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5801. Turkey's Strategy in the Changing World

Author:
Atilla Sandikli
Publication Date:
12-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
BILGESAM (Wise Men Center for Strategic Studies)
Abstract:
At the last quarter of 20th century, Cold War ended and technological advances in general with significant progresses in communication in particular have generated the phenomenon of globalization. The developments in financial markets and in real economy not only spread through geographical boundaries of nation states but also influence economic, technologic, and socio-cultural spheres decisively. National and international spaces as well as local and global domains are increasingly intertwined. Further beyond the interdependencies among states there are emerging new fields of cooperation and of common interests between societies. Democratic values and awareness on human rights are becoming universally shared norms as their applications expand conspicuously. Pluralist democratic regimes that respect human rights and that achieve a just income distribution provide better welfare systems for their publics. These regimes, in the long term, contribute stability and peace at domestic, regional and international levels. Accordingly, geopolitical weight of the states maintaining such regimes increases.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Regional Cooperation, Science and Technology, European Union, Democracy, and Strategic Planning
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, Turkey, Middle East, and United States of America

5802. Turkey's Today and Tomorrow

Author:
Ilter Turkmen
Publication Date:
12-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
BILGESAM (Wise Men Center for Strategic Studies)
Abstract:
The geopolitical location of Turkey had created the framework of the policies pursued during the first years of the Republic. Upon the circumstances in the post- WWII period, Turkey unwaveringly preferred to join the Western world. Despite the occasional bottlenecks that have arisen in terms of the compliance with the Western values during and after the Cold War, Turkey irreversibly integrated with the fundamental ideals of the Western civilization such as democracy, multi-party system, rule of law, respect for human rights, and the social market economy. This evolution has been accelerated also by the process of accession to the EU.
Topic:
Democratization, European Union, Geopolitics, and Economy
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East

5803. Emerging Scholars

Author:
Melissa Conley Tyler
Publication Date:
12-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Australian Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:
The Australian Institute of International Affairs (AIIA) was established over 75 years ago to promote public understanding and interest in international affairs. In recent years the AIIA has been increasingly active in promoting its activities to younger members of the community. The AIIA has launched a variety of initiatives to involve young people including ACCESS Youth Networks, careers fairs, schools events and the Young Diplomat Program. This has helped the AIIA reach its present strength of more than 1600 members across seven State and Territory Branches.
Topic:
International Affairs
Political Geography:
Australia

5804. Defence R&D: Lessons from NATO Allies

Author:
Tomas Jermalavicius
Publication Date:
12-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
International Centre for Defence and Security - ICDS
Abstract:
Defence research and development (R&D) is a field of strategic significance in developing modern defence organisations as well as the entire national security sector. In knowledge-based societies, pursuit of state-of-the-art military capabilities, organisational innovation in the armed forces, sensible long-term management of security threats and risks or deeper integration with allies go hand in hand with investments in scientific research and effective use of their results. The importance of this field is well acknowledged by NATO, which continuously calls its member states to devote at least 2% of their defence budgets to R&D programmes. So, today’s choices made in the national defence R&D strategy will have an impact on Estonia’s security and defence as well as its credibility within the Alliance 10-20 years down the road. The ICDS has completed a small study on general trends in this sector and on how several small NATO allies – Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands – think and go about their defence R&D, which will hopefully serve as a source of new ideas and will stimulate a debate on the merits and shortcomings of the approach adopted by Estonia.
Topic:
NATO, Development, National Security, Science and Technology, and Research
Political Geography:
Europe, Norway, Estonia, Denmark, and Netherlands

5805. State-Sponsored Homophobia (2009)

Author:
Daniel Ottosson
Publication Date:
05-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
ILGA World (International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association)
Abstract:
Every year, ILGA World publishes its State-Sponsored Homophobia report, a world survey of sexual orientation laws. Since its first edition, back in 2006, ILGA World’s State-Sponsored Homophobia has been a fundamental resource for those interested in accessing the core information on legislation affecting people on the basis of their sexual orientation. Not only human rights defenders, but also civil society organisations, governmental and United Nations agencies, allies and media worldwide value the publication as one of the main sources of information on the issue. The publication is accompanied by a series of maps and charts illustrating where criminalisation, protection and recognition laws exist.
Topic:
Human Rights, Law, LGBT+, and Homophobia
Political Geography:
Global Focus

5806. 2008-2009 Guide to Women Leaders in International Affairs

Author:
Women's Foreign Policy Group (WFPG)
Publication Date:
08-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Women's Foreign Policy Group (WFPG)
Abstract:
WFPG's Guide to Women Leaders in International Affairs highlights women shaping foreign policy around the world and the role that they play as leaders, diplomats, and policymakers. The Guide provides an index of prominent women from across the international community, including heads of state and government, government ministers and diplomats, and leaders of international organizations and corporations.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Government, United Nations, Women, Leadership, and NGOs
Political Geography:
Global Focus

5807. Latin America, the European Union and Cuba: Approaches towards Totalitarianism

Author:
Pablo Brum and Mariana Dambolena
Publication Date:
09-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center for the Opening and Development of Latin America (CADAL)
Abstract:
This document seeks to study the UPR corresponding to the Cuban regime, which took place during the fourth working session of the UPR Working Group, in the period February 2nd-13th 2009, and its corresponding context. The focus is comparative between two regions of the world: Latin American governments and European governments.
Topic:
Government, European Union, and Totalitarianism
Political Geography:
Europe, Cuba, and Latin America

5808. The Taiwan Quadrennial Defense Review: Implications for U.S. – Taiwan Relations

Author:
Julia Famularo
Publication Date:
06-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Project 2049 Institute
Abstract:
Although the recent cross-Strait political climate has improved, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has steadfastly refused to renounce the use of force against Taiwan while shifting the cross-Strait military balance in its favor. Faced with such challenges, the Taiwan Quadrennial Defense Review is meant to increase military transparency while convincing Taiwanese legislators, the Chinese PLA, and U.S. policy makers and analysts alike that the Ministry of National Defense is firmly dedicated to creating new strategies and engaging in reforms that will prepare the military for future challenges.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Defense Policy, Bilateral Relations, and Military Affairs
Political Geography:
China, Taiwan, Asia, and United States of America

5809. Informe Económico Fiscal 2009

Author:
Julio Ramírez
Publication Date:
12-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Centro de Análisis y Difusión de la Economía Paraguaya (CADEP)
Abstract:
Los Informes Económicos Fiscales son preparados en el marco del proyecto Observatorio Fiscal y Presupuestario (OFIP), iniciativa del Centro de Análisis y Difusión de la Economía Paraguaya (CADEP), con el apoyo de la Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo (AECID). El proyecto tiene por objetivo facilitar la interpretación de los datos e informaciones de las finanzas públicas para alentar la participación ciudadana en el seguimiento de los gastos e ingresos fiscales, poniendo énfasis en la transparencia, eficiencia y equidad fiscal.
Topic:
Budget, Economy, Fiscal Policy, Transparency, and Public Spending
Political Geography:
South America and Paraguay

5810. Monitoreo Fiscal Nº 3. Enero – Setiembre 2009

Author:
Julio Ramírez
Publication Date:
11-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Centro de Análisis y Difusión de la Economía Paraguaya (CADEP)
Abstract:
Con esta edición llegamos a la tercera entrega del Monitoreo Fiscal, importante material dirigido a los ciudadanos y a las organizaciones de la sociedad civil para facilitar una mejor comprensión sobre el origen de los recursos del Estado, la aplicación y la asignación de los mismos a los diferentes tipos de gastos e inversiones. Este número abarca el periodo comprendido entre Enero – Setiembre de 2002 al 2009, y presenta un análisis de los principales ingresos tanto tributarios como no tributarios de la Administración Central, poniendo especial énfasis en los principales impuestos recaudados en el periodo. De la misma forma, se analiza la ejecución de los gastos de la Administración Central desglosados por sus distintos componentes, ya sean estos corrientes o de capital así como los gastos funcionales que abarcan fundamentalmente los gastos sociales y no sociales. La misma, se publica en el marco del Observatorio Fiscal y Presupuestario (OFIP), iniciativa del Centro de Análisis y Difusión de la Economía Paraguaya (CADEP).
Topic:
Economy, Fiscal Policy, Public Spending, and Monitoring
Political Geography:
South America and Paraguay

5811. Análisis de la Calidad del Ingreso Público en Paraguay y sus efectos en la Economía

Author:
Walter A. Zárate
Publication Date:
12-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Centro de Análisis y Difusión de la Economía Paraguaya (CADEP)
Abstract:
Este libro fue preparado en el marco del proyecto Observatorio Fiscal y Presupuestario (OFIP), iniciativa del Centro de Análisis y Difusión de la Economía Paraguaya (CADEP), con el apoyo de la Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo (AECID). El objetivo principal del proyecto es facilitar la interpretación de los datos e informaciones de las finanzas públicas para alentar la participación ciudadana en el seguimiento de los gastos e ingresos fiscales, poniendo énfasis en la transparencia, eficiencia y equidad fiscal. En el mismo se pretende dar una visión más clara sobre la calidad y la evolución del Ingreso Público en Paraguay, sus componentes y los posibles efectos de algunos indicadores claves de la economía paraguaya. El presente estudio centra su atención en la evolución de los Ingresos de la Administración Central para el periodo comprendido entre 1998-2007 y se divide en siete capítulos: en el primero se hace una breve reseña de algunos conceptos básicos referente al Ingreso Público en Paraguay, se analizan su estructura, clasificación y la normativa que lo rige. En el segundo capítulo se analiza la evolución de los principales ingresos, poniendo especial énfasis en cada uno de sus componentes. En el tercer capítulo se analiza la estructura tributaria de Paraguay en comparación con otros países del Mercosur, Chile y algunos países desarrollados. Del cuarto al sexto capítulo se analizan los posibles efectos que algunos indicadores de la economía paraguaya podrían tener sobre los Ingresos de la Administración Central. Finalmente, en el capítulo siete se presenta un breve análisis sobre las debilidades del Sistema Impositivo Paraguayo, para posteriormente presentar algunas conclusiones y recomendaciones a fin de lograr una mayor eficiencia recaudatoria.
Topic:
Budget, Economy, Tax Systems, Fiscal Policy, Data, and Revenue Management
Political Geography:
South America and Paraguay

5812. Informe Económico Fiscal 2008

Author:
Julio Ramírez
Publication Date:
02-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Centro de Análisis y Difusión de la Economía Paraguaya (CADEP)
Abstract:
El informe económico fiscal es un material que presenta y analiza la coyuntura de las variables económicas y fiscales más importantes del país. Se da continuidad a la primera edición del material que analizaba dichas variables entre los años 2002 al 2007. Es interesante recordar que el material está dirigido a los ciudadanos y a las organizaciones de la sociedad civil para facilitar una comprensión de la situación económica, así como la evolución de los gastos del gobierno. El sector público desarrolla una gran parte de la actividad económica y, a través del gasto y la movilización de recursos, influye en las decisiones de asignación de recursos que realiza el sector privado. La evidencia demuestra que en muchos casos, la ineficiencia de la gestión fiscal ha sido una de las principales causas de problemas tales como: una alta tasa de inflación, un elevado déficit en cuenta corriente y un estancamiento del producto. Es por ello, que el análisis de la política fiscal es fundamental para identificar al déficit como una de las causas de los problemas macroeconómicos. En este contexto, sin profundizar en aspectos de economía normativa, este informe presenta los resultados de la evolución de las finanzas públicas del país, centrando la atención en los datos del año 2008. Tras un breve análisis del entorno macroeconómico, se analizan los aspectos relacionados a la evolución de los ingresos y egresos de la Administración Central con su consiguiente efecto sobre el déficit o superávit fiscal. Luego, se presta atención a la ejecución de los gastos de la Administración Central, teniendo en cuenta las distintas entidades y estamentos que la componen, dando un énfasis especial al gasto o inversión social. Finalmente, se estudian las transferencias de royalties a los gobiernos regionales por parte de la Administración Central. Es necesario mencionar, finalmente, que este material se publica en el ámbito del Observatorio Fiscal y Presupuestario (OFIP) iniciativa que busca facilitar a la ciudadanía una mejor interpretación sobre las finanzas públicas en Paraguay. Cabe destacar además, que la iniciativa no hubiese sido posible sin la valiosa contribución de la Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo (AECID).
Topic:
Development, Finance, Economy, Transparency, and Efficiency
Political Geography:
South America and Paraguay

5813. Calidad del Gasto Público en Paraguay 1998 – 2007

Author:
Julio Ramírez
Publication Date:
02-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Centro de Análisis y Difusión de la Economía Paraguaya (CADEP)
Abstract:
Este documento fue preparado en el marco del proyecto Observatorio Fiscal y Presupuestario (OFIP), iniciativa del Centro de Análisis y Difusión de la Economía Paraguaya (CADEP), con el apoyo de la Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo (AECID). El objetivo principal del proyecto es facilitar la interpretación de los datos e informaciones de las finanzas públicas para alentar la participación ciudadana en el seguimiento de los gastos e ingresos fiscales, poniendo énfasis en la transparencia, eficiencia y equidad fiscal. De manera más particular, uno de los componentes básicos del proyecto es la elaboración de un estudio referente a la Calidad del Gasto Público en Paraguay. En ese sentido y considerando la importancia que el nivel de gastos podría de alguna manera tener y/o impulsar un cambio favorable en las condiciones de bienestar de las personas, este documento pretende de manera sencilla, mostrar una serie de informaciones detallada que nos permita tener una visión más acertada acerca de la importancia, la evolución, la magnitud y la composición del Gasto en Paraguay. En este contexto, el presente estudio centra su atención en la evolución y composición del Gasto de la Administración Central para el periodo comprendido entre 1998-2007 y aborda fundamentalmente dos clasificaciones del gasto público: la clasificación económica y funcional. La estructura de este trabajo es la siguiente: en un primer apartado comenzamos con algunas consideraciones generales pero no por ello menos importantes tales como: la definición, la estructura y la clasificación del gasto público. En seguida presentamos dos apartados referentes a la evolución y composición del gasto total poniendo especial énfasis en cada uno de sus componentes y considerando tanto su clasificación económica como funcional. Seguidamente se presenta un apartado que tiene que ver con algunas informaciones referente a otros países con la intención de que se pueda comparar sus situaciones con la de Paraguay. Finalmente, en el último apartado se presenta algunas conclusiones y recomendaciones para una mejor asignación del gasto público en Paraguay.
Topic:
Economy, Welfare, Participation, and Public Spending
Political Geography:
South America and Paraguay

5814. Dysfunction and Decline

Author:
Brian Fishman
Publication Date:
03-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
Al-Qa`ida in Iraq (AQI) is a shadow of its former self, primarily because broad sectors of Iraq’s Sunni population rejected it after more than three years of active and tacit cooperation. That AQI’s ideological extremism alienated many Iraqis is well understood, but radicalism alone does not fully explain AQI’s decline: poor leadership, vulnerable communication mechanisms, tension between Iraqi and foreign members, and weak indoctrination efforts contributed to strategic and tactical blunders that alienated even other Sunni insurgents. In lieu of major social and political shifts (which are possible) that offer AQI a sustained safe-haven, these dynamics are unlikely to change dramatically; they serve as important obstacles to AQI’s resurrection. Conversely, al-Qa`ida elements elsewhere, primarily along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, are hindered less by these weaknesses. There are lessons from the fight against AQI that are applicable in Afghanistan and Pakistan, but al-Qa`ida’s operations there are likely to be much more durable than those in Iraq. Section I of this paper traces al-Qa`ida in Iraq’s transition from welcome partner to mortal enemy of Iraq’s Sunni insurgents, focusing particularly on the Islamic Army of Iraq. Section II draws on declassified internal AQI correspondence and open sources to describe how external pressures from U.S. forces and tribal sources exacerbated AQI’s fallout with other insurgents while rending the movement from within. Section III assesses AQI’s prospects in Iraq and the impact of AQI’s failure on the future of the global jihadist movement. Section IV offers recommendations for containing AQI in the future and for applying the lessons of AQI’s demise to other elements.
Topic:
Terrorism, Military Strategy, Al Qaeda, Islamic State, and History
Political Geography:
Iraq

