What is mediation?
Mediation as a mechanism for seeking and finding a conciliatory solution to a dispute that troubles and torments citizens as members of a society, and which aims to ensure and consolidate a climate of peace in the local social fabric to which they belong, is as old as human societies themselves. With the aim of preventing the escalation of disagreements and fostering a climate of mutual understanding and cooperation in order to bridge conflicting interests through a long process of negotiation that requires the maturity of time and circumstances as an ally in order to defuse passions and prevail in a solution that is in the best interests of all, mediation seems to be the modern version of Sasmos these days.
Mediation and history
The historical origins of mediation
Its historical origin as an institution for implementing conciliatory dispute resolution procedures is not clear. It is, however, characterised by a deep Greek identity, since it was first encountered in Greece in Crete as early as the 13th century AD, known nowadays as Sasmos.
How mediation is done
Mediation and Sasmos in Practice
Observing how mediation works in practice, one could say that it resembles the practice of Sasmos, which is practiced in Mount Crete, according to which the Sastis, a person of prestige and influence in the local community, undertakes, in view of the emergence of a dispute, to intervene between the perpetrator and the victim and to exert pressure in the direction of finding a conciliatory solution. The aim is to de-escalate passions and establish a climate of peace both between the parties and the local community through a conciliatory settlement of the dispute.
On the other hand, mediation, having similar characteristics, provides the parties who disagree or who are still in dispute with a safe framework, under the specific conditions and rules laid down by law, where a potential problem or dispute can potentially be transformed into an opportunity. Thus, the parties involved are given the active opportunity to take the initiative, with the help of a third neutral person as a mediator, to take the lead in a creative negotiation between them, which can generate a solution that serves the interests of all parties, leading to what we call at the end of the day a win win solution. Consequently, in a sense, Sasmos is achieved, as the parties themselves who disagree have the moral satisfaction of personally participating in the fruitful process of finding and co-constructing a solution to the problem of their concern.
Mediation in civil and commercial cases
Mediation as an institution that rivals Sasmo in terms of effectiveness is applied in a wide range of cases, including civil and commercial cases. In particular, this procedure can be applied in family disputes, disputes concerning relations between owners of apartment buildings, labour disputes, disputes concerning claims for moral damages due to personal injury, inheritance disputes, civil medical liability cases, debt actions, claims for compensation for road accidents and many others. According to the picture of the progress of the institution provided by the Ministry of Justice in May 2023 from the statistics of the Annual Report of the Central Mediation Committee, approximately 8% of the cases subject to the Mandatory Initial Session, which constitutes the first stage of informing the parties involved in the procedure, are resolved out of court, while the corresponding percentage for voluntary mediation exceeds 80% (https://ministryofjustice. gr/?p=9670). This fact alone shows that the institution of mediation seems to be gaining more and more acceptance by citizens and occupying its rightful place in the Greek legal system.
The difference between mediation and Sasmos
The difference between the two above mentioned procedures is that, while in Sasmos, in tradition, the finding of a solution comes from outside as a result of noble pressure from a third party depending on the ripening of the time, in mediation the compromise result comes as a product of the labour of the parties themselves who disagree. This in itself guarantees a greater dynamic in the future stability of the agreement and the prevalence of a spirit of peace, since the negotiating parties themselves have been key players and therefore are committed through the negotiation process to this outcome.
Mediation as a challenge for Sasmos today
In conclusion, the writer asks: Is mediation the great challenge for Sasmos in our days? This remains to be answered by the act.
