Palestine‒Israel: Decolonization Now,Peace Later

This people-focused contribution questions fundamental assumptions about the persistence of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and discusses prerequisites for alternative strategies. It argues that without addressing people’s perceptions and beliefs, peace will remain elusive. It also argues that moving beyond the cycles of failure and impasses requires serious engagement in a process of decolonization of Palestine, new framing and new assumptions to understand why this conflict persists. Only by addressing the imbalances of power and ending the Israeli occupation in the short term can future long-term solutions be discussed.     

Why Abyei Matters: The Breaking Point of Sudan's Comprehensive Peace Agreement?

The Abyei Area, straddling the North–South border of Sudan,was the subject of a separate protocol in the ComprehensivePeace Agreement signed between the Sudan government and theSudan People's Liberation Movement in January 2005. One provisionof that protocol was the establishment of a boundaries commissionto define the territory to be included in the special administrationof the area. The commission's decision was to be implemented‘with immediate effect’ on the submission of itsreport in July 2005, but implementation has been blocked bythe National Congress Party, which still controls the centralgovernment in Sudan. The conduct of war in Abyei establishedmany precedents for the conduct of war in Darfur in the useof tribal militias and the forcible displacement of non-Arabpeoples. The failure to implement the Abyei Protocol has implicationsnot only for determining the North–South border (as stipulatedby the CPA), but for the implementation of any Darfur peaceagreement. Douglas H. Johnson (douglas{at}wendoug.free-online.co.uk) was aresource person at the first session of negotiations on theThree Areas at Karen, Kenya, in January 2003 and subsequentlyserved as an international expert on the Abyei Boundaries Commission.He has recently advised the Government of South Sudan on theNorth–South boundary issue.     

“Hybrid Governance” and the Politics of Legitimacy in the Myanmar Peace Process

This article examines competing claims to political legitimacy and sovereignty in Myanmar’s conflict-affected areas of “limited statehood.” In the context of ceasefires and an emerging peace process since 2012, non-state-controlled “liberated zones” and areas of mixed insurgent and government authority constitute new political spaces, where multiple state and para-state actors demonstrate governance authority, extract resources and provide services to local communities. This article explores the dynamics and implications of these developments with reference to the emerging literatures on “rebel rulers” and “hybrid governance,” and examines the practices of donors and aid agencies operating in these areas. I argue that external actors seeking to “think and work politically” should move beyond standard peace-building and development packages based on strengthening the state, and adopt more conflict and context-sensitive approaches. Effective state building should take account of governance structures and service delivery functions established by ethnic armed organisations, which although under-resourced enjoy significant political legitimacy.     

Nakasone Yasuhiro Peace Institute—Looking Back Over Our Past and Looking Ahead to Our Future—

The Institute for International Policy Studies (IIPS), an independent, non-profit research institute founded in 1998 by former prime minister of Japan Yasuhiro Nakasone, has pursued an ambitious research program that covers the fields of international politics, economics, security, energy, and the environment for 30 years. The Institute also convenes international symposia and seminars on important political and economic issues and conducts joint projects with other research institutes in Japan and internationally. Research findings and policy proposals are published in print and on the website.

On the occasion of the 30^th anniversary of the Institute’s founding, and to commemorate the 99^th birthday of Founder and Chairman Yasuhiro Nakasone, as well as recognize the background and purpose of the research work and further clarify the mission for future research endeavors, as of January 1, 2018, the Institute has been renamed Nakasone Yasuhiro Peace Institute (NPI).     

The undoing of a unique relationship? Peace and security in the EU–South Africa Strategic Partnership

ABSTRACT

When the European Union (EU) and South Africa acceded to a strategic partnership, they expanded into new areas of partnership. One of these areas was peace and security, which is the focus of this article. The article argues that, although there appears to be a shared understanding of what security means, the strategic partnership has not been utilised significantly to further this understanding in practice. This is largely due to the EU's preferences for a continental, multilateral approach over the bilateralism of a strategic partnership. At the same time, South Africa sees its strategic partnership with the EU as being outside of its broader commitment to regional security. As a result the peace and security element of the strategic partnership has not been leveraged effectively despite several entry points for action. The article thus concludes that both the EU and South Africa need to re-think the current arrangement.     

Palestine’s Membership in the Commonwealth as a Contribution to a Lasting Peace in the Middle East

With the re-election of Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu for another four-year term as prime minister of Israel there is a real danger that the peace process has reached an irrevocable impasse. It is argued that bold moves must be considered by the international community to breathe life back into the peace process. To coax Netanyahu into negotiations real pressure must be brought to bear on his government to respect the international consensus on Palestinian statehood and to halt settlement activity in occupied territory. To coax the Palestinian leadership back into a negotiation process with Israel, membership in the Commonwealth should be considered as a stepping stone to membership in the United Nations, to be followed by Israel’s membership in the Commonwealth—but on condition that Israel agrees to abide by international law, and respect the international consensus on the two-state solution, completely freeze settlement activity, including in East Jerusalem, and on condition that Palestine agrees to enter into final status negotiations with Israel to conclude a peace treaty to resolve all remaining disputes.     

The Prospects of the FDP in Comparative Perspective: Rest in Peace or Totgesagte leben länger?

This article examines the conditions under which political parties that have dropped below the threshold of legislative representation later re-enter parliament. To do so, it compares two German parties that did not return to the Bundestag and two that did. In light of the ‘lessons' of previous cases in the Federal Republic, the essay considers the prospects of the Free Democratic Party (FDP) in the wake of its 2013 federal election defeat.     

The regional outcome of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement five years down the road: Are external forces playing a progressive role?

ABSTRACT

The Sudan's Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) of January 2005 is the outcome of regional and international mediation led by the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD)1 and the IGAD Partners’ Forum broadened to include the United States of America, Norway, the Netherlands, Canada, Italy and the United Nations. Five years into its implementation the peace agreement appears to have transformed the war between North and South Sudan into a series of engagements of conflicting nature. Numerous contradictory actions by both the Sudanese People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) and the National Congress Party (NCP) (the main political forces behind the CPA) have been noted during the ongoing implementation process (Grawert forthcoming 2010; Grawert and El-Battahani 2005; Wassara 2008). Although internal Sudanese forces are the key actors in implementing the CPA, external forces are critical in providing the support and pressure needed for a complete realisation of the peace deal. The New Regionalism Approach (NRA), as advanced by Grant and Soderbäum (2003), is instrumental in understanding this dynamic. This article is based on the result of a study that seeks to examine why positive engagements of external forces are needed for a timely implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement.     

A “Proactive Contribution to Peace” and the Right of Collective Self-Defense: The Development of Security Policy in the Abe Administration

Since the inauguration of the second Abe cabinet in December 2012, there have been many important developments in the area of security policy. This article examines each new policy and how it fits in to the National Security Strategy principles of a “proactive contribution to peace” and international cooperation. It concludes with a comparison of the new policies with those of other major world powers and a discussion of the main source of opposition to Japan's security policy.