5815. The Power of Truth? Questions for Ayman al-Zawahiri

Author:
Brian Fishman, Jarret Brachman, and Joseph Felter
Publication Date:
07-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
On 16 December 2007, Ayman al-Zawahiri invited journalists and Jihadist enthusiasts to ask him questions via the primary Jihadist web forums. Zawahiri promised to personally answer some of those questions in a subsequent statement. On 2 April 2008, As-Sahab Media released the first part of Zawahiri’s response in the form of a one hour, forty-three minute audio statement, which was accompanied by Arabic and English transcripts. Zawahiri used the opportunity to publicly address topics that have been dogging him for years. He answered some questions directly, like whether al-Qa’ida’s willingness to kill innocent Muslims in the course of their operations is apostasy. He sidestepped other questions, including more politicized ones about al-Qa’ida’s increasing difficulties in Iraq and, in particular, al-Qa’ida’s official position toward Iran. In our analysis of those questions, we found a major disconnect between what was actually asked to Zawahiri versus the topics that he chose to answer. Beyond the obvious selection bias of the questions that Zawahiri chose to answer, we believe that he made one major strategic mistake in his 2 April statement, one that bolsters suggestions that Abu Umar al-Baghdadi, “Emir” of al-Qa’ida’s Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), is a fabricated persona. The following analysis of Zawahiri’s Part I response is broken into three sections. The first evaluates the most important themes that Zawahiri addressed on 2 April, namely HAMAS, the killing of innocents, Yusuf al-Qaradawi and the Muslim Brotherhood, the Lebanese Jihadist group Fatah al-Islam, and Zawahiri’s dispute with Sayyid Imam Sharif, the former Emir of Egyptian Islamic Jihad. The second section explores the issues that Zawahiri mentioned but failed to actually answer, namely al-Qa’ida’s relationship with other insurgents in Iraq and al-Qa’ida’s position toward Iran. In the third section, we are pleased to offer our analysis of 1,888 questions that were posed to Zawahiri on the password-protected Al-Ekhlass and Al-Hesbah websites.
Topic:
Communications, Al Qaeda, Media, Hamas, and Muslim Brotherhood
Political Geography:
Pakistan, Iraq, and Palestine

5816. Radical Islamic Ideology In Southeast Asia

Author:
Scott Helfstein
Publication Date:
10-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
The 17 July 2009 terrorist attacks on two hotels in Jakarta, Indonesia were a vivid reminder of the breadth of the battle space and the importance of constant vigilance. This break in Indonesia’s four-year calm might be a one-time event or an indication of a resurgent regional terror threat. With crude weapons and little logistical support, a small group of people were capable of carrying out an attack that received global media attention. The focus on the perpetrators of this attack may also veil the importance of ideologies other than global jihadism to political violence in the region, such as various strands of ethno-nationalism. As this report highlights, global jihadism is not the only ideology animating terrorist violence, and ethno-nationalism is still a prevalent force in Southeast Asia.
Topic:
Terrorism, Non State Actors, Ideology, Jihad, and Abu Sayyaf
Political Geography:
Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, and Southeast Asia

5817. Guidelines for Persons and Organizations Providing Support for Victims of Forced Migration

Author:
A. Tamer Aker, Dilek Kurban, Etyen Mahçupyan, and Pınar Önen Süren
Publication Date:
01-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
The outcomes of forced migration as a reality of Turkey have been increasing and varying over time. The situation affects not only the victims of forced migration but also the general population of the cities that accept the migrants, and from which people migrate, the socio-economic and cultural fabric of these cities, and thus, indirectly, the entire country. Although in recent years the government has taken some positive -nevertheless limited- steps, these have not been sufficient. The victims of forced migration, the vast majority of whom continue to live in deep poverty and deprivation, have legal, social, political and healthcare problems that need to be addressed urgently. That steps are taken by the state with the purpose of solving these problems is ideal and correct. However, it is also a fact that the size and scope of problems resulting from forced migration have pushed the limits of the state resources and its capacity. In addition, there does not seem to be sufficient political will in regard to generating comprehensive and permanent solutions for the problem, at least in the short term. Nevertheless, there exist some concrete steps that can be taken towards a solution by people and organisations offering support for internally displaced persons (IDPs) without waiting for the state to play the necessary role. The purpose of these guidelines is: to make easier the support and aid efforts offered to displaced persons by human rights advocates carrying out work concerning the daily lives of victims of forced migration, lawyers, health workers, and public and local government workers; to help shape the road map these persons shall prepare in order to address the problems of victims of forced migration, paying attention to the subjective conditions of each individual; and to offer a summary of the main principles, which need to be observed throughout this process. Since the present document is the first of its kind, we thought that it would be better to keep the guidelines as comprehensive as possible and, in line with this, to add certain points to the appendices; these are the points that may be deemed topical or may cause reservations, and are yet to be field tested. In this respect, matters and methods highlighted in these guidelines, whilst putting forth the ideal situation, imply that the expert who shall use the document may make a selection based on specific conditions and their good sense. Also, it should be noted that while getting into contact with victims of forced migration, it may be necessary to identify some groups that are sensitive and shy away from help, such as men and teenagers, and to generate alternative ways to reach them. We are hoping that these guidelines and their appendices, which have been designed with the goal of being developed as deemed necessary by their users, will constitute the initial steps for the users and displaced persons to work together.
Topic:
Refugees, Displacement, Forced Migration, and Guidelines
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East

5818. The Story of an Alien(ation): Real Estate Ownership Problems of Non-Muslim Foundations and Communities in Turkey

Author:
Dilek Kurban and Kezban Hatemi
Publication Date:
03-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
The purpose of this report is to tell the story of the real estate ownership problem experienced by non-Muslim foundations since the Ottoman period, and to discuss to what extent laws enacted during the EU accession process have been effective in solving this problem. The second section of this report, following this introduction, explains the historical background of the ownership problems of non-Muslim foundations. Following brief information about the foundation system of the Ottoman Empire and the establishment of non-Muslim foundations, which constituted a part of this system, the minority regime created under the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923 are discussed, and rights and freedoms of non-Muslim foundations arising from this Treaty are evaluated. In the third section, the impact of minority policies adopted by Turkey since the Treaty of Lausanne regarding the property rights of non-Muslim foundations are considered, and various laws and practices such as the 1926 Civil Code, the 1930 Municipalities Law, the 1935 Law on Foundations, the 1936 Declaration, and the inclusion of non-Muslim foundations among seized foundations are analyzed. Policies of taking over the immovables of non-Muslim foundations implemented since the 1960s pursuant to the so-called the 1936 Declaration and the ‘seized foundation’ practice are discussed, by giving concrete examples. The legislation developed to solve the problems of non-Muslim foundations during Turkey’s accession to the EU is evaluated in the fourth section, and lawsuits referred to the ECtHR because of the inadequacy of these reforms are reviewed in the fifth section. After discussing, in the sixth section, the reasons of the inadequacy of the reforms made within the context of harmonization with the EU in solving problems of non-Muslim foundations, concrete proposals are made for solving continuing real estate ownership problems of non-Muslim foundations in the seventh and last section. The list of immovables taken from non-Muslim foundations and the list of non-Muslim foundations included among ‘seized foundations’ are given in the annexes
Topic:
Islam, History, Minorities, European Union, Property, Ottoman Empire, and Real Estate
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East

5819. Turkey-Armenia Relations: Breaking the Vicious Circle

Author:
Alexander Iskandaryan, Aybars Görgülü, Sabiha Senyücel Gündoğar, and Sergey Minasyan
Publication Date:
04-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)Foreign Policy Program and the Caucasus Institute (CI) have published a new report on Turkey – Armenia relations. This report follows on from the dialogue series workshop, organized by TESEV and CI, on Turkey-Armenia relations in November 2008. It summarizes and expands on the findings of the workshop, which was designed to contribute to the debate regarding normalization of the Turkey and Armenia relations.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, and Bilateral Relations
Political Geography:
Turkey, Caucasus, Middle East, Eastern Europe, and Armenia

5820. “Modernity does not Tolerate Superstition” the Religious and Seculars in the Democratization Process

Author:
Onur Bayramoğlu
Publication Date:
05-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
The claim that change is a one-way process is quite outdated. We have begun to realize that integration across the world does not necessarily require becoming like the West, but rather implies a process of mutual adaptation. This realization enhances efforts to obtain an “insider’s view” of societies’ problems. Turkey is a country that has been modernizing for almost three centuries and attempting to integrate with its surroundings by going through such an adaptation. Major changes have occurred from the economy to judicial, educational and social rights. However, a range of issues from the lack of religious freedom to the Kurdish problem, latent inclination towards violence, and the practice of utilitarian political analysis also shows that with certain issues the traditional public opinion resurfaces without going through any change. Therefore, we have an inevitable question before us: how can it be that, despite all the effort towards modernization and the dynamics of change, we fail to solve some of our problems and continue to live with them? Although one is justified in criticizing the state for its failure to solve these problems, can only the state be held accountable? Or does the society, either consciously or implicitly, support the state’s resistance to problem-solving? These questions led TESEV to conduct a series of studies, which focus on issues such as secularism, religiosity, nationalism, family, the state, and rights. Through these studies TESEV attempted to unveil the mentality and the way in which Turkish people perceive themselves and their surroundings, as well as their references and the value systems implied by these references. We tried to grasp how the mentality change works, what kinds of breakpoints it creates, and how the conflicts created by these breakpoints are rationalized. We hope that the resulting assessments will not only create an effective reference in defining and conceiving the chaotic change dynamics of contemporary Turkey, but also serve to initiate new, more expansive and in-depth studies.
Topic:
Democratization, Religion, State, and Society
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean

5821. A Permanent Solution to Internal Displacement? An Assessment of the Van Action Plan for IDPs

Author:
Deniz Yükseker and Dilek Kurban
Publication Date:
05-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Prior to drafting the Action Plan, a series of workshops were organized in Van at the initiative of the UNDP office in Ankara which brought together the local CSOs and private sector for a discussion concerning the shape the Action Plan should take. This report’s assessment is that civil society’s contributions during the preparatory stage have to a significant extent not been incorporated in the final Action Plan. CSOs were not part of the drafting process. Furthermore, although discussions on political and socio-economic aspects of displacement took place at the workshops, many of the CSO’s views were not reflected in the Action Plan. The Action Plan is a “blueprint” document that outlines the general principles of service delivery to IDPs in Van. It emphasizes freedom of movement and choice regarding integration, return and resettlement, and, as such, is in agreement with the United Nations Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement. It both addresses the right of return to original rural homes and the integration of urban IDPs. It also underlines the importance of civil society participation in implementation. However, the Action Plan suffers from a lack of focus and prioritization of outlined activities. No mention is made about the criteria for selection of service-delivery projects. There is no definition of IDPs and no criteria of eligibility for the beneficiaries of planned services. Particularly, the Action Plan does not address the fact that a significant proportion of IDPs in Van are from the neighboring Hakkâri and Şırnak provinces. Also, scant mention is made about funding sources. The Action Plan does not address certain issues that pertain to national-level politics and policies concerning the Kurdish question, issues which have a direct bearing on the choices open to IDPs. Issues such as cessation of the armed conflict, abolishment of the provisional village guard system and the clearing of landmines and unexploded ordnances (UXOs), all of which would positively influence the safety of returns to original rural homes, are ignored in the Plan. These lacunae in the Action Plan have been the focus of criticism from some of the CSOs that participated in the preparatory process. The ‘official’ and ‘technical’ language used in the Plan, and the absence of any mention of the Kurdish language and ethnicity have also drawn criticism from civil society. The implementation stage has been marked by the overwhelming predominance of projects prepared by public agencies in Van both in number and budgetary scale. Some of these are urban projects, such as the planned building of housing for IDPs and sewage systems in IDP neighborhoods. There are also projects pertaining to health, education and counseling. Rural-based projects pertain especially to the revitalization of agriculture and animal husbandry. As it stands, it seems that the public sector is out-competing the civil society with projects many of which actually fall under its official mandate and for which regular budget allocations should already exist. Projects submitted by CSOs mostly pertain to skills-training and educational and cultural centers for IDP women, children and youth. At the time of this writing, out of 84 projects submitted by either public bodies or CSOs, 44 had either been approved by relevant government ministries or agencies or were still being negotiated. Only a fraction of these were allocated the requisite budgets and were already underway. Out of a total of 23 CSO projects, only two – both prepared by business groups for on-the-job training for IDPs – were allocated budgets for implementation. The authority for the approval of projects and budget allocation rests with the government. However, the criteria for selection of projects and prioritization of budget allocation are not transparent. It is also unclear how the performance and effectiveness of these projects would be assessed. In particular, there are no assessment measures regarding whether implemented public and CSO projects actually benefit IDPs and other vulnerable groups in the province. These issues pertaining to transparency and coordination that emerged during the implementation of the Plan have contributed to the existing feelings of mistrust between CSOs and public agencies in Van,
Topic:
Civil Society, Migration, Internal Displacement, and Action Plan
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean

5822. Almanac Turkey 2006-2008: Security Sector and Democratic Oversight

Author:
Ahmet İnsel and Onur Bayramoğlu
Publication Date:
07-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Today it is vitally important that citizens examine the security sector with an aim towards democratization. In order to make such an examination more than just an useless exercise, it must be informed by objective data. Therefore, studies like the Almanac are an indispensable part of examining, debating and researching alternatives to the policies that public and private security actors impose on society, the instruments related to these policies and the solutions that these policies are aimed at. This second Almanac covers the three-year period from the beginning of 2006, when the first study was concluded, to the end of 2008. It also gives some information regarding the first half of 2009. In addition to examining the developments which occurred in the Introduction Ali Bayramo¤lu, Ahmet ‹nsel 2 Turkish security sector during this time, the Almanac also focuses on the discussions surrounding the position of security actors in political and social life. It attempts to summarize the historical background that triggered these developments and thus to elucidate both the continuities and the various divergences from historical patterns and trends in Turkish security sector policy. The most crucial debates in the history of the Republic regarding the political and social position of the security forces in Turkey took place between 2006 and 2008. The debates which followed the discovery of diaries belonging to retired admiral, Özden Örnek, gained new significance with the discovery in 2007 of weapons and ammunition that some retired and active-duty officers had hidden in their houses or buried. A clandestine network of relations between retired and active-duty military officers, police officers and civilians is at the center of the legal proceedings that have become known as the Ergenekon case, which remains on-going. The plans for a coup evidenced by other diaries and documents that came to light after the Özden Örnek diaries and during the Ergenekon investigation, as well as preparation for actions aimed at creating a general sense of insecurity in society, have demonstrated with amazing clarity just how important it is that security sector actors in Turkey be under the supervision of civilian political powers and, most importantly, the parliament.
Topic:
Security, Reform, Democracy, and Oversight
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East

5823. Feasibility Study for a Broader Middle East and North Africa Gender Institute

Author:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Publication Date:
10-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
This report explores the feasibility of creating an institute to work on issues related to gender empowerment in the Broader Middle East and North Africa (BMENA). The mandate of the implementers and authors of this study comes from the Democracy Assistance Dialogue (DAD). DAD was established at the G-8 Sea Island Summit in June of 2004, when G-8 leaders decided to form a joint platform with the leaders of the Broader Middle East and North Africa (BMENA). This joint platform, called the Forum for the Future, is an international effort to endorse voices of reform in the region. The Forum permits partners and other supportive countries and organizations to engage in political, economic and social reform on a regular basis. An outgrowth of the Forum, the Democracy Assistance Dialogue was designed to foster productive dialogue between civil society and governments of BMENA. Integrating the participation of non-governmental actors, political leaders, media representatives and civil society experts, DAD hopes to develop specific reform initiatives on issues related to political reform, democracy and human rights. On a broader level, the DAD’s ultimate aim is to enhance and initiate democracy programs in the region, thereby strengthening the functional capacity of democratic institutions.1
Topic:
Civil Society, Gender Issues, Women, Empowerment, and Feasibility
Political Geography:
Middle East and North Africa

5824. Chinese Mine Warfare: A PLA Navy 'Assassin's Mace' Capability

Author:
Andrew S. Erickson, William S. Murray, and Lyle J. Goldstein
Publication Date:
06-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
China Maritime Studies Institute, U.S. Naval War College
Abstract:
After a lengthy hiatus-lasting nearly six centuries—China is reemerging as a maritime power, this time with an emphasis on undersea warfare. Between 1996 and 2006, the Chinese navy took delivery of more than thirty submarines. These vessels include two new classes of nuclear submarines-the advanced Song-class diesel submarines and the Yuan class of diesel boats which, according to some reports, was a surprise for U.S. intelligence. Above and beyond this ambitious naval construction pro- gram, the People's Republic of China (PRC) received during 2005-06 an additional eight formidable Kilo-class submarines (and associated weaponry), which were purchased in 2002, to add to the four it already operated. A new nuclear submarine base on Hainan Island may well herald a new era of more extended Chinese submarine operations.
Topic:
Armed Forces, Navy, Submarines, and Mine Warfare
Political Geography:
China, Asia, and United States of America

