Rebellion without a shot—peaceful conflict management in Ecuador

Most conflict studies focus on the causes of war and violence. In contrast, this article on Ecuador explores the causes of peace in a country with strong conflict fault lines, a political army and several deep political crises during the last two decades. The article suggests that focusing on domestic capabilities for peaceful conflict management provides a new entry point to explaining why peace is sustained. An important aspect lies in the role of the armed forces and of civil society. Theories on civil-military relations provide an understanding of why armed forces intervene. However, there is less analysis of factors that influence political armies' behaviour in terms of the use or non-use of violence. This is the focus of this article. Furthermore, the article asks why actors in civil society opt for non-violent strategies. In summary, the article analyses the capabilities for peaceful conflict management of national actors—particularly of the armed forces and of civil society—through a focus on their behaviour in three recent political crises, and by tracking the influence of historical experiences, cultural context and the structural and institutional framework on their behaviour.     

Conflict regulation or conflict resolution: Third‐party intervention in the Northern Ireland conflict – prospects for peace

This article evaluates previous third‐party efforts to broker a consociational power‐sharing solution on the peoples of Northern Ireland. Instead, an original and dynamic community‐based problem‐solving linkage system proposes co‐operation between Northern Ireland's grassroots constituents, paramilitary groups and political elites. The process would be facilitated by a quasi‐mediator comprising the three Northern Irish Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) and four MEPs – two each from the Netherlands and Belgium. This is a vision of how to create a mutually beneficial process linking psychocultural and structural dimensions by promoting dialogue, understanding, tolerance and the sharing of commonalities in beliefs, identity, and behaviors among groups involved in intercommunal conflict situations.     

Electrifying the green peace? Electrification,conservation and conflict in Eastern Congo

ABSTRACT

Large-scale infrastructure in conflict-affected states is often seen as a crucial means to pursue economic growth, poverty reduction, and increasingly, peace-building. Legitimated by an emergent ‘Business for Peace’ agenda, a variety of private actors now also engages in such infrastructure projects. The Virunga Alliance is such an initiative which aims to tackle the interlinked problems of poverty, conservation and conflict in the east of DR Congo through commercialised hydro-power. To take stock of the politics unfolding around such infrastructure efforts, this article analyses the Virunga Alliance as a form of ‘technopolitics’. This entails tracing how current is generated, distributed and consumed, and how these processes generate new sites of power and control. In describing how Virunga offers a centralised, more concentrated supply of electricity as an alternative to the decentralised charcoal circuit, we show how electrification contributes to the expansion of a form of capitalism that prioritises big businessmen over small farmers, facilitates rent-seeking by political elites and amplifies social inequalities in Congo.     

Building peace from below—the potential of local models of conflict prevention in Haiti

International media has established an image of Haiti as a disorganised and violent society. However, this article argues that—and reveals why—this characterisation is incorrect. The article explores how the structures and traditions of Haitian local communities react and respond to the needs of the communities and to the disputes that arise within them. It explores the causes of local conflicts and their relationship with the larger conflict picture in Haiti, and furthermore investigates the challenges faced by local models of conflict prevention and how these are affected by national policies as well as by the presence of foreign actors in the country. The analysis is based on a survey and on fieldwork carried out in different regions of Haiti during the period 2007–2013. The article concludes with recommendations to pay more attention to the challenges that local conflict prevention efforts face—as a result of the larger liberal peace-building framework.     

Data development for international research—Phase I: International conflict and national characteristics

In 1986 developers and users of quantitative data in international and comparative politics organized to maintain, extend, and develop major datasets and to provide a stronger basis for coordinating data‐related activities. National Science Foundation funding established for a three‐year period Data Development for International Research. Its first phase (DDIR‐I) focused on improving datasets on both national capabilities and international conflict; and generating renewed efforts to better the data collections on internation events and international political economy. DDIR‐I's work, now virtually complete, augmented the quantity and quality of this national data resource and set the stage for another NSF‐funded project on internation event data (DDIR‐II). A final report on DDIR‐II is forthcoming in summer 1994.     

Child soldiers as peace-builders in Colombian peace talks between the government and the FARC–EP

Children, especially girls, are considered victims in armed conflicts. Children who participate in conflicts, as combatants, sexual servants, spies, informants and messengers, may be considered perpetrators of atrocities. These two classifications of children in armed conflicts do not consider their roles as agents who may also participate in peace-building efforts. This paper analyses how children involved in armed conflicts are classified and represented in the current peace agreement between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People’s Army (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia – Ejército del Pueblo). We aim to understand if children are recognised in this peace process as participants and, in some capacity, as peace-builders. Dialoguing with the literature on critical security studies and childhood studies, we conduct a critical discourse analysis of the peace agreement documents. The study of the Colombian case enables an empirical analysis in which child soldiers are categorised as victims with the possibility of participating in peace-building and, at the same time, as potential challengers to the peace process.     

