Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1
Department of Political Science, Faculty of Social Sciences, Imam Khomeini International University, Qazvin, Iran
2
Department of Political Sciences, Faculty of Social Sciences, Imam Khomeini International University, Qazvin, Iran
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to examine the role of liberal peace discourse in the formation of violence in the Middle East. This discourse, as a proponent of creating sustainable and global peace, has been criticized for its universality and failure to consider different historical and social contexts, and in the Middle East region, it has a historical connection with Euro-centrism and colonialism. The political geography of the Middle East, which is defined by the West with an orientalist, colonial, racist approach, and the imposition of violence as a cultural characteristic of the region, has experienced liberal peace discourse in the form of democratization, development programs in the post-World War II era, neoliberal peace discourse in the New Middle East Plan, and economic integration in the era of globalization, and has led to the West benefiting from violence through interventionism, representative-centeredness, guided democracy, and postponing structural conflict resolution. The question is: What effect has liberal peace discourse had on the formation of violence in the Middle East? Studies show that the liberal peace discourse normalizes, institutionalizes, and reproduces violence in the Middle East. The theoretical framework of the research is historical sociology and the research method is the case-narrative method. The research result indicates that the liberal peace discourse, has led to the institutionalization of violence and its continuation, and its alternatives such as post-liberal, local, and routine peace, have also led to the industrialization of peace and the dehumanization of the region.
Keywords
Main Subjects
)