Table Of ContentPeacebuilding and Ex-Combatants
This book examines how ex-combatants in post-war and peacebuilding settings
engage in politics, as seen in the case of Liberia.
The political mobilization of former combatants after war is often perceived
as a threat, ultimately undermining the security and stability of the state. This
book questions this simplified view and argues that understanding the political
voice of former combatants is imperative. Their post-war role is not black and
white: they are not just bad or good citizens, but rather engage in multiple politi-
cal roles: spoilers, victims, disengaged, beneficiaries, as well as motivated and
active citizens.
By looking at the political attitudes and values of former combatants, and their
understanding of how politics functions, the book sheds new light on the political
reintegration of ex-combatants. It argues that political reintegration needs to be
given serious attention at the micro-level, but also needs to be scrutinized in two
ways: first, through the level of political involvement, which reflects the extent
and width of the ex-combatants’ voice. Second, in order to make sense of politi-
cal reintegration, we also need to uncover what values and norms inform their
political involvement. The content of their political voice is captured through a
comparison with democratic ideals. Based on interviews with over 100 Liberian
ex-combatants, the book highlights that their relationship with politics overall
should be characterized as an expression of a ‘politics of affection’.
This book will be of much interest to students of peacebuilding, African
politics, democratization, political sociology, conflict resolution and IR/Security
Studies in general.
Johanna Söderström is a postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Government,
Uppsala University, Sweden and has a PhD in Political Science.
Studies in Conflict, Development and Peacebuilding
Series Editors: Keith Krause, Thomas J. Biersteker and Riccardo
Bocco, Graduate Institute of International and Development
Studies, Geneva
This series publishes innovative research into the connections between insecu-
rity and under-development in fragile states, and into situations of violence and
insecurity more generally. It adopts a multidisciplinary approach to the study of a
variety of issues, including the changing nature of contemporary armed violence
(conflict), efforts to foster the conditions that prevent the outbreak or recurrence
of such violence (development), and strategies to promote peaceful relations on
the communal, societal and international level (peacebuilding).
The Political Economy of Stabilization Operations, Security
Peacemaking and Development
Achim Wennmann States of fragility
Edited by Robert Muggah
The Peace in Between
Post-war violence and peacebuilding Controlling Small Arms
Edited by Mats Berdal and Astri Suhrke Consolidation, innovation
and relevance in research
Local and Global Dynamics of
and policy
Peacebuilding
Edited by Peter Batchelor and Kai
Postconflict reconstruction in Sierra
Michael Kenkel
Leone
Christine Cubitt
An Ethnographic Approach to
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Peacebuilding, Memory and
Understanding local experiences in
Reconciliation
transitional states
Bridging top-down and bottom-up
Gearoid Millar
approaches
Bruno Charbonneau and Geneviève
Parent Peacebuilding and
Ex-Combatants
Peacebuilding and Local Ownership Political reintegration
Post-conflict consensus-building in Liberia
Timothy Donais Johanna Söderström
Peacebuilding and
Ex-Combatants
Political reintegration in Liberia
Johanna Söderström
First published 2015
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2015 Johanna Söderström
The right of Johanna Söderström to be identified as author of this work has
been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright,
Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or
utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in
any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing
from the publishers.
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registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation
without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Söderström, Johanna, author.
Peacebuilding and ex-combatants: political reintegration in Liberia /
Johanna Söderström.
pages cm.—(Studies in conflict, development and peacebuilding)
1. Peace-building—Liberia. 2. Conflict management—Liberia. 3. Liberia—
Armed Forces—Demobilization—Social aspects. 4. Liberia—Politics and
government—1980– I. Title. II. Series: Studies in conflict, development and
peacebuilding.
