Abstract
62.2589 ANNAN, Jeannie, et al. –
What are the impacts of war on the participants, and do they vary by gender? Are ex-combatants damaged pariahs who threaten social stability, as some fear? Existing theory and evidence are both inconclusive and focused on males. New data and a tragic natural quasiexperiment in Uganda allow us to estimate the impacts of war on both genders, and assess how war experiences affect reintegration success. As expected, violence drives social and psychological problems, especially among females. Unexpectedly, however, most women returning from armed groups reintegrate socially and are resilient. Partly for this reason, post-conflict hostility is low. Theories that war conditions youth into violence find little support. [R, abr.]
62.2590 APOLTE, Thomas –
The paper critically assesses the Acemoglu-Robinson approach to revolutions, as it is focused on inequality of wealth or income rather than on collective-action problems. We show that income inequality is not a sufficient and not even a necessary condition for a revolution to occur. Rather, a necessary condition for a revolution is that any subpopulation can expect net benefits from it, for which inequality is not a precondition. As a result, a certain structure of commitment devices or their absence rather than inequality is crucial for explaining why revolutions sometimes occur and sometimes not. [R]
62.2591 ARLOFF, Arles –
Corruption and collusion between ruling politicians and the mafia are not recent phenomena that came on the scene with the rise of Berlusconi. They go back several centuries and are deeply rooted in the national political system. Drawing on the copious writings of Italian journalists and authors specializing in this question – and on the testimony of the “last of the judges,” [the author] reminds us how the mafia was built, from its earliest days, on the corruption of political power. She also shows the extent to which these corrupt practices came to be accepted and regarded almost as normal in that country. Italy remains in the control of “notables,” politicians and other dignitaries closely linked to the mafia (alta mafia) amid a prevailing code of silence, all of which increasingly makes the country resemble certain former, unlamented South American dictatorships. [R, abr.]
62.2592 ASHBROOK, John –
Istria provides a good example of how identity is politicized and how and why individuals adapt it to both internal and external influences. While in the past local and regional identities were politicized in response to colonization, more recently national divisions became more prominent. However, in the very recent past, Istrian identity again became politicized as many natives drew lines between themselves and what they saw as an external national influence emanating from Zagreb. In the 1990s, a renewed Croatian national movement competed with an Istrian regional movement. Istrian regionalists, seeking to justify taking and maintaining regional power and hoping to more quickly bring Croatia into the EU, used this new political tactic against the nationalizing Croatian government. [R, abr.]
62.2593 BABONES, Salvatore –
Sure, China's economic growth has been unprecedented, even miraculous. But the country is unlikely to keep up its breakneck pace. Instead, China's growth should level out soon, returning to rates more like those of comparable middle-income countries, such as Brazil, Mexico, and Russia. [R]
62.2594 BÁN, Zsófia –
What means are left in a situation where power itself works to leave Hungary's social structure and legal system in ruins? We could accept the destruction, indulge individually in the melancholy, or respond collectively to the common sorrow, a Hungarianized Hüzün. We could retire to an ivory tower or go abroad and, with binoculars, watch the destruction from there. This is all nonsense. The right attitude holds Keats's negative capability. In a situation full of uncertainties, secrets, and doubts, we should remain functional. It is all just a question of resolve. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2731]
62.2595 BARFIELD, Thomas –
In 2001, fearing ethnic strife, the international community pushed for a strong central government in Kabul. But such fears were based on a false reading of Afghan history and fostered a system of regional and ethnic patronage. To correct matters, the US should de-emphasize Afghanistan's ethnic fault lines and push for more devolved and inclusive governance. [R]
62.2596 BASEDAU, Matthias, et al. –
Theoretically, the “mobilization hypothesis” establishes a link between religion and conflict by arguing that particular religious structures are prone to mobilization; once politicized, escalation to violent conflict becomes more likely. Yet, despite the religious diversity in sub-Saharan Africa and the religious overtones in a number of African conflicts, this assumption has not yet been backed by systematic empirical research on the religion-conflict nexus in the region. The following questions thus remain: Do religious factors significantly impact the onset of (religious) armed conflict? If so, do they follow the logic of the mobilization hypothesis and, if so, in which way? To answer these questions, this article draws on a unique data inventory of all sub-Saharan countries for the period 1990–2008, particularly including data on mobilization-prone religious structures. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.1424]
62.2597 BASSET, Thomas J.; STRAUS, Scott –
In looking at the successful resolution of the political standoff in Côte d'Ivoire, most commentators have focused on the role of France and the UN. But this misses the real story: the critical role played by Africa's homegrown institutions. [R]
62.2598 BELLIN, Eva –
The events of the Arab Spring have suggested the necessity of rethinking the logic of authoritarian persistence in the Arab world. However, the internal variation in regime collapse and survival observed in the region confirms earlier analyses that the comportment of the coercive apparatus, especially its varying will to repress, is pivotal to determining the durability of the authoritarian regimes. At the same time, the trajectory of the Arab Spring highlights an empirical novelty for the Arab world, namely, the manifestation of huge, cross-class, popular protest in the name of political change, as well as a new factor that abetted the materialization of this phenomenon-the spread of social media. The latter will no doubt be a game-changer for the longevity of authoritarian regimes worldwide from now on. [R]
62.2599 BENAVIDES VANEGAS, Farid Samir –
The indigenous peoples of Colombia have used various forms of resistance to attempt to change their identities and appropriate their lands. Over time the emphasis has shifted from law and legal titles to marches and land-occupations to armed resistance and back again to the law. The legal liberalism that emerged with the 1991 Constitution in Colombia led to the demobilization of the indigenous movement of the time, as marches and land-occupations were abandoned in favor of lawsuits that identified violations of rights. Success in the courts did not result in any change in the government's policies or its model of development. Indigenous peoples' problems on the ground remained unresolved. In recent years, however, local organizations have rediscovered old forms of resistance and use the law as just one tool among many for protecting their rights. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.2162]
62.2600 BENGIO, Ofra –
For many years, the world used to hear about the Partiya Karkeren Kurdistan (PKK) terrorist actions in Turkey. Recently, however, a new factor entered the scene with great force: a popular uprising which resembles in some ways the Palestinian intifada and the other uprisings which have taken place since the end of 2010 in Arab countries. In the Kurdish lexicon it is called serhildan. The fusion between well-organized guerrilla activities and an open national movement has brought the Kurdish problem in Turkey into its most crucial phase ever. This essay analyzes the immediate and deeper causes for the Kurdish problem in Turkey and assesses its impact on the stability and security of Turkey itself and on Ankara's foreign relations as a whole. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.2405]
62.2601 BENNETT, Bruce W.; LIND, Jennifer –
In North Korea, the upcoming leadership transition in the Kim Jong-II regime will be a precarious time for the Kim family's hold on power. A collapse of the North Korean government could have several dangerous implications for East Asia, including “loose nukes,” a humanitarian disaster, a regional refugee crisis, and potential escalation to war between China and the US. To respond to a collapse and these problems, neighboring countries may perform several military missions to stabilize North Korea. These include the location and securing of North Korean weapons of mass destruction, stability operations, border control, conventional disarmament, and combat/deterrence operations. [R, abr.]
62.2602 BERG, Eiki; SOLVAK, Mihkel –
The UNDP report The Silent Majority Speaks (2007) demonstrates widespread consent and a popular desire for change while promoting a single state with strong regions as a compromise model for Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). Surprisingly, our own research (2009) on political legitimacy reveals quite the opposite tendencies, where political entities such as the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) and the Republika Srpska (RS) more often drift apart than merge together. What strikes us is the fact that the FBiH, which advocates a more integrated state, does not necessarily have more legitimate grounds for achieving that goal than the secessionist counterclaim of RS in its own right. The two entities remain worlds apart on a range of issues and agree only on rather abstract principles of an ideal political order. [R]
62.2603 BIGO, Didier; GUITTET, Emmanuel-Pierre –
This article questions the fashionable view that Northern Ireland is a counterinsurgency lesson to be learned for the global “war on terror”. It suggests that Britain's involvement in the Northern Ireland conflict can be regarded as a meaningful metaphoric utterance in efforts to analyze the practical failures and threat discourses of the global “war on terror”. Northern Ireland is more than a specific case-study: it acts as an appealing metaphor in attempts to understand the logics and pitfalls of the “war against terrorism,” where the increasing primacy granted to terror control means that Western governments are increasingly more willing to infringe otherwise inviolable rights in the pursuit of a supposed greater good – security. The article explores the political economy of unease, suspicion, exception and radicalization in the “war against terrorism”. [R, abr.]
62.2604 BLAYDES, Lisa; LO, James –
We argue that questions about the commitment of Islamic political opposition to democracy beyond a country's first free election may hinder Middle Eastern democratization. We extend A. Przeworski's canonical model of political liberalization as described in Democracy and the Market (1991). Democracy can occur when two types of political actors meet – regime liberalizers who prefer democracy to a narrowed dictatorship, and civil society elite who honor democratic principles. While a series of influential studies have argued that authoritarian elites block democratic transition because of their fear of the economic redistributive preferences of the median voter, this study suggests that regime liberalizers in the Middle East suspect political openings could become a vehicle for Islamists to seize power through free elections only to deny the median voter another chance to express their will. [R, abr.]
62.2605 BLOMBERG, S. Brock; BROUSSARD, Nzinga H.; HESS, Gregory D. –
Since 1995, growth in Sub-Saharan Africa has averaged more than 5% per year, reversing a two-decade decline of real income per capita. We explore the extent to which the nascent growth is sustainable or not due to higher incidences of terrorism and commodity price declines. Our analysis is based on a rich unbalanced panel data-set with annual observations on 46 countries from 1968 to 2004. We explore these data with cross-sectional and panel growth regression analysis and quantile regressions. We estimate the economic and statistical effect of terrorism on growth in Sub-Saharan Africa, controlling for a variety of other factors. We then investigate the extent to which there appears to be a structural break in the estimated relationships. We find that the terrorist-oriented fragility of Sub-Sahara has increased in the most recent period. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.1402]
62.2606 BOS, Ellen –
Hungary was considered a pioneer of democratic reforms in the Soviet bloc. After 1989, the new democratic system quickly achieved a very high degree of stability by regional standards. Consolidation, however, was accompanied by growing polarization between the political camps. The tendency of political elites to call into question the legitimacy and integrity of their political opponents not only strains the ability of democratic institutions to function. It also poses risks to Hungarian democracy. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2731]
62.2607 BOWEN, John R. –
The article examines the ways Islamic leaders have adapted to conditions in Britain, France, and the US by taking one problem – how a Muslim woman can obtain a religious divorce – and identifying contrasts across those three countries. It emphasizes two contrasts among the three countries: the degree of residential concentration of Muslims and the social effects such concentration may have, and the legal legitimacy of religion in civil courts. Muslim leaders have crafted institutions accordingly: in Britain, Shari'a councils emerging from tight-knit communities and regarded by jurists as relatively benign; in France, Islamic leaders constrained to emphasize the Islamic legitimacy of civil institutions; and in the US, leaders developing contractual instruments in response to relatively favorable judicial reactions. [R] [See Abstr. 62.1757]
62.2608 BOZÓKI, András –
Since taking office in April 2010, the government under V. Orbán has been restructuring Hungary's political system. It is moving away from the principles of a liberal constitutional state. In the name of “majority democracy,” the government has weakened the separation of powers, centralized the state, and expanded the prime minister's powers. The root causes of this change lie in the Hungary's political and social structural deficiencies. An illiberal democracy has now come into being. There is a risk that this will turn into a hybrid regime in which elements of democracy merge with elements of authoritarian rule. This would set a precedent in the EU. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2731]
62.2609 BRAGUES, George –
Portugal stands on the precipice of default. Contrary to much of the conventional wisdom, it has not come to this pass simply because of its inclusion in the euro group. Its troubles go back further, to the immediate aftermath of the country's 1974 revolution. At that time, the fateful constitutional decision was made to install a social democracy amid the remnants of the preceding dictatorship known as the Estado Novo. In the ensuing three and a half decades, the Estado Social grew to nearly half the size of Portugal's economy. The intervention in the marketplace entailed in this growth has undermined capital investment, leaving the economy in a moribund condition. To make matters worse, Portugal's democracy has succumbed to the regime's vulnerability to political parties' short-sighted rent-seeking. [R]
62.2610 BROOKS, Risa A. –
Since the 11 September 2001 attacks, analysts and public officials have expressed growing concern about the potential of Muslim citizens and residents of the US to plot attacks within the country's borders – “homegrown” terrorism. To assess this apparent threat, I examine what is known about the willingness and capacity of Muslim Americans to execute deadly attacks in the US. Three conditions, either alone or together, could contribute to an increasing threat of homegrown terrorism. The first concerns what is known about the radicalization of Muslim Americans and whether a surge in arrests in 2009 indicates a growing trend in Muslim American terrorism. The second relates to the capacity of aspiring militants to avoid detection as they prepare attacks. The third depends on the skills of aspiring terrorists and therefore their capacities to execute increasingly sophisticated attacks. [R, abr.]
62.2611 BRUDNY, Yitzhak M.; FINKEL, Evgeny –
The article discusses the impact of national identity on democratization and market reforms in Russia and Ukraine. We develop a concept of hegemonic national identity and demonstrate its role in Russian and Ukrainian post-communist political development. Russia's slide toward authoritarianism was to an important degree an outcome of the notions of national identity adopted by the main political players and society at large. In Ukraine, on the other hand, a hegemonic identity failed to emerge and the public discussion of issues of national identity led to the adoption of much more liberal and democratic notions of identity by a considerable part of the political elite. Adoption of this more liberal identity, in turn, was one of the main reasons for the Orange Revolution. [R, abr.]
