Post-War Statebuilding and Constitutional Reform

Abstract

Post-war Statebuilding and Constitutional Reform in Divided Societies focuses on the experience of statebuilding and constitution making after violent conflict. Using the case of Bosnia and Herzegovina, one of Europe's most divided societies, as a vehicle to reflect on the fundamental questions of on post-war statebuilding, the book asks under what circumstances external actors may affect the interests, goals, and strategies of local actors in post-conflict, divided settings? Providing an in-depth study of constitutional reform in Bosnia, the book focuses on the reform of Dayton and the aftermath of these attempted reforms from 2006 to 2012, a period which many analysts have considered the beginning of a period in which the statebuilding process began to unravel amidst increasing inter-ethnic tensions. With a range of interviews from key players involved in the state-building process, Sebastìn explores the interactions between international and local elites in the unfolding of statebuilding, and questions why Bosnia and Herzegovina went into such decline and why 2006 marked a turning point in Bosnia's statebuilding process. This process-driven and actor-centric approach brings new perspectives to the debates on post-conflict statebuilding, informing policy decisions in peacebuilding and statebuilding processes in Bosnia and Herzegovina and other divided societies.