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101. The Assessment of EU Crisis Response in Afghanistan

Author:
Chona R. Echavez and Qayoom Suroush
Publication Date:
12-2017
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit (AREU)
Abstract:
The European Union with the Member States have been key donors for Afghanistan who have donated approximately EUR 8 billion for the period 2002-2010. With the collaboration of international partners, the EU took on a major role in the stabilisation and reconstruction efforts.1 After the overthrow of Taliban rule in 2001, the international community, along with various Afghan political elites, attended the UN conference in Bonn that resulted the Bonn Agreement to determine the establishment of the Afghan interim government and also the deployment of international military forces to aid the new administration in ensuring the security of Kabul and other provinces. The EU and its member states agreed to assist the government of Afghanistan in establishing a sturdy framework of the rule of law in the country
Topic:
Security, International Cooperation, Military Strategy, European Union, Rule of Law, and Crisis Management
Political Geography:
Afghanistan, Europe, and Middle East

102. Armed Private Security in Latin America and the Caribbean: Oversight and Accountability in an Evolving Context Regional Study

Author:
Alan Bryden, Nelleke van Amstel, Emmylou Boddi, Jean-Michel Rousseau, Mélanie Régimbal, William Godnick, Julián Bustamante, Lidia Espinoza, Alfredo Malaret, Amanda Cowl, Diego Fleitas, Ana Yancy Espinoza, Antoine Perret, Federico Moughty, and Gastón Schulmeister
Publication Date:
01-2016
Content Type:
Case Study
Institution:
Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance (DCAF)
Abstract:
DCAF and the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNLIREC) have undertaken a regional study on armed private security in Latin America and the Caribbean, aimed at presenting an updated picture of the private security sector as well as the challenges the sector faces in terms of regulation and small arms control. The private security industry in Latin America and the Caribbean has grown significantly over the last 20 years. The study identified 16,174 private security companies in the region, with more than 2,450,000 legal employees working as security guards. Looking across the region, a number of important challenges can be identified in relation to the armed private security sector. These include a lack of specific and complete legal frameworks; informal private security markets; absence of a whole-of-government approach to regulation and oversight; insufficient institutional capacities for regulation and oversight; unclearly defined training requirements for PSC and their personnel; and the physical security and weapons management of PSCs. This newly gained knowledge is intended to support policy makers, national authorities and industry actors in their efforts to revise and strengthen their approaches to private security oversight and regulation in line with international standards and best practices. Strengthening private security regulation in the region contributes to reinforce both the rule of law and citizen security
Topic:
Security, Armed Forces, Weapons, Disarmament, and Rule of Law
Political Geography:
Geneva, United Nations, Latin America, and Caribbean

103. Iraq’s Year of Rage

Author:
Mieczyslaw P. Boduszynski
Publication Date:
10-2016
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Democracy
Institution:
National Endowment for Democracy
Abstract:
Iraqis of all ethnic and sectarian groups are fed up with the ineptitude and corruption of their political leaders and the institutions they control. Since 2015, they have turned out in record numbers to protest against their political elite. The protests that unfolded in 2015 and 2016 have highlighted two failings of Iraq’s post-2003 “democratic” order: 1) the entrenchment of a corrupt “partyocracy” that has captured the state and deepened sectarian divisions, and 2) the weakness of state institutions and the absence of the rule of law that have encouraged widespread corruption and fostered broad popular distrust of the post-Saddam Iraqi state.
Topic:
Social Movement, Democracy, Rule of Law, Protests, and Diversity
Political Geography:
Iraq and Middle East

104. Hard Power versus Soft Power or a Balance between the Two?

Author:
Peter Volten
Publication Date:
07-2016
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
All Azimuth: A Journal of Foreign Policy and Peace
Institution:
Center for Foreign Policy and Peace Research
Abstract:
Many things have changed in Turkey within the last decade, but also in Brussels as to the political practises. This commentary seeks to answer whether Turkey and the EU can find and maintain a sensible balance between toughness and empathy, between considerations of hard power and soft power. Turkey is obviously an essential, regional player both economically and militarily. Geopolitics may not appear high on the agenda of the EU, but the situation in the Middle-East simply could not and cannot be ignored as a geopolitical challenge, one that might beg for acting in concert with Turkey. On the other side, Europe represents an attraction and example based on a long history and struggle for material wealth, technological and scientific progress as well as for the accomplished degree of democracy and the rule of law. More recently, however, EU soft power suffers a number of setbacks. We disown our most basic values of soft power and will lose impact in promoting a just, democratic order in the world. If the EU and its member states fail to recover from this set-back, we risk to fall back in the hard power game, also with potential and aspiring states.
Topic:
Politics, European Union, Democracy, Geopolitics, Rule of Law, and Soft Power
Political Geography:
Europe, Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean

105. Montenegro: Elections Aftermath and the European Commission’s 2016 Country Progress Reports

Author:
Srđan Cvijić and Stevo Muk
Publication Date:
11-2016
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
Politically, Montenegro finds itself in a paradoxical situation. At one level it is the champion of European integration in the Western Balkans when it comes to progress in the EU accession negotiations, but it is also the only country in the region that has not experienced a change of government since the introduction of the multiparty system in 1990. The same individuals, families, and political and business elites have been controlling the country’s politics and economy for more than 25 years. This situation is likely to continue after the recently held October 16 parliamentary elections where the ruling Democratic Party of Socialists managed once again to secure the most seats in parliament but fell short of securing an absolute majority. Key conclusions in this report include: the October elections were marked by numerous irregularities and were held in problematic conditions; the Montenegrin government and European Commission need to focus more on reforms in the area of the rule of law; the EU accession process remains unclear and lacks transparency. The authors present recommendations to the European Commission, European Parliament, and the EU member states for moving forward.
Topic:
Democratization, Government, Elections, European Union, Democracy, and Rule of Law
Political Geography:
Europe, Balkans, and Montenegro

