Integrity Score 380
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Progress and Pitfalls of “Peace-Building”
in Afghanistan continues.....
Ending conflict with a military victory creates unbalanced power relations that, in turn, often lead to difficulties in democratic governance as was exemplified by Rwanda. In some post-conflict settlement processes (e.g. Liberia, Sudan, Burundi, and DRC), continued hostilities and mistrust were followed by renewed fighting, and efforts to reach another settlement needed to be undertaken.
For example, an agreement between contending groups in Liberia in September 1995 did not end the chaos but was followed by the renewed war.
Sudan, from its independence in 1956 to the present, has also manifested a pattern of entrenched wars and periodic efforts at peacemaking between the predominantly Muslim north and animist and Christian south. Settling Africa’s longest running civil war proved to be difficult because of the persistent attempts by the minority government to impose an Islamic state on a largely non-Muslim population. The experiences of Namibia, Mozambique, and other countries suggest that demobilization and re-integration of ex-combatants into productive sectors of society are critical to the creation of a sustainable security environment.
Peacekeeping in East Timor, Bosnia-Herzgovina, and Kosovo, are examples of efforts to stabilize a post-conflict situation by enhancing a security environment through maintenance of order and enforcement of rules.
Political stability is not immediately brought about by elections without stable institutional relations and consensus on political values, as is suggested by the case of Liberia. In promoting the goal of peace, development programmes (e.g. land reform in El Salvador) need to address the social and economic ills that are the roots of violence. Development cannot be easily disentangled from democracy and security.
To be continued............