JZ5584.L43S63 2015
303.64096662—dc23
2014025679
ISBN: 978–1–138–79148–0 (hbk)
ISBN: 978–1–315–76280–7 (ebk)
Typeset in Times
by Book Now Ltd, London
‘One of the great challenges of peacebuilding is to encourage ex-combatants to
demobilize and engage constructively in civilian politics. Johanna Söderström’s
book provides an empirically rich and penetrating investigation of these essential
issues and represents an important addition to our understanding of politics after
civil war. Embedding her argument at the nexus of the literature on democratiza-
tion and conflict resolution and at the micro level of analysis, she traces how
political reintegration of ex-combatants will shape both the scope and content of
their participation in post-conflict politics.’ – Terrence Lyons, George Mason
University, USA
‘The political mobilization of former combatants is often perceived as a threat,
ultimately undermining the security and stability of the state. Their post-war
role is complex and should be considered beyond a mere binary of bad or good
citizenship. There is a huge need to recognize former combatants’ engagement
in multiple political roles: spoilers, victims, disengaged, beneficiaries, as well
as motivated and active citizens. Söderström has provided a valuable service in
addressing these issues in her timely and path-breaking study in the context of
Liberia and practitioners and scholars alike will find this book with keen practi-
cal and conceptual insights into the challenges of political reintegration of former
combatants.’ – Alpaslan Ozerdem, Coventry University, UK
‘Rebel soldiering is partially a political activity. However in the aftermath of
civil wars ex-combatants are often treated as non-political individuals. Indeed
the international community entices rebel movements to create political parties
to cater for the political/military elite of these movements. Despite commonplace
failure and political marginality of such parties most research on political reinte-
gration of ex-combatants limit their analysis to this. But in this book Söderström
takes us further. By focusing on political choices of individual ex-combatants
rather than the imagined collectivity of larger movements she opens up an impor-
tant new field of research. Furthermore research focus on ex-combatants post-war
political participation has been limited to direct political party activities but in this
book Söderström looks at all forms of political activities. This is laudable and the
book ought to be a mandatory read to scholars interested in post-war politics in
general and specifically for us with a Liberia interest.’ – Mats Utas, the Nordic
Africa Institute, Sweden
‘Söderström’s work moves beyond familiar discussions of patrimonialism and
threat to situate Liberian ex-combatants as moral actors and thoughtful decision
makers. Arguing that former fighters see their options for participation within a
framework of a politics of affection, she uses ethnographically rich interview data
as well as Afrobarometer statistics to expand our understanding of post-conflict
reintegration, democratization, and political voice. This is a major addition to
the literature on Liberia and peacemaking in general.’ – Mary Moran, Colgate
University, USA
‘Traditionally, survey research has been by far the most common method for
studying political participation. To study the challenging situation of post-war
combatants in Liberia, Johanna Söderström moves in a different direction by using
a series of focus groups to investigate their views about political participation
after a decades long civil war. By summarizing 18 groups with 101 participants,
this qualitative data produces insights into the views of non-elite fighters on such
topics as voting, public protest, and joining larger political movements. Overall,
Söderström creates an unusual opportunity to hear the voices of former combat-
ants as they face the realities of reintegration.’ – David L. Morgan, Portland
State University, USA
Contents
List of tables ix
Acknowledgements xi
List of abbreviations xiii
1 Political reintegration after war 1
2 The case and methodology 29
3 Political involvement 55
4 Expressed antagonism 82
5 Tolerance of dissent 114
6 Inclusion in the political community 132
7 Understanding and explaining the politics of
ex-combatants 157
Appendices 175
A Interviews 175
B Afrobarometer data – political involvement 179
C Afrobarometer data – antagonism 181
D Afrobarometer data – tolerance of dissent 182
E Afrobarometer data – inclusion 185
Select bibliography 187
Index 196
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Tables
1.1 Post-war political reintegration according to unit of analysis 8
2.1 Focus groups 41
3.1 Voting in national elections 61
3.2 Contacting local government officials 64
3.3 Discuss problems with other people in the community 67
3.4 Use of force or violence for a political cause 71
4.1 Attending a demonstration or protest march 90
4.2 Violence never justified vs. sometimes violence necessary 91
4.3 Government like a parent vs. an employee 101
5.1 Freedom House values for Liberia 116
5.2 Careful about what you say in politics 117
5.3 One political party 117
5.4 Fear becoming a victim of political intimidation 118
6.1 Nationality vs. ethnicity 143
6.2 Ethnic group treated unfairly 143
A.1 Focus groups 178
B.1 Problems facing the country 179
B.2 Evaluation of elections 179
B.3 Writing a letter to a newspaper or calling a radio show 179
B.4 Attending a community meeting 180
B.5 Contacting religious leaders 180
B.6 Voice heard between elections 180
C.1 Corruption: representatives to National Legislature 181
C.2 Question actions of leaders vs. respect authority 181
D.1 Free to say what you think 182
D.2 Free to choose who to vote for 182
D.3 Political parties create division 182
D.4 Opposition parties should criticize the government 183
D.5 Political competition leads to violence 183
D.6 Cause of conflict 184
E.1 Political influence of ethnic group 185
E.2 Ethnic group treated unfairly 185
