German Institute for Global and Area Studies | Leibniz-Institut für Globale und Regionale Studien

COVID-19 and the Dynamics of (Post-)War Violence: Lessons from Colombia and Syria

What are the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the dynamics of violence during and after civil wars? The project analyses the pandemic-related reconfiguration of social and political orders in a comparative study of Syria and Colombia at subnational levels. In this way, it will provide new knowledge on violence dynamics in two of the most complex conflicts today and be able to suggest crucial lessons for similar (post-)war contexts in other parts of the world.
Volkswagen Foundation, 2021-2022

Team

Viviana García Pinzón

Associate

Selman Almohamad

Former GIGA Team member

Web Publication | 11/2022

Narrative map on "COVID-19 and Dynamics of (Post)War Violence"

The pandemic altered the opportunity structures of state and non-state armed actors, exacerbated grievances, prompted new investments in services provision, and created new spaces for cooperation, thereby affecting the dynamics of violence across different dimensions and time horizons.

Prof. Dr. Sabine Kurtenbach

Viviana García Pinzón

Dr. André Bank

Head

Prof. Dr. Sabine Kurtenbach

President (ad interim)

Dr. André Bank

Senior Research Fellow

Research Questions

What are the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the dynamics of violence during and after civil wars?

Contribution to International Research

Extant research from Peace and Conflict Studies on the nexus of pandemics and violence (reduction) has echoed current initiatives to foster cooperation in the health sector as a stepping stone for confidence-building in the context of armed conflict. The twofold argument is that health interventions are apolitical and can thus serve as a basis for cooperation on technical issues, e.g. vaccination campaigns, thus facilitating dialogue in other, more political realms (Percival 2017). Empirical evidence for these positive links between cooperation in pandemics or other health-related topics and violence reduction is, however, weak, and humanitarian aid and health workers are frequently targeted by violent actors. Peace and Conflict research on a conditionally pacifying, violence-reducing effect of pandemics is mixed at best. Crucial conditions are the pre-pandemic situation and the need to differentiate short-term from medium- and long-term trends.
We build on these earlier findings and develop them further: First, we move away from the dominant (inter-)state focus to zoom in on different subnational regions. This is in line with prominent research on (post-)civil war contexts, in which local and regional specificities and actor constellations decisively shape actual dynamics on the ground (for civil wars, cf. Kalyvas 2006; for post-war contexts, cf. Boyle 2014). Second, our project is time-sensitive: We differentiate between the period before the outbreak of the pandemic, the short-term effects of the pandemic on the ground (ranging from a few days to a few months) and the medium-term effects (a few months to 2–3 years). Because the outbreak of COVID-19 began in earnest in early to mid-2020 in the regions at the heart of our project, we have the unique opportunity to study this temporal process as it unfolds.

Research Design and Methods

Comparative case study on Colombia and Syria as two crucial cases: both have been high on the UN peace agenda and both were also explicitly mentioned in the UNSG’s initiative. Importantly, with its 2016 peace agreement Colombia is a post-war country, while in Syria a brutal, internationalized civil war has been going on for almost a decade. In spite of further differences, such as the importance of external actors and political regime types, both countries share a history of long-standing, harrowing violence of multiple forms as well as the highest numbers globally of internally displaced people. In addition, they are paradigmatic cases for their specific regions, i.e. Latin America and the Middle East.
Structured, between- and within-cases comparison along a shared framework designed by the two PIs during the early months of the project. The framework will be developed based on the identification of the violence-related implications of COVID-19 such as (i) mobility restrictions due to lockdowns and curfews, (ii) strengthening of the executive at the national and subnational levels, and (iii) the need to provide public goods, such as access to health, food and security. The analytical framework will be discussed with our partners in Syria and Colombia in cooperation with the local offices of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation. The adjusted framework will then guide our analysis of the pandemic’s influence on different manifestations of violence, including political forms, ranging from war to repression and protest, and criminal forms, such as homicide, extortion and smuggling. While we are aware of the increasing levels of domestic violence during lockdown, we will leave this topic to others due to the lack of reliable and comparable data

GIGA Focus Asia | 3/2023

Federalism in Times of Crisis: Insights from India’s COVID-19 Response

Why do some subnational units respond better to crises than others, despite having the same constitutional authority to act? This GIGA Focus investigates the cases of four Indian states to identify factors contributing to successful COVID-19 crisis management.

