Mediating Solutions to Territorial Civil Wars in Africa: Norms, Interests, and Major Power Leverage

2018 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
pp. 65-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allard Duursma
Keyword(s):  
Civil Wars ◽  
Major Power ◽  
Territorial Integrity ◽  
Major Powers ◽  
Negotiated Settlement ◽  
Long Period ◽  
Peace Processes ◽  
Intrastate Conflicts ◽  
Major Implication

Abstract:This article draws on the concept of “identity interests” to explain why commitment to the territorial integrity norm in the context of African peace processes has persisted over such a long period of time, even as continental and international contexts have changed. One major implication of this commitment to the territorial integrity norm is that third parties involved in peacemaking in Africa have consistently refrained from promoting a negotiated settlement that might pave the way for independence; they have only pushed for a territorial revision in a few instances. The role of major powers has been crucial with regard to the few successful territorial changes in Africa since 1960. An overview of all outcomes of mediation in territorial intrastate conflicts in Africa—as well as seven case studies—support this argument.

scholarly journals Bargaining in intrastate conflicts: The shifting role of ceasefires

2021 ◽  
pp. 002234332098265
Author(s):  
Valerie Sticher ◽  
Siniša Vuković
Keyword(s):  
Party Leaders ◽  
Negotiated Settlement ◽  
Peace Negotiations ◽  
Peace Processes ◽  
Intrastate Conflicts ◽  
Colombian Government ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Congruence Test ◽  
Political Settlement

Research shows that conflict parties engage in ceasefires in pursuit of a variety of objectives, some of which reduce while others fuel violent conflict. This article provides a framework that links these objectives to a larger process. Building on bargaining theory, three distinct bargaining contexts are specified for intrastate conflicts. In the Diminishing Opponent context, leaders believe that a military solution yields a better outcome than a political settlement. In the Forcing Concessions context, they recognize the benefit of conflict settlement, but expectations about a mutually acceptable agreement still widely diverge. In the Enabling Agreement context, expectations converge, and leaders seek to pursue settlement without incurring further costs. In line with these readings, conflict party leaders adapt their strategic goal, from seeking to set up a military advantage, to boosting their bargaining power, to increasing the chances of a negotiated settlement. They may use ceasefires in the pursuit of any of these three goals, shifting the function of a ceasefire as they gain a better understanding of bargaining dynamics. A comparison of violence and ceasefire patterns in six contemporary peace processes and a congruence test conducted on the 2012–16 peace negotiations between the Colombian government and the guerilla organization FARC offer support for the theoretical framework. The findings highlight the important, and shifting, role ceasefires play in the transition from war to negotiated peace.

The Geopolitics of Major Power Interventions in Civil Wars

2020 ◽  
pp. 106591292097691
Author(s):  
Joe Clare ◽  
Vesna Danilovic
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
Civil Wars ◽  
Strong Support ◽  
Past Research ◽  
Major Power ◽  
Civil Conflicts ◽  
Major Powers ◽  
Humanitarian Interventions ◽  
Strategic Approach ◽  
The Government

What factors influence third parties to intervene in civil wars? Our focus on major powers, which are disproportionately more likely than other states to intervene in civil conflicts, directs us to the factors that uniquely shape their interests. While our study does not rule out humanitarian interventions by collective security international institutions and individual states, we do not find that humanitarian concerns motivate major powers. We argue and demonstrate that their decisions to intervene are principally motivated by their drive to establish, consolidate, or expand influence in different geopolitical regions. Past research with the strategic approach stressed the importance of an intervener’s prior ties with a civil war state for this decision. Though important, we show the effect of these ties is subordinate to other factors. In our argument, their role is primarily relevant for determining whether an intervener will be on the side of the government or opposition. The key issue of whether major powers are likely to intervene in the first place, however, is contingent on how much the entire region is strategically relevant to warrant intervention. The empirical analysis of civil war interventions over nearly fifty years lends strong support to our theoretical expectations.

