Across Africa and the wider world, societies emerging from conflict often face a central dilemma: can peace be achieved without truth and accountability?

From post-colonial civil wars to contemporary insurgencies, many political leaders have enabled or indirectly fueled violence, yet evade responsibility.

The question is not just moral—it is profoundly practical. Peace that ignores truth risks being fragile, temporary, and prone to relapse.

Understanding the relationship between peace, truth, and accountability is essential for societies seeking lasting stability and justice.

This essay examines the link between political complicity, truth, and sustainable peace, highlighting lessons for African nations grappling with systemic violence and impunity.

1. Political Enablers of Violence: Hidden Architects of Instability

Violence rarely occurs spontaneously. In most cases, it is enabled, tolerated, or indirectly sponsored by political actors. These enablers take many forms:

A. Direct support

Some leaders provide funding, weapons, or safe passage to armed groups to achieve political objectives—whether suppressing dissent, intimidating rivals, or controlling territories. In West Africa, for example, political figures have historically been implicated in arming militias during elections or civil disputes.

B. Neglect and inaction

Failure to enforce laws, protect civilians, or regulate armed actors effectively amounts to political complicity. When governments ignore banditry, terrorism, or sectarian violence, they create conditions in which violent groups flourish.

C. Manipulation of identity and grievance

Political leaders often exploit ethnic, religious, or regional identities to mobilize supporters against opponents. This may not involve direct violence, but it normalizes hatred and legitimizes aggression, creating fertile ground for armed groups.

D. Corruption and resource exploitation

Illicit financial gains from conflict—such as contracts, land, minerals, or taxation of smuggling networks—often incentivize political elites to allow violence to continue. In such cases, the political system itself becomes intertwined with conflict economies.

These enablers are rarely held accountable, creating a culture of impunity where violence becomes normalized and peace is subordinated to political expediency.

2. Peace Without Truth Is Fragile

Efforts to establish peace often prioritize immediate cessation of violence over deep accountability. Yet history demonstrates that ignoring truth carries enormous risks:

A. False reconciliation

Peace agreements that bypass truth-telling often leave victims without recognition or closure. Without acknowledgment of wrongdoing:

• Survivors may feel betrayed

• Grievances fester

• Communities remain divided

Example: In some African civil conflicts, peace treaties were signed with rebel leaders, while political sponsors of violence faced no scrutiny. Tensions resurfaced within years, fueled by unaddressed injustices.

B. Empowerment of the same actors

Without accountability, those responsible for violence retain influence. They can:

• shape policies to their advantage

• obstruct justice for victims

• maintain control over security forces

• subtly perpetuate cycles of violence

The result is a superficial peace that masks underlying instability.

C. Erosion of public trust

Peace without truth undermines confidence in institutions. Citizens perceive government as complicit or indifferent. In Africa, widespread skepticism about justice mechanisms often emerges precisely from political immunity for enablers of violence.

3. Truth as a Foundation for Lasting Peace

Truth is more than moral clarity; it is the social glue that underpins legitimate governance and societal stability. Mechanisms to uncover truth typically include:

A. Truth commissions

These bodies allow victims, witnesses, and communities to recount experiences of violence. For example:

• South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission provided a framework for acknowledging atrocities during apartheid

• Sierra Leone’s post-civil war commission highlighted both rebel and political complicity

Truth commissions can foster collective memory, healing, and social cohesion, even if legal consequences are limited.

B. Investigative accountability

Judicial or quasi-judicial processes uncover the role of political elites in enabling violence. Transparent investigations:

• document responsibility

• deter future abuses

• restore some faith in institutions

Even partial accountability strengthens societal resilience against future crises.

C. Public disclosure and historical record

Truth involves creating a shared understanding of past abuses. When societies openly confront the mechanics of violence—including who enabled it—they can:

• dismantle revisionist narratives

• prevent mythologizing of perpetrators

• provide context for reform and civic education

Without these records, cycles of denial and manipulation persist.

