How do international peacebuilding organizations navigate the sovereignty of post war countries? An analysis of the experiences of the UN Peacebuilding Commission in Burundi.

Abstract

This thesis explores how the United Nations Peacebuilding Commission (PBC), established with the mandate to provide political accompaniment to countries emerging from violent conflicts, approaches the question of sovereignty within these countries. Rooted in the paradoxical approach to sovereignty within the realm of peacebuilding, the thesis argues that fundamental theoretical problems with the nature of peacebuilding lead to certain critical, real world limitations to peacebuilding operations in practice. Through an analysis of the PBC’s experiences in Burundi, this thesis argues that a lack of a shared and coherent working definition of peacebuilding between the PBC and the countries on its agenda affect significantly the way PBC presents itself and the promises it holds for a post-conflict country – and perhaps more importantly how much power it is able to exercise and how this power influences the design and implementation of the peace agenda.