The Interests in Inclusivity in Peace Negotiations

Chair: Mats Berdal

Speaker: Dr Devon E. A. Curtis is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Politics and International Studies at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of Emmanuel College

As in many other areas of peacebuilding and development, international donors, mediators, participants, and observers often advocate ‘inclusivity’ in peace negotiations. It is difficult to be against the idea of inclusivity, yet there is enormous conceptual confusion surrounding the term. Many different actors and organisations profess rhetorical commitment to inclusivity, yet they use the term in very different and sometimes contradictory ways. There are profound disagreements on who should be included in peace negotiations, at what stage and for what end. This talk examines these ambiguities, and explores the rise of the discourse and practices of inclusivity. It argues that the interest in inclusivity has more to do with international normative and political agendas than with any empirical consensus about the best way to achieve peace. As a result, inclusivity serves as an important rallying cry for diverse actors who wish to claim a voice and political platform and also serves the normative and political interests of some regional and international actors, but does not serve as a coherent guide to action. Thus, both the power of inclusivity, as well as its limitations, lie in its ambiguity. 

Dr Devon E. A. Curtis is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Politics and International Studies at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of Emmanuel College. Her main research interests and publications deal with power-sharing and governance arrangements following conflict, UN peacebuilding, non-state armed movements in the Great Lakes region of Africa (Burundi, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of the Congo), and critical perspectives on conflict, peacebuilding, and development. Previously, Devon worked for the Canadian government and the United Nations Staff College, and she has been a consultant for the UK Department for International Development, the Overseas Development Institute, and a Visiting Senior Advisor to the International Peace Institute.