Liberia Civil War

Based on the Poro Society’s history and traditions, this paper argues that a credible case can be made that the First Liberian Civil War (FLCW) began as a National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) insurgency facilitated by a Nimba Poro Society insurrection.  The present consensus is that Poro involvement in the conflict was incidental and not a coordinated effort between the organization and the NPFL.  It is this essay’s contention that in the initial stage of the war, the Society’s ethnic Gio members of Nimba partnered with the NPFL using the Poro’s capacity to mobilize its members for social causes.  In so doing, Nimba Poro associates sought to avenge the 1986 attack on their homeland by President Samuel Doe and his ethnic Krahn dominated Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL).  In the process, they also hoped to protect their community by initiating NPFL fighters into their Society.  The civil war gradually consumed much of Liberia with various warring factions and combatants pursuing their own interests.  While it is the latter stage of the fighting that has characterized our understanding of the conflict, it is this essay’s position that the FLCW owes its inception to a NPFL/Poro alliance in 1989.

Książka "Wojny w Liberii i Sierra Leone (1989-2002). Geneza, przebieg i następstwa" to studium wojny w Afryce Subsaharyjskiej na przykładzie Liberii i Sierra Leone - krajów na przedprzemysłowym etapie rozwoju. Świadomość społeczna większości ich mieszkańców skupiona jest na wspólnotach lokalnych. Praca ukazuje mechanizm powstania lokalnej rebelii i jej przerodzenia się w konflikt międzynarodowy, zagrażający bezpieczeństwu całego regionu Afryki Zachodniej. Podejmuje też problem wojen „na zamówienie”, które wybuchają często w wyniku antagonizmów dzielących grupy rządzące w różnych krajach i prowadzą do rozkładu, a okresowo nawet do upadku całych państw. Uczestnicy wojen eksploatują bogactwa naturalne, by wymienić je na broń, co powoduje przedłużanie się działań zbrojnych, które w przypadku Liberii i Sierra Leone charakteryzowały się wyjątkowym okrucieństwem. Zakończenie takich wojen jest niezwykle trudne, stąd też pojawia się konieczność podejmowania międzynarodowych działań mediacyjnych i organizowania interwencji humanitarnych.

Public participation in constitutional reform can play a key role in legitimizing and constructing a lasting constitution. However, few resources have been invested in determining why exactly this is, and what factors should be considered when designing such a process. This paper tackles these difficult questions, investigating the justifications for including public participation in constitutional reform processes and outlining the factors that seem to be the most important to consider when creating a public participation program. After examining how public participation programs were run in Uganda, Kenya, and South Africa during their periods of constitutional reform, the paper then turns to outlining a design for a public participation mechanism for Liberia's current reform processes.

Após a Guerra Fria, ampliaram-se na área de Segurança Internacional nas Relações Internacionais os estudos sobre reforma do setor de segurança (RSS) em operações de paz. Nessas discussões, aborda-se também a participação local da sociedade em transição nessas reformas. Partindo desse debate, nesta dissertação temos como objetivo compreender quais foram os fatores que conduziram o processo de apropriação local no contexto de RSS na operação de paz da Libéria. O argumento desenvolvido é que o processo de RSS da Libéria foi liderado por atores internacionais que conduziram a apropriação local com limitada participação governamental, o que contribuiu para que, de maneira geral, ameaças securitárias locais não fossem abordadas, gerando baixo controle do setor de segurança pelo governo e sociedade durante o processo. Esta pesquisa se justifica por colaborar com o campo de investigação de apropriação local em operações de paz, marcado pela escassa literatura nacional e internacionalmente. Propõe-se realizar um estudo de caso qualitativo com método hipotético-dedutivo, técnica de pesquisa bibliográfica.

The case studies below demonstrate four of many possible hypotheses about what might cause, sustain, and give form to civil conflicts in Africa. No conflict is ever driven by a single factor and conflict is always the interaction of many factors. Note that these conflicts arose in the post-Cold-War era of comparably informal warfare and thus were quite different from most previous conflicts in the 20 th century. As opposed to traditional wars, these are example of "new" or "hybrid" conflicts because they involve many non-state actors, were based on identity more than ideology, used fear to garner political control, and were financed through predation rather than taxes (Kaldor, 1999; Ibid, 2013). Modern conflicts in developing countries, particularly in Africa, can often be partially explained along these lines. For each case, you will find key terms, an explanation of the hypothesis, drivers of the conflict, and key actors. Please note that the simplified sides drawn for the sections on "key actors" do not equate to "good guys" and "bad guys." Conflict is messy; motivations and strategies are multi-tiered and shifting. A "good guy" can use "bad guy" tactics, for example. This division is simply to serve as quick reference for sometimes confusing names and acronyms. Then, you will also find a summary of events, questions to consider, and further reading recommendations. Throughout your analysis, try to compare and contrast the cases to discern how they may be similar or different or reveal patterns.