Panel details

Panel organiser(s) will be presenting	In-Person & Online
Number of paper presentations	5
Location	Istanbul

Abstract

In theory, humanitarian negotiations are self-standing events where humanitarian actors seek to achieve humanitarian objectives through negotiations with armed groups, political authorities or other interlocutors. In practice, these negotiations are embedded in wider political, military, legal and economic dynamics that condition the meaning and implications of the negotiations. In this panel, we will explore theoretical and empirical perspectives on these dynamics – not only in terms of the external political conditions for achieving humanitarian objectives but the political nature of humanitarian negotiation itself as a mode of humanitarian governance.

Humanitarian negotiations take place at different levels, from international diplomacy to the frontlines of operations. They also often take place in settings of competition between different humanitarian actors, where several negotiation tracks happen in parallel. Moreover, new (geo)political realities and changes in humanitarian practices, including the rise of authoritarianism and the push for locally-led responses, shape the nature of humanitarian negotiation.

Understanding the complex interconnections between these levels and tracks is not only a precondition for empirical explanation but for normative evaluation and prescription. The changing political landscapes of humanitarian action in which core tenets of humanitarianism are up for negotiation make this dimension ever more important.

Paper presentations