Authority Formation in Fragmented Conflicts: The Central Role of Roadblock-induced Interaction

The relationships between armed actors and the local population are a crucial element of most civil wars. Yet, how these relationships are formed, particularly how armed actors can gain political authority, is still poorly understood. This is especially the case in fragmented conflicts, where a multitude of armed actors is operating and has overlapping control. In such fragmented conflicts, roadblocks and checkpoints are used by armed actors for a wide range of purposes, from taxation to security provision, and are accordingly pervasive. Passing roadblocks is a daily routine for the local population in these settings. Yet, little research has studied how roadblock encounters can shape relationships between armed actors and the local population.

I argue that roadblocks are a core feature of the formation of political authority in fragmented conflicts. In fragmented conflicts, where volatility and competition between armed actors are high, political authority is mainly built through tangible interactions rather than through abstract institutionalised processes or service provision. Given their spatio-temporal and functional flexibility, roadblocks are ideally suited to provide these interactions at scale. In a two-stage mixed-methods design, first qualitative methods will be used to probe and refine these propositions before they are tested quantitatively. The analysis builds on interview and survey data gathered during extensive field research in Eastern Congo’s South Kivu province. This project sheds light on how roadblocks structure relationships between armed actors and the local population, but also enhances our understanding of early state formation and fragmented conflicts more generally.

Keywords: Roadblocks, Political Authority, Fragmented Conflicts, Checkpoints, Legitimacy, Field Research, Interactions