Processes of Hybridisation in Peace and Conflict Processes in Madagascar, Hybricon 1575-2019

To obtain a free account please register with the UKDA.

Madagascar's historical interactions with external actors have significantly influenced its socio-political and economic dynamics. Despite recent advancements in understanding hybridisation—the blending of international (liberal and illiberal) and local (non-liberal) institutions, practices, and values—very little is understood about how these processes affect local conflict trajectories. The motivation for this research stems from the need to understand the complex mechanisms behind the formation of hybrid institutions in Madagascar. What are the dynamics underlying the hybridisation of international (liberal/illiberal) and local (non-liberal) institutions, practices, and values in Madagascar? How do these dynamics influence local conflict trajectories, particularly in terms of escalation, de-escalation, and the protraction of conflicts? This research argues that local variations in hybridisation processes result in diverse conflict outcomes, thereby shaping distinct local conflict trajectories. To understand the characteristics of hybridisation and its impact on conflict, the study investigates the interactions between the "international" and the "local" in both central and peripheral regions of Madagascar. The focus is on Antananarivo (the centre) and peripheral areas including Antsiranana (Diego), Fenoarivo Atsinanana (Fenerive Est), Toamasina (Tamatave), Mahajanga (Majunga), and Marovoay. The analysis spans three distinct historical periods, each influenced by different international contexts: the post-1945 French colonial rule (1945-1960), the post-colonial period (1960-1991), and the post-Cold War era (since 1991). The data covers a range of topics across scales, including the identities and interests of the actors involved, their repertoires of action, accommodation policies or initiatives aimed at conflict resolution, the roles and influence of international/external institutions and actors, and local institutions (both formal and informal). Furthermore, it examines the cultural, political, and economic dimensions of conflicts. Through this comprehensive analysis, the study aims to enhance our understanding of how hybridisation processes influence conflict trajectories in Madagascar, providing valuable insights for future policy development and conflict resolution strategies.

Madagascar has experienced regular episodes of conflict with various stages since the colonial period (e.g.: political tension situations (one or two deaths) and low intensity conflicts (between 100 to 1000 deaths)). So far, the Malagasy have not been able to explain why the conflict trajectories vary to such a great extent at the national level. This country has been in contact with external actors, their cultures and ideologies, or their modes of governance. These interactions between the local and the international created various situations involving, for example, collaboration, acceptance, rejection, clashes and even high levels of violence. Despite the recent advances in the study of processes of hybridisation involving the formation of "international/ liberal and local/ non-liberal institutions, practices and values, very little is understood regarding the way in which these processes affect local conflict trajectories. This project will respond to the following questions: 1)What are the dynamics behind hybridisation, namely the formation of international (liberal/ illiberal) and local/ non-liberal institutions, practices and values in Madagascar? 2)How do these dynamics affect the local conflict trajectories such as escalation, de-escalation, and protraction of conflict stages in the country? This project argues that the variations of the processes of hybridisation at the local level in two Malagasy localities have led to various conflict outcomes shaping the local conflict trajectories. To identify the character of hybridisation, and its impact on conflict at different times and in different local contexts, the project examines the effects of the interaction of the international and the local on conflict trajectories in both the centre (Antananarivo) and the periphery ( Antsiranana, Toamasina, and Mahajanga), and over three periods of time, each with different international influences: post-1945 French colonial rule (1945 - 1960), the post-colonial period (1960 - 1991), and the post-cold war period (since 1991). The PI will engage in two different types of work: one is conceptual (exploring hybridity and hybridisation) which will require archival research both in Madagascar and in France. And the other is empirical (assessing its impact on conflict trajectories) entailing the generation of new primary and bottom-up data on these processes through the organisation of "narrative workshops" during which local stakeholders, including representatives from the communities, will be invited to tell their own narratives about peace and conflict. The texts that will be gathered in this project will be examined through discourse analysis (a research method for studying written or spoken language in relation to its social context) and the impact of hybridisation on conflict trajectories will be assessed through process tracing, a tool to examine political and social phenomena and evaluate causal claims. On the one hand, this project has important implications for theories of hybridisation by proposing a theoretical and conceptual understanding of the international going beyond the liberal order. On the other hand, the local narratives that it will generate through a methodology called Delphi technique, allowing the collection of narratives through participatory focus groups, will help to understand the conflict dynamics in this country. The research will provide bottom-up-based evidence that will help actors involved in peace processes to shape solutions as they address conflicts, and in the same vein, help them develop better policy processes at different levels. Its originality also lies in the fact that it recognizes the capacity of the local communities to act as agents of change not as mere recipients while giving voice to these local narratives. This is one way of empowering local actors so that they can appropriate local peace processes. This will benefit Malagasy society and have an impact in the wider world.