July 20, 2012
United States Institute of Peace

Abstract:

The role of women in society is often a site for political discussion, especially in the course of post-conflict transition. For Afghan women, a decade of debate has ensued about their role in Afghan society.

July 18, 2012
International Federation for Human Rights // Open Asia

Abstract:

Stakeholders’ focus on reconciliation at any cost prevails in Afghanistan. After more than 30 years of war, the Afghan people are extenuated and yearn for security, peace and a normal life. More than 70 percent of the population was born after the Russian invasion in 1979 and have spent their lives under war. Millions have lived part of their lives as refugees in Pakistan and Iran, and hundreds of thousands are still internally displaced. Many remain in exile as a result of the uncertainties that persist in Afghanistan. In the most recent years, thousands of young Afghans have chosen to migrate abroad because of the prevailing insecurity and the absence of livelihood.

The first and second sections analyse the context in which the reconciliation process will unfold until the withdrawal of international troops by the end of 2014. The third section demonstrates that safeguarding and consolidating important institutional and democratic achievements since 2001 is crucial to ensuring that Afghanistan does not revert back to a situation of widespread human rights violations, once again becoming a haven for acts of terror. The transition process to 2014 and beyond must embody a strong commitment from both the Government of Afghanistan and the international community to fully endorse justice and human rights as core, nonnegotiable principles in all institutional and strategic arrangements. The fourth section profiles the Taliban and brings evidence that they are committing similar patterns of human rights violations to those they regularly committed when in power from 1996 to 2001. This section also outlines the various human rights mechanisms the international community can mobilise in order to prevent the rehabilitation and return of Taliban’s violent ideological governance. It also identifies the key responsibilities and obligations of the international community and Afghanistan’s partners in addressing the human rights situation prevailing in the country. The conclusion and recommendations summarize the various factors which the Government of Afghanistan and its international partners should mobilise to build democracy and the rule of law, and prevent further human rights violations in Afghanistan....

July 16, 2012
Center for Strategic and International Studies

Abstract:

Religious institutions and leaders are critically important in many conflict and post-conflict cases, and religious values often motivate either violence or peacebuilding. This report, part of an ongoing research effort to assess what is substantively distinctive about religion and the roles it can play in conflict, explores the ways that religion has been a factor in militant groups’ approaches to gaining support in India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Religion is a relevant factor in key ways that these groups build support, including their relations with the state, service provision, kinship and patronage networks, and diaspora outreach. The roles religion plays in these categories are complicated and not always intuitive. Militant groups must find ways to limit central government pressures on their activities, including religious ones. These same groups can risk alienating local populations when they pair strong ideological or religious stances with service provision, or operate through patronage networks that are too rigid or not sufficiently inclusive. And global religious networks can inspire diaspora communities to pursue violent activity against their adopted governments. In South Asia, these groups’ activities matter because they threaten the ability of states to maintain peace and stability internally and complicate relations between already tense neighbors. Such instability has grave implications for U.S. national security....

July 16, 2012
Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik // German Institute for International and Security Affairs

Abstract:

In July 2011 ISAF began transferring security responsibilities to the Afghan government. While NATO countries view this process with calculated optimism, four entirely negative scenarios are becoming probable. A "power oligarchy" could develop, either directly out of the current leadership [Scenario 1] or with the political participation of the Taleban [Scenario 2]. It is also conceivable, however, that the country could relapse into a "civil war" after 2014, the prospective end of the ISAF mission [Scenario 3]; or into a renewed "Taleban emirate" [Scenario 4]. Which of these developments will occur depends on several influencing factors: the internal risks within Afghanistan; future ISAF strategy in the asymmetric war; and the nature of long-term US engagement in Afghanistan....

July 16, 2012
Central Statistics Organization // United Nations Children's Fund

Abstract:

The Afghanistan Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (AMICS) is a nationally representative sample survey that presents data on the social, health, and educational status of women and children in Afghanistan. It was conducted in 2010-2011 by the Central Statistics Organisation (CSO) of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, with the technical and financial support of UNICEF. The survey is based on the need to monitor progress towards goals and targets emanating from recent international agreements such as the Millennium Declaration and the Plan of Action of A World Fit For Children. It further helps track progress towards the Afghan Government’s policy commitments to reduce poverty and support the wellbeing of women and children, such as the commitments made through the Afghanistan National Development Strategy (ANDS).

The findings of the AMICS reveal the story of a country in transition, where many significant improvements have occurred in the last decade, as Afghanistan emerged from decades of war, poor governance, and widespread human rights abuses. Many Afghans have improved access to drinking water, school attendance is up for both boys and girls, and child mortality is relatively down, if still unacceptably high when compared with global estimates. Yet, progress has come more slowly in many areas, such as women’s literacy, and Afghanistan faces new threats on the horizon, such as HIV/AIDS. Across all sectors covered in AMICS, major disparities exist by the background characteristics of respondents. There are often dramatic differences in indicators between urban and rural areas, by household socio-economic status, and by region. Consistently, the education level of women emerges as a reliable predictor of almost all indicators for women and children. This finding is compelling evidence that investments in the status and wellbeing of women are investments in children, and in communities at large....

March 28, 2012
openDemocracy

Abstract:

One year after the beginning of the Arab Spring, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is undergoing profound transformation, leaving the international community saddled with a period of rapid transition similar to the one that occurred in Europe in the nineties.

One of the biggest challenges ahead for all these countries in transition will certainly be how to implement successful security sector reform (SSR). In turn, this is a particularly difficult task in environments that are both post-authoritarian and post-conflict. Therefore, it is important for international actors involved in these processes to draw lessons from similar experiences....

October 31, 2011
Democracy Reporting International // Institute for European Policy

Abstract:

Prior to the Arab Spring, the last period to experience such great political events was when communism collapsed in Central Europe and the Soviet Union between 1989 and 1991. This change presented an opportunity for each of the countries to introduce new political systems and build democratic state institutions. While the history, culture and context of Central and Eastern Europe is different to North Africa and the Middle East the European experience of political transition can still offer important insights into the nature of the challenges the Arab countries are likely to face.

This collection of articles responds to requests made by some Arab reformers to deepen their knowledge of how political change in Eastern Europe unfolded. Rather than focussing on the successful transitions, it presents case studies which recall the difficulties, pitfalls and political missteps which jeopardised these countries’ transitions and even caused some of them to fail.

The collection examines transitions in seven countries, of which three focus on events during the ‘first wave’ of transition from 1991 to 1996 [Albania, Azerbaijan and Belarus] and four explore ‘second wave’ transitions which occurred between 2003 and 2010 [Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova and Ukraine]....

October 18, 2011
Berghof Conflict Research

Abstract:

The article reflects on experiences and lessons learned from an insider activist’s and practitioner’s point of view. The author looks back at over a decade of training practice at the Centre for Nonviolent Action (CNA) in the Western Balkans, offering provocative thoughts on goals and methods, trainer-participant relations and dilemmas such as sustaining momentum, the risk of individual burn-out and the hope for achieving social change. (updated for the 2011 print edition)

October 14, 2011
Berghof Conflict Research

Abstract:

Takes a critical look at the debate on state failure, examining the various ways that state-building programmes have impacted on the successor states of the former Yugoslavia. The author shows how unchallenged assumptions, unrealistic expectations and ignorance of local contexts can lead to political orders being imposed with little regard for domestic legitimacy or locally-driven solutions. Instead of explaining away the predictably poor outcomes, she suggests the need for critical appraisal of those driving the state-building agenda....

June 21, 2011
International Peace Institute

Abstract:

The big-picture issues at the crossroads of peacemaking, peacekeeping, and peacebuilding were taken up by the Security Council in September 2010, under the presidency of Turkey. Leading up to that discussion, Turkey held numerous bilateral consultations, and, with the support of IPI, organized an expert meeting on these issues in New York in May 2010 and an informal retreat in Istanbul for members of the Council in June 2010.

This publication is intended to document some of that process, and includes the Statement by the President of the Security Council, the outcome summary of the June retreat, and the set of papers that were presented there. Three of these papers draw lessons from the UN’s experiences in different areas of the world (Afghanistan, the Balkans, and the Great Lakes region of Africa), and one paper analyzes cross-cutting themes.

Table of Contents:

Introduction, Francesco Mancini

Meeting Note
Security Council Istanbul Retreat: At The Crossroads of Peacemaking, Peacekeeping, and Peacebuilding
Adam C. Smith and Vanessa Wyeth, Rapporteurs

Discussion Papers
Peacemaking In Afghanistan: A Role For The United Nations?
Gerard Russell

The Security Council And Peacekeeping In The Balkans, 1992-2010 Richard Gowan and Daniel Korski

The Great Lakes of Africa (Burundi, The Drc, And The LRA-Affected Areas) François Grignon

Composite Paper on Cross-Cutting Themes International Peace Institute

Annex Statement by the President of the Security Council...

July 20, 2012
Geneva Centre for Security Policy

Abstract:

Despite protests over housing shortages, rising food prices and lack of jobs, Algeria seems to be bucking the revolutionary trend.

A number of factors help to explain the apparent “Algerian exception” to the Arab Spring. In addition to the scars of the civil war, the fractured nature of Algerian society works against the emergence of a broad-based socio-political movement. Civil protests have also been limited due to the lack of organizational structures within civil society and the authorities’ capacity to buy the social peace.

The regime’s talk of “a spring for Algeria” is evidence that it is aware of the significance of growing domestic and international expectations for change. Yet, measures undertaken so far do not constitute the kind of fundamental reforms required to restore state legitimacy by reducing the gap between official and real power within the political system and to restructure the economy to create greater opportunities.

External actors are likely to play only a limited role pushing for substantive change. The real drivers of change will be internal. Much will depend on the ability of civil society to form a broad-based movement to maintain pressure on the authorities and security services recognition that they need to gradually withdraw from politics....

June 15, 2012
Refugee Studies Centre

Abstract:

The so-called Arab Spring continues to reverberate locally, regionally and geopolitically. The 20 articles in this issue of FMR reflect on some of the experiences, challenges and lessons of the Arab Spring in North Africa, the implications of which resonate far wider than the region itself.

June 1, 2012
United States Institute of Peace

Abstract:

On the eve of Libya's first elections scheduled for June 22,Tripoli is humming with anticipation. Billboards encouraging Libyans to vote line the major roads. 78 percent of the 3.5 million eligible voters have registered. Interim government officials are planning for security arrangements, printing ballots, and standing up polling stations. However, far away from the capital city, Libya's borders are a distant, silent threat to the success of the revolution. Libya shares a 2,700 mile-long border with Egypt to the east, Tunisia and Algeria to the west, and Sudan, Chad, and Niger to the south. During Libya's 2011 revolution, revolutionary fighters seized border crossings and large swaths of territory. Some swore allegiance to the new government. Other resisted and morphed into criminal enterprises. Trafficking of weapons, drugs, alcohol, and people soared. This spill-over of people and contraband threatens Libya's tenuous stability, as well as the democratic transitions in Egypt and Tunisia. These lawless areas pose a threat to European and U.S. security as well. Al-qaida affiliates reportedly transit the country from havens in ungoverned areas in neighboring countrie...

April 24, 2012
International Organization for Migration

Abstract:

Since the end of February 2011, 790,000 migrant workers and their families have crossed the Libyan border into other countries to escape the conflict and ongoing violence in Libya. Although migration crises of this kind are not new, the massive outflow of migrants fleeing the violence in Libya represents one of the largest migration crises in modern history. Given that there were approximately 1.8 million migrant workers in Libya, a country heavily reliant on migrant workers before the crisis, it is clear that such large-scale movement has significant implications for the neighbouring region and beyond, as well as for the post-crisis reconstruction of Libya itself. The scale of the crisis in Libya has brought to the political foreground the issue of protection and rights of migrants caught in crisis; the role of State actors and international cooperation mechanisms in such situations; and the implications of such crises for migrants’ countries of origin as well as for wider migration management systems.

Migrants Caught in Crisis: The IOM Experience in Libya analyses the effect that the Libyan crisis has had on migrants caught in the crisis and the wider implications for migration in the region, based primarily on the experience of the International Organization for Migration in the evacuation, return and reintegration of migrant workers from Libya. It contextualizes the crisis in Libya from a comparative perspective within the region and takes a brief look back at the socio-economic, political and migration situation, prior to the crisis. It then provides a detailed account of the evacuation of migrant workers from Libya and the central role played by IOM. The effects of the crisis on sending countries and their nationals are also examined, as are the implications for the post-crisis reconstruction of Libya. The report considers the challenges and lessons learned with regard to the following in the international response to the Libyan crisis: the role played by State actors, cooperation mechanisms, evacuation as a form of protection, security and humanitarian access, and resource mobilization. Finally, although the situation in Libya is still evolving after the downfall of the Gaddafi regime, emerging migration policy challenges and future policy considerations are put forth....

April 24, 2012
University of Oslo // Centre for the Study of Civil War // Peace Research Institute Oslo

Abstract:

Transboundary rivers may contribute to increased hostility between riparians. This may contribute to increased hostility between riparians. This article accepts earlier arguments about water scarcity. Structural Scarcity occurs in river basins with unequal resource distribution, often created by geographic asymmetries. Hence, this article argues that the geographic asymmetries present in many river basins are key determinants of conflict risk among riparians. In a river basin the upstream state enjoys an inherent advantage and upstream river use is likely to produce unidirectional externalities that harm the states downstream. This in turn, is likely to produce grievances or claims downstream that may contribute to worsen overall state relations and consequently increase the risk of dyadic conflict....

May 24, 2006
Australian National University // State, Society And Governance In Melanesia Project

Abstract:

The decade since the early 1990s has witnessed the growth of a field of research and practice aimed at resolving and preventing violent conflict. Research on violent conflict has led to a number of different theories on causes of violent conflict, many of them based on the study of large-scale, protracted conflicts in Africa and the Balkans. Advocates of conflict prevention have linked longer-term root causes of violent conflict to aspects of underdevelopment, and tensions inherent in development processes....

November 25, 2005
World Health Organization

Abstract:

This report presents initial results based on interviews with 24 000 women by carefully trained interviewers. The study was implemented by WHO, in collaboration with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), PATH, USA, research institutions and women's organizations in the participating countries. This report covers 15 sites and 10 countries: Bangladesh, Brazil, Ethiopia, Japan, Peru, Namibia, Samoa, Serbia and Montenegro, Thailand and the United Republic of Tanzania. Report findings document the prevalence of intimate partner violence and its association with women's physical, mental, sexual and reproductive health. Data is included on non-partner violence, sexual abuse during childhood and forced first sexual experience. Information is also provided on women's responses: Whom do women turn to and whom do they tell about the violence in their lives? Do they leave or fight back? Which services do they use and what response do they get? The report concludes with 15 recommendations to strengthen national commitment and action on violence against women....

May 10, 2010
Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University

Abstract:

A key contention of the transitional justice movement is that the more comprehensive and vigorous the effort to bring justice to a departed authoritarian regime the better the democratizing outcome will be. This essay challenges this view with empirical evidence from the Iberian Peninsula. In Portugal, a sweeping policy of purges intended to cleanse the state and society of the authoritarian past nearly derailed the transition to democracy by descending into a veritable witch-hunt. In Spain, by contrast, letting bygones be bygones, became a foundation for democratic consolidation. These counter-intuitive examples suggest that there is no pre-ordained outcome to transitional justice, and that confronting an evil past is neither a requirement nor a pre-condition for democratization. This is primarily because the principal factors driving the impulse toward justice against the old regime are political rather than ethical or moral. In Portugal, the rise of transitional justice mirrored the anarchic politics of the revolution that lunched the transition to democracy. In Spain, the absence of transitional justice reflected the pragmatism of a democratic transition anchored on compromise and consensus....

June 8, 2006
International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights

Abstract:

The human rights situation deteriorated in numerous former Soviet republics. Independent human rights monitoring groups, including several affiliates of the IHF, came under attack. The Russian Federation, Belarus, and the Central Asian regimes promulgated new legislation or changed their practices to allow these states arbitrarily to restrict the activities of nongovernmental organizations. The leaders of the Belarusian Helsinki Committee faced fabricated criminal charges, and in January 2006, state-controlled Russian media falsely implicated the Moscow Helsinki Group in espionage....

June 7, 2006
Council of Europe

Abstract:

The United States has progressively woven a clandestine "spider's web" of disappearances, secret detentions and unlawful inter-state transfers - spun with the collaboration or tolerance of Council of Europe member states, the Legal Affairs Committee of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) said today. In a draft resolution adopted at a meeting in Paris, based on a report by Dick Marty (Switzerland, ALDE), the committee said hundreds of persons had become entrapped in this web - in some cases when they were merely suspected of sympathising with a presumed terrorist organisation. The parliamentarians said this knowing collusion of member states took several different forms, including secretly detaining a person on European territory, capturing a person and handing them over to the US or permitting unlawful "renditions" through their airspace or across their territory. "It# has now been demonstrated incontestably, by numerous well-documented and convergent facts, that secret detentions and unlawful inter-state transfers involving European countries have taken place, such as to require in-depth inquiries and urgent responses by the executive and legislative branches of all the countries concerned," the committee said. The committee called on Council of Europe member states to review bilateral agreements signed with the United States, particularly those on the status of US forces stationed in Europe, to ensure they conformed fully to international human rights norms. The report is due for debate by the plenary Assembly - which brings together 630 parliamentarians from the 46 Council of Europe member states - in Strasbourg on 27 June 2006....

June 7, 2006
Council of Europe

Abstract:

The United States of America finds that neither the classic instruments of criminal law and procedure, nor the framework of the laws of war (including respect for the Geneva Conventions) has been apt to address the terrorist threat. As a result it has introduced new legal concepts, such as "enemy combatant" and "rendition", which were previously unheard of in international law and stand contrary to the basic legal principles that prevail on our continent. Thus, across the world, the United States has progressively woven a clandestine "spider's web" of disappearances, secret detentions and unlawful inter-state transfers, often encompassing countries notorious for their use of torture. Hundreds of persons have become entrapped in this web, in some cases merely suspected of sympathising with a presumed terrorist organisation....

June 29, 2012
Chr. Michelsen Institute

Abstract:

This brief assesses the impact of transitional justice mechanisms on peace and democracy. Based on four case studies from Africa and Latin America, it argues that the expected positive effects of transitional justice may be too high. Transitional justice processes are complex and dynamic and may change substantially over time. The distinction between short term and long term impact is essential.

May 22, 2012
Human Rights Watch

Abstract:

This report describes an alarming pattern of human rights violations by members of Angolan security forces against Congolese migrants. Women and girls, who are often detained with their children, have been victims of sexual abuse including gang rape, sexual exploitation, and being forced to witness sexual abuse of other women and girls. Beatings, degrading and inhumane treatment, arbitrary arrests, and denial of due process have been common practices during roundups of undocumented migrants, and in custody before their deportation. Human Rights Watch interviewed more than 100 victims and witnesses to abuses, during expulsions from the Cabinda enclave and the diamond-rich Lunda Norte province to the Congolese provinces of Bas-Congo and Kasai-Occidental in 2009 and 2011. Most of those migrants enter Angola to work in alluvial diamond mines or in informal markets....

April 25, 2012
Chatham House

Abstract:

Presentation by David Sogge on Angola's ten years of peace. He discusses the level of violence, Rule of Law rankings, state fragility ratings, the level of government effectiveness, and corruption. The presentation was given as part of the Chatham House Roundtable "Angola: Celebrating 10 Years of Peace" that was held in London on 17 April 2012.

April 24, 2012
Chatham House

Abstract:

The event focussed on changes in Angola over the last decade, from the legacies of conflict, political and social transformation, to its economic achievements. Participants also considered future opportunities in Angola and its growing international influence.

March 30, 2012
Chatham House

Abstract:

Angola marks a decade of peace in 2012. This paper looks at various indicators to assess what results the peace dividend has delivered over the last decade in Angola and the new challenges it faces.

Key points:

Angola's economy is highly dependent on its oil production and oil prices. This dependence can be clearly seen in the ripples created by the international financial crisis in 2008: oil prices dropped dramatically and so did Angola's oil revenue, GDP, FDI and international reserves.

While inflation has been reduced over the last 10 years, it remains in double digits for the foreseeable future and consumer prices are increasing. This has a particularly severe impact on Angola's poor.

High GDP growth has contributed to increased human development for Angolans, but the rate of increase has lagged as easy gains are achieved and the developmental challenges become more complex and more difficult to achieve.

Owing to growth in GDP since 2002 Angolan per capita health spending has increased dramatically. However, high mortality rates of infants and children under five years of age highlight the challenges that Angola still faces. Reducing these may be the greatest challenge for Angolan leaders.

The Angolan business environment is overall very challenging, with corruption being the main barrier....

September 16, 2008
En la Mira - The Latin American Small Arms Watch

Abstract:

Although all countries, in theory report their authorized transfers - and such information may even be available in certain public databases - the task of providing an overview of SALW transfers, their parts and munitions, is an arduous one. Nonetheless, despite the difficulties, we have some extremely positive initiatives on a global scale, such as for example, the Small Arms Survey, recognized as an important source of information, especially on SALW production and transfers, as well as the Norwegian Initiative on Small Arms Transfers (NISAT) which has a database containing transfer records going back to 1962.Despite these important initiatives, themselves when researchers, activists and policy makers try to understand a regional market, such as Latin America and the Caribbean, they encounter a dearth of information. With the intent of addressing this shortcoming, En La Mira has, since 2007, dedicated an issue to transfers of SALWs, parts and ammunition in this region. Further, according to statistics from the United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database (UN-Comtrade or Comtrade), USD 6.7 billion were exported between 2004 and 2006, while USD 6.5 billion were imported. Despite the fact that Latin America and the Caribbean represent 6% and 3%, respectively, of total transfers worldwide during this period, 42% of firearms related homicide is committed in the region. This discrepancy between the international transfer volume share and the levels of armsrelated violence in Latin America and the Caribbean calls attention to itself, above all because of the tragic and startling number of homicides. Obviously, far from wishing to increase arms transfers in order to be more in sync with homicide rates, we decided, a year ago, to study this issue and periodically monitor its development based on our interest in understanding the primary legal entry and exit routes of firearms and ammunition. The result is a report - based on customs information as stated by Latin American and Caribbean countries and their respective partners - whose objective is to describe the movement of the SALW imports and exports, as well as ammunition and parts, during the present decade. Based on this data, we answer the following questions: who exported and who imported? From whom? What? And when? It is worth restating that the intent of this report is not to explain the cause of arms imports and exports by Latin American countries. Beyond merely providing information, we do indeed wish to awaken, by means of the information presented here, the curiosity of other researches, activists and government staff members such that they may continue to perform research in their countries regarding the transparency of this information, on who is using the transferred SALW, and how. The data used for this report came from the NISAT database, which contains more than 800,000 entries for SALW transfers worldwide since 1962. The NISAT database gets its information from different sources, COMTRADE among them. In this study we decided to restrict ourselves to data from this latter source because, in theory, all countries report transfers to the UN. This data is declared in accordance with the Harmonized System (SH) merchandise classification system. The HS has existed since 1988and, in 2007, was revised for the fourth time; previous revisions were in 1992, 1996 and in 2002. Regarding the period analyzed, we are looking at data up until 2006, since at the time the study closed this was the most recent year available on NISAT....

September 2, 2004
Amnesty International

Abstract:

Against the international trend away from the use of the death penalty, executions have increased in the English speaking Caribbean (ESC) in recent years. Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, the Bahamas and St. Kitts and St. Nevis and St. Vincent and the Grenadines have all carried out executions in the last seven years. Jamaica, Antigua, Grenada, St Lucia, Dominica, Belize and Barbados all currently have condemned prisoners and continue to impose sentences of death.

October 26, 2011
Intervention // War Trauma Foundation

Abstract:

Research with survivors of political violence in Latin America have shown that any analysis of the consequences of war or political repression should take into account the social and political realities in which the survivors are immersed. It has also shown that research must go hand in hand with action, intervention and psychosocial support for communities that confront violence. In this article, the authors review some of the basic principles that should guide research and action within the context of war or other political violence. We discuss the roles that the researcher needs to adopt in order to successfully develop work that will be of use to the social and scientific community. In addition, we describe some of the methodological implications of psychosocial research and the importance of reflective processes that could contribute to community wellbeing. The theoretical descriptions are substantiated through examples of action research in Jujuy (Argentina) with former political prisoners and relatives of detainees, or the disappeared, from the time of the last military dictatorship (1976–1983)....

September 10, 2010
Small Wars Journal

Abstract:

Hezbollah, Lebanon‘s Iran-sponsored Shi‘i Muslim terrorist organization, has established global networks in at least 40 countries. Its growing presence in South America is increasingly troublesome to U.S. policymakers, yet there are few experts on Hezbollah and fewer still on Hezbollah Latino America. Hezbollah‘s operatives have infiltrated the Western Hemisphere from Canada to Argentina, and its activity is increasing, particularly in the lawless Tri-Border Area (TBA) of Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay. This research was conducted to expose the actions and objectives of Hezbollah in the TBA. The majority of US officials and operators believe that Hezbollah‘s terrorist wing is separate from its political wing, but these are misconceptions from people who "mirror-image" the American experience when assessing Hezbollah. Unfamiliarity with the organization makes these assessors vulnerable to its propaganda, which is a severe problem that permeates the US government and its operatives. People who think Hezbollah is or could be compartmentalized or disunited are not familiar with the organization and perceive Hezbollah through the lens of the organization‘s extensive propaganda effort. Hezbollah has a large operational network in the TBA, which generates funds for the party, but its primary mission is to plan attacks and lie dormant, awaiting instructions to execute operations against Western targets. The following is a look at Hezbollah‘s modus operandi, an analysis of how operational its networks in the Tri-Border Area are, as well as some possible solutions to this threat. First, is an examination of how Hezbollah traditionally operates to establish the context....

March 15, 2010
Congressional Research Service

Abstract:

This report updates the topic of Iran’s Growing Relations with Latin America [page 5]. Over the past several years, U.S. officials and other observers have expressed concerns about Iran’s increasing activities in Latin America, particularly under the government of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. For example, in January 2009 congressional testimony, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates maintained that he was concerned about the level of “subversive activity that the Iranians are carrying on in a number of places in Latin America, particularly South America and Central America.” There has been some contention, however, over the level and significance of Iran’s linkages with the region. One view emphasizes that Iran’s relations with several Latin American leaders who have employed strong anti-U.S. rhetoric and its past support for terrorist activities in the region are reasons why its presence should be considered a potential destabilizing threat to the region. Another school of thought emphasizes that Iran’s domestic politics and strategic orientation toward the Middle East and Persian Gulf region will preclude the country from sustaining a focus on Latin America. Adherents of this view assert that Iran’s promised aid and investment to Latin America have not materialized. Some observers holding both of these views contend that while Iran’s activities in Latin America do not currently constitute a major threat to U.S. national security, there is enough to be concerned about to keep a watchful eye on developments in case it becomes a more serious threat. On October 27, 2009, the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere held a hearing on “Iran in the Western Hemisphere” that reflected these range of views....

February 17, 2010
Committee to Protect Journalists

Abstract:

At least 71 journalists were killed across the globe in 2009, the Committee to Protect Journalists announced Tuesday, the largest annual toll in the 30 years the group has been keeping track. Twenty-nine of those deaths came in a single, politically motivated massacre of reporters and others in the Philippines last November, the worst known episode for journalists, the committee said. But there were other worrisome trends. The two nations with the highest number of journalists incarcerated — China had 24 journalists imprisoned at the end of 2009 and Iran had 23 — were particularly harsh in taking aim at bloggers and others using the Internet. The number jailed in Iran has since jumped to 47, the committee said. Of the 71 confirmed deaths, 51 were murders, the committee said. The report noted that 24 additional deaths of journalists remained under investigation to determine if they were related to the journalists’ work. Previously, the highest number of journalists killed in a single year was 67, in 2007, when violence in Iraq was raging....

November 20, 2009
International Center for Transitional Justice

Abstract:

During the 1970’s, political violence in Argentina resulted in massive violations of human rights that included thousands of deaths, prolonged and arbitrary arrests, disappearances, unfair trials, pervasive torture, in addition to cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment. Since the restoration of democracy in 1983, there have been various obstacles to prosecution of such crimes committed by security forces and paramilitary groups. Such obstacles were eventually overcome, and Argentina currently offers an important example of the positive results of both domestic efforts and international advocacy to achieve justice for past crimes against humanity. Due to its recent and ongoing success in the prosecution of human rights criminals, it is arguable that Argentina has one of the best records of transitional justice in the world. It has fostered transitional justice developments in the region, and offers critical insights for other communities struggling with the past which are following Argentina’s efforts with deep interest. The repressive campaign that resulted in massive human rights violations peaked in March 1976, as the commanders-in-chief of Argentina’s three armed forces ousted democratically elected President Isabel Perón and proclaimed a de facto regime. During the seven years of military rule, the military fought what was referred to as a Marxist subversive threat. The most notorious feature of repression by the military dictatorship was the practice of disappearances: possibly up to 30,000 people were abducted by security forces. They were sent to hundreds of secret detention centers, where they were interrogated under barbaric methods. Ultimately, the vast majority of the desaparecidos were systematically, but secretly, murdered. In 1983, before democracy was restored, the military granted itself immunity from prosecution and issued a decree ordering the destruction of all documents relating to military repression....

July 12, 2012
Chatham House

Abstract:

This is a summary of an event held at Chatham House on 14 May 2012. The event explored key aspects of Turkey-Armenia rapprochement. The event was held under the Chatham House Rule. Participants included experts from academia, think tanks and the policy-making community.

June 25, 2012
International Crisis Group

Abstract:

After May’s parliamentary elections, Armenia is preparing for a pivotal presidential vote in 2013 that will determine whether it has shed a nearly two-decade history of fraud-tainted elections and put in place a government with the legitimacy needed to implement comprehensive reform and resolve its problems with Azerbaijan. President Serzh Sargsyan has a brief opportunity to demonstrate statesmanship before he again faces the voters in what is likely to be a competitive contest. Sargsyan has demonstrated some courage to promote change, but like his pre-decessors, he has thus far failed to deal effectively with serious economic and governance problems, including the debilitating, albeit low-intensity, Nagorno-Karabakh war. Another election perceived as seriously flawed would serve as a further distraction from peace talks and severe economic problems. The likely consequences would then be ever more citizens opting out of democratic politics, including by emigration.

The genuinely competitive parliamentary election had some positive signs. Media coverage during much of the campaign was more balanced, and free assembly, expression and movement were largely respected. The president’s ruling Republican Party won a solid majority of seats, but its former coalition partner, Prosperous Armenia – associated with rich businessman and ex-president Robert Kocharyan – came in a strong second. The Armenian National Congress (ANC), led by the first post-independence president, Levon Ter-Petrossian, returned to parliament after a more than ten-year absence. Nevertheless, many old problems reappeared: abuse of administrative resources; inflated voters lists; vote-buying; lack of sufficient redress for election violations; and reports of multiple voting and pressure on some voters. Reforms adopted after the violence that left ten dead and 450 injured following the 2008 election that brought Sargsyan to power were spottily implemented....

June 19, 2012
Central Asia-Caucasus Institute

Abstract:

From June 4 to 6, an intensive shootout occurred on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border in the Gazakh-Tavush area that claimed the lives of five Azerbaijani and three Armenian soldiers. This could be termed just another skirmish in a series of low intensity fighting that costs hundreds of lives on both sides of the conflict. Yet the high death toll and the geographic occurrence of the recent incident far away from the Karabakh front lines evoked debates about the prospects of renewed war between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Is the risk of war becoming imminent in this part of the South Caucasus?...

June 11, 2012
Saferworld // Conciliation Resources

Abstract:

The report Putting people first: Reducing frontline tensions in Armenia and Azerbaijan, Nagorny Karabakh is in two main parts: The first part looks at the security needs in Azerbaijan’s frontline villages. It then considers the situation in Tovuz and Gazakh districts bordering on Armenia, also offering local perspectives on security needs there. The second part of the report provides local perspectives from a Karabakh Armenian viewpoint. There is also a report looking at the situation in Tavush region, offering an analogous report to that on the Azerbaijani side. In the final section, there is a list of recommendations set out from the different viewpoints. The surveys were conducted and written up independently of one another....

June 11, 2012
Saferworld // Conciliation Resources

Abstract:

Over the past two decades progress on finding a resolution to the Nagorny Karabakh [NK] conflict has proved elusive. The unresolved conflict continues to evolve and pose persistent and shifting challenges on the ground, including insecurity, long-term displacement, ingrained mistrust and serious limits on development and regional opportunities. Since fighting ended in 1994, there has been an uneasy situation of ‘no war, no peace’ between Armenians and Azerbaijanis.