62.2612 BURNHAM, Peter –
This article analyzes the Great Recession in terms of a movement from a discourse of financial crisis to a crisis of sovereign debt to the current phase of the politics of austerity and cuts. It suggests that the unifying factor in the response of policy-makers to the crisis is the attempt to recompose class relations and tighten market-based constraints over labor power and money. The strategy represents a clear illustration of the “political use of crisis” to reaffirm the stark reality of the “cash nexus”. Selective state intervention to contain and prevent the “contagion” of the crisis has increasingly politicized the management of the economy and fueled debate about the nature of money, the character of the state, and the morality of capitalist social relations. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.1851]
62.2613 BYMAN, Daniel –
This article examines Israel's attempts to weaken and defeat the Lebanese Hezbollah. It reviews Hezbollah's rise after the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, Hezbollah's successful effort to force Israeli forces to withdraw from Lebanon in 2000, the 2006 war, and Israeli attempts to deter Hezbollah. The article argues that Israel has largely failed to defeat Hezbollah militarily and politically. Israel's experience offers lessons for how terrorist groups learn, the effectiveness of terrorist attrition strategies against casualty-sensitivity states, the difficulties in coercing terrorist groups, and the importance of an information strategy. Finally, Israel's clash with Hezbollah indicates the importance of thinking of groups that are large and multi-faceted from a counterinsurgency paradigm. [R]
62.2614 CAGNAT, René –
The author in this first part the dangerous conditions surrounding the coalition's enforced departure in 2014, and provides regional explanations for the US's delaying posture. He continues to call for a rapid withdrawal of [French] forces from Central Asia. [R]
62.2615 CAMPBELL, David E.; PUTNAM, Robert D. –
The authors ask how America can simultaneously be religiously devout, religiously diverse, and religiously tolerant. They argue that America's relative religious harmony lies in the frequency of “religious bridging”. Almost all Americans have a friend or close family member of another religion, and these personal relationships keep America's religious melting pot from boiling over. [R]
62.2616 CARAMANI, Daniele; DEEGAN-KRAUSE, Kevin; MURRAY, Rainbow, eds. –
Chapters by various authors on all European countries, plus Australia, Canada Israel, Japan, New Zealand and the US.
62.2617 CARPENTER, Ted Galen –
Mexico's drug violence is spreading south into Central American countries that lack the stabilizing institutions and resources to cope with such dire challenges. The region's relative stability over the past two decades has been a refreshing divergence from the historical norm. Now Central America is in danger of reverting to the turmoil of previous times. [R]
62.2618 CARUSO, Raul; SCHNEIDER, Friedrich –
This paper empirically investigates the socio-economic causes of terrorism and political violence in a sample of 12 countries in Western Europe. First, we show that in western European countries the classical economic argument of opportunity cost if confirmed. That is, the larger is the set of current economic opportunities for individuals the lower is the likelihood or the willingness for them to be involved in a terrorist activity. Second, expected future economic growth seems to be associated with an increase in current terrorist activities. Eventually, our results also show that terrorist brutality (measured in people killed) is positively associated with real GDP per capita. [R] [See Abstr. 62.1402]
62.2619 CASE, William –
The great puzzle about Malaysia's politics is how, amid the country's rapid economic expansion and evolving social structure, authoritarian rule has persisted, basically unchanged, for more than three decades. Civil liberties have long been constrained by “draconian” amendments to the constitution. Elections, though regular and somewhat competitive, have been heavily manipulated. This monograph characterizes the kind of “hybrid” approach to authoritarian politics that has prevailed in Malaysia, conceptualized in term of electoral authoritarianism and single-party dominance. It also reviews the historical legacies and social structures that have long perpetuated this regime-type and party system, but now produce significant strains. The analysis focuses on the efforts made by Abdullah and Najib to manage rising societal tensions and factionalism within UMNO. The monograph rehearses key lessons and gauges the prospects in Malaysia for political change. [R, abr.]
62.2620 CHA, Victor D.; ANDERSON, Nicholas D. –
Is revolution similar to the Arab Spring possible in North Korea? While many believe that Pyongyang survived its greatest challenge in the 1990s, that crisis set off divisive processes and underlying tensions between state and society which have been developing for more than 20 years. [R]
62.2621 CHANG Yu-tzung; CHU Yun-han; HUANG Min-hua –
Over the last decade, a growing number of students of democracy have sought to develop means of framing and assessing the quality of democracy and identifying ways to improve the quality of democratic governance. We review the recent efforts to conceptualize and measure quality of democracy by way of introducing a comprehensive method for measuring some essential properties of liberal democracy. Next, we present an empirical assessment of the quality of democracy in Taiwan based on the sub-dimensions formulated by L. Morlino – specifically, rule of law, accountability, participation, competition, freedom, equality, and responsiveness. In the areas of accountability, participation, and freedom, Taiwan has made considerable progress. However, Taiwan's young democracy still has room for improvement in the areas of the rule of law, equality, and responsiveness. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2707]
62.2622 CHARI, Raj; BERNHAGEN, Patrick –
This article examines the causes of the financial and economic crisis in the Republic of Ireland. It first reviews the crisis in advanced capitalist democracies and then situates the Irish case in this context. It relates existing narratives and other evidence to the different theoretical explanations we survey (in this issue) in order to identify the most useful approaches to explaining the Irish crisis. Explanations focusing on the role of mass preferences and varieties of capitalism do not aid our efforts to understand the causes of the crisis or how it unfolded. By contrast, an explanation focusing on the role of lobbying is of some value, as are analyses of elite integration and the structural dependence of the Irish state on a thriving financial and property market. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.1446]
62.2623 CHATER, Khalifa –
The current wave of reform in the Maghreb is more a function of convenient timing of political and social calendars than a domino effect linked to the Arab Spring. The Islamist parties, which are the main players, are seeking to maintain a balance between their mentors in the Gulf and their Western partners – American and European. Pragmatism and opportunism are the watchwords in the current changes. [R]
62.2624 CIGAR, Norman –
This study examines the revitalized role of tribes in the Saudi system and, in particular, in terms of their relationship with the state, as well as the prospects and implications of their functioning for the stability and security of the country's social and political system. [R]
62.2625 COHEN, Suleiman I. –
Although past history contains examples of the rise and fall of world leading economies, the catch-up trends of China and India are unique. The paper highlights four unique features in leadership displacement. (1) When economic, demographic, and regional interactions are formally considered, leadership displacement would be of a greater magnitude than is implied by simple GDP comparisons. (2) The two economies appear to be more complementary to each other than competitive, which deepens the displacement effects. (3) An assessment of the external uncertainties suggests a likely acceleration of the displacement, while a brief analysis of involved internal risks suggests that such risks have subsided and are fading. (4) China and India have distinctly different socio-economic and polity systems [from] today's firm-dominated leading countries such as US and EU. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.2776]
62.2626 COOLE, Diana –
Although population growth in the UK is currently arousing widespread popular concern, political scientists have tended to ignore the issue while political elites are manifestly reluctant to address it. I consider a number of recent reports that both recognize the challenges posed by increasing numbers and ignore or reject the possibility of including a population dimension in policy responses. In particular, the article offers a detailed analysis of a recent Royal Commission's report on the environmental impact of demographic change in order to explore the reasons for this antipathy. [R]
62.2627 COTTRELL, M. Patrick; NELSON, Travis –
This article conducts a theoretical and empirical analysis of political protest activity surrounding the modern Olympic Games. The Olympics have seldom been explored from a political perspective within the mainstream IR and transnational protest literatures. We argue, however, that the Olympics provide a theoretically interesting context in which to examine political contention in IR in large part because they provide such a unique opportunity structure for a range of actors to exercise power in pursuit of their goals. The article presents an original dataset of all protest occurring between 1896 and 2008 and uses these data to show that not only has Olympic political contention grown substantially over time, but it also has evolved in interesting ways in terms of the particular actors engaged in contention, the tactics they use, and the resistance they face. [R, abr.]
62.2628 COUSTILLIÈRE, Jean-François –
The “Arab springs” are coherent neither in the ambitions they reveal nor in their evolution. Specifically in the Maghreb, this heterogeneity would provide an objective and distinct assessment allowing the emergence of a cooperation different from the prior proposals, from Europeans concerned by the defense of shared interests. This cooperation will have to really fit the new choices of society when they expressed within the scope of a legitimate state. [R]
62.2629 CROSS, Mai'a K. Davis –
Smart power is defined as the effective combination of both hard and soft power. The concept is increasingly used in policy and academic debates, yet a clear understanding of what it actually means is still lacking. As a result, there is little serious consideration of how smart power can contribute to long-standing debates about power in international relations. This article clarifies the meaning of smart power through first analyzing its main components – hard and soft power – separately; and second, bringing these components together to re-conceptualize smart power. The aim is to make smart power more analytically useful, and to outline the various ways in which hard and soft power can be combined effectively. The author argues that Europe is mainly a soft power and sometimes a smart power. [R]
62.2630 CRUZ, José Miguel –
Why does Nicaragua have less violent crime than Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras? All these countries underwent political transitions in the 1990s. Many explanations point to the legacies of war, socioeconomic underdevelopment, and neoliberal structural reforms. However, these arguments do not fully explain why, despite economic reforms conducted throughout the region, war-less Honduras and wealthier Guatemala and El Salvador have much more crime than Nicaragua. This article argues that public security reforms carried out during the political transitions shaped the ability of the new regimes to control the violence produced by their own institutions and collaborators. The survival of violent entrepreneurs in the new security apparatus and their relationship with new governing elites foster the conditions for the escalation of violence in northern Central America. [R, abr.]
62.2631 CULCASI, Karen –
Through a critical reading of its cartographic construction since the fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1919, I provide unique insights into the numerous, complex, and even contradictory geopolitics of the construction of the “Arab Homeland”. My analysis of several hundred maps produced in eight different states of the Arab Homeland reveals that from the mid-1950s onward, the Arab Homeland was not only commonplace, but also how this supranational territorial entity confused and at times defied generally accepted divisions of the world. Expanding upon literature on supranational entities and the state, I show that territory is not only still important in our globalized world, but that it also has a complex and at times contradictory relationship with the concepts and scales of the state and the supranational. [R, abr.]
62.2632 DAGUZAN, Jean-François –
Al-Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) murders and kidnappings stress roughly upon the presence of a resilient and may be powerful terrorist group in the Maghreb-Sahel territory. This group woke up not spontaneously. It the result of successive rebirth of the radical Islam in this zone. Both globalization and disorganization of the post-Soviet world favored the rising up of radical Islam as a political alternative as well to the local authoritarian regimes as the western models: glocalization, fluidity, rhizome, continuous recombingand instantaneous communication are the constitutive sociological patterns of this new object. This paper aims to analyze AQIM front to the global dimension of the initial pre-2001 network and to determine the group and the consequences of its action in the geopolitical conditions in the present Maghreb and Sahel region. [R] [First of a series of articles on Al-Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb. See also Abstr. 62.2653, 2689]
62.2633 DOCHARTAIGH, Niall Ó. –
This article examines the development of cooperative relationships in back-channel communication and their impact on intraparty negotiation. It draws on extensive newly available evidence on back-channel communication in the Irish peace process to expand the range of detailed case studies on a topic which is shrouded in secrecy and resistant to academic inquiry. It analyzes the operation of a secret back channel that linked the Irish Republican Army to the British government over a period of 20 years, drawing on unique material from the private papers of the intermediary, Brendan Duddy, and a range of other primary sources. Interaction through this back channel increased predictability and laid a foundation of extremely limited trust by providing information and increasing mutual understanding. [R, abr.]
62.2634 DORLHIAC, Renaud –
Like its emblem, the two-headed eagle, Albania is still a paradoxical state. While its foreign policy's dynamics are indeed exemplary, those of its domestic policy are still marked by often disabling practices. At the international and regional level, Tirana has been able to increase its initiatives and has cleverly managed to join many multinational and multilateral institutions, especially in the Balkans, within which Albania is involved in many projects. In contrast, its strong political will seems to have difficulties in becoming a true compound of domestic policy. Between the two parties which are parts of the political field, there is an exacerbated rivalry which highlights their difficulties to consider national interest above their own political apparatus. [R]
62.2635 DRESSEL, Björn –
Democracy in the Philippines is a paradox. It was the first country in the region to topple authoritarian rule. Signs of a vibrant democracy are extensive: high voter-turnout, civic engagement, institutional arrangements that theoretically promote accountability and safeguard rights and liberties. Yet the flaws in the democratic process are also extensive: elite dominance, institutional weakness, and widespread abuse of public office, which suggest true representation is largely illusory. Concerns about the quality of democracy have become central to political discourse in the Philippines, as seen in debates about constitutional reform and the hopes associated with the election of reform candidate B. Aquino III as president in 2010. This analysis examines how oligarchic structures and dysfunctional institutions threaten the emergence of true democracy in the Philippines. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2707]
62.2636 EDWARDS, Aaron –
The use of deterrence, coercion and brute force in effecting peace in asymmetric conflict is often overlooked and a premium instead is placed on diplomacy and bargaining between states and non-state terrorist groups. Indeed, the relative success of the Northern Ireland “peace process” since the 1990s has amplified the sound of dialogue as a means of ending violent conflict in deeply divided societies. This article adopts a different perspective. Borrowing from strategic theory, it examines the British state's application of force in bringing the Provisional IRA to the negotiating table. It argues that in the “battle of wills” between the British state's security forces and the IRA, a more coercive strategy was adopted by Britain than is openly admitted in the scholarly literature on the Northern Ireland “troubles”. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.2050]
62.2637 ETZIONI, Amitai –
Commentators in the Western media, the US Congress and academia are increasingly contending that China is on its way to becoming a threatening global force, an adversary, if not an enemy. This article examines whether those views are justified, after first establishing the importance of critically assessing all claims that a nation is turning into an adversary. The examination proceeds by summarizing the arguments of those who consider China an adversary in the making – the “adversarians” – and the responses of those who hold China is leaning toward a peaceful development and should be engaged – the “engagers”. The discussion analyzes the debate with regard to the different sectors of power: military/geopolitical, economic and ideational. The conclusion explores alternative American responses to China's rising power in each of the three sectors. [R, abr.]