106. Rule of/by Law?

Author:
Brad Glosserman and Ralph A. Cossa
Publication Date:
09-2016
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Comparative Connections
Institution:
Pacific Forum
Abstract:
The rule of law took a few huge hits during the year’s second trimester, as Beijing chose to ignore the UNCLOS Arbitral Tribunal’s ruling that negated many of its South China Sea claims, while Pyongyang displayed its usual disdain for the latest UN Security Council Resolution 2270 with a series of ballistic missile launches, highlighted by a submarine-launched ballistic missile test. There were also a number of significant multilateral forums addressing regional security and economic issues, or both. Most in some form also touched upon the South China Sea and Korean Peninsula, even as ASEAN danced around the Tribunal’s ruling. Meanwhile in the battle of who gets to make trade rules, the Chinese-backed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) seemed to fare only slightly better than the US-driven Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the objection to which seems to be the only thing the two US presidential candidates agree upon.
Topic:
International Trade and Finance, Territorial Disputes, Maritime, Conflict, and Rule of Law
Political Geography:
China, Asia, North America, and United States of America

107. Kosovo’s Membership and Representation in Regional Security Initiatives

Author:
Donika Emini
Publication Date:
09-2014
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Kosovar Centre for Security Studies (KCSS)
Abstract:
In particular, the challenges are present with respect to Kosovo’s access to defense related regional initiatives. While Kosovo’s recent membership in the RCC is expected to open the doors for representation and access to other regional security initiatives, the findings in this paper show that the progress is limited and accompanied by a wide variety of challenges. By not being fully-fledged member, Kosovo is constrained in benefiting from joint operations and activities in the field of rule of law, justice and security. Consequently, the political agreements reached in the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia and the concept of introducing regional cooperation in the Western Balkans, are seriously challenged.
Topic:
Security, Treaties and Agreements, Rule of Law, Representation, Justice, and Regional Security
Political Geography:
Europe, Kosovo, and Balkans

108. The High Council of Judges and Prosecutors in Turkey: Roundtable Discussion on Its New Structure and Operations

Author:
Onur Bayramoğlu
Publication Date:
01-2013
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
One of the most critical areas of reform in Turkey’s recent history involves the judiciary, which has served to corroborate the tutelary regime. With a discourse emphasizing that the judiciary itself must also be bound by the “rule of law”, the Justice and Development Party (JDP) took a number of steps toward reforming the administration of supreme judiciary bodies, as well as the judiciary in general. The constitutional amendments brought to the ballot in the referendum of 12 September 2012 essentially represented an initiative to transform the judiciary. The amendments package was intended to equip the Constitutional Court and the High Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK) with a more pluralist structure. This report titled “the High Council of Judges and Prosecutors in Turkey: Roundtable Discussion on its New Structure and Operations” is based on discussions of the roundtable meeting attended by representatives from judges and prosecutors professional associations such as YARSAV (The Association of Judges and Prosecutors) and Demokrat Yargı (Democratic Judiciary Association), which adopted divergent positions over the course of the referendum; one representative from HSYK, the direct addressee in the debate; and experts with diverse opinions. With the roundtable, we intended to generate direct discussion by experts and practitioners of the field in a small group affording sufficient time for speakers. As a result, we treated the current situation and practice through an insider’s perspective and in detail. This also provided a shared platform where parties coming from varying political positions exchanged opinions regarding both the HSYK and several contested aspects of the judiciary reform. The roundtable ensured that critiques were communicated to and discussed with the directly relevant parties through face-to-face conversations.
Topic:
Democratization, Law, Rule of Law, Justice, and Judiciary
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East

109. Promoting the Rule of Law Abroad: Towards a Multi-Dimensional Approach

Author:
Manuel Balán
Publication Date:
01-2013
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Institute for the Study of International Development, McGill University (ISID)
Abstract:
Few if any issues are as crucial in ensuring sustainable development as the promotion and consolidation of the Rule of Law (henceforth RoL). In fact, RoL has become a major ingredient in analyses of what is missing in countries struggling for political and economic development. Yet, this objective remains elusive, as there is limited knowledge of what policies work in promoting the Rule of Law. With this in mind, this paper analyzes CIDA’s approach to RoL promotion, tracking how different programs promoted by CIDA addressed RoL concerns. Overall, and despite the term having been left out of CIDA’s priorities for some time, the organization shows interest and investment in RoL related projects. Yet, CIDA’s approach has lacked a clear and explicit direction, and has emphasized projects dealing with capacity building.
Topic:
Corruption, Development, Governance, Rule of Law, and Political Science
Political Geography:
Global Focus

110. How to Monitor the Rule of Law, Democracy, and Fundamental Rights in the EU

Publication Date:
08-2013
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Open Society Foundations
Abstract:
There is a risk that no concrete steps will emerge from consultations and discussions in the European Commission and Council on how to protect the EU’s fundamental values within its member states. The European Commission could take two initiatives to improve compliance with fundamental rights, democracy, and the rule of law by its member states. Namely, to reintroduce country-monitoring and develop a fundamental rights litigation strategy. These measures would not require the introduction of new legislation or amendment of the EU treaties. Rather, they could be put into effect within a short timeframe through informal changes in internal policy by the institutions and inter-institutional agreements. This policy brief explores the legal and practical feasibility of these two initiatives with the goal of informing EU member state diplomats and Commission officials during their ongoing discussions on how best to protect fundamental rights in Europe.
Topic:
Diplomacy, Human Rights, European Union, Democracy, and Rule of Law
Political Geography:
Europe