As a specific branch of the critical peacebuilding literature, postcolonial peacebuilding theory is a relevant framework to analyze the narratives produced about African peacebuilding due to the particular perspective on influence of colonialism to the theoretical development of peacebuilding. The theories deconstruct and question the concepts and ideas around peacebuilding efforts in Africa and specifically highlight the power structures and Western domination of contemporary peace and conflict research.
As a branch of critical peacebuilding, postcolonial peace theories suggest that the field of peace studies and conflict resolution developed in the context of a highly politicized environment, where ideological positions dominated the discourse. It is argued that this field reflects the impact of subjective political positions and in particular postcolonialism. (Steinberg 2007, 788.) In general, various scholars, including Gayatri Spivak, Homi Bhabha, Edward Said, Partha Chatterjee, Phillip Darby and Ilan Kapoor among others, agree that postcolonialism is a field of theories about the conceptualizations and various forms of colonialism, decolonialization and neo-colonialism in the postcolonial world (Lidén 2011, 57). Postcolonial peacebuilding theories imply that the deeply rooted historical context forms the grounds for narratives, positions and responses to interventions and the diverse practices that come under the label of peacebuilding. In addition, this forms postcolonial subjectivity and intersubjective relations in the field of peacebuilding. (Jabri 2016, 154–155.)
According to Lidén (2011) the postcolonial peacebuilding theories are associated with the broader neo-colonial critique of power relations of global politics, where the international community, namely the Western countries, dominate the conceptualization of peace and development, which originate from the colonial legacy:
“The theoretical underpinnings of liberal peacebuilding rely on colonial logic of development that reduces war-torn societies to states that have fallen from the ladder of human progress and need a cure of ‘liberal statebuilding’ to get back on track.” (Lidén 2011, 57)
Lidén argues further, that liberal peacebuilding missions in post-conflict societies represent is a clear example of the origin of colonial logic of world politics where external actors are presented as legitimate who may “violate internal norms and traditions in the name of peace and development” (Lidén 2011, 69). According to this perspective, peacebuilding practices have roots in imperialism,
where the new logics of organization, and specific practices and power relations formed around them originate from the old forms of intervention (Charbonneau 2014). Furthermore, this underlying premise is argued to disregard and undermine the value and role of alternative social institutions in the conflict contexts (Lidén 2011, 60). Postcolonial theory is seen as a necessary critical tool to deconstruct and replace orientalist depictions and underlying assumptions of the “non-Western other” that is seen as embedded in the liberal peacebuilding orthodox discourse (Lidén 2011, 69).
In the African context as part of the postcolonial critique towards the liberal peacebuilding, a growing group of scholars highlight the importance of indigenous perspective on peacebuilding initiatives in Africa. The idea of African ownership is not new, and dates back to the postcolonial period during the 1960s when most of the African countries gained their independence. One of the earliest scholars to conceptualize the notion of African ownership and control over peace and security on their continent, was Kenyan scholar Ali Mazrui (1967, 35), who developed the concept of Pax Africana (‘African peace’) by stating that:
“For Pax Africana asserts that the peace of Africa is to be assured by the exertions of African themselves. The idea of “Pac Africana” is the specifically military aspect of the principle of continental jurisdiction.”
Perhaps controversially, as stemming from the imperialist period of the British Empire, and the concept of Pax Britannica, the concept of Pax Africana (Mazrui 1967) is argued to exist in the contemporary institutional and ideological framework of the AU, as one of its key objectives is to integrate Africa into a prosperous and peaceful continent, an Africa “driven by its own citizens and representing a dynamic force in [the] global arena” (Karbo 2018, 8). Furthermore, Kewir and Ngah (2018, 22) argue, that in order to improve the success of building sustainable peace in Africa, there is a need to rethink peacebuilding in Africa from a Pan-African perspective. At least on the ideological level, the notion of the necessity of African ownership and responsibility over the continental peace and security challenges has influenced the evolution of the continent’s institutional framework (See Karbo & Virk 2018). However, as discussed in the earlier chapter 2.2. about the challenges of peace and security over the continent, the materialization of such ideology in practice is still facing various obstacles.
Nevertheless, the branch of postcolonial peacebuilding emphasizes the indigenous perspective on peacebuilding in Africa, which should be included together with the ideas of external actors. Amaechi (2017) argues, that the colonial history of Africa certainly has an effect on the peacebuilding endeavor
and its shortcomings on the continent, but among other scholars, also considers that such blaming has been exaggerated and formed partly as a “neo-colonial” hindrance in peacebuilding (See also Ero 2013). He suggests that there needs to be a balance of peacebuilding practices, together with external and internal actors in a way that would be sensitive of the local contexts while strengthen the distinctive attributes of particular societies to sustain favorable conditions for peace (Amaechi 2017, 5). Such argument is associated with the conceptualization of peacebuilding by Galtung, whose work was briefly discussed earlier, where peacebuilding is connected to the discovery and preservation of existing peace structures within communities and societies (See Galtung 1976, 1996, Amaechi 2017, 10). Such perspective emphasizes the role of the local knowledge in peacebuilding.