were

once again rejected by the students. However, the fact that students praised Minister Bulnes

willingness to negotiate and dialogue could had been considered a significant development in

the resolution of the conflict, unlike former Minister Levin who always tried to criminalize

the movement, discredit and downplay the students demands (LaTercera, 2011).

The third proposal occurred on August 17, 2011 by Minister Bulnes. However, this time

the government decided to publish the proposal on media raising the students and professors

doubts and concerns on the stipulated factors (SoyChile, 2011). After reviewing the proposal,

students rejected the proposal claiming there were many gaps concerning their demands

(SoyChile, 2011).

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The first attempt of dialogue was on August 11, 2011. The National Congress offered the

students to begin negotiations, but the CONFECH rejected this proposal claiming that this

initiative should come from the executive power and not from the legislative (Farfan & Peña,

2011). However, students praised the National Congress’ willingness to solve the conflict and

emphasized that the primary responsibility rests in the government (Farfan & Peña, 2011).

On August 26, President Piñera stated: “As President of Chile, I summon all students,

parents, teachers, principals, to initiate this dialogue now in La Moneda, in Congress, because

I know, and you know, that's what the vast majority of Chileans expects and demand from

us” (LaSegunda, 2011). He continued by saying that it was “time to get together around a

table, in a climate of peace and not in a climate of war” (LaSegunda, 2011). This dialogue

initiative was accepted by the students on September 3 and on September 5 Minister Bulnes

made public the three-dialogue tables initiative (Emol, 2011). After some controversies over

the pre-requisites for commencing the dialogue tables, students agreed to the government’s

initiative – Giorgio Jackson (student leader) said: “Our demonstrations over these five

months have ensured minimum guarantees for a dialogue with the government.” (BBC

World, 2011). However, these talks failed. Student representative Camila Vallejo said: “[the

government] did not have the political will to meet the demands of the great majority in our

country”, while the government claimed that the movement has been taken over by extremists

(BBC World b, 2011). Thus, both parties blamed each other for the failure of the dialogue

and brought the negotiation to a stalemate condition, which led to more severe protests by

students and more reports of police repression.

Even though at the beginning of the protests, the government did not demonstrate

willingness to dialogue with the students (due to their unilateral responses and Minister

Levin’s remarks criminalizing the movement and undermining the students’ demands), the

government has adopted a more flexible posture trying to reconcile and find a solution that

satisfies everyone. Maybe this transformation of the government’s posture comes from the

low political support for the government and strong societal support for the movement.

However, the inflexibility of the government for free quality education represents a barrier to

conflict resolution. Also, although there was only one official negotiation table, there has

been in open debates to address this conflict. Examples would be televised informal debates,

open seminars conducted in universities and other educational institutions, and so on. Yet, a

comprehensive workshop in the form of track II (citizen’s diplomacy) is needed in order to

better understand the demands and the interests, as well as grasping the willingness to settle

issues of both sides, without political/social constraints people have when in public discourse.

PART II FUTURE POSSIBLE SCENARIOS

There are 5 possible future scenarios if the conflict is unaddressed. These possible future

scenarios are largely dependent on the next presidential elections that will take place on

November 2013, with a possible runoff election on December. This is due to centrality of the

conflict in Chilean society and the candidates’ attempt to gain political support:

2.1. Scenario I: Left-wing candidate wins the elections

Former President Bachelet is running for President for a second time. Her left-wing

coalition named Nueva Mayoria is composed of socialist, communist and other left-wing and

center-left-wing political parties. In her presidential campaign, she promised free and quality

education for all, proposing a 6-year plan to achieve it, as well as progressively ending for-

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profit educational institutions and improving quality of the educational system (Melo, 2013).