5825. Scouting, Signaling, and Gatekeeping: Chinese Naval Operations in Japanese Waters and the International Law Implications

Author:
Peter A. Dutton
Publication Date:
02-2009
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
China Maritime Studies Institute, U.S. Naval War College
Abstract:
In October 2008, a month after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan stepped down and the more hawkish Taro Aso took office, a Chinese flotilla of four People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) ships transited from west to east through Japan's narrow Tsugaru Strait en route to the Pacific Ocean. The vessels were observed together in the Sea of Japan, headed east toward the strait, by a Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) P-3C patrol aircraft; they were about twenty-five nautical miles west-southwest of Tappizaki, the cape at the northern tip of the Tsugaru Peninsula, where the Sea of Japan enters the Tsugaru Strait between the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido. The flotilla consisted of a Sovremennyy-class missile destroyer-one of four China bought from Russia between 1996 and 2002 a supply ship, and two Jiangkai frigates, one of which was a newly commissioned Jiangkai II. Apparently the Sovremennyy and one of the frigates had recently paid a friendly visit to a naval base in the Russian Far East before joining the other two Chinese naval vessels in the Sea of Japan and proceeding on through the strait to the Pacific Ocean.
Topic:
International Law, Navy, Law of the Sea, and Maritime
Political Geography:
Japan, China, and Asia

5826. HIV/AIDS, Human Rights, and Legal Services in Uganda

Publication Date:
05-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
Widespread human rights abuses and lack of legal services is fueling Uganda's HIV epidemic, according to a report from the Open Society Initiative for East Africa (OSIEA) and OSI's Law and Health Initiative (LAHI). HIV/AIDS, Human Rights, and Legal Services in Uganda documents common abuses faced by people living with AIDS or at high risk of HIV, including: barriers to employment or education; discrimination in gaining access to medical care; violations of the right to medical privacy; forced HIV testing; and eviction from housing. According to the report, while the government of Uganda has addressed the medical effects of the HIV epidemic, it has paid little attention to the epidemic’s legal and human rights implications. This is especially true for marginalized populations who are most vulnerable to HIV-related human rights abuses: women (especially young women, widows, and women living in fishing communities); sex workers; orphans and vulnerable children; lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals; and internally displaced persons. The report recommends stronger enforcement of policies and legislation that offer clear protection against HIV-related stigma and discrimination. It calls for greater support to community-based groups that have sought to integrate legal support into HIV prevention and care programs. It also recommends strengthening legal mechanisms to help people living with HIV access justice. Local Council Courts appear to be the most utilized dispute resolution mechanism by communities, but these courts are not being used to address HIV-related infringement of rights.
Topic:
HIV/AIDS, Health, Human Rights, Health Care Policy, Discrimination, Legal Sector, and Epidemic
Political Geography:
Uganda and East Africa

5827. Education for Migrant, Minority and Marginalised Children in Europe

Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
In 2007, the Open Society Institute Education Support Program launched the Education for Migrants, Minorities and Marginalized children in Europe (EMMME) project to investigate the impact of education on social inclusion and issues of injustice in education for migrant children in Europe. EMMME research and mapping suggests considerable and growing disparities in access to quality education and increasing segregation in European schools. During the course of the EMMME project, two separate but interlinked documents were produced: Education for Migrant, Minority and Marginalized Children in Europe and Making the Mark? An Overview of Current Challenges in the Education for Migrant, Minority, and Marginalized Children in Europe. Education for Migrant, Minority and Marginalized Children in Europe collates up-to-date evidence on the educational realities that confront migrants, minorities, and marginalized groups in the European Union. The report identifies policy responses, legislative frameworks and local initiatives that seek to improve the educational position of children from migrant and minority groups. The reviewed literature emanates primarily from four countries in which groups with a migrant background make up a significant proportion of the national and school-going populations: France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom.
Topic:
Education, Health, Minorities, Children, Marginalization, and Migrant Workers
Political Geography:
United Kingdom

5828. Monitoring Report: Albania in the Stabilisation and Association Process

Publication Date:
10-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
For the second consecutive year, the Open Society Foundation for Albania and a group of independent experts took the initiative of monitoring Albania's progress in the Stabilization and Association Agreement during the period October 1, 2007, to October 15, 2008. This report focuses on priority issues of EU-Albania relations, such as democracy and the rule of law, fundamental human rights and freedoms, and home affairs, as well as the institutional framework of administrative capacities on management of the European integration process. The report provides recommendations to the government of Albania and central institutions in fulfilling European integration priorities. Monitoring and assessment was concentrated in tangible outcomes. This report succeeded an interim report (October 2007-March 2008) that was submitted to the European Commission in preparation of its Albania Progress Report 2008. The full report from the European Commission is also available in PDF format.
Topic:
Human Rights, European Union, Rule of Law, Regional Integration, Management, and Freedom
Political Geography:
Albania

5829. Unprecedented Projected Nuclear Growth in the Middle East: Now Is the Time to Create Effective Barriers to Proliferation

Author:
David Albright and Andrea Scheel
Publication Date:
11-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Institute for Science and International Security
Abstract:
Large civil plutonium stocks are set to accumulate for the first time in the wider Middle East over the next two decades. Countries in this conflict-prone region are planning the construction of at least 12 to 13 new nuclear power reactors (Table 1). Using a simple calculation to determine the expected plutonium discharge annually from these reactors, ISIS estimates that regional civil plutonium production could total more than 13,000 kilograms, or 13 tonnes by 2020, and nearly 45 tonnes by 2030 (Table 2). Given that just 8 kg of plutonium is enough to fabricate a nuclear weapon, this figure is significant. These quantities indicate that by 2020 the region may possess enough plutonium for almost 1,700 nuclear weapons. To be usable in a nuclear weapon, this plutonium must first be separated from the irradiated fuel in reprocessing plants. Middle Eastern countries may seek to purchase civil reprocessing plants from suppliers or build them using their domestic capabilities and equipment purchased from abroad. To reduce the risk of proliferation in the Middle East and help lay the basis for a regionwide nuclear weapon free zone (NWFZ), the United States must ensure that plutonium is not separated from irradiated reactor fuel, insist on adequate international inspections of these countries, including the adoption of the Additional Protocol, and develop mechanisms to remove spent fuel from the region. Absent such conditions, the incoming administration should discourage the development of nuclear power.
Topic:
Nuclear Weapons, Treaties and Agreements, and Nonproliferation
Political Geography:
Middle East and United States of America

5830. North Korea’s Plutonium Declaration: A Starting Point for an Initial Verification Process

Author:
David Albright, Paul Brannan, and Jacqueline Shire
Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Institute for Science and International Security
Abstract:
On December 27, Japan’s Tokyo Shimbun newspaper quoted U.S. and North Korean officials saying that North Korea had declared a plutonium stockpile of about 30 kilograms. The report was subsequently picked up by several wires, including AFP and UPI. Based on discussions with a knowledgeable official, this roughly 30 kilograms of plutonium apparently refers to a stock of plutonium that North Korea separated from irradiated fuel produced in the five megawatt-electric reactor at Yongbyon. The separation of the plutonium occurred at the Radiochemical Laboroatory at Yongbyon. If this quantity refers to separated plutonium (and not the total quantity of plutonium produced in the spent fuel of several reactor cores), it does fall inside the lower bound of the range of the amount of separated plutonium that ISIS has assessed North Korea could now possess.
Topic:
Diplomacy, Nuclear Weapons, Nonproliferation, and Plutonium
Political Geography:
Asia and North Korea

5831. The Secret and Unofficial Talks Between Israel & Syria Second Track Diplomacy

Author:
Alon Liel and Ibrahim Soliman
Publication Date:
08-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Global Political Trends Center (GPoT)
Abstract:
Global Political Trends Center of Istanbul Kültür University hosted two leading figures, Dr. Alon Liel and Dr. Ibrahim Soliman, who conducted the secret and unofficial negotiations held under the auspices of the Swiss government from 2004 to 2006. The eight rounds of dialogue, led by Dr. Liel and Dr. Soliman, concluded in an unofficial blueprint for an Israeli-Syrian peace agreement. In a round table discussion held on the premises of Istanbul Kültür University, Dr. Alon Liel and Dr. Ibrahim Soliman shared their assessments regarding the current Middle Eastern Politics and the possibility of peace between Israel and Syria. This Meeting Report was published with the aim to provide insight into the complexity of the regional dynamics of the Middle East as well as Second Track Diplomacy.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, and Peace
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, and Syria

5832. State-Sponsored Homophobia (2008)

Author:
Daniel Ottosson
Publication Date:
05-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
ILGA World (International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association)
Abstract:
Every year, ILGA World publishes its State-Sponsored Homophobia report, a world survey of sexual orientation laws. Since its first edition, back in 2006, ILGA World’s State-Sponsored Homophobia has been a fundamental resource for those interested in accessing the core information on legislation affecting people on the basis of their sexual orientation. Not only human rights defenders, but also civil society organisations, governmental and United Nations agencies, allies and media worldwide value the publication as one of the main sources of information on the issue. The publication is accompanied by a series of maps and charts illustrating where criminalisation, protection and recognition laws exist.
Topic:
Human Rights, Law, LGBT+, and Homophobia
Political Geography:
Global Focus

5833. A Culture of Protection? Perceptions of the Protection of Civilians from Sudan

Author:
Jon Harald Sande Lie and Benjamin de Carvalho
Publication Date:
12-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:
The Protection of Civilians (PoC) concept is a prevalent buzzword in the contemporary security-development nexus and comes as a response to new modes of warfare that have made civilians the main causality of war. Just about all actors from the military, development and humanitarian segments relate to the PoC concept in conflict-situations. Although there is a presumably mainstreaming and general infusion of the concept within the international community, there exists no coherent and comprehensive understanding of what the concept really means and what kind of practices it comprises and entails. The concept’s seminal thinkers and proponents fail to provide a clear and unambiguous definition of the concept. Rather it seeks to infuse a culture of protection among international actors operating in contexts which see grave human right violations and direct and indirect targeting of civilians. This report addresses the protection discourse as perceived by various actors in the field, and approaches the discourse in the nexus of PoC and culture of protection. The present paper demonstrates that whereas a narrow definition of PoC runs the risk of repelling actors from the protection-agenda, mainstreaming a culture of protection drawing on wider principles seems worthwhile in order to be comprehensive in terms of including as many actors as possible. A negative facet of such an approach, however, is that PoC becomes open to various actors’ interpretation. Although in line with the implementation of PoC on case-by-case basis, this might not be sufficient to engender an inclusive culture of protection as PoC always will be interpreted at the backdrop of organisations’ embedded mandate and institutional culture, leading to a general conceptual dilution. This paper explores the PoC concept and the culture of protection in the context of Sudan.
Topic:
Security, War, and Civilians
Political Geography:
Africa and Sudan

5834. Monitoreo Fiscal 9: Noviembre 2008

Author:
Julio Ramírez
Publication Date:
11-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Centro de Análisis y Difusión de la Economía Paraguaya (CADEP)
Abstract:
El Monitoreo Fiscal es preparado en el marco del proyecto Observatorio Fiscal y Presupuestario (OFIP), iniciativa del Centro de Análisis y Difusión de la Economía Paraguaya (CADEP), con el apoyo de la Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo (AECID). El proyecto tiene por objetivo facilitar la interpretación de los datos e informaciones de las finanzas públicas para alentar la participación ciudadana en el seguimiento de los gastos e ingresos fiscales, poniendo énfasis en la transparencia, eficiencia y equidad fiscal.
Topic:
Budget, Economy, Fiscal Policy, and Monitoring
Political Geography:
South America and Paraguay

5835. Monitoreo Fiscal 10: Diciembre 2008

Author:
Julio Ramírez
Publication Date:
12-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Centro de Análisis y Difusión de la Economía Paraguaya (CADEP)
Abstract:
El Monitoreo Fiscal es preparado en el marco del proyecto Observatorio Fiscal y Presupuestario (OFIP), iniciativa del Centro de Análisis y Difusión de la Economía Paraguaya (CADEP), con el apoyo de la Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo (AECID). El proyecto tiene por objetivo facilitar la interpretación de los datos e informaciones de las finanzas públicas para alentar la participación ciudadana en el seguimiento de los gastos e ingresos fiscales, poniendo énfasis en la transparencia, eficiencia y equidad fiscal.
Topic:
Budget, Economy, Fiscal Policy, Transparency, Public Spending, and Monitoring
Political Geography:
South America and Paraguay

5836. Bombers, Bank Accounts and Bleedout

Author:
Brian Fishman, Jacob N. Shapiro, Joseph Felter, Peter Bergen, and Vahid Brown
Publication Date:
07-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
This report is the second to assess the demographics, procedures, finances, and leadership of al-Qa`ida’s foreign fighters, especially those currently fighting in Iraq. It analyzes al-Qa`ida in Iraq’s (AQI) operations from spring 2006 to summer 2007 and includes almost 600 AQI personnel records for foreign fighters crossing into Iraq, AQI contracts for suicide bombers, AQI contracts for fighters leaving Iraq, narratives written by al-Qa`ida’s Syrian smugglers, and AQI financial records.
Topic:
Radicalization, Islamic State, Recruitment, and Foreign Fighters
Political Geography:
Iraq, Middle East, and Syria

5837. Iranian Strategy in Iraq

Author:
Brian Fishman and Joseph Felter
Publication Date:
10-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
Iranian Strategy in Iraq: Politics and “Other Means” assesses Iran’s strategy to project influence in Iraq and the means it uses to do so. This report addresses Iran’s dual-strategy of providing military aid to Iraqi militia groups while simultaneously giving political support to Iraqi political parties. Although the report details the scope and nature of Iranian support to Iraqi militias, it concludes that Iran’s political efforts are the core of its effort to project influence in Iraq. This report provides an overview of Iran’s multi-faceted efforts to pursue its national interests by influencing the political and security dynamics in Iraq from the Iranian Revolution to the present day. Although the report describes Iran’s direct and indirect lethal aid to surrogates in Iraq since the U.S. led invasion, it ultimately concludes that U.S. policy focuses on Iranian lethal aid to Iraqi militias at the expense of countering Iran’s primary mode of power projection in Iraq: support of Iranian-affiliated Iraqi political parties. The report also concludes that Iran has recently worked to reduce the level of violence in Iraq while concentrating on a political campaign to shape the SFA and SOFA agreements to its strategic ends.
Topic:
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC), Quds Force, and Jaysh al-Mahdi
Political Geography:
Iraq, Iran, and Middle East

5838. Turkey – Armenia Relations: A Vicious Circle

Author:
Aybars Görgülü
Publication Date:
05-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Turkey – Armenian Relations: A Vicious Cycle’ is published as a part of TESEV’s Foreign Policy Analysis Series. In this report, Aybars Görgülü surveys the past 17 years of Turkish – Armenian relations, identifies key issues, narrates diplomatic and civic efforts that address them, and in doing so he emphasizes the necessities to normalize Turkey – Armenian relations.
Topic:
International Relations, Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, and Bilateral Relations
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, Eastern Europe, and Armenia

5839. Promise to Keep: Time to end the international isolation of the Turkish Cypriots

Author:
Marsel Brus, Mensur Akgün, Steven Blockmans, Sylvia Tiryaki, Theo Van Den Hoogen, and Wybe Douma
Publication Date:
06-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
The objective of writing this report has been twofold, namely, to assess the legal validity of the continuing international isolation of the Turkish Cypriot community, and to demonstrate that lifting the isolation currently imposed on Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) will not necessarily amount to – or require – its recognition as a nation-state. This report asserts that the isolationist policies directed towards the Turkish Cypriots living in the Northern part of the island do not have any legal basis and therefore should be revoked immediately. The point of departure for the study is to call on the fact that the EU membership of the RoC created a unique status for the Turkish Cypriot community, under both international and EU law.
Topic:
European Union, International Community, Nation-State, and Isolationism
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, Cyprus, and Mediterranean

