The Role of Civil Society in Peace Processes

The document analyzes the role of the Assembly of Civil Society (ASC) in the Guatemalan peace process (1990–1996). While the ASC successfully influenced agreements on indigenous rights, it was marginalized during sensitive negotiations on the Truth Commission to avoid derailing the peace process. The author argues that this illustrates a conflict between process-related norms (inclusivity) and the paramount goal of stopping violence, suggesting that international support should shift toward empowering civil society during the implementation phase of peace agreements.

• Civil society participated in the Guatemalan peace process primarily through the Assembly of Civil Society (ASC), which was a representative ad hoc umbrella organization comprising 10 of 11 invited social sectors, with only the business association CACIF declining to participate.
• The ASC had a significant impact on the Agreement on the Identity and Rights of Indigenous Peoples signed on 31 March 1995, as the URNG adopted ASC proposals almost without changes, which provided a legitimizing effect on the accord.
• In contrast to its success with indigenous rights, civil society was intentionally marginalized during negotiations for the Commission for Historical Clarification (CEH) in June 1994. Both the government and the URNG feared that civil society pressure for judicial accountability would derail the peace process, leading the negotiations to be moved from Mexico to Norway to limit such influence.
• The resulting agreement on the Truth Commission was viewed as weak by civil society because it explicitly prohibited the Commission from attributing individual responsibility or having judicial effects.
• The Guatemalan case highlights a 'peacemaking dilemma' where the norm of inclusivity (a process-related norm) is prioritized lower than the immediate goal of ending violence (a content-related priority). In this instance, securing a 'peace and quiet' atmosphere for controversial negotiations took precedence over inclusive influence on content.
• The author suggests that the international community and 'friends of a peace process' should increase their focus on the implementation phase by providing long-term economic assistance to civil society organizations to maintain pressure on governments.

APA

Hauge, W. I. (n.d.). The Role of Civil Society in Peace Processes. Peace Research Institute Oslo. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/b64226e1-a3c7-4ee8-8226-8c92706662b5/Hauge - The Role of Civil Society in Peace Processes - A Case Study of Guatemala Ethical Reflections - FAIR Case Brief 3.pdf?inline=true

Chicago

Hauge, Wenche Iren. The Role of Civil Society in Peace Processes. Peace Research Institute Oslo, n.d. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/b64226e1-a3c7-4ee8-8226-8c92706662b5/Hauge - The Role of Civil Society in Peace Processes - A Case Study of Guatemala Ethical Reflections - FAIR Case Brief 3.pdf?inline=true.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Hauge |first1=Wenche Iren |title=The Role of Civil Society in Peace Processes |publisher=Peace Research Institute Oslo |url=https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/b64226e1-a3c7-4ee8-8226-8c92706662b5/Hauge - The Role of Civil Society in Peace Processes - A Case Study of Guatemala Ethical Reflections - FAIR Case Brief 3.pdf?inline=true |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{haugendrole, author = {Hauge, Wenche Iren}, title = {{The Role of Civil Society in Peace Processes}}, institution = {Peace Research Institute Oslo}, url = {https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/b64226e1-a3c7-4ee8-8226-8c92706662b5/Hauge - The Role of Civil Society in Peace Processes - A Case Study of Guatemala Ethical Reflections - FAIR Case Brief 3.pdf?inline=true}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }