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53821. The Commodification of Violence, Private Military Companies, and African States

Author:
Anna Leander
Publication Date:
06-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
This article argues first that there is an increasing commodification of the use of force in many African states and it takes the example of the increased role of private military companies (PMCs) on the continent as epitomizing this development. Moreover, it points out that this commodification is widely accepted as both African and foreign governments, international organisations, NGOs, and private firms are relying on private firms. The article proceeds to spell out how this commodification affects state authority. It argues that the commodification of force poses problems for state authority both by undermining the direct control of states over the use of force and by undermining the basis of its authority. The article does not claim that state authority and the use of public force in Africa are unproblematic, nor that PMCs are the sole responsible for a situation they invariably worsen. Its aim is to underscore that it is a chimera to believe that reliance on PMCs is unproblematic for state authority and to clarify some of the mechanisms by which public authority is undermined by processes privatizing the use of force. Ultimately, the particularity of African states is likely to be reinforced rather than reduced by the commodification of the use of force on the continent.
Topic:
Defense Policy and Peace Studies
Political Geography:
Africa

53822. Disenchanted Conscription: A Military Recruitment System in Need of Justification

Author:
Anna Leander
Publication Date:
06-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
The Economist's point of view is a widely shared one. It also seems warranted by current trends in policy-making in developed democracies. The US, the UK, the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, Spain, and Portugal have abolished or are phasing out conscription. Even France, mother of citizens armies through the revolutionary levée en masse, just saw (literally as the event was broadcasted as a main feature of the evening television news) its last conscript leave the armed forces. The Nordic countries and Germany have not abolished conscription, but conscripts make up a shrinking share of the armed forces, which governments plan to shrink even further. For many observers this confirms that they simply lag behind. They will soon be brought to reason and abolish conscription. But this is a simplistic understanding of what determines the fate of conscription.
Topic:
Defense Policy, Government, and Peace Studies
Political Geography:
United States, United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, and Portugal

53823. International Law and the Just and Justifiable in Secessionist Conflicts: The Cases of Tatarstan and Chechnya (1990-94)

Author:
Olya Gayazova
Publication Date:
03-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
The statistics on self-determination conflicts are worrisome. Some 67 armed self-determination conflicts have occurred in the world since 1955, not counting the wars of independence in the former European colonies. Of them, 35% are 'ongoing' and have been in that phase for the median duration of 17 years. Another 30% of these conflicts are of a 'contained' status. Yet another 15% have ended with agreements, which are 'contested' by parties within the minority group or the government, or both. All in all, 80% of armed self-determination conflicts - instead of being settled - persist and are apt to inspire new generations of freedom fighters (for some) and terrorists (for others).
Topic:
International Law
Political Geography:
Russia

53824. Constructivism and the Role of Institutions in International Relations

Author:
Stefano Guzzini
Publication Date:
03-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
Although Italy, in comparison to its Northern neighbours, is not a country of constructivists (Lucarelli and Menotti 2002), many of the themes crucial to constructivism are common currency in Italian academia. For constructivism stands for a series of debates in social theory which made a perhaps late yet virulent intrusion into the discipline of International Relations. Its content is probably best understood as the focus which bundles recent discussions on epistemology and the sociology of knowledge, on the agent-structure debate and the ontological status of social facts, and on the reciprocal relationship between these two.
Topic:
International Relations
Political Geography:
Europe

53825. A Europe without Divides? The EU-Russia Partnership and the Case of Virtual Borders

Author:
Tarja Cronberg
Publication Date:
01-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
This paper is about a partnership, the aim of which is to create a Europe without divides. A partnership where the vision is to transcend the divide between membership and non-membership and to create co-operation in trade, in stability and security, and in democracy on all levels. The paper examines the implementation of the EU-Russia partnership and its strategy not only on the rhetorical level but also in a micro-perspective seen from a border region (mostly from the EU-side), from a space where the divides whether economic, social or of any other kind are most clearly manifested. As borders manifest social conflict a study of the implementation of the partnership agreement on this micro-level will make visible not only the taken-for-granted assumptions and practices but also new and emerging divides. As a concrete case the creation of a European information society is studied. Will the partners be united in virtual space without divides? Conclusions are drawn on the nature of the partnership, the relationship between the partners and the perspective of a Europe without divides.
Topic:
International Relations
Political Geography:
Russia and Europe

53826. Policy Recommendations for the Third Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD III)

Publication Date:
09-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Abstract:
The world is now several years into the twenty-first century. However, Africa remains a place faced with many difficulties, from violent conflicts to poverty and disease. A cursory examination of Africa today shows that the majority of the people in this region are not able to raise their incomes, and that the number of Africans living in poverty continues to increase, despite the fact that their countries receive considerable aid from the international community.
Topic:
Development, Human Welfare, and Non-Governmental Organization
Political Geography:
Africa and Asia

53827. The Plight of African States and Good Governance

Author:
Sadaharu Kataoka
Publication Date:
06-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Japan Institute Of International Affairs (JIIA)
Abstract:
Promoting good governance and improving governance in Africa has drawn increasing attention from the international community as a new approach to solving a variety of problems such as military conflicts, poverty, and sluggish economic development. The question of how to achieve good governance came under the spotlight in the 1990s following the end of the Cold War era. Establishing good governance, along with democratization, has now come to be recognized an issue related to the "conditionality" imposed by donor countries on recipients in exchange for financial assistance.
Topic:
Democratization, Development, and Government
Political Geography:
Africa

53828. Yemen between Democratization and Prolonged Power

Author:
Hiroshi Matsumoto
Publication Date:
06-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Japan Institute Of International Affairs (JIIA)
Abstract:
The purpose of this paper is to present my own views on Yemen's moves to democratize. In order to do so, I will analyze a variety of issues related to the electoral system in Yemen and Yemeni political parties.
Topic:
Democratization
Political Geography:
Asia

53829. South Eastern Europe: From Stabiliation to European Integration

Author:
Erhard Busek
Publication Date:
04-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Abstract:
SEE remains an important area worthy of continued international attention and support. Things have improved but still a way to go before stability and prosperity are assured. Djindic assassination is a challenge yet also an opportunity. Responsibility primarily falls on to shoulders of the EU, both in terms of financial resources and political engagement. EU accept s this and US actively supports it. SP is one manifestation. SEE-EU Thessaloniki Summit represents centerpiece of this year's boost to the prospects for eventual integration into Europe. It will be an opportunity to signal EU political intentions as to next steps in the entire region. In my view this can only be a reaffirmed perspective for future membership. We need to show concrete results in order to avoid “fatigue” in competition with Iraq, North Korea and other hot spots.
Topic:
International Organization
Political Geography:
Europe and Israel

53830. Sino-Japanese Relations Entering A New Stage- With the Trend of the Times, Broader Perspective as A Fresh Starting Point

Author:
Yang Bojiang
Publication Date:
01-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Abstract:
Relations between China and Japan have weathered 30 turbulent years since the normalization of diplomatic ties in 1972. This period of 30 years can be divided roughly in half into the first and second parts. From 1972 to the late 1980s, when the world had the bipolar polygenetic political and military structures, the two countries took down the barriers of the Cold War to restore normal exchanges between the states and their cooperative relationship achieved rapid development in areas of trade, finance and technologies. In the period between the end of the Cold War and the present day, the bilateral relationship has entered the new stage where friction and collaboration coexist as do competition and cooperation amid the progress in political multipolarization and economic globalization of the world.
Topic:
International Trade and Finance and Regional Cooperation
Political Geography:
China and Asia