Negotiating Legitimacy: State Authority and Non-State Actors in South Sudan’s Conflict and Peacebuilding Processes.

Below is the Abstract: This paper examines the complex relationships between state and non-state actors in the conflict and peacebuilding in South Sudan. It goes back to the British colonial era and the Turkiyah Rule in order to capture the historical and political roots of the conflict and the militarized tribal dynamics. The study researches the state’s role in negotiating legitimacy with non-state actors amidst diverse interests from both political and religious standpoints. It considers the processes that the new South Sudan faces in constructing a legitimate and effective government amidst corruption, human rights abuses, and power struggles. This paper also explores the interaction between de jure and de facto state legitimacy, non-state actors’ role such as rebel groups, militias, and civil society organizations-and strategies employed by the state to maintain authority. These are the understandings of governance in the fragile state that the paper provides through the negotiation of legitimacy in peacebuilding and inclusive approaches toward long-term peace and stability.