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Begin New Search Content Type Commentary and Analysis Publication Year within 25 Years

1861. Negotiations and possible spoilers in the Colombian peace process

Author:
Jorge M. Battaglino
Publication Date:
11-2014
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Norwegian Centre for Conflict Resolution
Abstract:
The peace negotiations between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People’s Army (FARC-EP) have generated considerable attention among the international community and a substantial level of domestic political support. This optimistic trend is linked to a new negotiating dynamic in which the government decided to abandon a militarised approach to the conflict and acknowledged the guerrilla movement as a legitimate political actor, while the FARC-EP opted to moderate its historical radical demands. The reasons behind this mutual moderation are both strategic and the result of a social learning process (i.e. the “prolonged” conflict). This encouraging scenario, however, faces two potential challenges, i.e. to neutralise the emergence of spoilers of the peace talks and deal with the fragmentation/criminalisation of the FARC-EP. This expert analysis analyses the new negotiating dynamic, identifies the main challenges to the peace process, and indicates how guarantor states and the international community can contribute to reducing domestic political opposition in order to reach a durable agreement.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, Negotiation, FARC, Dialogue, Peace Process, and Spoilers
Political Geography:
Colombia and South America

1862. Measuring the effectiveness of Norwegian peace facilitation

Author:
Javier Fabra-Mata
Publication Date:
01-2014
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Norwegian Centre for Conflict Resolution
Abstract:
Over the past twenty years Norway has established an international reputation as a peace facilitator. The Oslo Accords and Norway’s active involvement in other peace processes in the 1990s provided the basis for constructing a peace narrative around the supposed disinterestedness and uniqueness of the Norwegian approach, which has evolved over the years, with a major move towards the professionalisation of the country’s peace efforts. Critics have questioned the results and effectiveness of Norwegian peace engagement. While they point to the collapse of peace processes and conflict recurrence, Norwegians engaged in these processes take a more positive view, avoiding absolutes and underscoring instead less spectacular, but nonetheless important achievements. Over and above peace agreements, peace processes can generate a series of tangible and intangibles peace assets – e.g. confidence building, informal peace alliances, formal institutions, etc. – some of which may help to reduce the severity of the conflict and even survive the collapse of the peace process. This expert analysis deals with the issue of conceptualising success in peace facilitation. From a study of the fundamentals underlying Norwegian peace facilitation, it shows the importance of being able to measure the degree of success of peace processes, presenting a three-tier, modular proposal for Norway to capture tangible and intangible gains in the short, medium and long term.
Topic:
Negotiation, Dialogue, Professionalization, and Peace Process
Political Geography:
Norway and Global Focus

1863. Illicit drugs and peace negotiations in Colombia: challenges for the government and the FARC

Author:
Mónica Serrano
Publication Date:
02-2014
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Norwegian Centre for Conflict Resolution
Abstract:
This expert analysis critically assesses the political implications of the inclusion of the issue of illicit drugs in Colombia’s peace negotiations. It considers the ways in which the parties have approached the drug problem and lays out some of the critical questions regarding drug policy options. It also discusses what these negotiations tell us about the parameters within which drug policy reform may be realistically pursued in Colombia, which could also affect regional and international approaches to the issue. Drug policy reform has already prompted some searching questions in Latin America and an increasingly heated global debate. In the course of ongoing negotiations between the government of Colombia and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia the parties agreed to include the question of illicit drugs as the negotiations’ fourth agenda item, which is likely to test the process’s capacity to achieve far-reaching change. More than any other country (perhaps with the exception of Mexico), Colombia has shown that drug control policy needs urgent rethinking, as does the way in which the policy is applied. Will the peace negotiations mark a turning point in Colombia’s drug policy? And through the negotiations, will Colombia lead the way towards a more visionary international drug policy?
Topic:
Negotiation, Drugs, FARC, and Peace Process
Political Geography:
Colombia and South America

1864. Drugs and the peace process in Colombia: a moderate radical step

Author:
Juan Gabriel Tokatlian
Publication Date:
06-2014
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Norwegian Centre for Conflict Resolution
Abstract:
This expert analysis evaluates the May 16th 2014 agreement on illegal drugs reached between the government of Colombia and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia rebels in the context of the peace process taking place in Havana. This third agreement between the parties is very significant in its content and scope. If it progresses satisfactorily it will be the beginning of a gradual end to the “war on drugs” in the country and will defuse one of the issues – the drug trade – that has most hindered the attainment of peace in Colombia.
Topic:
Treaties and Agreements, Drugs, FARC, and Peace Process
Political Geography:
Colombia and South America

1865. Human security twenty years on

Author:
Shahrbanou Tadjbakhsh
Publication Date:
06-2014
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Norwegian Centre for Conflict Resolution
Abstract:
The concept of human security, which made its international debut in the 1994 UNDP Human Development Report, adds a people-centered dimension to the traditional security, development and human rights frameworks while locating itself in the area where they converge. Ever since, a number of countries have used the concept for their foreign and aid policies. Although it became the subject of a 2012 General Assembly Resolution, the concept still courts controversy and rejection twenty years after its introduction. Politically, its close association with the notion of the Responsibility to Protect in debates about international interventions has alienated Southern countries that are sceptical about violations of state sovereignty and new conditionalities for receiving aid. No country has adopted it as a goal at the national level, raising scepticism about its utility for domestic policymaking. Yet the concept represents a malleable tool for analysing the root causes of threats and their multidimensional consequences for different types of insecurities. It can be operationalised through applying specific principles to policymaking and can be used as an evaluative tool for gauging the impact of interventions on the dynamics of other fields. The article suggests that Norway not only pursues the goals of human security at the global level, but that it also leads in adopting it as a national goal by scrutinising the country’s domestic policies using this approach.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Development, Human Rights, Responsibility to Protect (R2P), and Human Security
Political Geography:
Norway and Global Focus

