Reimagining the Post-Conflict State

To achieve peace and reconciliation, the post-conflict state must reimagine itself, changing power dynamics and incorporating new voices into the national narrative.

While the literature on post-conflict states has focused on state-building, it has been largely silent when it comes to nation-building. In Reimagining the Post-Conflict State, Eric N. Budd argues that these states need to fundamentally redefine themselves—who they are and who is part of their “imagined community.” On both the macro and micro levels, this work explores whether post-conflict states have fundamentally changed—altered their power dynamics, incorporated the voices of all societal groups in the national narrative, and acknowledged the disparate memories of the past, including “inconvenient truths.” Through an in-depth exploration of the peace agreements that ended the conflicts, as well as of the nations’ constitutions and efforts at constitutional change, their educational systems, curriculum reform efforts, and the history textbooks used after the conflict ends, this book examines the challenges post-conflict states face as they try to transcend their violent past and achieve peace and reconciliation.