Everyday Practices of Toleration: The Interfaith Foundations of Peace Accords in Sierra Leone

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-29
Author(s):  
Joel Day
Keyword(s):  
Civil Wars ◽  
Religious Leaders ◽  
Peace Accord ◽  
Cultural Foundations ◽  
Faith Leaders ◽  
Peace Processes ◽  
Everyday Practices ◽  
Peace Accords ◽  
Ethnographic Analysis

Abstract Under what conditions can faith leaders influence peace in civil wars? The ongoing conflict in Congo, Syria, and Yemen indicate that faith leaders can fuel sectarian divide, but also intervene on the side of peace. Drawing on experiences in Sierra Leone's civil war, this paper highlights the role of faith leaders as moral guarantors of peace processes, with respondent former rebels indicating that without interfaith delegations personally bringing the peace accord to their remote jungle camps, they would not have trusted the UN-led process. Ethnographic analysis and over 60 field interviews with former combatants and religious leaders, presents a model for answering why faith leaders were central in terminating this conflict. Combatant's personal experience with a diverse mixture of Christian, Traditional, and Islamic leaders contributed to high confidence in peace accords, due to interfaith practices deeply embedded within the culture and shows the dispositions, rituals, and interfaith practices that provided the cultural foundations for successful interfaith intervention. The paper ends with generalizations for other interfaith groups seeking to intervene in conflict.

scholarly journals ‘No peace, no war’ proponents? How pro-regime militias affect civil war termination and outcomes

2018 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 64-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huseyn Aliyev
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
Civil Wars ◽  
War Termination ◽  
Intrastate Conflicts ◽  
State Actors ◽  
War Outcomes ◽  
Conflict Termination ◽  
Extra State ◽  
Conflict Outcomes

Previous research on non-state actors involved in civil wars has tended to disregard the role of extra-dyad agents in influencing conflict outcomes. Little is known as to whether the presence of such extra-dyadic actors as pro-regime militias affects conflict termination and outcomes. This article develops and tests a number of hypotheses on the pro-government militias’ effect upon civil war outcomes. It proposes that pro-regime militias involved in intrastate conflicts tend to act as proponents of ‘no peace, no war’, favouring low-activity violence and ceasefires over other conflict outcomes. These hypotheses are examined using an expanded dataset on pro-government militias and armed conflict in a statistical analysis of 229 civil war episodes from 1991 to 2015. These findings shed new light on the role of extra-state actors in civil wars.

Facilitators, challenges and usefulness of an asthma educational programme

2020 ◽  
pp. 001789692098162
Author(s):  
Muhammad Naeem ◽  
Hamad Ghalib Dailah
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Context ◽  
Educational Programme ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Long Period ◽  
Breathing Techniques ◽  
Educational Programmes ◽  
Asthma Patients ◽  
Programme Content

Background: This study explored the role of hospitals, specialised doctors and staff in developing patient awareness, participation and motivation concerning asthma control. It also looked at the challenges that undermine the value of asthma educational programmes, especially in an Arab cultural context. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from 30 asthma patients who had been living with asthma for a long period of time. Results: Findings highlight how an asthma educational programme can increase patient knowledge about the causes of asthma. Following the programme, patients had a better understanding of levels of medication, breathing techniques and rest and relaxation. Awareness of support from health professionals for managing depression and frustration also increased. However, some patients felt that the asthma educational programme content and delivery was not very interactive and was too lengthy. Conclusion: Findings can help policy makers, researchers, hospitals, doctors and the national Ministry of Health improve the content of future asthma educational programmes. They can also inform the development of a research framework to extend understanding of relevant issues in an Arabian context.

Document supply and resource sharing in Portuguese libraries: the role of the National Library

2010 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 31-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisa Maria Gaudêncio Soares
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Resource Sharing ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Supply System ◽  
National Library ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Long Period ◽  
Recent Developments

PurposeThe purpose of the paper is to describe the development of the Portuguese document supply system with particular emphasis on the role of the National Library but also in its academic and public library sectors.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is descriptive in nature.FindingsPortugal emerged from a long period of monarchy and dictatorship, profited from being a EU member, and libraries are now exploiting the advantages of information technology particularly for the benefit of remote users.Originality/valueThis is probably the first overview of historical and recent developments in document supply in Portugal.

Securitization of the Troubled Afghan Peace Process and the Role of Pakistan

2021 ◽  
pp. 85-97
Author(s):  
Lubna Sunawar
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Peace Process ◽  
The United States ◽  
Security Threats ◽  
Major Powers ◽  
Sustainable Peace ◽  
Copenhagen School ◽  
Securitization Theory ◽  
Fundamental Shift

Following the 9/11 attacks, the national security policies — notably of the Western nations — have taken a fundamental shift towards viewing vulnerable and unstable states, such as Afghanistan, as security threats. The strategic interference of the United States and its allies, for state-building in Afghanistan, not only failed in achieving its intended outcomes but also brought untold suffering and severe repercussions to the Afghan people. The major powers involved in the post-9/11 war against terror in Afghanistan — particularly the United States — had to bear heavy costs in terms of capital, materials, and lives. Being a neighbor of Afghanistan and a responsible state committed to peace in the region, Pakistan has made genuine and consistent efforts to promote a peace process that is Afghan-owned and Afghan-led, in order to bring sustainable peace and stability to Afghanistan. Using the post 9/11 U.S. mission as an example, this article analyzes how the securitization of development has affected the peace process in Afghanistan. The securitization theory of the Copenhagen School is used as a basis to explain the dynamics of the peace process (led by the United States) with the Taliban.