5840. A Roadmap for a Solution to the Kurdish Question: Policy Proposals from the Region for the Government

Author:
Dilek Kurban and Yılmaz Ensaroğlu
Publication Date:
12-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
The Kurdish Question is not a mere ‘terrorism problem,’ but rather an issue with ethnic, cultural, legal, political, social, economic, and psychological dimensions. It was there before the PKK existed; even if the PKK were to be completely eliminated, the problems and demands of the Kurds would persist. The era of armed conflict has inflicted heavy material and emotional losses on the region and Kurds in particular, and on the entire society in general. The state’s failure to pursue policies during non-violent periods in favor of restoring permanent peace has caused it to miss very important opportunities to find a solution, and has created among Kurds a feeling of distrust towards the state. The Kurdish Question, which has so far been a political issue between Kurds and the state, increasingly risks rapid transformation into a clash between the Turks and the Kurds.
Topic:
Politics, Terrorism, Territorial Disputes, Minorities, Conflict, Kurds, and Peace
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East

5841. A Comprehensive Survey of China's Dynamic Shipbuilding Industry

Author:
Gabriel Collins and Michael Grubb
Publication Date:
08-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
China Maritime Studies Institute, U.S. Naval War College
Abstract:
China's dynamic shipbuilding sector now has the attention of key decision makers in Washington. During testimony before the Armed Services Committee of the House of Representatives on 13 December 2007, Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Admiral Gary Roughead observed, "The fact that our shipbuilding capacity and industry is not as competitive as other builders around the world is cause for concern." Pointing directly to Beijing's new prowess in this area, he concluded, "[China is] very competitive on the world market. There is no question that their shipbuilding capability is increasing rapidly." The present study aims to present a truly comprehensive survey of this key sector of the growing Chinese economy. In doing so, it will provide decision makers and analysts with the clearest possible picture of the extraordinary pace of activity now under way in China's ports, as well as the commercial and strategic implications flowing from this development.
Topic:
Economics, Navy, and Shipbuilding
Political Geography:
China and Asia

5842. Review of Existing Mechanisms for the Prevention and Investigation of Torture and Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment or Punishment in South Africa

Author:
Olivia Streater
Publication Date:
12-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation (CSVR)
Abstract:
This report is designed to assist civil society and South African institutions in deciding what body or institutions could appropriately fulfil the task of visiting all places of detention regularly to make recommendations and proposals to prevent torture. It is intended as a starting point for consultation. The report further suggests that South Africa should start with considering the strengths and weaknesses of its own domestic models of oversight. Which institutions currently function well and why? This may be determined not just by an institution's legal powers, organizational mandate and resources (although these are important factors) but also by the extra ingredients of political will and skilled leadership.
Topic:
Civil Society, Torture, Institutions, and Detention
Political Geography:
Africa and South Africa

5843. North Korea’s Plutonium Production Declaration: A Starting Point for an Initial Verification Process

Author:
David Albright, Paul Brannan, and Jacqueline Shire
Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Institute for Security and International Studies (ISIS)
Abstract:
On December 27, Japan’s Tokyo Shimbun newspaper quoted U.S. and North Korean officials saying that North Korea had declared a plutonium stockpile of about 30 kilograms. The report was subsequently picked up by several wires, including AFP and UPI. Based on discussions with a knowledgeable official, this roughly 30 kilograms of plutonium apparently refers to a stock of plutonium that North Korea separated from irradiated fuel produced in the five megawatt-electric reactor at Yongbyon. The separation of the plutonium occurred at the Radiochemical Laboroatory at Yongbyon. If this quantity refers to separated plutonium (and not the total quantity of plutonium produced in the spent fuel of several reactor cores), it does fall inside the lower bound of the range of the amount of separated plutonium that ISIS has assessed North Korea could now possess.
Topic:
Security, Nuclear Weapons, Plutonium, and Nuclear Energy
Political Geography:
Asia and North Korea

5844. Unprecedented Projected Nuclear Growth in the Middle East: Now Is the Time to Create Effective Barriers to Proliferation

Author:
David Albright and Andrea Scheel
Publication Date:
11-2008
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Institute for Security and International Studies (ISIS)
Abstract:
Large civil plutonium stocks are set to accumulate for the first time in the wider Middle East over the next two decades. Countries in this conflict-prone region are planning the construction of at least 12 to 13 new nuclear power reactors (Table 1). Using a simple calculation to determine the expected plutonium discharge annually from these reactors, ISIS estimates that regional civil plutonium production could total more than 13,000 kilograms, or 13 tonnes by 2020, and nearly 45 tonnes by 2030 (Table 2). Given that just 8 kg of plutonium is enough to fabricate a nuclear weapon, this figure is significant. These quantities indicate that by 2020 the region may possess enough plutonium for almost 1,700 nuclear weapons. To be usable in a nuclear weapon, this plutonium must first be separated from the irradiated fuel in reprocessing plants. Middle Eastern countries may seek to purchase civil reprocessing plants from suppliers or build them using their domestic capabilities and equipment purchased from abroad. To reduce the risk of proliferation in the Middle East and help lay the basis for a regionwide nuclear weapon free zone (NWFZ), the United States must ensure that plutonium is not separated from irradiated reactor fuel, insist on adequate international inspections of these countries, including the adoption of the Additional Protocol, and develop mechanisms to remove spent fuel from the region.2 Absent such conditions, the incoming administration should discourage the development of nuclear power.
Topic:
Security, Arms Control and Proliferation, Nuclear Weapons, and Nuclear Energy
Political Geography:
Middle East

5845. LGBT Health and Rights in East Africa: A Snapshot of Successes and Challenges for the Advocacy Community

Publication Date:
09-2007
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
The Public Health Program’s Sexual Health and Rights Project (SHARP), in partnership with OSI foundations and initiatives in Africa, is exploring ways to expand support to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) health and rights efforts in Eastern and Southern Africa. SHARP gathered information about community needs, funding opportunities, and challenges by developing contacts with local advocates and groups and other donors, and by reviewing existing data and reports. While there is a tremendous amount of information available, it appears that those supporting the work sometimes have limited awareness of the full range of efforts being undertaken. In order for donors to work more effectively, it is important for this information gap to be bridged. The information in this report is organized into five topics: Challenges to the LBGT movement; LGBT groups operating in East Africa; reports and convenings focusing on LGBT issues in Africa; potential opportunities for future advocacy on LGBT issues; and recommended next steps for funders. We hope this analysis will help donors develop strategies and collaborations for supporting LGBT health and rights in the region.
Topic:
Human Rights, LGBT+, Advocacy, Community, and Transgender
Political Geography:
Africa

5846. Closed to Reason: The International Narcotics Board and HIV/AIDS

Publication Date:
02-2007
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
In this report on the International Narcotics Control Board—a secretive UN-funded body responsible for monitoring compliance with the UN drug conventions—Daniel Wolfe, OSI International Harm Reduction Development Deputy Director, and Joanne Csete, Executive Director of the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network, detail the ways in which the Board rejects scientific evidence and expert legal analyses, praises governments that violate human rights, and stresses drug control at the expense of public health, blocking evidence-based efforts to address the epidemic of HIV among injecting drug users. Closed to Reason offers recommendations to increase the Board's accountability and transparency and to make it an effective part of the international response to HIV/AIDS.
Topic:
HIV/AIDS, Health, United Nations, Narcotics Trafficking, and Legal Sector
Political Geography:
Global Focus

5847. Enhancing the Implementation of United Nations Security Council Sanctions

Author:
Fourth Freedom Forum
Publication Date:
04-2007
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Fourth Freedom Forum
Abstract:
Sanctions are a powerful expression of the collective voice and the collective will of the international community. As such, their symbolic impact is undeniable. Their practical impact has been demonstrated in several cases where sanctions have helped to prod conflicting parties towards compromise.
Topic:
United Nations, Sanctions, Conflict, International Community, and UN Security Council
Political Geography:
Global Focus

5848. State-Sponsored Homophobia (2007)

Author:
Daniel Ottosson
Publication Date:
09-2007
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
ILGA World (International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association)
Abstract:
Every year, ILGA World publishes its State-Sponsored Homophobia report, a world survey of sexual orientation laws. Since its first edition, back in 2006, ILGA World’s State-Sponsored Homophobia has been a fundamental resource for those interested in accessing the core information on legislation affecting people on the basis of their sexual orientation. Not only human rights defenders, but also civil society organisations, governmental and United Nations agencies, allies and media worldwide value the publication as one of the main sources of information on the issue. The publication is accompanied by a series of maps and charts illustrating where criminalisation, protection and recognition laws exist.
Topic:
Human Rights, Law, LGBT+, and Homophobia
Political Geography:
Global Focus

5849. 2007-2008 Guide to Women Leaders in International Affairs

Author:
Women's Foreign Policy Group (WFPG)
Publication Date:
12-2007
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Women's Foreign Policy Group (WFPG)
Abstract:
WFPG's Guide to Women Leaders in International Affairs highlights women shaping foreign policy around the world and the role that they play as leaders, diplomats, and policymakers. The Guide provides an index of prominent women from across the international community, including heads of state and government, government ministers and diplomats, and leaders of international organizations and corporations.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Government, United Nations, Women, Leadership, and NGOs
Political Geography:
Global Focus

5850. Al-Qa’ida’s (Mis)Adventures in the Horn of Africa

Author:
Clint Watts, Jacob N. Shapiro, and Vahid Brown
Publication Date:
07-2007
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
During the early 1990s, al-Qa’ida was beginning to coalesce as an organization, honing its operational techniques and dealing with its first internal conflicts. Its private deliberations during this period are revealed by a trove of documents captured in the course of operations supporting the Global War on Terror and maintained in the Department of Defense’s Harmony Database. Al-Qa’ida’s (Mis)Adventures in the Horn of Africa draws on recently declassified Harmony documents, predominately from the 1992-1994 time period, original field work by CTC personnel, and careful country studies. The Horn provides the backdrop for an intriguing tale of al-Qa’ida’s first efforts to expand beyond Afghanistan and Sudan. As recounted by its leaders and operatives, al- Qa’ida’s efforts to establish a presence in this region and use it as a base for attacks against Western targets elsewhere were largely a failure. Conventional wisdom suggests that Somalia, a failed state, would be an ideal safe haven for al-Qa’ida. Our analysis, however, indicates that weakly governed regions such as coastal Kenya, not failed states like Somalia, provide an environment more conducive to al-Qa’ida’s activities. In Somalia, al-Qa’ida’s members fell victim to many of the same challenges that plague Western interventions in the Horn. They were prone to extortion and betrayal, found themselves trapped in the middle of incomprehensible (to them) clan conflicts, faced suspicion from the indigenous population, had to overcome significant logistical constraints and were subject to the constant risk of Western military interdiction. This report assesses al-Qa’ida’s operations in the Horn of Africa by identifying the organizational challenges al-Qa’ida faced in managing the jihad in the Horn. We also examine the individual motivations of the Somali clans and people that largely resisted al-Qa’ida’s recruitment efforts in the region. After reviewing al-Qa`ida’s Horn operations from a theoretical standpoint, we analyze al-Qa`ida’s prospects in two key Horn countries: Somalia and Kenya. The nations composing the Horn of Africa are often aggregated into one overall counterterrorism strategy. However, each Horn country and even sub-regions within these countries present a unique set of socioeconomic, political and religious factors that create specific challenges and opportunities to both al-Qa’ida and to counterterrorism forces. We conclude this study by identifying concepts and techniques that may be applicable in other regions based upon al-Qa’ida’s experiences in the Horn. Our primary conclusion is that the U.S. and its coalition partners should prioritize counterterrorism efforts on weak states–not failed ones. Both types of states demand attention but require different policy solutions. Effective and sustainable counterterrorism in failed states requires engaging with sub-state authorities to give them the means and the motivation to resist foreign intrusion. In weak states, successful counterterrorism policies must address core institutional and governance problems that render such states unable or unwilling to fully deal with the threat. Perversely, U.S. support to state and local counterterrorism efforts can create incentives to tolerate low levels of terrorism, a problem best addressed by conditioning aid on counterterrorism effort rather than on the presence of a threat.
Topic:
Terrorism, Al Qaeda, Leadership, and Strategic Planning
Political Geography:
Kenya, Africa, and Somalia

5851. Al-Qa’ida’s Foreign Fighters in Iraq: A First Look at the Sinjar Records

Author:
Brian Fishman and Joseph Felter
Publication Date:
01-2007
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
On December 4, 2007 Abu Umar al-Baghdadi, the reputed Emir of al-Qa’ida’s Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), claimed that his organization was almost purely Iraqi, containing only 200 foreign fighters. Twelve days later, on December 16, 2007, Ayman al-Zawahiri urged Sunnis in Iraq to unite behind the ISI. Both statements are part of al-Qa’ida’s ongoing struggle to appeal to Iraqis, many of whom resent the ISI’s foreign leadership and its desire to impose strict Islamic law. In November 2007, the Combating Terrorism Center at West Point received nearly 700 records of foreign nationals that entered Iraq between August 2006 and August 2007. The data compiled and analyzed in this report is drawn from these personnel records, which was collected by al-Qa’ida’s Iraqi affiliates, first the Mujahidin Shura Council (MSC) and then the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI). The records contain varying levels of information on each fighter, but often include the fighter’s country of origin, hometown, age, occupation, the name of the fighter’s recruiter, and even the route the fighter took to Iraq. The records were captured by coalition forces in October 2007 in a raid near Sinjar, along Iraq’s Syrian border. The data reveals several critical findings: Saudis made up the largest contingent of foreign fighters entering Iraq. Libyans were second and Syrians third. Recent political developments in Afghanistan and Pakistan, the prevalence of Libyan fighters in Iraq, and evidence of a well-established smuggling route for Libyans through Egypt, suggests that Libyan factions are increasingly important in al-Qa’ida. The Sinjar Records reinforce anecdotal accounts suggesting that al-Qa’ida’s Iraqi affiliates rely on smugglers and criminals—rather than their own personnel—to funnel recruits into Iraq. Many of the foreign fighters entering Iraq arrived with a group from their hometown, suggesting that al-Qa’ida’s recruiters try to attract groups of friends simultaneously. The majority of fighters that listed their occupation before traveling to Iraq were students. Universities have become a critical recruiting field for al-Qa’ida. The Sinjar Records reveal several weaknesses that the United States and other governments can exploit: Al-Qa’ida’s reliance on criminal and smuggling networks exposes it to the greed of mercenaries. The Libyan Islamic Fighting Group’s unification with al-Qa’ida and its apparent decision to prioritize providing logistical support to the Islamic State of Iraq is likely controversial within the organization. The Islamic State of Iraq has failed politically because it has been unable to balance the practical demands of its local Iraqi constituency and the religious demands of its foreign supporters. The Syrian and Libyan governments share the United States’ concerns about violent salafi-jihadi ideology and the violence perpetrated by its adherents. The authors assert that the United States may be able to increase cooperation from governments to stem the flow of fighters into Iraq by addressing their concerns about domestic jihadi violence.
Topic:
Radicalization, Al Qaeda, Islamic State, Recruitment, and Foreign Fighters
Political Geography:
Iraq, Libya, Yemen, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, and Tunisia

5852. Cracks in the Foundation: Leadership Schisms in Al-Qa`ida From 1989-2006

Author:
Vahid Brown
Publication Date:
01-2007
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
Though it has long been known that al-Qa’ida has suffered from disunity at the leadership level, analysis of documents declassified from the Harmony Database allow us to gain a fresh insight into the engine driving those conflicts and illuminate the vulnerabilities that these conflicts have created for the organization. Al-Qa’ida has consistently put its ability to inspire a broader movement over the development of its organizational capacities to pursue strategic military goals. Al-Qa’ida’s preference for branding, the military incompetence of its autocratic leaders, and the unanticipated ferocity of the United States’ response to the attacks of 9/11, have together left the brand managers the only ones standing. This is not to say that al-Qa’ida has not been able to threaten American interests; it has. But its real strength has never been as a fighting force, but rather its ability to transform what have traditionally been the local or national concerns of Islamist activism into a vision of apocalyptic inter-civilizational conflict. This report, grounded in the data from the Harmony documents, charts the history of this transformation and of the internal divisions that surrounded it. The Harmony documents shed light on cohesion problems that have been bedeviling Salafi Jihadi organizations going back more than thirty years. While the branding-versus-bureaucracy crux outlined above has consistently been the driving force, at different points in the development of al-Qa’ida the scope and consequences of this leadership struggle have changed. During the first phase, from the founding of the organization at the close of the anti-Soviet jihad in Afghanistan to the return of the leadership to South Asia after its misadventures in Africa, al-Qa’ida had failed in both areas, creating neither an effective guerrilla organization nor a consistent jihadi message. In the second phase, from al-Qa’ida’s re-establishment in Afghanistan to its dispersal from that refuge by American-led attacks, al-Qa’ida was able to exploit the relative security provided by its uneasy alliance with the Taliban to develop and begin to “market” its anti-American message. Though it was during this period that it was able to carry out the large-scale acts of terror for which it is famous – the 1998 bombings of two American Embassies in Africa and the attacks of September 11, 2001 – internal divisions over the decision to target the United States severely degraded al-Qa’ida’s organizational capacity. During the third and current phase, which began with the United States’ response to 9/11, al-Qa’ida as a centrally-controlled bureaucracy all but disappeared, with most of its key military and strategic leaders dispersed, captured or killed. In this period al- Qa’ida Central has been largely reduced to a media organization, while the Iraq war has created a market for its message, a field in which jihadis with little or no connection to the remnants of al-Qa’ida’s central bureaucracy can take up (and thus alter) the al-Qa’ida banner.
Topic:
Terrorism, Al Qaeda, Leadership, and Ideology
Political Geography:
Afghanistan, Iraq, Sudan, and Somalia

