The aesthetics of “everyday” violence: narratives of violence and Hindu right-wing women

“Right-wing” movements see significant participation by women who espouse their exclusionary and violent politics while at the same time often contest their patriarchal spaces. Women also serve as discursive and symbolic markers that regularly form the basis of the rhetoric, ideology, actions and policies of the right-wing. However, even as women’s roles and politics within the right-wing remain diverse and important, dominant feminist scholarship has had uneasy encounters with right-wing women, labelling them as monolithic pawns/victims/subjects of patriarchy with limited or no agency. This article aims to question this notion by examining the aesthetics and visual and oral imagery appropriated, (re)constructed, transformed and mediated by right-wing women. Based on ethnographic and visual research conducted in 2013–2014 with women in the cultural nationalist Hindu right-wing project in India, I argue that right-wing women use a variety of visual and oral narratives (from images to storytelling) to negotiate with spatialities and carve out independent “feminine” discourses within the larger language of the right-wing. I also argue that these narratives are “ritualised” and performed in various spaces and styles and remain crucial to the “everyday” politics and violence of right-wing women. The “everyday” politics of right-wing women often contest, subvert and bargain with the patriarchal goals of the larger projects, rendering narratives as sites of examining agency. Using specific examples of visual and oral narratives from the aforementioned movement, this article articulates how everyday violence is shaped by the aesthetics of the nation and the body, and how these aesthetics shape everyday violence.     

Making women terrorists into “Jihadi brides”: an analysis of media narratives on women joining ISIS

ABSTRACT

Although the involvement of women in terrorist activities is not new, it is still considered to be an exceptional phenomenon. The figure of a woman militant contradicts the main gender constructions and thus produces a certain shock and disconcertment in societies. In the case of “Jihadism”, women who willingly join a terrorist organisation also challenge the Western Neo-Orientalist perspective on Muslim women in the West. Starting from these theoretical standpoints, this article focuses on a group of terrorists who have recently received a great deal of attention: ISIS women jihadis. Based on a critical discourse analysis of three main UK broadsheets, this article presents, deconstructs and problematises the main depictions that were used to describe these subjects. Furthermore, it discusses how the frames described reconcile these women’s actions with the gender and Neo-Orientalist constructions that circulate in Western societies, safeguarding the deriving hegemonic narratives. In other words, the article focuses on how women terrorists are made into “Jihadi Brides”.     

“Trust your instincts – act!” PREVENT police officers’ perspectives of counter-radicalisation reporting thresholds

ABSTRACT

The UK PREVENT programme aims to address radicalisation by identifying and supporting “at risk” individuals that are deemed vulnerable to extremism. Central to this process is the willingness of professional practitioners to report information to authorities, a duty consolidated through the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015. Despite this, little is known about the thresholds to report from a policing perspective. How risk performs beyond fixed indicators which pre-figure terrorism is also underexplored. This qualitative study provides insight into PREVENT police officers’ accounts of the reporting stage of PREVENT. A thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews identified the mobilisation of intelligence on the basis of “gut feelings” and “instinct”. Professional partners were encouraged to trust their own subjective judgements in the absence of observable risk indicators and tangible evidence. A simplified risk logic was said to provide several operational benefits, for example, aligning the PREVENT team with non-specialist actors. To unpack the data theoretically, this article is inspired by the “affective turn” in human and social sciences. Finally, the findings are supported by an examination of national counter-terrorism policing campaigns, PREVENT briefing documents, and Home Office initiatives. The key propositions have wider implications for policy and practice.     

“Good and Evil” narratives in Islamic State media and Western government statements

This article uses a critical discourse and documentary analysis to explore “Good and Evil” narratives in Islamic State (IS) media and in the official policy statements of the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom. The analysis initially considers how IS and Western governments define the other as “Evil” drawing from premodern Manichean and Abrahamic religious conventions. It then interprets how these entities subscribe to a post-Enlightenment ethic that associates the triumph of “Good” over “Evil” with science, reason and technological innovation. Distinct from similar analyses that emphasise the persuasive power of religion, this article reflects on how IS and Western governments use conflicting religious and philosophical imperatives to articulate their strategic political agendas. It further interprets how these agendas become ideologically convincing, through reflexive communication.     

Considered choices for funding decisions: how to calculate the real cost of donor-funded projects; when to say “yes” and when to say “no”

NGOs regularly seek funding from a variety of donors, to help them to deliver worthwhile activities. Often the activities work well and a donor covers the full cost. But sometimes a successful funding proposal can make the organisation vulnerable, by committing itself to additional overhead expenditure not covered by a donor. This article looks at a system whereby the financial aspects of project proposals can be assessed earlier, before funding is applied for and accepted – providing a way of knowing the impact on the organisation and its staff, and allowing organisations to calculate the real cost of donor-funded projects.

