Nostrum or Palliative? Contesting the Capitalist Peace in Violently Divided Societies

Abstract

In recent years the assumption that democracy automatically generates peace has been critiqued. It has instead been suggested that the promotion of economic liberalism provides a much stronger basis for peace. In this paper, we examine and contest the normative claims of the ‘capitalist peace’. While there is a close association between extreme poverty and the onset of civil war, it is unclear whether economic liberalism will ameliorate conflict. A major reason for this ambiguity is because the emphasis of the ‘capitalist peace’ literature has largely been on interstate relations rather than intrastate ethnonational conflict. A closer look reveals that neoliberal policies in divided societies can also, in some contexts, exacerbate conflict in violently divided societies.