Her proposal will most likely solve the conflict, but her failed attempt to solve the 2006

student protests can be considered a negative history. Even though most students who are

taking part in the protests identified themselves with left-wing parties, student representatives

have denounced left-wing parties for inaction and politically motivated support against the

current right-wing government. This means that although she has in theory the support of the

students, students will support her as long as she keeps her promises once elected as

president. On another note, some politicians have accused Bachelet’s presidential plan as

populist and non-realistic, undermining her efforts and raising doubts over her policies and

methods to the society.

2.2. Scenario II: Right-wing candidate wins the elections

Elected presidential right-wing candidate Longueira announced his resignation a week

after he was elected due to a severe depression episode. He was replaced by the current right-

wing presidential candidate Evelyn Matthei. She represents the right-wing alignment of

political parties, referred to as the Alianza. In an interview, Matthei clearly stated that she was

against free education for all the citizens, claiming it would be unfair to grant free education

to people who can afford tuition fees at the expense of the money own by all Chileans

(Reyes, 2013). This scenario could entail the maintenance of the status quo, as Matthei’s

position is similar to Piñera’s policies. If Matthei wins the next elections, students would

most probably feel like there won’t be any progress, and this situation could lead to either the

continuation and strengthening of protests, or the cease of protests due to the longevity of the

conflict.

2.3. Scenario III: Independent candidate wins the elections

Although the probabilities of an independent candidate to win the next elections are

narrow, it does not exclude the minimal possibilities. In the first round of the 2009

presidential elections, independent candidate Marco Enriquez-Ominami received an

outstanding 20.14% of votes, coming third after left-wing candidate Frei’s 29.60% (Servicio

Electoral, 2009). It has to be considered that it was Mr. Ominami’s first presidential elections,

having a short political history. In 2013, he again is an independent presidential candidate. He

also advocates for free and high quality education for all, as he did in the last elections. His

father and known economist Carlos Ominami analyzed the current situation stating that “one

of the problems that Marco has is that Bachelet has taken and made hers all his policies”, but

he warns about “the conservative sectors who entered the coalition of Michelle Bachelet

which threatens to slow the changes she proposed” (Quezada, 2013). There could be a

possibility of Marco Ominami coming second in the first round, which everything could be

decided in the runoff elections. Marco Ominami’s candidature policies will most likely solve

the conflict, but his lack of political experience might become an obstacle if elected.

2.4. Scenario IV: Students cease protests

This scenario assumes that due to occupations of schools and universities, protests and the

many days-off all educational institutions had to allow, only the students will be affected as

they won’t be able to complete their academic year. This in turn would signify that students

would become more in debt as they would have to extend their studies for an extra semester

or even an extra full year. Some students have lost years in 2011, even though the

government created a plan to help the students in this position. If students start to see that

their efforts have not made any progress and that the costs are greater than the benefits in the

short-term, this could lead to students ceasing to protests. An argument against this scenario

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is the protracted nature of the conflict, as the generation of the 2006 protests is the same

generation in universities that began the 2011 movement.

2.5. Preferred Scenario & Best Alternative to a Negotiated Outcome (BATNA)

The preferred scenarios would be the first and the third one. In both cases the students

would achieve their demands and the elected governments would have gained the public trust

and will bring back societal order. Nevertheless, either government would have to keep their

promises on free and high quality education as well as ending the for-profit educational

institutions in order to avoid the re-emergence of the student conflict. Regardless of the

election results, new communication channels should be established between the students’

federations (mainly CONFECH) and the government in order to avoid misperceptions,

misunderstandings, and re-emergence of the conflict, thus incentivizing greater dialogue

between both parties. An example would be cancelling the LOCE’s provision prohibiting

students and non-academic staff from participating in the decision-making process, or another

method would be to allow inputs and opinions from any interest party when modifying the

educational system as a whole. An initiative like this would help to identify conflicting

interests and promote conflict transformation to a more peaceful cooperation.