Choix réfléchis pour les décisions relatives au financement : comment calculer le véritable coût des projets financés par les bailleurs de fonds ; quand dire « oui » et quand dire « non »

Les ONG cherchent régulièrement à obtenir des fonds auprès d'une variété de bailleurs de fonds pour pouvoir mener des activités louables. Souvent, les activités donnent de bons résultats et le bailleur de fonds couvre le coût total. Mais quelquefois, une proposition de financement couronnée de succès peut rendre l'organisation vulnérable, en l'engageant à encourir des frais généraux supplémentaires non couverts par un bailleur de fonds. Cet article examine un système dans le cadre duquel les aspects financiers des propositions de projet peuvent être évalués plut tôt, avant que le financement ne soit demandé et approuvé – ce qui donne le moyen de déterminer l'impact sur l'organisation et son personnel, et permet aux organisations de calculer les véritables coûts des projets financés par des bailleurs de fonds.

Opciones sopesadas ante la necesidad de tomar decisiones de financiamiento: cómo calcular el costo real de proyectos financiados por donantes; cuándo es preciso decir “sí” o decir “no”

Cotidianamente, las ong buscan el financiamiento de varios donantes, con el fin de proveer distintas actividades útiles. A menudo, las actividades tienen el resultado esperado y el donante recupera el costo total de su inversión. Pero a veces, una propuesta de proyecto exitosa puede provocar vulnerabilidad para la organización, en tanto se ve en la situación de tener que hacer frente a gastos fijos adicionales no financiados por el donante. El presente artículo examina un sistema que, desde una etapa temprana, permite valorar los aspectos financieros de las propuestas de proyecto, antes de que el financiamiento sea solicitado y se apruebe. Ello permite conocer el impacto que el proyecto tendrá en la organización y en el personal, así como también calcular el costo real de los proyectos financiados por donantes.

Escolhas consideradas para as decisões de financiamento: como calcular o custo real de projetos financiados por doadores; quando dizer “sim” e quando dizer “não”

As ONGs buscam regularmente financiamento de vários doadores para os ajudar a implementar atividades proveitosas. Frequentemente as atividades funcionam bem e um doador financia todos os custos. Mas às vezes uma proposta de financiamento bem-sucedida pode tornar a organização vulnerável quando esta se compromete a arcar com despesas adicionais em geral não financiadas pelo doador. Este artigo examina um sistema em que os aspectos financeiros das propostas de projetos possam ser avaliados previamente, antes que o financiamento seja solicitado e aceito – apresentando uma maneira de se conhecer o impacto sobre a organização e seus funcionários e, assim, permitindo que a organização calcule o custo real dos projetos financiados por doadores.     

“What a Relief”: When the Press Prefers Celebration to Scandal

Performing the citizen's role in an enlightened manner requires information and interpretation that are not dependent on government sources. Therefore, the major role assigned to the press by democratic theory is to provide such alternative views of reality. This task becomes particularly difficult in what is defined as a security crisis, where journalists must decide on giving voice to the establishment in the national interest; satisfying the public, which may prefer not to know; or providing oppositional readings. Analysis of television and press coverage of a failed terrorist attack on an Israeli beach shows how evidence of chaos and sheer luck can be discerned in a narrative of ostensible planning and purposiveness. Five framing mechanisms are deconstructed: prioritizing the army's version of the event; moving the spotlight from the tactical to the strategic; ignoring the critical potential of naive witnesses, who authenticate hegemonic framing; resorting to the myth of existential danger to Israel; and turning a miracle for the army into a miracle for the lews.     

Journalism as “Prostitution”: Understanding Russia's Reactions to Anna Politkovskaya's Murder

When the Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya was gunned down in her apartment building in Moscow in October 2006, heads of Western governments and nongovernmental organizations hurried to make strong statements condemning the murder, and public rallies in Politkovskaya's honor were held in front of Russian embassies across the world. In contrast to this swift and unequivocal response, the reaction of Russian officials, journalists, and the public at large was delayed, lukewarm, or nonexistent, much to the incomprehension of Western observers. To understand why the majority of Russian citizens were unmoved by Politkovskaya's murder, this article will contend, we need to understand the specific history of media-political transformation in Russia over the past decade and a half. This includes (a) approaching Soviet journalism as a unique nexus of ethics and politics, (b) studying the centrifugal forces unleashed during Russia's media privatization in the 1990s, and (c) understanding how those forces (in tension with the centering pull under Putin) have been shaping the practices and meaning of journalism in post-Soviet Russia over the past decade and a half. Such context-sensitive and historically contingent exploration will, in turn, suggest new theoretical tools for thinking about journalistic action, or agency, in political contexts short of classical liberalism more broadly.     

