Lessons in Failure: Peacebuilding in Sudan/South Sudan

Jok Madut Jok

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-46636-7_20

Abstract

Abstract Common to most protracted conflicts that relapse into war is a disconnect between elites and local communities, which typically suffer the most when the former undermine peace agreements to further their own narrow interests. The central argument in this chapter, drawing heavily on the recent history of Sudan/South Sudan and the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), is that African conflict resolution and peacebuilding relies too heavily on political agreements between politico-military elites. These deals focus largely on elite power and resource-sharing arrangements. Mostly ignored are the communal and societal dynamics that initially fed the violence. Sudan/South Sudan’s persistent conflict and instability is a prime example of what happens when peace agreements are signed without due regard for the true nature and genesis of the conflict.

Highlights

One of the most important factors in the collapse of peace agreements and the failure to build peace in post-conflict countries in Africa is the nature of the conflict itself—how the wars are fought, what consequences live on long after they have been “settled,” and how affected communities remember the wars.Some of the common characteristics of violent political conflicts in Africa include the multiplicity of warring parties, competing actors, and layers within a single conflict
Most African peacebuilding endeavors continue to focus on the implementation of political settlements, peace agreements, and compromise deals, all of which attempt to reconcile the warring parties and political contenders at the top
The assumption is that, since these conflicts are essentially triggered by competition for power among the politicomilitary class, a reconciliation forged between elites would trickle down to create peace at the grassroots level

Summary

Introduction

One of the most important factors in the collapse of peace agreements and the failure to build peace in post-conflict countries in Africa is the nature of the conflict itself—how the wars are fought, what consequences live on long after they have been “settled,” and how affected communities remember the wars. The causes of these relapses are broadly known but hardly ever given the primacy they deserve in the crafting of peace agreements. The central argument in this chapter is that too many African conflict resolution deals and peacebuilding efforts tend to rely on political agreements between politico-military elites—“the gun class,” so to speak.[2]. These deals often focus on elite power and resource-sharing arrangements, while ignoring the communal and societal dynamics that fed the war and leave embers in its wake. These elite pacts, important as they are in the reduction of violence, lead to a variety of other contests, including competition to seize

20 LESSONS IN FAILURE

Conclusion