The BATNA for this conflict is different for both sides. Students’ BATNA would be if

the current government would enact the legalization of high quality education fully

subsidized by the government and creating an efficient mechanism to check higher education

institutions of for-profiteering actions. Government’s BATNA would be scenario IV, but the

feasibility of this occurring is minimal. For both groups, the BATNA would be a combination

of both scenarios, the government agreeing to the students’ demands and the students ceasing

all type of protests and other kinds of manifestation against the government. This in turn will

satisfy the students’ needs and would enhance public support for the right-wing political

parties, thus for the right-wing presidential candidate.

PART III

CITIZEN’S DIPLOMACY INITIATIVE

3.1. Objectives and partner organizations

The objective of this citizen’s diplomacy initiative is to create an instance for open

dialogue between the parties involved, where they can safely analyze and identify the

reasons, interests and demands of the conflict. This initiative will directly involve civil

society members to attempt solving the conflict which ultimately affects them. Also, its goal

is to highlight commonalities of the parties and raise the awareness of the need to solve the

conflict. Another expected goal of this initiative is the end-result, hoping the partners could

transfer the knowledge acquired during the workshop to their direct circles of influences. And

lastly, enable the partners in conflict to reach some sort of consensus at the end of the

workshop, which could later be propose to the appropriate authorities as an alternative for

conflict resolution.

Universidad Alberto Hurtado (UAH), located in the center of Santiago de Chile, has

expressed interested in associating with this type of initiatives. The UAH is a Jesuit, private

university established in 1997, receiving its name after famous Chilean Jesuit Saint, Alberto

Hurtado. As a former student of the UAH studying Licenciatura en Ciencias Politicas y

Relaciones Internacionales from 2009 to mid-2010, I can assure the objectivity and conflict-

resolution set of mind the UAH has taken over the past years. A great example of the

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previously stated was the 2007 raise in tuition fees by the school administration. This led to

protests and students’ opposition, which after negotiations between the FEUAH (Alberto

Hurtado University Student Federation) and the school administration, the conflict was

resolved. Despite the economic crisis that afflicted UAH, the school administration agreed to

lower the percentage of tuition increase and open a dialogue table for 2008 which would

discuss a new tariff policy and create a new institutionalized democracy in UAH (Yori,

2012).

3.2. Participants, facilitators, location and duration

As mentioned before (refer to section 1.2), this citizen’s diplomacy initiative will select

20 female participants, 10 participants from each side. Considerations should also be made to

those who represent secondary parties, such as professors, deans of universities,

regional/municipal offices working on education, and/or teacher-parents organizations

(CODEPA). Selected participants apart of being leaders or have worked in the decision-

making process of their respective sides, would all be female in order to achieve an explicit

common denominator. The government and the students’ federations, as well as secondary

parties, have expressed in the past their willingness to partake in dialogues and negotiations.

The reasoning behind for selecting only female participants is that the symbol of the students’

protests is Camila Vallejo and the two presidential candidates to most probably win the

election are women, making gender a common denominator for the conflict and for the future

of the conflict. They are partners-in-conflict.

Regarding the facilitators, I recommend Professor Edy Kaufman from the Center for

International Development and Conflict Management (CIDCM) of the University of

Maryland. Professor Kaufman has extensive experience in facilitating the transformation of

conflicts through multi-track diplomacy, and has developed the Innovative Problem Solving

Workshop (IPSW) model upon which these workshops are based. His past experience around

the world, especially in Latin America, makes him a perfect candidate as a facilitator. He

previously facilitated the Peruvian-Ecuadorian multi-track diplomacy workshop and currently

is working in the Cuban-American multi-track diplomacy workshop. Also, for a better

workshop, I recommend that a Chilean facilitator should be selected and trained accordingly

by Professor Kaufman in order to fit his model and this initiative.

