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11. Philosophy and Principles of Community Based Policing

Publication Date:
10-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
South Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons
Abstract:
This policy document forms the first part of a process of work that focuses on community-based policing (CBP) and how it can be implemented in conjunction with small arms and light weapons (SALW) initiatives. The document will serve as a framework for the South Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SEESAC) to guide the development and implementation of CBP in the region. It will also form part of a set of tools that the UNDP Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery (BCPR) is producing. The second phase of this work will provide an operational framework for the UNDP Country Office in Albania for implementing CBP in Albania.
Topic:
Security, Defense Policy, Arms Control and Proliferation, and Development
Political Geography:
Europe and Albania

12. 'You Have Removed the Devil From Our Door' - An Assessment of the UNDP Small Arms and Light Weapons Control (SALWC) project in Albania

Publication Date:
10-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
South Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons
Abstract:
The Small Arms and Light Weapons Control (SALWC) project was undertaken in 2002-2003 by UNDP in co-operation with the Albanian government, at a programme cost to the international community of US$ 3.47.8 million. Its objectives were to help remove illegally held weapons and explosives from the population, to make the population more aware of the dangers of the illegal possession of such items and to enhance the ability of the authorities to control the private possession of arms and ammunition.
Topic:
Security, Arms Control and Proliferation, Civil Society, Government, and Population
Political Geography:
Europe and Albania

13. Cross Border Trafficking in South Eastern Europe - Assessing Trafficking Activities in the Southern Adriatic Region

Publication Date:
09-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
South Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons
Abstract:
This study was commissioned by the South Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SEESAC). The purpose of the Ammunition Detection Study is to determine if there is evidence to support the SEESAC hypothesis that it may be more productive to specifically target the detection of ammunition for Small Arms and Light Weapons rather than the weapons themselves. SEESAC is a developing organisation, with a responsibility to identify information on the precise level of smuggling activity and also advise on measures to reduce cross border trafficking; clearly current search methodologies used to detect weapons and ammunition within the region are an important component of this advice. Following discussions with the SEESAC Team Leader a set of assumptions, to support the Terms of Reference (TOR), were agreed.Initial desktop research examined weapons and ammunition design and manufacture to determine if and why weapons can be more easily concealed than ammunition and what constituent parts are common or exclusive to one particular commodity. Further analysis was conducted to determine if ammunition and weapons are consistently transported together and examples of occurrences are provided. The investigation has involved visits to specialist organisations and national security agencies that have undertaken to provide data on suitable search and detection methodologies. (PDF, 30 pages, 1.02 MB)  Â
Topic:
Security, Arms Control and Proliferation, and Economics
Political Geography:
Bosnia, Moldova, Eastern Europe, Kosovo, Serbia, Bulgaria, Balkans, Romania, Macedonia, Albania, and Croatia

14. Assessing Democratic Oversight of the Armed Forces

Author:
Sander Huisman
Publication Date:
10-2002
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance (DCAF)
Abstract:
There is no such thing as the model for democratic control of the armed forces. Perhaps more influential than constitutional arrangements; historical legacies and political cultures are setting conditions. However, a few essentials or principles of democratic oversight can be discerned. This paper aims to provide an overview of the efforts of different post-communist states in establishing democratic oversight over their armed forces. The comparative analysis is based on a study that the staff of the Centre for European Security Studies has conducted last year (Organising National Defences for NATO Membership - The Unexamined Dimension of Aspirants' Readiness for Entry) and the experiences gained from a three-year multi-national programme that CESS has started in 2001 (Democratic Control South East Europe: Parliaments and Parliamentary Staff Education Programme - DEMCON-SEE). This programme is running in seven countries: Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Romania, and Serbia-Montenegro.
Topic:
International Relations, Security, Democratization, and Development
Political Geography:
Europe, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Serbia, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Albania, Croatia, and Montenegro

15. Macedonia: Filling the Security Vacuum

Publication Date:
09-2001
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
The war option has, for the moment, been checked, but Macedonia is very far from being at peace. Neither the agreement signed on 13 August 2001 2 by the four Macedonian governing parties – two ethnic Macedonian, two ethnic Albanian – nor the subsequent limited NATO deployment, nor the first-stage approval of necessary constitutional amendments by the Macedonian parliament on 6 September have yet given anyone confidence that peace is sustainable. The parliamentary vote, for example, came only after an acrimonious debate in which markers were laid down that ultimate approval of the legislative package could not be taken for granted.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, Security, and Human Rights
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe, Macedonia, and Albania