This brief highlights the potential for a number of key confidence building measures [CBMs]; both military [joint investigation, sniper withdrawal] and civilian [resource management]. Military CBMs are clearly required and expected by the international community; without cooperation on them, the sides are only undermining their own international standing. Cooperation is also urgently required on issues around missing persons and the measures each side needs to take when remains are found in the front-line area.

Findings and recommendations in this policy brief and accompanying report were drawn from consultations and interviews conducted in early 2012 among people directly affected by the conflict, both in a number of Azerbaijani villages near the LOC and in frontline areas in Tovuz and Gazakh districts on the Azerbaijani side of the international border; and also in villages in Tavush region on the Armenian side of the border. Consultations and discussion groups were also carried out in NK, in the same time-frame and in several locations....

June 6, 2012
Australian Government // Australian Civil-Military Centre

Abstract:

Australia is a longstanding and committed contributor to global peace operations, having deployed more than 65 000 personnel to more than 50 UN and other multilateral peace and security operations since 1947. Over the past two decades Australia is proud to have contributed personnel, resources and leadership, alongside its regional partners, to a number of peace operations in the Asia–Pacific region. This report examines some of the primary features of these contributions in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville in Papua New Guinea, in Solomon Islands and in Timor-Leste and identifies a number of lessons that emerge from these experiences. It seeks to focus on those policy innovations, best practices and lessons that have greatest potential for use in peacekeeping and peacebuilding efforts elsewhere.

Australia has been a partner for peace in each of these operations, recognising that assistance that aligns with local priorities and supports local leadership will be more effective and sustainable in the long term. Support from Australia and regional partners has built on the significant efforts made by the governments and peoples of Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste to emerge from conflict. Although this report focuses on Australia’s experiences, it recognises that the credit for peaceful transitions belongs overwhelmingly to the leaders and communities of these three countries themselves....

May 28, 2012
The World Bank

Abstract:

The report addresses the fact that the spheres of security and development significantly overlap in fragile and conflict-affected countries, the respective responses remain largely disconnected. Only by securing development, can roots be deep enough to break the cycle of fragility and violence. Firstly, to facilitate the transition from war to peace and later to foster stability so that development can generate progress over a decade and beyond. In order to do this, the authors believe all development actors need to rethink development assistance creatively as well as learn from the other side: security-focused operations and programs. This paper reports on a consultative dialogue between the World Bank and Australia's whole-of-government spectrum of institutions, with a focus on development actors hearing the security perspective. In this, the authors join a growing process of dialogue between accidental partners development and security actors, unfamiliar with each other but faced with the same challenge of being engaged in fragile and conflict-affected environments. From the authors perspective, engaging in thinking about integration or coordination between development and security embarks on largely unknown territory. However, over the last fifteen to twenty years, Australia has engaged in several unprecedented models of crisis response, integrating security and development, and the authors welcome the opportunity to bring that experience into the broader global discussion....

March 23, 2012
Australian Strategic Policy Institute

Abstract:

The Philippines is a large and important country in Southeast Asia, and potentially a more active security partner for Australia. If the Philippines can resolve these various security problems it will strengthen Manila’s place in the emerging Asia–Pacific order. This paper by Zachary Abuza outlines the range of internal and external challenges facing the Philippines and some of the implications for Australia and the region.

October 20, 2011
Peace & Conflict Review

Abstract:

The Australian-led intervention during the 1999 crisis in East Timor has been considered as a success story in responding to a massive humanitarian emergency. It has been touted as the start of the emergence of a wider acceptance by the international community of the duty to protect innocent civilians who are suffering serious human rights violations. The critical role of Australia as the acknowledged leader of the International Forces for East Timor (INTERFET) was an indispensible factor for the success of the humanitarian intervention. Challenging the conception that the intervention into East Timor represents a significant shift in international relations based on state commitments to protect human rights, this paper argues that Australia’s leadership during the crisis was motivated primarily by the pursuit and protection of its strategic and economic interests....

April 4, 2011
Australian Council for International Development

Abstract:

This study was commissioned by the Australian Council for International Development (ACFID) Afghanistan Working Group (AWG) to provide a clearer overview of the key aid modalities used by the Australian Government in Afghanistan. Particular attention was paid to aid delivered by the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID), and the Australian Defence Force (ADF) as part of its counterinsurgency efforts in Uruzgan Province. The study was carried out from May – July 2010.

Australia’s engagement in Afghanistan dates largely from 11 September 2001. Prior to this and dating back to 1994, the Australian aid portfolio was minimal and ADF involvement was limited to mine clearance activities through the United Nations. After 9/11, and due to its role as major non-North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) ally and an ally of the US increased significantly in 2006 with the deployment of ADF personnel to Uruzgan Province to support both military and stabilization/reconstruction efforts.

Currently Australia supports the revised Obama Administration’s strategy for Afghanistan that has seen a strategic shift in military command of NATO-International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), with a changed emphasis and the direction of military operations towards a counter-insurgency (COIN) ‘clear, hold and build’ campaign. The central principle in COIN strategy is to protect the population, reverse the Talban’s momentum and create the space to develop security and governance capacity in Afghanistan....

June 7, 2011
Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces

Abstract:

The Examples from the Ground are concrete illustrations of ways in which a gender perspective has been integrated in different security sector institutions around the world. They range from measures to counter human trafficking in Kosovo, to women’s organisations’ involvement with security institutions in Nepal, to female parliamentarians’ contribution to post-conflict reconstruction in Rwanda. These examples can help policymakers, trainers and educators better understand and demonstrate the linkages between gender and SSR.

The examples are organised around the following nine themes, for which a short introduction is provided:

• Police Reform and Gender
• Defence Reform and Gender
• Justice Reform and Gender
• Penal Reform and Gender
• Border Management and Gender
• Parliamentary Oversight of the Security Sector and Gender
• National Security Policy-Making and Gender
• Civil Society Oversight of the Security Sector and Gender
• SSR Assessment, Monitoring and Evaluation and Gender

Individual examples can also be downloaded individually, in English or in French, at:
http://gssrtraining.ch/index.php?option=com_content&view;=article&id;=4&Itemid;=131〈=en...

June 8, 2010
European Coalition of Oil in Sudan // Fatal Transactions

Abstract:

From 1983 to 2005, Sudan was torn apart by a civil war between the Government and Southern armed groups. Oil was a factor in the outbreak and exacerbated war from the mid-1990s. This report is concerned with the injustice perpetrated on victims and the role of oil companies and their home governments during the oil wars. Between 1997 and 2003, international crimes were committed on a large scale in what was essentially a military campaign by the Government of Sudan to secure and take control of the oil fields in Block 5A. As documented in this report, they included indiscriminate attacks and intentional targeting of civilians, burning of shelters, pillage, destruction of objects necessary for survival, unlawful killing of civilians, rape of women, abduction of children, torture, and forced displacement. Thousands of people died and almost two hundred thousand were violently displaced. Satellite pictures taken between 1994 and 2003 show that the Lundin Consortium’s activities in Block 5A coincided with a spectacular drop in agricultural land use. The actual perpetrators of the reported crimes were the armed forces of the Government of Sudan and a variety of local armed groups that were either allied to the Government or its main opponent, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A). Nonetheless, the evidence presented in this report calls into question the role played by the oil industry in these events. ECOS believes that Lundin, Petronas and OMV, as a matter of international law, may have been complicit in the commission of war crimes and crimes against humanity....

September 5, 2008
Congressional Research Service

Abstract:

U.S. policymakers have made securing and maintaining foreign contributions to the stabilization and reconstruction of Iraq a major priority since the preparation period for the launch of Operation Iraqi Freedom in March 2003. This report highlights and discusses important changes in financial and personnel contributions from foreign governments to Iraq since 2003. To date, foreign donors have pledged an estimated $16.4 billion in grants and loans for Iraq reconstruction, with most major pledges originating at a major donors' conference in Madrid, Spain, in October 2003. However, only a small part of the pledges have been committed or disbursed to the World Bank and United Nations Development Group Trust Funds for Iraq. The largest non-U.S. pledges of grants have come from Japan, the European Commission, the United Kingdom, Canada, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates. The World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, Japan, and Saudi Arabia have pledged the most loans and export credits. Currently, 33 countries including the United States have some level of troops on the ground in Iraq or supporting Iraq operations from nearby locations. Those forces are working under the rubric of one of several organizations — the Multi-National Force-Iraq (MNF-I), the NATO Training Mission-Iraq (NTM-I); or the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI). Currently, the largest troop contributors, in addition to the United States, are the United Kingdom, Georgia, Australia, South Korea, and Poland. Some of these key contributors have announced their intention to reduce or withdraw their forces from Iraq during 2008. The total number of non-U.S. coalition troop contributions has declined since the early stabilization efforts, as other countries have withdrawn their contingents or substantially reduced their size....

March 31, 2008
Foreign Policy

Abstract:

Thousands of international troops remain in Afghanistan, but some members of this coalition are more willing than others. FP looks at whose militaries are pulling their weight—and who could do far more.

June 8, 2006
International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights

Abstract:

The human rights situation deteriorated in numerous former Soviet republics. Independent human rights monitoring groups, including several affiliates of the IHF, came under attack. The Russian Federation, Belarus, and the Central Asian regimes promulgated new legislation or changed their practices to allow these states arbitrarily to restrict the activities of nongovernmental organizations. The leaders of the Belarusian Helsinki Committee faced fabricated criminal charges, and in January 2006, state-controlled Russian media falsely implicated the Moscow Helsinki Group in espionage....

June 19, 2012
Central Asia-Caucasus Institute

Abstract:

From June 4 to 6, an intensive shootout occurred on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border in the Gazakh-Tavush area that claimed the lives of five Azerbaijani and three Armenian soldiers. This could be termed just another skirmish in a series of low intensity fighting that costs hundreds of lives on both sides of the conflict. Yet the high death toll and the geographic occurrence of the recent incident far away from the Karabakh front lines evoked debates about the prospects of renewed war between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Is the risk of war becoming imminent in this part of the South Caucasus?...

June 11, 2012
Saferworld // Conciliation Resources

Abstract:

The report Putting people first: Reducing frontline tensions in Armenia and Azerbaijan, Nagorny Karabakh is in two main parts: The first part looks at the security needs in Azerbaijan’s frontline villages. It then considers the situation in Tovuz and Gazakh districts bordering on Armenia, also offering local perspectives on security needs there. The second part of the report provides local perspectives from a Karabakh Armenian viewpoint. There is also a report looking at the situation in Tavush region, offering an analogous report to that on the Azerbaijani side. In the final section, there is a list of recommendations set out from the different viewpoints. The surveys were conducted and written up independently of one another....

June 11, 2012
Saferworld // Conciliation Resources

Abstract:

Over the past two decades progress on finding a resolution to the Nagorny Karabakh [NK] conflict has proved elusive. The unresolved conflict continues to evolve and pose persistent and shifting challenges on the ground, including insecurity, long-term displacement, ingrained mistrust and serious limits on development and regional opportunities. Since fighting ended in 1994, there has been an uneasy situation of ‘no war, no peace’ between Armenians and Azerbaijanis.

This brief highlights the potential for a number of key confidence building measures [CBMs]; both military [joint investigation, sniper withdrawal] and civilian [resource management]. Military CBMs are clearly required and expected by the international community; without cooperation on them, the sides are only undermining their own international standing. Cooperation is also urgently required on issues around missing persons and the measures each side needs to take when remains are found in the front-line area.

Findings and recommendations in this policy brief and accompanying report were drawn from consultations and interviews conducted in early 2012 among people directly affected by the conflict, both in a number of Azerbaijani villages near the LOC and in frontline areas in Tovuz and Gazakh districts on the Azerbaijani side of the international border; and also in villages in Tavush region on the Armenian side of the border. Consultations and discussion groups were also carried out in NK, in the same time-frame and in several locations....

June 8, 2012
The Heritage Foudation

Abstract:

The Islamist insurgency in Russia’s Northern Caucasus threatens to turn the region into a haven for international terrorism and to destabilize the entire region, which is a critical hub of oil and gas pipelines located at Europe’s doorstep. Neither Russia’s excessive use of military force nor its massive economic aid to the region appear to have helped. The U.S. and its friends and allies should keep a close watch on the region. In the meantime, the U.S. should work with neighboring countries to improve their border security. The U.S. should also encourage and work with Middle Eastern countries to stop the flow of cash to the Islamist terrorist organizations....

May 10, 2012
The Foreign Policy Centre

Abstract:

Spotlight on Azerbaijan contains a broad analysis of some of the key governance and human rights challenges Azerbaijan faces, and explores the role and goals of the international community. The publication argues that the Government of Azerbaijan is pursuing a policy of limited modernisation without democratisation. While some legislation and state processes are being improved, the fundamental nature of power in Azerbaijan has not become more plural and in some key areas of human rights and governance the situation is in fact deteriorating. The report therefore makes a series of recommendations for action....

September 16, 2008
En la Mira - The Latin American Small Arms Watch

Abstract:

Although all countries, in theory report their authorized transfers - and such information may even be available in certain public databases - the task of providing an overview of SALW transfers, their parts and munitions, is an arduous one. Nonetheless, despite the difficulties, we have some extremely positive initiatives on a global scale, such as for example, the Small Arms Survey, recognized as an important source of information, especially on SALW production and transfers, as well as the Norwegian Initiative on Small Arms Transfers (NISAT) which has a database containing transfer records going back to 1962.Despite these important initiatives, themselves when researchers, activists and policy makers try to understand a regional market, such as Latin America and the Caribbean, they encounter a dearth of information. With the intent of addressing this shortcoming, En La Mira has, since 2007, dedicated an issue to transfers of SALWs, parts and ammunition in this region. Further, according to statistics from the United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database (UN-Comtrade or Comtrade), USD 6.7 billion were exported between 2004 and 2006, while USD 6.5 billion were imported. Despite the fact that Latin America and the Caribbean represent 6% and 3%, respectively, of total transfers worldwide during this period, 42% of firearms related homicide is committed in the region. This discrepancy between the international transfer volume share and the levels of armsrelated violence in Latin America and the Caribbean calls attention to itself, above all because of the tragic and startling number of homicides. Obviously, far from wishing to increase arms transfers in order to be more in sync with homicide rates, we decided, a year ago, to study this issue and periodically monitor its development based on our interest in understanding the primary legal entry and exit routes of firearms and ammunition. The result is a report - based on customs information as stated by Latin American and Caribbean countries and their respective partners - whose objective is to describe the movement of the SALW imports and exports, as well as ammunition and parts, during the present decade. Based on this data, we answer the following questions: who exported and who imported? From whom? What? And when? It is worth restating that the intent of this report is not to explain the cause of arms imports and exports by Latin American countries. Beyond merely providing information, we do indeed wish to awaken, by means of the information presented here, the curiosity of other researches, activists and government staff members such that they may continue to perform research in their countries regarding the transparency of this information, on who is using the transferred SALW, and how. The data used for this report came from the NISAT database, which contains more than 800,000 entries for SALW transfers worldwide since 1962. The NISAT database gets its information from different sources, COMTRADE among them. In this study we decided to restrict ourselves to data from this latter source because, in theory, all countries report transfers to the UN. This data is declared in accordance with the Harmonized System (SH) merchandise classification system. The HS has existed since 1988and, in 2007, was revised for the fourth time; previous revisions were in 1992, 1996 and in 2002. Regarding the period analyzed, we are looking at data up until 2006, since at the time the study closed this was the most recent year available on NISAT....

January 6, 2006
University of Toronto

Abstract:

The Project produced two types of publications: thematic reports and case studies. Together, these papers make up an integrated package of materials. Thematic reports provide readers with an overarching understanding of general issues relating to environment, population, and security. Case studies examine in considerable detail these linkages in specific countries of interest to policymakers. These two types of reports complement each other: the thematic reports provide theoretical insights that can be explored in the case studies; the case studies provide illustrations of crucial theoretical points raised in the thematic reports. Each thematic report and case study was reviewed by several leading authorities before dissemination....

September 2, 2004
Amnesty International

Abstract:

Against the international trend away from the use of the death penalty, executions have increased in the English speaking Caribbean (ESC) in recent years. Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, the Bahamas and St. Kitts and St. Nevis and St. Vincent and the Grenadines have all carried out executions in the last seven years. Jamaica, Antigua, Grenada, St Lucia, Dominica, Belize and Barbados all currently have condemned prisoners and continue to impose sentences of death.

November 19, 2003
Amnesty International

Abstract:

This report documents human rights issues in the Bahamas relating to detainees in the custody of immigration, the police and the prison service. The report concludes that urgent action is needed to end arbitrary detention for immigration detainees, improve conditions amounting to cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, investigate reports of ill-treatment and torture and better protect the rights of asylum-seekers, migrants and other prisoners, especially children.

July 16, 2012
United States Institute of Peace

Abstract:

An extraordinary wave of popular protest swept the Arab world in 2011. Massive popular mobilization brought down long-ruling leaders in Tunisia and Egypt, helped spark bloody struggles in Bahrain, Libya, Syria, and Yemen, and fundamentally reshaped the nature of politics in the region.

New media—at least that which uses bit.ly linkages—did not appear to play a significant role in either in-country collective action or regional diffusion during this period. This lack of impact does not mean that social media—or digital media generally—were unimportant. Nor does it preclude the possibility that other new media technologies were significant in these contexts, or even that different Twitter or link data would show different results. But it does mean that at least in terms of media that use bit.ly links [especially Twitter], data do not provide strong support for claims of significant new media impact on Arab Spring political protests. New media outlets that use bit.ly are more likely to spread information outside the region than inside it, acting like a megaphone more than a rallying cry. This dissemination could be significant if it led to a boomerang effect that brought international pressure to bear on autocratic regimes, or helped reduce a regime’s tendency to crack down violently on protests. It is increasingly difficult to separate new media from old media. In the Arab Spring, the two reinforced each other. New media must be understood as part of a wider information arena in which new and old media form complex interrelationships.

Of the four major Arab Spring protests analyzed—Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and Bahrain—large differences were found across the four in the amount of information consumed via social media. The events in Egypt and in Libya [#jan25 and #feb17, respectively] garnered many more clicks on a much larger number of URLs than those in Tunisia and Bahrain. The protests in Egypt and Libya attracted more attention than those in other countries and also focused that attention on a more delimited set of content. Particular hashtags, such as #jan25, received a disproportionate proportion of attention. The trends also suggest very sharp peaks of attention pegged to dramatic events, such as the departure of Ben Ali in Tunisia, the Pearl Roundabout raid in Bahrain, and several key days during the protest in Egypt—especially the “Friday of departure,” when Mubarak resigned....

June 20, 2012
Barcelona Centre for International Affairs

Abstract:

Facing the failures, and the horrors, of non-democratic regimes, democrats tend to rest comfortably on the famous Churchillian dictum [democracy as “the worst political system, barring all the others”]. Thus, they tend to be in denial of the more than evident problems and contradictions that deeply affect today’s image – and substance – of democracy. The problem is not so much that of revising traditional politological definitions, but rather of assessing in a critical way the premises - and the promises - of democracy in the light of contemporary societal challenges....

June 14, 2012
Chatham House

Abstract:

Bahrain faces a long-running local dispute about the sharing of power and wealth. While there has never been a simple division between Sunni and Shia, politics have become increasingly polarized along sectarian lines, a trend exacerbated by outside actors.

Since the report of the royally established Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry [the ‘Bassiouni report’] in November 2011, the government has taken some steps to address human rights abuses and to create new mechanisms for the oversight of the security services. However, the effect of these potentially important mechanisms will depend on the political will invested in them. So far the indications are negative.

There is still scope to find common ground between the different elements of Bahraini society in support of a constitutional monarchy, based on a revitalized social contract, not on sect-based power-sharing.

There may now be an opportunity to develop a fresh GCC mediation effort in the context of discussions on greater GCC unity. Conversely, the failure to reach a political solution to the problems in Bahrain may undermine the drive towards GCC unity by contributing to both political and sectarian tensions within the GCC.

The repression in Bahrain, a Western ally, complicates and hinders the efforts of the US and UK to sketch out a new policy towards a Middle East where demands for democracy have become increasingly vocal....

May 28, 2012
Physicians for Human Rights

Abstract:

In February 2011, the Government of Bahrain began targeting health professionals who treated protesters. In April 2012, PHR's Richard Sollom, Deputy Director, and Holly Atkinson, MD, FACP, past President of PHR's Board and volunteer expert, authored a report showing the devastation on Bahrain's health system that have resulted from the Government of Bahrain’s continued assault on doctors, patients, and the healthcare system.

April 17, 2012
Amnesty International

Abstract:

The Bahraini government's response to the findings of an international commission of inquiry has proved inadequate as human rights violations continue, Amnesty International said in a new report on Tuesday. The 58-page Flawed Reforms: Bahrain fails to achieve justice for protesters reveals that piecemeal reforms have failed to provide justice for victims of human rights violations, despite the government's insistence that it will learn from the events of February and March 2011.

"With the world's eyes on Bahrain as it prepares to host the Grand Prix, no-one should be under any illusions that the country's human rights crisis is over," said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, Amnesty International's Middle East and North Africa Deputy Director. "The authorities are trying to portray the country as being on the road to reform, but we continue to receive reports of torture and use of unnecessary and excessive force against protests. Their reforms have only scratched the surface." "The government's huge financial investment in international experts to help them reform will go to waste unless it shows real political will to take difficult decisions - in particular, holding to account senior members of the security forces accused of violations, releasing prisoners of conscience and addressing the underlying discrimination against the Shi'a majority population."

Following the November 2011 report of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) - sometimes known as the "Bassiouni Commission" - Amnesty International has found that despite some institutional and other reforms, the government's overall response has been inadequate....

July 10, 2012
Saferworld

Abstract:

Over the past decade, concerns have grown that unemployed youths in the impoverished North Bengal region are an easy target for recruitment by extremist groups. Saferworld supported the Bangladesh Enterprise Institute to investigate this issue through a youth perception survey on safety and security in the region, including concerns associated with violent extremism.

The report presents an analysis of primary and secondary research conducted between November 2010 and April 2011 by BEI with technical and financial support from Saferworld. BEI surveyed over 600 men and women aged 18–35.

Young people should be directly consulted on ways in which to improve safety and security in their communities and should be actively engaged in this endeavour. The report makes a series of recommendations to policy makers, security sector providers and other key stakeholders on how to achieve this, including through promoting community security initiatives; developing an education reform programme, and creating employment opportunities and platforms to engage young people....

July 4, 2012
Human Rights Watch

Abstract:

The 57-page report provides a detailed account of the mutiny and documents serious abuses in the aftermath, including torture by security forces of people in custody on suspicion of planning the mutiny, and of ongoing concerns about fair trial violations in mass trials of hundreds of suspects at a time. The notorious Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) has allegedly been involved in many of the abuses.

June 13, 2012
International Crisis Group

Abstract:

Bangladesh could face a protracted political crisis in the lead-up to the 2013 elections unless Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government changes course and takes a more conciliatory approach towards the political opposition and the military. In December 2008, following two years of a military-backed caretaker government, the Awami League [AL] secured a landslide victory in what were widely acknowledged to be the fairest elections in the country’s history. The hope, both at home and abroad, was that Sheikh Hasina would use her mandate to revitalise democratic institutions and pursue national reconciliation, ending the pernicious cycle of zero-sum politics between her AL and its rival, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party [BNP]. Three and a half years on, hope has been replaced by deep disillusionment, as two familiar threats to Bangladesh’s democracy have returned: the prospect of election-related violence and the risks stemming from an unstable and hostile military.

Instead of changing the old pattern of politics, the AL government has systematically used parliament, the executive and the courts to reinforce it, including by filing corruption cases against Khaleda Zia, the BNP chairperson, and employing security agencies to curb opposition activities. Most worrying, however, is the AL-dominated parliament’s adoption of the fifteenth amendment to the constitution, which scraps a provision mandating the formation of a neutral caretaker administration to oversee general elections. The caretaker system was a major practical and psychological barrier to election-rigging by the party in power. Removing it has undermined opposition parties’ confidence in the electoral system.

The fifteenth amendment carries other dangers as well. For example, anyone who criticises the constitution may now be prosecuted for sedition; new procedures have rendered further amendments virtually impossible; and the death penalty is prescribed for plotting to overthrow an elected government – a thinly veiled warning to the military, which has done so four times in as many decades....

June 13, 2012
Cooperation for Peace and Unity

Abstract:

This study focuses on Afghanistan and is one of a series that DFID has commissioned to examine frequently given hypotheses for radicalisation. Radicalisation is here defined as ‘the social processes by which people are brought to condone, legitimise, support or carry out violence for political or religious objectives’. The focus in this study is on why men join armed groups that present as religiously motivated, and how much support there is for this from their wider communities.

This study takes as its starting point the findings presented in DFID’s Strategic Conflict Analysis for Afghanistan [SCA], undertaken in 2008. The SCA provided an overview of why men join armed groups in general. This study builds on SCA findings on motivation in two ways. First, by conducting face to face interviews with ‘ordinary people’ in insurgency areas it allows for a more nuanced understanding of why there is considerable public support for the two main groups fighting the government [the Taliban and Hizb-i Islami]. In addition, it enables an assessment of whether ‘radicalisation’ in an HMG sense is occurring because it focuses only on areas where either the Taliban or Hizb-i Islami operate or have control. Thus it was possible to come to some conclusions about whether men join these groups because of their strong religious ideology or for other reasons....

May 7, 2012
Saferworld

Abstract:

What are citizens' perceptions of the security sector in Bangladesh? What are the lessons for security sector reform? This paper reports results of a public perceptions survey on the police, army, the Rapid Action Battalion, defence parties and border guards. While citizens of Bangladesh feel safer today and crime has declined slightly, a large number of challenges remain that all security providers must address. The Bangladesh police and criminal justice system are in most need of reform; greater links between formal and informal security and justice mechanisms would improve security provision.

This comprehensive 3,000-person household survey was conducted in 2009. It addressed the Bangladesh police, Army, Ansar and Village Defence Parties (Ansar and VDP) and the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR), now known as the Border Guard. Interviews with current and former security sector staff and non-governmental (NGO) experts were also conducted....

September 16, 2008
En la Mira - The Latin American Small Arms Watch

Abstract:

Although all countries, in theory report their authorized transfers - and such information may even be available in certain public databases - the task of providing an overview of SALW transfers, their parts and munitions, is an arduous one. Nonetheless, despite the difficulties, we have some extremely positive initiatives on a global scale, such as for example, the Small Arms Survey, recognized as an important source of information, especially on SALW production and transfers, as well as the Norwegian Initiative on Small Arms Transfers (NISAT) which has a database containing transfer records going back to 1962.Despite these important initiatives, themselves when researchers, activists and policy makers try to understand a regional market, such as Latin America and the Caribbean, they encounter a dearth of information. With the intent of addressing this shortcoming, En La Mira has, since 2007, dedicated an issue to transfers of SALWs, parts and ammunition in this region. Further, according to statistics from the United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database (UN-Comtrade or Comtrade), USD 6.7 billion were exported between 2004 and 2006, while USD 6.5 billion were imported. Despite the fact that Latin America and the Caribbean represent 6% and 3%, respectively, of total transfers worldwide during this period, 42% of firearms related homicide is committed in the region. This discrepancy between the international transfer volume share and the levels of armsrelated violence in Latin America and the Caribbean calls attention to itself, above all because of the tragic and startling number of homicides. Obviously, far from wishing to increase arms transfers in order to be more in sync with homicide rates, we decided, a year ago, to study this issue and periodically monitor its development based on our interest in understanding the primary legal entry and exit routes of firearms and ammunition. The result is a report - based on customs information as stated by Latin American and Caribbean countries and their respective partners - whose objective is to describe the movement of the SALW imports and exports, as well as ammunition and parts, during the present decade. Based on this data, we answer the following questions: who exported and who imported? From whom? What? And when? It is worth restating that the intent of this report is not to explain the cause of arms imports and exports by Latin American countries. Beyond merely providing information, we do indeed wish to awaken, by means of the information presented here, the curiosity of other researches, activists and government staff members such that they may continue to perform research in their countries regarding the transparency of this information, on who is using the transferred SALW, and how. The data used for this report came from the NISAT database, which contains more than 800,000 entries for SALW transfers worldwide since 1962. The NISAT database gets its information from different sources, COMTRADE among them. In this study we decided to restrict ourselves to data from this latter source because, in theory, all countries report transfers to the UN. This data is declared in accordance with the Harmonized System (SH) merchandise classification system. The HS has existed since 1988and, in 2007, was revised for the fourth time; previous revisions were in 1992, 1996 and in 2002. Regarding the period analyzed, we are looking at data up until 2006, since at the time the study closed this was the most recent year available on NISAT....

September 2, 2004
Amnesty International

Abstract:

Against the international trend away from the use of the death penalty, executions have increased in the English speaking Caribbean (ESC) in recent years. Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, the Bahamas and St. Kitts and St. Nevis and St. Vincent and the Grenadines have all carried out executions in the last seven years. Jamaica, Antigua, Grenada, St Lucia, Dominica, Belize and Barbados all currently have condemned prisoners and continue to impose sentences of death.

October 31, 2011
Democracy Reporting International // Institute for European Policy

Abstract:

Prior to the Arab Spring, the last period to experience such great political events was when communism collapsed in Central Europe and the Soviet Union between 1989 and 1991. This change presented an opportunity for each of the countries to introduce new political systems and build democratic state institutions. While the history, culture and context of Central and Eastern Europe is different to North Africa and the Middle East the European experience of political transition can still offer important insights into the nature of the challenges the Arab countries are likely to face.

This collection of articles responds to requests made by some Arab reformers to deepen their knowledge of how political change in Eastern Europe unfolded. Rather than focussing on the successful transitions, it presents case studies which recall the difficulties, pitfalls and political missteps which jeopardised these countries’ transitions and even caused some of them to fail.

The collection examines transitions in seven countries, of which three focus on events during the ‘first wave’ of transition from 1991 to 1996 [Albania, Azerbaijan and Belarus] and four explore ‘second wave’ transitions which occurred between 2003 and 2010 [Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova and Ukraine]....

September 26, 2011
Freedom House

Abstract:

Freedom House has prepared this special report entitled Worst of the Worst: The World’s Most Repressive Societies, as a companion to its annual survey on the state of global political rights and civil liberties, Freedom in the World. The special report provides summary country reports, tables, and graphical information on the countries that receive the lowest combined ratings for political rights and civil liberties in Freedom in the World, and whose citizens endure systematic and pervasive human rights violations.

The report serves a reminder that over 1.6 billion people—more than 24 percent of the world’s population—suffer every day from the basic indignities of not being able to express their thoughts and opinions, of not having a say in who governs them and how the wealth of their land and labor is spent, and of being unable to obtain justice for crimes perpetrated against them. Hundreds of thousands of human beings in these countries languish every day in prisons or labor camps— generally in subhuman conditions and subject to physical or mental abuse—purely for their political or religious beliefs. This report seeks to highlight their plight and serves as a call to the world’s governments, policymakers, human rights organizations, and democracy advocates to speak out and use whatever resources they can bring to bear to improve respect for the most basic human rights in these countries....

August 2, 2011
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

Abstract:

People become refugees for many reasons, not least because of violent civil conflicts in which ordinary citizens are the greatest victims. This has led to large numbers of women, men and children being forced to seek sanctuary in their neighbouring countries and further afield. These people can remain displaced for years, or even decades. Some may fear that the prolonged presence of refugees will have a negative impact on their community or country.

In reality, if given the opportunity to integrate and belong, former refugees are able to be self-reliant and to contribute socially and economically, in many cases becoming an asset to their host States.

Local integration is one of the three ‘durable solutions’ for refugees developed by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), in partnership with host and origin countries. The other durable solutions are voluntary repatriation to the refugees’ country of origin, and resettlement in a third country. Local integration is particularly relevant when people cannot return to their country of origin in a foreseeable future, or have developed strong ties with their host communities through business or marriage. It is based on the assumption that refugees will remain in their country of asylum permanently and find a solution to their plight in that State, possibly but not necessarily though acquiring citizenship. Local integration is all about partnerships and collaboration between agencies and countries in the pursuit of collective solutions. Ultimately, however, both the vision and leadership of host governments and the support of the international community are critical to the ongoing success of local integration strategies.

...

May 2, 2011
The Committee to Protect Journalists

Abstract:

The world’s worst online oppressors are using an array of tactics, some reflecting astonishing levels of sophistication, others reminiscent of old-school techniques. From China’s high-level malware attacks to Syria’s brute-force imprisonments, this may be only the dawn of online oppression.

