| Summary/Abstract |
Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration (DDR) is fundamental in remaking post-war relationships. This article draws on two sets of field research data from Liberia to highlight the role of social capital in shaping DDR outcomes. The way reintegration is communicated and implemented can have a direct impact on all three elements of social capital: promoting norms, developing social networks, and building (or undermining) relationships and trust. These components of social capital are directly influenced by reintegration, while also feeding back into how reintegration progresses and is experienced. More specifically, new and existing networks used by ex-combatants as a way to navigate the post-war environment are an important element of social capital, as it goes through all kinds of distortions and transformations. These networks are important for the survival strategies at work, especially when there are shortcomings in the DDR process. Finally, a further layer is suggested: that social capital is a factor mediating how reintegration contributes (or not) to peacebuilding as a whole.
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