62.2638 EUGSTER, Beatrice; STRIJBIS, Oliver –
Proponents of constitutional patriotism advocate the promotion of a political national identity. Whether a national identity founded on common political values is viable, however, remains a matter of dispute. The Swiss nation is one of the few empirical cases cited by those who argue that a political national identity can be a sufficient guarantor of institutional stability and social coherence; indeed, Switzerland is widely regarded as a prototype of the political nation. Our analysis empirically tests this claim. We rely on classical typologies of national identity. We use a more finely graded typology than the usual dichotomies, however – one which allows for combined types – and to focus on individual perceptions of national identity at the mass- and elite-levels. [R, abr.]
62.2639 FAUCHER, Philippe –
Sustained growth and an assertive foreign policy are the manifestations of the new “emergent” Brazil. Economic growth finds its origin in a combination of democratic consolidation and macro-economic stability in a brief period of international prosperity. Cautious and well-designed interventions by monetary authorities, with limited political intromission, have reduced the disturbances caused by the international financial crisis of 2008. Social programs, consolidated since the late 1990, and rigorously implemented have succeeded in alleviating extreme poverty in regions. Brazil has renewed its contribution to international governance. It challenged the stronghold of rich countries on multilateral organizations, established new relations with developing countries, joined the most outspoken in favor of democratization and contributed decisively in UN sponsored peace missions. recurrent urban violence and profound social inequalities are slowing the pace of reform. The threat of a return of economic instability and social upheaval are the challenges facing Lula's successor. [R] [See Abstr. 62.1587]
62.2640 FEKETE, Liz –
A. B. Breivik, perpetrator of the Norwegian massacre, was motivated by a belief in a Muslim conspiracy to take over Europe. Extreme and aberrant his actions were, but elements of this conspiracy theory circulate in Europe today across a broad political spectrum, with internet-focused counter-jihadist activists at one end and neoconservative and cultural conservative columnists, commentators and politicians at the other. The political fallout from the circulation of these ideas ranges from test cases over free speech in the courts to agitation on the ground from defense leagues, anti-minaret campaigners and stop Islamization groups. This Muslim conspiracy bears many of the hallmarks of the “Jewish conspiracy theory,” yet, ironically, its adherents, some of whom were formerly linked to anti-Semitic traditions, have now, because of their fear of Islam and Arab countries, become staunch defenders of Israel and Zionism. [R, abr.]
62.2641 FENOPETOV, Vladimir, et al. –
This article examines the security situation of the Black Sea region. The emphasis is on non-conventional threats, primarily radiological and nuclear terrorism. The approach is both country-based (US, EU, Russia, etc.) and thematic (i.e., terrorism). The rationale of this duality is to create a holistic and unified framework of analysis where the threat of radiological and nuclear terrorism can be approached from different angles and perspectives. [R]
62.2642 FERRARA, Federico –
This article, forming part of this volume's effort to map the qualities of democracy in Asia, describes Thailand (as of mid-2011) as a formal democracy devoid of each of the “qualities” that promote democracy's full realization. Aside from offering an overall descriptive assessment, the article explains the relationship between the various qualities of democracy observed in Thailand over the past decade. While Thaksin Shinawatra's tenure in office (2001–2006) offers a compelling illustration for the proposition that “not all good things go together,” virtually every dimension of the “goodness” or “quality” of Thailand's democracy has experienced a generalized decline since Thaksin's ousting in 2006. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2707]
62.2643 FILIU, Jean-Pierre –
Following in the footsteps of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in Tunisia and Hosni Mubarak in Egypt, Muammar Qaddafi of Libya is the third dictator to be swept away in the democratic revolts of the Arab Spring. His fall, which only just preceded the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, brings symbolic closure to a decade marked by the shadow of Al Qaeda and the “global war on terror”. Astonishingly, Qaddafi had managed to turn the international situation to his advantage. After the toppling of Saddam Hussein, he quickly dismantled his non-conventional arms in exchange for guarantees for the safeguard of his regime. Such opportunism allowed, for a time, a rapprochement with the West. But a stubborn (if heterogeneous) domestic resistance finally exploded in the winter of 2010–2011, and succeeded in ousting the “Guide of the Revolution” after months of bloody combat. The new Libya is a major player in the emancipation process that has only just begun in the southern Mediterranean.
[R]
62.2644 FRENKIEL, Émilie –
The intellectual elites of the country agree on a democratic political horizon for China. However, current reforms seem not to fit into this overall plan. Furthermore, the elites are divided on the institutional nature of a future democracy and the speed with which it should be approached. This democracy cannot be reduced to an institutional advent of multiparty elections, as evidenced by the many current local democracy experiments. [R] [See Abstr. 62.1428]
62.2645 FUNG, Archon –
A review essay of Leonardo Avritzer, Participatory Institutions in Democratic Brazil (2009); Gianpaolo Baiocchi, Patrick Heller, and Marcelo K. Silva. Palo Alto, eds., Bootstrapping Democracy: Transforming Local Governance and Civil Society in Brazil (2011); Andrew Selee and Enrique Peruzzotti, eds., Participatory Innovation and Representative Democracy in Latin America (2009); Brian Wampler, Participatory Budgeting in Brazil: Contestation, Cooperation, and Accountability (2007).
62.2646 FÜRST, Heiko –
Approximately 2.5 million Hungarians live as national minorities in states bordering Hungary. Budapest's policy of promoting these communities so that they may preserve their national identity is met with skepticism. Neighboring countries are concerned that this policy could trigger secessionist efforts. Before accession to the EU, it had been possible to settle the conflict-laden issue of individual and collective minority rights. International tensions have appeared again. Hungary's adoption of a new citizenship law, which allows Hungarians living abroad to acquire Hungarian citizenship, and its current confrontational, ethno-nationalist politics of nationhood are responsible for this. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2731]
62.2647 GAYNOR, Niamh –
Is civic associational engagement within micro-policy fora “good” for democracy more broadly? Drawing from a study of civic associational engagement in Ireland's national Social Partnership process over a ten-year period this article argues that, where deliberations become overshadowed by more traditional communicative norms of bargaining and negotiation, it is not. Evidence is presented from the Irish case to show how civic actors, having internalized the dominant communicative norms of the process, have contributed toward a narrowing of the deliberative space within, but most particularly outside, this process. This has resulted in a considerably weakened public sphere with neither the institutional apparatus nor the discursive capacity to seek accountability from political and civic leaders at a time of profound crisis within the Irish state. [R, abr.]
62.2648 GHERGHINA, Sergiu; JIGLAU, George –
The complex dynamics of inter-ethnic relations in post-communist countries leads to a puzzle: why do some ethnic minorities mobilize to obtain political representation whereas others do not? We use qualitative comparative analysis to capture complex causal patterns explaining the formation of ethnic parties and to analyze the combined effect of social, economic and political variables. Our article bridges a significant gap in the literature that usually focuses on simple explanations for the existence of ethnic parties. The analysis reveals that the political mobilization of ethnic minorities is explained by institutional elements often underemphasized in existing theories and research. [R]
62.2649 GIACCARDI, Thierry –
The author follows many leads to pin down the concept of the West and define its complex form. An approach based on civilization remains the best way of characterizing the personality of the West, but it leads to an inevitable culture war. [R] [See Abstr. 62.1450]
62.2650 GOLDSMITH, Leon –
Since 2000, there has been varied academic analysis about the nature and direction of modern Syrian politics. The Syrian political crisis which began 15 March 2011, however, came as a surprise to most, and will no doubt spark a new round of debate about its causes and possible effects. One aspect widely overlooked or misread is the critical role of the Syrian Alawite community in determining Syria's future. Ongoing Alawite support to the Assad regime is by no means assured. The foundations of Alawite approval of the regime have steadily eroded during the second generation of Assad rule in a process, which resembles Ibn Khaldun's theory for the decline of group 'asabiyya in the second stage of dynasties. The one resilient factor that ties the Alawite community to the Syrian regime, however, is sectarian insecurity. [R, abr.]
62.2651 GRAY, Kevin –
Through a case study of Taiwan, this paper addresses recent debates surrounding the transformation of developmental states in East Asia. While a number of authors have cited the Taiwanese state as being both cautious and resilient in the midst of global restructuring, this paper critically engages with such arguments by highlighting the dynamic and mutually constitutive relations between the forms of social relations that underpin late development and the wider geopolitical system in which such development occurs. Specifically, Taiwanese industrialization can be viewed as an outcome of the US intervention in the Chinese civil war and subsequent exclusion of China from the regional political economy in the period between the Korean and Vietnam Wars. [R, abr.]
62.2652 GRAY, Vanessa Joan –
A number of communities in rural Colombia are implementing nonviolence and sustainable resource projects with external support as a means of resisting displacement and dispossession. Practicing peace and rejecting relations with armed groups is a self-protective measure that raises the visibility of the communities' neutrality and status as noncombatants. Community residents' strong motivation to continue to live in a specific landscape and maintain small-scale, local-resource-based livelihoods opens potential sources of support beyond the realm of human rights, humanitarian relief, and solidarity organizations to groups interested in protecting traditional cultures and conserving natural landscapes. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2162]
62.2653 GUIDÈRE, Mathieu –
The revolutionary spirit which has run through the Arab World is surprising everyone, including the radical Islamists and the terrorist organizations. In the Maghreb, the fall of the ben Ali regime and the reforms made in Morocco had first destabilized AQIM – which has actually been marginalized in regards to these popular demonstrations. However, after the fall of Colonel Qaddafi AQIM fighters were galvanized believing that the solution to the dictatorial regimes lied in armed strength. In Algeria, the 2011 Ramadan proved to be the deadliest month since the 2006 creation of AQIM. Never before had Droukdal's organization led so many suicide attacks in such a short time. The “Arab spring” is clearly a turning point because the future of the terrorist organization depends entirely on its outcome. This article proposed an inventory of the organization during the time of this great geopolitical and strategical upheaval. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2632]
62.2654 GUNTER, Michael M. –
Many Arabs still resent the Kurdish claims to autonomy as a challenge to the Arab patrimony and see a federal state for the Iraqi Kurds within Iraq as simply a prelude to secession forced upon the Arabs at a moment of temporary weakness following the war in 2003. When will the Iraqi Arabs organize themselves and start trying to reduce the power of the Kurds again? This paper analyzes this developing situation and tentatively concludes that the two sides are most likely to continue to coexist in a troublesome but peaceful relationship. [R, abr.]
62.2655 HAMILTON, Lawrence –
This article submits, with N. Mandela, that despite political freedom and a lauded liberal constitution, South Africa remains collectively unfree, especially if freedom is understood as power across four economic and political dimensions. G.A. Cohen's notion of the “collective unfreedom” of the proletariat is still very useful in understanding the extent of unfreedom in South Africa. There are four main reasons for the condition of collective unfreedom in South Africa: poverty; inequality; the electoral system; and macroeconomic policy. In the end, though, the article contests Mandela's claim regarding the force of our moral duty to others to enhance their freedom; rather, it is the realization that our individual freedom depends upon the freedom of others that would motivate all citizens to secure the freedom as power of all South Africans. [R, abr.]
62.2656 HAN, Enze –
This paper examines two contrasting cases of ethnic-group political activism in China – the Uighurs in Xinjiang and the Mongols in Inner Mongolia –to explain the former's political activism and the letter's lack thereof. Given similar challenges and pressures, how can we explain the divergent patterns in these two groups' political behavior? This paper forwards the argument that domestic factors alone are not sufficient to account for differences in the groups' political behavior. Instead, international factors have to be included to offer a fuller and satisfactory explanation. The paper illustrates how three types of international factors – big power support, external cultural ties, and Uighur diaspora community activism – have provided opportunities and resources to make the Uighur political activism sustainable. [R, abr.]
62.2657 HAO Zhidong –
In response to Western criticism of the Chinese government policy in Tibet, President Hu Jintao says that the Tibetan problem is not about ethnicity, religion, or human rights, but about national unity or integrity. In fact, the Tibetan problem is about all of these things, and they are intertwined with one another. This paper [examines] each of them from an institutionalist perspective to see in what way such an understanding of the problems may help solve them. [After] explaining new institutionalism, I analyze these problems from a sociological new institutionalist perspective: (1) sovereignty and autonomy; (2) ethnicity and human rights; and (3) culture and religion. Finally I look at the possibility of social change under the institutionalist constraints. [R, abr.]
62.2658 HARRIS, Alistair –
The article analyzes how traditional tribal and social structures have been undermined by changing socioeconomic and political norms exacerbated by President A. Salih's style of neo-patrimonial, corrosive patronage politics, not by the inherently tribal nature of Yemeni society. As respect for tribal norms has eroded and resource scarcity has intensified, the fabric of tribal society has fundamentally altered and conflict in Yemen has spiraled. The article also explores whether the tribal areas of the country now function as safe havens for Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). [R, abr.]
62.2659 HASTINGS, Justin V. –
What explains the course of Uighur-related violence in Xinjiang and Central Asia since 1990? I argue that the locations and types of violent incidents were influenced by a combination of Chinese government policies and the political geography of Xinjiang. Specifically, 1990 to 1996 were dominated by logistically complex incidents in a low-level violent campaign in Xinjiang. The Strike Hard campaign in 1996 brought about an increase in logistically simple incidents in Xinjiang and some violence in Central Asia as Uighur separatists had trouble moving people, information and weapons across the well-guarded, difficult terrain of Xinjiang's borders. China's rapprochement with Central Asian countries in the late 1990s led after 2001 to a dramatic decrease in Uighur-related violence in general, but also signaled the appearance of logistically creative attacks that required little planning or materials. [R, abr.]
62.2660 HEGINBOTHAM, Eric; RATNER, Ely; SAMUELS, Richard J. –
Japan is undergoing profound changes that are empowering its political leadership at the expense of its bureaucracy. But rather than bringing about a clean transfer of institutional authority, the reforms have created gridlock, particularly over US bases in Japan. The US-Japanese alliance is not dead, but it is getting more complicated. [R]
62.2661 HELLYER, H. A. –
This article gives an overview of the political arena and the various political forces at play in post-Mubarak Egypt. With many unpredictable variables currently at play in Egyptian politics, the result of the elections scheduled for November 2011 will likely surprise many, both within the country and beyond. The article also looks at what impact the political changes in Egypt may have had on the relationship between Egypt and Israel. There have been increasingly frequent demands within Egypt to revise the Camp David accords – but not at the expense of war with Israel. While Israel is unlikely to accept any calls to revise the peace treaty, Arab public opinion has become newly relevant for policy-makers and Israel will have to make corresponding adjustments to its regional security strategy. [R, abr.]