In reporting news from the world’s most troubled nations, journalists have made a seismic shift this year in their reliance on the Internet and other digital tools. Blogging, video sharing, text messaging, and live-streaming from cellphones brought images of popular unrest from the central square of Cairo and the main boulevard of Tunis to the rest of the world. Yet the technology used to report the news has been matched in many ways by the tools used to suppress information. Many of the oppressors’ tactics show an increasing sophistication, from the state-supported email in China designed to take over journalists’ personal computers, to the carefully timed cyber-attacks on news websites in Belarus. Still other tools in the oppressor’s kit are as old as the press itself, including imprisonment of online writers in Syria, and the use of violence against bloggers in Russia.

To mark World Press Freedom Day, May 3, the Committee to Protect Journalists is examining the 10 prevailing tactics of online oppression worldwide and the countries that have taken the lead in their use. What is most surprising about these Online Oppressors is not who they are—they are all nations with long records of repression—but how swiftly they adapted old strategies to the online world.

In two nations we cite, Egypt and Tunisia, the regimes have changed, but their successors have not categorically broken with past repressive practices. The tactics of other nations—such as Iran, which employs sophisticated tools to destroy anti-censorship technology, and Ethiopia, which exerts monopolistic control over the Internet—are being watched, and emulated, by repressive regimes worldwide.

Here are the 10 prevalent tools for online oppression....

March 14, 2011
Institute for Security and Development Policy

Abstract:

The events in Libya have once again put focus on Belarus as an arms exporter. Belarus has admitted that it sold or delivered weapons worth an estimated US$1.1 billion in 1999-2006 according to the Congressional Research Service. A significant number of these sales went to state-sponsored terrorism, extremist groups or states involved in conflict. Belarus is also one of the top arms exporters to rogue states.

March 21, 2011
United States Institute of Peace

Abstract:

Since 2007, Belgium has displayed a rather surreal degree of political chaos. Belgian politicians seemed to be on a merry-go-round. They have provoked three cabinet resignations, 24 “royal” mediators, and more than 420 days of coalition formation. With the rise of Flemish nationalism and inter-communal tensions, the country seems to suffer from an intractable ethno-linguistic conflict.

The political elites of a country that used to serve as a model for multi-ethnic societies in war-torn countries are now exploiting linguistic and cultural differences and stirring up tensions to advance a parochial political agenda. Decentralization is unavoidable, and perhaps even necessary for Belgium’s future welfare. But the infusion of identity-based and exclusionary arguments into political negotiations about state reform is detrimental and has no place in a social welfare state at the center of Europe....

March 14, 2011
Chatham House

Abstract:

• The protection of asylum-seekers in Europe is dealt with under three principal bodies of law: the UN Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees of 1951, the law of the European Union and the soft law developed by the Council of Europe.
• Member states of the Council of Europe are also bound by the judgments of the European Convention on Human Rights; although the convention makes no reference to refugee protection, its provisions and the judgments of its court in Strasbourg impose important obligations on states in respect of asylum.
• The entry into force of the Amsterdam Treaty in 1999 initiated the first phase of the creation of the Common European Asylum System (CEAS), which aimed to harmonize refugee protection among member states while enabling them to meet their international obligations in that respect.
• The harmonizing measures adopted by the EU have been subject to severe criticism and the practices of member states reveal a systemic failure to comply with international refugee protection obligations. • While there have been improvements in European refugee policy, significant challenges must be
addressed before Europe can regain its reputation as a champion of the rights of the refugee. This is given particular urgency by recent events in North Africa, which may lead to large numbers of persons fleeing violence and disorder....

September 7, 2010
Combating Terrorism Center // West Point

Abstract:

1 Defining the Punjabi Taliban Network By Hassan Abbas; 4 The 2008 Belgium Cell and FATA’s Terrorist Pipeline By Paul Cruickshank; 8 President Obama’s Overseas Terrorism Challenge By Tom Sanderson; 11 Improving India’s Counterterrorism Policy after Mumbai By Paul Staniland; 14 Leveraging History in AQIM Communications By Lianne Kennedy Boudali; 17 AQAP a Rising Threat in Yemen By Brian O’Neill; 19 The Role of the United Nations in Defeating Al-Qa`ida and Associated Groups By Richard Barrett...

October 7, 2009
Henry L. Stimson Center

Abstract:

In 2001, when foreign militaries – including the American, Belgian, British, Canadian, Danish, German, Italian, and Turkish – entered the country, Afghans welcomed them warmly, strewing flowers as they passed through towns and villages. There was widespread hope that the country would finally see peace and stability after decades of war. Eight years later, however, there is still a consistent failure to establish the appropriate mechanisms for security and development in Afghanistan. Since the Bonn Agreement, both security assistance and development assistance have taken a short term view – primarily addressing immediate and acute problems rather than identifying and responding to underlying weaknesses. Such a “quick fix” approach has cost time and popular support from those eager for change, and has wasted resources and opportunities. Significant amounts of aid are re-routed back to the donors’ home countries through contractors and consultants. The creation of parallel structures of governance such as command and control centers and prisons has undermined national authority, inhibited national initiative, weakened security, and slowed development. Prospects for sustainable development are slim, and the initially close relationship between the Afghan public and international forces has deteriorated. Underlying the current approach is the assumption that Afghanistan could only be rescued by an enormous international intervention. However the presence of the international community, even if extensive and well-directed, will not be useful if Afghans are not in charge of their own recovery and development. Although the international community and the Afghan government have rhetorically committed themselves to inclusive nation-building, significant progress has yet to be made in including a wide cross-section of Afghan society....

August 11, 2009
Foundation for Defense of Democracies

Abstract:

Terrorism is not a new phenomenon, nor is it likely to disappear anytime soon. It is not the exclusive domain of any single religion or ideology, nor do all terrorists come from the same socioeconomic class or share the same mental pathologies.1 In part, the diversity within contemporary terrorism is what makes it so great a challenge. This report describes, in great detail, the state of terrorism in Western countries over the course of 2008. Before turning to terrorism events in the West during 2008 and key developments within Western countries’ legal systems, we are going to pinpoint a few broad trends—a few currents that run through the various incidents and cases that follow. As this report will show, concerns about the contemporary connection between criminal activities and terrorism are clear in Bulgaria, a country rife with organized crime. An April 2008 parliamentary report charged that profits from the country’s drug trade were channeled to Middle Eastern terrorist groups....

September 16, 2008
En la Mira - The Latin American Small Arms Watch

Abstract:

Although all countries, in theory report their authorized transfers - and such information may even be available in certain public databases - the task of providing an overview of SALW transfers, their parts and munitions, is an arduous one. Nonetheless, despite the difficulties, we have some extremely positive initiatives on a global scale, such as for example, the Small Arms Survey, recognized as an important source of information, especially on SALW production and transfers, as well as the Norwegian Initiative on Small Arms Transfers (NISAT) which has a database containing transfer records going back to 1962.Despite these important initiatives, themselves when researchers, activists and policy makers try to understand a regional market, such as Latin America and the Caribbean, they encounter a dearth of information. With the intent of addressing this shortcoming, En La Mira has, since 2007, dedicated an issue to transfers of SALWs, parts and ammunition in this region. Further, according to statistics from the United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database (UN-Comtrade or Comtrade), USD 6.7 billion were exported between 2004 and 2006, while USD 6.5 billion were imported. Despite the fact that Latin America and the Caribbean represent 6% and 3%, respectively, of total transfers worldwide during this period, 42% of firearms related homicide is committed in the region. This discrepancy between the international transfer volume share and the levels of armsrelated violence in Latin America and the Caribbean calls attention to itself, above all because of the tragic and startling number of homicides. Obviously, far from wishing to increase arms transfers in order to be more in sync with homicide rates, we decided, a year ago, to study this issue and periodically monitor its development based on our interest in understanding the primary legal entry and exit routes of firearms and ammunition. The result is a report - based on customs information as stated by Latin American and Caribbean countries and their respective partners - whose objective is to describe the movement of the SALW imports and exports, as well as ammunition and parts, during the present decade. Based on this data, we answer the following questions: who exported and who imported? From whom? What? And when? It is worth restating that the intent of this report is not to explain the cause of arms imports and exports by Latin American countries. Beyond merely providing information, we do indeed wish to awaken, by means of the information presented here, the curiosity of other researches, activists and government staff members such that they may continue to perform research in their countries regarding the transparency of this information, on who is using the transferred SALW, and how. The data used for this report came from the NISAT database, which contains more than 800,000 entries for SALW transfers worldwide since 1962. The NISAT database gets its information from different sources, COMTRADE among them. In this study we decided to restrict ourselves to data from this latter source because, in theory, all countries report transfers to the UN. This data is declared in accordance with the Harmonized System (SH) merchandise classification system. The HS has existed since 1988and, in 2007, was revised for the fourth time; previous revisions were in 1992, 1996 and in 2002. Regarding the period analyzed, we are looking at data up until 2006, since at the time the study closed this was the most recent year available on NISAT....

May 28, 2007
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

Abstract:

The world is coming to recognise the interdependence of security and development issues. Moral imperatives aside, poverty is no longer acceptable for reasons of simple common safety. Technology and globalisation have made it possible for even the most marginalized groups to pose a threat to the most powerful. Areas allowed to descend into social disarray generate, and provide refuge for, organised criminals and political militants. Global security requires global development. The problem is that the opposite is also true: development requires security. Investors do not put their money in places where the rule of law does not prevail. Skilled labour does not reside in countries where personal safety is at risk. Crime and corruption are derailing attempts to address the global polarisation of wealth, as people choose not to invest their lives or their money where they are insecure. For the poor that remain, the threat of crime retards their efforts to better themselves, as they structure their activities around avoiding victimisation. Trust among countrymen is lost, and with it goes social cohesion. Cynicism about the ability to succeed within the law breeds further insecurity, and whole regions can find themselves locked into a downward spiral of victimisation and social disinvestment. Further, crime and corruption undermine democracy itself. The primary responsibility of the state is to ensure citizen security, and when it fails to establish basic internal order, it loses the confidence of the people. When civil servants and elected officials come to be viewed as part of the crime problem, citizens effectively disown their government. They become subjects rather than citizens. Whatever role the state might play in development is seriously challenged by the loss of popular support. It is therefore imperative that crime be addressed as a key development issue. Until threats to life and property can be brought to acceptable levels, developing countries with serious crime problems will struggle to gain the public confidence needed for forward progress. A foundational level of order must be established before development objectives can be realised. Due to its geographic location between the world's cocaine suppliers and its main consumers, Central America has been exposed to exogenous organised crime pressures that would be challenging for countries many times as large. Unfortunately, the region is particularly vulnerable to incursion by organised crime due to a range of domestic factors, and this report opens by considering several of these, including social and economic pressures, lack of law enforcement capacity, and a history of conflict or authoritarian rule. It then looks at the nature of organised crime and violence in the region in some detail. Finally#, it considers how the crime problem is undermining development efforts....

December 4, 2006
Center for Women's Global Leadership

Abstract:

Strengthening Resistance focuses on the points of intersection in the social, political and public health crises of violence against women and HIV/AIDS. The report uses a human rights lens to focus on critical political challenges and on innovative strategies used by activists worldwide as they respond to the links between violence and HIV/AIDS. From street theater to telenovelas/soap operas to traditional lobbying, activists in both VAW and HIV/AIDS communities are beginning to work together to focus attention to ways both crises are causes and consequences of each other. Neither can be addressed adequately without taking into account the links between them and the human rights implications of each crisis on its own, and in conjunction with the other. Strengthening Resistance is designed as an overview of the most salient issues, and is meant for activists and policy makers alike who may be familiar with HIV/AIDS, violence against women or human rights but not necessarily the nexus across all of these areas. The report highlights nine creative advocacy initiatives from different countries and regions, offers recommendations to a range of actors and contains a resource section for further study....

February 8, 2006
HIV InSite Database of Country and Regional Indicators

Abstract:

Access to facsheets on HIV/AIDS in Belize.

February 8, 2006
U.S. Department of State

Abstract:

Belize is a constitutional parliamentary democracy governed by the Prime Minister, a cabinet of ministers, and a legislative assembly. The Governor General represented Queen Elizabeth II in the largely ceremonial role of Head of State. Prime Minister Said Musa's People's United Party (PUP) held 22 of the 29 seats in the House of Representatives following generally free and fair multiparty elections in March of 2003. The judiciary is independent. The Police Department has primary responsibility for law enforcement and maintaining order. The Belize Defense Force (BDF) is responsible for external security but, when deemed appropriate by civilian authorities, may be tasked to assist the police department. Armed BDF soldiers routinely accompanied police patrols in Belize City in an attempt to reduce the violent crime rate. The police report to the Minister of Home Affairs, while the BDF report to the Minister of Defence. The civilian authorities maintained effective control of the security forces. Some members of the security forces committed human rights abuses. ...

July 18, 2012
Save the Children // World Vision

Abstract:

More than 18 million people are currently struggling through a crisis in the Sahel region of West Africa. The overarching driver of this crisis is not drought, nor a food deficit. The most vulnerable families are in crisis because they have no protection against shocks like grain prices doubling. This is the “resilience deficit”*, rooted in structural causes, neglected for too long, and exacerbated by exceptionally high food prices.

Current estimates suggest that over one million children will face severe and life-threatening malnutrition during this crisis. Even in a “non-crisis” year, an estimated 645,000 children die in the Sahel of largely preventable and treatable causes, with 226,000 of these deaths being directly linked to malnutrition. Acute malnutrition affects 10%-14% of children in Senegal, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Burkina Faso, and more than 15% of children in Chad. These rates demonstrate that traditional development policies are failing to save children in the Sahel from a permanent, large-scale nutrition crisis.

This report, a joint initiative by Save the Children and World Vision, aims to assess progress, lessons learned, and challenges in promoting “resilience” in the Sahel, with a particular focus on the well-being of children. The study demonstrates the need for a massive response by governments and partners in order to tackle child malnutrition – chronic and acute, together. It offers evidence-based, tangible recommendations for a comprehensive, child-focused approach to resilience in the Sahel.

People’s access to food at prices they can afford, and their capacity to absorb or adapt to new shocks have been severely undermined by the Sahel crises in 2005, 2008 and 2010. The vast majority of the most vulnerable households in the region have had neither the time, nor the necessary support, to get out of debt, or restore their normal means of making a living....

April 24, 2012
University of Oslo // Centre for the Study of Civil War // Peace Research Institute Oslo

Abstract:

Transboundary rivers may contribute to increased hostility between riparians. This may contribute to increased hostility between riparians. This article accepts earlier arguments about water scarcity. Structural Scarcity occurs in river basins with unequal resource distribution, often created by geographic asymmetries. Hence, this article argues that the geographic asymmetries present in many river basins are key determinants of conflict risk among riparians. In a river basin the upstream state enjoys an inherent advantage and upstream river use is likely to produce unidirectional externalities that harm the states downstream. This in turn, is likely to produce grievances or claims downstream that may contribute to worsen overall state relations and consequently increase the risk of dyadic conflict....

March 2, 2012
International Alert // Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research

Abstract:

The Niger River is the third longest river in Africa, flowing for 4,200 km from its source in the Guinea highlands, within the humid tropics, through Mali and Niger with their semi-arid Sahelian climates, to the Niger detla in Nigeria. The drainage basin covers a surface area of just over 2.2 million square km, extending into 10 countries. Seventy-six percent of the basin area is located within Mali, Niger and Nigeria. The Niger River and its tributaries are a key source of water for the estimated 100 million people living in the basin, especially for the drier regions within the western Sahel zone.

This report examines the links between environmental stress, climate change, human security, conflict and adaptation at different scales and localities along the Niger River. Despite a growing interest in the possible linkages between climate and conflict, limited evidence on these linkages exists, much of which is contradictory. The Niger Basin has experienced significant climate variability during the 20th century, making it suitable for studying the links between climate and conflict.

This report explores a number of issues. Firstly, it examines how climatic and environmental stresses influence water resources and human security in the Niger Basin. Secondly, the report examines whether climate stress on water resources increases the risk of conflict. Thirdly, it asks what types of adaptations, conflict resolution and governance mechanisms provide resilience to climate stresses and reduce the risk of conflict....

July 8, 2011
Chatham House

Abstract:

I consider it a singular honour to have been invited today by Chatham House to address this august forum. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which I represent, is a regional organisation which has, over the years, gained your attention only for the unfortunate reasons of state implosion and instability caused by bad governance and marginalisation. I therefore welcome the opportunity to throw further light on its objectives, challenges, and achievements, which factors have effectively brought together fifteen West African states in the enterprise of improving upon the living standards of 230 million people as well as integrating them.

The term ‘Chatham House Rule’ is today an internationally-accepted cliché that this Institute has contributed to international diplomacy discourse, a reference norm in rigorous and policy-oriented exchanges on global peace and security. I therefore view your invitation to lead today’s discourse about ‘Democracy in the context of Regional Integration in West Africa’ as an unique honour for me personally, and a recognition of ECOWAS as a leading brand in regional integration.

Ladies and gentlemen, the evolution of ECOWAS can only be properly understood against the backdrop of the fascinating history and circumstances of West Africa since establishing contact with the world beyond its borders. The fact that slavery, colonialism, as well as racial and economic marginalisation, had left an intrinsic yearning for freedom, unity and solidarity among peoples of African descent everywhere defines its wish to integrate its states and peoples....

May 24, 2011
Security Council Report

Abstract:

This special research report provides an analysis of a set of new issues that have been emerging in the West African subregion and possible implications for the Security Council in the coming year(s). It identifies some key emerging threats to peace and security in the 16-state subregion and their linkages to existing security challenges. The report points to a key feature: the fact that some of the new threats are essentially criminal rather than political in nature. However, it explains also the growing political and security implications. The report also highlights action already taken by the Council to recognise these threats and considers options available to the Council to tackle these issues going forward.

The raw material for the study was derived from literature research; field research in a number of countries in the West African subregion (including Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Senegal, Ghana and Nigeria); and interviews in the region with diplomats, government officials and officials of relevant international intergovernmental bodies (e.g. UN Office in West Africa or UNOWA, UN Office for Drugs and Crime or UNODC, the Economic Community of West African States or ECOWAS and the AU), NGOs and academics....

September 16, 2008
En la Mira - The Latin American Small Arms Watch

Abstract:

Although all countries, in theory report their authorized transfers - and such information may even be available in certain public databases - the task of providing an overview of SALW transfers, their parts and munitions, is an arduous one. Nonetheless, despite the difficulties, we have some extremely positive initiatives on a global scale, such as for example, the Small Arms Survey, recognized as an important source of information, especially on SALW production and transfers, as well as the Norwegian Initiative on Small Arms Transfers (NISAT) which has a database containing transfer records going back to 1962.Despite these important initiatives, themselves when researchers, activists and policy makers try to understand a regional market, such as Latin America and the Caribbean, they encounter a dearth of information. With the intent of addressing this shortcoming, En La Mira has, since 2007, dedicated an issue to transfers of SALWs, parts and ammunition in this region. Further, according to statistics from the United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database (UN-Comtrade or Comtrade), USD 6.7 billion were exported between 2004 and 2006, while USD 6.5 billion were imported. Despite the fact that Latin America and the Caribbean represent 6% and 3%, respectively, of total transfers worldwide during this period, 42% of firearms related homicide is committed in the region. This discrepancy between the international transfer volume share and the levels of armsrelated violence in Latin America and the Caribbean calls attention to itself, above all because of the tragic and startling number of homicides. Obviously, far from wishing to increase arms transfers in order to be more in sync with homicide rates, we decided, a year ago, to study this issue and periodically monitor its development based on our interest in understanding the primary legal entry and exit routes of firearms and ammunition. The result is a report - based on customs information as stated by Latin American and Caribbean countries and their respective partners - whose objective is to describe the movement of the SALW imports and exports, as well as ammunition and parts, during the present decade. Based on this data, we answer the following questions: who exported and who imported? From whom? What? And when? It is worth restating that the intent of this report is not to explain the cause of arms imports and exports by Latin American countries. Beyond merely providing information, we do indeed wish to awaken, by means of the information presented here, the curiosity of other researches, activists and government staff members such that they may continue to perform research in their countries regarding the transparency of this information, on who is using the transferred SALW, and how. The data used for this report came from the NISAT database, which contains more than 800,000 entries for SALW transfers worldwide since 1962. The NISAT database gets its information from different sources, COMTRADE among them. In this study we decided to restrict ourselves to data from this latter source because, in theory, all countries report transfers to the UN. This data is declared in accordance with the Harmonized System (SH) merchandise classification system. The HS has existed since 1988and, in 2007, was revised for the fourth time; previous revisions were in 1992, 1996 and in 2002. Regarding the period analyzed, we are looking at data up until 2006, since at the time the study closed this was the most recent year available on NISAT....

November 12, 2009
Pak Institute for Peace Studies

Abstract:

This report gives a brief summary of each of the major conflicts occurring in South Asia, from intra-state conflicts (often multiple per country) in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Bhutan, to inter-state disputes including India-China, India-Pakistan, India-Sri Lanka, India-Nepal, and India-Bangladesh. The report also describes the impact of the conflicts on regional stability, and an analysis of changes in the nature of the conflicts: Since the late 2001, South Asia, on the one hand has been facing a sudden growth in the intensity of conflicts and on the other hand witnessing newly emerged conflicts with new dimensions. The post 9/11 era has also influenced the transformation process including the nature of conflicts and its objectives in its peaceful culmination or violent escalation. Though in the recent past ( more specifically post-9/11 era) all the governments of respective countries in South Asia have come up with different peaceful ways of conflict resolution that have created an optimist approach to deal the issues. But on the other side innovated trends and latest tactics have been introduced by the militant organizations operating in the region. Different militant groups are forging new operational coordination or strategic alliance in their separate fight for their cause....

October 5, 2009
Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses

Abstract:

After the 6th border meeting in Thimphu on September 12, India and Bhutan have agreed to scale up efforts to secure their borders. India and Bhutan share a 669-km-long border, manned by the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) from the Indian side and by the Royal Bhutanese Army on the Bhutan side. Most of the insurgent camps are located along the Bhutan-Assam border, which comprises of 267 km of the Indo-Bhutan border. The border meeting assumes significance against the backdrop of reports suggesting that insurgents operating in India’s North-Eastern states such as United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA), National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFA) and Kamtapur Liberation Organization (KLO) have increased co-operation with the Bhutan Tiger Force, the Bhutan Maoist Party and the Communist Party of Bhutan. At the same time, there is a fear in the Bhutanese establishment that the Communist Party of Bhutan, with active co-operation from North Eastern insurgent groups, might acquire advanced weapons and attempt to topple the newly elected democratic government headed by Prime Minister Jigmi Y Thinley. This was emphasized by Home Secretary Penden Wangchuck who headed the Bhutanese delegation for the border talks. Wangchuk was reported by state-run newspaper Kuensel as saying that "The insurgents are linked to Maoists and militants of eastern Nepal and they can pose a threat to security”. The Indian side headed by Secretary (border management) Vinay Kumar emphasized during the meeting that since the new Bangladesh government headed by Sheikh Hasina had increased the crack down on North-Eastern insurgent groups, these groups have set up bases in Bhutan. This was confirmed by the 48-page ‘restricted’ Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) report on the North-East states in September 2009. Reports note that the emergence of a “friendly” regime in Bangladesh has resulted in nervousness among the Indian insurgent groups operating from that country and “tentative” reports suggest movement of insurgent infrastructure towards Myanmar and Bhutan where the reach of the Government along the border areas is limited....

June 9, 2009
Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses

Abstract:

India's neighbourhood is in considerable turmoil at the present moment. The instability is likely to continue for the foreseeable future. India has sought to improve its relations with neighbouring countries. Regional cooperation is an important instrument of India's policy towards its neighbours. The neighbouring countries have also derived considerable mileage from economic cooperation with India. This is particularly true of countries like Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka. Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Maldives and Bangladesh have held peaceful elections in the recent past. The upsurge of democracy in South Asia should normally provide a sound foundation for better relationship between India and these countries. However, several challenges remain. There are powerful anti- India forces in many of our neighbouring countries. Regional cooperation, particularly in the context of SAARC, has not made visible difference to the life of the common person in South Asia. The democratic institutions in India's neighbourhood are fragile. China is making inroads into South Asia. India's borders are porous and ill-regulated. Terrorism, human and arms trafficking, smuggling and organized crime are rampant. Pakistan uses Nepal and Bangladesh to launch terrorists into India. Groups like LeT have presence in even Sri Lanka and Maldives. Maritime security is a matter of concern for India. It is in this background that India needs to devise its South Asia policies....

May 23, 2009
South Asia Analysis Group

Abstract:

Bhutan made the first historic move towards democracy when on 31st December 2007, elections to the National Council were held for 15 of the 25 Dzongkhags ( districts). Electronic voting machines were used and the results were announced the very next day. Elections to the National Assembly were held on 24th of March for election of 47 candidates and shared by only two parties the DPT and the PDP. The Election Campaign was lively and devoid of law and order problems. There were no verbal abuses or personal accusations by the candidates and no complaints either, save some on infringement of election code of conduct. The highlight of the campaign was two televised debates of the two parties conducted by none other than the elections commission itself. There is no doubt that the conduct of the election was a bold step for Bhutan in moving ahead of times in introducing democracy. The election itself turned out to be a tame affair and it looked more like a friendly match between two contesting parties whose ideologies were not very different....

May 23, 2009
Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies

Abstract:

2008 has been a year of tremendous change in the small Kingdom of Bhutan and for its people. There has probably never been a case before, in which such contradictory events took place within a few months, while at the same time surprisingly in perfect line with the path on which Bhutan embarked decades ago. Having been called to the polls to choose their representatives for the National Council (Gyelyong Tshogde), the upper chamber of parliament, on a non-partisan basis, the first multiparty elections for the National Assembly (Tshogdu) took place on 24 March 2008. By achieving a turnout of almost 80 per cent, participation was extraordinary high, even for a founding election. Three months later the newly convened parliament in a joint sitting passed the country’s first ever written constitution, thus formally transforming the century old kingdom into a constitutional monarchy. Finally, on 6 November 2008 the fifth Druk Gyalpo, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk, was enthroned and received the Raven Crown from the hands of his father, who abdicated in 2006. Bhutan had changed its face and at the same time once again found the middle path between progressive development and traditional preservation on which the fourth king guided his country without hesitation in recent decades. The 35 articles of the constitution grant all major classical rights and liberties to the people and provide for a democratic form of government, though the structure of the new system is quite unique in its shape and configuration. Taking into consideration the people’s attitudes towards politics and the country’s unique culture and tradition, the result is an interesting combination of consensual and majoritarian elements of democracy, topped by the unique role of the monarch within the polity, which rather resembles the role of a president in presidential or semi-presidential system, instead that of a constitutional monarch in Western constitutional democracies. The coming years will have to show whether the system will work properly, or if further adjustments will need to be made....

October 7, 2011
American Enterprise Institute

Abstract:

Over the last several years Hezbollah and its patrons in Iran have greatly expanded their operations in Latin America to the detriment of inter-American security and US strategic interests. Today, Hezbollah is using the Western Hemisphere as a staging ground, fundraising center, and operational base to wage asymmetric warfare against the United States. Venezuela’s Hugo Chávez and other anti-American governments in the region have facilitated this expansion by rolling out the welcome mats for Hezbollah and Iran. US policymakers must increase their attention to this problem, expand their assets in the region, and develop a comprehensive strategy to combat this threat in a sustained and meaningful way....

October 3, 2011
International Crisis Group

Abstract:

In Sudan a Sudanese Armed Forces offensive in Blue Nile state, and renewed clashes in Southern Kordofan between the SAF and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North, fuelled fears of a return to civil war. Insurgent attacks intensified in Afghanistan, stoking fears of further escalation in October ahead of international conferences in Istanbul and Bonn.Yemen is on the cusp of full-scale civil war between security forces loyal to President Ali Abdullah Saleh and troops and militia loyal to his opponents. A brutal crackdown in Sanaa on 18 September, with regime forces killing at least 26 unarmed protesters, dimmed prospects for a peaceful compromise.Violence broke out in the north of Kosovo as Kosovo Serbs resisted the Pristina government’s attempts to take control of border points with Serbia. In Guinea, increasing repression and lack of political dialogue mark the build up to December’s legislative elections. Police violently dispersed an opposition demonstration in the capital Conakry on 27 September, leaving three people dead and around 40 injured. Political violence escalated further in Burundi. At least 39 people were killed in an attack on a bar in Gatumba near the capital on 19 September. In Central African Republic, over 49 people were killed in a series of clashes in the diamond-rich town of Bria and its surroundings between the Convention of Patriots for Justice and Peace and the Union of Democratic Forces for Unity rebel groups. Tensions rose in Bolivia at the end of the month as police forcibly dispersed a group of indigenous marching on La Paz in protest against a planned highway through indigenous territory and a national park....

September 19, 2011
United Nations Development Programme // Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery

Abstract:

Many developing countries experience both disasters and conflict at the same time. The interaction between the two creates and perpetuates vulnerabilities that place communities at risk, further entrenching poverty and inequality. It makes intuitive sense to assume that the geographical overlap of both disaster and conflict worsens the impact of crises, but evidence for this is limited. Analyses of concrete case study observations are also limited, and those that do exist come from different unconnected disciplines. The study aims to achieve a comparative analysis of tendencies and experiences that stem from the relationship between disasters and conflict. It also analyses the relative success of existing relevant programming approaches adopted incountry. This comparative analysis aims to: contribute to the body of knowledge on the interactions between disaster and conflict; better understand the importance of these interactions for development programming in crisis contexts; and create improved programming that responds to the relationships between disasters and conflict. The intention is to help identify practical approaches and disseminate good practice – thereby helping to better equip UNDP Country Office staff who operate in complex environments in which disaster and conflict overlap. The study is based on experiences from nine selected case-study countries to try and capture the broad spectrum of possible relationships between disasters and conflicts. The country case studies included: Bolivia, Haiti, Indonesia (Aceh), Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Papua New Guinea (PNG), Sri Lanka, Sudan and Zimbabwe....

June 16, 2011
RAND Corporation

Abstract:

Colombia currently accounts for the vast bulk of cocaine produced in Latin America. In 2009, the country produced 270 metric tons (MT) of cocaine, making it the principal supplier for both the United States and the worldwide market. Besides Colombia, Peru and Bolivia constitute two additional important sources of cocaine in Latin America. In 2009, these two countries generated enough base material to respectively yield 225 and 195 MT of refined product.

Between 60 and 65 percent of all Latin American cocaine is trafficked to the United States, the bulk of which is smuggled via the eastern Pacific/Central American corridor. The remainder is sent through the Caribbean island chain, with the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Haiti acting as the main transshipment hubs. In both cases, Mexico serves as the main point of entry to mainland America, presently accounting for the vast majority of all illicit drug imports to the United States....

August 20, 2010
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development // Development Co-operation Directorate

Abstract:

In recent years, there has been increased interest in understanding how donor interventions in situations of fragility and conflict can contribute tot he processes of statebuilding. While external actors cannot determine the outcome of those processes, they can target their assistance to support positive statebuilding dynamics. Donors must ensure that they "do no harm" and consider both the intended and unintended consequences of their interventions. This publication fills an important knowledge gap by addressing two fundamental questions: what are the negative impacts that donor interventions can have on statebuilding; and what measures should donors adopt to avoid negative impacts on statebuilding processes? Do No Harm argues that the challenges of statebuilding are such that donors must develop a sophisticated understanding of political processes, patterns of state-society relations and sources of legitimacy in the countries where they are oeprating. Based on an extensive literature review and on six country case-studies (Afghanistan, Bolivia, the Democratic Republic of Congo [DRC], Nepal, Rwanda and Sierra Leon), Do No Harm offers a valuable addition to our knowledge on statebuilding in situations of fragility and conflict....

July 13, 2012
Centre for International Policy Studies

Abstract:

The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) has been very successful in bringing many accused to justice, in leading to the establishment of a permanent International Criminal Court and in demonstrating that holding leaders accountable is possible.

However, there is considerable dissonance between the ICTY’s judicial achievements in The Hague and attitudes and perceptions of the Tribunal in the region.

In order for the Tribunal’s legacy to have lasting impact, extensive efforts must be made to leverage the record of judicial success in order to ensure that its work is not ‘lost in translation’....

June 27, 2012
European Policy Centre

Abstract:

30 June 2012 marks the end of the European Union Police Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the first ever and longest-running mission launched under the European Union's Common Security and Defence Policy. In a local and regional context in which the EU has concurrently pursued the twin goals of stabilisation and integration, the launch and subsequent conduct of EUPM reflected the bloc's growing engagement with civilian crisis management, initially focusing on police reform but soon coming to encompass concerns over the wider rule of law....

