Building the Peace: Experiences in Collaborative Peace Building in Somalia, 1993-1996.

Falconer, Alan D.

Wolfgang Heinrich, Building the Peace: Experiences in Collaborative Peace Building in Somalia, 1993-1996, Uppsala, Life and Peace Institute, 1997, 274pp.

The Life and Peace Institute, a prominent actor in the field of international relations, has made important contributions in situations of conflict around the world. This, the third volume in the Institute's "Horn of Africa" series, outlines and evaluates the Institute's recent work in the troubled situation in Somalia.

This country has been designated a "failed state" in recent literature, a characterization arising from the fact that the state no longer provides -- or is capable of providing -- an all-inclusive basis for identification and societal integration. One clear impression from this volume is that such a basis for Somalia is inherently elusive.

Wolfgang Heinrich details the involvement of the Life and Peace Institute in the action-oriented peace work in Somalia which arose at the request of the Swedish government and development agencies. (These bodies -- and this is a development not limited to Somalia -- had noted that they were becoming more involved in emergency work with refugees and displaced persons, and less in traditional "church" and development work.) After detailing the history of the conflict, Heinrich notes the attempt to adopt a two-track approach to the problem. Track 1 involved the engagement of the UN and external agencies in constructive peace-making efforts. However this approach has proved less effective in intra-state than in inter-state conflicts; and it has become clear that this work -- which was an approach "from above", from government -- had to be complemented by the track 2 approach, which comes "from below" and involves "traditional" and "civil" society.

This second approach involves the empowerment of local leadership charged with community responsibility. The Addis Ababa agreement of March 1993 led to the establishment of administrative councils at district and regional level as part of a transitional government structure. The charter drafting committee involved civilians, and meetings with the elders of the community. Traditional clan authorities, using traditional methods of conflict management, were to continue responsibility for handling local intercommunity conflicts. The introduction of sharia law, and its enforcement, brought a measure of stability to society, as did the re-establishment of traditional Somali law. Heinrich raises some critical questions as to these developments.

The Life and Peace Institute itself changed roles in the course of these developments. Initially it had been an adviser to the process, but it then became an "implementer" through its provision of training courses for leaders of civil society. As a European-based institute, it sensitively employed only Somali workers in building up mechanisms "from below" for peace transformation. A useful discussion, following the insights of Lederach, occurs in the analysis of the distinctions between "conflict resolution", "conflict management" and "conflict transformation". Of particular importance is the summary of lessons learned by the Life and Peace Institute through its involvement. These offer important clues for the resolution of other conflict situations. This volume then reports the reactions to the initiatives of the Institute by actors at all levels of Somali administration and society, and by those involved in the UN and NGOs.

The volume is repetitive but details an impressive involvement in, and analysis of, peace-making in Somalia. The various factors, including the influence of external and internal actors, are clearly examined. Important concepts are critically analyzed for their potential in creating appropriate peace-making mechanisms and cultures.

Each conflict situation in today's world is sui generis, yet lessons from particular situations may provide useful insights and perspectives worthy of consideration elsewhere. Robin Poulton and Ibrahim ag Youssouf recently published, under the title A Peace of Timbuktu, an account for the United Nations of peace-making efforts in Mali. A similar process of decentralization of government was evident, and the role of traditional and civil society was comparable. There were similarities in the economic situation (due to drought and inadequate infrastructure), but other economic aspects may also have helped the process of conflict resolution in Mali. Among the factors, however, which enabled the communities there to accept each other was the existence, in the respective traditions, of myths and symbols of origin and cohesion. It would have been helpful in the Somali context to have had an exploration of equivalent resources that might allow "unity in diversity".

The Life and Peace Institute is to be commended for its work in advising, training and analyzing in the context of this difficult situation. It is to be hoped that this evaluation will be helpful to those working for peace in Somalia and other conflict situations.

Alan D. Falconer is director, secretariat of the Faith and Order Commission, World Council of Churches.