Our second Conflict Ideas Forum was on the topic of large-scale violent conflict that neither fits formal and familiar definitions of "armed conflict", nor does it fit into the mandates of international institutions.
Last year’s World Development Report connected the dots of a paradox that people working in peacebuilding are becoming increasingly aware of – the fact that non-conflict violence and specifically criminality-related violence affects more people than conflict in the traditional understanding of the word.
Previous distinctions between organised and interpersonal violence, and conflict and criminal violence, give the misleading impression that different forms and incidents of violence fit into neat and separate categories. The reality is that in the 21st century, traditional divisions between different forms of violence make less sense.
However, peacebuilding actors, ranging from the UN and its member states to the peacebuilding NGOs, have generally not changed the way they work to include for example criminal violence as a target of peacebuilding interventions.
In particular, there remains a space around organised crime and criminal violence where peacebuilders and their donors mostly do not go. Part of the reason for this may be that peacebuilders do not know how to engage on the issue, despite being affected by the phenomenon in many places. Given the scope of the problem, it can be argued that it is a phenomenon that the peacebuilding community can and needs to contribute to.
The Conflict Ideas Forum 2.0 discussed how peacebuilding can contribute to understanding the broader, interconnected nature of violence, paying particular attention to organised crime. Are we sufficiently taking into account the different forms of violence that are affecting people’s lives, security and development around the world? What types of violence matter from a peacebuilding perspective? Under what circumstances do peacebuilding interventions addressing organised crime make sense? How can peacebuilding models contribute to providing answers to what constitutes the pull factors of organised crime – and hence the solutions? What are the implications of organised crime for the engagement, alliances and skills of peacebuilders? And how do traditional models of peacebuilding need to be adapted to better deal with organised crime?
To follow the debate, visit the Conflict Ideas Forum here.