Intimate yet dysfunctional? The relationship between governance and conflict resolution in India and the European Union

The rise of India and the EU as global actors has sparked growing interest in their peace-building approaches. This paper compares the objectives and effects of the EU's and India's engagement in different conflict contexts within and alongside their borders. It examines whether their practices of conflict resolution or peace-building strive for more than conflict management or ‘governmentality’. This article asks whether there is sufficient consistency across either actors' governance interventions to even speak of a distinct ‘strategy’ or ‘governance culture’. It illustrates the close relationship between governance and conflict response initiatives but finds that the relationship is often dysfunctional.     

Television and terrorism: Implications for crisis management and policy‐making

Because few of us experience terrorism firsthand, the media play an important role in informing us when major incidents occur. Because of its instantaneity and its ability to reach many audiences at once, the electronic media and particularly television can have a significant impact on the various players who become involved in a particular crisis. This article examines the kinds of effects that television can have on four sets of actors most commonly involved in terrorist crises or major incidents: politicians, police, the public and the print media. While some of these effects can be negative, others can be positive. As a whole, however, television tends to diminish the quality of political discourse, with its emphasis on simplification and dramatization. In time of crisis, this can have serious consequences on decision‐makers who depend upon an informed public to understand the issues at stake and the limits on government action. The article ends by examining briefly how these effects relate to the increasing role of the private sector in public safety and security.     

Bridge-building for Friendship between the Peoples——Visit of a CAFIU Delegation to Ireland and Germany

InthesunnyandpleasantApril，adelegationofChineseAs－sociationforInternationalUnder－standing（CAFIU）paidagood－willvisittoIrelandandGermany．Thedelegationwaswarmlyre－ceived．１．FriendshipbetweenChinaandIrelandhastouchedeveryfacetofsociety．ThisisthefirsttimeforallthemembersofthedelegationtovisitIreland－－anislandcountryintheAtlantic．Ourhost－theLo－calAuthorityMembersAssocia－tion（LAMA）－arrangedavariedandinterestingprogramforus．WeweregiventhehonortomeetwithPrimeMinisterTao…     

The symbiosis between Palestinian ‘Fayyadism’ and Israeli ‘economic peace’: the political economy of capitalist peace in the context of colonisation

Abstract

Recent years have seen both the Palestinian Authority and Israeli government conveying the supremacy of economic approaches over politics to achieve peace and stability. More specifically, the encounter and symbiosis between Palestinian 'Fayyadism' as a professional application of neo-liberal approaches to state-building and economic development, and the Israeli strategy of 'economic peace' towards the Palestinians have shaped much of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict dynamic, with a particularly discernible materialisation in the West Bank. This article critically analyses this dynamic in light of the recently revived theory of 'capitalist peace', which, despite valid criticism, entails considerable similarities with the basic assumptions of 'Fayyadism' and 'economic peace'. While two key dimensions express this symbiosis—security co-ordination and economic normalisation—the article focuses mainly on the economic part, particularly the case of joint industrial zones, which exemplify the most extreme example of this symbiosis.     

German crisis management and leadership—from ignorance to procrastination to action

The financial crisis of 2008 and even more so the crisis of the Eurozone drastically increased the demand for decisive leadership and public crisis management. Due to the size of its economy and its position in the global as well as in the European economy, Germany should take the lead in this crisis management. Germany’s management of the two crises differs but also shows strong similarities. A “center-left Grand Coalition” managed the global financial crisis; a global crisis in which Germany was one among several relevant global players. A center-right government under the leadership of the same chancellor then during the sovereign debt crisis manages the Eurozone crisis. This is a regional crisis but with global implications. German government was slow in responding to both crises but acted eventually after some procrastination. Both cases, however, differ with regards to Germany’s actual role in crisis management. During the global financial crisis, other global actors pushed Germany to the forefront. The Eurozone crisis, a regional crisis, demands a leading role of Germany, the largest economy and member state of the EU. The paper, however, argued that the German crisis management with regards to the Eurozone is very much driven by ideas that preserve German norms but do not live up to the challenges of the crisis. Germany’s insistence in its own interests and norms hinders the delivery of a comprehensive crisis management of the Eurozone crisis within the European Union.     

