War Conflicts affect the lives of people not only due to the large scale loss of lives, but also due to the destruction that it causes on infrastructure and livelihoods. Thus, War conflicts create a long term impact on social, economic and political systems making it difficult for societies to revive back to normal on their own. The period after war conflict poses several challenges for the communities and governments to recover the economic and social systems, while maintaining stability and achieving sustainable peace. The recovery process necessitates post conflict reconstruction (PCR) interventions both by the internal government and external actors. These interventions mainly take the form of soft and hard infrastructures.
Post war conflict studies are mostly concerned with analysing the effect of conflict on the social, economic and political structures, and addressing the challenges faced by post conflict societies. The post conflict reconstruction (PCR) theory lacks comprehensive understanding of the potential consequences of post conflict reconstruction (PCR) interventions. Understanding the cost of war is crucial to move forward during the post conflict reconstruction (PCR). Economic recovery, establishing democracy, and rebuilding the public sector and justice system are few of the major challenges faced by post conflict societies. Among the other topics discussed in post conflict, donor strategies, community participation and social capital are of main importance. Post conflict context is different from non-conflict situation. Interventions can create new conflicts as much as it can prevent them. If the dynamics of conflict are not considered during post conflict reconstruction (PCR) process, the projects may not be successful. To prevent this from happening, post conflict reconstruction (PCR) interventions require a clear guideline for the consequences that occur after intervention in post conflict context. This also helps to minimize the negative consequence of interventions. Although there are frameworks that are used in post conflict reconstruction (PCR), most of them do not essentially focus on consequences. Existing frameworks in post conflict reconstruction (PCR) do not cover a range of potential consequences that are significant in post conflict context. Some frameworks used in post conflict reconstruction (PCR) practice lack theoretical justification. Therefore, this research suggests the need for a comprehensive guideline to account for potential consequences of a post conflict reconstruction (PCR) intervention.
According to united nations an event that critically disturbs the functioning of the society can be classified as a disaster. Within the typology of disasters, conflicts and wars comes under the category of complex emergencies. Typically caused by human actions, these disasters result in large scale mortality, displacement, human rights violations and food insecurity. Angstrom claims that when an armed conflict is characterised by intensified, large-scale violence it can be classified as a war. Such a war can typically have impacts on socio economic systems of the society, and one reason for this is the damage inflicted upon infrastructures. Often the severity of war is measured by the damage to infrastructure. The development gets stagnated through limited the production capacity which results from large scale destruction of infrastructure. Adding to this lack of facilities, new investments in infrastructure do not take place due to the continuity of war. As a result communities become fragile, and thus it is difficult for them to revive back to normal conditions on their own. In addition, these societies suffer from corruption and war economic conditions. Therefore, it is necessary to invest in large-scale reconstruction not only in order to rebuild the neglected and destroyed physical infrastructure, but also to strengthen the productive base and improve trade.
A post conflict reconstruction (PCR) intervention generally aims at rebuilding shattered livelihoods and preventing the communities from drawing back to conflicts. The intervention should centrally aim at transforming failed state into a new entity addressing social, political, economic and cultural aspects of life. Reconstruction in post conflict context is a process of rebuilding and addressing development needs while being sensitive to the post crisis issues of political economy, security, gender and justice. Reducing the political and economic risks through post conflict reconstruction (PCR) intervention could attract new investments and lead to faster growth. The post conflict reconstruction (PCR) can also be used as a mechanism of rebuilding social capital, especially in case of community based reconstruction initiatives. It is an approach to solve development issues in an innovative manner while reducing the risk of reverting back to conflict.
Such post conflict reconstruction (PCR) interventions mainly take place in the form of soft and hard infrastructures. The private investors are generally reluctant to invest in conflict affected countries. According to Schwartz and Halkyard who are World Bank Professionals and Co-Authors for several post conflict reconstruction (PCR) papers , it is necessary to invest in infrastructure to attract private investors and sustain economic growth. According to one of researcher, external intervention in infrastructure could bring in both positive and negative impacts. While providing opportunities for growth, divisions can be created due to employment, profits and benefits created through infrastructure. There is a trend to focus on hard infrastructure soon after the conflict, and development of soft institutions are postponed to later stages. While it is important to maintain a balance of two types of infrastructure, restoration of physical infrastructure is vital to establish the market economy and form the community relationships. It provides the basis for modern development and also supports the reduction of tensions.
Although, much research has been done on the challenges and nature of post conflict reconstruction (PCR), there is a lack of research on the actual impact of such reconstruction.
A possible negative impact of infrastructure improvement is the relocation of economic activities to developed areas. As a result of unequal economic distribution the divisions and tensions may be heightened. Inability to distribute the reconstruction and thereby its benefits equally among the war affected people can increase the horizontal inequities. Inequity of resource distribution is a common root cause of conflict, and its re-emergence in post conflict period may recreate violence. The post conflict reconstruction (PCR) practices that exploit the resources and increase inequalities worsen the vulnerabilities of people. Infrastructure development often causes environmental damage. Although considering environmental consequences is widely practiced in infrastructure construction, it is not given adequate priority in post conflict projects. One can observe that how infrastructure reconstruction in Iraq caused oil discharge in desert, water contamination and marshland destruction.