June 26, 2012
United Nations University

Abstract:

While the history of wars and conflicts is replete with systematic incidents of sexual violence against vulnerable women, modern-day wars have witnessed large-scale indiscriminate deployment of rape as a “weapon” of war by combatants. In recent armed conflicts — such as in the former Yugoslavia, Liberia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, the Central African Republic, Sierra Leone and Rwanda — the widespread use of rape as a tool of warfare has become a conspicuous phenomenon.

May 23, 2012
Congressional Research Service

Abstract:

In recent years, many analysts have expressed concern that the international community’s effortsover the past 15 years to stabilize Bosnia are failing. Milorad Dodik, president of the Republika Srpska (RS), one of the two semi-autonomous “entities” within Bosnia, has obstructed efforts to make Bosnia’s central government more effective. He has repeatedly asserted the RS’s right to secede from Bosnia, although he has so far refrained from trying to make this threat a reality. Some ethnic Croat leaders in Bosnia have called for the creation of a third, Croat “entity,” threatening a further fragmentation of the country.

The Office of the High Representative (OHR), chosen by leading countries and international institutions, oversees implementation of the Dayton Peace Accords, which ended the 1992-1995 war in Bosnia. It has the power to fire Bosnian officials and impose laws, if need be, to enforce the Dayton Accords. However, the international community has proved unwilling in recent years to back the High Representative in using these powers boldly, fearing a backlash among Bosnian Serb leaders. As a result, OHR has become increasingly ineffective, according to many observers. The international community has vowed to close OHR after Bosnia meets a series of five objectives and two conditions....

April 13, 2012
Global Facilitation Network for Security Sector Reform // University of Birmingham

Abstract:

This research paper was commissioned by GFN-SSR as part of a helpdesk support to inform HMG to report on its engagement in the context of Nepal. The query asked for illustrative examples and lessons of integration; in particular, examples of integration into armies, integration into non-military forces (police, armed police, intelligence, etc), and creation of new security structures (industrial security forces, border police, etc) into which ex-combatants are then integrated.

One of the most contentious current challenges of the Nepali peace process is related to the future of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) - the military organisation of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) – CPN(M). The main parties struggle over the key questions of whether, how and according to what criteria the PLA should be integrated into the Nepali Army (NA) or other security forces. Furthermore, the question of integration of the PLA is linked to other issues, such as the prevalence of other militias and armed groups, and a broader debate on the cornerstone of a national defence strategy.

This paper provides a synthesis of key issues and lessons from academic and policy papers focused on issues relating to the integration of non-state and government military forces, as part of a wider peace settlement following civil war. As well as drawing upon existing studies the paper synthesises themes by examining the data from eight primary and fifteen secondary case studies, drawn from various sources.

An overarching and consistent theme throughout all case studies examined is the requirement, with integration endeavours, to view the process as the outcome. The integration of non-state military forces into the state security apparatus is an element of wider post-conflict peacebuilding and statebuilding processes and as such the outcome is rarely predictable. An effective and sustainable solution from one context cannot be assumed to represent a template solution for other contexts. Support to the process of decision-making, and bodies established to implement decisions has been seen to be an effective strategy for external assistance.

The paper has highlighted the complex and diverse nature of efforts to integrate ex-combatants into state security forces. There exist as many approaches and solutions as there are contexts in which they have been attempted. An examination of the available case study material has, however, provided some consistent themes that have been highlighted throughout the paper as lessons identified....

July 8, 2011
Center for Strategic and International Studies

Abstract:

This report provides an overview of the CSIS study series examining the risks of instability in 10 African countries over the next decade. The 10 papers are designed to be complementary but can also be read individually as self-standing country studies. The overview draws on common themes and explains the methodology underpinning the research. The project was commissioned by the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM). The papers in this series are not meant to offer hard and fast predictions about the future. While they sketch out some potential scenarios for the next 10 years, these efforts should be treated as thought experiments that look at how different dynamics might converge to create the conditions for instability. The intention is not to single out countries believed to be at risk of impending disaster and make judgments about how they will collapse. Few, if any, of the countries in this series are at imminent risk of breakdown. All of them have coping mechanisms that militate against conflict, and discussions of potential “worst-case scenarios” have to be viewed with this qualification in mind....

July 8, 2011
Center for Strategic and International Studies

Abstract:

This report, Botswana: Assessing Risks to Stability, is part of a series examining the risks of instability in 10 African countries over the next decade. The 10 papers are designed to be complementary but can also be read individually as self-standing country studies. An overview paper draws on common themes and explains the methodology underpinning the research. The project was commissioned by the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM). The papers in this study are not meant to offer hard and fast predictions about the future. While they sketch out some potential scenarios for the next 10 years, these efforts should be treated as thought experiments that look at how different dynamics might converge to create the conditions for instability. The intention is not to single out countries believed to be at risk of impending disaster and make judgments about how they will collapse. Few, if any, of the countries in this series are at imminent risk of breakdown. All of them have coping mechanisms that militate against conflict, and discussions of potential “worst-case scenarios” have to be viewed with this qualification in mind....

June 17, 2010
Institute for Security Studies // L'Institut d'Etudes de Sécurité

Abstract:

This monograph contains papers that were presented at the International Conference on Climate Change and Natural Resources Conflicts in Africa, 14–15 May 2009, Entebbe, Uganda, organised by the Environment Security Programme (ESP) of the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), Nairobi Office. The climate change phenomenon is a global concern, which typically threatens the sustainability of the livelihoods of the majority of the population living in the developing countries. Africa, particularly the sub-Saharan region, is likely to be negatively impacted by climate variability and change. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Africa’s vulnerability arises from a combination of many factors, including extreme poverty, a high rate of population increase, frequent natural disasters such as droughts and floods, and agricultural systems (both crop and livestock production) that depend heavily on rainfall. Extreme natural occurrences such as floods and droughts are becoming increasingly frequent and severe. Africa’s high vulnerability to the negative impacts of climate variability and change is also attributed to its low adaptive capacity. Climate variability and change have further exacerbated the scarcity of natural resources on the African continent, leading to conflicts with regard to access to, and ownership and use of these resources. The scarcity of natural resources is known to trigger competition for the meagre resources available among both individuals and communities, and even institutions, thus affecting human security on the continent....

March 16, 2010
African Journal on Conflict Resolution // African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes

Abstract:

The world-wide surge in the number and violence of open conflicts revolving around ethnic or religious identities towards the end of the 20th century is a powerful reminder that communal identities are not a remnant of the past but a potent force in contemporary politics. After three decades of independence, ethnicity is more central than ever to the political process of many African countries. Africa has had more than its fair share of ethnic dissent which has sometimes plummeted states into civil war as was experienced in Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and reached frightening proportions in Rwanda and now Sudan. Political openings and multiparty elections have led to the formation of innumerable overtly or covertly ethnic political parties, which serve more often to increase civil strife of which the most recent addition to the long list in Africa is Kenya. Africa’s ethnic disturbances have occurred more within national borders, thus giving rise to unstable domestic systems. This paper attempts to address these ethnic issues by assessing certain conflict spots as opposed to areas of relative calm in Africa. The assessment of states on both sides of the divide (i.e. cooperation and conflict) is done in the hope that trends that lead to conflict as well as those that lead to cooperation can be identified. In order to establish these patterns of cooperation and conflict, it became pertinent to use a broad range of case studies, notably, Tanzania, Botswana, South Africa, Uganda and Côte d’Ivoire. The result of this study tells that the lack or presence of equity and justice (components of good governance), high literacy levels and an external threat, are factors which strengthen or diminish possibilities of ethnic conflict....

March 12, 2010
International Development Research Centre // Wits University Press

Abstract:

Southern Africa has embarked on one of the world’s most ambitious security co-operation initiatives, seeking to roll out the principles of the United Nations at regional levels. This book examines the triangular relationship between democratisation, the character of democracy and its deficits, and national security practices and perceptions of eleven southern African states. It explores what impact these processes and practices have had on the collaborative security project in the region. Based on national studies conducted by African academics and security practitioners over three years, it includes an examination of the way security is conceived and managed, as well as a comparative analysis of regional security co-operation in the developing world. This book includes: Chapter 1: Democratic Governance and Security: A Conceptual Exploration, by Andre du Pisani; Chapter 2: Comparative Perspectives on Regional Security Co-operation among Developing Countries, by Gavin Cawthra; Chapter 3: Southern African Security in Historical Perspective, by Abillah H. Omari and Paulino Macaringue; Chapter 4: Botswana, by Mpho G. Molomo, Zibani Maundeni, Bertha Osei-Hwedie, Ian Taylor, and Shelly Whitman; Chapter 5: Lesotho, by Khabele Matlosa; Chapter 6: Mauritius, by Gavin Cawthra; Chapter 7: Mozambique, by Anicia Lalá; Chapter 8: Namibia, by Bill Lindeke, Phanuel Kaapama, and Leslie Blaauw; Chapter 9: Seychelles, by Anthoni van Nieuwkerk and William M. Bell; Chapter 10: South Africa, by Maxi Schoeman; Chapter 11: Swaziland, by Joseph Bheki Mzizi; Chapter 12: Tanzania Mohammed, by Omar Maundi; Chapter 13: Zambia, by Bizeck Jube Phiri; Chapter 14: Zimbabwe, by Ken D. Manungo; and Chapter 15: Conclusions, by Gavin Cawthra, Khabele Matlosa, and Anthoni van Nieuwkerk....

June 15, 2012
The Initiative for Peacebuilding – Early Warning // The Peace Studies Group

Abstract:

Since men constitute the majority of those who use and are victimised by guns worldwide, prevention and combat policies and programmes have been aimed almost exclusively at men and boys, paying scant attention to the roles and impacts of gun violence on women and girls. However, the continuum of violence experienced by women and girls in these contexts is a synthesis of the main social ingredients of violence and its cultural basis. Thus, alongside sound knowledge of men’s and boys’ involvement in gun violence, a clear understanding of women’s and girls’ needs, rights and vulnerabilities is essential to reduce gun violence in general. This report aims to contribute to fill this gap.

This report will concentrate on the analysis of the typologies and motivations for the involvement of women and girls in armed violence [as direct agents who actively participate, or indirect agents who play supporting roles such as in the transportation of firearms, drugs or information], and identify the importance and symbolism which they attribute to firearms; the examination of the direct consequences [death and injuries] and some of the indirect effects of armed violence on the lives of women [guns as instruments of intimidation and sources of insecurity in situations of domestic violence as well as determinants for the condition of survivors or relatives of lethal victims of gun violence]; the initiatives, formal and informal, led by women in these contexts in response to gun violence, namely efforts to improve arms control regulations....

May 8, 2012
Initiative for Peacebuilding - Early Warning Analysis to Action // International Alert

Abstract:

Overall, despite the differences between Rio de Janeiro, San Salvador and Praia in terms of the incidence of youth violence, historical approaches and experience in dealing with the issue, Brazil, El Salvador and Cape Verde have all favoured an enforcement-based approach, focusing primarily on repression and law-enforcement mechanisms [police action, specific youth violence legislation, and prosecution, prison and socio-educational systems], instead of interventions aimed at the root causes of violent behaviour. However, recent changes in federal government approaches to public security in Brazil, coupled with state level changes, suggest the materialisation of a discourse shift in the field of youth violence, which has been in the making since the late 1990s.

Another common feature in these countries is the incomplete availability of qualified information systems on violence and violent criminality, especially on organised crime and female involvement in urban violence.

Civil society actions to prevent and combat urban violence are very diverse. In Brazil, especially Rio de Janeiro, NGOs, associations and grassroots organisations have a fairly long track record when dealing with the issue of youth violence, promoting initiatives and programmes mostly aimed at youth violence prevention, especially at the primary level. These initiatives and programmes have been based on skills training, sports, culture, empowerment and, to lesser extent, professional training and labour market integration. In San Salvador, despite the severity of youth violence, civil society approaches are less diversified and effective. Like any other violence-afflicted country in Central America, violence prevention and especially intervention programmes, namely those aimed at the perpetrators of violence, face greater disadvantages and less funding and support from the region’s crime-weary population. In Praia, the involvement of civil society in this matter has been slow. However, in recent years, the experiences of civil society organisations, sometimes in partnership with public institutions, have been singled out as good examples and as having had some direct impact on youth involved in violence in the Cidade da Praia.

Responding to and effectively preventing youth urban violence requires a comprehensive approach which takes into account the intra-social forms of violence committed by and against youth, as well as the structural conditions which determine the marginalisation of youth. This includes prevention programmes which help young people in vulnerable situations, intervention programmes which offer alternatives for those attracted to violence, rehabilitation prospects for those who wish to leave violent groups, and those leaving prison and socioeducational systems. Capable and accountable law-enforcement bodies, protection and support mechanisms for victims of violence, adequate arms control policies, up-to-date data collection and analysis systems on youth and violence, and whole-of-government and multi-disciplinary approaches to violence are also key....

April 2, 2012
Peace and Conflict Monitor // University for Peace

Abstract:

Leonard Ghione argues that the Brazilian truth commission has a strong legal mandate to achieve the goal of creating an authoritative historic account of the country’s violent past. Its main challenge will be coping with the limited number of staff and the long period of time it must cover. The goal of national reconciliation in Brazil will require not only the unearthing of the truth but also the unearthing of a conflict that has been systematically negated until now and is part of Brazil’s culture of violence. If the commission succeeds in unearthing this underlying negated conflict, it will increase public pressure against the amnesty law, which may eventually lead to its revocation in the long term, contributing to a less violent society....

March 23, 2012
The Brookings Institution

Abstract:

As the emerging global order takes shape, debate is growing more intense around the trajectory of the rising powers and what their ascendency to positions of regional and international influence means for the United States, its traditional allies, and global governance more broadly. Commentary about these rising powers— often referred to in a generic way as the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) but actually encompassing a dozen or so countries largely represented in the G-20—ranges from alarmist to sanguine. Pessimists argue that China, with its impressive economic growth and increasingly global reach, is well-positioned to challenge the United States’ role of global superpower and to weaken the commitment of other rising powers, and various international organizations, to liberal values. More optimistic analysts insist that the rise of middle powers, most of which are democracies of varying stripes, bodes well for the world: millions are being lifted out of poverty, rule of law is taking hold and the international system is bound to be a more inclusive, representative one....

March 21, 2012
Geneva Centre for Security Policy

Abstract:

While India has long been one of the most important contributors to UN missions, other emerging powers such as China, Brazil, and South Africa have recently become key players of UN peacekeeping operations.

The increasing role of emerging powers in peacekeeping raises the question of the posture they will adopt. Will they buy into the existing rules? Will they significantly shape them? Or will they contest them as they become real stakeholders in the Western-dominated liberal peacekeeping-peacebuilding realm?

So far, the normative clash between two conceptions of handling crises through UN peace missions has not taken place. While challenging the existing practices would require a degree of convergence among emerging powers, such cohesion has not tangibly materialized and disparities among emerging countries abound.

In the peacekeeping field, emerging powers present very different profiles that make any generalization difficult. Similarly, their increasing contribution to peacekeeping has not been matched by parallel efforts in the peacebuilding domain.

Furthermore, a greater involvement of emerging powers in peace missions may impact their own conceptions of crisis management, and may induce pragmatism that would bring them closer to the current philosophy and practice.

Finally, the peacekeeping-peacebuilding field may not be worth the fight that normative divergences can entail....

April 12, 2012
Council on Foreign Relations

Abstract:

The risk of conflict in the South China Sea is significant. China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and the Philippines have competing territorial and jurisdictional claims, particularly over rights to exploit the region’s possibly extensive reserves of oil and gas. Freedom of navigation in the region is also a contentious issue, especially between the United States and China over the right of U.S. military vessels to operate in China’s two-hundred-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ). These tensions are shaping—and being shaped by—rising apprehensions about the growth of China’s military power and its regional intentions. China has embarked on a substantial modernization of its maritime paramilitary forces as well as naval capabilities to enforce its sovereignty and jurisdiction claims by force if necessary. At the same time, it is developing capabilities that would put U.S. forces in the region at risk in a conflict, thus potentially denying access to the U.S. Navy in the western Pacific.

Given the growing importance of the U.S.-China relationship, and the Asia-Pacific region more generally, to the global economy, the United States has a major interest in preventing any one of the various disputes in the South China Sea from escalating militarily....

November 26, 2009
Asia-Pacific Centre for the Responsibility to Protect

Abstract:

The 63rd United Nations (UN) General Assembly is poised to debate Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s report on the operationalisation of the Responsibility to Protect (referred to as ‘R2P’ for the remainder of this report). It is expected that his report will be released and debated in early 2009. Therefore, this is a good time to examine the position that Member States have adopted on the R2P since its endorsement at the 2005 World Summit and policy issues relating to its implementation through the UN. This report will focus on the Member States of the Association for South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) with the exception of Myanmar, which is currently on the UN Security Council’s agenda. It concentrates on their position on the R2P and their policy priorities in areas related to implementing the principle through the UN. The report identifies steps that might encourage the region’s governments to become more positively engaged with the R2P principle....

August 26, 2008
Asian Development Bank Institute

Abstract:

This paper quantifies the impact of terrorism and conflicts on income per capita growth in Asia for 1970–2004. Our panel estimations show that transnational terrorist attacks had a significant growth-limiting effect. Transnational terrorism reduces growth by crowding in government expenditures. An internal conflict has the greatest growth concern, about twice that of transnational terrorism. For developing Asian countries, intrastate and interstate wars have a much greater impact than terrorism does on the crowding-in of government spending. Policy recommendations indicate the need for rich Asian countries to assist their poorer neighbors in coping with the negative growth consequences of political violence. Failure to assist may result in region-wide repercussions. Conflict and terrorism in one country can create production bottlenecks with region-wide economic consequences. International and nongovernmental organizations as well as developed Western countries and regions could assist at-risk Asian countries with attack prevention and post-attack recovery. This study has six purposes. First, and foremost, we present panel estimates for a sample of 42 Asian countries to quantify the impact of terrorism and conflicts on income per capita growth for 1970–2004. Panel estimation methods control for country-specific and timespecific unobserved heterogeneity. Second, we distinguish the influence of terrorism on economic growth from that of internal and external conflicts. Third, these influences are investigated for cohorts of developed and developing countries to ascertain whether development can better allow a country to absorb the impact of political violence. Fourth, econometric estimations relate violence-induced growth reductions to two pathways— reduced investment and increased government expenditures. Fifth, a host of diagnostic and sensitivity tests to support our empirical specifications. Last, we draw some policy conclusions....

August 17, 2005
Naval War College

Abstract:

This article discusses the threats to maritime security in Southeast Asia, describes the factors tending toward strengthened maritime security cooperation, and argues that networks of bilateral relationships may be more fruitful than purely multilateral arrangements. The first section, a historical overview of maritime cooperation in Southeast Asia from the end of the Cold War through December 2004, is followed by a survey of contemporary maritime security threats. The article then discusses five significant factors that now favor improved maritime cooperation. It concludes with the various forms that future cooperation might take and speculation as to which are mostly likely in light of evolving state interests and constraints. ...

April 9, 2005
Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies // Nanyang Technological University

Abstract:

At the beginning of 2005, Southeast Asian security cooperation is still regarded as inadequate to defend the region against maritime threats. However, structural, economic and normative factors are enabling greater cooperation in the post-9/11 "Age of Terror". This article opens with a brief outline of the history of Southeast Asian maritime security cooperation from 1990 to December 2004, and then discusses the various maritime threats faced by the region. It next describes five factors that are enabling greater maritime security cooperation in the Age of Terror. The potential application of those factors is assessed to anticipate the most likely forms of future regional cooperation. While cooperation will expand on many levels the most fruitful cooperation will result from improved networks of bilateral relationships. Information in this working paper will be of interest to those seeking to understand the cooperation and security dynamics of this important and intensely maritime region. It should be of specific interest to those policymakers seeking to improve international cooperation to combat Southeast Asian transnational maritime threats such as terrorism, piracy and smuggling....

October 14, 2011
Berghof Conflict Research

Abstract:

Takes a critical look at the debate on state failure, examining the various ways that state-building programmes have impacted on the successor states of the former Yugoslavia. The author shows how unchallenged assumptions, unrealistic expectations and ignorance of local contexts can lead to political orders being imposed with little regard for domestic legitimacy or locally-driven solutions. Instead of explaining away the predictably poor outcomes, she suggests the need for critical appraisal of those driving the state-building agenda....

July 22, 2011
UN Women // United Nations Entity for Gende Equality and the Empowerment of Women

Abstract:

The past century has seen a transformation in women’s legal rights, with countries in every region expanding the scope of women’s legal entitlements. Nevertheless for many of the world’s women the laws that exist on paper do not translate to equality and justice.

Progress of the World’s Women: In Pursuit of Justice looks at how the legal system can play a positive role in women accessing their rights, citing cases that have changed women’s lives both at a local and at times global level. It also looks at the important role women have played and continue to play as agents for change within the legal system, as legislators, as lawyers, as community activists but also asks why, despite progress on legal reform, the justice system is still not delivering justice for all women.

The report focuses on four key areas: legal and constitutional frameworks, the justice chain, plural legal systems and conflict and post-conflict. Drawing on tangible examples of steps that have been taken to help women access justice, the report sets out ten key recommendations for policy and decision makers to act on in order to ensure every woman is able to obtain justice....

April 27, 2011
International Peace Research Institute

Abstract:

The political transitions in Egypt and Tunisia have rekindled the interest in how states and societies have moved from authoritarian regimes to democracy after overthrowing old regimes. This report responds to that interest by providing a factual overview of transitions to democracy of nine European states between 1974 and 1991.

The states covered fall into two geographical regions: Southern Europe, and Central and Eastern Europe. The context of transition in each of these regions was different. The transitions in Southern Europe took place as mainly discrete events with little influence of one country over another. In contrast, there was a strong regional dynamic in Central and Eastern Europe, where all transitions were influenced by Gorbachev’s policies of perestroika and glasnost and the loosening of the Soviet Union’s grip on its satellite states....

August 11, 2009
Foundation for Defense of Democracies

Abstract:

Terrorism is not a new phenomenon, nor is it likely to disappear anytime soon. It is not the exclusive domain of any single religion or ideology, nor do all terrorists come from the same socioeconomic class or share the same mental pathologies.1 In part, the diversity within contemporary terrorism is what makes it so great a challenge. This report describes, in great detail, the state of terrorism in Western countries over the course of 2008. Before turning to terrorism events in the West during 2008 and key developments within Western countries’ legal systems, we are going to pinpoint a few broad trends—a few currents that run through the various incidents and cases that follow. As this report will show, concerns about the contemporary connection between criminal activities and terrorism are clear in Bulgaria, a country rife with organized crime. An April 2008 parliamentary report charged that profits from the country’s drug trade were channeled to Middle Eastern terrorist groups....

June 3, 2009
Initiative for Peacebuilding // Partners for Democratic Change International

Abstract:

This Synthesis Report extracts the main findings from seven EU Member State case studies surveyed under the Capacity-Building and Training Cluster of the Initiative for Peacebuilding (IfP). Case studies were conducted in Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Greece, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain in order to assess these countries’ capacities to meet EU spending targets for official development assistance (ODA) and to analyse the position of peacebuilding within national ODA policies. Each case study analysed country-specific ODA policies by focusing on institutional mechanisms and key actors in managing and implementing ODA; the role and capacity of civil society organisations in influencing planning, implementation, and evaluation of ODA; and public awareness of and support for ODA. This report finds that international development cooperation has received growing attention during the last decade in all surveyed case-study countries. New EU Member States in particular are striving to adhere to their international commitments by further refining their ODA policies; enhancing the institutional structures for managing and implementing ODA; and increasing cooperation with and consultation of civil society organisations....

July 18, 2012
Save the Children // World Vision

Abstract:

More than 18 million people are currently struggling through a crisis in the Sahel region of West Africa. The overarching driver of this crisis is not drought, nor a food deficit. The most vulnerable families are in crisis because they have no protection against shocks like grain prices doubling. This is the “resilience deficit”*, rooted in structural causes, neglected for too long, and exacerbated by exceptionally high food prices.

Current estimates suggest that over one million children will face severe and life-threatening malnutrition during this crisis. Even in a “non-crisis” year, an estimated 645,000 children die in the Sahel of largely preventable and treatable causes, with 226,000 of these deaths being directly linked to malnutrition. Acute malnutrition affects 10%-14% of children in Senegal, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Burkina Faso, and more than 15% of children in Chad. These rates demonstrate that traditional development policies are failing to save children in the Sahel from a permanent, large-scale nutrition crisis.

This report, a joint initiative by Save the Children and World Vision, aims to assess progress, lessons learned, and challenges in promoting “resilience” in the Sahel, with a particular focus on the well-being of children. The study demonstrates the need for a massive response by governments and partners in order to tackle child malnutrition – chronic and acute, together. It offers evidence-based, tangible recommendations for a comprehensive, child-focused approach to resilience in the Sahel.

People’s access to food at prices they can afford, and their capacity to absorb or adapt to new shocks have been severely undermined by the Sahel crises in 2005, 2008 and 2010. The vast majority of the most vulnerable households in the region have had neither the time, nor the necessary support, to get out of debt, or restore their normal means of making a living....

April 24, 2012
University of Oslo // Centre for the Study of Civil War // Peace Research Institute Oslo

Abstract:

Transboundary rivers may contribute to increased hostility between riparians. This may contribute to increased hostility between riparians. This article accepts earlier arguments about water scarcity. Structural Scarcity occurs in river basins with unequal resource distribution, often created by geographic asymmetries. Hence, this article argues that the geographic asymmetries present in many river basins are key determinants of conflict risk among riparians. In a river basin the upstream state enjoys an inherent advantage and upstream river use is likely to produce unidirectional externalities that harm the states downstream. This in turn, is likely to produce grievances or claims downstream that may contribute to worsen overall state relations and consequently increase the risk of dyadic conflict....

April 4, 2012
Integrated Regional Information Networks

Abstract:

One year on from the start of several months of popular revolts in Burkina Faso, the situation has settled down, but the calm is fragile, say observers.

The government has adopted several measures to appease its critics, including upping civil servant salaries, intensifying the fight against corruption, and subsidizing food prices, but high prices continue to pose huge problems for the poor. One in four youths are unemployed, and it is widely believed that the government is out of touch with the priorities of its citizens....

March 16, 2012
Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces

Abstract:

Hosted by the Centre for Human Rights and Democracy Studies (CEDHD) and the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF), the conference focused on developing national security poliices in North-West Africa, under the title "Integrating Human Security into National Security Policies in North-West Africa". The event took place in Raba 23-24 November 2010 and brought together high-ranking representatives from Algeria, Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco and Senegal as well as a number of international experts. The conference was supported by the Swiss federal Department of Foreign Affairs.

The conference discussed national and transnational security challenges in North-West Africa and analyzed various national responses in terms of their impact on human security in the region. A central theme of the conference was the effort to take stock of national experiences in dealing with various security threats and understanding how national security policy could help reduce the fear and want citizens face. Participants also explored how approaches to national security policy would need to change in order to better respond to the needs of people in the region: Can countries in the region work together to learn from each other's experiences? Can they design and implement national security policies in a way that benefit all people in the region? What regional mechanisms could be developed to assist national security policy-makers in North-West Africa?...

February 8, 2012
Africa Center for Strategic Studies

Abstract:

Despite growing concerns across the Sahel and Maghreb over the increasing potency of al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, the diffusion of heavily armed mercenaries from Libya, the expanding influence of arms and drugs trafficking, and the widening lethality of Boko Haram, regional security cooperation to address these transnational threats remains fragmented.

Algeria is well-positioned to play a central role in defining this cooperation, but must first reconcile the complex domestic, regional, and international considerations that shape its decision-making....

July 17, 2012
International Peace Institute

Abstract:

This IPI SRSG Series event features Karin Landgren, speaking about her just completed experience as the Special Representative of the Secretary-General to Burundi and Head of the United Nations Mission in Burundi (BNUB).

July 11, 2012
Africa Center for Strategic Studies

Abstract:

- Conflict in Africa’s Great Lakes region persists because of a complex mixture of regional politics, financial incentives, ethnic polarization, and weak and illegitimate governance.

- Previous peace agreements have made important contributions to stability but have only been partly successful because they have not addressed some key conflict drivers.

- Given the regional nature of the instability, international actors, especially those in Europe and the United States that provide significant financial support to governments in the Great Lakes, are vital to achieving a comprehensive settlement....

June 19, 2012
Global Observatory

Abstract:

In this interview, Ambassador Liberata Mulamula, a senior diplomatic adviser to the president of Tanzania, discusses the state of peace and security in the Great Lakes region and what progress has been achieved so far.

Ambassador Mulamula, the former Executive Secretary of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region, says the region experienced a time when the guns were silent but now “the major challenge is the continued presence of the armed groups.”

“As long as we pay lip service to building the capacity of these fragile states to have their own strong institutions—be they institutions of government, judiciary, the armed forces—I think we’ll be failing our people,” she adds.

“I’m getting a bit jittery that it might be the best if especially the United Nations does not pay attention to that region,” she says.

Ambassador Mulamula also discusses the effect of ethnicity and regional institutions on the security of the region; the power of the youth bulge; and the pros and cons of the International Criminal Court.

The interview was conducted by Mireille Affa’a-Mindzie, a Research Fellow at the International Peace Institute....

June 15, 2012
Human Security Report Project

Abstract:

Human Security Research is a monthly publication by the Human Security Report Project (HSRP) which compiles the latest human security-related research published by university research institutes, think-tanks, governments, IGOs and NGOs.

In this special issue, the HSRP highlights publications discussing the relationship between climate change and security. The contents are:

HUMAN SECURITY: Climate Change, Human Security and Violent Conflict
FRAGILITY: Climate Change, Conflict and Fragility: Understanding the Linkages, Shaping Effective Responses
ARMED CONFLICT: Climate Change, the Environment, and Armed Conflict
RESOURCE COMPETITION: Competition Over Resources: Drivers of Insecurity and the Global South
SCARCITY: Resource Scarcity, Climate Change and the Risk of Violent Conflict
PEACEBUILDING: Environmental Peacebuilding: Managing Natural Resource Conflicts in a Changing World
GENDER: Gender, Climate Change and Human Security Lessons from Bangladesh, Ghana and Senegal
MIGRATION: Human Security, Climate Change and Environmentally Induced Migration
MIDDLE EAST: The Blue Peace: Rethinking Middle East Water
NORTH AFRICA: Mapping Climate Change and Security in North Africa
NIGER BASIN: Climate Change, Water and Conflict in the Niger River Basin
AFRICA: After the Rain: Rainfall Variability, Hydro-Meteorological Disasters, and Social Conflict in Africa
INTERNATIONAL RIVER BASINS: A Geographical Curse? Asymmetries and the Risk of Conflict in International River Basins
SOUTHEAST ASIA: Climate Change and Migration in Southeast Asia: Responding to a New Human Security Challenge
...

May 2, 2012
Human Rights Watch

Abstract:

This 81-page report documents political killings stemming from the 2010 elections in Burundi. These killings, which peaked toward the middle of 2011, often took the form of tit-for-tat attacks by members of the ruling National Council for the Defense of Democracy-Forces for the Defense of Democracy [Conseil national pour la défense de la démocratie-Forces pour la défense de la démocratie, CNDD-FDD] and the opposition National Liberation Forces [Forces nationales de libération, FNL]. In the vast majority of cases, justice has been denied to families of the victims....

June 18, 2012
Jesuit Refugee Services

Abstract:

"The Search: Protection Space in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, The Philippines and Cambodia" in Practice is a practical guide which will assist other advocates to give accurate information to asylum seekers and refugees about the realities of protection space within the region.

In Southeast Asia, where only three countries, Cambodia, the Philippines and Timor Leste, are signatories to the UN refugee convention the challenges of living in an urban setting are amplified on a daily basis as people struggle to make a living, avoid detention, send their children to school and tend to their medical needs.

This guide covers five broad themes: protection concerns, convention obligations and domestic legal frameworks, refugee-status determination, durable solutions, and finally an outline of the realities of living in the region in relation to employment, education, healthcare and housing. Given the range of challenges, it is essential that those that work with asylum seekers and refugees know as much as possible about the asylum options available in urban areas in the capital cities of Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Jakarta, Manila and Phnom Penh.

The focus of this research has been to emphasise the experience of asylum seekers and refugees, to let them tell their own stories, while at the same time compile the relevant contextual information that presents a broad picture of the current situation in Southeast Asia.

