Contrary to what was expected, the end
of the Cold War and bi-polar global politics did not signal the beginning
of an era of peace and development. Instead, in the period from the 1980s
till today, the world has experienced a dramatic increase in internal violent
conflicts, which more than anything else can be characterised by their
excessive human and societal costs in the form of casualties, displacement,
dispossession and destruction of livelihood opportunities. One of the consequences
of this turn in history has been a growing humanitarian engagement in conflict
situations by the international community.
But the changes experienced by the international
community have not simply been one of scaling up conventional operations.
The new kinds of wars have required major organizational and operational
adjustments. This paper focuses on one dimension of this process,
namely the shifting relationship between violence and humanitarian action.
It suggests that since humanitarianism is founded in an idea of being
intrinsically and essentially benevolent, humanitarian organizations'
real and imagined relationship with violence is critical for their self-understanding
and wider legitimization in society, and hence worthy of in-depth consideration.