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132. Remittances in Conflict and Crises: How Remittances Sustain Livelihoods in War, Crises and Transitions to Peace
- Author:
- Patricia Weiss Fagen and Micah N. Bump
- Publication Date:
- 02-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- International Peace Institute
- Abstract:
- Although migrant workers, refugees and immigrants have been sending money, goods and ideas home for millennia, until about a decade ago donors and international finance agencies paid little attention to the phenomenon. Interest has grown exponentially as statistics show what we now call migrant remittances to be among the most important contributing factors to national economies in several countries. Nearly all the countries in the conflict, war-to-peace transition, and crisis categories are highly dependent on remittances. The slow recovery of livelihoods and persistent violence or repression ensure high levels of migration and the need for remittances in such countries for several years after conflict and crises have ended. By all accounts, migrant remittances reduce poverty in important ways in developing countries. Research shows that migrants transfer funds and invest in their countries of origin at times when international investment has all but disappeared. By serving these purposes in countries emerging from or still experiencing conflicts (e.g., Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Somalia, Liberia, Côte d'Ivoire and others), remittances can be seen as a sine qua non for peace and rebuilding.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Development, Peace Studies, and War
- Political Geography:
- Afghanistan, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Sri Lanka, Kosovo, Liberia, and Somalia
133. Sub-regional SALW Collection Seminar
- Publication Date:
- 07-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- South Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons
- Abstract:
- Government, NGO and International Organisation representatives from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the UN Administered Territory of Kosovo, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and Montenegro participated in a sub-regional SALW (Weapons) Collection Seminar in Budva, Montenegro from 12 - 13 July 2006. The objective of the seminar was to discuss 'best practices' and share operational experience of SALW Collection activities within South Eastern Europe, in order to assist the Government of Montenegro in planning a possible SALW Collection process later this year.
- Topic:
- Government, Non-Governmental Organization, and United Nations
- Political Geography:
- Bosnia, Herzegovina, Eastern Europe, Kosovo, Yugoslavia, Macedonia, Albania, and Croatia
134. SALW Survey of Kosovo
- Publication Date:
- 08-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- South Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons
- Abstract:
- The London based Arms Control NGO Saferworld has been conducting a comprehensive survey of the SALW situation in the Entity of Kosovo over the last six months. The survey was based on the SALW Survey Protocols, and was researched jointly with the Pristina based NGO Forum for Civic Initiatives (FIQ). A consultation process began in April 2006 allowing officials of the Kosovo Provisional Institutions of Self Government (PISG) and United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) to review and contribute to research findings. The comments received as a result of these processes are reflected in the relevant sections of the Survey and in an accompanying recommendations document.
- Topic:
- Arms Control and Proliferation, Development, and Non-Governmental Organization
- Political Geography:
- Eastern Europe, Kosovo, and Pristina
135. The European Union, the United States and 'Liberal Imperialism'
- Author:
- Michael Brenner
- Publication Date:
- 01-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Center for Transatlantic Relations
- Abstract:
- The Iraq crisis has been a stress test for the transatlantic partners.1 It is the latest in a series that at once has been revealing and redefining their relationship since the Cold War's end. The first Gulf War, Bosnia, and Kosovo: each measured the ability of Americans and Europeans to continue working effectively together. Each highlighted distinctive habits of national mind and action obscured by the exigencies of the Cold War. Each raised pointed questions about the pattern of interaction between the United States and its major allies. Each provided insights into the capabilities, limitations, and internal strains of multilateral organizations: NATO, the European Union, and the United Nations. Each altered attitudes and images in ways that affected how the next crisis was handled.
- Topic:
- International Relations and International Cooperation
- Political Geography:
- United States, Iraq, Europe, Bosnia, Middle East, Kosovo, and United Nations
136. Humanitarian Intervention: The Situation After the 1999 Kosovo and the 2003 Iraqi Cases
- Author:
- Funda Keskin
- Publication Date:
- 12-2006
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Uluslararasi Iliskiler
- Institution:
- Uluslararasi Iliskiler
- Abstract:
- Humanitarian intervention entered into the agenda of the international community once again after the Kosovo intervention of 1999. It is not one of the exceptions to the prohibition of the use of force brought by the United Nations Charter. Despite all efforts to describe it as one of the justifiable causes of using force against another state in 1970s and 1990s, both states' attitudes and writers' elaborations show clearly that it is not accepted as a legal exception even by intervening states in Kosovo. After the invasion of Iraq in 2003, debates of humanitarian intervention first dropped from the agenda, but later it became a hot topic once again as one of the reasons of the invasion. Nevertheless, there is a small minority considers the invasion as an example of humanitarian intervention and their argument is not persuasive because of the still insecure conditions in Iraq.
