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this post was submitted on 18 Aug 2024
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So in an anarchist society, how do people settle disputes? There can't be a law without some form of governing body to enforce the law. Seems like a might makes right would bubble right back up to the top.
An anarchist society would have polycentric law, rather than the monocentric law that we currently have.
Well, the answer to this question depends somewhat on the specific strain of anarchism, but for social anarchism, which is the branch I’m most familiar with, the idea is that councils of local people at the scale of the conflict would settle it according to their own internal processes. One successful example of a process from our current society that would be compatible with anarchism is community mediation. But the exact process would in most cases be up to the local community based upon their needs and what works for them.
I think you are right that there is a bit of a tension in terms of governance vs. individual freedom, but this is inherent to all systems of human organization and life. There is a need for governance, but the idea is to make that governance as free from hierarchy and coercion as practically possible. How far one can take this idea is an open question, but I think it’s highly likely that a more liberated society than our current one is very achievable.
The true answer is "it depends". Each community may be slightly different.
The main thing is that there is no state that holds a monopoly on power. This reenforces the idea that anarchism probably won't come about from a quick revolution. It needs to be built over time and with trust and the understanding that we must work together.
An answer would be that the community uses some combination of restorative justice, therapy, arbitration, or in the worst cases exile or violence towards the offender.
It would be worth reading more about criminal justice on theanarchistlibrary.org.
The way some Australian anarchists solved disputes over a crime for 60,000 years was a concept called payback. The community would get together and decide on a punishment the wronged party can reasonably inflict upon the perpetrator of the crime. Payback serves to satisfy the victim's need for justice and prevent cycles of revenge. After the punishment is given, both sides of the conflict forgive each other and the community can continue to function in unity.
This is just one way a stateless, moneyless, classless society would settle disputes. There are many different ways to run an anarchist government.
Just leave that to your friendly local warlord to settle.