4. Barriers to Accountability in Africa

Despite its importance, accountability for political enablers faces numerous challenges:

A. Entrenched political elites

Leaders often remain untouchable due to entrenched networks of influence, patronage, and military support. Bringing them to account threatens established power structures.

B. Weak institutions

Courts, legislatures, and anti-corruption agencies are often under-resourced or politicized, limiting their ability to investigate powerful figures effectively.

C. Fear of destabilization

Governments sometimes fear that prosecuting high-level enablers will trigger political unrest, derail fragile peace processes, or reignite conflict. This creates a moral and strategic dilemma: justice versus stability.

D. International complicity or neglect

Foreign governments and multilateral organizations sometimes prioritize geopolitical stability over justice, providing aid or political cover to actors implicated in violence. This undermines local accountability initiatives.

E. Cultural and societal constraints

In some communities, traditional authorities or societal norms may resist formal judicial processes, favoring customary reconciliation or silence, which can inadvertently shield enablers.

5. Pathways to Integrating Truth and Peace

For peace to be enduring, societies must balance justice, reconciliation, and institutional reform. Key strategies include:

A. Hybrid justice systems

Combining formal judicial mechanisms with restorative approaches allows accountability without destabilizing fragile communities. Examples include:

• criminal trials for major enablers

• community-based reconciliation for minor actors

• reparations programs for victims

Hybrid systems create legitimacy for both justice and reconciliation.

B. Civil society oversight

Vibrant civil society organizations, independent media, and grassroots movements can:

• monitor political actors

• report human rights abuses

• pressure governments for transparency

• educate citizens on historical truth

In Africa, civil society has often played a crucial role in breaking cycles of impunity.

C. Political reforms

Strengthening democratic institutions is essential:

• transparent elections

• separation of powers

• anti-corruption enforcement

• independent oversight commissions

A political system less reliant on violence is less likely to tolerate enablers.

D. Inclusive reconciliation

Peace must involve all affected communities, including victims, perpetrators, and neutral observers. Inclusive processes prevent resentment, reduce stigma, and allow societal healing to take root.

E. Education and historical memory

Integrating truth and accountability into curricula, media, and public discourse ensures that future generations understand the dangers of political complicity in violence. A society that forgets is doomed to repeat the mistakes of the past.

6. The African Imperative: Truth as Non-Negotiable

Africa’s recent history demonstrates both the dangers of ignoring truth and the benefits of confronting it:

• Rwanda’s post-genocide tribunals and community gacaca courts emphasized both accountability and reconciliation, preventing a relapse into widespread violence.

• South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission provided a model for acknowledging atrocities without descending into chaos.

• Sierra Leone’s hybrid justice mechanisms balanced local healing with international oversight, addressing both rebel and state-perpetrated crimes.

These examples illustrate that peace without truth is provisional, but peace built on accountability and transparency is resilient.

7. Justice, Truth, and Sustainable Peace

Peace cannot exist in a vacuum. Silence about political enablers of violence allows impunity to thrive, resentment to fester, and cycles of conflict to repeat. Truth—both public acknowledgment and institutional documentation—is the foundation on which lasting peace is built. Accountability, whether judicial, social, or political, reinforces the moral and practical legitimacy of governance, ensuring that peace is not merely the absence of violence but the presence of justice.

For Africa, this is a profound imperative. Societies must ask difficult questions:

• Who allowed violence to flourish?

• Who benefited from war and instability?

• How can victims’ voices be elevated while ensuring societal cohesion?

• What reforms are necessary to prevent a repeat of past mistakes?

Answering these questions is uncomfortable but unavoidable. Without truth and accountability, peace is fragile, temporary, and illusory. With them, societies can build resilient governance, trust, and lasting stability—transforming the cycle of violence into a cycle of justice and hope.

Africa’s future depends on the courage to confront its past honestly. Only then can the continent achieve peace that is real, inclusive, and enduring.