- Topic:
- Humanitarian Aid and United Nations
- Political Geography:
- Iraq and Kosovo
137. Turkish–Dutch Encounters in Peace Operations
- Author:
- Joseph Soeters, Erhan Tanercan, Kadir Varoglu, and Ünsal Sigri
- Publication Date:
- 09-2006
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Uluslararasi Iliskiler
- Institution:
- Uluslararasi Iliskiler
- Abstract:
- This article examines cooperation between the Dutch and the Turkish armed forces during two peacekeeping missions, respectively in Kosovo (KFOR, 1999-2000) and Kabul (ISAF, 2002-2003). It is based on a literature survey and interviews with officers and NCOs of both sides. The article deals with the collaboration between the two armed forces as well as the interaction with the local populations in both areas of operation. Differences in style and modes of operation are analysed, leading to some thoughts for reflection with respect to intercultural military cooperation and peacekeeping in Muslim countries. It is argued that commanders at all levels should be prepared for the intercultural dimension of working with military from other nations, especially if they are deployed in areas that are culturally distant from their own. In addition, it is stressed that the scope of CIMIC-activities may be expanded in order to win the hearts and minds of the local population.
- Topic:
- Islam and Peacekeeping
- Political Geography:
- Turkey, Kosovo, and Dutch
138. Kosovo's Status: Difficult Months Ahead
- Publication Date:
- 12-2006
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- International Crisis Group
- Abstract:
- There is growing concern that the short postponement UN Special Envoy Martti Ahtisaari announced in November 2006 for presentation of his Kosovo final status proposals to take account of Serbia's 21 January elections may not be the last delay in a process that now could extend into the second half of 2007. Nervous Kosovo Albanian leaders worry they may not be able to contain public pressures beyond March. With Russia's position hardening and Serbia as obstinate as ever, EU unity is vital – but far from assured – to keep the status process on track, first in the small Contact Group that has managed Kosovo affairs since 1999, then in the Security Council where ultimate decisions should be made.
- Topic:
- Security and United Nations
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Eastern Europe, Kosovo, Serbia, and Albania
139. Southern Serbia: In Kosovo's Shadow
- Publication Date:
- 06-2006
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- International Crisis Group
- Abstract:
- Southern Serbia's Albanian-majority Presevo Valley is a still incomplete Balkan success story. Since international and Serbian government diplomacy resolved an ethnic Albanian insurgency in 2001, donors and Belgrade have invested significant resources to undo a legacy of human rights violations and improve the economy. Tensions are much decreased, major human rights violations have ended, the army and police are more sensitive to Albanian concerns and there is progress, though hesitant, in other areas, such as a multi-ethnic police force, gradual integration of the judiciary, and Albanian language textbooks. Ethnic Albanians appear increasingly intent on developing their own political identity inside Serbia and finding a way to cohabit with Serbs, something that should be encouraged and supported. Nevertheless, the Kosovo status process threatens to disrupt the Presevo Valley's calm.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, International Relations, and Diplomacy
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Kosovo, Balkans, Albania, and Southern Serbia
140. No Stable Kosovo Without a Solution for Mitrovica
- Author:
- Yll Bajraktari and Christina Parajon
- Publication Date:
- 07-2006
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- United States Institute of Peace
- Abstract:
- Seven years after the Yugoslav/NATO war, the northern Kosovo city of Mitrovica remains divided along the Ibar River, which splits the city between the northern side, a predominantly Serb populated area, and the southern side, an Albanian populated area. Due to a lack of support from the international community, the UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) has been unable to reintegrate the city or exert its authority in the north, which is governed by Belgrade. Although partition of Kosovo has been ruled out by the international community, the reality of ethnic division at Mitrovica casts a shadow on the Kosovo final status talks currently under way.
- Topic:
- Conflict Prevention, NATO, and War
- Political Geography:
- America, Eastern Europe, and Kosovo