Colombia’s Peace Accord on the Missing (Spanish)

Colombia’s Peace Accord on the Missing (Spanish)

Friday, September 23, 2016

By: Lisa Haugaard;  Virginia M. Bouvier

Las desapariciones forzadas son un legado de medio siglo de conflicto armado interno en Colombia.  Afectan a sectores pobres en el campo y en los centros urbanos, trabajadores, campesinos y campesinas, periodistas, defensores y defensoras de los derechos humanos, políticos de la oposición y lideres y lideresas afro-colombianos e indígenas.  Además, miembros de las fuerzas públicas y de la guerrilla han desaparecido en el contexto del conflicto armado colombiano.  Este informe analiza un acuer...

Type: Peace Brief

Mediation, Negotiation & DialoguePeace Processes

The Islamic State In Pakistan

The Islamic State In Pakistan

Wednesday, September 21, 2016

By: Tariq Parvez

The Islamic State, or Daesh, has moved its influence beyond Iraq and Syria, formally establishing its Khorasan branch in Central Asia in January 2015. This brief explores Daesh in Pakistan, how its ideology can influence both existing and potential militants, and what a comprehensive response from the Pakistani government would involve.

Type: Peace Brief

Violent ExtremismReligionDemocracy & Governance

Building Regional Border Security Cooperation: Lessons from the Maghreb

Building Regional Border Security Cooperation: Lessons from the Maghreb

Monday, September 19, 2016

By: James Cohen;  Leanne McKay;  Joyce A. Kasee

The Maghreb countries of Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia face threats to their borders from transnational illicit networks, such as terrorist groups and criminal organizations. To address these threats, USIP convened operational border officials from the three countries through a series of workshops in spring 2016. This brief highlights the key lessons that emerged from this work: addressing border security requires understanding the underlying drivers of insecurity; border security requires st...

Type: Peace Brief

Justice, Security & Rule of Law

China’s Troop Contributions to U.N. Peacekeeping

China’s Troop Contributions to U.N. Peacekeeping

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

By: Courtney J. Fung

China, traditionally reluctant to intervene, has become a major contributor to UN peacekeeping operations. However, given its available assets, the country has the capacity to increase its commitments and play a key role in improving peacekeeping operations. This brief examines China’s rise as a global security provider and what can be done to drive its further engagement in the peacekeeping landscape.

Type: Peace Brief

EnvironmentHuman RightsGlobal PolicyEconomics

Colombia’s Peace Accord on the Missing

Colombia’s Peace Accord on the Missing

Monday, July 25, 2016

By: Lisa Haugaard;  Virginia M. Bouvier

Forced disappearances are a legacy of Colombia’s half-century of internal armed conflict. They have affected the rural and urban poor, labor and peasant organizers, journalists, human rights defenders, politicians, and Afro-Colombian and indigenous leaders. Likewise, in the context of Colombia’s war, members of the military and guerrillas have also gone missing. This brief examines an agreement on the missing reached in October 2015 between the Colombian government and the Colombian Revolutio...

Type: Peace Brief

Mediation, Negotiation & DialoguePeace Processes

Nationalistic Narratives in Pakistani Textbooks

Nationalistic Narratives in Pakistani Textbooks

Thursday, July 7, 2016

By: Ahsan Butt

History textbooks capture a state’s official narratives regarding particular events, territory, groups, or phenomena. These narratives reflect and constitute a state’s national identity and can generate the potential for conflict because of their divisiveness. This brief summarizes initial baseline research on Pakistani textbooks, revealing the importance of bureaucratic politics, and highlights several implications for education reform and national and international stability.

Type: Peace Brief

Violent ExtremismEducation & TrainingYouth

Technocratic Reforms in Afghanistan: Benefits and Limitations

Technocratic Reforms in Afghanistan: Benefits and Limitations

Tuesday, July 5, 2016

By: William Byrd, Ph.D.

Afghanistan’s “technocratic” reforms have resulted in impressive progress in areas such as public financial management. However, these reforms alone will not solve the country’s pressing security, political, and economic problems. This brief outlines the benefits and limitations of technocratic reforms and emphasizes that government and international attention should not be diverted from concrete, short-term measures to improve government functioning, strengthen security, and stimulate a mode...

Type: Peace Brief

EnvironmentDemocracy & GovernanceEconomics

Peacebuilding in Libya: Cross-Border Transactions and The Civil Society Landscape

Peacebuilding in Libya: Cross-Border Transactions and The Civil Society Landscape

Friday, June 24, 2016

By: Sherine N. El Taraboulsi

Cross-border transactions have been shaping the Libyan civil and political landscape for decades. However, desk research and field interviews in Tunisia reveal that interventions for peacebuilding are not fully accounting for these transactions or other regional activities. This brief argues that supporting local and regional actors in working toward a unified vision for Libya requires factoring in cross-border, civil society exchanges and the tensions that affect them.

Type: Peace Brief

EnvironmentJustice, Security & Rule of LawDemocracy & GovernanceEconomics

Improving Accountability for Conflict-related Sexual Violence in Africa

Improving Accountability for Conflict-related Sexual Violence in Africa

Tuesday, June 14, 2016

By: Ketty Anyeko;  Kim Thuy Seelinger & Julie Freccero

Local practitioners who work with survivors of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) on a daily basis during peacetime also play a vital role in accountability for conflict-period SGBV. With appropriate training and resources, they can even contribute to the documentation and prosecution of SGBV committed as a war crime, crime against humanity, and act of genocide. This Peace Brief illustrates how new research from the Human Rights Center at the University of California, Berkeley, School of...

Type: Peace Brief

Violent ExtremismGenderGlobal PolicyFragility & Resilience