Question And Answer
Publications
Articles, publications, books, tools and multimedia features from the U.S. Institute of Peace provide the latest news, analysis, research findings, practitioner guides and reports, all related to the conflict zones and issues that are at the center of the Institute’s work to prevent and reduce violent conflict.
Applying Islamic Principles in the Twenty-first Century: Nigeria, Iran, and Indonesia
This report summarizes the three projects and offers salient points raised by some of the conference participants. It was prepared by David Smock, director of the Religion and Peacemaking program, based on papers by Radwan Masmudi, Asna Husin, and Abdulaziz Sachedina.
Political Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa: The Need for a New Research and Diplomatic Agenda
Summary An understanding of the multifaceted nature of political Islam on the African subcontinent is a precondition for the formulation of an effective U.S. policy toward the region. Such a formulation would place political Islam in a historical and contemporary context. In East Africa, discrimination against Muslims—which began in colonial mission schools and continued in education and employment following independence—played an important role in the development of political Islam...
Removing Barricades in Somalia: Options for Peace and Rehabilitation
In summer 1997, a team of four Somali intellectuals and two American Africanists spent three weeks in Somalia on behalf of the United States Institute of Peace. The purpose of the visit was to assess the present circumstances and future prospects for peace and reconciliation in Somalia and to recommend how it might be appropriate for the United States, working with colleagues and institutions in Somalia and neighboring countries as well as within the larger donor community, to play a constru...
Preventing Genocide in Burundi: Lessons from International Diplomacy
Since 1993, interethnic violence between the 15 to 20 percent Tutsi minority and the 80 to 85 percent Hutu majority in Burundi has taken an estimated 150,000 lives. An examination of the international response to the crisis furnishes valuable lessons for peacemaking in Burundi and other areas of genocidal conflict.
Zaire: Predicament and Prospects
For more than five years, the people of Zaire have struggled to survive in a state on the brink of utter collapse. Amid growing economic disarray and infrastructural breakdown, standards of living have plummeted, moral and ethical standards have withered, and violence has risen. Political authority is almost hopelessly fragmented and discredited.
Sudan and South Sudan: Independence and Insecurity
Jonathan Temin, director of Sudan programs at the U.S. Institute of Peace, testified on the situation in Sudan and South Sudan before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on March 14, 2012.
Empowering Local Peacebuilders
Peacebuilding operations in conflict and post-conflict societies often undermine local capacity, ownership, and sustainability. The acknowledged remedy is to empower local actors to take the lead in planning and implementing programs, but few empowerment strategies that work in practice have been documented and explained.
Learning from Sudan’s 2011 Referendum
Despite dire predictions of violence around the referendum on the secession of southern Sudan, the vote in 2011 was largely peaceful. Understanding why is key to future efforts to prevent conflict.
USIP President Testifies on the Value of Peacebuilding
USIP President Richard H. Solomon submitted the following written testimony to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs on March 30. Solomon explains how USIP's peacebuilding and conflict management work minimizes the need for costly military interventions.
Facilitating Dialogue
Facilitating Dialogue presents seven case studies of the United States Institute of Peace’s facilitated dialogue efforts in Iraq, Kosovo, Israel/Palestine, Colombia, Nigeria, and Nepal. Covering a variety of conflict situations and peacemaking efforts—from the tribal reconciliation in Mahmoudiya, Iraq, to a justice and security dialogue in Nepal—the cases tell stories of peacebuilding successes, efforts in progress, limitations on what can be achieved, and lessons learned.