The asylum seekers and refugees who have willingly shared their stories, opened up their homes and lives for the purpose of this guide have done so in the hope that it may ultimately help others on the same journey: the search for protection....

February 28, 2012
Stimson Center

Abstract:

Existing interstate relationships, evolving demographic trends, economic growth, climate change, and human efforts to manage fresh water availability will determine the quantity and quality of available water supplies in the coming decades. The interplay of these factors make water availability both a human security and national security issue.

This report, which resulted from a January 29 meeting, considers specific in-country cases, including Yemen and Afghanistan, and transboundary cases including the river basins of the Mekong, Ganges, Mahakali, and Indus rivers. Over the course of the day, the assembled experts examined environmental, institutional, and socio-economic trends affecting surface and groundwater supplies in selected regions and assessed dynamics that could contribute to political conflict, perturb regional power relations, or pose humanitarian concerns warranting external engagement. This report also considers criteria for identifying basins where future tensions or instabilities could emerge and assesses the roles that technological innovations, market mechanisms, river basin institutions, and other policy approaches play in the cooperative management of shared water resources....

December 6, 2011
International Crisis Group

Abstract:

Border clashes between Thailand and Cambodia that caused dozens of casualties and displaced thousands have challenged the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) to finally turn its rhetoric on peace and security into action. Cambodia’s successful attempt to list the Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage Site came against the backdrop of turmoil in Thai politics after the 2006 coup that deposed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Thai pro-establishment movements used this issue to whip up nationalist sentiments against Cambodia as they tried to topple the Thaksin-backed government. The emotionally-charged campaigns halted border demarcation and sparked a bilateral conflict. In early 2011, the dispute turned into the most violent clash yet between ASEAN’s members, testing its historical commitment to non-aggression and prompting it to get involved. This has raised expectations that it might live up to its stated aspiration to keep peace in its own region. As yet, however, while its engagement set important precedents, it has no significant achievements. More robust diplomacy and leadership are still needed....

December 1, 2011
Handicap International

Abstract:

A number of legally binding treaties and policies have been put in place to end the suffering of innocent people and provide needed assistance to prevent people from making extreme and life threatening decisions. These treaties, such as the Mine Ban Treaty (MBT), the Optional Protocol II on the Convention on Conventional Weapons, Convention on Cluster Munition (CCM), not only endeavour to protect, prevent and provide assistance to victims of landmines but also oblige State Parties to clear fields, destroy stockpiles,report on progress and so on. Signed at different periods of times, the MBT and CCM in particular outline,for the first time, one of the most comprehensive obligations on victim assistance (VA).

This research report, while acknowledging the challenges of attaining all six components of VA and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) of the State Parties, combines the two as its backbone of analysis. It specifically draws on examining the impact of evolution of VA in the victim’s lives; understanding the change in conditions of victims before and after the accident; and analysing the access of someof the crosscutting rights of victims/disabled people. In doing so, the reportendeavours to recognize ‘who’ the victims of landmines are. These victimsas the research respondents are the direct victims or survivors. A casestudy of the Kingdom of Cambodia is presented to complete the analysis.Cambodia, as one of the State Parties, has been proven to be one of themost affected by landmines and to have an excellent data collection systemand thus served as an ideal case....

November 21, 2011
Peace and Conflict Review

Abstract:

The last two decades have witnessed a remarkable proliferation of efforts to seek justice that responds adequately to mass atrocity. There is a mounting debate over the desirability and effectiveness of each effort in consolidating justice and peace. This essay offers a perspective for approaching the challenges of transitional justice and assessing policy priorities to improve the responses of transitional justice mechanisms for people whose human rights have been violated. As scholars from Cambodia who lived under the Khmer Rouge regime, we use Cambodia as a case study for analysis. This essay suggests that both trials and truth commissions, simultaneously or subsequently, are fundamental during transitional periods in order to achieve better results on behalf of victims, and proposes establishing a community-based public forum for Cambodian victims and perpetrators to have a formal dialogue, in addition to the current Khmer Rouge Tribunal....

October 24, 2011
University for Peace // UPEACE Africa Program // Africa Peace and Conflict Journal

Abstract:

Recurrent conflicts involving gender and landownership in Anglophone Cameroon have their roots in customary practices and the discriminatory application of statutory laws. Although women have gone to court and have won the right to administer land, a culture of acknowledging their right to do so is yet to take hold. In some instances, statutory law continues to be disregarded in favor of customary practices. The institution of land reform and implementation of mechanisms of international law could address the region’s land-related gender conflicts....

July 8, 2011
Chatham House

Abstract:

I consider it a singular honour to have been invited today by Chatham House to address this august forum. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which I represent, is a regional organisation which has, over the years, gained your attention only for the unfortunate reasons of state implosion and instability caused by bad governance and marginalisation. I therefore welcome the opportunity to throw further light on its objectives, challenges, and achievements, which factors have effectively brought together fifteen West African states in the enterprise of improving upon the living standards of 230 million people as well as integrating them.

The term ‘Chatham House Rule’ is today an internationally-accepted cliché that this Institute has contributed to international diplomacy discourse, a reference norm in rigorous and policy-oriented exchanges on global peace and security. I therefore view your invitation to lead today’s discourse about ‘Democracy in the context of Regional Integration in West Africa’ as an unique honour for me personally, and a recognition of ECOWAS as a leading brand in regional integration.

Ladies and gentlemen, the evolution of ECOWAS can only be properly understood against the backdrop of the fascinating history and circumstances of West Africa since establishing contact with the world beyond its borders. The fact that slavery, colonialism, as well as racial and economic marginalisation, had left an intrinsic yearning for freedom, unity and solidarity among peoples of African descent everywhere defines its wish to integrate its states and peoples....

May 24, 2011
Security Council Report

Abstract:

This special research report provides an analysis of a set of new issues that have been emerging in the West African subregion and possible implications for the Security Council in the coming year(s). It identifies some key emerging threats to peace and security in the 16-state subregion and their linkages to existing security challenges. The report points to a key feature: the fact that some of the new threats are essentially criminal rather than political in nature. However, it explains also the growing political and security implications. The report also highlights action already taken by the Council to recognise these threats and considers options available to the Council to tackle these issues going forward.

The raw material for the study was derived from literature research; field research in a number of countries in the West African subregion (including Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Senegal, Ghana and Nigeria); and interviews in the region with diplomats, government officials and officials of relevant international intergovernmental bodies (e.g. UN Office in West Africa or UNOWA, UN Office for Drugs and Crime or UNODC, the Economic Community of West African States or ECOWAS and the AU), NGOs and academics....

December 1, 2010
Atlantic Council of the United States // The Michael S. Ansari Africa Center // On the Horizon Project

Abstract:

This report presents the analysis and recommendations of the Atlantic Council’s Michael S. Ansari Africa Center in cooperation with the On the Horizon Project to advance U.S. strategic interests in West Africa. Unaddressed problems of poor governance, severe poverty, widespread public corruption, and growing insecurity from the presence of criminal and militant enterprises engaged in theft, terrorism, trafficking, piracy, poaching, and pollution will continue to punish local populations and create conditions of instability that undermine public order from greater levels of armed confl ict and mass migration and threaten the reliable flow of oil from the region. As noted in a recent United Nations report, the “combination of coups from the top and insurgencies from below render West Africa in the opinion of the UN the least politically stable region in the world.” While this report focuses on the maritime domain, the Atlantic Council approaches the regional security challenges from a broad perspective. Security issues are holistic and must be addressed as such. The dynamics and consequences of insecurity in the maritime domain are part of a wider, more complex political and security dynamic encompassing rule of law, governance, public capacities, and economic and human development across geographic, societal, and national domains. Just as the causes, manifestations, and consequences of insecurity are comprehensive, so too must be the preventatives and remedies. This document provides a broad strategic-level analysis and corresponding recommendations for action that can, and we believe should, be supported and implemented by U.S. and allied policymakers, African leaders, and key stakeholders....

November 8, 2010
Human Rights Watch

Abstract:

In Cameroon, prejudice against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people is both very personal and very public. The Cameroon Penal Code punishes “sexual relations with a person of the same sex” with a prison term and a fine. The relevant article, 347 bis, became law in 1972, and until five years ago, there was little information publicly available on its enforcement. But on May 21, 2005, police arrested 32 people at a nightclub in the first of a series of high-profile arrests and prosecutions continuing to the present. Beyond arrest, gay, lesbian, and bisexual Cameroonians are at higher risk for other problems. Police and prison officers routinely abuse detainees they suspect of same-sex sexual relationships. Gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people may be more vulnerable to violent attacks inside and outside the home, as they often avoid reporting a crime for fear of being arrested, in turn, for homosexuality. Lesbian women can lose custody of their children and be ostracized by their families. Those who are at risk for HIV/AIDS infection or who are HIV positive have difficulty obtaining medical and legal services. A general climate of fear means that rigid gender codes are strictly enforced and people live out their lives in secrecy....

July 16, 2012
Project Ploughshares // Peacebuild

Abstract:

This paper was prepared for the Small Arms Working Group of Peacebuild. Project Ploughshares was the Coordinator of the Small Arms Working Group from 2004 through to 2010. The paper is part of a series that explored the relationship between armed violence and development.

With 66 per cent of all homicides occurring in countries not experiencing major violent conflict, armed violence is now a global social problem. Even more alarming is that much of this violence is perpetrated by young people, who are also over-represented among the victims. Youth armed violence is now a grave concern at every level of society and initiatives to deal with this issue have been increasing. More recently, steps have been undertaken to map those initiatives, especially at the community level, and document and disseminate good practice in addressing the problem. In furtherance of the goal of the Small Arms Working Group and Project Ploughshares to reduce violence and build peace, this study presents case studies of two specific programs that are enjoying some measure of success: The Peace Management Initiative [PMI] in Kingston, Jamaica and the Breaking the Cycle [BTC] Project in Toronto. Both programs were selected because of their success with gang-associated, violent youth in Jamaica’s inner city and in Toronto’s Caribbean diaspora communities respectively. Both are linked by the study’s Caribbean youth focus. The link goes even deeper: the perception is that much of the violence in Toronto is perpetrated by youth of Caribbean, particularly Jamaican, heritage....

May 15, 2012
The Centre for International Governance Innovation

Abstract:

This paper considers lessons that can be drawn from the Canadian effort in Afghanistan, especially the challenges of trying to build security, governance and development in Kandahar. First, it examines how the Canadian Forces [CF] adapted over time, both in Afghanistan and in Ottawa. Second, it looks at the challenges presented by a minority government and what can be learned from this political context. Third, it examines what was learned about the constraining forces on Canadian defence policy — the Opposition and public opinion — and evaluates the consequences for Canada’s next military engagement. The paper concludes by developing the implications for Canada’s future missions....

May 1, 2012
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies

Abstract:

In our world, disasters continue to disrupt and damage landscapes and human lives. Often in the aftermath, people unite spontaneously with compassion and generosity. Despite personal trials, people of all ages volunteer to help those who are ailing, communities come together and countless acts of remarkable humanity take place. Yet, as survivors regain their footing, seek shelter and livelihoods, and try to rebuild, they face many hurdles. Among these, but often unspoken and secret, is the devastation caused by the violence that can follow disasters. People’s safety and security become undermined not only by the disaster but also by violence in the forms of abuse, exploitation, harassment, discrimination and rejection from other survivors and those who are supposed to help. This report provides best practices to address violence during and after disasters and challenges us, as disaster responders, to respond to this problem in all of our work through early and proactive action, using a public health approach....

December 7, 2011
Amsterdam Law Forum

Abstract:

This article focuses on the special criminal procedures for the use of intelligence in terrorist trials in Canada, France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Since 9/11 and the terror attacks in London and Madrid, gathering intelligence as well as the prosecution of suspects of terrorist crimes have become strategic tools in countering terrorism. By reviewing the special procedures for the use of intelligence, their compatibility with human rights standards, including the right to fair trial, is discussed. Concerns include the extent to which disclosure is made possible and to whom. The differences in criminal procedures for the use of intelligence in terrorist trials also raises questions if intelligence origins from a third state, in which different regulations with regard to disclosure of information apply....

October 24, 2011
Intervention // War Trauma Foundation

Abstract:

This paper explores the question of redressing war related sexualised violence, often referred to as war rape, with refugee women in resettlement contexts using a Canadian case example. The first part of the paper uses theory and research to frame sexualised violence as a tool of war whose practice and impact are shaped by gender and cultural factors. This section highlights how, for survivors, the combination of psychological trauma and socio-cultural factors in post migration environments can create barriers for seeking help, social support, as well as vulnerability to further victimisation and mental health difficulties. The second section provides a case example of a community based mental health initiative in Canada for survivors of war related sexualised violence. The case explores the use of a psychosocial framework that integrates cultural competency, gender perspectives, and community advocacy. Challenges and opportunities of service provision in resettlement contexts are discussed, and recommendations are provided for multicultural mental health practice that is collaborative, community oriented, and sensitive to trauma survivors' needs....

May 8, 2012
Initiative for Peacebuilding - Early Warning Analysis to Action // International Alert

Abstract:

Overall, despite the differences between Rio de Janeiro, San Salvador and Praia in terms of the incidence of youth violence, historical approaches and experience in dealing with the issue, Brazil, El Salvador and Cape Verde have all favoured an enforcement-based approach, focusing primarily on repression and law-enforcement mechanisms [police action, specific youth violence legislation, and prosecution, prison and socio-educational systems], instead of interventions aimed at the root causes of violent behaviour. However, recent changes in federal government approaches to public security in Brazil, coupled with state level changes, suggest the materialisation of a discourse shift in the field of youth violence, which has been in the making since the late 1990s.

Another common feature in these countries is the incomplete availability of qualified information systems on violence and violent criminality, especially on organised crime and female involvement in urban violence.

Civil society actions to prevent and combat urban violence are very diverse. In Brazil, especially Rio de Janeiro, NGOs, associations and grassroots organisations have a fairly long track record when dealing with the issue of youth violence, promoting initiatives and programmes mostly aimed at youth violence prevention, especially at the primary level. These initiatives and programmes have been based on skills training, sports, culture, empowerment and, to lesser extent, professional training and labour market integration. In San Salvador, despite the severity of youth violence, civil society approaches are less diversified and effective. Like any other violence-afflicted country in Central America, violence prevention and especially intervention programmes, namely those aimed at the perpetrators of violence, face greater disadvantages and less funding and support from the region’s crime-weary population. In Praia, the involvement of civil society in this matter has been slow. However, in recent years, the experiences of civil society organisations, sometimes in partnership with public institutions, have been singled out as good examples and as having had some direct impact on youth involved in violence in the Cidade da Praia.

Responding to and effectively preventing youth urban violence requires a comprehensive approach which takes into account the intra-social forms of violence committed by and against youth, as well as the structural conditions which determine the marginalisation of youth. This includes prevention programmes which help young people in vulnerable situations, intervention programmes which offer alternatives for those attracted to violence, rehabilitation prospects for those who wish to leave violent groups, and those leaving prison and socioeducational systems. Capable and accountable law-enforcement bodies, protection and support mechanisms for victims of violence, adequate arms control policies, up-to-date data collection and analysis systems on youth and violence, and whole-of-government and multi-disciplinary approaches to violence are also key....

July 8, 2011
Chatham House

Abstract:

I consider it a singular honour to have been invited today by Chatham House to address this august forum. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which I represent, is a regional organisation which has, over the years, gained your attention only for the unfortunate reasons of state implosion and instability caused by bad governance and marginalisation. I therefore welcome the opportunity to throw further light on its objectives, challenges, and achievements, which factors have effectively brought together fifteen West African states in the enterprise of improving upon the living standards of 230 million people as well as integrating them.

The term ‘Chatham House Rule’ is today an internationally-accepted cliché that this Institute has contributed to international diplomacy discourse, a reference norm in rigorous and policy-oriented exchanges on global peace and security. I therefore view your invitation to lead today’s discourse about ‘Democracy in the context of Regional Integration in West Africa’ as an unique honour for me personally, and a recognition of ECOWAS as a leading brand in regional integration.

Ladies and gentlemen, the evolution of ECOWAS can only be properly understood against the backdrop of the fascinating history and circumstances of West Africa since establishing contact with the world beyond its borders. The fact that slavery, colonialism, as well as racial and economic marginalisation, had left an intrinsic yearning for freedom, unity and solidarity among peoples of African descent everywhere defines its wish to integrate its states and peoples....

May 24, 2011
Security Council Report

Abstract:

This special research report provides an analysis of a set of new issues that have been emerging in the West African subregion and possible implications for the Security Council in the coming year(s). It identifies some key emerging threats to peace and security in the 16-state subregion and their linkages to existing security challenges. The report points to a key feature: the fact that some of the new threats are essentially criminal rather than political in nature. However, it explains also the growing political and security implications. The report also highlights action already taken by the Council to recognise these threats and considers options available to the Council to tackle these issues going forward.

The raw material for the study was derived from literature research; field research in a number of countries in the West African subregion (including Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Senegal, Ghana and Nigeria); and interviews in the region with diplomats, government officials and officials of relevant international intergovernmental bodies (e.g. UN Office in West Africa or UNOWA, UN Office for Drugs and Crime or UNODC, the Economic Community of West African States or ECOWAS and the AU), NGOs and academics....

November 2, 2010
Institute for Security Studies // L'Institut d'Etudes de Sécurité

Abstract:

This paper aims to appraise and map the security challenges that have faced West African countries since independence with a special focus on the period after 1990. It also assesses the efforts made by various national, regional, continental and extra-African actors and makes suggestions on how the shortcomings in these efforts could be improved. An effort is made to show the evolution of at least some of the challenges over the years, in the hope that this could contribute to a better formulation of policy responses.

The study is based on extensive review of existing literature, complemented by field research in the region undertaken in July and August 2010, in addition to general familiarity with the region from many previous research visits on related subjects.

Without neglecting other issues that could be considered as security threats, and without attempting any hierarchical ordering of these threats, the paper focuses on the following six major issues: i) armed conflict, ii) military coups and unconstitutional changes of government; iii) mismanagement of electoral processes; iv) transnational criminality, particularly drug trafficking, terrorism and maritime piracy in the Gulf of Guinea; v) poverty and illiteracy; vi) climate change and environmental degradation....

September 11, 2008
World Politics Review

Abstract:

Stepped up U.S. drug enforcement and interdiction in Latin America, coupled with a falling dollar and a surging demand for cocaine on the streets of Europe, is leading to political and economic chaos across West Africa, where international narco-traffickers have established their most recent, and lucrative, staging grounds. In fact, the drug trade is fast turning large parts of the region into areas that are all but ungovernable -- with major implications for international security. "The former Gold Coast is turning into the Coke Coast," said a 2008 report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). "The problem is so severe that it is threatening to bring about the collapse of some West African states where weak and corrupt governments are vulnerable to the corrosive influence of drug money." Though hardly alone in West Africa, Guinea-Bissau, the world's fifth poorest country, with a population of 1.5 million, has for all intents and purposes become the textbook example of the African "narco-state." Due to its relative proximity to South America, its hundreds of miles of unpatrolled coastline, islands and islets, along with the fact that Portuguese is its lingua franca, Guinea-Bissau has been increasingly targeted by South American drug lords as a preferred traffic hub for European-bound cocaine, according to the UNODC. What's more, as citizens of a former Portuguese colony, Guineans do not need visas to enter that EU country, further facilitating the movement of drugs. Authorities there can do precious little about it. "Guinea-Bissau has lost control of its territory and cannot administer justice," declared Antonio Maria Costa, the UNODC executive director, in a statement before the U.N. Security Council in December. "There is a permeability of judicial systems and a corruptibility of institutions in West Africa," he added. "Guinea-Bissau is under siege. Literally under siege." Guinea-Bissau enjoys plenty of company among its neighbors: To varying degrees, Ghana, Senegal, Nigeria, Cape Verde, Guinea-Conakry, Togo, Benin, Senegal, South Africa, and other West African and sub-Saharan states (including already-challenged states like Sierra Leone, the Ivory Coast and Liberia) are all beginning to feel the long reach of cocaine smuggling....

July 16, 2012
Project Ploughshares // Peacebuild

Abstract:

This paper was prepared for the Small Arms Working Group of Peacebuild. Project Ploughshares was the Coordinator of the Small Arms Working Group from 2004 through to 2010. The paper is part of a series that explored the relationship between armed violence and development.

With 66 per cent of all homicides occurring in countries not experiencing major violent conflict, armed violence is now a global social problem. Even more alarming is that much of this violence is perpetrated by young people, who are also over-represented among the victims. Youth armed violence is now a grave concern at every level of society and initiatives to deal with this issue have been increasing. More recently, steps have been undertaken to map those initiatives, especially at the community level, and document and disseminate good practice in addressing the problem. In furtherance of the goal of the Small Arms Working Group and Project Ploughshares to reduce violence and build peace, this study presents case studies of two specific programs that are enjoying some measure of success: The Peace Management Initiative [PMI] in Kingston, Jamaica and the Breaking the Cycle [BTC] Project in Toronto. Both programs were selected because of their success with gang-associated, violent youth in Jamaica’s inner city and in Toronto’s Caribbean diaspora communities respectively. Both are linked by the study’s Caribbean youth focus. The link goes even deeper: the perception is that much of the violence in Toronto is perpetrated by youth of Caribbean, particularly Jamaican, heritage....

July 16, 2012
London School of Economics and Political Science

Abstract:

As this Arab Spring of revolution becomes a long summer of transitions, we take the opportunity to review some of the historic developments in the region over the last few months. In doing so we throw the spotlight on the drivers of these popular uprisings, and the difficulties they present for the rest of the world in dealing with this strategically crucial region.

Kicking us off, Gilles Kepel brings his considerable experience to bear in discussing the revolutions in macro-context, before in our feature article Luca Tardelli analyses the inherent difficulties in Western intervention that are now once again playing out in Libya, a point picked up by Felix Berenskoetter in his discussion of how Western division on Libya played out at the Security Council. Turning to Yemen, Tobias Thiel considers how the particular politics of coalition in that country may allow it to move beyond the surely-now-terminal Presidency of Ali Abdullah Saleh.

International politics doesn’t stop when crises occur, and the world faces a great many challenges at this time. China’s rise seems perpetually on the agenda, and Marco Wyss provides a new take on the drivers of that power transition in his analysis of US arms sales to China. Meanwhile, as American hegemony in Latin America seems increasingly up for question, Carlos Solis-Tejada assesses the prospects for Cuba, that most dysfunctional of American relationships, in the wake of the sixth party congress....

July 16, 2012
The Centre for International Governance Innovation

Abstract:

Haiti, like many countries, relies heavily on private security companies to protect people and property. However, while the private security industry has a vital role to play in stabilizing the country, it has long functioned without effective government oversight. Haiti’s security sector reform [SSR] process has begun to address this shortcoming. The paper analyzes the current state of the private security industry in Haiti and the legal framework under which it operates, and makes recommendations for how a reformed legal and regulatory regime can guide the next phase of its development, based on interviews with owners and agents of private security companies, industry associations, senior Haitian police personnel, United Nations [UN] planners and parliamentary leaders. The paper concludes that genuine consultation and partnership between the government, industry and civil society is required, if SSR programs in Haiti and elsewhere are to successfully marshal private resources towards the public good....

July 6, 2012
The Stimson Center

Abstract:

Policy makers, practitioners, and experts alike have increasingly identified the protection of civilians as a priority for United Nations peacekeeping operations and as key to mission success. A 2009 independent study commissioned by the United Nations' Department of Peacekeeping Operations and Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs concluded that a failure to protect civilians can undermine the legitimacy and credibility of the mission, and in turn jeopardize the political processes that peacekeepers were originally deployed to support.

Policymakers and practitioners are keen to learn from past operations that faced protection crises. Saving Port-au-Prince: United Nations Efforts to Protect Civilians in Haiti in 2006-2007 explores the analysis, decisions, and actions of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti to protect civilians during this time period. It examines why MINUSTAH was relatively successful at protecting civilians; describes its shortcomings; and draws lessons for other contexts....

June 6, 2012
Project Ploughshares

Abstract:

The negotiation of an international Arms Trade Treaty [ATT] has become a UN process of “high importance” for the Caribbean Community [CARICOM]. It is not difficult to see why. The Caribbean subregion is severely impacted by the irresponsible and illicit proliferation and transfer of small arms and light weapons [SALW] and associated ammunition. Per capita murder rates in the Caribbean are among the highest in the world and 70 per cent of murders in the region involve small arms. Hence, CARICOM considers the development of a comprehensive legally and globally binding ATT regulating the international trade in conventional arms and based on the highest possible international standards, as an unavoidable priority. The interlinked problems of small arms proliferation, drug trafficking, and other criminal activity have been a longstanding and growing concern of the governments of the subregion. In 2002 the CARICOM Regional Taskforce on Crime and Security released an influential report that led to the creation of the Implementation Agency for Crime and Security [IMPACS] that, among other responsibilities, was appointed the contact point on small arms issues for the subregion. The report contains several recommendations with regard to the threats of illegal firearms, many of which are relevant to the provisions of an Arms Trade Treaty....

September 16, 2008
En la Mira - The Latin American Small Arms Watch

Abstract:

Although all countries, in theory report their authorized transfers - and such information may even be available in certain public databases - the task of providing an overview of SALW transfers, their parts and munitions, is an arduous one. Nonetheless, despite the difficulties, we have some extremely positive initiatives on a global scale, such as for example, the Small Arms Survey, recognized as an important source of information, especially on SALW production and transfers, as well as the Norwegian Initiative on Small Arms Transfers (NISAT) which has a database containing transfer records going back to 1962.Despite these important initiatives, themselves when researchers, activists and policy makers try to understand a regional market, such as Latin America and the Caribbean, they encounter a dearth of information. With the intent of addressing this shortcoming, En La Mira has, since 2007, dedicated an issue to transfers of SALWs, parts and ammunition in this region. Further, according to statistics from the United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database (UN-Comtrade or Comtrade), USD 6.7 billion were exported between 2004 and 2006, while USD 6.5 billion were imported. Despite the fact that Latin America and the Caribbean represent 6% and 3%, respectively, of total transfers worldwide during this period, 42% of firearms related homicide is committed in the region. This discrepancy between the international transfer volume share and the levels of armsrelated violence in Latin America and the Caribbean calls attention to itself, above all because of the tragic and startling number of homicides. Obviously, far from wishing to increase arms transfers in order to be more in sync with homicide rates, we decided, a year ago, to study this issue and periodically monitor its development based on our interest in understanding the primary legal entry and exit routes of firearms and ammunition. The result is a report - based on customs information as stated by Latin American and Caribbean countries and their respective partners - whose objective is to describe the movement of the SALW imports and exports, as well as ammunition and parts, during the present decade. Based on this data, we answer the following questions: who exported and who imported? From whom? What? And when? It is worth restating that the intent of this report is not to explain the cause of arms imports and exports by Latin American countries. Beyond merely providing information, we do indeed wish to awaken, by means of the information presented here, the curiosity of other researches, activists and government staff members such that they may continue to perform research in their countries regarding the transparency of this information, on who is using the transferred SALW, and how. The data used for this report came from the NISAT database, which contains more than 800,000 entries for SALW transfers worldwide since 1962. The NISAT database gets its information from different sources, COMTRADE among them. In this study we decided to restrict ourselves to data from this latter source because, in theory, all countries report transfers to the UN. This data is declared in accordance with the Harmonized System (SH) merchandise classification system. The HS has existed since 1988and, in 2007, was revised for the fourth time; previous revisions were in 1992, 1996 and in 2002. Regarding the period analyzed, we are looking at data up until 2006, since at the time the study closed this was the most recent year available on NISAT....

October 4, 2004
British Broadcasting Corporation

Abstract:

One of the world's largest financial centres and a well-known tax haven, this British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean has more registered businesses than it has people.

July 20, 2012
Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect

Abstract:

Provides background on populations at risk of mass atrocity crimes, with particular emphasis on key events and actors and their connection to the threat, or commission, of genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.

Offers analysis of the country’s past history in relation to mass atrocity crimes; the factors that have enabled their possible commission, or that prevent their resolution; and the receptivity of the situation to positive influences that would assist in preventing further crimes....

July 20, 2012
Centre for the Study of African Economies // University of Oxford

Abstract:

Important gaps remain in the understanding of the economic consequences of civil war. Focusing on the conflict in Rwanda in the early 90s, and using micro data to carry out econometric analysis, this paper finds that households and localities that experienced more intense conflict are lagging behind in terms of consumption six years after the conflict, a finding that is robust to taking into account the endogeneity of violence. Significantly different returns to land and labour are observed between zones that experienced low and high intensity conflict which is consistent with on-going recovery. Distinguishing between civil war and genocide, the findings also provide evidence that these returns, and by implication the process of recovery, depend on the form of violence....

July 18, 2012
The Centre for International Governance Innovation

Abstract:

Past exhumations conducted by Physicians for Human Rights at the request of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda were short-lived and controversial, from the perspective of both the international community and the communities that hosted the investigations. There is, however, widespread support among survivors for renewedefforts to identify and repatriate the anonymous victims of the 1994 genocide, both to reduce the psychological and spiritual distress the survivors experience and to provide definitive evidence of the genocide for future generations. In this brief, the term “repatriation” is used to refer to the process of returning human remains to their surviving relatives for appropriate reburial....

July 18, 2012
African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes

Abstract:

Contemporary Africa is faced with the reality of numerous evolving states that have to grapple with the inevitability of conflict. On their own, the fledgling institutions in these states cannot cope with the huge demands unleashed by everyday conflict. It is within this context that the complementarity between traditional institutions and the modern state becomes not only observable but also imperative.

Includes:
"Conflict resolution under the Ekika system of the Baganda in Uganda" by Ashad Sentongo and Andrea Bartoli
"Local conflict resolution in Rwanda: The case of abunzi mediators" br Martha Mutisi
"Traditional authority and modern hegemony: Peacemaking in the Afar region of Ethiopia" by Kwesi Sansculotte-Greenidge and Demessie Fantaye
"From war to peace and reconciliation in Darfur, Sudan: Prospects for the Judiyya" by Abdullahi Osman El-Tom
"Customary mediation in resource scarcities and conflicts in Sudan: Making a case for the Judiyya" by Salomé Bronkhorst...

July 17, 2012
Global Observatory

Abstract:

Civilian populations are again the victims of the recent clashes between the Congolese armed forces [FARDC] and the newly-formed armed group called 23 March Movement [M23] in eastern DRC. Congolese civilians are facing displacement, with looting and abductions being carried out by both sides. This time, however, the M23 rebel group has been using Protection of Civilians [PoC] language as an integral part of a well-calculated communication strategy. M23 leader Colonel Sultani Makenga stated on July 8 that its combatants would leave major towns they had just taken, about 40km north of the town of Goma, in order to “let MONUSCO and the national police secure the civilian population.” Meanwhile both the government of the DRC and the UN mission in the DRC [known by the acronym MONUSCO] are struggling to respond; the UN mission simply stated that it is doing its utmost in coordination with the Congolese army to protect civilians....

July 20, 2012
Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect

Abstract:

Provides background on populations at risk of mass atrocity crimes, with particular emphasis on key events and actors and their connection to the threat, or commission, of genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.

Offers analysis of the country’s past history in relation to mass atrocity crimes; the factors that have enabled their possible commission, or that prevent their resolution; and the receptivity of the situation to positive influences that would assist in preventing further crimes....

July 16, 2012
The Soufan Group

Abstract:

The Lord's Resistance Army's capability has been badly degraded by years of exile in the Central African jungle, and attempts to capture its leader, Joseph Kony, have been a low priority for regional governments. But the remaining 200-300 fighters continue to prey on civilians, including children, and have displaced almost half a million people in the region.

Kony's atrocities have made him one of the world's most notorious fugitives and the Obama administration has sent Special Forces personnel to help the Ugandan army capture him, ostensibly following a humanitarian mandate from the U.S. Congress that would be precedent setting. It would also overlap with an increasingly important strategy in the global war on terror: training African governments to serve as proxies in the hunt for al Qaeda....

July 12, 2012
Transitional Demobilization and Reintegration Program

Abstract:

The implementation of effective disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) programmes in countries emerging from violent conflict are essential for building and maintaining peace and security. In many instances the disarmament and demobilisation of former combatants was achieved, but reintegration remained a challenge, due to the long-term focus and the substantial resources that are required for such a process to be successful. Income generation and livelihood opportunities are arguably vital for the success of reintegration processes. That is, in order to discourage the remilitarisation of ex-combatants, alternative and appealing means of making a sustainable living should be available to these individuals. In addition, if former combatants are able to make a constructive economic contribution to the communities to which they settle, these communities are more likely to be receptive to their presence.