The workshop will last 10 days and it would be conducted entirely in Spanish. Because

the workshop will last 10 days, I propose to create a ‘Free Day’ on Sunday which will allow

the participants to relax and enhance trust building, thus making it an 11-day workshop. Also,

it will allow those more religious to attend to mass in a near-by church. The workshop should

be conducted at a remote location, preferably a non-educational institution. I suggest a 12-day

cruise from Valparaiso to Ushuaia, Argentina, (see Appendix 5) so it will allow the partners

to visit new places every day during their free time and would be isolated from their

traditional settings. This initiative should take place prior the 2013 presidential elections, in

order to present the ‘final agreed resolution’ to the newly elected government.

3.3. Citizen’s Diplomacy Initiative

This citizen’s diplomacy initiative will be divided into 5 phases throughout the 10-day

program. This initiative is based on the Innovative Problem Solving Workshop (IPSW),

which is divided into 4 stages: Trust Building, Skills Building, Consensus Building and Peace

Building (or Re-Entry). All these stages will be represented in the last 4 phases of this

initiative. At the end of each day of the 10-day workshop, a One-Minute Evaluation will be

presented in order to evaluate the progress and success of the methodology (see Appendix

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3).Facilitators at the end of each day will review the One-Minute Evaluation and make the

necessary adjustments for the next day. Before the beginning of the workshop, all participants

must have been briefed concerning the technical details of the workshop (location, duration,

transportation, etc.) and the substantial details of the workshop (objectives, methodologies,

role of facilitators, etc.). However, these issues will be further explained in the first day of the

workshop.

Phase I – Orientation Day (Day 1): In this day, participants and facilitators arrive to the

embarking port in Valparaiso. The partners in conflict will be given all morning to get used to

the ship and its facilities, each other within their groups and between the partners in conflict.

During the afternoon session, facilitators will prepare the partners for the following phases

and explain in detail the aim of the workshop. In that moment, facilitators should answer any

questions or concerns the partners may have as well as explaining the uniqueness of this

opportunity. Facilitators should also introduce themselves and explain the role they will take

throughout the workshop. The afternoon session could be done with the two groups jointly or

separately at the same time. I would also suggest creating a list of ‘rules of conduct’ for the

rest of the workshop agreed by all partners and facilitators. In the evening, an informal

reception dinner could be organized.

Phase II – Trust Building (Day 2): The second phase is aimed to the partners in conflict

to meet each other at a round-table and attempt to achieve trust among them. Exercises of

trust building should be conducted highlighting the commonalities the partners in conflict

have and beginning to build bridges between both groups. Some exercises that should be

conducted throughout this day are Birthdate Sitting Arrangement and Airport Game (similar

to Introducing Your Neighbor exercise). Also, exercises such as Name Histories (and

possibly a re-make of this game which I named School Stories) and Ups and Downs should

be conducted (for a better understanding of the exercises see Appendix 4). After the

exercises, facilitators should present to the group the University of Maryland’s definition of

diversity and encourage a discussion of diversity and inclusion. At the end of the day, a

dinner would be arranged for the partners, in which jokes should be encouraged by the

facilitators to help creating trust between the partners.

Phase III – Skills Building (Days 3 to 5): The third phase is aimed to teach the partners

collaborative problem solving and acquire tools to build consensus. These tools will help the

partners in conflict to move from an adversarial stance to a more collaborative position. In the

morning session of Day 3 an introductory lecture on conflicts and conflict resolution should

be held. During the afternoon session and the next days, exercises concerning conflicts, the

Chilean student protests, stereotypes, discrimination and prejudice, and the way people

express should be conducted. Exercises that I recommend to be held are “The Faces of the

Enemy”, “Deescalating Exercise”, “Good Deed Flowers”, “Mirror, Mirror on the Wall”, “Hot

Buttons”, “Personal View” and show documentaries concerning the Chilean conflict (see

Appendix 1 for a list of documentaries). The rationale behind this phase is for the partners to

eliminate the “us vs. them” polarity, demonstrate to the partners the universality nature of

these type of conflict, begin to talk about their own conflict and some core issues underlying

the conflict, teach the partners the effects of judgments and stereotypes, and finally

personalize their view of the conflict (Kaufman, 2003: page 211). Also, through the “Hot

Buttons” exercise it will help both sides to understand each other better and limit violent-

expressions being used in the workshop (Kaufman, 2003: page 215). The list from the “Hot

Buttons” exercise should be added to the ‘rules of conduct’ made in the first day of the

workshop.