5853. Religion, Society and Politics in Changing Turkey

Author:
Ali Carkoglu and Binnaz Toprak
Publication Date:
08-2007
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
During the period from 1999 to 2004, Turkey’s path toward European Union accession promoted important advances in the consolidation of democracy and respect for human rights. Turkey’s long-standing democratization problems -- such as the treatment of minorities, the lack of democratic oversight of the security sector, and the failure to resolve the Kurdish question, the Armenian question and the headscarf issue -- have come to surface and been widely discussed. Yet pro-status quo groups, including political parties, some “civil society” organizations, and governmental institutions have harshly reacted to the public discussion of these issues. Since 2004, the momentum of the democratization process has slowed down, and 2007 brought to the Turkish agenda a critical debate over presidential elections. According to the prostatus quo, elitist groups the chair of the presidency is representation of the modern Turkish republic, and the government party’s candidate will not have the capability of representing the Turkish Republic with a first lady with headscarf. Since May 2007, the discussions over the presidential relations and the candidacy of a deputy from the Justice and Development Party (AKP) have dominated the political agenda in Turkey. While the tension is represented as between religious people and secularism, in fact, this tension is more accurately one between the possibility of departing from the status quo, through democratization efforts, and thus confronting the deep-rooted democratization problems of Turkey. While all the discussions seem to be on the axis of religiosity and secularism, during the general election process, most of the opposition parties claimed that Turkey was under threat from internal and external enemies – whether Shari’a, Kurds, Armenians trying to divide and weaken it, or foreign powers like the EU and USA seeking Turkey’s economic subordination – and that the AKP was to blame. The opposition parties also blamed the AKP for the presidential election crisis, due to the fact that the AKP had not sought a consensus candidate. At this moment, the results of the elections show that approximately one-half of the country supports the AKP government and the majority of the people are opposed to any military intervention in the country’s democratic life. Although the prospective presidency of Mr. Gül should be evaluated through the lens of citizenship and even though Mr. Gül meets the requirements for being President, his candidacy has still been discussed in terms of the capacity of a man whose wife wears a headscarf -- which is seen as a symbol of the so-called “threat to the secular regime” -- to represent Turkey. Because the aforementioned agenda is very related to the problematic nature of Religion-State-Society Relations in Turkey, TESEV’s Democratization Program has been working on the issue since 1999. The project on Religion-StateSociety relations, through research, publication, outreach, and advocacy, aims to contribute to the understanding of the changing dynamics between religion, state, and society in today’s world and specifically in the Turkish context. In addition, the project aspires to create dialogue and to increase mutual understanding between groups in Turkish society who have increasingly become polarized around the issues of secularism and religiosity. Religion, Society and Politics in a Changing Turkey, by Ali Çarkoğlu and Binnaz Toprak, is an output of a survey of 1492 votingage individuals that was carried out in rural and urban areas between May 6th and June 11th 2006. The survey report observes and compares the changing nature of Turkish people’s attitudes towards issues such as religion, democracy, terrorism and minorities. The Turkish-language edition of the study was received with high interest by the public and the media in November 2006. The study provoked an engaging debate as it was published during the controversy around the fact that presidential candidate Abdullah Gül’s wife wears a headscarf. TESEV hopes that the English version of the report will contribute to the debates over Turkey’s practice of Islam, people’s preferences to identify themselves, understanding of democracy and multi-culturalism in Turkey, and the political and sociological stance towards the headscarf controversy.
Topic:
Politics, Religion, State, and Society
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East

5854. Coming to Terms with Forced Migration: Post-Displacement Restitution of Citizenship Rights in Turkey

Author:
A. Tamer Aker, Ayşe Betül Çelik, Deniz Yükseker, Dilek Kurban, and Turgay Inalan
Publication Date:
08-2007
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
The large number of civil wars in the world in which ethnic groups are involved has given rise to a growing body of literature about how to rebuild nations so that they do not lapse back into violence. Among these is the well-researched new book by the Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (“TESEV”), Coming to Terms with Forced Migration: Post-Displacement Restitution of Citizenship Rights in Turkey. Its five co-authors, Dilek Kurban (TESEV), Deniz Yükseker (Koç University), Ayşe Betül Çelik (Sabancı University), Turgay Ünalan (Hacettepe University) and A. Tamer Aker (Kocaeli University) dig deeply into the causes of conflict and displacement in Turkey, seeking to go beyond official versions and to unearth what really occurred in their country and how best to move forward to resolve the political, economic and social divisions. Each of the authors brings a different discipline to the book, together examining displacement from a broad perspective, encompassing the sociological, political, psychological, demographic and legal. Reinforcing their two years of academic research is rigorous field work in the provinces of Diyarbakır, Batman, Istanbul and Hakkâri where they interview municipal leaders, civil society and the people who were forcibly displaced. Among their major findings is one especially important for the government and the international community to register: that internal displacement in Turkey is not just a security problem confined to a limited number of hamlets in the southeast but a widespread and large-scale phenomenon with impact on “the whole nation.” After all, some one million men, women and children were forcibly uprooted from rural areas in the east and southeast of the country as a result of the armed struggle from 1984 to 1999 between the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (Partiya Karkerên Kurdistan - “PKK”) and the Turkish military. Large numbers fled to urban areas all over the country where they have long experienced poverty, poor housing, joblessness, loss of land and property, limited access to physical and mental health care services, and limited educational opportunities for their children. Acknowledging the plight of the displaced in both rural and urban areas and developing effective policies and programs to help them reintegrate is therefore critical not only for the lives of the displaced but also for the coherence and stability of the country as a whole.
Topic:
Human Rights, Migration, Minorities, Democracy, Citizenship, and Displacement
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean

5855. What Are Nuclear Weapons For? Recommendations For Restructuring U.S. Strategic Nuclear Forces

Author:
Sidney D. Drell and James E. Goodby
Publication Date:
10-2007
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arms Control Association
Abstract:
The U.S. and Russia have agreed to cooperatively reduce their large nuclear stockpiles. The report recommends that the U.S. reduce its arsenal to 500 operational deployed warheads, with 500 warheads in a responsive force, by 2012. These reductions would be made in concert with Russian warhead reductions. The authors specifically outline where and how the remaining warheads should be deployed.
Topic:
Arms Control and Proliferation, Nuclear Weapons, and Armed Forces
Political Geography:
Russia and United States of America

5856. Opportunities and Pitfalls: Preparing for Burma's Economic Transition

Publication Date:
11-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
The Burma Project/Southeast Initiative has published Opportunities and Pitfalls: Preparing for Burma's Economic Transition, a report by Yuki Akimoto. This report emerged from the 2004 conference "Managing Economic Transitions: The Role of Global Institutions and Lessons for Burma/Myanmar," which was inspired by a prior conference regarding the role of international assistance in the economic reconstruction of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The 2004 conference featured Nobel economics prize winner Joseph Stiglitz, who provided insights about the role that international financial institutions (IFIs) play in national development, and other speakers who discussed the experiences of economic transition in countries including Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and East Timor. Opportunities and Pitfalls covers key topics addressed at the conference regarding Burma's prospective economic transition and the role of IFIs. The report contains case studies of other countries that have dealt with IFIs and their prescriptions for development, highlighting issues and circumstances that Burma shares with those countries. Forward-looking and accessible, this report promises to stir practical debate about how Burma should manage the challenges of working with IFIs when these institutions become fully engaged there. Stiglitz describes Opportunities and Pitfalls as "a vital addition to the important discussion taking place today about Burma's future." The report is designed to be a useful guide for civil society activists, policymakers, academics, and journalists, including members of the Burmese diaspora democracy movement. Yuki Akimoto is an attorney who works on human rights and environmental issues concerning development aid to Burma, with a particular focus on IFIs. She has written articles for BurmaDebate, The Irrawaddy, and other publications. While the 2004 conference was co-hosted by the Open Society Institute, Bank Information Center, Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, and Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, OSI funded the production of the report.
Topic:
Economics, International Political Economy, and Economic Development
Political Geography:
Burma

5857. Sexual Health and Rights: Sex Workers, Transgender People & Men Who Have Sex with Men—Thailand

Publication Date:
09-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
Sponsored by OSI's Sexual Health and Rights Project, Sexual Health and Rights: Sex Workers, Transgender People & Men Who Have Sex with Men-Thailand aims to provide an understanding of the health and rights of sex workers, men who have sex with men, and transgender people in Thailand, with a specific focus on HIV concerns. Conducted between January and March 2006 in Thailand, the study gathered information through document review and interviews. This material was collated and analyzed in workshops and interviews with men who have sex with men, transgender people (specifically male-to-female), and sex workers. Their experiences, priorities, and recommendations were collected and written up to form the basis of the document.
Topic:
LGBT+, Sexuality, Public Health, Sex Education, and Transgender
Political Geography:
Thailand

5858. On the Road to the EU: Monitoring Equal Opportunities for Women and Men in Serbia

Publication Date:
12-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
Currently Serbia is a diverse community with no social consensus on the majority of war crimes-related issues, as well as racism, homophobia, and gender equality. The conflict in values, ideologies, and goals is intense and persistent. At the same time, poverty, social exclusion, and violence are predominant characteristics, a way of life for marginalized groups, including women. One of the rare issues where consensus has emerged is a strong sense of affiliation and orientation towards the European Union (EU). To date, the EU has played an important if not crucial role in political and public rhetoric, although there remains an ostensible rift between the values it espouses and those that currently obtain in Serbia. Serbia’s parliament has enacted some important legislation vis-à-vis the state’s responsibility to protect political, social, and other human rights. Some gender-equality mechanisms have been introduced, but randomly funded. New institutions generally lack the requisite authority to stop and prevent discriminatory practices by those who violate other's rights or abuse their own power. This report is one of a seven-part series, "On the Road to the EU," prepared as part of the OSI Network Women’s Program's “Bringing the EU Home” Project. This three-year project aims to promote awareness, advocacy, and enforcement of equal opportunity legislation at the national level and to build the capacity of national actors in civil society to use EU-level gender equality mechanisms effectively. The project further aims to help increase the importance of equal opportunities on the European agenda. An assessment of the status of equal opportunities between women and men, de jure and de facto, was carried out in seven South Eastern European entities: Albania, Bosnia, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia. The reports were prepared in cooperation with the International Gender Policy Network.
Topic:
Gender Issues, European Union, Women, Sexuality, Men, and Equality
Political Geography:
Serbia

5859. On the Road to the EU: Monitoring Equal Opportunities for Women and Men in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Publication Date:
12-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
Bosnia and Herzegovina is currently undergoing integration into the international legal order, in compliance with international and European requirements to establish a general nondiscriminatory framework and adopt gender-specific legislation and measures. This is a positive step toward possible implementation of equal opportunities for women and men, but its impact is extremely limited in everyday practices. Although the government has made significant efforts with regard to "gender mainstreaming," there is a wide gap between de jure and de facto treatment. Although most of the relevant laws have incorporated the principle of equal opportunities for women and men, in practice women usually cannot realize those opportunities in either the private or public sectors. A truly gender-sensitive policy and practice has almost completely failed to materialize in the fields of economy, employment, education, social security, health care, and women's participation in decision-making bodies in public and political life. This report is one of a seven-part series, "On the Road to the EU," prepared as part of the OSI Network Women’s Program's "Bringing the EU Home" Project. This three-year project aims to promote awareness, advocacy, and enforcement of equal opportunity legislation at the national level and to build the capacity of national actors in civil society to use EU-level gender equality mechanisms effectively. The project further aims to help increase the importance of equal opportunities on the European agenda. An assessment of the status of equal opportunities between women and men, de jure and de facto, was carried out in seven South Eastern European entities: Albania, Bosnia, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia. The reports were prepared in cooperation with the International Gender Policy Network.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Women, Legislation, Sexuality, Men, and Equality
Political Geography:
Bosnia and Herzegovina

5860. On the Road to the EU: Monitoring Equal Opportunities for Women and Men in Albania

Publication Date:
12-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
Albania is preparing for eventual EU membership and is in the midst of bringing its legal framework in compliance with the requirements of EU directives and guidelines. In regard to gender equality, Albanian legislation has generally met priorities established in the Stabilization and Association Process (SAP) with the European Union. However, as the following report details, implementation of these laws faces major hurdles. In recent years, significant progress has been made in developing national legislation to promote the protection of women’s rights as basic human rights, and foster equality between women and men in the economy and in public life. The Albanian government has endorsed this equality by enacting the appropriate legislation, giving women equal rights and obligations with men. However, the absence of political mechanisms to effectively enforce the new laws has actually increased gender inequality, which directly impairs the process of economic development, democratization, and political stability. Without effective enforcement, gender stereotypes and traditional mentalities preserve the structural inequalities between women and men and unequal power relations between them. This report is one of a seven-part series, "On the Road to the EU," prepared as part of the OSI Network Women’s Program's “Bringing the EU Home” Project. This three-year project aims to promote awareness, advocacy, and enforcement of equal opportunity legislation at the national level and to build the capacity of national actors in civil society to use EU-level gender equality mechanisms effectively. The project further aims to help increase the importance of equal opportunities on the European agenda. An assessment of the status of equal opportunities between women and men, de jure and de facto, was carried out in seven South Eastern European entities: Albania, Bosnia, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia. The reports were prepared in cooperation with the International Gender Policy Network.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Women, Legislation, Sexuality, Men, and Equality
Political Geography:
Albania

5861. On the Road to the EU: Monitoring Equal Opportunities for Women and Men in South Eastern Europe

Publication Date:
12-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
Women in South Eastern Europe have yet to attain full gender equality and are at severe disadvantage compared to their counterparts in the EU, according to On the Road to the EU: Monitoring Equal Opportunities for Women and Men in South Eastern Europe, a report sponsored by the Open Society Network Women's Program. Published as some of the countries in South Eastern Europe are set to join the EU or begin accession negotiations, the report provides a much-needed assessment of how the region is complying with EU standards on gender equality. Although many countries in South Eastern Europe have made progress over the past three years in bringing national laws on gender equality into line with the EU, much remains to be done. Among other findings, the report shows that more than half the women in the region are without jobs, with the highest rate of unemployment—70 percent—in Kosovo. In Croatia, which is expected to join the EU in 2010, the number of employed women has fallen by about 6.5 percent since 2000. The statistics on gender pay gaps are equally troubling. On average, women in South Eastern Europe make 25 percent less than men, with the difference rising to 80 percent in Kosovo. Other affronts to women’s rights in the workplace persist. In Macedonia, for example, the law does not prevent employers from discriminating against pregnant women and mothers. And throughout much of South Eastern Europe, women who return from maternity leave have no guarantee in resuming their previous position. Gender and age discrimination in advertisements remains widespread in Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Montenegro. In Albania, for example, most advertisements for private-sector secretarial, assistant, or sales positions list a preference for women under 25, while those for managerial positions ask for men to apply. A seven-part series, On the Road to the EU was prepared as part of the Open Society Network Women’s Program's “Bringing the EU Home” Project. This three-year project aims to promote awareness, advocacy, and enforcement of equal opportunity legislation at the national level and to build the capacity of national actors in civil society to use EU-level gender equality mechanisms effectively. The project further aims to help increase the importance of equal opportunities on the European agenda. An assessment of the status of equal opportunities between women and men, de jure and de facto, was carried out in seven South Eastern European entities: Albania, Bosnia, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia. The reports were prepared in cooperation with the International Gender Policy Network.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Women, Legislation, Sexuality, Men, and Equality
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe and Southern Europe

