Monopoly Of Force The Nexus Of Ddr And Ssr

"Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration (DDR) and Security Sector Reform (SSR) have emerged in recent years as promising though generally poorly understood mechanisms for consolidating stability and reasserting state sovereignty after conflict. Despite the considerable experience acquired by the international community, the critical interrelationship between DDR and SSR and the ability to use these mechanisms with consistent success remain less than optimally developed. The chapters in this book reflect a diversity of field experience and research in DDR and SSR, which suggest that these are complex and interrelated systems, with underlying political attributes. Successful application of DDR and SSR requires the setting aside of preconceived assumptions or formulas, and should be viewed flexibly to restore to the state the monopoly of force."--Page 4 of cover.

The mechanism of disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) is widely acknowledged to be an essential component of successful peacekeeping, peace-building, postconflict management, and state-building. Security sector reform (SSR) has emerged as a promising though poorly understood tool for consolidating stability and establishing sovereignty after conflict. While DDR enables a state to recover the monopoly (or at least the preponderance) of force, SSR provides the opportunity for the state to establish the legitimacy of that monopoly.The essays in this book reflect the diversity of experience in DDR and SSR in various contexts. Despite the considerable experience acquired by the international community, the critical interrelationship between DDR and SSR and the ability to use these mechanisms with consistent success remain less than optimally developed. DDR and SSR are essential tools of modern statecraft, but their successful use is contingent upon our understanding of both the affinities and the tensions between them. These essays aim to excite further thought on how these two processes-DDR and SSR-can be implemented effectively and complimentarily to better accomplish the shared goals of viable states and enduring peace.

If experience is any guide, it is safe to say that the next decade will be as full of surprises as the past decade. There is no doubt we will be surprised, so our job is to be prepared for the unexpected so that when it arrives, we have the fewest regrets. The Joint Operating Environment (JOE) is U.S. Joint Forces Command's review of possible future trends that present significant security challenges and opportunities for the next quarter-century. From economic trends to climate change, from cyber attacks to failed states, the JOE outlines future disruptions and examines the implications for our national security in general and for the joint force in particular. These implications, plus current operations, inform the concepts that drive our Services' adaptations and the environments within which they will operate.

While disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) and security sector reform (SSR) have become integral statebuilding tools in post-conflict states, the existing empirical literature examining their relationship has focused on supply-side considerations related to the programming of both processes. In practice, though, DDR and SSR are implemented in the wider context of war-to-peace transitions where the state is attempting to establish a monopoly over the use of force and legitimize itself in the eyes of domestic and international communities. This paper therefore assumes that to identify opportunities and constraints for establishing closer practical linkages between DDR and SSR it is important to take the local politics into consideration. It examines two past externally driven peacebuilding interventions in West Africa, namely Liberia and Sierra Leone, featuring cases in which the central state had essentially fragmented or collapsed. Through this comparative analysis, the paper aims to provide a stepping-stone for future studies examining demand-side considerations of DDR and SSR in post-conflict contexts.

Eduardo Wassim Aboultaif critically analyzes civil–military relations and the way armies are constructed in divided societies. To achieve that, the book looks at four case studies with deep divisions and whose armed forces have been reconstructed after civil wars. Lebanon and Bosnia-Herzegovina represent two examples of consociational power-sharing arrangements with functioning armed forces that enjoy wide popular support and neutral in internal affairs. Iraq and Burundi, however, have semi-consociational provisions that have politicized the army and made it a partisan military that has either led to disintegration (as in the case of Iraq) or politicization and loss of legitimacy (as in Burundi).

From Afghanistan and Sierra Leone to East Timor, the aftermath of any armed conflict presents a complex set of challenges. Whatever political agreements may have been reached, conflicts are often at risk of reigniting, and the fates of their former participants remain uncertain. Armed groups may not be easily dissuaded from pursuing belligerent activities which they see as both profitable and understandable behaviour. In the face of these difficulties, the process of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) attempts to convince combatants to relinquish their weapons and return to civilian life. It is a crucial first step towards lasting peace. Demobilizing Militias is the first comprehensive introduction to DDR in the contemporary world. Examining regions as varied as Africa, Asia and Central America, it guides readers through the different stages of the DDR process as well as assessing competing perspectives surrounding its implementation. Attentive to the problems faced by practitioners, Eric Shibuya argues against a 'one size fits all' approach, emphasizing the importance of social and psychological contexts in fostering the trust that is necessary for DDR to succeed. Accessible and incisive, it will be an ideal resource for students of politics, security and conflict studies, as well as anyone interested in the dynamics of peacebuilding today.

As a conflict ends and the parties begin working towards a durable peace, practitioners and peacebuilders are faced with the thrilling possibilities and challenges of building new or reformed political, security, judicial, social, and economic structures. This Handbook analyzes these elements of post-conflict state building through the lens of international law, which provides a framework through which the authors contextualize and examine the many facets of state building in relation to the legal norms, processes, and procedures that guide such efforts across the globe. The volume aims to provide not only an introduction to and explanation of prominent topics in state building, but also a perceptive analysis that augments ongoing conversations among researchers, lawyers, and advocates engaged in the field.

Multilateral organizations - the United Nations (UN) in particular - have played, and continue to play, an important role in shaping the security sector reform (SSR) agenda, both in terms of policy development and the provision of support to a wide range of national SSR processes. This volume presents a variety of perspectives on UN support to SSR, past and present, with attention to policy and operational practice. Drawing from the experience of UN practitioners combined with external experts on SSR, this volume offers an in-depth exploration of the UN approach to SSR from a global perspective.