62.2662 HORVATH, Robert –
256
This article examines the emergence of a mobilizational authoritarian regime during V. Putin's second term. It argues that this development was shaped by the repercussions within Russia of “velvet revolutions” in former Soviet republics. On the one hand, it traces the growth of the perception that Russia faced an imminent revolutionary threat. On the other, it shows how the Kremlin's counter-measures – the creation of the youth movement Nashi, the imposition of controls on the NGO sector, and the elaboration of “sovereign democracy” as an unofficial state ideology – were directed against a domestic threat. [R]
62.2663 HURST, William; SORACE, Christian –
The article analyzes the historical evolution of “class ideology” in China, especially since 1978. It finds that the crisis affected rural-urban migrants far more substantially than it did workers in the formal (mostly state-owned) urban sector. While this situation presents numerous challenges (for the central state, a crisis of legitimacy; for the local state, a crisis of managing social unrest as well as providing welfare; and, for the workers, a crisis of survival), it also creates opportunities for new conceptualizations and practices of class-politics. We discuss the nascent articulation of a few of these opportunities in labor union activity, protests, and emergent rights-awareness, and legal consciousness among workers, as well as the implications for China's model of economic development. [R] [See Abstr. 62.1851]
62.2664 HÜSKEN, Thomas –
This paper explores basic patterns of the recent political culture in the Cyrenaica region of Libya with special regard to the revolutionary events that began in February 2011. The political culture in Cyrenaica is shaped by the heterarchy of tribal, state-like, Islamic and civil urban forms of political organization. This comprises varying political practices and rationales as well as different conceptions of power, rule and also of legitimacy. The concept of “heterarchy” or “heterarchisation” of political order describes the plurality of competing power foci in Libya. The paper argues that tribal and extended family politics play a key role in this setting. [R]
62.2665 HUTCHISON, Marc L.; JOHNSON, Kristin –
We contend that government capability is a primary factor in shaping individuals' ascription of legitimacy to the state. Capable governments foster perceptions of legitimacy while poor institutional performance decreases the degree to which individuals trust their government. While some tests of this relationship exist in extant literature, much of the work fails to integrate both micro- and macro-level factors, is confined to regions with established state performance, or is based on single-country studies. Our approach avoids many of these deficiencies by using 32 Afrobarometer surveys collected across 16 different countries from 2000 to 2005 and employing hierarchical linear models to estimate the effects of temporal-specific, state-level variables on levels of individual trust. [R, abr.]
62.2666 IBARRA, Luis –
Wage regulation has been at the center of a growing number of labor disputes. The article analyzes changes in government policy as a response to institutional tensions and explains how the struggles have fared. It shows how conflicts have led to outcomes that not only contradict the government's guidelines but also express a tendency of workers toward political autonomy. [R]
62.2667 IM Hyug Baeg –
Koreans have worked hard to improve the quality of their democracy. They have promoted the rule of law, accountability, control of corruption, freedom, and responsiveness, and made an effort to make government more effective. They are also committed to economic freedom. In relation to the rule of law, significant attention has been devoted to reducing terrorism and violence, making government more effective, and enhancing regulatory quality. However, with regard to accountability, control of corruption, and transparency, Korea has still a long way to go. The analysis of democratization and improvements in the quality of democracy to date suggest that Korea has adapted to the changing economic environment and is sustaining its economic growth. This has been accompanied by social and economic polarization and a consequent demand for more and better welfare services. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2707]
62.2668 INDURTHY, Rathnam –
The article identifies core problems such failure to provide good governance, failure to eliminate feudalism, failure to put down the Islamic terrorism, failure to bring the military under civilian control, failure to resolve the Kashmir dispute with India, failure to deal with rampant corruption, and the failure to resolve the separatist Balochistan issue, it discusses these problems in a detailed fashion to explain why Pakistan faces an uncertain future in terms being ability to maintain itself as a stable functioning democracy, and why it is becoming a failed state. [A]
62.2669 IÑIGUEZ, Diego –
In Germany, green issues have become a key element of the political agenda across the whole political spectrum. Various surveys show that the Green Party enjoys significant support among the population, and may be able to compete with “classic” parties, SPD and CDU, in the years to come. The Merkel administration has announced a nuclear total phase out plan, in order to turn Germany into the next green energy world leader. This strong political shift may lead to a deep reorganization of the political and social structures as well as the values which characterize Germany since the Reunification.
62.2670 JONES, Clive –
Beset by multiple security challenges, not least the emergence of a powerful Al Qaeda franchise, Yemen appears the antithesis of the “Weberian” state model. But while these challenges are acute, they should be seen as part of a wider “political field,” dominated by powerful tribes and conditioned by patrimonial networks that have long framed the modes of political exchange between the center and periphery. This remains crucial to understanding the wider eddies of tribal politics in Yemen, and in turn, the limits of a purely military response by Washington as it seeks to confront Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. [R]
62.2671 KAUFMAN, Stuart J. –
This article examines the utility of opportunity theory, framing analysis, and symbolic politics theory in explaining the causes of ethnic war, focusing on the 1970s Mindanao case. Opportunity variables are present as expected, but process-tracing shows they do not operate according to the hypothesized mechanisms. The framing approach identifies several important dynamics. The resonance of frames was influenced by the salience of the issue highlighted, the narrative fidelity of the frame to preexisting cultural beliefs, the credibility of leaders proposing them, and processes of frame bridging. Symbolic politics theory offers the most complete explanation, embracing most of the alternative explanations' insights while filling in their logical gaps. The symbolist analysis begins with group myths justifying hostility on both sides, the result of past Christian-Muslim warfare. [R, abr.]
62.2672 KEMPF, Olivier –
The author recounts the values of the Atlantic Alliance resulting from the UN Charter and shows that western values have not greatly changed over the years, apart from the adoption of a resolutely defensive posture. He suggests that the positive values of free criticism and malleability are at the root of the West's continuing flexibility. [R] [See Abstr. 62.1450]
62.2673 KHADER, Bichara – “
The Arab revolutions are part of a long-term gradual transformation that has seen post-colonial paternalistic states become predatory states. In the best cases, the survival strategies of authoritarian regimes have implemented a facade of liberalization and relied on the legitimacy granted them by a Western obsession with the destabilization of the region. But the passage of the revolutionary upsurge towards a democratic future may be long. [R] [See Abstr. 62.1428]
62.2674 KINSKY, Esther –
Hungary's right-wing politicians invoke the dream of an ethnically pure “hinterland,” of a homeland of long-suppressed “true Hungarian” values whose turn has now finally come again. G. Doerner and I. Csurka, the newly appointed directors of Budapest's New Theatre, even want to rename the house “Hinterland Theatre”. A name with a program. But how do things look in the hinterland? A visit to the country's southeast, the small part of the Banat on the Romanian and Serbian borders shows: decline and poverty dominate the picture. But rebels were always at home there. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2731]
62.2675 KITTEL, Bernhard; LINDNER, Diana –
This paper analyzes the language behavior in the bilingual society of Belarus. Therefore we look at language usage in dependence of individual values. The development of those values is considered under a macro- and micro sociological perspective. The theoretical approach examines language behavior in consequence of politically created language structures on the one hand and in consequence of integration in social interaction structures on the other hand. Hence a special imprint of cultural identity arises, which is expressed by language behavior. This approach is used for the examination of language behavior in Belarus. The influence of corresponding socio-economic and cultural indicators of language usage is estimated by a multinomial logit model. [R]
62.2676 KOLÅS, Åshild –
Ceasefires are often seen as a simple measure to end violence and allow more substantive negotiations to begin. Contemporary conflict-resolution models thus posit the ceasefire as a basic step in the peace-building trajectory. Offering an in-depth analysis of Naga militancy in Northeast India, this article argues that ceasefires should rather be understood as a part of the dynamics of conflict. Northeast India is a site of protracted conflict involving multiple contestants, where Naga militant organizations play a key role. A string of ceasefires since 1997 between the Indian government and the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (NSCN) has contained fighting between security forces and militants, while violence has continued unabated between NSCN factions and among an array of other armed groups in the area claimed as “Nagalim,” with serious consequences for local communities. [R, abr.]
62.2677 KUHELJ, Alenka –
The article focuses on rise of nationalism and xenophobia in Slovenia. It considers the issue of unrecognized minorities in Slovenia that have no minority rights, despite being large groups. A particular issue in this relation for Slovenia is the “Erased” – the individuals who did not acquire Slovenian citizenship when Slovenia seceded from federal Yugoslavia – and despite the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) decision, the Slovenian state has still not recognized their rights, which were violated in the post-independence period. The article also examines two other minorities in Slovenia, the Jews and the Roma. The article finds Slovenia to be a closed, non-globalized society which despite its constitutional declaration to protect the rights of minorities and other national communities, is seeking to retain a politically and culturally homogeneous nation-state. [R, abr.]
62.2678 LARIVERA, Luciano –
Moldova is Europe's poorest country, which however occupies a strategic location. Since 1990, Transnistria has achieved secession, not even recognized by Russia, which has however accepted a de facto protectorate. Moldova is suffering from a domestic handicap, the chronic opposition of parties. This weakens its bargaining position vis-à-vis both Russia and the EU, which its government hopes to join. But even if 70 percent of its inhabitants are interested in accession to the EU, the country is not divided in two. In elections, voters continue to be determined by ethnic and language factors, and the pro-Russian Communist party retains its strength. As a consequence, Parliament is unable to elect a President of the Republic. [R, transl.]
62.2679 LEE Kwangkun –
The trimodal framework of core-semiperiphery-periphery has been challenged by globalization theorists. This article is not only an anti-criticism of critics but also a criticism of the trimodality itself. Against critics, I argue that the national state is still a meaningful unit of world inequalities. But I also argue that semiperiphery has been decomposed since the late-1970s. It implies that the semiperiphery may not be a constant feature of the capitalist world-economy for a longue-durée but an historical product specific to two decades of development in 1960–1970s. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2751]
62.2680 LEE Siu-yau; YU Yim-fong –
Widespread homeownership has traditionally been considered a favorable factor for the stability of democracies in Europe and America. Analysis of variance in perceived legitimacy between Singapore and Hong Kong suggests that the stabilizing effect of widespread homeownership does not only apply to democracies, but also to authoritarian regimes. This article proposes that a regime, be it democratic or not, tends to enjoy a higher level of legitimacy when homeownership is more popular, ceteris paribus. Our finding sheds light on the conventional wisdom on several scores, particularly by extending the analysis of the political impacts of homeownership to Asian countries, and reaffirming its importance in maintaining political stability. [R]
62.2681 LEFFLER, Melvyn P. –
It is tempting to see the 9/11 [2001] attacks as having fundamentally changed US foreign policy. It is also wrong. The G.W. Bush administration may have gone over the top in responding, but its course was less novel than generally believed. A quest for primacy and military supremacy, a readiness to act proactively and unilaterally, and a focus on democracy and free markets – all are long-standing features of US policy. [R]
62.2682 LEMAY-HÉBERT, Nicolas –
Studies increasingly highlight the limits of state-building conducted “from the top-down”. Building on the literature and using a Rosenauian concept in a novel way, this article posits that international interventions create a “bifurcation of the two worlds”. Departing from a study of Kosovo and Timor-Leste, the article posits that the massive arrival of staff involved in international governance will create a social gap between the international and the local “worlds,” which will in turn become a target of narratives of resistance by local actors. This bifurcation is exemplified by the “white car syndrome,” a concept representing the horde of white UN vehicles accompanying major interventions and developed in this contribution. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.1503]
62.2683 LI Cheng –
China's incoming collective leadership is a paradox of hope and fear with power divided between two coalitions – the elitists, or princelings, and populists – and new factional dynamics between them. China's political and economic future will depend on their ability to work together. [R]
62.2684 LIESKE, Joel –
Lieske has recently developed a new measure of state culture that appears to be a much better predictor of state performance than other commonly used measures including per capita income, I. Sharkansky's index of D.J. Elazar's typology, and R.E. Hero's index of racial and ethnic diversity. Here, we show why uni- and multi-dimensional reductions of Elazar's and Lieske's typologies and other measures do not predict and explain the variation in representative indicators of state performance nearly as well. To lay the groundwork for a more rigorous understanding of state culture, and to integrate it with the work of Hero on diversity and R. Putnam on social capital, we also develop and test an evolutionary theory that draws on M.N. Merger's theory of ethnic competition and T. Vanhanen's theory of ethnic nepotism. [R]
62.2685 LIN Kun-Chin –
China has one of the densest road networks of any emergent country. However, data for the national and provincial levels show two puzzling trends: (1) growth of the length of highways has tapered off since 2003, despite policy shocks designed to produce the contrary effect; (2) Central and Western China continue to emphasize high-class roads, despite their urgent antipoverty and market-networking needs. We postulate that federal fiscal institutions have strongly shaped the motivations of provincial leaders as key political entrepreneurs in bargaining over competing priorities and funding options. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.1587]
258
62.2686 LIN Kun-Chin –
The four volumes reviewed examine the common theme of the sustainability of China's authoritarian regime as it faces tremendous centripetal forces of market expansion, increased administrative complexity, and social differentiation brought about by the post-Mao Zedong reforms. I argue that the shared focus of several authors on the Chinese Communist party's exercise of individual-level controls – either through internal disciplinary and reward mechanisms or through the strategic co-optation of private interests and civil society groups – provides valuable insights into the organizational basis of authority and exchange emanating from the party-state. At the same time, this perspective manifests inherent biases in accurately assessing the authoritarian government's adaptive capacities under changing circumstances. Further research is needed on local structures where state power encounters social resistance, producing as yet un-institutionalized processes of insecure compromise. [R]
62.2687 LINDEMANN, Stefan –
This article contributes to recent debates on the link between political settlements and state-building. It proposes a theoretical framework that centers on the alternative concept of “elite bargain” and suggests that inclusive elite bargains can be expected to facilitate both peace and economic development. Yet a detailed case study of elite bargains in Zambia shows that all good things do not always go together. While inclusive elite bargains have indeed helped to avoid civil war, they have often constrained economic development – a dilemma of unproductive peace. [R] [See Abstr. 62.1503]