ID with SRSG on children and armed conflict——by Ms. Niu Shuaishuai,Beijing Children's Legal Aid and Research Center

正Beijing Children's Legal Aid and Research Center expresses thanks to the Special Rapporteur(SR) for his report. The report details the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and violence on children, and provides many useful solutions.As an organization engaged in protection of children's rights, protecting children from violence is the focus of our work.     

Constructing the EU’s high-tech borders: FRONTEX and dual-use drones for border management

FRONTEX has highlighted Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) as affordable and efficient capabilities for securing the EU’s vast frontiers in order to further upgrade them into smart technological borders. In this regard, this article examines the EU’s strategy and rationalisations to develop dual-use technologies such as aerial surveillance drones for border management. By drawing on critical security and technology studies and by focusing on their functional technological efficiency, the article argues that drones are being normalised in a technological regime of exclusion at the border-zone. It further contends that high-end technologies such as drones introduce a military bias as security enablers in border surveillance and as a panacea for the consequences of failed policies to manage irregular migration. A closer examination of several EU-endorsed drone projects reveals a pragmatic and industry-driven approach to border security, underlining the evolving homogenisation between internal and external security and the imminent “dronisation” of European borders.     

Energy security concerns of China and ASEAN: trigger for conflict or cooperation in the South China Sea?

Asia Europe Journal - China and some ASEAN countries are emerging economies. As their population and economies grow at a rapid pace, energy security and related environmental problems remain a big...     

Returnees for change? Afghan return migrants' identification with the conflict and their potential to be agents of change

This article interrogates the assumptions that returned migrants can be agents of change in development and peace-building in the country of origin. In current political and academic debates, it remains under-defined which category of returnees can contribute to what kind of change. This article identifies four ways in which voluntary and involuntary returnees relate to the conflict after return: physically, institutionally, psychologically and with regard to the future. It finds that the only returnees who could potentially live up to the expectations raised in the migration-development-peace-building debate, are voluntary returnees, while involuntary returnees were in no way potential contributors to Afghan peace-building and development. It concludes that, first, the human dimension of returnees' involvement is the most important potential contribution to change. Second, while the international community sees repatriation as the ultimate proof of peace that represents the restoring of normalcy, it is rather continued transnational mobility that could be the basis for Afghan migrants to contribute to change in Afghanistan.     

Listen to us—we know the solution: mapping the perspectives of African communities for innovative conflict resolution

Inspired by the need to find lasting solutions to violent conflict, the author stated the research question by asking ‘how can community knowledge be given a new centrality so that it can contribute to innovative conflict resolution?’ In answering this question, the author argues that conflict mapping is a strong influential instrument not only for community research, but also to empower a community to deal with conflict, promote equity of discourse on all dimensions of a conflict, as well as to create a web of equal relationships among peace-builders to resolve conflicts. The conceptual framework addresses conflict mapping; the top-down/bottom-up approach to conflict resolution and introduces the concept ‘innovative conflict resolution’. Examples of centralising community knowledge in some African societies are offered. The conceptual framework and examples from Africa are then applied to practical conflict mapping that was performed as part of a community engaged participatory research project with a San community in South Africa.     

Interaction between ASEM and Regional Organizations In Asia-Pacific——Concurrently on the development of new regionalism

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the once quiet regionalism was on the upsurge again along with the disintegration of the bi-polar world structure and the advent of globalization. It has developed in a deep and multi-dimensional way and is hence called by academics "new regionalism". The Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), the 10 3 mechanism and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) are all cooperation organizations born in this wave of new regionalism. These organizations, with East Asian     

Against the odds—a free trade agreement between the European Union and Australia?

The European Union (EU) and Australia have embarked officially on a free trade agreement (FTA) negotiation process, a procedure expected to last no less than 5 years. Public pronouncements from both sides which announced the beginning of the process of negotiating an FTA marked a significant departure from the well-known tensions and difficulties which date back to the late 1950s. British entry into the then European Economic Community in 1973 meant that it had to align its trade policies with the much contested European Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). This had been implemented in the late 1960s and provided limitless reasons for antagonism between Australia and the EU. Yet, over time, the trade agenda changed for both sides with new actors and new agreements, and some of the previous machinery no longer providing the liberalisation of trade as intended. Both the EU and Australia have moved on—some of this change due to new political actors and new economic realities. Despite the tortured history between them, and mindful that some might be sceptical about this change of heart, real politik often imposes its own political will and the new needs may well be in sharp contrast to the past relationships. The prospect of an FTA shows how the trappings of history might be side stepped by a stronger, almost opportunistic, sense of economic benefits however small they might appear.