The European Union’s Approach to Post-conflict Displacement and “the Local Turn”: A Study on Georgia’s Second-wave Internally Displaced People

Abstract

Abstract How and to what extent do the European Union’s (EU) presence and projects in Georgia respond to principles and commitments relating to conflict and context sensitivity and local ownership? Drawing on local turns unfolding in both European studies and peace and conflict studies, the article focuses on EU support to Georgian internally displaced persons (IDP s) and discusses how this is received and perceived by actors on the ground in the context of the EU’s crisis response and the post-conflict setting in Georgia. The discussion is based on data from a questionnaire distributed to 40 respondents in three IDP settlements and by seven interviews with Brussels- and Georgia-based EU officials, as well as local and national authorities, non-governmental organization practitioners, and international organizations implementing EU projects in Georgia. Despite the existence of EU-sponsored measures of assistance targeting Georgian IDP s and the overall positive perception of the EU’s role in large sectors of Georgia’s society, the analysis reveals that the EU does not seem to be fully capable of interacting with local stakeholders and beneficiaries in an effective way. This limits the EU’s ability to uphold the principles of local ownership and conflict sensitivity.