1866. The Governorate of Homs: is this the Islamic State’s new fiefdom?

Author:
Romain Caillet
Publication Date:
08-2014
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Norwegian Centre for Conflict Resolution
Abstract:
Now considered by many experts as the primary terrorist threat, the Islamic State (IS), formerly known as the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, has been able to assert its dominance over wide areas of Iraq and Syria. In Syria IS dominance can be seen in the regions of the Euphrates Valley (Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor and Hasaka) and in the eastern countryside of Aleppo. Apart from these areas, the Province of Homs represents a particularly interesting case study, because of the fact that the IS is expanding there, but has been unable to establish its authority over all rebel forces. This study was conducted using data available over the Internet, including websites, social networks (Facebook and Twitter), and online video-sharing platforms. This information was later extended through interviews with university figures, European humanitarian workers and field actors, including sympathisers and sometimes even assumed IS members.
Topic:
Terrorism, Islamic State, Syrian War, and Armed Conflict
Political Geography:
Middle East, Syria, and Homs

1867. Advancing the Women, Peace and Security agenda: 2015 and beyond

Author:
Laura J. Shepherd
Publication Date:
08-2014
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Norwegian Centre for Conflict Resolution
Abstract:
This expert analysis evaluates the current state of the United Nations’ Women, Peace and Security agenda, with particular focus on three themes drawn from the most recent UN Security Council resolution (UNSCR) (S/RES/2122): the articulation of a whole-of-UN mandate for improving performance in the implementation of UNSCR 1325; the importance of civil society inclusion at all stages of peace and security governance, including conflict resolution and peace negotiations; and the upcoming High-Level Review that will take place in 2015 on the 15th anniversary of the adoption of UNSCR 1325.
Topic:
Security, Civil Society, United Nations, Women, and Peace
Political Geography:
Global Focus

1868. The U.S.-led campaign against the Islamic State: many questions, few answers

Author:
Yossi Alpher
Publication Date:
10-2014
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Norwegian Centre for Conflict Resolution
Abstract:
The U.S. commitment to "ultimately destroy" the Islamic State implies an extended military commitment in a highly complex Middle East environment. By looking at the strategic issues that emerge from this dynamic, we can hope better to understand impending developments. These issues centre on the motive behind the U.S. decision to enter the conflict; the U.S. relationship with its European and regional partners and, by contrast, with other major actors in the region like Iran, Syria, Turkey and Egypt; the options for the Islamic State’s response; and issues of U.S. strategy and grand strategy regarding the Islamic world.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Military Strategy, Non State Actors, Islamic State, and Armed Conflict
Political Geography:
Middle East and United States of America

1869. The Ceasefire Drafter's Handbook: An Introduction and Template for Negotiators, Mediators, and Stakeholders

Author:
Public International Law Policy Group
Publication Date:
05-2013
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Public International Law Policy Group
Abstract:
The Public International Law & Policy Group’s (PILPG) Ceasefire Drafter’s Handbook is a guide intended to effectively supplement the activities of negotiators and drafters of ceasefire agreements. This Handbook draws from PILPG’s experience in ceasefire negotiations, as well as state practice and comparative analysis of over 200 ceasefire agreements from Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America. As part of the ceasefires practice area, PILPG also provides negotiation simulations, strategic memoranda, training modules, and negotiation and drafting assistance to pro bono clients. For more information about PILPG’s ceasefires work, please visit www.pilpg.org. This Handbook includes an Introduction to Ceasefires and an Annotated Ceasefire Template. The Introduction to Ceasefires provides information on the core elements of ceasefires, the effects of asymmetry on ceasefire agreements, the role of third parties, and the legality of ceasefire agreements. The Annotated Ceasefire Template describes core provisions and provides sample language for drafters to incorporate into ceasefire agreements. Although each template section offers drafters a guiding framework, it may be necessary to reshape the provisions to address the nuances of each situation. This Handbook’s comparative provisions and sample language are included to provide options from existing ceasefires to assist the drafter. A full-text database of all the agreements cited in the footnotes can be found on PILPG’s ceasefire database at www.pilpg.org/ceasefire-database/. There are three Annexes to the handbook. Annex A provides a map of geographic ceasefire elements, Annex B provides a sample chart of assembly areas, and Annex C provides a sample timeline of implementation activities.
Topic:
Diplomacy, Treaties and Agreements, Conflict, Negotiation, Peace, and Ceasefire
Political Geography:
Global Focus

1870. Serbia-Kosovo Agree to Normalize Relations, Now to “Normalize” Society

Author:
Charles Cadwell
Publication Date:
04-2013
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
The prime ministers of Kosovo and of Serbia initialed an agreement Friday to normalize relations between their two countries. This accomplishment—at the last hour and under the careful and forceful leadership of the EU’s Catherine Ashton—does not, by itself, reconcile the long-standing enmity between neighbors in Kosovo, a territory now recognized by 90 countries as a nation. The devil is in the implementation details yet to be worked out.
Topic:
Treaties and Agreements, Bilateral Relations, Conflict, Negotiation, and Normalization
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe, Kosovo, and Serbia