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There are few negotiations where it is so necessary to be fast and effective than in those that deal with hostages. This is an almost unfeasible task that has to be carried out with the most unlikely negotiator, the terrorist, in an extremely hostile context. Considering the issues at stake – the freedom of the hostages and, very often, their lives – a negotiator has to manage many challenges. There are seven dilemmas and paradoxes in reaching agreement. A negotiator has to solve a Shakespearian dilemma, manage contradictory objectives, deal with incompatible rationales, handle the toughness dilemma, come to grips with contradictions between empathy and assertiveness, handle cultural dilemmas, and cope with a moral dilemma.

There are few negotiations where it is so necessary to be fast and effective than in those that deal with hostages. This is an almost unfeasible task that has to be carried out with the most unlikely negotiator, the terrorist, in an extremely hostile context. Considering the issues at stake -- the freedom of the hostages and, very often, their lives -- a negotiator has to manage many challenges. There are seven dilemmas and paradoxes in reaching agreement. A negotiator has to solve a Shakespearian dilemma, manage contradictory objectives, deal with incompatible rationales, handle the toughness dilemma, come to grips with contradictions between empathy and assertiveness, handle cultural dilemmas, and cope with a moral dilemma. Adapted from the source document.

AbstractEverywhere in the world, daily life provides abundant cases of conflict. Common events may turn into a real show when highlighted by some exotic colors such as those produced by Chinese strategies. Thus, a mediation addressing a conflict following a traffic accident can be quite revelatory of how Chinese culture approaches disputes. The following account comes from direct observation completed by interviews of onlookers.

China has gone through major changes during the last two decades. The following research aims to present and analyze the current evolutions taking place in the less visible stratum of the Chinese social structure, that of values. The study is based on in-depth interviews and brings to the fore a number of themes that have undergone radical changes. Among the 220 analytical categories initially considered, 12 main themes have been identified as being strongly subjected to changes. Focusing on significant themes, such as a growing process of 'individuation', a materialistic orientation, a resurgence of ancient creeds, changes within the family, a shift in women's status, a transformation of role models, a social change from equality to differentiation, and a shift in the vision of the world, this article presents key indicators of the major trends in contemporary urban China. (J Contemp China/GIGA)

Crisis negotiation has been burdened with an additional and most problematic task, that of dealing with terrorist issues. Negotiators must engage in a very peculiar type of diplomacy because, officially, states do not negotiate with terrorists. This track-II diplomacy involves an asymmetrical relationship between a state and an often nebulous and evasive group. Its management is most paradoxical, for the negotiation is a non-negotiation and the counterparts are the most unlikely of negotiators. This article analyses the very specific elements of such negotiation, in which the actors no longer play classical diplomatic roles but instead fulfil a much less urbane function that is embedded in the register of terror, even murder. It examines methods that are fundamentally alien to classical diplomacy because of the nature of the counterpart (who is not perceived as legitimate/equal), the issues at stake, the context, and the paradigms governing negotiating with terrorists, where psychological asymmetry and poor communication are basic attributes. Specific processes such as demonization and media management, as well as negotiation-effectiveness evaluation methods, are also studied. Two types of situations are finally investigated, those where discussions can take place immediately, such as hostage-taking via kidnapping or barricade hostage-taking, and those where the potential for negotiation must be created because the terrorists make no demands and consider their actions as strictly punitive. Adapted from the source document.

AbstractCrisis negotiation has been burdened with an additional and most problematic task, that of dealing with terrorist issues. Negotiators must engage in a very peculiar type of diplomacy because, officially, states do not negotiate with terrorists. This track-II diplomacy involves an asymmetrical relationship between a state and an often nebulous and evasive group. Its management is most paradoxical, for the negotiation is a non-negotiation and the counterparts are the most unlikely of negotiators. This article analyses the very specific elements of such negotiation, in which the actors no longer play classical diplomatic roles but instead fulfil a much less urbane function that is embedded in the register of terror, even murder. It examines methods that are fundamentally alien to classical diplomacy because of the nature of the counterpart (who is not perceived as legitimate/equal), the issues at stake, the context, and the paradigms governing negotiating with terrorists, where psychological asymmetry and poor communication are basic attributes. Specific processes such as demonization and media management, as well as negotiation-effectiveness evaluation methods, are also studied. Two types of situations are finally investigated, those where discussions can take place immediately, such as hostage-taking via kidnapping or barricade hostage-taking, and those where the potential for negotiation must be created because the terrorists make no demands and consider their actions as strictly punitive.

Verhandeln ist eine Aufgabe, die die Akteure interkultureller Beziehungen in Szene setzt. Diese treten nicht nur als Repräsentanten divergenter Interessen und besonderer Strategien auf, sondern auch als Vertreter spezifischer Konzeptionen und Vorstellungen. Im vorliegenden Beitrag wird einerseits erläutert, wie sich die Chinesen interkulturelle Verhandlungen vorstellen. Andererseits wird die Art und Weise dargestellt, wie sie die westlichen Unterhändler und deren Verhalten wahrnehmen. Es wird gezeigt, dass der Westen in den Augen der Chinesen ein Mosaik aus Ländern und Kulturen ist, in dem die Bilder ihre Inhalte in Form sukzessiver Gegensätze preisgeben: Der amerikanische Pragmatismus steht der europäischen Tradition gegenüber, die französische Romantik der deutschen Systematik, der englische Formalismus der italienischen Geselligkeit. Erst die spezifische Abstimmung bestimmter Werte und Symbole führt zur Konstruktion einer typisch chinesischen Sichtweise, von welcher sechs wichtige Kennzeichen näher beschrieben werden: die holistische Herangehensweise, die konkrete Form des Denkens und seine normative Dominante, die assoziative Logik, die Harmonie und der ihr eingeräumte Vorrang sowie der rückläufige Sinozentrismus. (ICI2)