Security sector reform and post-conflict peacebuilding

Military and police forces play a crucial role in the long-term success of rebuilding efforts in post-conflict societies. Yet, while charged with the long-term task of providing a security environment conducive to rebuilding war-torn societies, internal security structures tend to lack civilian and democratic control, internal cohesion and effectiveness, and public credibility. They must be placed under democratic control and restructured and retrained to become an asset, not a liability, in the long-term peacebuilding process. External actors from other nations, regional organizations, and the United Nations can be of assistance in this process by creating a basic security environment, preventing remnants of armed groups from spoiling the fragile peacebuilding process, and by facilitating reform of the local security sector. This book offers examples and analyses by an international group of academics and practitioners with direct experiences with security sector reform programs. The case studies offer the reader a useful laboratory in which comparisons can be made and observations tested. It will be useful to policymakers interested in understanding the complexity of addressing security sector reform and civil-military relations.W. Andy Knight, University of Alberta, Canada.