Explaining Civil War Persistence in Afghanistan

This study asks why the civil war in Afghanistan persists. Put slightly differently, what is preventing the state/government from achieving outright victory, against the rebel organization/forces? A central theme in civil war research is that `weak states? are especially prone to (prolonged) civil war; state-weakness seems to be the variable around which there is the most theoretical agreement. There is a strong sense that state failure ? whether defined as failure to monopolize legitimate violence or failure to deliver development, good governance and basic services ? is a principal driver of contemporary civil conflicts, often resulting in prolonged crises. In investigating the puzzle, the study tests the weak state thesis. The study explores the relationship between state-weakness and the particularities of insufficient institutional capacity (including governance) in the conflict-ridden country of Afghanistan. The study argues state-weakness deprives the state/government from ensuring a favorable war-outcome; state-weakness robs the state/government of societal support and thereby, political legitimacy.

Author dc:creator

• SRINJOY BOSE

• Afghanistan, civil war, legitimacy, weak states, governance