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On February 19th the PCR Project will be hosting a book release for Mats Berdal’s latest book Building Peace After War.  

Building Peace After War is a critical assessment of international efforts, from Cambodia to Afghanistan, to consolidate peace in the aftermath of war. The book analyzes the nature of the modern peace-building environment and addresses the key tasks faced by outside forces in the early and critical ‘post-conflict’ phase of an intervention.  Berdal also looks critically at the ways in which governments and international organizations, particularly the UN, have responded to these many challenges. He highlights the pivotal role of politics in planning peace-building operations, and offers some sober reflections on the future prospects for post-conflict intervention.

By Katherine Hubbard

In a move that deeply frustrated American military officers, Pakistani officials announced last month that they are not planning any new offensives against militants, possibly for up to a year.  This is highly problematic for the U.S. because Pakistan’s willingness to eliminate militant hideouts in their territory, particularly in North Waziristan, is crucial to the success of the Obama administration’s strategy in the region.  The Pakistani army’s spokesperson, Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas rejected U.S. pressure to step up attacks in the area, which is the main base of operations for the Haqqani network from which it launches operations in Afghanistan.

By Katherine Hubbard

The consensus at last week’s London Conference echoed the Obama administration’s new strategy for Afghanistan: the international community must begin to shift an increasing amount of responsibility to the Afghan government in preparation for a withdrawal of international troops.  Sixty-five nations were represented at the conference and although they pledged to maintain their long-term commitment to Afghanistan, the conference affirmed the international community’s desire to see Afghanistan’s government play a larger role in the security, economic development and governance of the country.

By Katherine Hubbard

In a recent Ushahidi Blog post entitled Building Bridges: Ushahidi as a Tool for the Haitian Community author Sabina Carleson writes about her four years of work on an oral history project chronicling the Haitian diaspora in the greater Boston area and discusses how Ushahidi technology could strengthen the connection between this community and their homeland.  Carleson shares her powerful and moving stories about a community that has faced great hardships, but has consistently met challenges with strength and innovation.  

By Katherine Hubbard

The Crisis States Research Centre has released a report called Negotiating with the Taliban: Toward a Solution for the Afghan Conflict.  The report focuses on an issue that has come to the forefront of the new strategy in Afghanistan: the prospect of negotiating with the Taliban.  During the 2001 Bonn Conference, the idea of reconciliation received little or no support from Afghan leaders or from the U.S.; but in the midst of the deteriorating security situation, all key players in Afghanistan have recognized the need for a new strategy and have expressed support for a reconciliation program.  The Crisis States report offers fascinating analysis of why previous attempts at reconciliation in Afghanistan have failed and what the Afghan government and the international community can do to make this process successful.

By Katherine Hubbard

The Canada-based Human Security Report Project has released a report entitled The Shrinking Costs of War which questions the widely accepted death toll of the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  The accepted toll is around 5.4 million, a figure which was calculated by the aid agency International Rescue Committee (IRC).  The Human Security Report Project, however, says the real number may be half of this.  The report claims that the original figure set too low of a baseline mortality rate to accurately determine the figure.  They assert that many of the deaths that occurred between 1998 and 2008 were not actually a result of the conflict.  

Mehlaqa Samdani

As the Pakistani military begins to wind down its military operation in South Waziristan, it has made clear it will not launch any more large-scale operations for another "six months to a year" in order "to consolidate the gains in the areas taken back from the militants" (such as Swat and South Waziristan) and to "ensure safety of the returnees". The announcement came during Secretary Gates' visit to Pakistan last week and appeared to rebuff U.S calls for an expanded military operation in North Waziristan.

By Morgan Courtney

Today, Sri Lanka is holding its first elections following the May 2009 defeat of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the end of Sri Lanka’s 26-year civil war. These Presidential elections, between the current president and the army general who led the winning campaign against the Tamil Tigers, are likely to be very close. The result could serve to unite the country or divide it further, depending on who is elected and if that person will make efforts to build trust and increase political and civil participation among minorities, particularly Sri Lankan Tamils. Yesterday, a task force from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs released a report analyzing what is at stake in the presidential and parliamentary elections (which must be held by May 2010) in terms of building peace, ensuring free and fair elections, and fostering a more inclusive political environment. The report also examines the likelihood of elections in the Palestinian Territories, and considers what is needed to create an environment conducive to elections.

Bridging the Divide? An Assessment of Elections in Sri Lanka and the Palestinian Territories is available here.

Flickr photo by Keith Bacongco used under a Creative Commons license.