Book Review: Troubled Talk and Talking Cures: From “Smart Talk” to Wise Conversations

Interpersonal communication is widely viewed as both a source of conflict in many social relationships and a cure-all for resolving such conflict. Some theorists assert that we simply do not interact, or talk, enough in modern society; others point out that our communication styles seem increasingly argumentative, exclude important potential contributors, or are strategically facile but shallow. The author discusses the various forms of dysfunctional talk in which people engage, then reviews four recent books, all of which focus (at least in part) on how we might talk (and negotiate) with one another more constructively: Bargaining for Advantage, by G. Richard Shell; Winning 'Em Over, by Jay C. Conger; Difficult Conversations, by Douglas Stone, Bruce Patton and Sheila Heen; and The Magic of Dialogue by Daniel Yankelovich.     

Renegotiating Existing Agreements: How to Deal with “Life Struggling Against Form”

Renegotiation of existing agreements is constant in all areas of life. In this article, the author examines the nature and causes of renegotiation and offers guidance to persons involved in the renegotiation process. He identifies three distinct types of renegotiations post-deal, intra-deal, and extra-deal renegotiation. Each of the three types poses particular problems and opportunities and each requires different techniques to deal with those problems and opportunities.     

Considering al-Qa'ida's Innovation Doctrine: From Strategic Texts to “Innovation in Practice”

Understanding how terrorist groups innovate and adapt is key for anticipating future shifts in terrorist threats. Past innovation studies have identified factors that shape group behavior, as well as the importance of combining study of organizations' innovation doctrines with data on how these doctrines are put into practice. Here we describe such an analysis for two texts that have shaped al-Qa'ida and its associated movements' strategies: contrasting Naji's Management of Savagery with al-Suri's Call to Global Islamic Resistance—including elements of the latter relevant to innovation specifically translated for this work. Though open source data on the groups' innovation practices are necessarily more sparse, we contrast the doctrinal texts with selected examples, which suggest caution in assuming that group doctrine is necessarily put into practice “as written.”

[Supplemental materials are available for this article. Please visit the publisher's online edition of Terrorism and Political Violence for the following free, supplemental resource: Translation of portions of Abu Mus'ab al-Suri's The Call for Global Islamic Resistance, relating to innovation and learning.]     

Introduction to the special issue “From bullets to ballots: the transformation of rebel groups into political parties”

ABSTRACT

In this special issue of Democratization, seven articles are presented that address the question of the transformation of armed rebel groups into political parties and what implications this transformation has on the development of post-conflict peace and democratization. The articles cover a wide variety of geographic cases, and use both quantitative and qualitative methods of inquiry.     

Gaining Access to the “World's Largest Men's Club”: Women Leading UN Agencies

Following the establishment of UN Women in 2010 and the appointment of Christine Lagarde to the position of International Monetary Fund Managing Director in 2011, it appears that today the United Nations (UN) takes gender equality seriously, even within its own leadership ranks. Yet, while research on Women in Politics has paid little attention to women in international organisations, research on leadership in international organisations ignores the question of gender. This is despite an inherent connection between women's political careers domestically and internationally. Evidence suggests that although women have broken through the glass ceiling in international organisations and thus gained access to what has been termed the “world's largest men's club”, women continue to be systematically constrained in a way that enables them to gain access to leadership positions only in specific ways and under specific circumstances. Analysing the role of quotas and the nature of organisations in enabling access through the “glass ceiling”, the limitations of “glass walls” that channel women into gender-specific portfolios, situational dimensions such organisational crisis and instability, and the role of kinship in facilitating access, this paper shows that despite its potential to model and incentivise gender equality, the UN merely replicates domestic patterns of gender inequality.     

“Glory to Breivik!”: The Russian Far Right and the 2011 Norway Attacks

This article documents Anders Behring Breivik's reception on the Russian far Right, with a comparative view to Western Europe. On July 22, 2011, Breivik carried out two terrorist attacks in Norway, killing 77 people. Based on a variety of open sources, the article finds that Breivik has received much more open support in Russia than in Western Europe. I suggest there are three main reasons why Russia stands out. First, a weaker social stigma attached to Right-Wing extremism reduces the cost of publicly embracing Right-Wing terrorists. Second, higher levels of violence in Russian society increase desensitization and violence acceptance. Third, the embrace of Breivik fits into a vibrant tradition of iconizing Right-Wing militants on the Russian far Right. The article highlights Russia as a hotspot of Right-Wing extremist activism in Europe. It also provides insights that may prove useful in future comparative research on cross-national variation in Right-Wing violence and terrorism.