The role of infrastructure is vital in building social capital after war conflict through community participation. Community participation can be used to empower communities, and rebuild the networks and relations destroyed during conflict. This approach gives significance to people rather than to the physical factors of the projects. Community participation is an alternative to centralised approach which is typically used by governments soon after conflict. Central authority is appropriate when planning infrastructure projects and positioning them within the post conflict reconstruction (PCR) strategy. If the central authority is exercised extensively at the ground level, it can further damage the trust between state and war affected communities. The centralised approach may also hinder the capacity to employ local knowledge and resources in reconstruction.
Improved infrastructure may also contribute to exploitation and thereby increase violence in post conflict societies. Jon Unruh & Mourad Shalaby who well known for their work in land rights, peace building, and post-conflict recovery in developing countries highlight that due to increased value of land after reconstruction, dominant groups in the society grab lands and exploit resources. The involvement of politically and militarily powerful people in infrastructure activities contributes to increased tension and insecurity. The capacity for local elites to control the infrastructure resources, hinders the development of conflict affected societies. At the same time, the post conflict societies typically suffer from corruption at all levels of governance. Corruption is post conflict reconstruction(PCR) activities further increases the power of elites, as well as the vulnerability of people.
One of the consequences of post conflict reconstruction (PCR) that is highly criticised in literature is westernization. The post conflict reconstruction (PCR) interventions can influence the countries to adopt western notions of neo-liberal development. Market economy and demand driven growth are considered to be the way to achieve peace and it is often confused with peace. Infrastructure development oriented towards market economy may increase the vulnerability and inequality that already prevail in the societies. The donor interventions tend to assume that peace is equivalent to western democracy, which is irrelevant for local context. Understanding the local practices and incorporating them in the process are crucial for establishing sustainable peace.
End of war and implementing infrastructure projects do not guarantee peace in a war torn society. Incorporating peace building strategies to the post conflict reconstruction (PCR) process is essential for conflict prevention in the long run. If post conflict reconstruction(PCR) interventions do not contribute to poverty alleviation and sustainable development, the conflicts may re-occur causing negative long term impact. On the other hand, successful post conflict reconstruction (PCR) solutions supported by a clear vision for recovery can bring about sustainable peace. Therefore, conflict prevention should be one of the central elements of post conflict reconstruction(PCR) strategy, and it should be extended to individual projects. Achieving economic development through post conflict reconstruction(PCR) interventions can prevent future conflicts and establish peace.
If the post conflict reconstruction (PCR) interventions increase the political exclusion of communities it can increase the ethnic divisions and thereby instability of the society. Certain interventions implemented through the central government may increase the mistrust of communities towards government due to extensive practice of authority. The
infrastructure projects should be implemented while being sensitive to the conflict dynamics, and not being so may create power imbalances and increase violence. If the reconstruction needs are not effectively addressed state building process will be weakened making the communities even more vulnerable.
Physical infrastructure reconstruction is not sufficient to achieve sustainable peace. Governance building and state stabilisation form a significant part of post conflict reconstruction (PCR) process. According to Christine Sylva Hamieh and Roger Mac Ginty, known for their work on peace building and post-conflict reconstruction, policies to achieve development can be promoted through strong governance institutions. It is also important to maintain security through the involvement of state to carry out development activities. Participation and inclusion of marginalised communities during the reconstruction process is important to strengthen governance institutions. The external parties can provide the facilitation for this participatory process. Kristine Hoglund and Camilla Orjuela who have co-authored numerous influential academic works on peace building, conflict prevention, and transitional justice, especially with a focus on post-war Sri Lanka suggest that post conflict reconstruction (PCR) can be used as an opportunity to address the root causes of conflict and lay the foundation for political reforms. Economic stability achieved through physical reconstruction is essential to form the stable state, through which the government can address root causes of the conflict and provide political solutions.
The present discourse of literature lacks the analysis of consequences of post conflict reconstruction (PCR) interventions. Post conflict studies are mostly concerned with analysing the impacts of post conflict reconstruction (PCR) on peace and conflict related aspects. In the non-conflict literature there is a trend to analyse economic and social aspects, and thus it is difficult to apply them in the post conflict context. The consequences are often discussed in isolation and not analysed comprehensively in relation to each other. This article brings together a comprehensive list of consequences of post conflict reconstruction (PCR) intervention using the previous research. These consequences have linkages to the post conflict context and long term stability, which in turn can create conflicts or establish peace. At the same time, there are linkages among these consequences which can be crucial in the specific context of post conflict societies. In Sri Lanka, though there have been many post conflict reconstruction (PCR) interventions, especially in terms of hard infrastructure, no proper evaluation has occurred in order to assess their impacts. Assessment of consequences will help the future planning and implementation of post conflict reconstruction (PCR) projects. There is a gap in literature of a clear guideline to analyse the potential consequences of post conflict reconstruction(PCR) interventions. Existing frameworks do not capture a range of different consequences, and some frameworks lack theoretical justification. Therefore, there is room for future research to develop a framework to analyse potential negative and positive consequences of post conflict reconstruction(PCR) intervention.
Copyrights ©️
OBSERVERTIMES GLOBAL NEWSNETWORK PRIVATE LIMITED reserves the rights to all content contained within its official website https://observertimes.in /Online Magazine/Publications