Timely interventions: Temporality and peacebuilding

This paper is a conceptual scoping of the construction and maintenance of time in peace processes. It argues that the temporal dimensions of peacemaking are culturally specific constructions that go beyond scalar or measurable time. The various constructions of time merge, coexist, and impinge on each other to form hybrid conceptualisations and practices of time. This paper concentrates on what are probably the two most important conceptualisations of time in relation to peace processes: political time and sociological time. Political time pertains to formalised concepts of time that are often constructed and maintained by military and political elites. It may include dates for elections, the timing of ceasefires, or deadlines for peace negotiations. Sociological time refers to non-elite concepts of time that may revolve around the everyday activities of family life, work, and cultural pursuits

Nationalism and Ethnic Politics, 2016

Time and Temporality in Transitional and Post-Conflict Societies, 2018

Contemporary Peacemaking, 2008

While most studies on peaceful settlement of disputes see the substance of the proposals for a solution as the key to a successful resolution of conflict, a growing focus of attention shows that a second and equally necessary key lies in the timing of efforts for resolution (Zartman 2000). Parties resolve their conflict only when they are ready to do so-when alternative, usually unilateral means of achieving a satisfactory result are blocked and the parties feel that they are in an uncomfortable and costly predicament. At that ripe moment, they grab on to proposals that usually have been in the air for a long time and that only now appear attractive. The idea of a ripe moment lies at the fingertips of diplomats. 'Ripeness of time is one of the absolute essences of diplomacy', wrote John Campbell (1976: 73). 'You have to do the right thing at the right time', without indicating specific causes. Henry Kissinger (1974) did better, recognizing that 'stalemate is the most propitious condition for settlement.' Conversely, practitioners often are heard to say that certain mediation initiatives are not advisable because the conflict just is not yet ripe. In mid-1992, in the midst of ongoing conflict, the Iranian deputy foreign minister noted, 'The situation in Azerbaijan is not ripe for such moves for mediation.' (AFP 17 May 1992). 1 This article was originally written as a chapter in a book edited by John Darby and Roger MacGinty, Progressing towards Settlement, which will be published in 2002. The book will follow the peace process cycle from violence to post-accord peacebuilding, and contain 26 chapters by leading researchers and scholars currently writing on peace processes. 2 The same logic has been identified in regard to domestic elite settlements, produced by costly and inconclusive conflict: 'Precisely because no single faction has been a clear winner and all factions have more nearly been losers, elites are disposed to compromise if at all possible' (Burton and Higley 1987: 298) 3 Timing can refer to many things other than costs and benefits, including domestic political schedules, generational socialization, and attitudinal maturation, among others. (For an excellent analysis based on the first, see Quandt 1986; on the second, see Samuels 1977). These are perfectly valid approaches, but ultimately they can be reduced to cost/benefits, calculated or affected by different referents. To note this is not to deny their separate value, but simply to justify the conceptual focus used here.

Time, Temporality and Violence in International Relations, 2016

2016

International Relations scholars have traditionally expressed little direct interest in addressing time and temporality. Yet, assumptions about temporality are at the core of many theories of world politics and time is a crucial component of the human condition and our social reality. Today, a small but emerging strand of literature has emerged to meet questions concerning time and temporality and its relationship to International Relations head on. This volume provides a platform to continue this work. The chapters in this book address subjects such as identity, terrorism, war, gender relations, global ethics and governance in order to demonstrate how focusing on the temporal aspects of such phenomena can enhance our understanding of the world. 134 Islam and the Politics of Temporality: The Case of ISIS

Time, Temporality and Global Politics (Bristol: E-IR, 2016) Andrew Hom, Christopher McIntosh, Alasdair MacKay, Liam Stockdale (ed.)