11

Phase IV – Consensus Building (Days 6 to 9): The fourth phase is aimed at building

consensus among the partners. Through exercises and the explanation of the ARIA model,

the partners should be able to attempt reaching consensus on many issues related to the

conflict, hoping to reach a ‘consensus document’ signed by all participants, including the

facilitators. In order to achieve a ‘consensus document’, all participants’ opinions must be

given equal weight and consideration (Kaufman, 2003: 223). The first exercise that should be

attempted is my personal favorite “Dictionary Game” in which facilitators take the definition

of one word from the dictionary (i.e. education) and participants must write anonymously

what they think the dictionary’s definition is. Facilitators should then mix all answers

including the right definition, and then proceed to read all of them and let the partners in

conflict vote which sounds the more correct one. This game could be done for 2 or 3 words,

choosing words relating to the conflict, such as education, teacher, student or so. Other

exercises that should be carried out are “Bridging the Gap”, “TOWS/FODA”, “Finding the

Minimal Common Denominator” (MCD), “Unilateral Best Offers” (UBO) and “Shared

Vision”. These exercises are more generic and although it deals with the conflict in matter

does not attempt to create a consensus document. These exercises will help the partners to

identify some opposing issues as well as some shared perspectives. After conducting these

exercises, a lecture on the ARIA technique by Jay Rothman should be held. In this lecture, it

must be explained and emphasized the rationale of the ARIA technique, covering all four

phases (adversarial, reflexive, integrative and action). Facilitators should illustrate the

effectiveness of the ARIA technique using the “Egg rolling down a hill” example. Due to the

importance of this phase and the short time allocated, facilitators should attempt to cover the

adversarial and reflexive phases in one session. Exercises to illustrate these phases that

should be directed are the “Adversarial Exercise” and “Active Listening” exercises such as

demonstrating the different methods (paraphrasing, summarizing, therapists). Emphasis must

be given to the “active listening” exercises as it is important for the integrative phase, thus

important to create a consensus document. At least one day should be allocated to the

integrative phase of ARIA, assigning one session on brainstorming and another in critical

thinking (classification/evaluation) and consensus (search for common ground). The critical

thinking stage can be conducted by dividing the partners into small mixed groups and ask

them to assess positively or negatively each idea from the brainstorm stage. While the

brainstorm stage attempts to get as many ideas as possible, the critical thinking stage attempts

to get the best ideas. The third stage consensus could be conducted in the form of jigsaw-

puzzle, starting with ideas on the ‘framework’ and leaving for the end ideas/issues that are

more sensitive. If a consensus document is achieved, this document should be read and

signed by all participants the following day, ideally in the last day of the workshop prior re-

entry.

Phase V – Re-entry (Day 10): The last phase is aimed at teaching partners how to

translate the tools learned throughout the workshop into their personal and professional lives

back home. In the case of a consensus document being reached, listing the possible influential

leaders that could be interested in endorsing such document would be helpful. Concrete

recommendations for policy-makers may be discussed at this point and how to translate these

ideas into activities aimed at changing public opinion and initiating grassroots action

(Kaufman, 2003: page 236). Also, due to some psychological pressure/barriers that the

partners may encounter back home as well as the fact that some friendships may occur during

the workshop, facilitators should encourage the exchange of contact information (such as

phone numbers, email or social media outlets). I would recommend, if possible, that the

partners jointly or by groups present to the current leadership (to the CONFECH presidents

and to the government of Chile) what was achieved during the workshop and submit a copy

12

of the consensus document. Moreover, a copy of the consensus document should be

presented to all presidential candidates. Another method that should be encouraged is the

realization of seminars at different universities or other educational centers, opened to the

public in general. At the end of this day (last day), I would recommend to held an award

ceremony in which a certificate of participation will be awarded to the partners in conflict,

and possibly some key speakers could address the group. At night, a gala ceremony or an

informal party dinner should be conducted. The following morning, all participants should

arrive to the Argentinean city Ushuaia, hopefully being received by media outlets to briefly

present the outcomes and experiences throughout the workshop.

