Abstract
From the Transitional Executive Council in the lead-up to South Africa’s 1994 general election to the ongoing transition in Sudan: Transitional governments, which are typically understood as temporary exercises of public power by an interim executive and/or legislative body, have since 1989 been among the most frequent instruments for conducting governance in the aftermath of violent conflict or political unrest. This is particularly true for Africa, where such institutions have in the past been formed in the course of peace processes in countries such as Burundi, Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia, and the Central African Republic. The historically high number of active conflicts worldwide, as well as the increasing levels of violence in the Sahel region or countries such as Afghanistan, mean that transitional governance arrangements will be far from obsolete in future. The edited volume by Emmanuel de Groof and Micha Wiebusch hence presents both a timely and a comprehensive overview of such arrangements, as well as a thorough analysis of transitional rule from an international legal perspective.
Structured into ten chapters, the edited volume is guided by the overarching question of what role international law plays in shaping transitional governance in the aftermath of violent conflict or political unrest. The volume thereby places a strong focus on the actors, processes, and practices that are at the heart of transitional rule itself. This immediately distinguishes the volume from past research on the topic, which has often focused on either the decision-making processes that precede transitions or the political developments that succeed such periods of change. The volume sets out with two introductory chapters by the editors, in which they lay out a richly detailed definition of the features that constitute transitional governance. De Groof and Wiebusch thereby contribute to past research by not only conceptualising transitional governance through its temporariness and its preceding non-constitutional ruptures. They also thoughtfully deliberate over additional conceptual elements of transitional governance, such as that transitional governance typically comes with supra-constitutional aspirations; is a domestic phenomenon that is, however, increasingly internationalised; and is thereby also a contemporary phenomenon that reflects the post-Cold War zeitgeist of internationally led peacebuilding processes.
In chapters three and four, Day & Malone and Bell & Forster, respectively, then build on the insightful conceptual discussion by the editors. These two chapters provide an excellent stock-taking of the historical context of transitional governance in the post-Cold War period, as well as a strongly argued and well-structured conceptualisation of the types of crises that may trigger transitions, and the numerous legal options that may constitute them. These chapters particularly help to understand the diverse and changing character of political transitions since the end of the Cold War: from the South African experience in the early 1990s, to the evolution of international transitional administrations in East Timor and Kosovo at the turn of the century, to the turn of the international community to a “light footprint” approach in Afghanistan, and to the changing nature and changing geographical theatres of violent conflict in the past fifteen years.
The remaining chapters analyse various international legal aspects in transitional governance. In chapter five, Bisarya studies foreign assistance to constitution-making in transitional settings, and reminds the reader of the various legal and political constraints that international actors face in providing such support. In chapters six and seven, Wiener and Saul focus on questions of legality and legitimacy. Wiener discusses gaps between international legitimacy and legality in transitional rule, while Saul focuses on the role that discourses committed to the international law on self-determination can play in building legitimacy for a transitional authority, both in front of domestic as well as in front of external audiences. The issue of legitimacy and legality in transitional rule is a common thread that weaves through many of the chapters in the volume, not least since, as Saul convincingly argues, the defining feature of all transitional governments is that they tend to lack the processes and structures that typically help governments in building legitimacy, such as elections or territorial control.
In chapters eight and nine, Miller and Nesiah add to this discussion and make important intellectual contributions to the literature by reflecting on the ends of transitions as well as analogies between colonisation and postcolonial transitions. In sum, while the collection of chapters could at times be more closely linked to the conceptual discussion of de Groof and Wiebusch in the introductory chapters, what stands out throughout the book is not only the chapters’ own contributions to the literature but also the numerous avenues for future research on transitional governance they implicitly and explicitly present. This includes conceptual questions, such as the role of symbolism of continuity or rupture in transitional governance (Bell & Forster, chapter four) as well as empirical ones, such as how current geopolitical changes and the greater assertiveness of Russia and China in international affairs may affect the use of transitional governance and other instruments for peacebuilding in the coming years (Day & Malone, chapter three).
In a field that is often dominated by scholars from the Global North, this edited volume represents an outstanding contribution to the literature by a diverse group of authors from the Global South and the Global North. The book is particularly beneficial for two groups. First, it is an absolute must-read for scholars and students interested in political transition processes. Even though many of the authors come with a background in international law, the book is useful for academics from a variety of disciplines, such as peace and conflict studies or comparative politics. Second, the volume also makes a useful contribution for practitioners and policy-makers who are actively working in transitional contexts. Insightful anecdotes from practitioners who have shaped transitions in the past, such as in a preface by activist and former judge on the South African Constitutional Court Albie Sachs, make the book a truly fascinating read.