The neocolonial impasse of post-conflict peacebuilding between Western liberal normativity and the marginalization of economic, social and cultural rights

Abstract

This thesis critically examines the effectiveness, sustainability and legitimacy of modern peacebuilding in post-conflict societies with regard to neocolonial power dynamics. Post-Cold War peacebuilding is based on the premise that democracy and market liberalization are universally applicable and peace-promoting principles. However, this approach has been criticized for substantially relying on a Western normative bias that prioritizes civil and political rights, and lacks context-sensitive engagement with affected societies. This thesis contributes to existing critiques by emphasizing how the neocolonial peace-building framework is linked to the Western marginalization of economic, social and cultural rights – an aspect that has received relatively limited attention in the literature to date. Based on a conceptual methodology focusing on critical literature and discourse analysis, it argues that the current peacebuilding framework perpetuates Western normative hegemony and largely relies on unsuitable and unjustified measures which structurally prevent more durable peace solutions within post-conflict societies. Challenging the equal status between civil-political and socioeconomic rights, the thesis advocates for a peacebuilding approach that prioritizes the promotion of economic, social and cultural rights. It con-cludes that the effectiveness, sustainability and legitimacy of a socioeconomic-inclusive peacebuilding approach depends on its ability to confront existing global power asymmetries as well as Western neo-colonial normativity.