5862. Dismantling the DPRK’s Nuclear Weapons Program: A Practicable, Verifiable Plan of Action

Author:
David Albright and Corey Hinderstein
Publication Date:
01-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Institute for Science and International Security
Abstract:
Verified dismantlement of the nuclear weapons program of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) can be accomplished successfully. Although difficulties abound in reaching an agreement with the DPRK to achieve this goal, the methods and steps involved in the dismantlement process are well understood. Because this goal remains vital to U.S. and international security, the United States has joined with China, Japan, Russia, and South Korea in working toward verified denuclearization of the Korean peninsula with the cooperation of the DPRK. These six nations have launched a series of negotiations, called the Six-Party Talks, aimed at resolving the crisis over the DPRK’s nuclear program. These nations are also attempting to create a plan to dismantle the DPRK’s program in a manner with which all the nations can feel secure.
Topic:
Nuclear Weapons, International Security, and Disarmament
Political Geography:
Russia, Japan, China, Asia, South Korea, North Korea, and United States of America

5863. Legal Survey 2006 - With the governments in our bedrooms

Author:
Daniel Ottosson
Publication Date:
11-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
ILGA World (International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association)
Abstract:
Every year, ILGA World publishes its State-Sponsored Homophobia report, a world survey of sexual orientation laws. Since its first edition, back in 2006, ILGA World’s State-Sponsored Homophobia has been a fundamental resource for those interested in accessing the core information on legislation affecting people on the basis of their sexual orientation. Not only human rights defenders, but also civil society organisations, governmental and United Nations agencies, allies and media worldwide value the publication as one of the main sources of information on the issue. The publication is accompanied by a series of maps and charts illustrating where criminalisation, protection and recognition laws exist.
Topic:
Human Rights, Law, LGBT+, and Homophobia
Political Geography:
Global Focus

5864. La lucha por el futuro: El veneno del populismo y la cura de la democracia

Author:
Robert F. Noriega
Publication Date:
12-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
Abstract:
Mientras que la atención del mundo está centrada en la lucha contra Irak y el ascenso de China, se está librando una batalla por el alma de las Américas más cerca de nuestro país. En términos simplistas, esta confrontación podría describirse como una lucha de poder entre la visión del presidente de Estados Unidos, George W. Bush, y la visión de quien se autoproclamó su némesis, el presidente venezolano Hugo Chávez. Igualmente engañosas son las caracterizaciones que describen esta situación como un enfrentamiento entre la izquierda y la derecha, los ricos y los pobres, el norte y el sur. Pero ésta no es una batalla entre dos líderes poderosos o entre las ideologías de la izquierda y la derecha. La lucha que se está librando en el hemisferio occidental concierne a la democracia en sí: ¿puede satisfacer a un público impaciente? Por un lado, están los líderes de la izquierda y la derecha que consideran que las instituciones democráticas y el Estado de Derecho son indispensables para la prosperidad y la libertad.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Democracy, Populism, and Hugo Chavez
Political Geography:
Latin America and Venezuela

5865. Paradigmatic Jihadi Movements

Author:
David Cook
Publication Date:
01-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
In 2005, veteran jihadi thinker, propagandist, and historian Abu Musa`b al-Suri released a study of the jihadi movement entitled The Call for Global Islamic Resistance. In order to better appreciate the jihadi movement’s strategic objectives and mindset, the Combating Terrorism Center invited David Cook, an expert on Islamic history and jihad, to provide deeper background on four of Suri’s identified paradigmatic jihads: The Harakat al-Shabiba in Morocco; The Harakat al-Dawla al-Islamiyya in Algeria; The Afghani Arabs in Lebanon under Abu `A’isha al Lubnani; The Islamic Army of Aden Abyan in Yemen. Here are some of the most significant findings from Cook’s survey: Yemen is a critical step in the jihadi march towards a global caliphate. Suri and others believe that Yemen is ripe for a jihadi revolution because of the country’s proximity to the apostate regimes, and high levels of anti-American sentiment, population growth, and weapons proliferation. The Sunni jihadi movement has gained little traction in Lebanon. Suri is embarrassed by the fact that few Lebanese jihadis have been involved in the global movement, and by the fact that jihadi groups have found little historical success in waging jihad in Lebanon. Jihadi organizations should be global in their thinking but careful to build a broad constituency in their homeland. Suri seems to favor those movements that, even if they found little success in reality, had the proper motives and methodology. Jihadis should not excommunicate other Muslims. Suri argues that the slaughter of civilians by the GIA in Algeria, which was legitimated by excommunicating them, was a colossal strategic error that should never be repeated.
Topic:
Terrorism, Ideology, and Jihad
Political Geography:
Afghanistan, Yemen, Algeria, and Morocco

5866. Stealing Al Qa’ida’s Playbook

Author:
Jarret Brachman and William McCants
Publication Date:
02-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
The key to defeating the jihadi movement is identifying its strengths and weaknesses so that the former may be countered or co-opted and the latter exploited. In this article, we argue that the people who know these strengths and weaknesses best are the jihadis themselves; one just needs to know where (and how) to look for their insights. Jihadi leaders are surprisingly frank when discussing the vulnerabilities of their movement and their strategies for toppling local regimes and undermining the United States. Their candor is, in large part, a consequence of struggles for leadership within the movement; thus, a leader of one group will publish his strategic vision in order to gain more recruits and achieve a reputation as a serious scholar worthy of respect. It is also a consequence of the United States’ success in destroying jihadi training camps and denying safe havens—jihadi leaders have had to put their writings online so as to provide continuing guidance to a very decentralized following. In a sense, members of the jihadi movement have put their playbooks online. By mining these texts for their tactical and strategic insights, the United States will be able to craft effective tactics, techniques, and procedures to defeat followers of the movement. In what follows, we will demonstrate the efficacy of this approach by highlighting the insights we have gleaned from the works of four prominent jihadi ideologues.
Topic:
Terrorism, Al Qaeda, Leadership, and Ideology
Political Geography:
Global Focus

5867. Harmony and Disharmony: Exploiting Al-Qa`ida’s Organizational Vulnerabilities

Author:
James J. F. Forest, Jarret Brachman, and Joseph Felter
Publication Date:
02-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
In the text of newly-released al-Qa’ida documents captured during recent operations in support of the Global War on Terror and maintained in the Department of Defense’s Harmony database, readers will see how explicit al-Qa’ida has been in its internal discussions covering a range of organizational issues, particularly regarding the internal structure and functioning of the movement as well as with tensions that emerged within the leadership. The first part of the report draws on scholarly approaches including organization and agency theory, to predict where we should expect terrorist groups to face their greatest challenges in conducting operations. This theoretical framework is informed as much as possible by the captured documents, and provides a foundation upon which scholars can build as more of these documents are declassified and released to the public. Our analysis stresses that, by their nature, terrorist organizations such as al-Qa’ida face difficulties in almost any operational environment, particularly in terms of maintaining situational awareness, controlling the use of violence to achieve specified political ends, and preventing local authorities from degrading the group’s capabilities. But they also face problems common to other types of organizations. Agency problems created by the divergent preferences among terrorist group members present operational challenges, which can be exploited as part of a comprehensive counterterrorism strategy. Understanding a terrorist organization’s internal challenges and vulnerabilities is key to developing effective—and efficient—responses to the threats they pose and to degrade these groups’ ability to kill. The captured al Qa’ida documents contribute significantly to this type of understanding. The analysis contained in this report emphasizes that effective strategies to combat threats posed by al-Qa’ida will create and exacerbate schisms within its membership. Members have different goals and objectives, and preferred strategies for achieving these ends. Defining and exploiting existing fissures within al-Qa’ida as a broadly defined organization must reflect this intra-organizational variation in preferences and commitment in order to efficiently bring all available resources to bear in degrading its potential threat. Many of our prescriptions are intended to induce debilitating problems that increase existing organizational dysfunction and reduce al-Qa’ida’s potential for political impact. This theoretically informed analysis, along with assessments of the individual captured documents themselves, contributes to existing bodies of research on al-Qa’ida. It provides several tools for identifying and exacerbating existing fissures as well as locating new insertion points for counterterrorism operations. It presents an analytical model that we hope lays the foundation for a more intellectually informed approach to counterterrorism. And perhaps, most importantly, this assessment demonstrates the integral role that scholars can play in understanding the nature of this movement and in generating smarter, more effective ways to impede its growth and nurture the means for its eventual disintegration.
Topic:
Terrorism, Non State Actors, Al Qaeda, and Leadership
Political Geography:
Middle East and Syria

5868. Militant Ideology Atlas

Author:
William McCants
Publication Date:
11-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
The Militant Ideology Atlas identifies the most influential thinkers in the Jihadi Movement and delineates the movement’s key ideological vulnerabilities. It situates the Jihadi Movement within the various Muslim constituencies that Jihadi leaders seek to influence and persuade. Each constituency is responsive to leaders in the broader constituencies of which it is a part, but each also has its own set of thinkers that are best positioned to influence their base. The largest constituency is comprised of Muslims. This includes Sunnis and Shi’as and ranges from secularists to fundamentalists. The authors assert that Jihadi propaganda, which is designed to reclaim the credibility lost among mainstream Muslims, can be countered with the following messages: Jihadis want a totalitarian system of government. The Jihadi message is so weak and unappealing that they have to use violence to persuade people. The next constituency is comprised of Islamists, who differ over the meaning of Islamic law, and the means of achieving its supremacy. Among Sunnis the Muslim Brotherhood is the most influential group in the Islamist constituency, including Yusuf Qaradawi as their spokesman. Next, Salafis differ over the final form of these states and the proper means for achieving them. The most influential Salafis are Saudi clerics. They are Sunni Muslims who want to establish and govern Islamic states based solely on the Qur’an and the example of the Prophet as understood by the first generations of Muslims close to Muhammad. Finally, the Jihadis, the holy warriors, are a movement that is part of the larger Salafi Movement. Since Jihadi thinkers draw their legitimacy from the same tradition as Salafis, Salafi scholars are best positioned to discredit the movement among other Salafis. Specific prescriptions for delegitimizing the Jihadi Movement are outlined at the conclusion of this report.
Topic:
Terrorism, Counter-terrorism, and Ideology
Political Geography:
Global Focus

5869. Democratic Oversight of the Security Sector: Turkey and the World

Author:
Volkan Aytar
Publication Date:
03-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
The longitudinal political and social “weight” of the Turkish Armed Forces, and the imbalances ensued, are considered among the most important and complex issues in Turkish history. Recently, the need for further harmonization of the Turkish Civilian-Military Relations (CMR) with the democratic standards was underlined at the European Commission’s (EC) successive Annual Progress Reports on Turkey. The issue will no doubt be among the most important issues in Turkey’s EU accession process. One could claim this can best be achieved by a healthy cooperation between the government, parliament and security sector institutions (the armed forces, the police department, the gendarmerie, and others) with the assistance of expert opinion, and by taking into consideration the demands stemming from civil society. Moreover, apart from the issue of harmonization of the Turkish CMR with the EU standards and universal democratic norms, the vitally important problem of implementing a substantive Security Sector and Bureaucracy Reform (SSBR) would certainly be on the top of Turkey’s agenda for years (even decades) to come. SSBR shall cover not only CMR-related issues but also involve the establishment of democratic control and oversight mechanisms on all domestic security institutions by taking a citizen-centered approach. Placed at a context going far beyond the narrow and somewhat misleading confines of a mere CMR issue, the problem needs to be addressed in its diversity and complexity. Since the very concepts of “reform” and “control of the armed forces” still remain controversial in Turkey, TESEV aims to contribute to this (potentially divisive and politicized) process by helping 6 “normalize” the debates on the issue, in a cool-headed, objective and scientific manner. In this context, the fruitful past collaboration between the Geneva-based Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF – the Republic of Turkey is a founding member since November 20th, 2003) and TESEV seems to be becoming even more crucial in helping shape the ongoing process (indeed, the EC’s 2005 Turkey Progress Report lauded TESEV & DCAF’s work). TESEV strives to further the agenda of democratic and civilian oversight of the security sector by taking as its target audience, legislators, media professionals and civil society at large. National and international symposia, presentations at the Special Commissions of the Turkish Grand National Assembly, as well as documentary and critical studies on the Security Sector are among the interlocking project activities and outputs.
Topic:
Security, Armed Forces, Democracy, and Accountability
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East

5870. Security Sector Reform in the Western Balkans

Author:
Marina Caparini
Publication Date:
04-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
The states of the Western Balkans region1 differ from other transitional democracies in Central Europe in important ways which affect the conditions and challenges for security sector reform (SSR).2 In their transition from state socialism and authoritarian rule, the Western Balkan societies also bear the lingering material and psychological effects of recent armed conflict and ethnic cleansing. Their security sectors tend to be fragmented, underdeveloped (although some sectors, typically the armed forces, are over-developed for peacetime conditions), over-politicized and structured along ethnic or religious lines. Non-state armed formations, including paramilitary organizations formed along party or ethnic lines, private military companies, criminal groups and guerrilla movements may exist alongside state security structures weakened by corruption. The problems of refugee return, resettlement and reintegration of displaced persons, and return of property remain unresolved in key areas. Individuals and communities continue to be scarred by the psychological traumas inflicted by war and extreme nationalism. Nationalistic (ethnic and religious) divisions persist, and the resurgence of nationalist parties in recent elections throughout the region-followed by the open violence in Kosovo in March 2004-provides daunting evidence of the fragility of both democracy and peace in these societies. In the Western Balkans, the task of SSR must be approached concurrently with post-conflict stabilization. The continued presence of international peacekeeping forces in most parts of the region-including international police forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) and in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM*) and the international administrations with wide-ranging internal powers in Bosnia and Herzegovina and in Kosovo-has interrupted the local authorities’ monopoly of security responsibilities for years at a stretch. The goals of SSR, as normally conceived, can only be reached by completing the localization of security functions as part of the general transfer of authority from international actors to national and regional governments. Plans for this normalization could be interrupted at any time by a resurgence of security problems anywhere in the region. The goals of reform and normalization, and external efforts to promote them, must therefore be conceived more in regional terms than has been the case elsewhere in post-cold war Europe. A special complication is the dispute and uncertainty over the ultimate status of Kosovo, which aspires to independence but has been ruled as a United Nations (UN) protectorate since 1999.
Topic:
Security, Peacekeeping, Armed Forces, Reform, and Conflict
Political Geography:
Turkey, Balkans, Macedonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina

5871. Seeking Kant in the EU’s Relations with Turkey

Author:
Ali Murat Özdemir, Hakan Altinay, Jean-François Leguil-Bayart, Senem Aydın Düzgit, and Şeyla Benhabib
Publication Date:
12-2006
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
We believe European Union membership is in the interests of Turkey, the EU, and the global community. We are deeply concerned at the way the European Union is failing to respect the principles of equal treatment in its relations with Turkey. We do not argue that Turkey is ready for EU membership; and we recognise that Turkey has a lot to do, primarily regarding democratic governance, to make itself ready for membership. However, we also believe that increasingly discriminatory practices towards Turkey violate the Enlightenment principles upon which Europe itself is founded and endanger the formation of a Europe governed by Kantian ideals. This perspective necessitates identifying key events that gave rise to this concern during the period after the 1997 Luxembourg Summit. The main aim of this report is to examine the extent to which the EU has adhered to its official statements on fairness and equal treatment and whether or not the assertion that the EU has breached Kantian ideals is valid. The focus of this report will be two-fold. The first focus will be on the 'double standards' evident in the EU's policies towards Turkey, which we will point out by comparing the EU's treatment of Turkey with its treatment of other candidate countries. It is now widely accepted that there is a clear double standard in the way in which the EU deals with candidate-nations and member states, especially in areas such as human rights and the protection of minorities; the report will be on instances in which the EU has not kept key promises with Turkey or 'systematically distorted' communication has been abound in discussions over the issue. We believe that such an endeavour is imperative to see the way in which the EU today is deviating from the Kantian ideal of achieving a Europe without dividing lines, where 'you do as you would be done by.'
Topic:
Treaties and Agreements, Governance, European Union, Democracy, Regional Integration, and Immanuel Kant
Political Geography:
Europe, Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean

