Civil Society and the Legitimation of Global Governance

Abstract

This article assesses in what ways and to what degrees civil society activities have advanced the legitimacy of global governance institutions. It is argued that these citizen initiatives have often enhanced the democratic, legal, moral and technical standing of regulatory agencies with planetary constituencies and jurisdictions. However, these benefits do not flow automatically from civil society mobilizations and on the whole are much less extensive than they could be. With a view to greater realization of the potential contributions to legitimacy, the article elaborates recommendations for more, more inclusive, more competent, more coordinated, and more accountable engagement of global governance by civil society organizations.     

Minustah’s Legitimacy and the ‘Security-first’ Approach: Reassessing Statebuilding and its Violent Features in the Case of Haiti

ABSTRACT

The article aims to reassess the statebuilding endeavour of international interveners in the case of Haiti, from an interpretative and socio-historical perspective. First, the article analyses the existing critical literature on statebuilding and the growing literature on peacebuilding and legitimacy. Second, it introduces the case of Haiti, analysing the process of state formation and the production of the present conditions in the country. It then presents an assessment of Minustah, arguing that the lack of a local source of legitimacy, connected to a ‘security-first’ statebuilding approach, led the intervention to reinforce the predatory and undemocratic logics of Haitian politics.     

An Empirical Approach to Post-conflict Legitimacy: Victims' Needs and the Everyday

Abstract

An empirical study has been made of victims of conflict in Timor-Leste and Nepal seeking a qualitative understanding of local post-conflict priorities. It allows an appreciation to emerge of how the conflict-affected conceive of legitimacy and quality of governance, with victims emphasizing basic needs, an addressing of issues of marginalization and the incorporation of indigenous understandings of the meaning of peace. The data in this study motivate a victim-centred discussion of both the limitations of liberal approaches to peace and the implications for the legitimacy of post-conflict governance of prioritizing the everyday needs of the conflict-affected, in contrast to universal and institutionally rooted liberal values.     

Forest certification as a global environmental governance tool: What is the macro-effectiveness of the Forest Stewardship Council?

Sustainable forest management is a key challenge for local and global governance. The Forest Stewardship Council has emerged as one of the solutions to global forest deterioration and is generally regarded as the prime example of certification as a global governance tool. This article examines the macro-effectiveness of certification on halting deforestation and examines the relationship between certification and governance institutions. The article finds that the macro-effectiveness of certification on halting deforestation is still limited due to the “stuck at the bottom” problem of developing countries, which are kept out of the certification process, and the market-driven nature of certification initiatives. The article does not find a relationship between certification and governance institutions at the macro level. It does find, however, significant variation in certification uptake between countries, pointing to the potential of this policy tool. The implications of the results are discussed.     

The dilemmas of pursuing ‘throughput legitimacy’ through participatory mechanisms

Under pressure to open up the ‘black box’ of governance, technocratic bodies are increasingly seeking to include civil society participation in the policy process. This article draws on empirical cases from the European Commission and NHS England to assess the extent to which the participatory mechanisms pursued by these institutions have been successful in eliciting ‘throughput legitimacy’. It is shown that though these mechanisms have taken very different forms – the former a classic instance of ‘window dressing’ participation, the latter closer to ‘best practice’ in this field – they nevertheless share a number of ongoing vulnerabilities. The article outlines the shared organisational, operational and existential dilemmas that technocratic bodies face when eliciting civil society participation, and highlight their reliance on backstage negotiation to sustain stakeholder buy-in. It concludes by highlighting the prospect that the pursuit of throughput legitimacy for technocratic bodies entails inherent limitations and contradictions.     

Governance Under Surveillance in South Africa

Good governance and legitimacy are becoming more and more important in South African society. Increasingly there are tendencies and trends of corruption, poor service delivery, crime, violence, and xenophobia in South Africa. The lack of accountability, responsiveness, and transparency reflects negatively on governance principles. It is becoming more evident that governance in South Africa must be investigated. Government is finding it difficult to tend to public participation, maintain law and order, provide for the basic needs of citizens, and combat unemployment and strikes. There is a direct link between governance and legitimacy because good governance is one of the essential elements and a prerequisite for legitimacy. Legitimacy depends on the government＇s performance and the support of citizens for the ruling party.     

选举民主、政治合法性与地方治理——乡镇基层民主发展的若干命题初论

本文从中国农村基层民主发展的内在逻辑出发对基层民主发展的若干问题进行了分析,认为选举式民主是不是中国农村政治发展的方向,将取决于两个内生性变量,即:村民的民主欲求和各地面临问题的性质。文章就选举民主能否增加基层地方政权的合法性进行了分析,指出选举民主只是增强地方政府合法性的途径之一。在民主和政府治理的关系上,作者认为选举民主未必能够提高基层政府的治理水平。目前中国农村基层政改并不存在一种成功模式适合所有地方,因此,不应该以政策或法律的形式强制推行某一种模式,而应该在给定方向和原则的前提下倡导和鼓励各地自主创新,探索适合本地方的政改模式。     

Neglecting results? A critical view of the literature on organised interests in the European Union

Much research has been undertaken to cast light on to the role of interest groups in the European Union and elsewhere. However, only a few researchers have focused their energy on the practical effects of involvement—effects on the legal output of the political process. Thus, we have a good knowledge of interest groups as input factors, and we have a language to asses their weight in terms of input legitimacy. However, we do not understand their actual impact on the substance of legislation: does involvement make laws more efficient? This question seems especially relevant in the European Union as this organisation is often said to be much dependent on the effective and efficient functioning of its rules—its output legitimacy. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Establishing Legitimacy in Emerging Markets: An Empirical Comparison of the Warsaw, Budapest, and Prague Stock Exchanges

The purpose of this analysis is to investigate the influence of economic and sociological institutional constraints in determining the legitimacy of firms. This study specifically looks at the importance of regulatory and transnational institutional constraints for firms traded on the Warsaw, Budapest, and Prague stock exchanges. The results indicate that a well-regulated securities environment has a direct impact on the ability of firms to establish organizational legitimacy. We also find that, lacking local regulation, firms can increase their legitimacy by adopting international accounting standards. Thus, we find support for the assertion that both economic and sociological solutions to the problem of legitimacy are appropriate for firms operating in an emerging market.