The dominance of the West in peacebuilding has come under scrutiny due to issues with Western-led approaches to establishing lasting peace, coupled with the rise of emerging powers in peacebuilding. While the peacebuilding methods of these emerging powers are perceived as vague and inconsistent compared to liberal peace, they continue to challenge the Western-led peacebuilding paradigm. This article focuses on the concept of ‘liminality’ as a framework for understanding how emerging powers approach peacebuilding.  Liminality represents a state of in-betweenness, capturing the unique position of emerging powers that are neither fully integrated nor fully established in the international order. Drawing on Mälksoo’s perspective, which views liminality not only as uncertainty but also as a creative space—an opportunity for renewal—the article explores how this liminality allows emerging powers to develop distinct peacebuilding strategies, rather than merely replicating established models. As an illustrative case, the article analyses Indonesia—a significant emerging power. Indonesia’s promotion of democracy serves as a peacebuilding strategy in conflict-affected nations. The conclusion emphasizes that Indonesia’s ability to embrace liminality enables it to adopt a flexible and adaptive approach. Drawing from its own experiences with democratic transition and culture, Indonesia promotes democracy as a viable strategy for peacebuilding.