62.2688 LIU Yu; CHEN Dingding –
Two Chinese academics argue that domestic trends in economic development, cultural change, political leadership, and the global environment all forecast a high probability of China democratizing in the next two decades. [R]
62.2689 LOUNNAS, Djallil –
In January 2007, the Algerian SGPC announced its allegiance to Al-Qaeda under the name of AQIM. From 2007 to 2009, AQIM [Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb] launched a campaign of suicide bombings and hostage takings, following Al-Qaeda's modus operandi. In using Richard Scott model of complex organizations, we show, through a comparative analysis of Al-Qaeda cognitive, normative and regulative pillars with those of AQIM, that AQIM failed in its attempt to merge with Al-Qaeda. Indeed, despite its name, AQIM is still mainly an Algerian organization, just using Al-Qaeda as a label. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2632]
62.2690 LUO Changyuan; WAN Guanghua –
This paper explores the impacts of FDI on financial development in China. Based on panel data at the provincial level (1987/2004), it shows that FDI propels loans by the big four state-owned banks, but produces no effects on loans by other financial institutions. With simultaneous equation model, it proves further that the financial deepening measured by the loans of the big four banks plays attracts FDI, which means that the causal links between them are two-way. By reducing the information asymmetry between the state-owned banks and their clients, FDI improves the efficiency of the financial system. Modern firms having connections with FDI become the new target clients of the state-owned banks. [R] [See Abstr. 62.1587]
62.2691 MAGYAR, Bálint –
Ever since V. Orbán came to power, Hungarian politics has been like a football game in which the captain of one team changes the rules at will, appoints the referee, and can even eject opposing players from the field. Separation of powers has been abolished, equality before the law nullified. Orbán writes laws that are crafted with precision for individual persons or groups – be it for friend or foe. Using intimidation and blackmail, Fidesz is pushing forward a change of elites and a redistribution of property. Castigation of scapegoats and systematic character assassination have become constitutive elements of economic policy. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2731]
62.2692 MAGYAR, Kornélia –
At least 700,000 Roma live in Hungary. Their situation is precarious. Most live in abject poverty and encounter discrimination and isolation. Hostility towards Roma is deeply rooted in the Hungarian majority population. Model projects show that it is possible to break the vicious circle of poverty, lack of education, and unemployment. The framework for the integration of the Roma adopted during the Hungary's presidency of the EU gives rise to hope that, finally, steps to improve the situation of Roma will follow the rhetoric. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2731]
62.2693 MANCHANDA, Rita; BOSE, Tapan –
It is the new middle class in Naga society that is steadily reshaping the vision of an independent Naga nation that has been rooted in its tribal institutions. Many of the new ideas and initiatives for resolving the old problems of unity and integration are coming from the professional “middle class” women and men. Fourteen years of ceasefire have seen the expansion of a “non-partisan” middle space, the space of Naga social organizations, which holds the promise of nudging the political groups towards reconciliation and accountability. [R]
62.2694 MANWARING, Max –
There are numerous small, irregular, asymmetric, and revolutionary wars ongoing around the world today. In these conflicts, there is much to be learned by anyone who has the responsibility of dealing with, analyzing, or reporting on national security threats generated by state and non-state actors. The cases we examine (Mexico, Jamaica, Colombia, Argentina, and Peru) demonstrate how the weakening of national stability, security, and sovereignty can indirectly and directly contribute to personal and collective insecurity, radical political change, and possible state failure. These cases are also significant beyond their uniqueness. The common political objective in each diverse case is to control governments, and/or coerce radical change in discrete political-social-economic systems. This defines war as well as insurgency, and shifts the asymmetric global security challenge from abstract to real. [R]
62.2695 MARKS, Gary –
This article claims that the territorial structure of government results from a tension between scale and community. The benefits of scale arise from the nature of public goods, and include economic exchange, political power and protection against external shocks. Communities are double-edged in that they are characterized by parochial altruism. Altruism and social solidarity facilitate government within communities, but parochial attachments constrain government among communities. Scale and community, as theorized here, provide a setting for strategic choice. Both are in flux as patterns of human interaction change, and government itself shapes those patterns. Evidence is drawn from the five largest polities in the history of western Europe: the Roman Empire, the Frankish Empire, Napoleonic France, the Third Reich and the EU. [R]
62.2696 MARKUSSEN, Thomas –
Political parties can be vehicles for economic and social development in poor countries. They can also serve as rent-seeking instruments. Uncovering how parties function is therefore key to establishing the preconditions for good governance. The article discusses when and why clientelism on the basis of party affiliation may arise. Operationally, party-based clientelism is defined as a bias of public policy in favor of members of the governing political party. In a sample of local governments in India, party-based clientelism is shown to exist in two out of four states and to be strongly affected by economic inequality. [R]
62.2697 MARQUETTE, Heather –
This article critically analyzes the state-building agenda from a governance and aid-policy perspective, and from an anti-corruption viewpoint in particular, highlighting potential problems with both theoretical and practical applications of state-building in a development context. Inconsistencies and contradictions between the state-building and anti-corruption work have not been adequately explored or reconciled. In particular, the article explores these tensions using the example of the Performance-Based Governors' Fund (PBGF) in Afghanistan, where some donors are looking to reduce corruption in local government, encouraging often “warlord” governors to run their administrative offices with integrity. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.1503]
62.2698 MARRIAGE, Zoe –
Northern donor policies relating to building a common future and building peaceful states and societies go to the heart of national and international security agendas. This article critiques the concept of commonality between donors and recipients and within recipient countries. It argues that the policies are problematic from the perspective of security theorizing, both in their mooted “commonality” and in terms of the political intervention that they imply. Historically security has been competitive and founded on compromise rather than commonality, and the internal legitimacy of states has been contested domestically, rather than “built” from outside. Using the example of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the article argues that the ahistorical assumptions of these policies and the activities they license have entrenched specific forms of insecurity. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.1503]
62.2699 MARTINI, Jeff; TAYLOR, Julie –
Despite its vows to speed Egypt toward elections, the country's military leadership is actually ambivalent about democracy. Above all, Egypt's generals want to preserve stability and protect their privileges. But having unleashed democracy, the military may not be able to control it – especially if Washington keeps up the pressure to move forward. [R]
62.2700 McCANTS, William — Al
On 9/11 [2001], the global jihadist movement burst into the world's consciousness, but a decade later, thanks in part to the Arab Spring and the killing of Osama bin Laden, it is in crisis. With Western-backed dictators falling, al Qaeda might seem closer than ever to its goal of building Islamic states. But the revolutions have empowered the group's chief rivals instead: Islamist parliamentarians, who are willing to use ballots, not bombs. [R]
62.2701 McCARTHY, Stephen –
The qualities of democracy in Fiji are strongly influenced by ethnic divisions and indigenous sources of power and legitimacy in society. Periods of constitutional democracy interrupted by successive coups garnering conflicting support suggest that a more stable Fijian democracy requires a delicate balance of tribal, religious, ethnic and military interests. Successful democratic and governance reform requires the inclusive deliberation of all major groups in civil and political society, and not merely one that purports to represent all. Only by improving the qualities of democracy in Fiji will Fijian politics emerge from its cycle of coups and offer a more stable form of government. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2707]
62.2702 McNALLY, Robert; LEVI, Michael –
Saudi Arabia and other OPEC members have long maintained large oil reserves to limit volatility in oil prices. But with key states now refusing to maintain such expensive buffers, the world must learn how to cope with big price swings in the years ahead. [R]
62.2703 MIAKINKOV, Eugene –
The use of force in asymmetrical warfare, and in counterinsurgency operations in particular, has been written off as strategically dangerous and politically irrational. The article examines the role of force in a modern military context and determines if victory through its application is theoretically feasible. This hypothesis is tested against the backdrop of the conflict in Chechnya. The work examines the Russian military and public policy as a subordinate subject to the overall inquiry, to show that force was one of the major factors behind Russian military success in 2001. [R]
62.2704 MISRA, Amalendu –
This article critically examines the politics of religious conversion in India. Since Christianity is the main religion espousing and conducting conversion in ever-larger numbers in India, I interrogate this particular undertaking and the attendant conflict dynamics. This study first situates religious conversion in the context of radical Hindu nationalism. Second, it explores the issue of religious conversion in the theories of identity and globalization. Third, it probes the specifics of Christian conversion in India and investigates the issue within the framework of identity politics and secularism. Fourth, it examines the response and reaction of the radical Hindu nationalists towards religious conversion in general and Christian conversion in particular from the perspective of ethno-religious nationalism. Finally, it evaluates the dimensions of conflict between Christians and Hindus and how they are played out in the shared social arena. [R, abr.]
62.2705 MORAN, Anthony –
This article discusses the relationship between multiculturalism and national identity, focusing on the Australian context. It argues that inclusive national identity can accommodate and support multiculturalism, and serve as an important source of cohesion and unity in ethnically and culturally diverse societies. However, a combative approach to national identity, as prevailed under the Howard government, threatens multicultural values. The article nevertheless concludes that it is necessary for supporters of multiculturalism to engage in ongoing debates about their respective national identities, rather than to vacate the field of national identity to others. [R]
62.2706 MORLEY, Catherine – “
This article argues that far from marking a break in recent literary development, the terrorist attacks of 9/11 [2001] made less of an impact on American fiction than we often think. Critics have often accused writers after 9/11 of “retreating” into the domestic; in fact, domestic and individual narratives, often set against sweeping historical backgrounds, already dominated American writing in the late 1990s. At first, therefore, novelists handling the events of 9/11 framed them within the personal and the small-scale. In the last two years, however, writers such as A. Haslett and J. Franzen have begun publishing broader, more ambitious state-of-the-nation novels, explicitly addressing the US's relationship with the Middle East and the impact of globalization. [R, abr.]
62.2707 MORLINO, Leonardo; DRESSEL, Björn; PELIZZO, Riccardo –
We first assess the quality of democratic procedures, content and outcomes in eight countries in the Asia-Pacific region on the basis of quantitative and qualitative data. Second, we investigate whether, to what extent, and how democratic qualities relate to one another. In contrast to our previous empirical findings demonstrating that all the qualities go hand in hand, that participation and competition are the main determinants of democratic qualities, and that the democratic qualities form a funnel of causality, the present study suggests a different set of conclusions. In the Asia-Pacific region, the democratic qualities are weakly related to one another, do not form a funnel of causality, and participation and competition are not the main drivers of democratic quality. [R, abr.] [Introduction to a thematic issue on “The quality of democracy in Asia-Pacific,” edited by the authors. See also Abstr. 62.2621, 2635, 2642, 2667, 2701, 2766]
62.2708 MOUDOUDOU, Placide –
In the 1990s, the Francophone African countries operated their transition towards democracy. This coincided with the worldwide spread of democratic pluralism. In Africa also constitutional law became an effective legal framework for political activities. However, during the past two decades, there have been many violations of democracy, especially in Congo-Brazzaville. The ruling elite has failed to implement effective constitutional rules and principles, which are frequently bypassed. In order to guarantee the efficiency of democracy, three reforms are needed: (1) the Constitution must acknowledge ethnic issues and ensure proportional representation; (2) proactive spatial planning policies must be carried out in order to avoid frustration in disadvantaged regions; (3) the army's role must be clarified in the Constitution, which may help to build a true democratic culture.
62.2709 NACHET, Mohamed –
260
For a long while the Muslim/Arab world tackled the question of despotism, whether within societies where cultural and religious justifications were opposed, or externally as political observers finally presumed a form of predestination. The problem of freedom and human rights appeared only in the framework of the modern state, essentially in relations with mutations in the relationship between state and society. [R, abr.]
62.2710 NAGLE, John; CLANCY, Mary-Alice C. –
In order to bolster sustainable peace-building in violently divided societies, a normative suggestion is that efforts should be made to construct a shared public identity that overarches ethnic divisions. A number of different centripetal/transformationist processes are identified as engineering a shared identity in comparison to consociational arrangements, which are accused of institutionalizing ethnic differences and perpetuating conflict. These transformationist approaches essentially rest on the premise that because ethnicity is constructed, it can be reconstructed into new, shared forms. Looking at Northern Ireland, we argue that there are limits to the extent that ethnicity can be reconstructed into shared identities. By analyzing consociational and centripetalist/transformationist approaches to division, we conclude that although consociationalism will probably not deliver a common identity, it does provide a robust form of conflict-regulation. [R] [See also Abstr. 62.1387]
62.2711 NASCIMBENE, Bruno; Di PASCALE, Alessia –
The “Arab Spring” which spread in early 2011 and the consequent exceptional influx of people that arrived on the Italian coasts from North Africa put the national reception and asylum systems under particular pressure, also raising the debate on the status to be attributed to these people. Faced with a situation out of the ordinary, Italy immediately addressed a request for help to the EU, which has revealed the difference of views and mistrust existing between Member States in relation to these issues. This episode also calls into question the scope and effectiveness of the EU migration-management framework, particularly in case of strong and unexpected pressure, and its implementation in a true spirit of solidarity. [R]
62.2712 NEUMANN, Peter; EVANS, Ryan; PANTUCCI, Raffaello –
The ongoing debate about the structure and dynamics of Al Qaeda has failed to appreciate the importance of an organizational layer that is situated between the top leadership and the grass-roots. Rather than being “leaderless,” it is the group's middle management that holds Al Qaeda together. In Clausewitzian terms, Al Qaeda's middle managers represent a center of gravity – a “hub of … power and movement” – that facilitates the grass-roots' integration into the organization and provides the top leadership with the global reach it needs in order to carry out its terrorist campaign, especially in Europe and North America. They are, in other words, the connective tissue that makes Al Qaeda work. The article provides a number of case studies of Al Qaeda middle managers, illustrating their critical role. [R, abr.]