Given this state of affairs, the Transitional Demobilisation and Reintegration Program (TDRP) of the World Bank commissioned the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) in South Africa to undertake a research project on the extent to which ex-combatants interact with the informal economy in order to sustain themselves and their dependents. The research was undertaken in three countries: the Central African Republic (CAR), the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC – in the regions of Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu) and South Sudan. This project was indelibly linked to another research project that exclusively focused on the reintegration of ex-combatants in the eastern DRC, the results of which are included in a separate report. The four specific focal areas of the research project were as follows:

1. An assessment of the state of conflict in terms of how it impacts on the economy in all the three case study areas;

2. An assessment of the nature of the economy (and labour market) in the case study areas;

3. An assessment of the employment and sustainable livelihood options that former combatants pursue in the case study areas; and

4. An analysis of the types, dynamics, successes, challenges of ex-combatant income-generating activities in the three case study countries.

This report is comprised of three parts. Part one includes a review of the literature on the reintegration of former combatants and the informal economy in Africa; a synopsis of post-conflict economies; and an outline of the analytical framework. Part two presents the findings of the case study research, focusing on the economies and DDR processes in each of the three countries, as well as assessing the reintegration process in relation to the informal economy. The third component of the report provides a comparative analysis of, and conclusions from, the research findings....

July 3, 2012
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

Abstract:

A serious humanitarian crisis is ongoing in the areas affected by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) along the borders of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic and South Sudan. An estimated 445,000 civilians – or more than one in five of the estimated 2 million people in LRA-affected areas – are currently internally displaced or living as refugees. This situation has widespread implications for the stability of the region and the ability of communities to remain self-reliant and maintain hope for a brighter future....

June 26, 2012
United Nations University

Abstract:

While the history of wars and conflicts is replete with systematic incidents of sexual violence against vulnerable women, modern-day wars have witnessed large-scale indiscriminate deployment of rape as a “weapon” of war by combatants. In recent armed conflicts — such as in the former Yugoslavia, Liberia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, the Central African Republic, Sierra Leone and Rwanda — the widespread use of rape as a tool of warfare has become a conspicuous phenomenon.

July 20, 2012
International Crisis Group

Abstract:

The 25,000 members of the National Civil Police (PNC) are on the front lines of Guatemala’s battle against crime. But all too often citizens distrust and fear the police – widely dismissed as inefficient, corrupt and abusive – as much as the criminals. Underfunded, poorly trained and often outgunned, they are frequently incapable or unwilling to confront criminals and gain the public trust needed to build a state based on rule of law. Drug traffickers, including Mexican cartels, move at will across porous borders, while criminal gangs dominate many urban areas. The government of President Otto Pérez Molina must reboot and revitalise police reform, as part of an overall effort to strengthen justice and law enforcement, with financial support from the U.S. and other countries interested in preventing Guatemala from becoming a haven for organised crime. Progress has been made, but achievements are fragile and easily reversed.

Since the 1996 peace accords that ended 36 years of armed conflict, donors have poured tens of millions of dollars into police and justice sector reform. But despite these efforts, Guatemala, with its neighbours in the Northern Triangle of Central America, remains one of the most violent countries in the world. Governments have repeatedly promised reform, including the Pérez administration that took office in January 2012. The new president, a retired general, campaigned on the promise that his government would combat crime with an “iron fist”. Since then, he has deployed troops to help patrol high-crime areas, reinforced the military in border regions to fight drug trafficking and declared a state of siege to quell a local protest. He has also promised to strengthen the police by adding thousands of recruits, while restarting stalled efforts to overhaul the institution. The question is whether his government will be able to muster the resources and will to bolster institutional reform or will rely primarily on militarised crime-fighting operations that provide short-term gains without solving long-term problems....

July 20, 2012
Transnational Institute

Abstract:

Remarkable drug policy developments are taking place in Latin America. This is not only at the level of political debate, but is also reflected in actual legislative changes in a number of countries. All in all there is an undeniable regional trend of moving away from the ‘war on drugs’. This briefing explains the background to the opening of the drug policy debate in the region, summarises the most relevant aspects of the ongoing drug law reforms in some countries, and makes a series of recommendations that could help to move the debate forward in a productive manner....

July 11, 2012
Center for Strategic and International Studies

Abstract:

Unlike its immediate neighbors to the north in Central America, Nicaragua has made admirable strides in the area of citizen security in the last 30 years. While Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras all had been galloping toward greater citizen insecurity since the conflictive 1980s, Nicaragua has managed to keep a lid on crime. With a homicide rate of 12 deaths per 100,000 residents—half the Latin American average of 26 per 100,000 and far lower than 82 per 100,000 in Honduras—Nicaragua appears to be a model for public safety in still turbulent Central America. However, recent erosions in democratic governance in Nicaragua could easily reverse such gains....

July 4, 2012
Women's Refugee Commission

Abstract:

Urban violence, restricted access to formal markets, the lack of safe spaces and quality skills training programs, and disrupted education challenge the economic resiliency of Colombian refugee and asylee female and male youth in Panama’s urban centers. UNHCR estimates that there are 17,000 refugees in Panama. While nongovernmental organizations estimate 75,000 Colombians are in Panama who need international protection,1 only 2,500 persons of concern are registered with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. Panama is a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention and the 1967 Protocol; however, a cumbersome asylum process approves only two percent of asylum applications....

July 4, 2012
Action on Armed Violence

Abstract:

This report looks at national capacities to address the issue of armed violence of 12 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. In particular, the report documents states’ efforts to:

a. Measure, monitor and analyse the phenomenon of armed violence

b. Develop and implement legal instruments and programmes to address victims’ rights

c. Develop and implement legal instruments and programmes to prevent and reduce armed violence.

This document offers an overview of existing government efforts in Latin America and the Caribbean to measure and monitor armed violence. It looks at types of data collected, at the institutions in charge of collecting the information and it analyses some of the issues related to the use of the collected data. This is a preliminary report that is followed by a complete regional overview to be published in October 2011....

July 13, 2012
Centre for International Policy Studies

Abstract:

The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) has been very successful in bringing many accused to justice, in leading to the establishment of a permanent International Criminal Court and in demonstrating that holding leaders accountable is possible.

However, there is considerable dissonance between the ICTY’s judicial achievements in The Hague and attitudes and perceptions of the Tribunal in the region.

In order for the Tribunal’s legacy to have lasting impact, extensive efforts must be made to leverage the record of judicial success in order to ensure that its work is not ‘lost in translation’....

July 12, 2012
Chatham House

Abstract:

This is a summary of an event held at Chatham House on 14 May 2012. The event explored key aspects of Turkey-Armenia rapprochement. The event was held under the Chatham House Rule. Participants included experts from academia, think tanks and the policy-making community.

July 4, 2012
L'Institut français des relations internationales

Abstract:

Created on the 10th July 1999 by Security Council Resolution 1244, UNMIK was responsible for restructuring the institutions of a country devastated by war and establishing democratic governance. The security of people and goods and the existence of a legal system trusted by the population were two crucial prerequisites to the state-building process. The international community, however, only partially achieved these aims. Local difficulties, related to the hatred between ethnic communities and the resulting insecurity, as well as the international institutions’ inherent weaknesses, have represented major obstacles to the implementation of a local police and a legal system abiding to the United Nations’ norms. Today, international actors’ support remains essential to the functioning of Kosovo, thereby confirming the fragility of its independence. This assessment of UNMIK’s activities demonstrates that peacekeeping operations can diminish the intensity of conflicts without necessarily eliminating its causes....

June 27, 2012
European Policy Centre

Abstract:

30 June 2012 marks the end of the European Union Police Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the first ever and longest-running mission launched under the European Union's Common Security and Defence Policy. In a local and regional context in which the EU has concurrently pursued the twin goals of stabilisation and integration, the launch and subsequent conduct of EUPM reflected the bloc's growing engagement with civilian crisis management, initially focusing on police reform but soon coming to encompass concerns over the wider rule of law....

June 26, 2012
United Nations University

Abstract:

While the history of wars and conflicts is replete with systematic incidents of sexual violence against vulnerable women, modern-day wars have witnessed large-scale indiscriminate deployment of rape as a “weapon” of war by combatants. In recent armed conflicts — such as in the former Yugoslavia, Liberia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, the Central African Republic, Sierra Leone and Rwanda — the widespread use of rape as a tool of warfare has become a conspicuous phenomenon.

July 20, 2012
United States Institute of Peace

Abstract:

The role of women in society is often a site for political discussion, especially in the course of post-conflict transition. For Afghan women, a decade of debate has ensued about their role in Afghan society.

July 18, 2012
International Federation for Human Rights // Open Asia

Abstract:

Stakeholders’ focus on reconciliation at any cost prevails in Afghanistan. After more than 30 years of war, the Afghan people are extenuated and yearn for security, peace and a normal life. More than 70 percent of the population was born after the Russian invasion in 1979 and have spent their lives under war. Millions have lived part of their lives as refugees in Pakistan and Iran, and hundreds of thousands are still internally displaced. Many remain in exile as a result of the uncertainties that persist in Afghanistan. In the most recent years, thousands of young Afghans have chosen to migrate abroad because of the prevailing insecurity and the absence of livelihood.

The first and second sections analyse the context in which the reconciliation process will unfold until the withdrawal of international troops by the end of 2014. The third section demonstrates that safeguarding and consolidating important institutional and democratic achievements since 2001 is crucial to ensuring that Afghanistan does not revert back to a situation of widespread human rights violations, once again becoming a haven for acts of terror. The transition process to 2014 and beyond must embody a strong commitment from both the Government of Afghanistan and the international community to fully endorse justice and human rights as core, nonnegotiable principles in all institutional and strategic arrangements. The fourth section profiles the Taliban and brings evidence that they are committing similar patterns of human rights violations to those they regularly committed when in power from 1996 to 2001. This section also outlines the various human rights mechanisms the international community can mobilise in order to prevent the rehabilitation and return of Taliban’s violent ideological governance. It also identifies the key responsibilities and obligations of the international community and Afghanistan’s partners in addressing the human rights situation prevailing in the country. The conclusion and recommendations summarize the various factors which the Government of Afghanistan and its international partners should mobilise to build democracy and the rule of law, and prevent further human rights violations in Afghanistan....

July 18, 2012
Central Asia - Caucasus Institute Analyst

Abstract:

Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb [AQIM] has shown interest in Central Asia through its statement on the riots in Xinjiang in 2009 and its demand in 2012 for the release of a female Islamic Jihad Union [IJU] and German Taliban Mujahideen [GTM] financier incarcerated in Germany. AQIM and IJU both aim to create a global Islamic Caliphate and share enemies, such as the U.S., Germany, France, the U.K. and China. With the migration of jihadists from the Afghanistan-Pakistan theatre to hotspots in Somalia and AQIM’s new terrain in Azawad [Mali], coordination will increase between terrorist groups in Africa and Central Asia. The cross-regional networks are already in place and Germany appears to be a hub....

July 16, 2012
Center for Strategic and International Studies

Abstract:

Religious institutions and leaders are critically important in many conflict and post-conflict cases, and religious values often motivate either violence or peacebuilding. This report, part of an ongoing research effort to assess what is substantively distinctive about religion and the roles it can play in conflict, explores the ways that religion has been a factor in militant groups’ approaches to gaining support in India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Religion is a relevant factor in key ways that these groups build support, including their relations with the state, service provision, kinship and patronage networks, and diaspora outreach. The roles religion plays in these categories are complicated and not always intuitive. Militant groups must find ways to limit central government pressures on their activities, including religious ones. These same groups can risk alienating local populations when they pair strong ideological or religious stances with service provision, or operate through patronage networks that are too rigid or not sufficiently inclusive. And global religious networks can inspire diaspora communities to pursue violent activity against their adopted governments. In South Asia, these groups’ activities matter because they threaten the ability of states to maintain peace and stability internally and complicate relations between already tense neighbors. Such instability has grave implications for U.S. national security....

July 16, 2012
Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik // German Institute for International and Security Affairs

Abstract:

In July 2011 ISAF began transferring security responsibilities to the Afghan government. While NATO countries view this process with calculated optimism, four entirely negative scenarios are becoming probable. A "power oligarchy" could develop, either directly out of the current leadership [Scenario 1] or with the political participation of the Taleban [Scenario 2]. It is also conceivable, however, that the country could relapse into a "civil war" after 2014, the prospective end of the ISAF mission [Scenario 3]; or into a renewed "Taleban emirate" [Scenario 4]. Which of these developments will occur depends on several influencing factors: the internal risks within Afghanistan; future ISAF strategy in the asymmetric war; and the nature of long-term US engagement in Afghanistan....

July 18, 2012
Save the Children // World Vision

Abstract:

More than 18 million people are currently struggling through a crisis in the Sahel region of West Africa. The overarching driver of this crisis is not drought, nor a food deficit. The most vulnerable families are in crisis because they have no protection against shocks like grain prices doubling. This is the “resilience deficit”*, rooted in structural causes, neglected for too long, and exacerbated by exceptionally high food prices.

Current estimates suggest that over one million children will face severe and life-threatening malnutrition during this crisis. Even in a “non-crisis” year, an estimated 645,000 children die in the Sahel of largely preventable and treatable causes, with 226,000 of these deaths being directly linked to malnutrition. Acute malnutrition affects 10%-14% of children in Senegal, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Burkina Faso, and more than 15% of children in Chad. These rates demonstrate that traditional development policies are failing to save children in the Sahel from a permanent, large-scale nutrition crisis.

This report, a joint initiative by Save the Children and World Vision, aims to assess progress, lessons learned, and challenges in promoting “resilience” in the Sahel, with a particular focus on the well-being of children. The study demonstrates the need for a massive response by governments and partners in order to tackle child malnutrition – chronic and acute, together. It offers evidence-based, tangible recommendations for a comprehensive, child-focused approach to resilience in the Sahel.

People’s access to food at prices they can afford, and their capacity to absorb or adapt to new shocks have been severely undermined by the Sahel crises in 2005, 2008 and 2010. The vast majority of the most vulnerable households in the region have had neither the time, nor the necessary support, to get out of debt, or restore their normal means of making a living....

June 19, 2012
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

Abstract:

UNHCR's "Global Trends 2011" report details for the first time the extent of forced displacement from a string of major humanitarian crises that began in late 2010 in Côte d'Ivoire, and was quickly followed by others in Libya, Somalia, Sudan and elsewhere. In all, 4.3 million people were newly displaced, with a full 800,000 of these fleeing their countries and becoming refugees.

"2011 saw suffering on an epic scale. For so many lives to have been thrown into turmoil over so short a space of time means enormous personal cost for all who were affected," said the UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres. "We can be grateful only that the international system for protecting such people held firm for the most part and that borders stayed open. These are testing times."

Worldwide, 42.5 million people ended 2011 either as refugees (15.2 million), internally displaced (26.4 million) or in the process of seeking asylum (895,000). Despite the high number of new refugees, the overall figure was lower than the 2010 total of 43.7 million people, due mainly to the offsetting effect of large numbers of internally displaced people (IDPs) returning home: 3.2 million, the highest rate of returns of IDPs in more than a decade. Among refugees, and notwithstanding an increase in voluntary repatriation over 2010 levels, 2011 was the third lowest year for returns (532,000) in a decade.

Viewed on a 10-year basis, the report shows several worrying trends: One is that forced displacement is affecting larger numbers of people globally, with the annual level exceeding 42 million people for each of the last five years. Another is that a person who becomes a refugee is likely to remain as one for many years – often stuck in a camp or living precariously in an urban location. Of the 10.4 million refugees under UNHCR's mandate, almost three quarters (7.1 million) have been in exile for at least five years awaiting a solution....

June 12, 2012
Human Security Report Project

Abstract:

Human Security Research is a monthly compilation of significant new human security-related research published by academics, university research institutes, think-tanks, international agencies, and NGOs.

Articles in this issue:
AID & FRAGILE STATES: Aid Effectiveness in Fragile States: Lessons from the First Generation of Transition Compacts
MONITORING AND REPORTING: Building Effective Monitoring, Reporting, and Fact-finding Mechanisms
CHILDREN & ARMED CONFLICT: No One to Trust: Children and Armed Conflict in Colombia
INSECURITY IN MAURITANIA: The Drivers of Insecurity in Mauritania
TRAFFICKING & INSTABILITY: Drug Trafficking, Violence, and Instability
THE UN IN CHAD & CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC : Security Council Working Methods and UN Peace Operations: The Case of Chad and the Central African Republic, 2006-2010
SSR IN THE DRC: The Democratic Republic of Congo: Taking a Stand on Security Sector Reform
LEADERSHIP TARGETING IN COUNTERINSURGENCY CAMPAIGNS: Does Decapitation Work? Assessing the Effectiveness of Leadership Targeting in Counterinsurgency Campaigns
HEALTH & EDUCATION IN BURUNDI: War, Health, and Educational Attainment: A Panel of Children during Burundi’s Civil War
WAR & POVERTY: War and Poverty
UN REFORM: UN Peacekeeping: 20 Years of Reform
MYANMAR: Reform in Myanmar: One Year On
...

June 1, 2012
United States Institute of Peace

Abstract:

On the eve of Libya's first elections scheduled for June 22,Tripoli is humming with anticipation. Billboards encouraging Libyans to vote line the major roads. 78 percent of the 3.5 million eligible voters have registered. Interim government officials are planning for security arrangements, printing ballots, and standing up polling stations. However, far away from the capital city, Libya's borders are a distant, silent threat to the success of the revolution. Libya shares a 2,700 mile-long border with Egypt to the east, Tunisia and Algeria to the west, and Sudan, Chad, and Niger to the south. During Libya's 2011 revolution, revolutionary fighters seized border crossings and large swaths of territory. Some swore allegiance to the new government. Other resisted and morphed into criminal enterprises. Trafficking of weapons, drugs, alcohol, and people soared. This spill-over of people and contraband threatens Libya's tenuous stability, as well as the democratic transitions in Egypt and Tunisia. These lawless areas pose a threat to European and U.S. security as well. Al-qaida affiliates reportedly transit the country from havens in ungoverned areas in neighboring countrie...

May 24, 2012
The United Nations High Commissioner of Refugees

Abstract:

Accusations of witchcraft have occurred in many situations of concern to UNHCR, for example amongst internally displaced in Northern Uganda and in refugee camps and settlements from South Africa through to Chad (2009). Accusations against children in refugee and IDP communities have also been a focus of particular attention in a recent report (Bussein et.al 2011).

However detailed anthropological accounts of such accusations are still rare in the refugee studies literature, exceptions being the discussion by Harrell-Bond of ‘poisoning’ amongst Ugandan refugees in Sudan (1986) and a paper by Golooba-Mutebi (2004) on accusations amongst Mozambican refugees and their South African hosts.

For a phenomenon as complex as witchcraft accusations it is arguable that an anthropological approach is particularly useful because it:

• concentrates on the social and cultural understandings of witchcraft within a community;
• examines the subject as part of broad patterns of continuity and change in various aspects of life;
• draws on insights from long-term participatory fieldwork; and,
• is informed by many years of anthropological theorising and research into witchcraft.

We hope then that this paper will be a valuable contribution to our understanding of witchcraft in refugee situations. We should highlight however that it departs from a classic anthropological approach to witchcraft in one important respect. Whilst most anthropologists have been content to describe and explain witchcraft accusations, we join with those seeking to find ways to minimise accusations and the harm that they cause; the relative powerlessness of the vulnerable individuals most often accused, and the consequences that they suffer including expulsion, violence and even death, makes this imperative (Ter Haar 2007, La Fontaine 2009). The last section of this paper is therefore an account of different community-based interventions that non-governmental agencies have used to help reduce the number and severity of accusations....

February 9, 2011
The International Journal of Transitional Justice

Abstract:

Most studies of truth commissions assert their positive role in improving human rights. A firstwave of researchmade these claims based on qualitative analysis of a single truth commission or a small number of cases. Thirty years of experience with truth commissions and dozens of examples allow cross-national statistical studies to assess these findings. Two recent studies undertake that project. Their findings, which are summarized in this article, challenge the prevailing view that truth commissions foster human rights, showing instead that commissions, when used alone, tend to have a negative impact on human rights. Truth commissions have a positive impact, however, when used in combination with trials and amnesties. This article extends the question of whether truth commissions improve human rights to how, when and why they succeed or fail in doing so. It presents a ‘justice balance’ explanation, whereby commissions, incapable of promoting stability and accountability on their own, contribute to human rights improvements when they complement and enhance amnesties and prosecutions. The article draws on experiences in Brazil, Chile, Nepal, South Korea and South Africa to illustrate the central argument....

October 7, 2009
Small Arms Survey // Graduate Institute of International Studies, Geneva // Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Abstract:

The data in this report is derived from country submissions when possible, and estimates when necessary. Estimates are extrapolated from each country’s identified procurement, highest modern personnel totals, and strategic doctrine. Except where noted, the military small arms and light weapons data presented here is not official, comprehensive, or conclusive; it is for general evaluation and comparison only. The complete methodology used here is described in Chapter 2 of the Small Arms Survey 2006. Small arms are state-owned handguns, submachine guns, rifles, shotguns, and light and medium machine guns. Firearms are civilian-owned handguns, submachine guns, rifles, and shotguns. Long at the forefront of international small arms issues, public debate and activism in South America have largely focused on matters surrounding civilian firearms, estimated here to total between 21.7 and 26.8 million. The reasons for this civilian preoccupation are principally linked to chronic gun violence. South America has 14 per cent of the global population, and roughly 3.5 to 4 per cent of the world’s civilian firearms, but it suffers from roughly 40 per cent of all homicides committed with firearms. Military small arms are rarely part of public debate, largely because of a strong culture of national security secrecy in South America. But military small arms policy has attracted much closer scrutiny in recent years, especially as military small arms and light weapons are diverted to criminals and guerrillas, fuelling insurgencies and civil violence. This report focuses primarily on issues surrounding surplus military small arms and light weapons in the region. Law enforcement and civilian firearms inventories and issues are recognized here as well, to ensure a balanced overall perspective. The region’s military establishments do not have a strong record of identifying or eliminating their surplus small arms, light weapons, or ammunition. South America holds some of the world’s largest military small arms and light weapons surpluses. Military inventories are not exceptionally large in absolute terms, but they are a major element in global surplus problems. Among the 12 independent countries of South America, there are an estimated 3.6 million military small arms as of 2007, 1.5 per cent of the global total. Of these, approximately 1.3 million, more than one-third, are surplus....

September 16, 2009
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Abstract:

The purpose of the present report is to analyze the intelligence agencies’ role in Pakistan’s political life through a better understanding of the agencies’ objectives and mechanisms. Because Pakistan’s civilian governments have been victims of the agencies’ manipulation in the past, the new and very fragile government cannot ignore the decisive role of the intelligence agencies in Pakistani politics if it wants to counter the direct and more subtle manifestations of military control. The domestic political role of intelligence agencies is always a combination of three elements: militarization, comprehensive political surveillance, and state terror. The intensity and relative importance of each component varies over time and according to the specific situations in each country, but all three are always present. Terror as it applies to individuals or groups can be carried out by proxies and is intermittent, but it remains an essential element of the system. An intelligence agency’s reputation for ruthlessness is often as important as its actual efficiency....

May 23, 2009
The Chicago Council on Global Affairs

Abstract:

Chile once boasted a long history of stable democratic rule until socialist policies and economic chaos emerged in the 1970s, setting the stage for the coup d’état by General Augusto Pinochet Ugarte. Chile’s deeply rooted democratic culture survived sixteen years under Pinochet, however, and the people united under the common goal of returning Chile to civilian control. Claudio Orrego, mayor of Peñalolén in Santiago province and The Chicago Council’s 2009 Gus Hart Fellow, shared his vision of democracy in one of Latin America’s most stable and prosperous nations. He discussed government transparency, the role of information technology, and economic development through public-private partnerships....

December 10, 2008
New America Foundation

Abstract:

This table is part of the larger "U.S. Weapons at War 2008" report. For the full document, please see http://www.humansecuritygateway.info/showRecord.php?RecordId=27517

July 16, 2012
Saferworld

Abstract:

In July 2012, the 5th Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) Ministerial Conference will be held in Beijing. These high-level meetings, which occur every three years, facilitate cooperation in the fields of trade, investment, development, health, education, environment, people-to-people exchanges and various other issues. One important issue is peace and security. Addressing the last FOCAC meeting in 2009, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao made clear that “China is willing to increase involvement in the settlement of issues concerning peace and security in Africa."...

July 16, 2012
London School of Economics and Political Science

Abstract:

As this Arab Spring of revolution becomes a long summer of transitions, we take the opportunity to review some of the historic developments in the region over the last few months. In doing so we throw the spotlight on the drivers of these popular uprisings, and the difficulties they present for the rest of the world in dealing with this strategically crucial region.

Kicking us off, Gilles Kepel brings his considerable experience to bear in discussing the revolutions in macro-context, before in our feature article Luca Tardelli analyses the inherent difficulties in Western intervention that are now once again playing out in Libya, a point picked up by Felix Berenskoetter in his discussion of how Western division on Libya played out at the Security Council. Turning to Yemen, Tobias Thiel considers how the particular politics of coalition in that country may allow it to move beyond the surely-now-terminal Presidency of Ali Abdullah Saleh.

International politics doesn’t stop when crises occur, and the world faces a great many challenges at this time. China’s rise seems perpetually on the agenda, and Marco Wyss provides a new take on the drivers of that power transition in his analysis of US arms sales to China. Meanwhile, as American hegemony in Latin America seems increasingly up for question, Carlos Solis-Tejada assesses the prospects for Cuba, that most dysfunctional of American relationships, in the wake of the sixth party congress....

June 27, 2012
EUCAM // Fundación para las Relaciones Internacionales y el Diálogo Exterior

Abstract:

China and Russia are the most influential external actors in Central Asia, while the EU has substantially increased its activity and presence in the region since 2007. The security and development interests of these three actors are sometimes at odds but can also overlap. The three actors are usually perceived in terms of different stereotypes. Whereas the EU is known for its emphasis on democratic values and human rights, Russia is seen as the main security actor [not including the United States and its actions in Afghanistan] and China as the main investor in infrastructure and importer of energy. How do these stereotypes compare in regard to security and development interests? Is there any scope for cooperation and coordination or can policies be boiled down to zero-sum geo-political competition?...

June 26, 2012
Human Rights Watch

Abstract:

This 68-page report describes how at least 7,000 to 10,000 ethnic Kachin refugees have fled war and abuses in Burma since June 2011, seeking refuge in southwestern China. The report is based on more than 100 interviews with refugees, displaced persons in Burma, victims of abuses, relief workers, and others.

May 24, 2012
Human Rights Watch

Abstract:

This 76-page report documents abuses by the chengguan Urban Management Law Enforcement (城管执法) forces, including assaults on suspected administrative law violators, some of which lead to serious injury or death, illegal detention, and unlawful forceful confiscation of property.

July 17, 2012
International Committee of the Red Cross

Abstract:

This report presents ICRC's work in Colombia in 2011, illustrating the benefit that the ICRC's activities bring to the victims of armed conflict in the country.

Throughout 2011, the people of Colombia continued to suffer the effects of the armed conflict that started almost 50 years ago. The conflict is still having serious consequences, and this report calls for scrupulous application of humanitarian standards.

July 13, 2012
Human Rights Data Analysis Group

Abstract:

Anti-union assassinations may be one of the best documented violations in Colombia. Unions keep track of who has been killed in their community; companies and public institutions know when their employees are no longer alive. Special interest groups have formed to pay even closer attention to violence across unions, labor sectors, years and municipalities. The National Union School [Escuela Nacional Sindical in Spanish] is one such group: they have recorded violence against trade unions since 1986. Human rights groups, such as the non-governmental [NGO] Colombian Commission of Jurists, monitor the killing of unionists in addition to other victims and other violations. The government’s human rights office, led by the Vice President, began pooling together data on Colombia’s anti-union violence in 1999. Yet, even with so many monitors keeping track of the violence experienced by this group, we estimate in this study that in some places and times, as much as 30 percent of all the killings are not recorded by any of these datasets.

We have two purposes with this study. The first is to offer statistical estimates of unknown, unreported trade unionists killed. We use a statistical method called Multiple Systems Estimation, explained in detail in Appendix A. By combining an estimate of the number of deaths not recorded in any source with the number of known, recorded deaths, this analysis offers estimated totals for all unionists killed in Colombia between 1999 and 2008....

July 4, 2012
Women's Refugee Commission

Abstract:

Urban violence, restricted access to formal markets, the lack of safe spaces and quality skills training programs, and disrupted education challenge the economic resiliency of Colombian refugee and asylee female and male youth in Panama’s urban centers. UNHCR estimates that there are 17,000 refugees in Panama. While nongovernmental organizations estimate 75,000 Colombians are in Panama who need international protection,1 only 2,500 persons of concern are registered with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. Panama is a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention and the 1967 Protocol; however, a cumbersome asylum process approves only two percent of asylum applications....

July 3, 2012
Norwegian Peacebuilding Resource Centre

Abstract:

Despite security gains on the part of the armed forces and the demobilisation of the United Self- Defence Forces of Colombia paramilitaries, Colombia’s protracted internal armed conflict persists. Civilians continue to be hard hit by violence, displacement and human rights abuses perpetrated by armed groups. Afro-Colombian and indigenous communities are disproportionately affected by this violence and displacement, potentially leading to their cultural and physical extinction. Protection mechanisms for ethnic minorities and their collective lands rights remain ineffective in spite of the Colombian Constitutional Court’s efforts. State-led security strategies, the mining boom, land restitution efforts and free-trade agreements bring with them additional security challenges for Afro-Colombian and indigenous groups.

This report seeks to describe the protection challenges facing ethnic minorities and to provide recommendations for how the international community can act to guarantee Afro-Colombian and indigenous communities’ protection. The main thrust of the recommendations is that the international community should put pressure on the Colombian authorities to apply in practice the model theoretical protection of communities’ rights that exists in the Colombian Constitution. The U.S. and Colombian authorities should be pressured to reconsider their indiscriminate cropspraying programme that supposedly targets only coca crops, while countries who have concluded free-trade agreements with Colombia should be pressured to ensure that these do not further threaten the rights of indigenous and Afro- Colombian communities....

June 12, 2012
Human Security Report Project

Abstract:

Human Security Research is a monthly compilation of significant new human security-related research published by academics, university research institutes, think-tanks, international agencies, and NGOs.

Articles in this issue:
AID & FRAGILE STATES: Aid Effectiveness in Fragile States: Lessons from the First Generation of Transition Compacts
MONITORING AND REPORTING: Building Effective Monitoring, Reporting, and Fact-finding Mechanisms
CHILDREN & ARMED CONFLICT: No One to Trust: Children and Armed Conflict in Colombia
INSECURITY IN MAURITANIA: The Drivers of Insecurity in Mauritania
TRAFFICKING & INSTABILITY: Drug Trafficking, Violence, and Instability
THE UN IN CHAD & CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC : Security Council Working Methods and UN Peace Operations: The Case of Chad and the Central African Republic, 2006-2010
SSR IN THE DRC: The Democratic Republic of Congo: Taking a Stand on Security Sector Reform
LEADERSHIP TARGETING IN COUNTERINSURGENCY CAMPAIGNS: Does Decapitation Work? Assessing the Effectiveness of Leadership Targeting in Counterinsurgency Campaigns
HEALTH & EDUCATION IN BURUNDI: War, Health, and Educational Attainment: A Panel of Children during Burundi’s Civil War
WAR & POVERTY: War and Poverty
UN REFORM: UN Peacekeeping: 20 Years of Reform
MYANMAR: Reform in Myanmar: One Year On
...

April 13, 2011
Center for Strategic and International Studies

Abstract:

National security is normally seen in terms of military strength and internal security operations against extremists and insurgents. The upheavals that began in Tunis, and now play out from Pakistan to Morocco,. have highlighted the fact that national security is measured in terms of the politics, economics, and social tensions that shape national stability as well. It is all too clear that the wrong kind of internal security efforts, and national security spending that limits the ability to meet popular needs and expectations can do as much to undermine national security over time as outside and extremist threats.

It is equally clear that calls for democracy are at best only the prelude to dealing with critical underlying problems, pressures, and expectations. It is far from certain that even successful regime change can evolve into functional democracies and governance. Countries with no political parties and experienced leaders, with no history of checks and balances in government, with weak structure of governance led by new political figures with no administrative experience, will often descend into chaos, extremism, or a new round of authoritarianism. Even the best governments, however, are unlikely to change an economy and national infrastructure in less than half a decade, and existing demographic pressures will inevitably go on for at least the next decade....

