Description
As the liberal peace framework faces mounting critique for its universalist assumptions and technocratic approaches, forgiveness re-emerges as a deeply political yet underexplored concept in peacebuilding practice and theory. This paper examines forgiveness not as a moral act or emotional state, but as a relational and epistemic process through which societies negotiate multiple truths, repair broken trust, and reconstitute the moral fabric of coexistence. It asks: Can peacebuilding succeed without shared narratives of the past? What happens when forgiveness is sought in contexts where truths remain contested, or where epistemic hierarchies silence different narratives? Drawing on scholarship on epistemic injustice, memory politics, and post-conflict reconciliation, the paper argues that the liberal peace’s reliance on singular truth narratives (e.g. through truth commissions or transitional justice mechanisms) constrains the transformative potential of forgiveness. Instead, a multiple truths framework may better support the resilience of trust and the possibility of coexistence. This framework acknowledges the coexistence of contradictory memories and legitimises marginalised voices. Through this lens, forgiveness becomes an ongoing, plural, and performative act rather than a moment of closure – which might be an essential element in rethinking peacebuilding beyond the crisis of the liberal peace.
