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651. The Origins of Hungary's 1989 Electoral Law

Author:
John W. Schiemann and Kenneth Benoit
Publication Date:
05-1997
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Harvard University
Abstract:
Theories which explain the origins of institutions as the product of struggles for distributive advantage provide only a general framework with no conceptualization of the bargaining process and few applications to empirical cases. We address both problems and extend the distributive theory of institutional origins by drawing on a unique set of data to examine the creation of the Hungarian electoral law of 1989. Arguing that outcomes are shaped by four mechanisms arising from bargaining - time preferences, the credibility of threats and promises, mimicked fairness, and symmetrical division - we develop observable implications of these mechanisms and test them empirically by analyzing the bargaining which produced the multiple rules of Hungary's complex electoral system. Not only does the Hungarian case confirm the bargaining mechanism theory of institutional origins, but the theory also explains many curious features of the Hungarian electoral institutions, including its surprising combination of extraordinary complexity and unusual stability.
Topic:
Democratization and Government
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe

652. Frameworks for Security and Integration in Europe: Region-Building in South-Eastern Europe

Author:
Dr. Renata Dwan and Dr. Andrew Cottey
Publication Date:
11-1997
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
EastWest Institute
Abstract:
In 1997-98 the Institute for EastWest Studies (IEWS) is running two projects on means for strengthening cooperation in Europe. The 'Strategy Group for Strengthening Cooperation in Central and Eastern Europe' is a series of meetings funded by the European Union's PHARE/TACIS Democracy Programme. Ten meetings and workshops will examine the diverse range of security problems facing the countries of Central and Eastern Europe and possible cooperative solutions to these problems. The Strategy Group brings together representatives of the Central and Eastern European Associates of the European Union and Ukraine (and Western states and neighbouring countries where appropriate). Participants in Strategy Group conferences and workshops come from diverse backgrounds, including (but not limited to) governmental representatives, politicians, business people, academics and non-governmental representatives. IEWS is joined in organizing this Strategy Group series by the Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA).
Topic:
Security, Development, and Regional Cooperation
Political Geography:
Europe, Ukraine, Eastern Europe, and Maryland

653. Costs of the Polish Integration with the Euroatlantic Structures

Author:
Pawel Wieczorek and Katarzyna Zukrowska
Publication Date:
03-1997
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies
Abstract:
The public opinion polls show that decisive majority of Poles support Polish entrance to the NATO (80%) and the European Union (66%). This support derives mainly - as can be supposed - from association of the membership in the above mentioned institutions with priviliges linked with this status, what silently is accompanied by rather low financial consequences of integration. Awareness of real financial burdens tied up with integration can be considered as one of the basic arguments in support of preparing a reliable balance of widely understood benefits and commitments which are connected with the Polish membership in NATO and the EU.
Topic:
Security, NATO, and International Organization
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe

654. A Peace or just a Cease-Fire? The Military Equation in Post Dayton Bosnia

Publication Date:
12-1997
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
Achieving the ambitious goals of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (DPA) -- forging a unified state out of the shaky Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and resistant and unstable Republika Srpska -- is a complex and difficult undertaking which has not been made easier by the quest for a so-called “exit strategy”. Ultimately, success will be judged by the durability of the peace. But as the pre-announced departure date for the NATO-led Stabilisation Force (SFOR) approaches, it is clear that a self-sustaining peace is not yet in sight.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, NATO, Ethnic Conflict, and Treaties and Agreements
Political Geography:
Bosnia, Herzegovina, and Eastern Europe

655. Dayton: Two Years On, A Review of Progress in Implementing the Dayton Peace Accords in Bosnia

Publication Date:
12-1997
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
Prospects for lasting peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina have improved in recent months as a result of a clear shift in approach towards implementation of the peace plan on the part of the international community. The new-found resolve has been characterised, in particular, by a snatch operation in Prijedor in July in which one indicted war criminal was captured and another killed, and the seizure by the NATO-led Stabilisation Force (SFOR) of four transmission towers used by Bosnian Serb television's (SRT) Pale studio which had hitherto been used to broadcast ethnic hatred and obstruct implementation of the Dayton Peace Agreement (DPA).
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, NATO, Ethnic Conflict, and Treaties and Agreements
Political Geography:
Bosnia, Herzegovina, and Eastern Europe

