Peacebuilding and Local Peacebuilders in Cambodia and Mindanao

Abstract

This chapter offers readers background information about the two case studies from a comparative perspective. All social developments are contextual and so is local peacebuilding. The peacebuilding models promoted by local actors are subject to the social, cultural and structural conditions of the society and reflect the local actors’ views and interests constructed within such contexts. The local models of peacebuilding in Mindanao and Cambodia, in this sense, present significant discrepancies in terms of the identity of local peacebuilders, the organisational structure of these agencies, types of programmes, strategies for ownership enhancement, and resources to be mobilised and utilised for operation. The long history of Khmer as a single political and cultural entity, the total civil war that has little relevance to local populations’ interests, and the externally-led peacebuilding in the aftermath of the civil war formed a more homogenous group of local peacebuilders in Cambodia. In Mindanao, in contrast, the coexistence of three cultural and ethnic groups (Christian, Muslim, and indigenous tribes), a complex series of conflicts that reflect multiple-layers of tensions, and multiple trends of peacebuilding supported by varied actors who have distinct historical, ideological and structural backgrounds, developed a few distinct groups of local peacebuilders who frequently have contradictory views and interests.