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Begin New Search Publishing Institution Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame

1. Understanding Pakistan’s Deradicalization Programming

Author:
Arsla Jawaid
Publication Date:
01-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame
Abstract:
Pakistan has struggled with Islamic militancy since the rise of the mujahideen in the 1980s. In the late 2000s, the Pakistan Army began establishing rehabilitation centers in the Swat Valley in an effort to deradicalize former Taliban fighters and other militants and reintegrate them into their communities. This report contrasts Pakistan’s deradicalization approach with the community-based program used in Denmark and the widely different prison-based program used in Saudi Arabia, and identifies areas in which the army’s approach could benefit from more extensive partnering with civilian-based organizations.
Topic:
Civil Society, Prisons/Penal Systems, Violent Extremism, and Islamism
Political Geography:
Pakistan and South Asia

2. Oversight or Overlooked? Civil Society\'s Role in Monitoring and Reforming Security Systems and the Practice of Counterterrorism

Publication Date:
03-2009
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame
Abstract:
This report considers civil society\'s role in monitoring Security System Reform (SSR) and counterterrorism both in policy and in practice. It argues that civil society engagement, particularly with local actors, is central to ensuring proper civilian oversight and the overall effectiveness of both SSR and counterterrorism efforts and examines how efforts to engage civil society may be improved.
Topic:
Security, Civil Society, Terrorism, and Counterinsurgency

3. Overdue Process: Protecting Human Rights while Sanctioning Alleged Terrorists

Author:
David Cortright, Alistair Millar, George A. Lopez, and Linda Gerber-Stellingwerf
Publication Date:
04-2009
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame
Abstract:
Practices used by the United Nations Security Council in the name of countering terrorism have led to serious concerns about violations of human rights and limitations on the work of civil society groups. The use of blacklisting has eroded due process rights and discredited elements of the international fight against terrorism. Enhanced efforts to create clear and fair listing procedures are urgently needed and long overdue.
Topic:
Civil Society, Human Rights, International Organization, Terrorism, and United Nations
Political Geography:
Europe and Taliban

4. Save the Arms Embargo

Author:
Peter Wallensteen
Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame
Abstract:
One of the first measures contemplated by the United Nations when confronting a new security crisis is to institute an arms embargo. Since the end of the Cold War – which liberated international action from the constraints of major power confrontation – there have been 27 such embargoes. In addition to these UN embargoes, there are also unilateral measures: The United States imposes its own arms sanctions on some countries (including Cuba), as does the European Union, sometimes directed at the same targets, notably Burma/Myanmar and Zimbabwe. Are they used at the right moment, and do they have the effects the UN would want? The list of failures is, indeed, long. The most striking is the arms embargo on Somalia, which has been in place since 1992 without any settlement in sight. Is it time to forget about this measure? Or is it time to save the embargo? If it is time to save the embargo, as this brief contends, what lessons can be drawn about the optimal use of embargoes, and under what conditions can they work?
Topic:
Conflict Prevention, Security, Arms Control and Proliferation, and United Nations
Political Geography:
United States and Somalia

5. Friend not Foe: Civil Society and the Struggle Against Violent Extremism

Author:
David Cortright
Publication Date:
10-2008
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame
Abstract:
Repressive counterterrorism measures (CTMs) have led to an erosion of civil liberties and human rights in many countries. The repercussions have been felt keenly by civil society groups, especially in the global South. Overly restrictive security policies have contributed to a climate of suspicion toward nongovernmental groups, particularly those that challenge social exclusion and unequal power relations. Many of the organizations that work against extremism by promoting human rights and development are themselves being labeled extremist and are facing constraints on their ability to operate.
Topic:
Conflict Prevention, Human Rights, Terrorism, and Counterinsurgency
Political Geography:
United States

6. The Smarter U.S. Option: A Full Summit with Iran

Author:
David Cortright and George A. Lopez
Publication Date:
06-2006
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame
Abstract:
The escalating crisis between Iran and the United States belongs on the bilateral summit table, not at the United Nations Security Council. This is true even if Iran rejects the current multilateral incentive package of the big powers. Months of threats and brinkmanship by both nations illustrate the need for face-to-face, behind-closed-doors diplomacy.
Topic:
United Nations, Power Politics, and Bilateral Relations
Political Geography:
United States, Iran, and Middle East

7. The Israel-Hezbollah Conflict and the Shebaa Farms

Author:
Asher Kaufman
Publication Date:
11-2006
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame
Abstract:
The recent war between Israel and Hezbollah brought to the forefront of regional and international attention the volatile boundaries between Israel, Lebanon and Syria. Indeed, the UN Security Council's August 11th Resolution, which facilitated the end of hostilities, dedicated much of its text to issues related to Lebanese sovereignty and its shared boundaries with Syria and Israel. In particular, the resolution stipulated the need to address the border dispute over the Shebaa farms.
Topic:
Armed Struggle and Territorial Disputes
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, and Arabia

8. Proportionality and Sustainable Peace in the Mideast

Author:
Mary Ellen O'Connell
Publication Date:
08-2006
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame
Abstract:
When Israel reacted with military force to the Hamas and Hezbollah raids of June and July, world leaders recognized Israel's right to respond, but some charged it was using disproportionate force. International law supports both points. States may take defensive measures, but every use of force must be proportionate to the harm inflicted. These rules are found in the law regulating resort to force (jus ad bellum) and the law regulating the conduct of force (jus in bello). The most important rule in either category may w ell be the principle of proportionality. Respect for proportionality in the use of force can help foster stable, long-term peace.
Topic:
Islam, Terrorism, War, and Armed Struggle
Political Geography:
Middle East and Arabia

9. The Right to Religious Conversion: Between Apostasy and Proselytization

Author:
A. Rashied Omar
Publication Date:
08-2006
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame
Abstract:
In the Spring of 2006 an Afghan citizen, Abdul Rahman, who had converted from Islam to Christianity was arrested under local shari`ah law which mandates the death penalty for apostasy. As a result of international pressure Abdul Rahman was released and given asylum in Italy. This widely publicized incident highlighted the urgent need for Muslims to seriously reexamine the restrictive shari`ah laws on apostasy. It is unfortunate, however, that this case took place in the war ravaged context of Afghanistan, where relief aid for the victims of war is dispensed by Christian agencies some with a primarily evangelistic agenda. A similar program of aid evangelism has been undertaken in wartorn Iraq. The activities of such groups have reinvigorated the debate over whether it is ethical for philanthropical activities and humanitarian service to be undertaken with the primary intent to proselytize. The legitimacy of religious conversion and the ethics of mission are challenging issues. But they are also pertinent issues that should form part of an honest dialogical encounter between Christians and Muslims, since they have important implications for conflict transformation and interreligious peacebuilding.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, Crime, and Religion
Political Geography:
Afghanistan and Iraq

10. Controlling Corruption In Post-Conflict Countries

Author:
Emil Bolongaita
Publication Date:
01-2005
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame
Abstract:
Controlling corruption in post-conflict environments is a critical but largely underestimated challenge. The chances that corruption will distort and demolish the intentions and plans of post-conflict peace agreements or settlements are relatively high. Depending on the severity of the conflict, post-conflict settings are marked by governance environments that are worse than before the onset of conflict. Weak post-conflict institutions are hardly conducive to tackling practices of deception and dishonesty cultivated during the conflict. The dilemma of recurrence of conflict looms large. Indeed, if the postwar record of post-conflict countries is any indication, the description of "post-conflict" does not hold for long, as the parties to peace agreements return to violent confrontation.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, Conflict Prevention, Civil Society, and Development