Understanding the Livelihoods of Former Insurgents : Aceh, Indonesia
This paper documents significant differences in the impacts the war in Aceh had on ex-combatants and civilians and how these differences shaped the post-war decision-making processes of their households. Because of the overwhelming percentage of th...
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| Format: | Working Paper |
| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
World Bank, Jakarta
2017
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/804951468262794564/Understanding-the-livelihoods-of-former-insurgents-Aceh-Indonesia http://hdl.handle.net/10986/27784 |
| Summary: | This paper documents significant
differences in the impacts the war in Aceh had on
ex-combatants and civilians and how these differences shaped
the post-war decision-making processes of their households.
Because of the overwhelming percentage of the ex-combatant
population in rural areas (over 90 percent), particular
attention is paid to the agricultural sector. The second
section provides summary statistics of former
combatants' household and individual characteristics,
and economic conditions. In order to place the economic
conditions of former combatants in context, the section will
include a comparison of former combatants with civilians.
After the end of the war, ex-combatants were found to have
fewer assets, more injuries, and lower educational
attainment than civilians. After providing an overview of
the economic welfare of former combatants and civilians, an
analytical framework is developed in the third section that
will be used to understand the variation in economic
outcomes of former combatants. The framework will draw
connections between the varying degree to which war affects
individuals and communities to the post-war decisions and
processes that lead to differences in ex-combatants'
economic outcomes. In the fourth section, field data from
nine village case studies from three districts in Aceh will
be marshaled to place the analytical framework in the
context of Aceh. In particular, the framework and field data
suggest that the more limited physical and human capital
endowments constrained the choices of former combatants
since they had to maintain enough liquidity to meet their
consumption needs rather than being able to invest in more
productive activities. The fifth section will outline
various hypotheses that emerge from the analytical framework
as well as from the qualitative data and section six will
assess the various hypotheses on the statistical evidence
from the ARLS data. Thus, section six will provide a broad
assessment of the observable implications of the analytical
framework developed in sections three and four. In
particular, ex-combatants with fewer assets and a lack of
access to capital were more likely to have lower incomes and
to engage in quickly maturing, but lower return, economic
activities. The paper will conclude with an examination of
the implications of the findings for reintegration and
development policy in Aceh as well as for other post-war
contexts elsewhere. |
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