Chairman’s remarks

1989 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 97-98
Keyword(s):  
Civil Wars ◽  
Fine Arts ◽  
Intellectual Life ◽  
Cultural Hegemony ◽  
Territorial Expansion ◽  
Isaac Newton ◽  
Mathematical School ◽  
Christiaan Huygens ◽  
Short Time

It was our plan that this meeting should consider some aspects of the changes in material civilization and intellectual life in Britain and the United Provinces resulting from the union of the two Crowns in 1688. A parallel meeting in Amsterdam will devote more attention to politics and the fine arts. In a short time it is impossible to cover many topics and we thought it right to pay some attention to the role of the Stadtholder while not omitting the two great scientific figures of this age, Christiaan Huygens and Isaac Newton. It is tempting to suppose that the replacement of James II on the throne of England by William and Mary, as it ensured the ascendancy of Protestantism, so also it introduced a strong Dutch influence to replace the Frenchification characteristic of the reigns of Charles and James. Did not William, in stemming the territorial expansion of France, also check its cultural hegemony? So far as Britain is concerned the proposition is dubious, for our cultural links with The Netherlands were already strong before 1688, not least because of earlier migrations and the relationships formed during the Civil Wars and their aftermath. In the scientific realm one thinks especially of van Schooten and the Dutch mathematical school, of De Graaf, Swammerdam, Leeuwenhoek and especially Christiaan Huygens.

scholarly journals Climate governance in an international system under conservative hegemony: the role of major powers

2012 ◽  
Vol 55 (spe) ◽  
pp. 9-29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eduardo Viola ◽  
Matías Franchini ◽  
Thaís Lemos Ribeiro
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
International Relations ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
International System ◽  
Exploratory Research ◽  
Climate Governance ◽  
Major Powers ◽  
Common Character ◽  
Do So

In the last five years, climate change has been established as a central civilizational driver of our time. As a result of this development, the most diversified social processes - as well as the fields of science which study them - have had their dynamics altered. In International Relations, this double challenge could be explained as follows: 1) in empirical terms, climate change imposes a deepening of cooperation levels on the international community, considering the global common character of the atmosphere; and 2) to International Relations as a discipline, climate change demands from the scientific community a conceptual review of the categories designed to approach the development of global climate governance. The goal of this article is to discuss in both conceptual and empirical terms the structure of global climate change governance, through an exploratory research, aiming at identifying the key elements that allow understanding its dynamics. To do so, we rely on the concept of climate powers. This discussion is grounded in the following framework: we now live in an international system under conservative hegemony that is unable to properly respond to the problems of interdependence, among which - and mainly -, the climate issue.

scholarly journals The Role of the United States and The “Asian Solution” Approach in the Malaysia-Indonesia Confrontation (1963-1966)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rohani Hj Ab Ghani ◽  
Zulhilmi Paidi
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Cold War ◽  
The United States ◽  
Asian Countries ◽  
Power Struggle ◽  
Solution Approach ◽  
Major Powers ◽  
Asian Region ◽  
The U.S

The Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation between 1963-1966 was an important event attracting the attention of politicians and scholars alike as the conflict had threatened the long existing relations between the two countries. Indonesian confrontation with Malaysia was due to its refusal to accept the formation of the new federation of Malaysia, founded on 16th September 1963. Sukarno’s confrontational stand on this had broken the long-standing sentiments of regional brotherhood or “saudara serumpun” that had nurtured between the two countries for many years. The conflict also saw the involvement of major powers like the United States (U.S.), Britain, China and Russia in the midst of bipolar power struggle between the communist and the anti-communist as part of the ongoing Cold War. The three years of confrontation witnessed great attempts at peace efforts by U.S. Although U.S. involvement in the conflict was merely as a moderator for both countries it was also fueled by its efforts of containment of communism in the Southeast Asian region. The U.S. viewed that the conflict should be resolved in the context of “Asian solution” as it involved two Asian countries A settlement to the Malaysia-Indonesia confrontation was finally achieved through the Bangkok Agreement, signed in August 1966. This paper discusses the role of U.S. in its attempts at finding an amicable settle to the confrontation in the form of “Asian solution.”  

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