When war ends: building peace in divided communities

摘要

This somewhat sobering book deals almost solely with Africa and Sierra Leone in particular, yet clearly has relevance for the expected withdrawal of US and UK forces from Afghanistan in 2014. There are nine chapters each by different authors: although all are based in western academic institutions, three (Mohamed Kami, Mohamed C. Kamanda and M.A. Mohamed Salih) are of Sierra Leonean origin, and Kami (Chapter 7 - 'Public health and peace building in post-war Sierra Leone') is a Public Health physician. The introduction by the editor, Prof David J Francis of Bradford University, sets the tone, stating that the book is 'primarily about understanding the problems, challenges, and opportunities as well as the nature, dynamics and complexity of the process of rebuilding post-conflict and war-torn societies when the guns fall silent'. This is 'an immensely difficult, complex and large-scale task that goes beyond the usual international community's quick-fix, short-term and exit-strategy oriented post-war peace building and state reconstruction interventions'.