16. Macedonia: The Last Chance for Peace

Publication Date:
06-2001
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
In the past three months, since mid March 2001, Macedonia has stared into the abyss of inter-ethnic conflict, pulled away from the precipice, squandered opportunities for a political settlement, then returned as if sleepwalking to the brink of civil war. The downward spiral was interrupted on 11 June, when the Macedonian government and the ethnic Albanian rebels agreed to a ceasefire. The following day the government abruptly endorsed a peace plan proposed by President Boris Trajkovski. For their part, the NLA guerrillas expressed a readiness to halt their insurgency but want to see concrete steps towards improving Albanian rights.
Topic:
Security, Politics, and War
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe, Macedonia, and Albania

17. Reaction in Kosovo to Kostunica's Victory

Publication Date:
10-2000
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
While the world watched in fascination as mass demonstrations in Belgrade toppled Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic from power, Kosovo—where Milosevic had committed some of his worst crimes—had an almost eerie air of normalcy. On the night Milosevic fell, cafés were full and the usual crowd of young people strolled along Pristina's central artery, Mother Theresa Street. But Pristina's surface in difference masked serious unease about events in Serbia and especially about the swelling international welcome for newly elected President Vojislav Kostunica. Kosovo Albania's political circles, opinion leaders, and public, which for long had a head-in-the-sand approach toward the rise of the democratic opposition in Belgrade, are only beginning to come to grips with the changed political landscape in the Balkans caused by Milosevic's fall.
Topic:
Security, Human Rights, and Politics
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe, Kosovo, Yugoslavia, Serbia, Balkans, and Albania

18. Albania's Local Elections: A Test of Stability and Democracy

Publication Date:
08-2000
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
Local elections in Albania on 1 October 2000 will mark the first test of popular support for the ruling Socialist-led coalition since it came to power following the violent uprising in 1997. The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), whose Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) will be leading the monitoring effort, deems these elections to be of critical importance. Albania's electoral process has traditionally been bedevilled by the same handicaps encountered in most other institutional areas: namely, inadequate legislation, capacity deficiencies, politicisation of the process, and lack of all round political support. It is vitally important for Albania's democracy and international reputation that this year's elections do not repeat the mistakes of the recent past.
Topic:
Security, Government, Human Rights, and Politics
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe and Albania

19. Macedonia's Ethnic Albanians: Bridging the Gulf

Publication Date:
08-2000
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
Ten Years after independence, Macedonia's two largest ethnic groups continue to lead very separate and distinct lives. The uneasy co-existence between ethnic Macedonians and ethnic Albanians has only just withstood the violent breakup of Yugoslavia and the continuing instability in Kosovo. Valid concerns about Macedonia's security are too often being used to justify postponing hard decisions about internal problems. Political leaders on both sides of the ethnic divide, while negotiating privately for piecemeal improvements, publicly cater to the more extreme nationalists in their respective parties, and positions are hardening. There is a continued reluctance to squarely confront the compromises that would legally safeguard Macedonia's multi-ethnic composition: if that reluctance is not soon overcome, Macedonia and the region face renewed instability.
Topic:
Conflict Prevention, Security, Ethnic Conflict, and Politics
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe, Kosovo, Yugoslavia, Macedonia, and Albania

20. The State Of Albania

Publication Date:
01-1999
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
Premier Pandeli Majko's new coalition government is slowly consolidating its hold over the administration, though the overall power of the government remains weak after the country was rocked in September by the worst political violence since the uprising of March 1997. Within the cabinet the deputy premier Ilir Meta has emerged as the key power in most decision-making and policy implementation. The new government consists of representatives of the Socialist Party (PS), the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Union of Human Rights Party (PBDNj - this party represents the ethnic Greek minority), Democratic Alliance (AD), and the small Agrarian Party (AP). The largest opposition grouping the Democratic Party (DP), led by former president Sali Berisha, does not recognise the legitimacy of the Socialist-led government, is continuing its boycott of parliament and staging street rallies to push for early elections.
Topic:
Security, Economics, Government, and Politics
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe and Albania