62.2713 NYYSSÖLÄ, Kari –
The article deals with Finnish development in the world economy from the world system perspective. The examination focuses on the semi-peripheral stage and its reflections in the political structure. Until the 1920s, Finland remained an agrarian and peripheral country but in the 1930s, it transformed itself into a semi-periphery. In the 1960s and 1970s, Finland underwent a deep economic and social change which eventually led to a move to the core. Since the late 1960s, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) held an almost hegemonic position in Finnish political life for about the next three decades. Together with strong presidential power, the SDP's hegemony stabilized Finnish politics and promoted the transformation from semi-periphery to the core. [R, abr.]
62.2714 O'BRIEN, David –
The summer of 2011 has been another violent one in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR). Despite the removal of hardline party secretary Wang Lequan who was seen to have seriously mishandled the devastating outbreak of violence in July 2009, his replacement by the supposedly reform-minded Zhang Chunxian and the pumping of vast amounts of central government funds into the region, the XUAR is still an area of major concern for Beijing. The central leadership fears its control over the vast, strategically and economically vital province slipped significantly during the last year of Wang's leadership. [The author] examines in detail the violent events of the summer of 2009 based on interviews with eye witnesses and contemporaneous accounts and argues that Xinjiang remains an unstable region with the potential for further serious unrest. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2776]
62.2715 O'KANE, Eamonn –
The peace process in Northern Ireland lurched from crisis to crisis for almost a decade after the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement was signed in 1998. This article examines the tools the British Government employed in seeking a breakthrough that would bring about the stable devolved government that was the goal of the Agreement. It demonstrates how the government's approach oscillated between seeking to cajole/persuade the parties to agree to share power by the use of incentives and concessions (carrots) and seeking to compel them to do so by the use of sanctions and penalties (sticks). The article demonstrates the problems with both approaches and argues that in Northern Ireland they were often applied in an inconsistent and counterproductive manner. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.2050]
62.2716 O'LEAR, Shannon –
This article first provides an overview to key ideas from geographic literature on borders. A selection of these ideas is then applied in an analysis of border issues in the South Caucasus. If we are interested in assessing security issues in this region, it is important to understand how maintaining, challenging, or changing borders are spatial means of communicating power. [R]
62.2717 OLESKER, Ronnie –
This article applies the concept of the societal security dilemma to ethnic relations in Israel. I argue that Jews and Arabs in Israel are locked in a regular societal security dilemma in which their identity-security requirements are incompatible and that the peace process between Israel and the Palestinian Authority has only served to exacerbate that incompatibility. The article highlights the process of securitization of identities, which is generally missing from the discussion of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and ethnic relations in Israel. [R]
62.2718 OMER, Atalia –
I contend that exploring the divergences between “homeland” and “diasporas” could facilitate the proliferation of loci of analysis and foci of peace-building efforts which are yet under-explored both in peace studies and specific scholarship on diasporas and conflict. I therefore suggest that imagining, identifying, cultivating, and mobilizing alternative conceptions of a national identity could (1) serve to enrich the scope of diplomacy (especially as it relates to the engagement of religious, cultural, and national communities as highlighted in the Task Force on the role of religion in world affairs), (2) expand the scope of peace-building, and (3) connect the study of immigration and multiculturalism to international relations. [R]
62.2719 ONUOHA, Godwin –
This article examines the emergence of a neo-Biafran movement, the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) in Nigeria. Drawing on a prior idea of statehood, the advent of MASSOB marks a shift in the tenor of ethnic nationalism by virtue of the fact that the movement entirely rejects a state-led process and demands the creation of an independent state of “Biafra”. The analysis dissects the change in the tempo of contemporary Igbo nationalism and identifies the need for a major restructuring of the Nigerian state in order to forestall the possibilities of other ethno-nationalist claims becoming uncompromisingly separatist. [R]
62.2720 ÖRKÉNY, Antal –
A country's image of nationhood, its concept of history, and political socialization are inextricably linked with one another. For the larger part of the population, the collapse of communism in Hungary made no attractive offers for identification. In this respect, Hungarian identity is marked by a stubborn traditionalism: it consists of ethno-centrism, a fixation on the state, a sense of cultural superiority, and intolerance towards minorities and foreigners. This is the identity of the subject. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2731]
62.2721 OWUSU-ANSAH, David –
In 1957, [newly independent] Ghana's secular constitution prohibited the creation of political parties based on ethnic and religious principles. [Despite] several military [coups], all the emerging republican constitutions retained the supremacy of the state and the principle that party politics should not be conducted to excite any religious and ethnic population. Fifteen percent of Ghana's population was enumerated in the 2000 national census ascribe to the Islamic religion. This essay discusses the place of Islam in the national context; we articulate how the religious and social concerns of Muslims are addressed under the secular constitution. This paper [argues] that though a religious minority, Muslims in Ghana are first and foremost citizens and should be therefore able to use all the necessary cultural and modern agencies to negotiate with the state. [R, abr.]
62.2722 PARK Geun-hye —
Two trends represent Korea today: South Korea's extraordinary economic boom and North Korea's stagnation and provocation. To move the peninsula forward, regional and international players must take a bolder and more creative approach to achieving security. [R]
62.2723 PEPINSKY, Thomas B.; WIHARDJA, Maria M. –
Indonesia's 1999 decentralization law gave local governments in Indonesia an unprecedented opportunity to adopt pro-development policies. We study whether decentralization has in fact generated improved economic performance in Indonesia. Using a synthetic case-control methodology, we argue that Indonesian decentralization has had no discernable effect on the country's national-level economic performance. To explain why not, we use subnational data to probe two political economy mechanisms-interjurisdictional competition and democratic accountability-that underlie all theories linking decentralization to better economic outcomes. Our findings suggest that extreme heterogeneity in endowments, factor immobility, and the endogenous deterioration of local governance institutions can each undermine the supposed development-enhancing promises of decentralized government in emerging economies such as Indonesia. [R]
62.2724 PERRIN, Jean-Pierre –
Syria has been wracked by unrest and bloody repression for several months. It all started when the police opened fire against protestors in Deraa, in southern Syria. The protests quickly expanded to most other cities, from the banks of the Mediterranean to the eastern borders. The people, inspired by events in Tunisia and Egypt, are demanding that president Bashar al-Assad step down. But the situation in Syria is more like that in Libya, minus the international intervention. The ruling party has unleashed its armed forces against demonstrators and has savagely attacked peaceful marches. The scattered opposition is now trying to unite around a single platform. It must at all costs avoid responding to the government's provocations, since the al-Assad regime hopes to see the opposition engulfed in turn by internal violence. But time seems to be on the side of al-Assad's adversaries: even his most faithful supporters, both within the country and outside, are beginning to have doubts about the dictator's ultra hard-line strategy. [R]
62.2725 PFAFF, Tobias –
The king of Bhutan declared in the late 1970s that for his country, Gross National Happiness was more important than GNP. As a definition, Gross National Happiness can be understood as a multidimensional and sustainability-oriented structure of social and economic order in Bhutan. Based on Buddhist principles and values, it aims for an equilibrium of economic growth and other goals of development as well as for the preservation of national identity and the environment. This article analyzes Gross national Happiness from an ordo-liberal perspective. The analysis shows certain parallels of Gross National Happiness and the Social Market Economy. [R, abr.]
62.2726 PIERRET, Thomas –
261
The Syrian Islamic movement does not constitute a homogeneous block. The Muslim Brotherhood played no direct role during the 2011 uprising but were very active as exiled opponents. Their authority is challenged by new Muslim players such as the Independent Islamic Democratic Current. As for the Ulamas, some support the regime whereas others are fighting at great risk alongside the protesters. [R]
62.2727 PINKERTON, Patrick –
This article explores practices of memorialization in post-conflict society, through the case study of the James McCurrie Robert Neill Memorial Garden, located in East Belfast, which has been vandalized on a number of occasions. It notes the similarities between these attacks and J. Edkins' theorization of resistance at the sites of state memory. In the context of Northern Ireland, however, such resistance serves only to replicate patterns of division, as they seek to re-assert competing historical claims obscured by the memorial. The article therefore turns to the work of J. Derrida in order to employ a deconstructive “double reading” of the memorial, which avoids the trap of treating the past as something that can be instrumentally utilized in the present. [R, abr.]
62.2728 PLUDWIN, Steven –
Since 2008, the language of economic crisis has dominated American political discourse. This article argues that within the context of the current economic crisis, there has been a shift from market-talk that displaces human agency to an active naming and production of blameworthy subjects. This serves a political and ideological function by focusing attention on individuals and groups and away from a confrontation with the normative and systemic violence of capitalism itself. By attending to the multiple corollary discourses of responsibility through which the economic crisis is framed, this article interrogates the ways in which responsibility renders political moments intelligible through ascriptions of blame and accountability that both structure how economic crisis is perceived and delimit possible responses to economic events. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.1851]
62.2729 POLESE, Abel –
Like other former socialist republics, Ukraine has started its nation-building project trying to balance between a limitation of centrifugal forces and the “nationalization” of the state. This article examines the main features of language policies within the Ukrainian nation-building project and adopts a dual approach. It first surveys the political will that has been incarnated in language policies since 1991, and how national identity has been affected by those policies. However, it counterpoises this approach with an analysis of bottom actors and their attitude towards language policies. The framework questions the idea that nation-building is mainly an elite-driven process and suggests that common people can participate in a political project by renegotiating its features at the local level. [R, abr.]
62.2730 PONTON D'AMECOURT, Jean de –
The announcement of the allied forces' future withdrawal from Afghanistan leads us to envisage a new stabilization system. The Afghan forces alone cannot ensure security; they must continue to receive logistical support for intelligence and training. The transition policy requires institutional changes towards, for instance, decentralization, and if possible an agreement between the present parties included in a regional negotiation process. [R]
62.2731 PUTTKAMER, Joachim von –
Feudal law emerged in Hungary from compromises that bridged the country's political and confessional divisions. With the transition to a linguistically defined nation, the ability to compromise diminished in the 19th c. The preamble of Hungary's new constitution combines suppression of the communist dictatorship with an authoritarian definition of a national conservative view of history that invokes the unity of the Hungarian nation at home and abroad. [R] [First article of a thematic issue, “Quo vadis, Hungaria? A critique of Hungarian reason”. See also Abstr. 62.1768, 1801, 1894, 2075, 2078, 2445, 2594, 2606, 2608, 2646, 2674, 2691, 2692, 2720, 2739, 2767, 2768]
62.2732 RAMEL, Frédéric —
The emergence of a new world order affects the structure, nature and texture of an international system conceived by and for the West. The author describes its roots, sets out the consequences for western monopolies and highlights the disparities of the emerging system. [R] [See Abstr. 62.1450]
62.2733 RASHID, Ahmed –
The author identifies three key factors: the resurgence of the Taliban, the leadership of President H. Karzai and the regional context. The war in Iraq was a costly distraction and it was a mistake to focus nation-building on elections rather than on the strengthening of proper institutions. Economic development, especially agriculture, has not received sufficient attention, with the result that drug production has increased. But there is an increasing recognition that there needs to be some form of conversation with the Taliban. They are now a more sophisticated military organization, but still an extremely unsophisticated social and political entity. They do not have the answers to Afghanistan's problems. There are many other groups with a stake in the future of the country so any comprehensive negotiation will be very complicated. [R, abr.]
62.2734 RATSIMBAHARISON, Adrien M. –
This article revisits the so-called “greed theory” of civil war, which is one of the most influential theories of civil war, adopted in recent years by many scholars and policy-makers around the world. Applying the greed theory to the sixteen cases of African countries involved in civil wars during the post-Cold War period (1989–2006), the article assesses how well these cases fit into the theory's argument and policy recommendations. As a result, the article argues that the greed theory does not provide a good explanation of the outbreak of civil wars in these countries, nor does it provide good policy recommendations that would help resolve and prevent most of these civil wars. [R, abr.]
62.2735 REINARES, Fernando –
Terrorists disengage from the groups or organizations to which they belong as a result of structural, organizational, or personal factors. These types of factors seem to operate with relative mutual independence. All this can be analytically induced from research conducted at an individual level of analysis, based on 35 long interviews with former members of ETA who voluntarily concluded their militancy at some point between 1970 and 2000. Until the mid-1980s, the individual decision to leave ETA tended to be linked to a subjective perception of ongoing political and social changes. From then on, disagreement with the internal functioning of the ethno-nationalist terrorist organization or the tactics adopted by its leaders became more salient motivations for those militants who decided to walk away. [R, abr.]
62.2736 RESTAD, Hilde Eliassen, ed. –
Articles by Espen Barth EIDE; Hilde Eliassen RESTAD; Kori SCHAKE.
62.2737 RICHEZ, Emmanuelle; BODET, Marc André –
Since the election of the first Parti Québécois government in 1976, support for secession in the province of Quebec has demonstrated a surprising capacity to maintain itself, despite two lost referenda. Despite numerous attempts to explain such persistence, no definitive consensus has been reached. We propose a model that gives a primary role to governing parties at the provincial and federal levels. Certain parties generate fear while others produce disappointment. The interaction between the two and the fact that parties have tended to alternate in power in the last 35 years leads to a relative stability in public opinion, as these effects cancel each other out. [R]
62.2738 RODRIGUEZ, Carmen –
The Justice and Development Party's (AKP) victory in the June 2011 parliamentary elections confirms the domination of Recep Tayyip Erdogan's party over Turkey's political scene. During the past few years, Turkey has been increasingly active on the international scene, especially regarding the conflict between Israel and Palestine, the negotiations over Iran's nuclear program and the Arab Spring. Meanwhile, neutrality has always been an important element of the state's diplomacy. Recep T. Erdogan's government will have to clarify its position and choose between continuing the “zero problem with its neighbors” policy and assuming the responsibility of a more active and polarized stand. From this perspective, Turkey may take advantage of its good reputation among the region's population.