3.4. Evaluation the Citizen’s Diplomacy Initiative

Evaluation of the efficiency of this citizen’s diplomacy initiative can be assessed in two

ways. First, throughout the workshop the One-Minute Evaluation sheet will be filled by the

Partners. This will help the facilitators to make sure all partners understand the objectives of

the initiative as well as doing some adjustments to the schedule depending on the

participants’ pace and attitudes. The second way to evaluate the efficiency of the initiative is

by checking if exercises offered in the re-entry phase are being conducted or not.

3.5. Requested Funding

The citizen’s initiative should be performed in an 11-day or 12-day cruise for 20

participants and 2 facilitators. Funding is needed to cover all their basic expenses (bedroom,

food, leisure, some daily excursions to the specified ports/cities visited, and so on) as well as

reserving a conference room for all the time in which all activities of the workshop will be

conducted. Furthermore, special funding is requested for a gala event to celebrate the

culmination of the workshop and for an informal reception dinner at the beginning of the

workshop. Funding is also requested for the participation of the facilitators throughout the

workshop.

13

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17

Appendix 1

List of documentaries that can be shown in the exercise ‘Documentaries’ on Day 5 of the

workshop:

- Video I: “Efecto Educacion Chile 2011” [Education Effect Chile 2011] – link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=No5xbcJAKO0

- Video II: “El problema de la Educacion en Chile” [The problem of the Education in

Chile] – link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O92go5QphX0

- Video III: “Hay razones para creer en una educacion gratuita y de calidad” [There are

reasons to believe in a free and better education] – link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOHY4SZwVGc

- Video IV: “MalEducados! El problema de la educacion en Chile” [MalEducados! The

problem of education in Chile] – link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1VOaK3Yq80

- Video V: “CNN Chile Educacion Gratis” [CNN Chile Free Education] – link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCO0y8TVVyY

- Video VI: “Debate educacion ‘Tolerancia Cero’” [Education Debate “Tolerancia

Cero”] – link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqcJlkemAnw

Appendix 2

Draft of schedule for the citizen’s

diplomacy initiative:

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday

Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6 Free Day

Morning

Session

Arrive to

destination

+

Getting to

know the

cruise/itinerary

Sitting

Arrangement

according to

birthdate

+

Airport Game

Introductory

Lecture

De-

escalation

(cont.)

+

Flowers

Documentaries Dictionary

Game

+

Bridging

the gap

Free Day

for leisure

and extra-

curricular

activities

Afternoon

Session

Orientation

Lecture

Names

Histories (+

School

Stories)

+

Ups and

Downs

Faces of the

Enemy

+

De-escalation

exercise

(Butter Battle

Book)

Mirror,

Mirror on

the wall

+

Hot

Buttons

Personal View TOWS/

FODA

Evening

Activities

Informal

Reception

Dinner

Dinner –

Jokes

encouraged

Dinner –

Discussion on

BBB

Dinner –

Discussion

Hot

Buttons

Dinner –

Dinner –

Day 7 Day 8 Day 9 Day 10

Morning

Session

Finding

Minimal

Common

Denominator

OR/AND Unilateral

Best Offer

Lecture on

ARIA

Brainstorming Briefly go

over

Consensus

Document

+

Re-entry

methods

Afternoon

Session

Shared Vision Adversarial

and Reflective

Phases (Active

Listening)

Classification

/ Evaluation

+

Search for

Common

Ground

Award

Ceremony

Evening

Activities

Dinner –

Discussion on

Shared visions

Dinner –

Discussion on

active

listening

Dinner –

Discuss

consensus

document

Gala party

Appendix 3

Questions of One-Minute Evaluation. Presented at the end of every day throughout the 10-

day workshop. It will help the facilitators with evaluations, adaptation, modification,

explanation and so on.

