The prioritisation of rule of law support from a peacebuilding perspective
Armed conflicts are increasingly interpreted as products of the breakdown of the rule of law. In turn, weak rule of law institutions are understood as a major challenge to early post-conflict reconstruction and long-term conflict prevention. Considered essential for the maintenance of peaceful social relations, rule of law reform has thus become a priority in peacebuilding activities in the periphery. Yet enforcing a liberal legal framework in war-torn countries has had mixed success at best, with reforms encountering severe difficulties in gaining the necessary legitimacy within disrupted communities to function authoritatively. This policy brief explores the process of the prioritisation of the rule of law, presenting the assumptions that favour its application and the typical reforms implemented in the context of peacebuilding initiatives. In addition to discussing the current challenges to the modus operandi of external interventions, it makes concrete proposals for potential improvements.
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Teresa Almeida Cravo is a researcher at the Centre for Social Studies and a lecturer in international relations at the University of Coimbra, Portugal. She holds a PhD in politics and international studies from the University of Cambridge and a master’s in peace studies from the University of Bradford. She was an associate (2010-2011) and a research fellow (2008-2010) at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Her research interests include peace and conflict studies, development, and security, with a special focus on Africa.
Tor Krever is a PhD candidate in law at the London School of Economics and Political Science. He has law degrees from Harvard University and the University of Cambridge. He was a law research clerk at the South African Constitutional Court in Johannesburg (2011) and a legal assistant for Charles Taylor’s defence team at the Special Court for Sierra Leone in The Hague (2010). His research focuses on law and development, and critical approaches to international and human rights law. He has previously worked on law reform and development issues in Colombia and at the United Nations in New York.
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