Prof. Dr. Chanchal Kumar Sharma

Associate

Web Publication | 11/2022

Narrative map on "COVID-19 and Dynamics of (Post)War Violence"

Prof. Dr. Sabine Kurtenbach

Viviana García Pinzón

Dr. André Bank

GIGA Focus Global | 3/2022

COVID-19 and Violent Actors in the Global South: A Complex Relationship

A cross-regional comparative analysis of the effects of COVID-19 on violence shows high levels of variation between contexts and in terms of specific armed actors. While Latin America along with the Middle East and North Africa have experienced an overall reduction, violence in sub-Saharan Africa has increased.

Yannick Deepen

Dr. André Bank

Dr. Julia Grauvogel

Prof. Dr. Sabine Kurtenbach

GIGA Focus Latin America | 3/2022

Pandemic, Protest, and Petro Presidente: Rescuing Colombia’s Peace

COVID-19 paved the way for a left-wing government winning in Colombia’s recent elections. The pandemic has deepened structural inequalities, promoting an unprecedented wave of protest against the right-wing incumbent. Answering with high levels of violence only further increased the call for change.

Kristina Birke Daniels

Viviana García Pinzón

Prof. Dr. Sabine Kurtenbach

Zeitschrift für Friedens- und Konfliktforschung (ZeFKo) | 2020

Covid-19 als Chance für den Frieden?: Ernüchternde Erfahrungen aus Kolumbien und Syrien

Dr. André Bank

Senior Research Fellow

Prof. Dr. Sabine Kurtenbach

President (ad interim)

Deutsche Welle | Quote | 13/02/2023

Syrien: Wird das Erdbeben zur Chance für Assad?

Der Artikel befasst sich mit den Versuchen des syrischen Regimes unter Präsident Bashar al-Assad, aus dem massiven Erdbeben im Land politisches Kapital zu schlagen. Ziel ist es, die Sanktionen aufzuheben und das Regime regional in der MENA-Region und international wieder salonfähig zu machen.

Dr. André Bank

Senior Research Fellow

Deutsche Welle | Quote | 07/02/2023

Erdbeben in Syrien: Humanitäre Hilfe mit Hindernissen

In diesem Artikel über das Erdbeben in Syrien und seine Auswirkungen auf die Bereitstellung humanitärer Hilfe liefert Dr. André Bank Hintergrundinformationen über den früheren Umgang des syrischen Regimes mit anderen Krisen, z.B. der COVID-19-Pandemie.

Dr. André Bank

Senior Research Fellow

Deutsche Welle | Quote | 08/02/2023

Na Síria em guerra, ajuda após terremoto tem obstáculos

Neste artigo sobre o terremoto na Síria e o seu impacto no envio de ajuda humanitária, o Dr. André Bank examina, em retrospectiva, como o regime sírio tem respondido à outras crises, tais como a pandemia da COVID-19.

Dr. André Bank

Senior Research Fellow

Tagesschau24 | Interview | 08/02/2023

Dr. André Bank zur politischen und aktuellen Lage nach dem Erdbeben in Syrien

Das Interview befasst sich mit der politischen Lage in Syrien nach dem Erdbeben vom 6. Februar. Es erläutert insbesondere die militärische und politische Kontrolle im Land und was dies für die Bereitstellung von Hilfe in den verschiedenen Teilen des Landes bedeutet.

Dr. André Bank

Senior Research Fellow

taz - die tageszeitung | Interview | 11/02/2023

„Europa muss sehr vorsichtig sein“

Im Interview mit der taz spricht Dr. André Bank über die politische Lage in Syrien nach dem schweren Erdbeben vom 6. Februar. Er plädiert für die Öffnung weiterer Grenzübergänge an der syrisch-türkischen Grenze und warnt die EU davor, Hilfe über das brutale Regime von Präsident Bashar al-Assad zu senden.