Summary of seminar organised by the Fundació CIDOB and AIETI within the framework of EADI: Barcelona, 26 April 2002
Summary of seminar organised by the Fundació CIDOB and AIETI within the framework of EADI: Barcelona, 26 April 2002
The organisers of this seminar-the Centre d'Informació e Documentació Internacionals a Barcelona/CIDOB and the Association for Research on Iberoamerican Issues/AIETI-proposed the conference theme because of their concern about one of the effects of September 11: that the international community is paying excessive attention to security issues, placing other matters, like development, in a secondary position on the world agenda. On the other hand, the organisers also believe that it is very difficult to have sustainable human development without security.
Thus, the seminar aimed to analyse the link between these two goals, particularly with regard to the role of international cooperation. Specialists from various countries were invited to reflect upon the general theme as well as to explain how the development-security nexus has been applied in various contexts. These case studies include the Balkans, Colombia and Central America, chosen to reflect on the linkages in different types of conflict situations where international actors have played an active role. As members of EADI, both organisations thought the topic of the seminar would be highly relevant to the debates in the Association on major development challenges today.
Narcis Serra, President of CIDOB and former Vice President of Spain, opened the seminar with general remarks. He stressed changes in the concept of security, which is no longer confined to the narrow idea of defending territory and now deals with responding to diverse risks. Development, Serra noted, has also gone through a similar conceptual transformation over the past decades. These reflections were complemented by Luis Tejada of the Spanish Foreign Ministry. He spoke on the experience of the international community in dealing with conflicts. Given its fairly recent transition experience, Spain might contribute more in this area. It is clearly one of the priority areas for Spanish development policy, which will stress middle-income countries.
Spanish General Luis Alejandre Sintes (with many years of experience in international peacekeeping missions) provided an in-depth analysis of the evolution of the concept of security, which he defined as the vital interests of a State. Sophie da Camara of the Belgian Foreign Ministry spoke on the experience in the Great Lakes region in Africa. She noted that there cannot be sustained development in the midst of extremely violent conflict. This African conflict brought to bear the potential and the limitations of international aid. She ended by reviewing some lessons learned, which basically consist of finding a balance between various contradictory goals (i.e., attending immediate needs versus working on long-term development). This first panel was completed by Francisco Rey, Spanish researcher, who analysed the perspective of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in conflicts and humanitarian assistance.
The first regional panel focused on the Balkans in two presentations. Raul Romeva of the University of Barcelona began by saying it is important to distinguish between conflict and war. Conflict is normal and may be necessary (when it is non-violent). He then reviewed the various phases of the Balkan conflict, concluding that the post-war phase is often conditioned by how the international community acted during the armed conflict itself. International aid has allowed for great progress in this region, but this is also easily reversed.
Florian Bieber, representative of a think-tank in Belgrade, highlighted how there is a renewed interest in development in the Balkans because of the useful lessons it may provide for the economical and political transitions underway. He made an important point about the fact that demobilisation is not sufficient to guarantee security and on the limitations of civil society organisations. He also noted that international intervention may have, paradoxically, exacerbated the nationalist tendencies in the Balkans.
The seminar continued with a panel on Colombia, with three speakers. Vanna Ianni, an Italian consultant, defined some of the overall theoretical considerations that surround the conflict in this country. One of the important lessons she stressed is the need to create positive experiences-at the local level-which show how to overcome violent conflict, although international cooperation must not substitute national actors, but facilitate their activities. The University of Barcelona researcher Kristian Herbolzheimer complemented this view, giving an overview of attempts by a variety of civic organisations in Colombia to "resist" the ongoing war. Although the cases he reviewed demonstrate strong and growing activism at the local level, he noted that there are many doubts about their long-term viability. In any case, international cooperation has an important role to play because of the principle of "co-responsibility" (i.e., drug consumption in the North). The panel was completed by a presentation by someone working on the grassroots level in Colombia, Ubencel Duque, representative of the Peace and Development Program of the Madgaleno Medio. Duque began by stressing the key link between development and peace which inspired the initiative in Magdaleno Medio, one of the areas in Colombia which has been most marked by conflict. A large part of their work is to change attitudes and to focus on development which empowers the local population. On a positive note, he stated the conflict has stimulated much creativity in many communities across the country.
The final panel in the seminar viewed the conflicts and international cooperation in Central America, particularly in El Salvador and Guatemala. The Spanish diplomat Manuel Montobbio provided an overview of the Salvadoran and Guatemala peace process and the role of international actors. Two conditions are key to ensuring success: broad political support for the peace agreements and economic sustainability, factors which are not present in the Guatemalan case. Rafael Grasa, Professor at the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB), commented on key elements in democratic consolidation. One lesson from El Salvador is that "public space" was opened before the peace negotiations began, while in Guatemala the process was dominated by the elite. This was confirmed by Jesús Rodés, another professor from the UAB. However, Rodés began by stating that peace process should not be confused with democratisation. In both cases the role of the international community was important, but the UN could do little in the Guatemalan situation because of internal problems there. He ended by criticising the role of NGOs in Central America because they are uncoordinated and often contradict the efforts to strengthen the State.
Finally, Ricard Pérez Casado, former mayor of Mostar and Member of the Spanish Parliament, spoke about his experience in the Balkans. He concluded that a major lesson is that security is a first priority. After achieving this, efforts can be made for peace and human development. Another lesson is that the international community should refrain from trying to "export" its own models and preconceptions, because local actors are often fully capable of instituting the necessary changes. In any case, in the long run, peace will only be possible if there is a material base, so development is a key challenge.
Many local academics, EADI EC members, and representatives from NGOs and from the regional government participated in the dynamic discussions that followed each of the panels. Overall, CIDOB and AIETI were satisfied that an important development issue had been addressed, including a variety of perspectives and bringing together the often separate worlds of international security and development studies. This will surely continue to be an important area for EADI and all European development specialists.
Christian Freres, AIETI