September 15, 2010
African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes

Abstract:

The Towards Enhancing the Capacity of the African Union in Mediation report is based on a seminar organised by the African Union Commission on 15 and 16 October 2009. Armed conflict is one of the greatest threats to Africa’s development. Today, many African countries are in the throes of civil conflict, several more face a heightened risk of experiencing armed violence, while others are recently emerging from protracted wars. The challenges ahead are sobering. The African Union (AU) organised a seminar entitled ‘Towards Enhancing the Capacity of the African Union in Mediation’, which was held at the Commission of the African Union, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on 15 and 16 October 2009. The seminar was the culmination of a series of consultations launched in late 2008, in collaboration with the United Nations (UN) and other stakeholders, to reflect on lessons learned from mediation experiences in Africa. The Addis Ababa seminar brought together policymakers, mediation experts and civil society actors to develop a more strategic approach in enhancing the AU’s mediation capacity. In so doing the participants addressed the following themes: improving the AU’s performance in mediation, consolidating and integrating the approaches of the AU and the RECs in mediation, and discussing collaboration with partners including the UN. This report provides a succinct contextual framework to capture the essence of the discussions and subsequent recommendations presented at the seminar....

August 24, 2010
Swiss Peace Foundation

Abstract:

Power-sharing mechanisms play an increasingly important role in peace agreements. However, there is profound divergence over the positive effects of the inclusion of political power-sharing provisions in peace accords. Proposing power-sharing solutions may be useful for mediators to get conflict parties to the negotiating table. At the same time those mechanisms imply a number of challenges for academics and practitioners. Many critics argue that power-sharing as specific political model has only worked in particular circumstances, such as in Switzerland. Before formulating general guidelines and recommendations on powersharing in peace agreements, one has to address this critique. To this end the working paper analyses four contested favourable conditions in the power-sharing model: a small population size, a balance of population size between divided groups, territorial isolation of population groups and a common perceived security threat. Eight case studies are carried out in order to test these four favourable conditions that might influence the durability of power-sharing peace agreements. As a result, this working paper provides evidence that the durability of power-sharing peace agreements does probably not depend on these favourable conditions. It is therefore argued that power-sharing solutions in peace agreements do not seem to require particular favourable conditions to be successful and are not doomed to fail from the outset in a range of different contexts....

September 3, 2009
United Nations General Assembly

Abstract:

The present report addresses the progress made in the implementation of the recommendations contained in the Secretary-General’s report on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa (A/52/871-S/1998/318). It is submitted in compliance with General Assembly resolution 63/304, which was adopted following the Assembly’s consideration at its sixty-third session of the Secretary-General’s progress report dated 4 August 2008 (A/63/212). The recommendations addressing economic and social factors underlying the promotion of sustainable development are covered in the Secretary-General’s companion report on the Implementation of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (A/64/204). Following introductory remarks, section II of the report provides an overview of major peace and security developments in Africa during the past year, including the serious concerns being addressed by Africa and the international community in order to restore, maintain and promote peace and rebuild post-conflict countries. In section III, the report reviews progress in relation to the capacity-building needs and increased cooperation with the African Union and subregional organizations and provides an assessment of the United Nations support for the defence and promotion of human rights in Africa. The report concludes that, pending the General Assemblymandated comprehensive review of the recommendations contained in the 1998 report and of the new challenges to achieving long-term peace and sustainable development, the international community must, more than ever, redouble its efforts in Africa and ensure that the commitments made are effectively implemented....

July 13, 2006
Project on International Courts and Tribunals // African International Courts and Tribunals

Abstract:

The Common Court of Justice and Arbitration (CCJA) is the court of the Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa (OHADA), one of the most successful regional legal harmonization efforts on the Continent. Unlike the other continental regional integration groups, OHADA does not seek to conform national law to an overarching treaty and successive regulations and directives, which allow national legislature some leeway. Instead, OHADA uses the integration method of issuing binding uniform acts that automatically supercede all prior and future inconsistent national laws. With the goal of creating a secure, simple and modern legal framework for the conduct of business in Africa, OHADA has issued eight uniform acts on general commercial law, commercial companies and economic interest groups, securities, arbitration, simplified recovery procedures and measures of execution, collective insolvency and accounting....

July 20, 2012
Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect

Abstract:

Provides background on populations at risk of mass atrocity crimes, with particular emphasis on key events and actors and their connection to the threat, or commission, of genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.

Offers analysis of the country’s past history in relation to mass atrocity crimes; the factors that have enabled their possible commission, or that prevent their resolution; and the receptivity of the situation to positive influences that would assist in preventing further crimes....

July 17, 2012
Global Observatory

Abstract:

Civilian populations are again the victims of the recent clashes between the Congolese armed forces [FARDC] and the newly-formed armed group called 23 March Movement [M23] in eastern DRC. Congolese civilians are facing displacement, with looting and abductions being carried out by both sides. This time, however, the M23 rebel group has been using Protection of Civilians [PoC] language as an integral part of a well-calculated communication strategy. M23 leader Colonel Sultani Makenga stated on July 8 that its combatants would leave major towns they had just taken, about 40km north of the town of Goma, in order to “let MONUSCO and the national police secure the civilian population.” Meanwhile both the government of the DRC and the UN mission in the DRC [known by the acronym MONUSCO] are struggling to respond; the UN mission simply stated that it is doing its utmost in coordination with the Congolese army to protect civilians....

July 16, 2012
Small Wars Journal

Abstract:

By most metrics, the Democratic Republic of Congo [DRC] is a failed state, with ongoing risk to regional security and stability rooted in the conflicts that wracked the country for decades. However, this needn’t have been the outcome. There were numerous contextual similarities between the guerrilla movement in DRC under Laurent-Désiré Kabila, and China under Mao Tse-Tung during the Japanese occupation when he wrote On Guerrilla Warfare. Given this, it seems possible that if Kabila had implemented Mao’s advice during the First Congo Civil War, a revolution by any definition and, therefore, an arena for implementation of On Guerrilla Warfare, he could have proven to be far more successful in generating real political change via a far less brutal conflict in Zaire. However, despite probable exposure to the tenets put forth by Mao, Kabila did not employ them during the conflict. This paper will argue that as a result, his victory in the First Congo Civil War was far less politically meaningful in the aftermath, and far more brutal, with more negative implications on regional security today, and than if he had followed a Maoist approach to insurgency....

July 16, 2012
The Soufan Group

Abstract:

The Lord's Resistance Army's capability has been badly degraded by years of exile in the Central African jungle, and attempts to capture its leader, Joseph Kony, have been a low priority for regional governments. But the remaining 200-300 fighters continue to prey on civilians, including children, and have displaced almost half a million people in the region.

Kony's atrocities have made him one of the world's most notorious fugitives and the Obama administration has sent Special Forces personnel to help the Ugandan army capture him, ostensibly following a humanitarian mandate from the U.S. Congress that would be precedent setting. It would also overlap with an increasingly important strategy in the global war on terror: training African governments to serve as proxies in the hunt for al Qaeda....

July 12, 2012
Transitional Demobilization and Reintegration Program

Abstract:

The implementation of effective disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) programmes in countries emerging from violent conflict are essential for building and maintaining peace and security. In many instances the disarmament and demobilisation of former combatants was achieved, but reintegration remained a challenge, due to the long-term focus and the substantial resources that are required for such a process to be successful. Income generation and livelihood opportunities are arguably vital for the success of reintegration processes. That is, in order to discourage the remilitarisation of ex-combatants, alternative and appealing means of making a sustainable living should be available to these individuals. In addition, if former combatants are able to make a constructive economic contribution to the communities to which they settle, these communities are more likely to be receptive to their presence.

Given this state of affairs, the Transitional Demobilisation and Reintegration Program (TDRP) of the World Bank commissioned the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) in South Africa to undertake a research project on the extent to which ex-combatants interact with the informal economy in order to sustain themselves and their dependents. The research was undertaken in three countries: the Central African Republic (CAR), the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC – in the regions of Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu) and South Sudan. This project was indelibly linked to another research project that exclusively focused on the reintegration of ex-combatants in the eastern DRC, the results of which are included in a separate report. The four specific focal areas of the research project were as follows:

1. An assessment of the state of conflict in terms of how it impacts on the economy in all the three case study areas;

2. An assessment of the nature of the economy (and labour market) in the case study areas;

3. An assessment of the employment and sustainable livelihood options that former combatants pursue in the case study areas; and

4. An analysis of the types, dynamics, successes, challenges of ex-combatant income-generating activities in the three case study countries.

This report is comprised of three parts. Part one includes a review of the literature on the reintegration of former combatants and the informal economy in Africa; a synopsis of post-conflict economies; and an outline of the analytical framework. Part two presents the findings of the case study research, focusing on the economies and DDR processes in each of the three countries, as well as assessing the reintegration process in relation to the informal economy. The third component of the report provides a comparative analysis of, and conclusions from, the research findings....

March 28, 2012
Transitional Demobilization and Reintegration Program // International Bank for Reconstruction and Development // The World Bank

Abstract:

Although official warfare in the Republic of Congo stopped more than eight years ago, the Pool region has continued to feel the collateral effects of war until now at a scale largely ignored by the general public. The Pool region is where the Ninjas, a group of local militias, originated during the civil strife and retreated to afterwards. Peace and recovery did not gain traction in the area until 2010/2011.

March 1, 2012
German Institute of Global and Area Studies // The Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation

Abstract:

This article discusses the impact of economic resources on the behaviour of an armed group. The availability of resources, and the presence of "lootable" resources in particular, is presumed to have a negative impact on the way an armed group behaves toward the civilian population. The case of the Armed Forces of the Congolese People (Forces Armées du Peuple Congolais, FAPC) in eastern Congo strongly suggests that it is necessary to look beyond this monocausal argument so as to witness the range of other factors at work....

February 6, 2012
Life & Peace Institute

Abstract:

The following report by Lindsey Weber is an English synopsis of three studies on the role of the civil society in the pursuit of peace and democracy in the Republic of Congo. The studies, based upon empirical analysis of surveys and personal interviews conducted with members of civil society, approach the issue of the role of civil society in the Republic of Congo from different but complementary perspectives. They explore the local understandings of the concepts of civil society and peace as well as highlight the role played by the civil society in the peace process and the complex and often-incongruous relationship between the state and civil society.

The first study, Congolese Civil Society: How does it Express Itself?, defines the presence of civil society in the Congo and presents an overview of its impact. The other two, Outcome of the Role and Means of Action of Female Civil Society in the Construction of Peace and Horizontal Solidarity and Civil Society in Perspective: the State of Horizontal Society in Brazzaville are appropriate case studies of the role of specific components of Congolese civil society. The former study describes the activities and role of female civil society in the peace process. It is written by a historian, and discusses developments in the entire country. The latter progresses beyond the contentious issue of ethnicity to explore the concept of circulation, or interaction, as a catalyst for the consolidation of civil society independent of state guidance. This study is authored by a sociologist, and focuses on the city of Brazzaville. Therefore, the perspectives and levels of analysis are different for each study....

August 2, 2011
Institute for Security Studies // L'Institut d'Etudes de Sécurité

Abstract:

Africa’s Great Lakes region has known conflict for a considerable period of time, and this has been met with several initiatives aimed at managing the situation in a sustainable way. One such initiative was the Multi-country Demobilisation and Reintegration Programme (MDRP), led by the World Bank, from 2002 to 2009. The initiative, which looked at selected countries in the Great Lakes, focussed on the demobilisation and reintegration of former fighters, with the main objective being to improve the livelihoods of affected communities. Despite the challenges that the MDRP encountered, the programme realised a number of successes and brought to the fore numerous lessons learned. It is these lessons that this monograph has sought to document, with the hope of contributing to the better planning of similar programmes in future. The monograph uses case studies of the Central African Republic and the Republic of Congo to illustrate how the MDRP was implemented, while Liberia is included as a control case....

July 21, 2011
International Monetary Fund

Abstract:

This paper identifies the factors linked to cross-country differentials in growth performance in the aftermath of social conflict for 30 sub-Saharan African countries using panel data techniques. Our results show that changes in the terms of trade are the most important correlate of economic performance in post-conflict environments. This variable is typically associated with an increase in the marginal probability of positive economic performance by about 30 percent. Institutional quality emerges as the second most important factor. Foreign aid is shown to have very limited ability to explain differentials in growth performance, and other policy variables such as trade openness are not found to have a statistically significant effect. The results suggest that exogenous factors ("luck") are an important factor in post-conflict recovery. They also highlight the importance in post-conflict settings of policies to mitigate the macroeconomic impact of terms of trade volatility (including countercyclical macroeconomic policies and innovative financing instruments) and of policies to promote export diversification....

May 24, 2006
Australian National University // State, Society And Governance In Melanesia Project

Abstract:

The decade since the early 1990s has witnessed the growth of a field of research and practice aimed at resolving and preventing violent conflict. Research on violent conflict has led to a number of different theories on causes of violent conflict, many of them based on the study of large-scale, protracted conflicts in Africa and the Balkans. Advocates of conflict prevention have linked longer-term root causes of violent conflict to aspects of underdevelopment, and tensions inherent in development processes....

October 4, 2004
British Broadcasting Corporation

Abstract:

The 15 volcanic islands that make up the Cook Islands are scattered over 770,000 square miles of the south Pacific ocean and lie between American Samoa to the west and French Polynesia to the east.

April 3, 2012
Council on Foreign Relations

Abstract:

Violent crime in Central America—particularly in the "northern triangle" of Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala—is reaching breathtaking levels. Murder rates in the region are among the highest in the world. To a certain extent, Central America's predicament is one of geography—it is sandwiched between some of the world's largest drug producers in South America and the world's largest consumer of illegal drugs, the United States. The region is awash in weapons and gunmen, and high rates of poverty ensure substantial numbers of willing recruits for organized crime syndicates. Weak, underfunded, and sometimes corrupt governments struggle to keep up with the challenge. Though the United States has offered substantial aid to Central American efforts to address criminal violence, it also contributes to the problem through its high levels of drug consumption, relatively relaxed gun control laws, and deportation policies that have sent home more than a million illegal migrants with violent records.

In this Council Special Report, sponsored by the Center for Preventive Action, Michael Shifter assesses the causes and consequences of the violence faced by several Central American countries and examines the national, regional, and international efforts intended to curb its worst effects. Guatemala, for example, is still healing from a thirty-six-year civil war; guns and armed groups remain common. El Salvador's ironfisted response to widespread gang violence has transformed its prisons into overcrowded gang-recruiting centers while doing little to reduce crime. Even relatively wealthy countries like Costa Rica and Panama are threatened by poor police capacity and significant problems with smuggling and money laundering. Virtually all countries are further plagued by at least some level of public corruption.

Countering Criminal Violence in Central America provides important insights into the varied causes of criminal violence in the region. Its authoritative and nuanced analysis acknowledges the strengths and weaknesses of ongoing efforts to address the problem, and it offers thoughtful recommendations on how those efforts might be built on and improved. Despite the daunting complexity of the challenges underpinning the region's growing violence, this report successfully argues that this trend can—and should—be reversed....

September 15, 2009
German Institute of Global and Area Studies

Abstract:

The Costa Rican talk of crime is fundamentally based on the assumption that a formerly explicitly nonviolent nation has been transformed into a battleground for social violence—that is, on the belief that an alarming “crime wave” is occurring today while there was no crime at all in the past. On the basis of this assumption, the fear of crime and the call for zero tolerance and drastic law enforcement actions have been increasing. In this paper I discuss the Costa Rican talk of crime from a historical perspective to demonstrate that crime has always been a topic that has generated pervasive feelings of insecurity and so‐cial pessimism. I argue that social changes in Costa Rican society and the paradigmatic shift in economic and social‐welfare politics since the 1980s have been essential in the transformation of the talk of crime. As part of this transformation, the politicization of crime since the 1990s has been one of the most powerful changes in the dominant dis‐course....

September 15, 2009
German Institute of Global and Area Studies

Abstract:

The Costa Rican talk of crime is fundamentally based on the assumption that crime rates have increased significantly in recent years and that there is today a vast and alarming amount of crime. On the basis of this assumption, fear of crime, the call for the “iron fist,” and drastic law enforcement actions are continually increasing. While crime statistics are the logical basis for the hypothesis on the far-reaching extent of delinquency, they are used in a problematic way in the talk of crime. In this paper I discuss Costa Rican crime statis-tics, their development, and their utilization in the talk of crime against the background of criminological theory. The theses of the paper are that a) the informative value of crime statistics regarding Costa Rican reality is far more questionable than the common utiliza-tion of them implies and b) when they are used as argumentation, these crime statistics do not provide evidence of the oft-proclaimed rising crime wave....

September 16, 2008
En la Mira - The Latin American Small Arms Watch

Abstract:

Although all countries, in theory report their authorized transfers - and such information may even be available in certain public databases - the task of providing an overview of SALW transfers, their parts and munitions, is an arduous one. Nonetheless, despite the difficulties, we have some extremely positive initiatives on a global scale, such as for example, the Small Arms Survey, recognized as an important source of information, especially on SALW production and transfers, as well as the Norwegian Initiative on Small Arms Transfers (NISAT) which has a database containing transfer records going back to 1962.Despite these important initiatives, themselves when researchers, activists and policy makers try to understand a regional market, such as Latin America and the Caribbean, they encounter a dearth of information. With the intent of addressing this shortcoming, En La Mira has, since 2007, dedicated an issue to transfers of SALWs, parts and ammunition in this region. Further, according to statistics from the United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database (UN-Comtrade or Comtrade), USD 6.7 billion were exported between 2004 and 2006, while USD 6.5 billion were imported. Despite the fact that Latin America and the Caribbean represent 6% and 3%, respectively, of total transfers worldwide during this period, 42% of firearms related homicide is committed in the region. This discrepancy between the international transfer volume share and the levels of armsrelated violence in Latin America and the Caribbean calls attention to itself, above all because of the tragic and startling number of homicides. Obviously, far from wishing to increase arms transfers in order to be more in sync with homicide rates, we decided, a year ago, to study this issue and periodically monitor its development based on our interest in understanding the primary legal entry and exit routes of firearms and ammunition. The result is a report - based on customs information as stated by Latin American and Caribbean countries and their respective partners - whose objective is to describe the movement of the SALW imports and exports, as well as ammunition and parts, during the present decade. Based on this data, we answer the following questions: who exported and who imported? From whom? What? And when? It is worth restating that the intent of this report is not to explain the cause of arms imports and exports by Latin American countries. Beyond merely providing information, we do indeed wish to awaken, by means of the information presented here, the curiosity of other researches, activists and government staff members such that they may continue to perform research in their countries regarding the transparency of this information, on who is using the transferred SALW, and how. The data used for this report came from the NISAT database, which contains more than 800,000 entries for SALW transfers worldwide since 1962. The NISAT database gets its information from different sources, COMTRADE among them. In this study we decided to restrict ourselves to data from this latter source because, in theory, all countries report transfers to the UN. This data is declared in accordance with the Harmonized System (SH) merchandise classification system. The HS has existed since 1988and, in 2007, was revised for the fourth time; previous revisions were in 1992, 1996 and in 2002. Regarding the period analyzed, we are looking at data up until 2006, since at the time the study closed this was the most recent year available on NISAT....

August 19, 2008
German Institute of Global and Area Studies

Abstract:

Violence, crime, and insecurity are major topics in contemporary political and societal discourses in Central America. With very different crime rates and varying thematic foci, these topics are discussed in the media, politics, and society. It is noticeable that the fear of crime and the public sensationalization of crime and violence vary significantly from country to country. Thus, low crime rates do not necessarily reduce fear and vice versa. This paper is related to a research project about discourses on violence and crime in contemporary Central America, and is based on the observation that the “talk of crime” is very prevalent in Costa Rica, a country usually known as being calm and peaceful. The extensive fear of crime becomes manifest in many different social spaces and contexts. Rico recently stated, on the basis of crime statistics and opinion polls, that a) many Costa Ricans do not have a clear idea, or even have a very incorrect idea, of crime rates in Costa Rica and that b) the number of Costa Ricans who have the impression that they could very likely become a victim of crime is remarkably high (Rico 2006: 30). In 2004, for example, 77.6 percent of the respondents of a representative public opinion poll stated that Costa Rica is not safe at all (while 62 percent regarded their neighborhood as a safe place); 59.9 percent declared that one should not leave his home unguarded; 64.2 percent declared that houses need fences in Costa Rica; and 39.2 percent advocated for a watchdog in their houses (Rico 2006: 31-32). Furthermore, there is notable sensationalization of violence and crime in the Costa Rican mass media (Fonseca/Sandoval 2006; Bejarano 2006: 32-34) as well as in political debates about Costa Rica. An example of the extraordinary social significance of violence and crime compared to other topics is provided by the Informe Nacional de Desarrollo Humano 2005 of the UNDP. Out of all possible social problems, the UNDP picked violence, crime and insecurity for the Costa Rican report....

July 20, 2012
Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect

Abstract:

Provides background on populations at risk of mass atrocity crimes, with particular emphasis on key events and actors and their connection to the threat, or commission, of genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.

Offers analysis of the country’s past history in relation to mass atrocity crimes; the factors that have enabled their possible commission, or that prevent their resolution; and the receptivity of the situation to positive influences that would assist in preventing further crimes....

July 4, 2012
Integrated Regional Information Networks

Abstract:

More than a year after the end of the conflict in neighbouring Côte d'Ivoire, the Liberian government has pledged to deal once and for all with longstanding complaints of its nationals being party to military operations and serious human rights violations on the other side of its western border.

June 22, 2012
The Centre for International Governance Innovation

Abstract:

Developments following the 2010 presidential elections in Côte d’Ivoire draw attention to a specific type of UN-mandated task in peacekeeping operations: the certification of electoral processes in post-conflict situations. Two fundamental questions arise regarding certification. First, how effective is an instrument like electoral certification in building confidence and guaranteeing that parties will respect results in highly competitive elections in a post-conflict environment? Second, how can electoral certification be strengthened so that it contributes to peace, rather than fuelling already tense situations?...

June 19, 2012
Child Rights International Network

Abstract:

The violations highlighted are those issues raised with the State by more than one international mechanism. This is done with the intention of identifying children's rights which have been repeatedly violated, as well as gaps in the issues covered by NGOs in their alternative reports to the various human rights monitoring bodies. These violations are listed in no particular order.

June 7, 2012
The World Bank

Abstract:

This paper estimates the causal effects of civil war on years of education in the context of a school-going age cohort that is exposed to armed conflict in Côte d’Ivoire. Using year and department of birth to identify an individual’s exposure to war, the difference-in-difference outcomes indicate that the average years of education for a school-going age cohort is .94 years fewer compared with an older cohort in war-affected regions. To minimize the potential bias in the estimated outcome, the authors use a set of victimization indicators to identify the true effect of war. The propensity score matching estimates do not alter the main findings. In addition, the outcomes of double-robust models minimize the specification errors in the model. Moreover, the paper finds the outcomes are robust across alternative matching methods, estimation by using subsamples, and other education outcome variables. Overall, the findings across different models suggest a drop in average years of education by a range of .2 to .9 fewer years....

July 13, 2012
Centre for International Policy Studies

Abstract:

The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) has been very successful in bringing many accused to justice, in leading to the establishment of a permanent International Criminal Court and in demonstrating that holding leaders accountable is possible.

However, there is considerable dissonance between the ICTY’s judicial achievements in The Hague and attitudes and perceptions of the Tribunal in the region.

In order for the Tribunal’s legacy to have lasting impact, extensive efforts must be made to leverage the record of judicial success in order to ensure that its work is not ‘lost in translation’....

March 28, 2012
openDemocracy

Abstract:

One year after the beginning of the Arab Spring, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is undergoing profound transformation, leaving the international community saddled with a period of rapid transition similar to the one that occurred in Europe in the nineties.

One of the biggest challenges ahead for all these countries in transition will certainly be how to implement successful security sector reform (SSR). In turn, this is a particularly difficult task in environments that are both post-authoritarian and post-conflict. Therefore, it is important for international actors involved in these processes to draw lessons from similar experiences....

October 18, 2011
Berghof Conflict Research

Abstract:

The article reflects on experiences and lessons learned from an insider activist’s and practitioner’s point of view. The author looks back at over a decade of training practice at the Centre for Nonviolent Action (CNA) in the Western Balkans, offering provocative thoughts on goals and methods, trainer-participant relations and dilemmas such as sustaining momentum, the risk of individual burn-out and the hope for achieving social change. (updated for the 2011 print edition)

October 14, 2011
Berghof Conflict Research

Abstract:

Takes a critical look at the debate on state failure, examining the various ways that state-building programmes have impacted on the successor states of the former Yugoslavia. The author shows how unchallenged assumptions, unrealistic expectations and ignorance of local contexts can lead to political orders being imposed with little regard for domestic legitimacy or locally-driven solutions. Instead of explaining away the predictably poor outcomes, she suggests the need for critical appraisal of those driving the state-building agenda....

October 11, 2011
Chatham House

Abstract:

This is a summary of an event held on 22 September 2011 at Chatham House, in association with Doughty Street Chambers. The participants considered recent issues in the International Criminal Court, the ad hoc Tribunals and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.

July 16, 2012
London School of Economics and Political Science

Abstract:

As this Arab Spring of revolution becomes a long summer of transitions, we take the opportunity to review some of the historic developments in the region over the last few months. In doing so we throw the spotlight on the drivers of these popular uprisings, and the difficulties they present for the rest of the world in dealing with this strategically crucial region.

Kicking us off, Gilles Kepel brings his considerable experience to bear in discussing the revolutions in macro-context, before in our feature article Luca Tardelli analyses the inherent difficulties in Western intervention that are now once again playing out in Libya, a point picked up by Felix Berenskoetter in his discussion of how Western division on Libya played out at the Security Council. Turning to Yemen, Tobias Thiel considers how the particular politics of coalition in that country may allow it to move beyond the surely-now-terminal Presidency of Ali Abdullah Saleh.

International politics doesn’t stop when crises occur, and the world faces a great many challenges at this time. China’s rise seems perpetually on the agenda, and Marco Wyss provides a new take on the drivers of that power transition in his analysis of US arms sales to China. Meanwhile, as American hegemony in Latin America seems increasingly up for question, Carlos Solis-Tejada assesses the prospects for Cuba, that most dysfunctional of American relationships, in the wake of the sixth party congress....

September 26, 2011
Freedom House

Abstract:

Freedom House has prepared this special report entitled Worst of the Worst: The World’s Most Repressive Societies, as a companion to its annual survey on the state of global political rights and civil liberties, Freedom in the World. The special report provides summary country reports, tables, and graphical information on the countries that receive the lowest combined ratings for political rights and civil liberties in Freedom in the World, and whose citizens endure systematic and pervasive human rights violations.

The report serves a reminder that over 1.6 billion people—more than 24 percent of the world’s population—suffer every day from the basic indignities of not being able to express their thoughts and opinions, of not having a say in who governs them and how the wealth of their land and labor is spent, and of being unable to obtain justice for crimes perpetrated against them. Hundreds of thousands of human beings in these countries languish every day in prisons or labor camps— generally in subhuman conditions and subject to physical or mental abuse—purely for their political or religious beliefs. This report seeks to highlight their plight and serves as a call to the world’s governments, policymakers, human rights organizations, and democracy advocates to speak out and use whatever resources they can bring to bear to improve respect for the most basic human rights in these countries....

May 19, 2011
Cuba Archive

Abstract:

Cuba Archive is developing a comprehensive registry of disappearances and fatalities of a political nature resulting from the Cuban Revolution. This information is gathered and disseminated for educational purposes and to advance human rights.

May 2, 2011
The Committee to Protect Journalists

Abstract:

The world’s worst online oppressors are using an array of tactics, some reflecting astonishing levels of sophistication, others reminiscent of old-school techniques. From China’s high-level malware attacks to Syria’s brute-force imprisonments, this may be only the dawn of online oppression.

In reporting news from the world’s most troubled nations, journalists have made a seismic shift this year in their reliance on the Internet and other digital tools. Blogging, video sharing, text messaging, and live-streaming from cellphones brought images of popular unrest from the central square of Cairo and the main boulevard of Tunis to the rest of the world. Yet the technology used to report the news has been matched in many ways by the tools used to suppress information. Many of the oppressors’ tactics show an increasing sophistication, from the state-supported email in China designed to take over journalists’ personal computers, to the carefully timed cyber-attacks on news websites in Belarus. Still other tools in the oppressor’s kit are as old as the press itself, including imprisonment of online writers in Syria, and the use of violence against bloggers in Russia.

To mark World Press Freedom Day, May 3, the Committee to Protect Journalists is examining the 10 prevailing tactics of online oppression worldwide and the countries that have taken the lead in their use. What is most surprising about these Online Oppressors is not who they are—they are all nations with long records of repression—but how swiftly they adapted old strategies to the online world.

In two nations we cite, Egypt and Tunisia, the regimes have changed, but their successors have not categorically broken with past repressive practices. The tactics of other nations—such as Iran, which employs sophisticated tools to destroy anti-censorship technology, and Ethiopia, which exerts monopolistic control over the Internet—are being watched, and emulated, by repressive regimes worldwide.

Here are the 10 prevalent tools for online oppression....

April 29, 2011
New America Foundation

Abstract:

This report explores the historic reform process currently underway in Cuba. It looks first at the political context in which the VI Cuban Communist Party Congress took place, including the Cuban government's decision to release a significant number of political prisoners as part of a new dialogue with the Cuban Catholic Church. It then analyzes Cuba's nascent processes of economic reform and political liberalization. To conclude, it discusses the challenges and opportunities these processes pose for U.S policy toward Cuba....

July 10, 2012
Peace Research Institute Oslo

Abstract:

From the creation of the republic of cyprus (roc) in august 1960 until the breakdown of its bi-communal government three years later, the same legal regime prevailed throughout the country. the 1960 roc constitutional structure, which was devised to implement the 1959 Zürich-london accords, assumed the existence of two communities on the island: the Greek cypriots and the turkish cypriots. the two communities were afforded partial communal autonomy as well as equal treatment in terms of their participation in the organs of the Republic.

A Communal Chamber was established for each community with a mandate to exercise legislative and administrative power on certain restricted communal matters (relating to e.g., religion, education and culture). they also had the power to collect communal taxes in order to provide for the needs of communal bodies and institutions.

The central government, legislature, judiciary and public service of the roc were formed by members of the two communities in a ratio of seven Greek cypriots to three turkish cypriots. the constitution provided for a presidential system with a Greek cypriot president and a turkish cypriot vice-president, elected respectively by the Greek cypriots and the turkish cypriots on separate electoral rolls. the seven Greek cypriot and three turkish cypriot members of the council of ministers were appointed, separately and respectively, by the president and the vice-president. the president and the vice-president had, separately or conjointly, the right of final veto on any law or decision of the House of representatives, as well as on any decision of the council of ministers, concerning foreign affairs, defence or security. legislative power was exercised by the House of representatives in all matters not expressly reserved for the communal chambers. the Greek cypriot and turkish cypriot members of the House were elected, separately and respectively, by the Greek cypriots and the turkish cypriots. the House of representatives took its decisions by a simple majority except in the case of those concerning taxation, elections and municipalities, which required a separate majority of the Greek cypriot and turkish cypriot members of the House.

in 1963 a constitutional crisis led to inter-communal violence which brought about the collapse of the republic’s bi-communal power sharing structures. since then turkish cypriots have ceased to be part of the roc government which has thus become a de facto Greek cypriot administration. yet the latter has claimed to be, and has gradually come to be internationally accepted as, the de jure government of the roc and the sole legitimate government on the island. Greek cypriots assert that they lawfully represent the roc basing their argument on the ‘doctrine of necessity’.11 However, turkish cypriots (and turkey) maintain to this day that the Greek cypriots alone cannot legitimately represent the roc as this would be contrary to the 1960 constitution and the Zürich-london accords that created the roc....

December 5, 2011
Minority Rights Group International

Abstract:

Attempts to resolve the ongoing conflict in Cyprus over the past forty years have been marked by one common feature: the systematic failure to recognize the presence of most minority groups on the island, and to involve them in conflict resolution processes and in drawing up plans for the island’s future status. This reflects the wider marginalization of minorities in both northern and southern Cyprus, who are effectively silenced within a discourse of competing Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot nationalisms. Drawing on interviews with representatives from minority groups from both parts of the island, as well as on the wealth of literature that has grown up around the ‘Cyprus problem’, this report argues that minorities in Cyprus have a vital role to play in any future settlement, as well as in ensuring ongoing peace, prosperity and security on the island....