5872. Covering Oil: A Reporter's Guide to Energy and Development

Publication Date:
04-2005
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
In most resource-rich countries, natural wealth does not translate into prosperity for the majority of inhabitants, but instead leads to environmental and economic devastation, and hampers democratic reform. Only an informed public can hold leaders to account. Yet local reporting often overlooks the legal, economic, and environmental implications of resource extraction. Covering Oil: A Reporter's Guide to Energy and Development, a collaborative work of the Open Society Foundation's Revenue Watch program and the Initiative for Policy Dialogue, aims to encourage rigorous reporting on these issues by providing practical information about the petroleum industry and the impact of resource wealth on a producing country. The guidebook comes out of a series of workshops for journalists in the oil-exporting countries of Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Nigeria, during which participants expressed a need for more information to help them understand the issues surrounding resource exploitation. In response to these consultations, Covering Oil outlines the fundamentals of petroleum contracts, provides a glossary of relevant economic theory, and presents case studies of major public policy issues. Covering Oil is the second in a series of Revenue Watch guidebooks targeting various audiences involved in the promotion of transparency and democratic accountability. The first, Follow the Money: A Guide to Monitoring Budgets and Oil and Gas Revenues, was aimed at nongovernmental organizations.
Topic:
Energy Policy, Oil, Natural Resources, Democracy, Journalism, and Fossil Fuels
Political Geography:
Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Nigeria

5873. Protecting the Future: Constitutional Safeguards for Iraq's Oil Revenues

Publication Date:
05-2005
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
Published by the Open Society Iraq Revenue Watch, the following report argues that Iraq's future peace and security depend on instituting constitutional safeguards guaranteeing financial accountability and the equitable division of oil revenues. Protecting the Future: Constitutional Safeguards for Iraq's Oil Revenues comes as the new Iraqi government prepares to draft the country's first permanent constitution since Saddam Hussein was ousted. The report urges lawmakers to protect against oil-sector corruption and mismanagement. Protecting the Future also warns of civil conflict unless oil revenues are fairly distributed among Iraq's ethnic and religious groups. In Iraq, rifts over oil revenues run deep, as Iraqi Kurds, Arabs, and Turkmen struggle for control of oil-rich Kirkuk. Without constitutional provisions that protect its oil revenues, Iraq is likely to follow the path of so many other natural resource-rich nations that are dogged by corruption and bad governance. Most oil-dependent states have “ultra-presidential” governments, which enable the executive branch to use resource revenues as it sees fit. Protecting the Future explores ways that Iraq can avoid this trap by embedding measures for accountability into the future Iraqi constitution. The report recommends provisions that make clear which agencies are responsible for the development and implementation of the Iraqi budget, and grant oversight of oil revenues to all branches of government—executive, legislative, and judicial.
Topic:
Oil, Natural Resources, Governance, Oversight, and Revenue Management
Political Geography:
Iraq

5874. Restoring American Leadership

Publication Date:
04-2005
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
Cosponsored by the Open Society Foundations and the Security and Peace Institute (a joint program of the Center for American Progress and The Century Foundation), Restoring American Leadership: 13 Cooperative Steps to Advance Social Progress offers a starting point for restoring America's international alliances. The papers in the report, written by experts in 13 fields, recommend how President George W. Bush can make progress in areas where his personal commitment to action is needed and where global alliances can help strengthen the national security goals of the United States. Restoring American Leadership covers a wide range of topics, from international cooperation in the war on terror, to curbing proliferation of nuclear weapons, to advancing the rights of women across the globe. Each paper offers a specific set of recommendations for executive action by the president consistent with his stated values, as well as a brief overview of the administration's position on the issue to date.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, International Cooperation, Leadership, and War on Terror
Political Geography:
United States and Global Focus

5875. Rights of People with Intellectual Disabilities: Access to Education and Employment

Publication Date:
08-2005
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
Produced by the Open Society EU Monitoring and Advocacy Program and Mental Health Initiative, Rights of People with Intellectual Disabilities: Access to Education and Employment is a series of 12 country reports on the rights of people with intellectual disabilities in Europe. The reports monitor the degree to which existing international standards and national legislation are heeded and applied. Each report includes specific policy recommendations targeting both domestic and international decisionmakers.
Topic:
Human Rights, Disability, Mental Health, and Domestic Policy
Political Geography:
Greece, Estonia, Bulgaria, Hungary, Croatia, and Latvia

5876. Equal Opportunities for Women and Men

Publication Date:
05-2005
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
Gender equality is still far from being a reality in Central and Eastern Europe, according to the report Equal Opportunities for Women and Men: Monitoring Law and Practice in New Member States and Accession Countries of the European Union, published by OSI's Network Women's Program. The findings and recommendations in Equal Opportunities for Women and Men are based on monitoring conducted by national gender equality experts and local NGO representatives in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Turkey. The report describes existing national institutional mechanisms, policies, and programs on gender equality, and highlights several shortcomings. The research identified a general lack of awareness among men and women about how gender inequality affects their daily lives as well as a lack of political will to enforce existing national and EU gender equality policies. The report's key recommendations include a call for governments to establish regular monitoring of how equal pay principles are practiced in both the public and private sectors and making these monitoring results public; they urge the governments in Bulgaria, Hungary, and Poland to adopt official gender equality strategies; and appeal to all governments to collect gender disaggregated statistical data, without which gender equality policies can hardly be successful.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Women, Men, and Equality
Political Geography:
Turkey, Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Czech Republic, and Slovakia

5877. Security Threats and Risks in South Caucasus: Perceptions From the Western Black Sea

Author:
Plamen Pantev
Publication Date:
06-2005
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Institute for Security and International Studies (ISIS)
Abstract:
Perception1 of security threats is a dynamic process determined by the outside world and the perceiver’s culture, attitudes, expectations, needs, experience and other attributes. Each interpreter, depending on her or his respective analytic point of view, subjectively defines the facts in the security realm. Values, beliefs and cognitions constitute the bulk of any perception, including about security issues. A value is a preference for one state of reality over another. A belief is a conviction that a description of reality is true, proven or known. And cognition is information derived from the environment that can be substantiated through physical evidence or perceptual observation. Cognitions are key elements in establishing perceptual systems and in changing those systems. The threat perceptual systems of the Western Black Sea countries – Bulgaria and Romania, are strongly influenced by their values, beliefs and cognitions as sovereign nations with specific geopolitical positions and interests. They are also shaped in the context of their membership in NATO, as future EU members and as US allies on whose territories would be stationed American military bases.
Topic:
Security, Defense Policy, Geopolitics, and Risk
Political Geography:
Europe, Eurasia, South Caucasus, and Black Sea

5878. The ‘Europeanisation’ of National Foreign, Security and Defence Policy

Author:
Plamen Pantev
Publication Date:
11-2005
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Institute for Security and International Studies (ISIS)
Abstract:
This Research Report focuses on the issue of the interpretation of the meaning of the term ‘Europeanisation’. It is followed by a discussion of two constraining factors of Europeanising the foreign, security and defence policy. Lastly, it deals with the interrelationship of ‘security’ and ‘regional integration’ – an issue that is generally disregarded by analysts and politicians, but that can lead to a methodological miss-match, creating obstacles to the course of a less contradictory Europeanisation of the foreign, security and defence policy of the EU.
Topic:
Security, Foreign Policy, Defense Policy, European Union, and Europeanization
Political Geography:
Europe and Eastern Europe

5879. Recommendations for Improving the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Committee’s Assessment and Assistance Coordination Function

Author:
Alistair Millar, Jason Ipe, George A. Lopez, Tona Boyd, Linda Gerber, and David Cortright
Publication Date:
09-2005
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Fourth Freedom Forum
Abstract:
The effectiveness of the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) depends on its ability to keep pace with transformations in the global security environment. When the CTC was established in the wake of the September 2001 terrorist attacks, the primary target was understood to be Al Qaeda and its international network of related terrorist groups. In order to secure its central role and relevance among multilateral counter-terrorism efforts, the CTC must find more creative ways to collect, assess, and disseminate information about current counter-terrorism capacities and to facilitate the provision of needed technical assistance by potential donors in a timely and sustainable manner.
Topic:
Security, United Nations, and Counter-terrorism
Political Geography:
Global Focus

5880. The Istanbul Symposium: Empowering Women in Public Life and Democratic Development in the BMENA Region

Author:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Publication Date:
11-2005
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
"One of the issues the Democracy Assistance Dialogue will concentrate on is the empowerment of women in public life. As agreed on in Rome Ministerial meeting of DAD on 25 November 2004 "Democratic development requires inclusion of women as an active and essential component of society. To stimulate active participation of women in democratic practices is also a fundamental priority. The Dialogue shall support efforts aimed at promoting women's participation in political life and active contribution to democratic projects and programs. Indeed, a substantial gender gap exists in the BMENA region. Like in many other countries, women are the most disadvantaged segment of society simply because they are women. Gender inequality in the region is compounded by high levels of illiteracy among women, In many countries women still cannot enjoy their political rights sufficiently and their chances of social and political participation are completely blocked. Gender related discrimination is a major impediment to democratic reform in the region. If women constitute half of their respective societies, then, along with men, they should partake in decision-making pertaining to their common future.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Women, Democracy, Inequality, and Discrimination
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East

5881. “Home Sweet Home:” Women and Men in the Democratization Process

Author:
Aksu Bora and Kadir Üstün
Publication Date:
09-2005
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
This study aims to map the relations between democratization and mind-setups, and focuses on gender as a powerful tool. The immediate answer to the gendered mind-sets in Turkey, would be that the norms and schemes that refer to gender relations are conservative and anti-democratic until they are shifted and even shattered by men and women in their daily life activities. Yet, this study shows that such and assumption is highly limited if not problematic: In order for the daily life experience to present an elbow room to exercise personal empowerment strategies, a capacity of subjectivity is necessary, and it has been observed that this capacity is fundamentally damaged for most people we have interviewed.
Topic:
Democratization, Gender Issues, Women, Men, Equality, and Subjectivity
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean

5882. Quo vadis Cyprus?

Author:
Ayla Gürel Moran, Mensur Akgün, Mete Hatay, and Sylvia Tiryaki
Publication Date:
04-2005
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Cyprus is one of the key issues in Turkish Foreign Policy today, probably even more so than it has ever been. A peaceful settlement that optimizes the needs and minimizes the concerns of both the Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot sides is of utmost significance and urgency. A settlement is needed not only to enable Turkey to continue its path towards European accession, but also in order to establish and perpetuate a peaceful coexistence between the two communities on the island. The suspension of efforts to solve the Cyprus issue after the referendum on April 24, 2004, could pave the way for unwelcome developments in Turkey, the EU and in the region as a whole. Therefore TESEV see it as their mission to alert policy makers, opinion leaders and diplomats of the urgency of the issue. As has been stated previously on different occasions, TESEV has three major areas of activity: Democratization, Good Governance and Foreign Policy. There has been a dynamic wave of political, economic, judicial and legal reforms in Turkey vis-à-vis her prospective membership of the European Union. Internal dynamics for democratization, local governance, fiscal policies, transparency and judicial reform and new perspectives in foreign policy have been subjects of concern in this process. These subjects are also the determinants of TESEV’s major program axes. The Foreign Policy Program, one of TESEV’s three main program areas, has been dealing with the Cyprus issue at both governmental and non-governmental levels, with specific reference to the Annan Plan. We support the Annan Plan as the basis for a viable solution. This monograph provides a historical account of the problem and settlement efforts, elaborates the Annan Plan and provides some suggestions for the way forward.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Government, Territorial Disputes, and Referendum
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, Cyprus, and Mediterranean

5883. What Are Nuclear Weapons For? Recommendations for Restructuring U.S. Strategic Nuclear Forces

Author:
Sidney D. Drell and James E. Goodby
Publication Date:
04-2005
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arms Control Association
Abstract:
This report is aimed at revising the current US defense strategy towards Russia to more closely represent the recent policy shift towards cooperation. It advocates the reduction of the U.S. strategic arsenal to 500 operationally deployed nuclear warheads and 500 responsive forces. Such a force would be composed of existing warheads and require no new nuclear weapons while maintaining the diversity of force that protects against common failure modes. The report concludes that the United States can enhance its national security by strengthening the nonproliferation regime.
Topic:
Defense Policy, Arms Control and Proliferation, National Security, and Nuclear Weapons
Political Geography:
Russia and United States of America

5884. Beyond the Mountains: The Unfinished Business of Haiti

Publication Date:
07-2004
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
In early 2004, the 200th anniversary of Haiti's independence, violence once again burst into flame as rebel soldiers overran much of the country and forced President Jean-Bertrand Aristide to resign. The country the soldiers fought over is the poorest in the Western Hemisphere, one of the poorest anywhere. Its infrastructure—roads, electricity, water, sanitation—is deteriorating, almost to the point of nonexistence. The schools cannot make a dent in the illiteracy rate. The health care system cannot stop the spread of preventable diseases. The months of political violence, following years of government repression, have made living conditions worse—at least in the short term. The international community, which reduced its presence in Haiti several years ago in response to the corruption and mismanagement of the government, must now return to help Haiti recover, restore order and stability, and complete the job of establishing truly democratic values and institutions. The few bright spots in the chaos and dysfunction that have overwhelmed Haiti are a small number of successful civic organizations that desperately need funding to survive and expand. FOKAL, the Soros foundation in Haiti, is a leading force among these grassroots groups. FOKAL stands for the Fondasyon Konesans Ak Libète in Creole (in French, the Fondation Connaissance & Liberté). Its programs improve conditions for young people and rural communities, instilling optimism and hope and a commitment to work for the common good. Through civic organizations such as the ones described in this report, Haitians are tackling a mountain range of problems. A strong civil society offers the only lasting solution to political repression and violence. This report tells the story of FOKAL and some of the programs that deserve support because they work in a country where so much doesn't. It is a journey through the unfinished business of Haiti.
Topic:
Political Violence, Civil Society, Development, Infrastructure, and Repression
Political Geography:
Haiti

5885. Racing the Deadline: The Rush to Account for Iraq's Public Funds

Publication Date:
04-2004
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
This report, the sixth in a series from Iraq Revenue Watch, criticizes the timetable set by the International Advisory and Monitoring Board (IAMB) for review of expenditures by the Coalition Provisional Authority’s Development Fund for Iraq (DFI). According to the report, “Under its current mandate, the IAMB has less than three months to account for $7.3 billion of DFI expenditures made by the U.S.-led Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA). Unless the Board is able to work beyond June 30, there is no way it can provide an accurate and public accounting for so much money.” Furthermore, the report concludes that “the delay and absence of IAMB oversight of the CPA is particularly worrying in light of recent reports by inspector generals at the Pentagon, USAID, and the General Accounting Office noting pervasive violations of contracting procedures in the allocation of U.S. and Iraqi funds for the reconstruction of Iraq.” These problems are only exacerbated by the lack of Iraqi involvement in the IAMB, the report notes, bringing into question the legitimacy of the IAMB’s operations in the eyes of the people it was designed to serve.
Topic:
Military Affairs, Budget, Revenue Management, and Public Spending
Political Geography:
Iraq

5886. Opening the Books: Transparent Budgeting for Iraq

Publication Date:
04-2004
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
This report, the fifth in a series by the Open Society Iraq Revenue Watch, evaluates the level of transparency in budget reporting by the Baghdad-based Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA). On the eve of the transition to a new Iraqi government, the report finds that although the CPA’s financial procedures and documents have improved, they still fail to meet internationally recognized standards for fiscal decision-making and reporting. The report calls upon the CPA and the Governing Council to make further improvements in accordance with these standards. Budgetary transparency and accountability can help assure that Iraq does not revert to the tyranny of secrecy practiced under Saddam Hussein.
Topic:
Military Affairs, Transparency, and Revenue Management
Political Geography:
Iraq