656. Lessons Learned from Former Yugoslavia

Author:
Wolfgang Biermann and Martin Vadset
Publication Date:
04-1996
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies
Abstract:
UN Peacekeeping after the Cold War shows that options of what the international community can achieve by intervening into or after civil war-like conflicts are in reality more limited than political or moral desires may demand. Finding out the criteria of the 'practicability' and feasibility of UN mandates is a challenging task for research as well as for political and military decision-makers. The Danish Norwegian Research Project on UN Peacekeeping (DANORP) has considered the peacekeepers themselves as a best resource to answer the question of 'practicability' of mandates they are expected to implement, and to identify political and operational "secrets of success" or "reasons for failure".
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, Security, Democratization, Peace Studies, and United Nations
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe

657. The Democratic Control Of Armed Forces

Author:
Rudolf Joo
Publication Date:
02-1996
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
European Union Institute for Security Studies
Abstract:
Political control of armed forces is not a problem that has confronted only liberal democracies of the twentieth century. Even less is it an issue challenging only the democratizing societies of Central and Eastern Europe in the l990s. The crucial dilemma -- that a separate armed body established in order to protect a society might pose a threat to that same society -- goes back to antiquity. The ever-relevant question of who guards the guards was a central issue in Plato's dialogue The Republic, written about 2,500 years ago. Plato, in presenting what he considered to be the right order of society, described the military state as a deviation. Ancient Greece and the Roman Empire were both confronted with the dilemma `sed quis custodiet ipsos Custodes?' The question has remained the same over the centuries, but as armed forces and society have changed, the nature of the problem has also changed.
Topic:
Security, Defense Policy, Democratization, and Government
Political Geography:
Eastern Europe and Greece

658. The Historical Roots of Environmental Conflict in Estonia

Author:
Matthew Auer
Publication Date:
01-1995
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Security Studies at Yale University
Abstract:
"Estonia's environment and nature are special," the Estonian scholar observed, as we sipped coffee in a dingy cafe in Tallinn. "But to them," he said, lowering his voice, and nodding slightly toward a table of Russian-speakers, "it means nothing. To a Russian, the environment is a 100-meter square area around him and his home. He does not care...no, it's more simple—he is not aware of my country's environment."
Topic:
Conflict Resolution and Environment
Political Geography:
Russia and Eastern Europe

659. Is Pandora's Box Half-Empty or Half-Full? The Limited Virulence of Secessionism and the Domestic Sources of Disintegration

Author:
Stephen M. Saideman
Publication Date:
11-1995
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
University of California Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation (IGCC)
Abstract:
Is secession contagious? If so, can it be contained or quarantined to limit its spread? These two questions must be addressed to understand the challenges posed by ethnic divisions within and between states today. The end of ideological competition between the United States and the Soviet Union has not ushered in an era of global peace, but instead a period characterized by ethnic conflicts within many states. The coincidence of the disintegrations of the Soviet, Yugoslav, and Czechoslovak federations suggests that secession does spread with potentially nasty consequences.
Topic:
Security, Ethnic Conflict, Nationalism, Politics, and Sovereignty
Political Geography:
United States and Eastern Europe

660. Resolving Intra-National Conflicts: A Strengthened Role for Intergovernmental Organizations

Author:
Jimmy Carter
Publication Date:
02-1993
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Carter Center
Abstract:
On the following pages, the reader will find a comprehensive summary of the 1993 International Negotiation Network (INN) Consultation, "Resolving Intra-National Conflicts: A Strengthened Role for Intergovernmental Organizations."
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, International Cooperation, and United Nations
Political Geography:
Africa, Eastern Europe, and Asia