CORE

The role of Governance in the Resolution of Socioeconomic and Political Conflict in India and Europe

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 Obiettivo del progetto (Objective)

'In the post-Cold War world is witnessing the emergence of new forms of intra-state conflicts accompanied by a weakening of the nation-state’s traditional means of dealing with these. There is a visible need for substantial revision in conventional approaches and strategies aimed at transforming such conflicts. Conflict resolution agendas have in the last two decades for the most part been shaped by the political objective of bringing political and economic liberalization in the name of promoting of human rights, rule of law and democracy. However, these strategies often fail to take into consideration the complex social and cultural contexts of the local level. There is a gap in knowledge about the impact that governance agendas have on local conflict dynamics, especially in the cases where identity mobilisation is a prominent factor in the conflict. This project will analyse the premises and operation of governance initiatives in conflict transformation processes through a combination of fieldwork, qualitative analysis and theory development. It will carry out case studies encompassing recent governance practices in Bihar, Bosnia, Cyprus, Georgia, North East India and Kashmir. The project will be conducted in collaboration between Indian and European research teams. The project will review and critique current approaches to conflict resolution in an attempt to revise and improve both the theoretical and operational sides of conflict resolution and peace building. It will facilitate a reciprocal learning process between appropriate parties of the European Union and Indian actors and policy makers in order to enhance the perspectives and methods of both. The project will result in a variety of outputs, including a report series addressed to both EU and Indian policy‐makers, a variety of local level consultations, two large international conferences, a series of scholarly articles and working papers for the research community, and a scholarly book. A high-profile web forum will be developed to enhance communication between researchers, policy‐makers, practitioners and the wider public.'

Introduzione (Teaser)

Since the end of the Cold War in 1991, new forms of intra-state conflicts have emerged globally. These call for revised conflict resolution strategies that consider goals beyond the realisation of political and economic liberalisation.

Descrizione progetto (Article)

The http://www.projectcore.eu/ (CORE) project identified that conventional approaches and strategies do not account for complex social and cultural contexts at local level. As such, researchers worked to enhance understanding of the social and political impacts that governance agendas have on local conflict dynamics. The particular focus was on conflicts in Europe and India, but findings are relevant to conflict resolution and peacebuilding initiatives anywhere in the world.

Project findings helped advance new theories and materials for global governance policies that lack an essential grasp of cultural biases and the dynamics of local politics. The focus was on the cultural premises of governance, as seen from the perspective of the governed. Accordingly, one goal was to determine how these premises meet the needs for peace and security that the governance supposedly addresses.

CORE therefore questioned the conceptions of peace, security, democracy and human rights that are currently employed to devise liberal approaches to conflict resolution and peacebuilding. This was a significant starting point as these approaches are essential to foreign and security policy in the EU. A comparative study of EU foreign engagement and Indian domestic engagement provided an excellent opportunity in this regard. For example, an emerging EU peacebuilding framework was compared to regional strategies focused on conflict on and around the Indian subcontinent.

Ten research teams (five in India and five in Europe) joined forces to examine how governance initiatives affected conflict dynamics in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Cyprus, Georgia, Bihar/Jharkhand, Kashmir and Northeast India.

The initiative made important progress in a number of areas. Researchers analysed how globally expressed and networked rules, norms and policies of governance are impacting conflicts locally. They assessed the degree to which governance measures on different levels affect each other in a multi-level dynamic. Other work involved mapping and analysing specific governance programmes and interventions set up to address conflicts in Europe and India.

CORE refined methods for a fieldwork-based analysis of governance initiatives in societies entrenched in long-term conflict. It improved understanding and knowledge of the cultural dynamics of existing governance, peace and development practices in Europe and India. Taken all together, project findings and outcomes make a significant contribution to global politics, governance, conflict resolution and peacebuilding.