Government of Peace: Social Governance, Security and the Problematic of Peace

By: Ranabir Samaddar

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Synopsis: Government of Peace addresses a major question in world politics today: how does post-colonial democracy produce a form of governance that copes with conflicts, insurgencies, revolts, and acute dissents? The contributors view social governance as a crucial component in answering this question and their narratives of governance aim to show how certain appropriate governing modes make social conflicts more manageable or at least also occasions for development. They show how government often expands to cope with acute conflicts; money is made more readily available; the transfer of resources acquires frantic pace; and so society becomes more attuned to a money-centric, modern life. Yet this style of governance is not the only approach. Dialogues from below challenge this accepted path to peacebuilding and new subjectivities emerge from movements for social justice by women, migrants, farmers, dalits, low-caste, and other subaltern groups. The idea of a government of peace sits at the core of the interlinked issues of social governance, peace-building, and security. By exploring this idea and analysing the Indian experience of insurgencies and internal conflicts the contributors collectively show how rules of social governance can and have evolved.