Political settlements in divided societies

The problem of how political settlements are to be adopted in divided or post-conflict societies is one which is receiving growing attention, as the international community increasingly views protracted intra-state conflicts as carrying trans-national consequences. It is not only finding the most appropriate kind of political settlement that is so problematic, but also how to reach the point where those proposals are adopted. Cyprus provides an illuminating case-study of these problems. The object of many years of scrutiny and multiple, sustained efforts at resolution of its division means that Cyprus can reveal a good deal about what impedes and what assists progress towards a settlement. The experiences of Cyprus, therefore, can offer lessons to both practitioners working on political solutions for divided and post-conflict societies, and to academics and others seeking to understand how conflicts become intractable, where the primary impediments lie to successful constitutional architecture, and how those impediments can be overcome. The book offers answers for why political leaders in Cyprus have been so unwilling to adopt a power-sharing solution. In so doing, it offers new material for the wider debate regarding constitutional design and adoption of peace plans in divided societies; on the politics of institutionalising peace.

Beyond its central premise, the book can be read through the connected lenses of Nonfiction. Those themes offer useful points of attention as the characters, ideas, or world develop, especially where the book complicates the expectations of its primary category.