(Kaufman, 2003: page 194)

Appendix 4

List of exercises proposed which are not included in Kaufman’s book and similar variation of

some exercises in Kaufman’s book:

- Day 2 exercises:

o Birthdate Sitting Arrangement: in the very beginning of the workshop, the

partners in conflict should find their seating place in the round-table according

to their birthday (asking who has been born during the month of the workshop,

help ordering them according to the date and then ask the rest to find out by

themselves where to seat, by talking to each other). [Kaufman, 2003: page

196]

o Airport Game (similar to Introducing Your Neighbor): every participant

should create a paper airplane (facilitators should have a sample paper airplane

and help participants build one) in which they should write down personal

things on the paper airplane (such as their name, their favorite drink, their job,

their hobbies, their favorite destination they’ve been, the place they want to

visit the most, and so on). After that, let all participants throw their airplanes

around the room, pick some a paper airplane and keep throwing them around

for about 3 minutes more. At the end, everyone picks up one airplane and has

to find the owner, which later have to introduce that person (the airplane’s

owner) to the group.

o Name Histories: see Professor Kuafman’s book (2003: pages 196-197). After

this game, a variation of this game should be conducted. School Stories (a

game which I thought would be ideal for this initiative) is a similar game to

Name Histories in which participants tell the history, an interesting fact or the

story of an outstanding lecturer from their educational institutions. Some

commonalities may appear.

1

o Ups and Downs: see Professor Kaufmans’ book (2003: pages 197-198).

Almost at the end of this game, emphasis should be given to favorite courses

taken at school/university by the participants (ex: English course, literature,

philosophy, sociology, geography, and so on). Commonalities will most

probably show up.

- Days 6-9 exercises:

o Dictionary Game: facilitators take the definition of one word from the

dictionary (i.e. education) and participants must write anonymously what they

think the dictionary’s definition is. Facilitators should then mix all answers

including the right definition, and then proceed to read all of them and let the

partners in conflict vote which sounds the more correct one. This game could

be done for 2 or 3 words, choosing words relating to the conflict, such as

education, teacher, student or so.

Appendix 5

Example of a 12-day cruise that could be chosen as a location for the workshop: Silversea - Silver Explorer 11 Nights - 7324 - Valparaiso, Chile to Ushuaia, Argentina

Destination Arrives Departs Workshop Day

Day 1 Valparaiso 5:00 PM Day 1 – Orientation day

Day 2 At Sea Day 2 – Trust Building

Day 3 Niebla 7:00 AM 2:00 PM Day 3 – Skills Building

Day 4 Puerto Montt 7:30 AM 7:00 PM Day 4 – Skills Building

Day 5 Castro 6:30 AM 1:30 PM Day 5 – Skills Building

Day 6 Puerto Chacabuco 7:30 AM 12:00 PM Day 6 – Consensus Building

Day 7 Caleta Tortel 2:30 PM 9:00 PM Free Day

Day 8 Cruising Pio XI Glacier 7:15 AM 7:45 AM Day 7 – Consensus Building

Day 9 At Sea Day 8 – Consensus Building

Day 10 Punta Arenas 7:30 AM 6:00 PM Day 9 – Consensus Building

Day 11 Cruising Garabaldi Glacier 2:30 PM 6:00 PM Day 10 – Re-entry

Day 12 Ushuaia 8:00 AM Day 11 – leaving/back home

(Source: http://www.cruisecompete.com/itins/silver_explorer_cruises_bafifgfa.html)