5887. Disorder, Negligence, and Mismanagement

Publication Date:
10-2004
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
Recent audits expose serious failures in American oversight of Iraq’s revenues and U.S. reconstruction funds, according to a report by the Open Society Institute’s Iraq Revenue Watch project. The audits—released in late July by the Coalition Provisional Authority Inspector General (CPA-IG)—paint a picture of disorder and negligence. Contractors made little effort to control costs, while the Coalition Provisional Authority, which was in charge of managing Iraqi reconstruction funds, failed to adhere to federally mandated procedures for awarding and overseeing contracts. “The CPA did not do its job regarding the oversight of reconstruction funds,” said Svetlana Tsalik, director of the Revenue Watch project. “It failed to stop the misuse and waste of money that belonged to the Iraqi people and American taxpayers.” An analysis of the data suggests that of $1.5 billion in contracts, the CPA awarded U.S. firms 74 percent of the value of all contracts paid for with Iraqi funds. Together with its British allies, U.S. and U.K. companies received 85 percent of the value of all such contracts. Iraqi firms, by contrast, received just 2 percent of the value of contracts paid for with Iraqi funds. “Government favorites such as Kellogg, Brown and Root benefited at the expense of Iraqi companies whose workers badly need jobs,” said Tsalik. The report, the sixth in a series by Iraq Revenue Watch, finds that 60 percent of the value of all contracts paid with Iraqi funds went to Halliburton subsidiary Kellogg, Brown & Root (KBR)—the same company that Pentagon auditors in December 2003 found had overcharged the U.S. government for as much as $61 million for fuel imports into Iraq. A criminal investigation of KBR was launched by the Department of Defense in February 2004. The CPA-IG audits confirm the findings of previous ones. A report released in July 2004 by the International Advisory and Monitoring Board, the watchdog body set up by the United Nations, found numerous problems in the CPA’s control and use of Iraqi oil assets during the occupation. These include the absence of oil metering to control theft, poor record-keeping on oil sales, an absence of oversight of spending by the Iraqi ministries, the use of noncompetitive bidding procedures for some contracts, and the CPA’s refusal to transmit crucial information to the UN-mandated body. A recent Pentagon audit of KBR’s billing system, which shows that systematic deficiencies in the company’s accounting and billing procedures incurred significant costs to U.S taxpayers and to Iraqi oil revenues, is further proof of mismanagement. Following the model of its American predecessor, the Iraq interim government to date has provided scant information about how it is managing Iraq’s oil revenues.
Topic:
Oil, United Nations, Military Affairs, Budget, Transparency, and Revenue Management
Political Geography:
Iraq

5888. Controlling Iraq’s Skies: The Secret Sell-Off of Iraq’s Air Industry

Publication Date:
02-2004
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
In this report the Open Society Iraq Revenue Watch (IRW) looks at Iraq’s national air transport sector, which is presently controlled by the American-led Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA). Despite CPA claims that it intends to return control of the country’s air industry to the Iraqi people, a document obtained by the Open Society Foundations shows that a backroom deal has already sold off 75 percent of the country’s air sector to a single family. The IRW argues that the secret deal is one among a number of suspect agreements that have occurred under the radar in a chaotic post-war Iraq. The report’s authors caution that Iraq risks following a similar path as Russia, where a class of oligarchs emerged after the fall of communism by buying up state assets at below market prices. Controlling Iraq’s Skies recommends that this contract be frozen and an investigation be launched by the International Advisory and Monitoring Board, as well as by the CPA Inspector General. The report also calls on the CPA to compensate Iraqi Airways for damage to its facilities committed by occupying forces, and fees for the use of its facilities.
Topic:
Military Affairs, Budget, Public Sector, Iraq War, Air Force, and Revenue Management
Political Geography:
Iraq

5889. Aspirations and Reality: British Muslims and the Labour Market

Publication Date:
07-2004
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
British Muslims face severe obstacles in the United Kingdom's labor market and have a disproportionately high rate of unemployment, according to this report from OSI's EU Monitoring and Advocacy Program (EUMAP). Aspirations and Reality: British Muslims and the Labour Market calls for more effort to meet the employment aspirations and needs of Muslims in the UK, especially Muslim women and young Muslims. "Government, the private sector, and Muslims themselves must ensure that British Muslims are not left out of the workforce," said the report's author, Zamila Bunglawala, who co-authored the Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit report on Ethnic Minorities and the Labour Market. British Muslims seeking employment face multiple obstacles, ranging from gaps in mainstream labor market policy and employer practices, poor service delivery and a lack of faith-friendly work environments. The extent to which Muslims face religious discrimination in the labor market is unknown; the report stressed that further analysis is needed to improve the understanding of the British Muslim group as a whole. Muslim youths are at particular risk of social exclusion. With Muslims set to comprise almost a quarter of the growth in the working age population in Britain between 1999 and 2009, integrating British Muslims into the mainstream labor market must now be a priority for the government, the report concludes.
Topic:
Islam, Religion, Labor Issues, Minorities, and European Union
Political Geography:
United Kingdom

5890. Euro-Atlantic and Euro-Asiatic Concerns of an Enlarged Europe: a Bulgarian View

Author:
Plamen Pantev
Publication Date:
08-2004
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Institute for Security and International Studies (ISIS)
Abstract:
For historical, geopolitical, domestic and other reasons the enlarged Europe of 25 ‘+2’;’+3’, or ‘+4’ does not have a homogenized vision of the extent to which EU should differentiate itself in the realm of security from the United States of America. This causes fundamental concerns to the new members of the Union and to the other two, three or four that would join in the next few years. The Bulgarian perceptions of this issue cause concerns as to the most appropriate roles and functions of the country in the EuroAtlantic area as well as relative to the Euro-Asiatic neighborhood when the country joins the Union.
Topic:
Security, NATO, International Affairs, and Geopolitics
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, Asia, Bulgaria, and Atlantic Ocean

5891. An Action Agenda for Enhancing the United Nations Program on Counter-Terrorism

Author:
David Cortright, George A. Lopez, Alistair Millar, and Linda Gerber
Publication Date:
09-2004
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Fourth Freedom Forum
Abstract:
The project examines how the CTC and the CTED can more effectively implement the mandates of Security Council Resolutions 1373, 1377, 1456, 1535, and other relevant measures. The project addresses the following specific research topics: financial asset controls; technical assistance to enhance member state implementation capacity; international, regional, and subregional coordination; linkages between counter-terrorism assistance and development aid; and the need to respect human rights while implementing counter-terrorism mandates.
Topic:
International Cooperation, United Nations, Counter-terrorism, and UN Security Council
Political Geography:
Global Focus

5892. Getting to “Yes” on Missile Defense: The Need to Rebalance U.S. Priorities & The Prospects for Transatlantic Cooperation

Author:
Jeffrey P. Bialos and Stuart L. Koehl
Publication Date:
01-2004
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center for Transatlantic Relations
Abstract:
At the end of the day, missile defense is and should be here to stay as a key element of U.S., and in all likelihood, European defense strategy for the twenty-first century. The threats are real and there is an emerging consensus about creating defenses against it. While the “macro” issues of ABM withdrawal and initial fielding of the U.S. midcourse segment are behind us, there are very legitimate issues that warrant debate on both sides of the Atlantic. We now need to focus on making the right choices to provide a better balance of capabilities between various strategic, regional, force protection, and homeland security needs. Moreover, U.S.-European engagement on missile defense is potentially, but not inevitably, a win-win proposition—binding alliance partners together geo-politically, creating a layered, multi-national plug and play “system of system” architecture, and enhancing our ability to fight wars together. And, an enhanced coalition war fighting capability is likely to have beneficial spillover effects on the broader Transatlantic relationship; it is axiomatic that countries that fight wars together tend to have congruent interests in a range of areas. But for this to happen, Europe needs to begin to seriously consider its missile defense needs soon and apply resources to the task and the United States needs to resolve the underlying technology transfer issues and questions of roles and responsibilities. Thus, with hard work and good will, multi-national cooperation between the United States and its allies offers “win-win” from the standpoint of strengthening the alliance and our mutual security.
Topic:
Defense Policy, Nuclear Weapons, Military Strategy, Weapons, and Missile Defense
Political Geography:
United States, China, and Europe

5893. Democratic Transitions

Author:
David Epstein, Robert Bates, Jack A. Goldstone, Kristian Søby Kristensen, and Sharyn O'Halloran
Publication Date:
01-2004
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Abstract:
Recent studies of democratization, most importantly Przeworski, Alvarez, Cheibub, Limongi, 2000 (PACL), question the modernization hypothesis that richer countries are more likely to be democratic. PACL claim instead that transitions to democracy are unpredictable, but once there, countries can remain democratic with higher levels of GDP per capita. We retest this hypothesis using an expanded data set and a three-way, rather than two-way, categorization of regimes: autocracies, partial democracies, and full democracies. We find that the modernization theory does hold up well, contrary to PACL’s findings: greater levels of prosperity do predict when countries are likely to leave autocracy and stay fully democratic. Partial democracies, on the other hand, emerge as the most volatile and least predictable category of regimes. We also find considerable support for Acemoglu and Robinson’s (2002) theories on inequality and transitions. Our analysis highlights the need to better understand the workings of partial, or unconsolidated, democracies, as these are also the countries most likely to enter external wars or fall prey to internal failure.
Topic:
Democratization, Governance, Democracy, Economy, Economic Growth, and Institutions
Political Geography:
Africa

5894. Turkish Debt 1990-2002: How Did We Get Here

Author:
Caroline Van Rijckeghem
Publication Date:
12-2004
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
In the first year of Turkey’s currency crisis, Turkish public debt increased from what was then a “reasonable” level, to one that was judged to be unsustainable by a wide array of observers. As we went to print in late 2004, public debt, as a percent of national income, had significantly fallen, thanks to fiscal austerity, strong growth, and appreciation of the lira, but it was still above its pre-currency crisis levels, and the debate on public debt lived on. How did Turkish debt increase in the 1990s, and in the immediate aftermath of the crisis? What were the key drivers of this build-up? What lessons were to be drawn from the experience? These are the questions that were being asked regarding the nature of this dramatic experience when the project first took off in early 2003, and are still a matter of great interest now. In fact, debt dynamics was already worrisome before the currency crisis, and had been on a sharp upward trend since the early 1990s. We attempted to resolve whether debt accumulation was due to fiscal profligacy or rather high real interest rates. Interestingly, primary balances of the public sector, other than in the early 1990s, were not very large. This suggested to us two possible reasons for the increase in debt: concealed deficits and high real interest rates. Each of these explanations too, had it’s own camp of adherents. The paper endeavored to decompose, as precisely as possible given the data limitations, the increase in the stock of debt into its most relevant components, namely primary deficits from each public sector component, concealed deficits, valuation effects, and real interest payments. The project took off in late 2002/early 2003, under the leadership of Şerif Sayin, the Director of TESEV. Murat Űçer of Eurosource Turkey guided the project in its initial stages, suggesting, for instance, the study of both the micro and macro aspects of what we named in the paper “debt-generating processes”, and provided feedback throughout. He also edited parts of the paper and contributed to the executive summary. Izak Atiyas of Sabanci University, one of our peer reviewers, made substantial contributions, in particular in the section on duty losses. He, along with Şerif Sayin, and most notably Ferhat Emil, author of the accompanying paper “Kamu Borcu Nasıl Oluştu ? Bu Noktaya Nasıl Gelindi ?” and TESEV program director, helped to interpret the initial results and to incorporate the relevant Turkish institutional aspects into the paper. Hakan Yilmaz, author of the accompanying paper and SPO expert, and Zafer Yukseler of the Central Bank of Turkey, one of our peer reviewers, also provided comments that helped clarify the nature of the Turkish data. We also received feedback from a number of colleagues, academics as well as market economists in a seminar held on the topic. Information for the project was obtained from published official and IMF sources, as well as in a series of meeting with various departments of the Treasury.
Topic:
Debt, Economy, Accountability, and Transparency
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East

5895. The Debate on Democratization in the Broader Middle East and North Africa

Author:
Ayşe Kadıoğlu, Burak Akçapar, Meliha Benli Altunisik, and Mensur Akgün
Publication Date:
06-2004
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
This paper represents the views of four individuals with academic backgrounds in social sciences who are familiar with the new dynamics of world politics as well as the language and practice of democratization. The authors of the paper are convinced that there is need for change in the direction of democratization in the Broader Middle East and North Africa (BMENA) region. Rejection of this need is unrealistic. A dilemma in the recent debates of democratization and reform in the BMENA is that the US, the very country that pushed the initiative for democratization to the forefront, suffers from a tide of anti-Americanism in the Middle East. The sights of torture of Iraqi prisoners further heightened anti-Americanism in the region to unprecedented levels. Such an environment hinders the legitimate discussion of democratization in the BMENA. However, the need for democratization in the region is obvious and increasingly appreciated, and thus should be assessed on its own merits.
Topic:
Democratization, Politics, Reform, and Civic Engagement
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, and North Africa

5896. Monitoring Minority Protection in EU Member States

Publication Date:
07-2003
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
These documents, prepared by the EU Accession Monitoring Program of the Open Society Institute, assess the state of minority protection in 10 Central and Eastern European states seeking full membership in the European Union and in five current member states. The reports examine candidate states' implementation of their minority protection or integration programmes, and each state's laws, institutions, and practices relating to minority protection of Roma or Muslims.
Topic:
Islam, Law, Minorities, European Union, Civil Rights, Institutions, Political Rights, and Freedom of Religion
Political Geography:
Europe and Eastern Europe

5897. Caspian Oil Windfalls: Who Will Benefit?

Author:
Svetlana Tsalik
Publication Date:
05-2003
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
Caspian Oil Windfalls: Who Will Benefit?, a publication from the Central Eurasia Project's Caspian Revenue Watch, calls for greater accountability, transparency, and public oversight in the oil and natural gas industries of Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan. It urges foreign oil companies, their home governments, and international financial institutions to promote good governance and democracy in both countries to ensure that petroleum revenues generate social prosperity and stable governments. Written by Svetlana Tsalik, director of the Caspian Revenue Watch, the report also offers recommendations based on in-depth analysis of natural resource funds in other nations as well as models of citizen oversight. The foreword was written by Joseph E. Stiglitz, the former chief economist of the
Topic:
Oil, Natural Resources, Accountability, Public Policy, Transparency, and Fossil Fuels
Political Geography:
Caspian Sea and Central Eurasia

5898. Keeping Secrets: America and Iraq’s Public Finances

Publication Date:
10-2003
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
Keeping Secrets, a report from the Open Society Iraq Revenue Watch project, concludes that Iraq’s public finances have so far fallen short of international standards of accountability. The report was released on the eve of an international donors’ conference for Iraq in Madrid, scheduled for October 23–24. It calls for greater transparency in the management of the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI), the central repository for U.S. reconstruction assistance as well as Iraqi oil and gas revenues. The Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA)—the U.S.-established governing agency in Iraq—has delayed the establishment of a crucial oversight body and refused to disclose basic information about large purchase contracts and DFI expenditures, the report says. Keeping Secrets calls on the CPA to reverse these trends and offers a set of recommendations, including increased Iraqi involvement in the DFI, more substantial oversight authority for the United Nations’ International Advisory and Monitoring Board, and better public access to information.
Topic:
Finance, Accountability, Public Sector, Fiscal Policy, Transparency, and Public Spending
Political Geography:
United States and Iraq

5899. Iraq’s Reconstruction Contracts: Telecommunications

Publication Date:
09-2003
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
In late July 2003, Iraq’s Coalition Provisional Authority announced a tender to provide wireless telecommunications services for two years to Iraq. Expanding telephone access is a critical step toward improving Iraqis’ lives. Telecommunications contracts also provide lucrative opportunities for providers. If the United States is to succeed in its goal of building a capable and transparent public administration in Iraq, it is important that Iraqis are included in the contracting process and that the terms of the tender are not designed to preference U.S. companies. This report from the Iraq Revenue Watch project of the Open Society Central Eurasia Project describes some concerns with the mobile phone tender, and provides recommendations on how to improve the transparency and inclusiveness of subsequent tenders.
Topic:
Communications, Iraq War, and Revenue Management
Political Geography:
Iraq

5900. Control, Cooperation, Expertise: Civilians and the Military in Bulgarian Defence Planning Experience

Author:
Todor Tagarev
Publication Date:
04-2003
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Institute for Security and International Studies (ISIS)
Abstract:
In February 1998 the Council of Ministers (the Cabinet of the Bulgarian Government) with its Decree # 44 approved the ‘Plan for Organisational Development and the Structure of the Armed Forces till the Year 2010’, known as Plan-2010. Only twenty months later, with the exactly same ministers as members of the Cabinet and no changes in the senior military leadership of the Bulgarian Armed Forces, the Government approved radically different plans for defence reform, known as Plan-2004. This paper explains the seemingly abrupt change in the Bulgarian defence policy since the spring of 1998 with the introduction of a rigorous, albeit at the time rudimentary, defence planning process, solid civilian participation and strict oversight of every stage of the process. Our main thesis is that adequate defence reform plans, and developments in defence in general, result from a defence planning process based on goal-oriented interaction between expert civilians and the military and rigorous political—that is also civilian—control over defence policy. The institutionalisation of such defence planning process presumes relevant normative and organisational changes, as well as adequate qualification of the personnel involved. It may be further facilitated by implementation of information systems and decision support tools. Ultimately, however, the institutionalisation requires organisational culture that not only tolerates, but also encourages differences in opinion and rationality, while promoting cooperative decision- making and individual responsibility for planning and plans implementation.
Topic:
Defense Policy, Military Affairs, and Civilians
Political Geography:
Europe, Eastern Europe, and Bulgaria