Somalia: Creating Space for Fresh Approaches to Peacebuilding

shinkyu lee
1 See, for a succinct account
of conflict dynamic, John
Paul Lederach, The Little Book
of Conflict Transformation
(Intercourse: Good Books, 2003).
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Criminalizing peace or containing violence?
The impact of the decision in the United States Supreme Court case
Holder vs. Humanitarian Law Project on peacebuilding in the Somali context
Shinkyu Lee
Executive summary
This research paper focuses on the challenges peacebuilding agencies encounter
when working in Somalia. It draws close attention to the United States (US)
Supreme Court’s decision in the Holder vs. Humanitarian Law Project (Holder
vs. HLP) case and its implications on peacebuilding activities in the context of
the Somali conflict. In order to elucidate the relevance of the decision in Holder
vs. HLP to the peacebuilding community, the paper first revisits the nature of
conflict and violence. Second, it shows how the decision overlooks the dynamic
dimension of conflict in which opportunities for peacebuilding are creatively
formed. Third, it demonstrates the dynamic aspect of conflict in Somalia with a
special focus on the unintended consequences of counter-terrorism from which
al-Shabaab has benefited. Finally, it explores strategic avenues of peacebuilding
efforts in Somalia and presents concrete policy recommendations.
Conflict dynamics and peacebuilding
On June 21, 2010, the US Supreme Court ruled in the Holder vs. HLP case. The
Court upheld the constitutionality of a federal statute criminalizing a very broad
range of assistance to foreign terrorist organizations. As the term “material support”
for proscribed groups is broadly defined in the statute, the ruling had a
comprehensive impact on peacebuilding activities. In order to build sustainable
peace, all relevant actors in the conflict need to be included in its solution. With
the decision in the Holder vs. HLP case, however, the scope of peacebuilding is
significantly restrained as the access to important actors is controlled and prohibited,
if they are on the US list of proscribed groups. Many problems that Holder
vs. HLP entails are derived from a limited understanding of conflict, violence and
peace. Therefore, before examining the impact on Somali peacebuilding efforts, a
brief discussion of conflict dynamics is useful.
Conflict is a dynamic process, inherent in human relationships, which provides
the opportunity to address the underlying grievances in life and function
as a catalyst for growth and change. 1 Unless its causes are properly addressed
and the means to deal with it are present, conflict can degenerate into violence.
Accordingly, all parties of conflict who envision a long-lasting peace should be
concerned about how to address the underlying causes, while simultaneously
refraining from resorting to violence. To do this, they must identify creative
opportunities to be formed along with processes of change.