62.2739 ROGALSKA, Karin –
Hungary seems to be drifting towards an authoritarian system of government. With a two-thirds majority in parliament, Prime Minister V. Orbán and his Fidesz party supposedly have free rein. However, criticism of Orbán and his government is growing. In polls, Fidesz has clearly lost ground; in Budapest, tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets. Nonetheless, the parliamentary and the extra-parliamentary opposition lack a charismatic personality who could concentrate the protests and bring about a change in the balance of power. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2731]
62.2740 ROLANDSEN, Øystein
Critics decry the 2005 peace agreement between the government of the Sudan and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement as incomplete, a result of the desire of external actors for a quick solution that is neither truly comprehensive nor sustainable. Through a chronological analysis of the peace process between 2000 and 2005, this article demonstrates that the scope for compromise was limited and that a significantly “better” deal was unlikely. The article presents a concise and empirically grounded analysis of the peace process, to lay foundations for further investigation of a crucial, contested and complicated subject in Sudan's recent history. [R]
62.2741 ROSS, Michael L. –
No state with serious oil wealth has ever transformed into a democracy. Oil lets dictators buy off citizens, keep their finances secret, and spend wildly on arms. To prevent the “resource curse” from dashing the hopes of the Arab Spring, Washington should push for more transparent oil markets – and curb its own oil addiction. [R]
62.2742 RUET, Joël –
The economies of the emergent countries demand a fresh examination, that will make it possible to question the approaches of comparative economic development and of comparative industrial policy. The central aim of this article relates to industrial policies and their regulatory systems. These questions throw light on capitalism and in particular on the political economy of the Indian capitalist system and, in the case of China, on what is called imprecisely “state capitalism”. The author suggests that a new look at these political economies is necessary. Three arguments in particular provide the thematic structure of the article. In both countries, industrial policies have grown out of – and continue to grow out of – a system of embedding the economy in the political and the social. A corollary is that the economic choices relating to the entry of these two countries into globalization were not the consequences of domestic mobilization of actors benefiting from globalization: they were the results of public choices. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.1587]
62.2743 SADANANDAN, Anoop –
Decentralization advances patronage politics in distinct ways. (1) In decentralized states both central and local politicians distribute patronage to enhance their political support. (2) Local elections reveal information to central leaders about the geographic distribution of electorally salient voters. Central leaders can use this information to target particularistic benefits to these voters. (3) Elected local politicians have individual strategies to distribute patronage, despite or in addition to the clientelistic strategies of the political parties they represent. Evidence from India indicates that decentralization has contributed to more extensive distribution of patronage in decentralized states. Data from Indian states and villages illustrates the incentives at the state and local levels that shape the distribution of patronage. [R]
62.2744 SAGUIR, Emilio –
Democratization processes in Latin America, and the “persistence” of the resulting regimes, led to a generalized optimism. But later those regimes, that seemed to belong to the democratic genre, showed that they were not democratic. With the aim of contribute to clarify the legacy of transition in Latin America, the article seeks to delve on this topic and give an answer to the question: which Latin American regimes are not what they seem? It thus presents an alternative typology. [R]
62.2745 SANCHA, Natalia –
In Syria, the threat over Bashar al-Assad's regime may undermine the balance of powers in the whole region. This generates great concerns within the Middle East as well as the international community. Until now, Syria has been the cornerstone of the relations between Iran, Lebanon and the militias Hezbollah (Shiite) and Hamas (Sunnite). Iran could lose a close ally as well as its exclusive ties with both militias, which may acquire more autonomy, with significant consequences regarding current issues such as the conflict between Israel and Palestine. In this context, Israel, the US and the European Union remain very cautious, as the fall of the current regime could have unpredictable and heavy consequences, especially regarding the struggle for power between the Shiites and the Sunnites.
62.2746 SÁNCHEZ NIETO, W. Alejandro –
This article discusses the ongoing security situation in the Russian North Caucasus, with a particular focus on the upcoming Winter 2014 Olympics in the resort of Sochi. It discusses groups that could be a source of potential problems, including non-violent groups like the Circassians, which have an issue with the Olympics taking place in their ancestral homeland, and violent rebel organizations like the one led by D. Umarov. Finally, we discuss what initiatives Moscow is expected to carry out over the next three years, as well as providing some policy suggestions. [R]
62.2747 SARKISSIAN, Ani; FOX, Jonathan; AKBABA, Yasemin –
This study focuses on explaining the variation in the treatment of religious minorities in Muslim-majority countries using a novel dataset on religious discrimination: the Religion and State-Minorities (RASM) Dataset. As few theories exist to explain the causes of religious discrimination, this study compares theories related to general religion-state relations based on ideology, culture, and rational choice. We find that while political and structural factors are important in explaining variation in levels of discrimination across Muslim countries, ideational factors may help to explain why certain minority groups appear to be targeted more than others within individual countries. [R, abr.]
62.2748 SATER, James N. –
Authoritarian rule in the Arab world has been seriously undermined by the mass protests that swept across the region during the 2011 Arab spring. While the force of this seems to have primarily weakened Arab republics, the reason why monarchies seemed less affected is the focus of this article. Using Morocco as a case study, this article argues that the protesters' demands were compatible with the image of the Moroccan monarch as a liberal reformer. Consequently, the King could absorb the energy of the protests and the Arab spring and pursue a reformist course that undermined the protesters' democratization demands and strengthened his own position. [R]
62.2749 SCHIFF, Amira –
Official negotiations between parties in ethno-national conflicts too often result in a deadlock. In such cases, the initial consent of opposing parties to sit together at the negotiating table is considered, retrospectively, to be merely a technical and ultimately futile achievement. The numerous failures of negotiations in such conflicts highlight the importance of studying the relationship between the pre-negotiation process, which initially brings the parties to the negotiating table, and the results of subsequent formal negotiations, especially in view of the basic premise of the conflict-resolution field's “process school,” that is, that effective execution of pre-negotiation functions is critical for successful negotiations. This article examines the pre-negotiation phase in two recent cases: the dispute over Cyprus in 2004 and the “Annapolis process” of 2007–2008. [R]
62.2750 SHAHZAD, Farhat –
This article examines the ways in which young Canadians represent the “the War on Terror” in their narratives. I explore how a hegemonic nationalist narrative enters into this representation in different ways and positions itself in a dynamic tension with the US, at times eliding the difference and at times affirming it. I illustrate that these students do not simply tell the narrative of the war, but use the deixis of “we/us/our” or “them/they/their” in a way that constructs multiple imagined communities. I argue that these presumably benign representations of Canadian involvement in the war produce banal nationalism that excludes “others,” and binds human imagination into a framework that works against critical thinking. [R]
62.2751 SHIE, Vincent H.; WENG Chih-Yuan –
In “Towards a reformulation of core/periphery relationship: a critical reappraisal of the trimodality of the capitalist world-economy in the early 21st century” [ibid., 8(2–3), 2009: 263–294], Lee Kwangkun revisits the debate on whether the semi-periphery is persistent or short-lived in the long-term historical structure. Lee concludes that semi-peripheries have only a brief lifespan due to their (assumed) polarizing tendency. We provisionally agree with Lee's conclusion, but we diverge in our reasoning for upholding this hypothesis. Proponents of the World-Systems Theory claim that an intermediate group of states stabilizes the world-economy. For instance, G. Arrighi posits that the semi-periphery will be persistent in the longue durée. But in our view, the rise of China will ultimately destabilize the so-called constant stratum of the semi-periphery. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2679]
62.2752 SIGONA, Nando –
This article provides a critical overview of public policy and practice towards the Romani population in Italy over a period of fifty years. It investigates the uses and consequences of the label “nomads” and widespread essentialist assumptions about their alleged nomadic lifestyle, and the ambiguity embedded in policy which claims to solve the “Gypsy problem”. It explores in particular the ways in which recent political debate and policy initiatives have succeeded in reframing the Roma issue exclusively in terms of emergency and public security. This discursive shift has produced the rescaling of the governance of Roma, relocating the responsibility for managing the Romani people from local authorities to central government, transferring the Roma issue from the social policy agenda to a mere policing one. [R, abr.] [Part of a series of articles on “Anti-Gypsyism and the politics of exclusion: Roma and Sinti in contemporary Italy,” edited and introduced, pp. 583–589 by Isabella CLOUGH MARINARO and Nando SIGONA]
62.2753 SIROKY, David S.; APRASIDZE, David –
Georgia is the most democratic country in the Caucasus, but arguably its democratization has also been riddled by Huntingtonian developmental crises, resulting in ethnic conflicts and civil wars. We argue that variation in the type of political instability is best understood by focusing on the interaction between nationalism and political institutionalization rather than on their independent effects. We show that Gamsakhurdia's “state-breaking nationalism,” coupled with political deinstitutionalization, produced separatist and centrist civil wars. When Saakashvili's “state-making nationalism” enhanced state capacity, it marginalized the opposition and rekindled frozen separatist conflicts, but stronger administrative institutions enabled the government to avert another revolutionary regime change. [R]
62.2754 SMITH, Stephen W. –
This article examines basic patterns of Africa's demography and urbanization and examines the consequences of runaway population growth since the mid-20th c. for Africa's economies, educational systems, urban planning, public health, transport sectors, and other domains. The nexus between population age-structure and the likelihood of civil strife is discussed, with a reference to the “child soldier phenomenon” south of the Sahara. The youth crisis in Africa, as elsewhere, is not merely the upshot of a very young age pyramid, but more importantly, the upshot of the failure of capacious young cohorts to “accomplish” adulthood. Finally, this article presents policy implications regarding the impact of youth demographics on the likelihood of sustainable democracy. [R] [See Abstr. 62.1433]
62.2755 SOHLMAN, Eva –
Since the Arab Spring sprung in Yemen, hopes mushroomed that President Saleh would step down and allow for a democratic reform after 33 years of autocratic rule. But despite promises to do so, Saleh balked. As the six-month uprising continues, the country is stuck in a political stalemate, fracturing on the brink of civil war as militant groups like Al Qaeda gain ground. Fears are now growing that the country could turn into the next Somalia – right at the tip of the oil-rich Arabian Peninsula. [R]
62.2756 SOUTOU, Georges-Henri –
A historian presents a realist vision of the issues concerning Atlanticism which he sees as the West's keystone. By highlighting the current limits of Euro-Atlantic solidarity, he identifies those of the future western system. [R] [See Abstr. 62.1450]
62.2757 SPENCE, Michael –
Globalization makes the world richer – but not all people do well by it. As developing countries prosper and become more competitive, growth and employment in the US are starting to diverge, increasing income inequality and reducing jobs for less-educated workers. [R]
62.2758 SPITZ, Janet –
Viewing broad middle class economic losses from the Great Recession as an accident leads many to imagine that a return to pre-recession policies and practices will restore this group's economic prosperity. Another perspective views these losses as part of a larger pattern of economic and political disenfranchisement directed toward the American middle class. To the extent that those who benefit from an event might be recognized as having a hand in its creation, insight into the values and beliefs held by this recession's beneficiaries may prove useful in designing policy changes needed to stem or reverse the continued enactment of these wider goals. Using responses to an original survey administered to faculty at major research universities across the US in 2008–2009, certain values and beliefs held by academics across many departments and disciplines may be observed. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.1851]
62.2759 STEPANA, Alfred; LINZ, Juan J. –
A review essay of Lawrence Jacobs and Desmond King, eds., The Unsustainable American State (2009); Desmond King, Robert C. Lieberman, Gretchen Ritter, and Laurence Whitehead, eds., Democratization in America: A Comparative-Historical Analysis (2009); American Democracy in an Age of Rising Inequality. A Report of The American Political Science Association Task Force on Inequality and American Democracy, American Political Science Association, (2004).
62.2760 STRANGE, Gerard –
This article critically scrutinizes some of the key assumptions of the radical globalization approach, specifically, that China represents another form of the “competition state” whose development aspirations have been radically constrained by global “new constitutionalism” and American monetary power so as to conform to neoliberalism. Deploying a structurationist approach to global governance and an eclectic/regulatory analysis of the Chinese state, I argue that China has challenged neoliberalism by projecting its growing power through constitutionalized global governance. In the face of (declining) American power, global constitutionalism has provided an opportunity structure that may help China consolidate its long-term strategy of consensual development. Far from anchoring “neoliberal hegemony,” global economic governance is increasingly central to its unraveling. [R, abr.]
62.2761 STRONG, Carol; KILLINGSWORTH, Matt –
This article reassesses Stalin's attempts to construct legitimacy through the development of a “cult of personality,” built through an overt co-option of the charismatic authority generated by Lenin's revolutionary leadership. While seemingly counterintuitive, it is argued that Max Weber's theory of charismatic authority offers a constructive tool with which to examine Stalin's attempt to construct legitimacy through the creation of the “cult of personality”. Through the application of routinized charisma, Stalin's attempts at legitimization are not only better understood, but also present further avenues for exploring non-democratic legitimation techniques through the use of modern media. [R]
62.2762 SUBRAMANIAN, Arvind –
Is China poised to take over from the US as the world's leading economy? Yes, judging by its GDP, trade flows, and ability to act as a creditor to the rest of the world. In fact, China's economic dominance will be far greater and come about far sooner than most observers realize. [R]
62.2763 TAYLOR, Laura K., et al. –
To study the changing nature of violence since the signing of the Belfast Agreement in Northern Ireland, we used a qualitative approach and the Constant Comparative Method to analyze focus group discussions with mothers from segregated Belfast neighborhoods. Participants articulated clear differences between sectarian and nonsectarian violence, and further distinguished sectarian violence along 2 dimensions – overt acts and perceived intergroup threat. Although both sectarian and nonsectarian antisocial behavior related to insecurity, participants described pulling together and increased in-group social cohesion in response to sectarian incidents. [R, abr.]
