North African Immigrants in Europe and Political Violence

North African communities in Europe have been the focus of unprecedented attention since the attacks of 9/11, largely thanks to the wave of arrests of North Africans on terrorism related charges across the continent. Yet very little is known about exactly who these North African militants are, what is motivating them and how and why they became attracted to radical interpretations of Islam. It is often assumed that these radicals are linked to Al Qaeda and share the same broad internationalist vision. A closer look suggests that these first generation immigrants continue to be preoccupied as much by national politics as any notion of a globalized form of Islam. Little attention has also been paid to the complex relationship between these militant elements and the wider North African communities residing in Europe. Although the War on Terror has made many North African immigrants feel increasingly uncomfortable, it has arguably also enabled the more politicized moderate parts of the Islamist community to increase their role and influence, with questionable consequences for these communities as a whole.     

The African struggle continues: The awakening of North Africa

La crise de l’État moderne en Afrique prouve que cette formation historique ne constitue pas la forme achevée du nationalisme africain contemporain. L’État moderne est né d’un contexte occidental historique. Il revient aux Africains eux-mêmes de penser leur propres structures étatiques avec des éléments endogènes de conceptualisation. La structure ethnique en est un. Comment peut-on l’intégrer de manière politiquement et économiquement viable en ce siècle de génocides et de conflits interethniques? Les liens ethniques créent un cadre économique et social basé sur d’autres institutions que celles de la modernité étatique. Le pouvoir ethnique harmonise autrement les trois monopoles de l’État moderne, à savoir la violence légitime, la distribution des ressources et la représentation politique. Il est donc possible de combler l’espace publique avec d’autres loyautés que la loyauté nationale.     

Social enterprise and work integration of North Korean migrants in South Korea

This contribution aims to present the general issue of integrating North Korean (NK) migrants living in South Korea into jobs and society, the main characteristics of the social enterprise scheme set up in South Korea, and a few examples of social enterprises engaged in NKs migrants’ work integration. It stresses that the process of integrating NK migrants through the social enterprise model leads to apprehend this question, not in the traditional framework of policies specific to NK migrants, but in a broader framework to address a more comprehensive issue of the integration of vulnerable populations. This is an orientation that breaks with the previous public-policy framework towards NK migrants without real counterpart benefits. This approach also supplements governmental policies that have been developed since 2005 to encourage NK migrants to engage in skills training and support programmes in employment coaching. By adding case studies that assess the effectiveness of NK migrants’ work integration based on the criteria of job creation, job skills enhancement, and normal job sustenance, this study examines whether the European-originated work integration social enterprise model works for a particular social enterprise type benefiting NK migrants in South Korea.     

The moral economy of EU relations with North African states: DCFTAs under the European Neighbourhood Policy

The EU has loudly voiced its intention to facilitate poverty reduction and democratisation in North Africa. In particular, it seeks to conclude Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreements (DCFTAs) with Tunisia, Morocco and Egypt. These are seen as a vital response to the Arab Spring – integrating North African countries into the globalised economy. Applying a moral economy perspective, this article argues, however, that, while ‘Normative Power Europe’ seeks to build more tranquil societies in the region, its trade policies nevertheless threaten to exacerbate poverty and social unrest. The prospect of de-industrialisation in the wake of FTAs will do much to entrench economic asymmetries between the European metropole and its neighbours.     

Territorial Administration and Political Control: Decentralization in France

This paper, which is based on recent field research, suggests an interpretative model of territorial government in France. Relations between national and local authorities as well as policy- making processes suggest that the centralized state has faced a major decline of its hegemony and that decentralization reforms have induced a polycentric dynamic. Seven basic characteristics and three key properties of the model are discussed. The emerging model fits neither a new localism nor a new centralist pattern. It is the product of ongoing and incremental trade-offs between centrifugal and centripetal rationales. This complexity reflects a situation that is under the rather conservative, as well as tight, control of national politicians who hold multiple local elected mandates.     

Politics of exclusion and institutional transformation in Ethiopia

Ethiopia experienced a critical juncture in 1991 with the defeat of the military dictatorship, opening up the possibilities of a new political order. Since then the country underwent social engineering and institutional transformation emerging as a leading reformist state under hegemonic-party rule with high institutional state capacity but also a concentration, and even personalisation, of decision-making power. This approximates to a path of ‘authoritarian institutionalisation’. This article argues that Ethiopia’s institutional trajectory can be explained by the nature of coalition politics in the formative years of transition, specifically the extent to which credible challengers were excluded from transitional processes. The strategy of excluding Pan-Ethiopian parties and sideling the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) set the country on the path of establishing a hegemonic rule by the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). Sustaining hegemonic rule entailed fending off threats from excluded groups in the 1990s but which coalesced into a strong electoral performance in the 2005 elections in whose aftermath the ruling party embarked on aggressive pursuit of state-directed development for political legitimation.     

Sino-Japanese Energy Relations: Processes and Constraints

Abstract

Economic growth and a resultant rise in energy demand in China and other East Asian countries have attracted academic interests in energy security and energy cooperation. This article examines the nuanced development of institutions to realise Sino-Japanese energy cooperation at the bilateral and regional levels. It highlights the objective and process of cooperative engagements in terms of relative gain concern and the involvement of non-state actors. The arguments that this article advances are three-fold. First, the Japanese government has pushed forwards multilateral energy cooperation in East Asia and bilateral cooperation for energy conservation with China, which would produce both economic and political gains. Second, the Chinese government has adopted a cautious approach to Japan's energy engagements largely because it took into account the relative political gains of committing to such engagements in addition to the economic gains produced by them. Third, the involvement of non-state actors in cooperative projects and their meaningful roles in forging cross-border linkages could play a catalytic role in advancing cooperative processes.     

In Search of Regional Governance in East Asia: Processes and Outcomes

Abstract

This article employs the concept of ‘regional governance’ to analyze both the processes and outcomes of the emerging regional institutional arrangements in East Asia. It argues that while ASEAN has played a significant role in creating and sustaining the ‘processes’ of wider East Asian regional governance efforts, the level of achievement in translating these processes into tangible ‘outcomes’ remains severely constrained by great power rivalry, especially between Japan and China. By focusing on the areas of trade and finance, this article argues that the varying levels of outcomes between these two issue areas can be explained primarily by the degree of convergence between Japanese and Chinese interests. In particular, while Japan and China have a shared interest in contributing to the promotion of regional financial stability, they strongly disagree over the appropriate form and contours of a trade governance system.