The 'peace process' is a common expression in international politics. It describes and explains events in seemingly disparate locations as Northern Ireland, the Middle East, and Southern Africa, which share only the common occurrence of violent conflict. One outstanding feature of these peace processes is the active participation of international actors or external 'third parties'. Whether they are states, international organisations or nongovernmental organisations, these external actors comprise an industry focussed on the peace process. However, in providing assistance to countries making the transition from war to peace, as an industry these external third parties often reconfigure the political space of host societies in a manner which frustrates the intended goal of attaining peace. The following analysis focuses on the process of implementing a comprehensive peace settlement to show how the peace process industry operates, using the case of Mozambique. The Mozambican peace process was selected because it is generally presented as a success which justifies similar activities in future cases. Therefore it is crucial to examine whether the intervention was a success, what kind of success and a success for whom. As Mozambique was inundated with international actors engaged in all kinds of activities, supported by substantial funding, it serves as a useful example from which to study the peace process industry at work. Mozambique is also one of the poorest countries in the world and is thus representative of larger processes in the developing world and its relationship with donors and the United Nations. This thesis draws out a number of themes on the aggregate impact of external third parties on the political space of Mozambique and uses this as a basis for reaching conclusions applicable to other cases. It seeks to contribute to debates in international relations on how questions regarding the role of international actors in peace processes and the assistance they provide should be answered.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:312970 |
| Date | January 1999 |
| Creators | Ebata, Joanne Michi |
| Publisher | London School of Economics and Political Science (University of London) |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/427/ |
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