62.2764 THOMASSEN, Bjørn; FORLENZA, Rosario –
Italian political and public debate since the “earthquake years” 1992–1994 has to a very high degree focused on the country's identity, on the notion of “nation” and how to interpret it, and on the country's historical past and how to link it meaningfully to the (political) present. [However,] the crisis of the party political system in the 1990s also gave a new role to play for Italian Presidents at both the institutional and symbolic levels. In particular, this article argues that a fundamental change took place in the bespeaking of the Italian nation during the presidency of C. Azeglio Ciampi, 1999–2006. This article analyzes this new nationalist discourse as it developed through Ciampi's seven years as President of the Italian Republic. [R, abr.]
62.2765 TUDOROIU, Theodor –
This article assesses Egypt's chances of democratization. A parallel is drawn between the processes of civil society mobilization that led to the overthrow of the authoritarian regimes of Z. Videnov in Bulgaria and H. Mubarak in Egypt. In the latter case, democratic, secular civil society has to compete with the larger, better organized and more efficient Islamic civil society. The internal dynamics of the Muslim Brotherhood, secular civil society, Egyptian military and international factors will probably moderate Islamist trends. However, this moderation does not necessarily imply genuine democratization. More likely, the future Egyptian regime will be a hybrid one accommodating both Islamist and democratic systems of values within a relatively stable and balanced political construct.
[R]
62.2766 UN Kheang –
This article examines the quality of democracy in Cambodia, arguing that Cambodian democracy since its inception in 1993 has evolved from unstructured competitive authoritarianism toward an authoritarianism characterized by the presence of a stable hegemonic party system wherein the minimum criteria for democracy have been severely curtailed. Although the quality of democracy has declined, the regime's legitimacy has risen, due mainly to sustained economic growth and political stability, and increased patronage-based development. Economic performance-based legitimacy has become path-dependent; without growth the ruling party's legitimacy might be called into question. Given the current political, social, economic and international contexts that favor economic growth with political stability, Cambodia will sustain a dominant party authoritarian regime with limited quality of democracy. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2707]
62.2767 UNGVÁRY, Krisztián – “
Hungarian memory culture is in turmoil. For more than a decade, a reinterpretation of the past has been taking place. Right-wing extremists play an awkward role in this process. The ruling party, Fidesz, inadequately sets itself apart from this view of history. Unconsidered traditions and concepts such as the bird Turul, the Árpád stripes, and Greater Hungary have become national symbols. While Nobel Prize winner I. Kertész is ignored by the official media or disparaged, the politicians in power make respectable “role models” such as writer A. Was, who would have to be considered intolerable in a democratic constitutional state. In history policy, a creeping radicalization is to be observed. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2731]
62.2768 UNGVÁRY, Rudolf – “
The current political atmosphere in Hungary cannot be understood without looking at its past. Here lie the roots of the authoritarian, nationalist, and clerical thinking of the ruling elite. It picks up on the right-wing traditions, values, and practices of the interwar period, which were never dealt with. Socialism prevented this through a lack of public discussion. Instead, it intensified political thinking in categories of friend or foe. Hungary is now paying the price for the risks of freedom without the experience of freedom. Prime Minister V. Orbán and his Fidesz party are mobilizing the tendency to political hysteria and resentment present in large parts of the population to build an illiberal system. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2731]
62.2769 VAJNŠTEJN, Grigorij Il'iČ —
According to many observers' unanimous prognosis, Europe's non-European minorities (Muslim in particular) will continue to expand. The growing number of immigrants is nevertheless not the only factor influencing Europe's evolving multicultural nature. The change is not only quantitative, but also qualitative since Europe's cultural profile has been considerably transformed depending on the extent of immigrants' integration. Over the last decade, anti-Western sentiments and support for radical Islamist ideas have been spreading ever more widely among the young Muslim population. Foreign minorities have in turn contributed to the crystallizing of native Europeans' sense of identity. The growing pessimism regarding the benefits of preserving immigrants' cultural difference and the political polarization of European society will imminently lead to sociocultural conflicts.
62.2770 VÉRON, Jean-Bernard –
On 9 July 2011, the Republic of South Sudan became an independent country. Independence was a jewel in the crown of the Sudanese Comprehensive Peace Agreement's long implementation process. Signed in January 2005, the peace agreement ended two long periods of civil war that raged between 1955–1972 and 1983–2005. These wars were characterized not only by confrontations between northern and southern Sudanese, but also by repeated clashes between different southern factions. These wars were rich with outside interference – especially from neighboring countries. [R]
62.2771 VISOKA, Gëzim –
This paper examines the emergence and implications of local resistance against the practice of liberal peace-building in post-conflict Kosovo, as pursued by the international community and local authorities. Exploring the prospects and limitations of local resistance, as articulated through social movements and institutionalized forms of politics, enables us to examine the applicability and potential implications of post-liberal and emancipatory peace, approaches recently propagated by critical approaches to peace-building. Drawing on an original analysis of the discourse and affirmative action of local resistance against the international governance of Kosovo, this paper argues that different types of local resistance articulate a thin line between ethical, emancipatory and exclusionary practices. [R, abr.]
62.2772 WEIDMANN, Nils B. –
The literature is divided as to how ethnicity affects wartime patterns of violence in civil wars. This article conducts an assessment of the relative impact of two competing explanations for violence in Bosnia's civil war. One account of this conflict attributes violence to the intentions of ethnic groups to create ethnically homogeneous territories, thus advocating a macroterritorial explanation where the origin of violence is external to the locations it is perpetrated at. Competing theories, however, describe violence in Bosnia as a result of local ethnic resentment and fear that were activated once the war had started. Results from spatial regression provide evidence for violence “from above” and “from below,” showing that there is evidence for both macro- and micro-effects of ethnicity on violence. [R, abr.]
62.2773 WEIPING Huang; JIAXI Chen –
Since the reforms of the late 1970s, grassroots democracy in China has undergone development along different dimensions, namely from the countryside to the city, from grassroots society to grassroots government, from outside of the ruling party to inner-party democracy, and from democratic election to democratic governance. This development has its roots in the macro-reform decisions made by the central government, the possibilities of developing democracy out of China's political system, and also the growing grassroots political awareness and participation. China is a huge country of long history of centralized feudal-autocratic rule. The promotion of democratic politics and the implementation of democratic elections, therefore, require further development in the necessary social conditions. A consensus on the values of democracy and rule of law is yet to be formed, putting grassroots democracy at risks. [R, abr.] [See Abstr. 62.2776]
62.2774 WHITE, Timothy J. –
The Good Friday Agreement (GFA) attempted to create a workable political framework for managing the conflict in Northern Ireland in a democratic institutional setting. The institutions of the new governing system provided little incentive for politicians to transcend sectarian differences. Since the signing and ratification of this agreement we have witnessed the political success of the more extreme parties at the expense of the moderate parties that were critical to negotiating the GFA. The consociational nature of the institutions of the Stormont government has provided a framework where elites representing different communities could bargain and effectively share power in Northern Ireland. However, the lack of a civil society that transcends the sectarian divide with grassroots reconciliation means that elites have little motivation to make the compromises associated with a functioning democratic political framework for Northern Ireland. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2050]
62.2775 WILSON, Robin –
In recent years, Northern Ireland has been presented as a model for the resolution of violent conflicts in deeply divided societies. However, discussion of the “peace process” has occluded scrutiny of the governance arrangements arising, and whether these promote reconciliation across sectarian lines or even make for workable government. Close assessment, against the precedent of the power-sharing experiment of 1974 and efforts to establish power-sharing in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Macedonia after nationalistic conflicts there, suggests that neither of these desiderata is being realized. More flexible power-sharing arrangements are necessary if Northern Ireland is to move beyond its sectarian division to become a more normal society. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2050]
62.2776 WOMACK, Brantly —
There are important differences in situation and political development between China and Vietnam, but both are so distant from the parliamentary model that to political science they appear quite similar. They are the sturdy party-state survivors in a post-communist world. China and Vietnam pose a reciprocal challenge to common expectations regarding modernization. On the one hand, their economic growth and political stability undermine notions of stages of development converging (unless the state stalls or fails) in a liberal democratic “end of history”. Despite international openness, the importance of market forces, and a convergence of practical tasks of governance with other developing and developed states, the Sino-Vietnamese model is distinct in its origins, its experiences, and political structure. [R, abr.] [Part of a thematic issue on “Reform, governance and equity: exploring the sociopolitical implications of contemporary China's transformation,” edited and introduced, “Reform, governance and sociopolitical change in contemporary China,” pp. 123–134, by YEOH Emile Kok-Kheng. See also Abstr. 62.1973, 2625, 2714, 2773]
62.2777 XU Jianguo –
Many Western commentators vacillate between contradictory conceptions of the implications of China's rise – the “China Collapse Theory” and the “China Threat Theory”. China faces numerous economic problems, including mounting inflation and the danger of a property bubble. But these problems are being addressed. The Chinese economy has shown itself to be extremely resilient. Strategy and commitment underlie its successful approach. The threat theory is equally off the mark. China is not an expansionist power; its priority remains to boost economic growth and raise living standards; and it is committed to being a good international citizen, as reflected in its striking contribution to UN peacekeeping. [R]
62.2778 YAN Sun –
This paper evaluates the Tibet question through the looking glass of Taiwan, by considering four dimensions of comparative dynamics between the two cases of Taiwan and the Tibetan government-in-exile (TGIE) in relation to China: territorial, economic, ethnic and cultural. Of the four, Taiwan has high convergence with China in the economic, ethnic and cultural dimensions, and managed divergence in the territorial dimension. The TGIE, on the other hand, has high divergence with China in all four dimensions: territorial dispute, economic incongruence, ethnic estrangement, and cultural gulf. Further, the TGIE is ideologically and sentimentally charged by this divergence and thrives by exploiting it. It therefore should have few incentives to see the lessons of Taiwan applied in resolving the Tibet question. [R] [See Abstr. 62.2431]
62.2779 YAP, O. Fiona –
A debate, fanned by the experiences of South Korea and Taiwan, persists over how economic growth leads to democratization. This article provides a theoretical model showing that economic downturns lead to democratization and evaluates the conclusion systematically with data from South Korea and Taiwan. The model and results corroborate the hypothesis that economic downturns motivate government and nongovernment actors to pursue political reforms and democratization and highlight several contributions. They show democratization as the outcome of strategic responses pursued under weak economic conditions. Further, the findings are robust to alternative specifications of democratization. The results also bring empirics into line with theoretical expectations about democratization while simultaneously revealing that it is not a panacea for lack of support. [R]
62.2780 YUN Yeongmi; PARK Ki-cheol —
This study examines the limitations of the major characteristics of [South] Korean multiculturalism according to the type of beneficiary categorization, and discusses its development schemes by revisiting the multiculturalism policies currently in place, which are designed for social integration. The implementation of Korea's integral policies for immigrants, including the Overseas Compatriot Law, promulgated to make up for these policies' limitations, requires the identification of the immigrants' status quo and the recognition or acceptance of their respective cultures, considering their diversification and settlements. As regards the hierarchical dimension of Korea's policies on multiculturalism, with focus on marriage immigrants, changes in the country's beneficiary-oriented structural recognition and related policies must be instituted to [help] establish a multicultural Korean society and a capacity [to] accept cultural diversification. [R, abr.]
62.2781 ZHANG Baohui –
The system of functional representation constitutes the greatest challenge to political reform in Hong Kong. Utilizing recent developments in institutional and ideational theories in political science, this article explores how both power and ideas shape the politics of reforming functional representation. The impasse generated by the current balance of power has given rise to a plethora of ideas that seek to reform the system while preserving its place in the political process. However, recent direct negotiations between Beijing and moderate democrats in Hong Kong have triggered a significant political realignment. This shift in the political balance of power has generated new scenarios for the reform of functional representation. [R]
62.2782 ZHU Yapeng; CHENG, Joseph Y. S. —
The impressive spread of Internet use in China has led to the rapid emergence of a cyber society, which in turn affects public policy agenda-setting in China, promoting political participation in the policy-making processes in areas acceptable to the Chinese authorities. This article uses the Gandan Xiangzhao as a case study to investigate its impact on public policy agenda-building. The case study shows that the development of the Internet not only serves as an instrument facilitating participation in the public policy agenda-building process, potentially it also embodies the spirit of consultation, at least when it is not perceived as a threat to the party regime. This development articulates the demand for the democratization of agenda-building in China, and to a limited extent public participation has been realized in implementation. [R]
62.2783
Introduction by Paolo MAGRI. Articles by Franz WALDENBERGER, “The Japanese economy. An overview,” pp. 171–175; Carlo FILIPPINI, “Changing income distribution in Japan,” pp. 176–179; Hiroaki Richard WATANABE, “Japanese politics under the Hatoyama administration,” pp. 180–182; Axel BERKOFSKY, “Japanese foreign and security policies under Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama — some changes, a lot of continuity,” pp. 183–198.
62.2784 “
A thematic issue. Articles by Flavio MILANDRI, “Paesaggio e orizzonti: San Marino, uno sguardo inatteso (Landscape and horizons: San Marino, an unusual view),” pp. 11–14; Adolfo MORGANTI, “I piccoli e I grossi. La dimensione internazionale della Republica di San Marino (The small and the big ones. The international dimension of the Republic of San Marino),” pp. 15–34; Marco Di NUBILA, “Dalla libertà alla responsabilità del futuro: percorso di strategia verso un nuovo sviluppo economico sostenibile di San Marino (From freedom to responsibility for the future: strategy roadmap towards a new sustainable economic development for San Marino),” pp. 35–56; Domenico GASPERONI, “Amministrazione sammarinese: agenzia culturale e di sviluppo economico? (San Marino's administration: a cultural and economic development agency?),” pp. 57–77; Delfina ROSSI, “Stato sociale e democrazia (Welfare state and democracy),” pp. 79–90; Flavio MILANDRI, “Iperluoghi di una biografia generazionale (Hyperplaces of a generational biography),” pp. 91–109; Anna MORETTI, “II parco scientifico e tecnologico Sam Marino-Italia: il progetto di sviluppo di un'area inter-statuale nell'Italia centrale (The San Marino-Italy science and technology park: a project for developing an inter-state area in Central Italy),” pp. 111–125.