April 27, 2011
European Centre for Minority Issues

Abstract:

Ban Ki Moon’s long awaited progress report on the negotiations in Cyprus did not come up with a final recommendation on how long the United Nations will be committed to engage in Cyprus. However, he warned that the UN would not continue indefinitely to spend efforts and money on a process that does not seem to render any progress. The underlying question is why so much time has been spent on a process that does not seem to be leading toward a successful conclusion.

In order to assess this question this ECMI Issue Brief #25 addresses a couple of interrelated questions, such as how a desired future solution should be devised for the respective communities. Is there a real desire to change the current political system on behalf of the Greek Cypriot community? Does the Turkish Cypriot community really wish to enter a multi-cultural political set-up in which it shall play a minority role albeit one that will include extensive participation rights? What are the interests of external actors, notably Turkey, the European Union and the United States of America? Finally, are there push factors that would make a solution possible or might there be an overarching interest that unites various actors in the secret desire to perpetuate the situation and preserve the so called “Cyprus Problem”?...

March 18, 2011
United Nations Mine Action Service // United Nations Development Programme // United Nations Children’s Fund

Abstract:

The Portfolio of Mine Action Projects is a resource tool and reference document for donors, policy-makers, advocates, and national and international mine action implementers. The country and territory-specific proposals in the portfolio reflect strategic responses developed in the field to address all aspects of the problem of landmines and explosive remnants of war (ERW). This country and territory-based approach aims to present as comprehensive a picture as possible of the full range of mine action needs in particular countries and thematic issues related to mine action. The portfolio ideally reflects projects developed by mine- and ERW-affected countries and territories based on their priorities and strategies; the approaches are endorsed by national authorities. The portfolio does not automatically entail full-scale direct mine action assistance by the United Nations, but is in essence a tool for collaborative resource mobilization, coordination and planning of mine action activities involving partners and stakeholders. A country portfolio coordinator (CPC) leads each country portfolio team and coordinates the submission of proposals to the portfolio’s headquarters team. While the majority of the CPCs are UN officials, this role is increasingly being assumed by national authorities. The country portfolio teams include representatives from national and local authorities, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the United Nations and the private sector. Locally based donor representatives are invited to attend preparation meetings. Each portfolio chapter contains a synopsis of the scope of the landmine and ERW problem, a description of how mine action is coordinated, and a snapshot of local mine action strategies. Many of the strategies complement or are integrated into broader development and humanitarian frameworks such as national development plans, the UN development assistance frameworks and national poverty reduction plans. This 14th edition of the annual Portfolio of Mine Action Projects features overviews and project outlines for 29 countries, territories or missions affected by landmines and explosive remnants of war. There are 238 projects in the 2011 portfolio. Africa accounts for the largest number: 92....

February 22, 2011
International Crisis Group

Abstract:

With the Cyprus reunification negotiations under way since 2008 at an impasse, dramatic steps are needed. As the stalemate continues, the costs for Greek and Turkish Cypriots, Turkey and the European Union (EU) are growing. Neither Greek Cypriots nor Turkish Cypriots can fulfil their potential on an island whose future is divided, uncertain, militarised and facing new economic difficulties. Time is making it ever harder to reunify the island, divided politically since Greek Cypriots seized control of the Republic of Cyprus in 1963 and militarily since a Turkish invasion in 1974 created a Turkish Cypriot zone on its northern third. After nearly four decades, the sides remain far apart even on the meaning of the talks’ agreed goal, a bi-zonal, bi-communal federation. While there has long been peace, and relative freedom to interact since 2003, trade and visits between the two communities across the Green Line are decreasing. Lack of a settlement damages everyone’s interests and keeps frustrations high. More than 200,000 Cypriots are still internally displaced persons (IDPs), and Turkish troops remain in overwhelming force. Few outside the military command in Ankara know if there are 21,000 soldiers, as Turkey says, or 43,000, as Greek Cypriots claim – a dispute that is one indication among many of the distrust and lack of information. Crisis Group has detailed in four reports since 2006 how the interests of the 1.1 million Cypriots and outside parties would be best met with a comprehensive political settlement. This remains the ideal, but as it is unrealistic in the coming months, ICG proposes interim unilateral steps....

April 27, 2011
International Peace Research Institute

Abstract:

The political transitions in Egypt and Tunisia have rekindled the interest in how states and societies have moved from authoritarian regimes to democracy after overthrowing old regimes. This report responds to that interest by providing a factual overview of transitions to democracy of nine European states between 1974 and 1991.

The states covered fall into two geographical regions: Southern Europe, and Central and Eastern Europe. The context of transition in each of these regions was different. The transitions in Southern Europe took place as mainly discrete events with little influence of one country over another. In contrast, there was a strong regional dynamic in Central and Eastern Europe, where all transitions were influenced by Gorbachev’s policies of perestroika and glasnost and the loosening of the Soviet Union’s grip on its satellite states....

June 3, 2009
Initiative for Peacebuilding // Partners for Democratic Change International

Abstract:

This Synthesis Report extracts the main findings from seven EU Member State case studies surveyed under the Capacity-Building and Training Cluster of the Initiative for Peacebuilding (IfP). Case studies were conducted in Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Greece, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain in order to assess these countries’ capacities to meet EU spending targets for official development assistance (ODA) and to analyse the position of peacebuilding within national ODA policies. Each case study analysed country-specific ODA policies by focusing on institutional mechanisms and key actors in managing and implementing ODA; the role and capacity of civil society organisations in influencing planning, implementation, and evaluation of ODA; and public awareness of and support for ODA. This report finds that international development cooperation has received growing attention during the last decade in all surveyed case-study countries. New EU Member States in particular are striving to adhere to their international commitments by further refining their ODA policies; enhancing the institutional structures for managing and implementing ODA; and increasing cooperation with and consultation of civil society organisations....

December 10, 2008
International Centre for Migration Policy Development

Abstract:

A Survey and Analysis of Border Management and Border Apprehension Data from 20 States. With a Special Survey on the Use of Counterfeit Documents. Based on the contributions of the border services of 20 Central and Eastern European states, the 2006 Yearbook again provides its valuable overview and analysis of irregular migration trends in the region. Over the past ten years the annual Yearbook on Illegal Migration, Human Smuggling and Trafficking in Central and Eastern Europe has come to be regarded as an authoritative source of information on recent border trends and in particular on the phenomena of illegal migration, human smuggling and trafficking. The annual Yearbook covers the most recent trends in illegal migration and human smuggling in the region, including long-term trends in border apprehensions, shifts in source, transit and destination countries, demographic characteristics of irregular migrants, the relationship between legal and illegal border crossings, new developments in the methods of border crossings and document abuse and on removals of irregular migrants. In addition, this year’s edition for the first time features a Special Survey on the use of counterfeit documents for illegal migration purposes. This Survey is based on the contributions received from document specialists or Special Units dealing with document security in the countries under review and provides the first comprehensive overview and analysis of patterns and trends in the use of counterfeit documents for illegal migration purposes in Central and Eastern Europe....

September 8, 2008
Amnesty International

Abstract:

This bulletin contains information about Amnesty International’s main concerns in Europe and Central Asia between July and December 2007. Not every country in the region is reported on; only those where there were significant developments in the period covered by the bulletin, or where Amnesty International (AI) took specific action. A number of individual country reports have been issued on the concerns featured in this bulletin. References to these are made under the relevant country entry. In addition, more detailed information about particular incidents or concerns may be found in Urgent Actions and News Service Items issued by AI. This bulletin is published by AI every six months....

September 5, 2008
Congressional Research Service

Abstract:

U.S. policymakers have made securing and maintaining foreign contributions to the stabilization and reconstruction of Iraq a major priority since the preparation period for the launch of Operation Iraqi Freedom in March 2003. This report highlights and discusses important changes in financial and personnel contributions from foreign governments to Iraq since 2003. To date, foreign donors have pledged an estimated $16.4 billion in grants and loans for Iraq reconstruction, with most major pledges originating at a major donors' conference in Madrid, Spain, in October 2003. However, only a small part of the pledges have been committed or disbursed to the World Bank and United Nations Development Group Trust Funds for Iraq. The largest non-U.S. pledges of grants have come from Japan, the European Commission, the United Kingdom, Canada, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates. The World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, Japan, and Saudi Arabia have pledged the most loans and export credits. Currently, 33 countries including the United States have some level of troops on the ground in Iraq or supporting Iraq operations from nearby locations. Those forces are working under the rubric of one of several organizations — the Multi-National Force-Iraq (MNF-I), the NATO Training Mission-Iraq (NTM-I); or the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI). Currently, the largest troop contributors, in addition to the United States, are the United Kingdom, Georgia, Australia, South Korea, and Poland. Some of these key contributors have announced their intention to reduce or withdraw their forces from Iraq during 2008. The total number of non-U.S. coalition troop contributions has declined since the early stabilization efforts, as other countries have withdrawn their contingents or substantially reduced their size....

March 14, 2011
Chatham House

Abstract:

• The protection of asylum-seekers in Europe is dealt with under three principal bodies of law: the UN Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees of 1951, the law of the European Union and the soft law developed by the Council of Europe.
• Member states of the Council of Europe are also bound by the judgments of the European Convention on Human Rights; although the convention makes no reference to refugee protection, its provisions and the judgments of its court in Strasbourg impose important obligations on states in respect of asylum.
• The entry into force of the Amsterdam Treaty in 1999 initiated the first phase of the creation of the Common European Asylum System (CEAS), which aimed to harmonize refugee protection among member states while enabling them to meet their international obligations in that respect.
• The harmonizing measures adopted by the EU have been subject to severe criticism and the practices of member states reveal a systemic failure to comply with international refugee protection obligations. • While there have been improvements in European refugee policy, significant challenges must be
addressed before Europe can regain its reputation as a champion of the rights of the refugee. This is given particular urgency by recent events in North Africa, which may lead to large numbers of persons fleeing violence and disorder....

November 29, 2010
RAND Corporation

Abstract:

Deradicalizing Islamist extremists may be even more important than getting them to simply disengage from terrorist activities, according to a new RAND Corporation study that examines counter-radicalization programs in the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Europe. Although there has been much research about the radicalization and recruitment of Islamist extremists, there has been little study until recently about how one deradicalizes those who have been recruited into the Islamist extremist movement. A key question is whether the objective of counter-radicalization programs should be disengagement (a change in behavior) or deradicalization (a change in beliefs) of militants. A unique challenge posed by militant Islamist groups is that their ideology is rooted in a major world religion, Islam. The RAND study indentifies and analyzes the processes through which militants leave Islamist extreme groups, assesses the effectiveness of deradicalization programs and summarizes the policies that could help to promote and accelerate the processes of deradicalization....

June 15, 2010
Dansk Institut for Militaere Studier // Danish Institute for Military Studies

Abstract:

If measures against pirates are to be effective, they must be carried out on land. Pirates are criminals who can best be thwarted by eliminating their bases and networks. At sea, it is only possible to treat the symptoms of piracy and catch the small fish. This report focuses on the pirates off the coast of Somalia as this is where the problem has spread dramatically, and as Denmark has been extensively involved in combating piracy in the area around the Horn of Africa. Strategies with three time horizons can be developed for combating pirates: short-term, medium-term, long-term. To date, a large number of states has become involved in combating piracy at a rapid pace, and the steps they have taken have therefore been characterised by a short-term time horizon. The aim of this report is to present recommendations that can function in the medium term. This means that temporary measures such as convoying or stationing soldiers on board merchant ships have not been taken into consideration. It is not realistic to maintain such operations for a longer period of time. Nor is there any attempt in the report to find a solution to the civil war in Somalia – something that would otherwise help to solve the problem of piracy in the long term....

April 28, 2010
RAND Corporation

Abstract:

The Netherlands Ministry of Defence (NL MOD) commissioned RAND Europe to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the Netherlands armed forces, asking RAND to focus on recent deployments of the Netherlands armed forces relative to the deployments of other countries' armed forces. This study is therefore not a root and branch consideration of the Netherlands armed forces, but a comparative study of several different armed forces to illustrate contrasts and similarities with those of the Netherlands. This study was conducted within the context of the NL MOD's Future Policy Survey, which is a review of the Netherlands' future defence ambition, required capabilities and associated levels of defence expenditure. The Future Policy Survey was delivered to the Netherlands Parliament in April 2010. The overarching aim of the Dutch Future Policy Survey is to provide greater insight into how to exploit and enhance the potential contribution of the Netherlands armed forces....

April 16, 2010
Demos

Abstract:

The path into terrorism in the name of Islam is often described as a process of radicalisation. But to be radical is not necessarily to be violent. Violent radicals are clearly enemies of liberal democracies, but non-violent radicals might sometimes be powerful allies. This report is a summary of two years of research examining the difference between violent and non-violent radicals in Europe and Canada. The report covers five countries: the UK, Canada, Denmark, France and the Netherlands, focusing on the phenomenon of ‘home-grown’ al-Qaeda inspired terrorism in these countries. It represents a step towards a more nuanced understanding of behaviour across radicalised individuals, the appeal of the al-Qaeda narrative, and the role of governments and communities in responding....

May 18, 2012
Center on Global Counterterrorism Cooperation

Abstract:

East Africa and the Horn face a number of transnational security threats, including terrorism, transnational crime, and piracy. In recent years, particularly following the July 2010 attacks in Kampala, al-Shabaab has been increasingly viewed as a threat not only to Somalia, but to the greater subregion. Tourism has declined and shipping costs have risen due to the threat of piracy from Somalia. Lawless pockets where government reach is weak, together with rampant corruption, have turned the region into a major transit point for black market financial flows and various forms of illicit trafficking.

Terrorism and transnational crime increasingly threaten security in the subregion of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development [IGAD]. Because of their transnational nature, no individual IGAD member state will single-handedly be able to deal effectively with these threats. As the IGAD Security Strategy adopted in December 2010 makes clear, effective cooperation will be crucial to winning the struggle against terrorism and to ensuring that other forms of transnational crime do not similarly jeopardize the IGAD subregion’s growth, prosperity, and stability....

May 18, 2012
Center on Global Counterterrorism Cooperation

Abstract:

Money laundering and terrorist financing are major, interconnected problems for East Africa and the Horn. As the World Bank’s World Development Report 2011 makes clear, they pose a significant threat not only to security but also to development.

Both the Financial Action Task Force [FATF] and the Eastern and Southern Africa Anti-Money Laundering Group [ESAAMLG] have identified a number of states in the subregion as demonstrating weak implementation of international standards on anti–money laundering [AML] and countering the financing of terrorism [CFT]. Some states in the subregion (Ethiopia and Kenya) have even been placed within the FATF International Cooperation Review Group [ICRG] process, which can ultimately lead to obstacles to engagement with the international financial system. There is consequently a growing recognition that states in the Intergovernmental Authority on Development [IGAD] subregion stand to benefit in multiple ways from a more concerted effort to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. There is also, however, a chronic limitation of data and knowledge about the problems of money laundering and terrorist financing and about AML/CFT vulnerabilities, risks, and capacities in the subregion. States of the subregion have their own specific vulnerabilities, challenges, weaknesses, and strengths, even as they share certain cross-cutting challenges.

In this Baseline Study, the IGAD Security Sector Program [ISSP] and the Center on Global Counterterrorism Cooperation [CGCC] set out with support from the Royal Government of Denmark to provide a more detailed and nuanced analysis of AML/ CFT challenges and opportunities in the IGAD region, to inform a better allocation of resources to risk and to potential return on investment. The study is a joint effort developed in response to repeated requests by the ISSP’s and the CGCC’s governmental, intergovernmental, private sector, and civil society partners in the subregion who sought assistance in obtaining baseline data about money laundering risks and AML capacity in the region and guidance on the data’s potential use for CFT efforts....

April 16, 2012
United Nations Children's Fund

Abstract:

Following one of the worst droughts in recent memory, the Horn of Africa ended 2011 with marked improvements in a number of conditions underpinning the regional humanitarian crisis. The chronic and often acute vulnerability of these affected communities highlights the need for a sustained humanitarian response in 2012 which places resilience building and disaster risk reduction approaches at its center.

At the height of the crisis in July 2011, more than 13 million people in Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti were impacted by severe drought exacerbated by conflict and reduced humanitarian access in Somalia that displaced many people from their homes and into neighboring countries. In July and August, the UN classified parts of Southern Somalia as famine zones. UNICEF declared the crisis a Level 3 emergency – triggering its Corporate Emergency Activation Procedure – through January 2012 and, in the case of Somalia, until May 2012.

A combination of favorable rains in much of the eastern Horn of Africa in late 2011 and a significantly scaledup international aid response have improved the dire conditions of affected communities including displaced and refugee children. This was especially evident in the containment and progressive easing of previously declared famine conditions in six areas of Southern Somalia. Across the arid and semi-arid areas that characterize this drought-prone region, improved pasture and projected increased agricultural production pointed to a tentative recovery in early 2012.

The report details the results of UNICEF’s massive humanitarian response in the second half of 2011....

July 29, 2011
The United Nations Monitoring Group

Abstract:

It would be hard to conceive of two States that offer greater contrasts than Somalia and Eritrea: the former, a collapsed State for over two decades, with no functional national institutions; the latter, possessing the most highly centralized, militarized and authoritarian system of government on the African continent. From a sanctions monitoring perspective, however, the two countries present very similar challenges: in both cases, power is concentrated in the hands of individuals rather than institutions and is exercised through largely informal and often illicit networks of political and financial control. Leaders in both countries often depend more heavily on political and economic support from foreign Governments and diaspora networks than from the populations within their own borders. And both countries — in very different ways — serve as platforms for foreign armed groups that represent a grave and increasingly urgent threat to peace and security in the Horn and East Africa region.

More than half of Somali territory is controlled by responsible, comparatively stable authorities that have demonstrated, to varying degrees, their capacity to provide relative peace and security to their populations. Without exception, the administrations of Somaliland, Puntland, Gaalmudug, and “Himan iyo Heeb” evolved independently of centralized State-building initiatives, from painstaking, organic local political processes. Much of Galguduud region is controlled by anti-Al- Shabaab clan militias loosely unified under the umbrella of Ahlu Sunna wal Jama’a (ASWJ), but lacks a functional authority. Consolidation of and cooperation between such entities represents the single most effective strategy for countering threats like extremism and piracy, while expanding peace and security in Somalia....

July 28, 2011
The World Bank

Abstract:

The recent political upheavals in the Middle East and North Africa region have exposed growing concerns about conflict risk, political stability, and reform prospects across its societies. Given the prevalence of oil and gas resource endowments in the region, which a voluminous literature suggests can be associated with adverse development consequences, this paper examines the interplay between their associated rents and political economy trajectories. The contribution of the paper is threefold: first, to examine the quantitative evidence of violent conflict in the region since 1960; second, to provide a nuanced review of the regional case study literature on the relationship between resource endowments, political stability, and conflict risk; and third, to assess how prospective political transitions have implications for the World Bank Group's work in the region on public sector management and private sector development. The authors find that resources and regimes have intersected to provide stability and limited violent conflict in the region, but that these development patterns have yielded a set of policy choices and development patterns that are proving increasingly brittle and unsustainable. A major institutional challenge for reforms will be to consolidate a requisite degree of inter-temporal credibility and stability in these regimes, while expanding inclusiveness in state-society relations....

September 16, 2008
En la Mira - The Latin American Small Arms Watch

Abstract:

Although all countries, in theory report their authorized transfers - and such information may even be available in certain public databases - the task of providing an overview of SALW transfers, their parts and munitions, is an arduous one. Nonetheless, despite the difficulties, we have some extremely positive initiatives on a global scale, such as for example, the Small Arms Survey, recognized as an important source of information, especially on SALW production and transfers, as well as the Norwegian Initiative on Small Arms Transfers (NISAT) which has a database containing transfer records going back to 1962.Despite these important initiatives, themselves when researchers, activists and policy makers try to understand a regional market, such as Latin America and the Caribbean, they encounter a dearth of information. With the intent of addressing this shortcoming, En La Mira has, since 2007, dedicated an issue to transfers of SALWs, parts and ammunition in this region. Further, according to statistics from the United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database (UN-Comtrade or Comtrade), USD 6.7 billion were exported between 2004 and 2006, while USD 6.5 billion were imported. Despite the fact that Latin America and the Caribbean represent 6% and 3%, respectively, of total transfers worldwide during this period, 42% of firearms related homicide is committed in the region. This discrepancy between the international transfer volume share and the levels of armsrelated violence in Latin America and the Caribbean calls attention to itself, above all because of the tragic and startling number of homicides. Obviously, far from wishing to increase arms transfers in order to be more in sync with homicide rates, we decided, a year ago, to study this issue and periodically monitor its development based on our interest in understanding the primary legal entry and exit routes of firearms and ammunition. The result is a report - based on customs information as stated by Latin American and Caribbean countries and their respective partners - whose objective is to describe the movement of the SALW imports and exports, as well as ammunition and parts, during the present decade. Based on this data, we answer the following questions: who exported and who imported? From whom? What? And when? It is worth restating that the intent of this report is not to explain the cause of arms imports and exports by Latin American countries. Beyond merely providing information, we do indeed wish to awaken, by means of the information presented here, the curiosity of other researches, activists and government staff members such that they may continue to perform research in their countries regarding the transparency of this information, on who is using the transferred SALW, and how. The data used for this report came from the NISAT database, which contains more than 800,000 entries for SALW transfers worldwide since 1962. The NISAT database gets its information from different sources, COMTRADE among them. In this study we decided to restrict ourselves to data from this latter source because, in theory, all countries report transfers to the UN. This data is declared in accordance with the Harmonized System (SH) merchandise classification system. The HS has existed since 1988and, in 2007, was revised for the fourth time; previous revisions were in 1992, 1996 and in 2002. Regarding the period analyzed, we are looking at data up until 2006, since at the time the study closed this was the most recent year available on NISAT....

February 24, 2006
U.S. Department of State

Abstract:

Dominica is a multiparty, parliamentary democracy governed by a prime minister, a cabinet, and a unicameral legislative assembly. A president, nominated by the Prime Minister in consultation with the leader of the opposition party, and elected for a 5-year term by the Parliament, was head of state with largely ceremonial powers. Prime Minister Pierre Charles' Dominica Labour Party (DLP) prevailed in generally free and fair elections in 2000. Following the sudden death of Prime Minister Charles on January 6, Members of Parliament appointed Roosevelt Skerrit as Prime Minister on January 8. The judiciary is independent. The Office of the Prime Minister oversaw the Dominica Police, the country's only security force. The civilian authorities maintained effective control of the security forces. Some members of the security force committed human rights abuses....

July 28, 2005
U.S. Army War College

Abstract:

The US military has had a host of successful experiences in counter-guerrilla war, including some distinct successes with certain aspects of the Vietnam War. However, the paradox stemming from America's unsuccessful crusade in the jungles of Vietnam is thisxe2x80x94because the experience was perceived as anathema to the mainstream American military, hard lessons learned there about fighting guerrillas were neither embedded nor preserved in the US Army's institutional memory. The American military culture's efforts to expunge the specter of Vietnam, embodied in the mantra "No More Vietnams," also prevented the US Army as an institution from really learning from those lessons. In fact, even the term "counterinsurgency" seemed to become a reviled and unwelcome word, one that the doctrinal cognoscenti of the 1980s conveniently transmogrified into "foreign internal defense." Even though many lessons exist in the US military's historical experience with small wars, the lessons from the Vietnam War were the most voluminous. Yet these lessons were most likely the least read, because the Army's intellectual rebirth after Vietnam focused almost exclusively on a big conventional war in Europexe2x80x94the scenario preferred by the US military culture. Since the US Army and its coalition partners are currently prosecuting counter-guerrilla wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, it is useful to revisit the lessons from Vietnam and other counterinsurgencies because they are germane to the wars of today and tomorrow. Capturing all or many of these lessons is beyond the scope of this article and is most likely beyond the scope of a single-volume book. However, this article aims to distill some of the more relevant counterinsurgency lessons from the American military's experiences during Vietnam and before. A bigger goal of this article, however, is to highlight some salient studies for professional reading as the US Army starts to inculcate a mindset that embraces the challenges of counterinsurgency and to develop a culture that learns from past lessons in counterinsurgency. This analysis also offers a brief explanation of US military culture and the hitherto embedded cultural obstacles to learning how to fight guerrillas. To simplify and clarify at the outset, the terms counterinsurgency, counter-guerrilla warfare, small war, and asymmetric conflict are used interchangeably. It is a form of warfare in which enemies of the regime or occupying force aim to undermine the regime by employing classical guerrilla tactics. For most of the 20th century, the US military culture (notwithstanding the Marines' work in small wars) generally embraced the big con#ventional war paradigm and fundamentally eschewed small wars and insurgencies. Thus, instead of learning from our experiences in Vietnam, the Philippines, the Marine Corps' experience in the Banana Wars, and the Indian campaigns, the US Army for most of the last 100 years has viewed these experiences as ephemeral anomalies and aberrationsxe2x80x94distractions from preparing to win big wars against other big powers. As a result of marginalizing the counterinsurgencies and small wars that it has spent most of its existence prosecuting, the US military's big-war cultural preferences have impeded it from fully benefitingxe2x80x94studying, distilling, and incorporating into doctrinexe2x80x94from our somewhat extensive lessons in small wars and insurgencies. This article starts by briefly examining some of the salient lessons for counterinsurgency from Vietnam and lists some of the sources for lessons from that war that have been neglected or forgotten. This article also examines some sources and lessons of counterinsurgencies and small wars predating Vietnam. ...

November 4, 2011
Amnesty International

Abstract:

Authorities in the Dominican Republic must urgently reform their police force to tackle alarming levels of killings and torture, Amnesty International said in a new report today.

‘Shut up if you don’t want to be killed’: Human Rights violations by the police in the Dominican Republic documents scores of cases of killings, torture and ill-treatment at the hands of police, gathered during three research missions in the country and the lack of effective investigations

“Authorities must ensure those responsible for the killings and torture face justice and that steps are taken to change the policies and practices that allow these abuses to take place,” said Javier Zúñiga, Head of Amnesty International’s delegation in the Dominican Republic....

April 6, 2009
Forced Migration Review // University of Oxford // Refugee Studies Centre

Abstract:

Forced Migration Review (FMR) provides a forum for the regular exchange of practical experience, information and ideas between researchers, refugees and internally displaced people, and those who work with them. It is published in English, Arabic, Spanish and French by the Refugee Studies Centre of the Oxford Department of International Development, University of Oxford. This issue focuses on 'Statelessness'. A ‘stateless person’ is someone who is not recognised as a national by any state. They therefore have no nationality or citizenship (terms used interchangeably in this issue) and are unprotected by national legislation, leaving them vulnerable in ways that most of us never have to consider. The possible consequences of statelessness are profound and touch on all aspects of life. It may not be possible to work legally, own property or open a bank account. Stateless people may be easy prey for exploitation as cheap labour. They are often not permitted to attend school or university, may be prohibited from getting married and may not be able to register births and deaths. Stateless people can neither vote nor access the national justice system....

September 16, 2008
En la Mira - The Latin American Small Arms Watch

Abstract:

Although all countries, in theory report their authorized transfers - and such information may even be available in certain public databases - the task of providing an overview of SALW transfers, their parts and munitions, is an arduous one. Nonetheless, despite the difficulties, we have some extremely positive initiatives on a global scale, such as for example, the Small Arms Survey, recognized as an important source of information, especially on SALW production and transfers, as well as the Norwegian Initiative on Small Arms Transfers (NISAT) which has a database containing transfer records going back to 1962.Despite these important initiatives, themselves when researchers, activists and policy makers try to understand a regional market, such as Latin America and the Caribbean, they encounter a dearth of information. With the intent of addressing this shortcoming, En La Mira has, since 2007, dedicated an issue to transfers of SALWs, parts and ammunition in this region. Further, according to statistics from the United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database (UN-Comtrade or Comtrade), USD 6.7 billion were exported between 2004 and 2006, while USD 6.5 billion were imported. Despite the fact that Latin America and the Caribbean represent 6% and 3%, respectively, of total transfers worldwide during this period, 42% of firearms related homicide is committed in the region. This discrepancy between the international transfer volume share and the levels of armsrelated violence in Latin America and the Caribbean calls attention to itself, above all because of the tragic and startling number of homicides. Obviously, far from wishing to increase arms transfers in order to be more in sync with homicide rates, we decided, a year ago, to study this issue and periodically monitor its development based on our interest in understanding the primary legal entry and exit routes of firearms and ammunition. The result is a report - based on customs information as stated by Latin American and Caribbean countries and their respective partners - whose objective is to describe the movement of the SALW imports and exports, as well as ammunition and parts, during the present decade. Based on this data, we answer the following questions: who exported and who imported? From whom? What? And when? It is worth restating that the intent of this report is not to explain the cause of arms imports and exports by Latin American countries. Beyond merely providing information, we do indeed wish to awaken, by means of the information presented here, the curiosity of other researches, activists and government staff members such that they may continue to perform research in their countries regarding the transparency of this information, on who is using the transferred SALW, and how. The data used for this report came from the NISAT database, which contains more than 800,000 entries for SALW transfers worldwide since 1962. The NISAT database gets its information from different sources, COMTRADE among them. In this study we decided to restrict ourselves to data from this latter source because, in theory, all countries report transfers to the UN. This data is declared in accordance with the Harmonized System (SH) merchandise classification system. The HS has existed since 1988and, in 2007, was revised for the fourth time; previous revisions were in 1992, 1996 and in 2002. Regarding the period analyzed, we are looking at data up until 2006, since at the time the study closed this was the most recent year available on NISAT....

September 5, 2008
Congressional Research Service

Abstract:

U.S. policymakers have made securing and maintaining foreign contributions to the stabilization and reconstruction of Iraq a major priority since the preparation period for the launch of Operation Iraqi Freedom in March 2003. This report highlights and discusses important changes in financial and personnel contributions from foreign governments to Iraq since 2003. To date, foreign donors have pledged an estimated $16.4 billion in grants and loans for Iraq reconstruction, with most major pledges originating at a major donors' conference in Madrid, Spain, in October 2003. However, only a small part of the pledges have been committed or disbursed to the World Bank and United Nations Development Group Trust Funds for Iraq. The largest non-U.S. pledges of grants have come from Japan, the European Commission, the United Kingdom, Canada, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates. The World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, Japan, and Saudi Arabia have pledged the most loans and export credits. Currently, 33 countries including the United States have some level of troops on the ground in Iraq or supporting Iraq operations from nearby locations. Those forces are working under the rubric of one of several organizations — the Multi-National Force-Iraq (MNF-I), the NATO Training Mission-Iraq (NTM-I); or the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI). Currently, the largest troop contributors, in addition to the United States, are the United Kingdom, Georgia, Australia, South Korea, and Poland. Some of these key contributors have announced their intention to reduce or withdraw their forces from Iraq during 2008. The total number of non-U.S. coalition troop contributions has declined since the early stabilization efforts, as other countries have withdrawn their contingents or substantially reduced their size....

June 2, 2008
Refugees International

Abstract:

On May 16, President Leonel Fernandez won a further term in office using the electoral slogan “Pa’lante” (“moving forward”) with a campaign message of modernization and development for the country. But the Dominican Republic is not utilizing all its human resources to move forward. An illegal retroactive application of nationality laws is leaving increasing numbers of Dominicans of Haitian descent functionally stateless. Hundreds of thousands of people are left in legal limbo and, in practice, most of them now have no access to either Dominican or Haitian nationality. This issue must be resolved if the country truly wants to modernize and develop....

July 20, 2012
Center on International Cooperation

Abstract:

Richard Gowan writes on what the United Nations Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS) can really achieve and draws comparison to the current situation in South Sudan.

July 20, 2012
Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect

Abstract:

Provides background on populations at risk of mass atrocity crimes, with particular emphasis on key events and actors and their connection to the threat, or commission, of genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.

Offers analysis of the country’s past history in relation to mass atrocity crimes; the factors that have enabled their possible commission, or that prevent their resolution; and the receptivity of the situation to positive influences that would assist in preventing further crimes....

July 20, 2012
The Soufan Group

Abstract:

South Sudan's occupation of the oil-rich northern territory Heglig region in April brought Khartoum and Juba to the very edge of war. But the early May withdrawal of Southern Sudanese forces from Heglig, followed by the pullout of northern Sudanese forces from the neighboring disputed territory of Abyei, averted the immediate threat. Though cross-border provocations continue, amid periodic escalations of violence, the North/South border dispute is increasingly dwarfed by the domestic conflicts and economic crises facing both nations....