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401. PolicyWatch #1256: Terrorist Attacks in the United Kingdom: More Faces of al-Qaeda

Author:
Simon Henderson and Michael Jacobson
Publication Date:
07-2007
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:
There are fast-moving developments in the British hunt for the terrorist cell that tried to set off two car bombs in central London on June 29. Two men were arrested after they tried to crash a vehicle loaded with flammable material into a Glasgow airport terminal on June 30. And a man and woman were arrested yesterday when their vehicle was stopped on the major highway between London and Scotland. Houses have been searched in several parts of Britain, and the number detained rose to eight today, including one in an undisclosed foreign country.
Topic:
Government, Intelligence, and Terrorism
Political Geography:
Britain, United Kingdom, Europe, and Scotland

402. Brown's Britannia, Warts and All

Author:
Karl E. Meyer
Publication Date:
06-2007
Content Type:
Journal Article
Institution:
World Policy Institute
Abstract:
To escape New York's summer heat, my wife and I fled to the United Kingdom, only to plunge from the griddle into the washbasin. “Water levels still rising as thousands hit by worst floods in modern British history,” headlined The Guardian (July 24). As if to make American visitors feel right at home, the adjoining headline elaborated: “Ministers warned three years ago over flood defense failings.” Think of it: here is a country not unused to rain and yet its officials were caught by surprise when a 3-inch surge occurring within 60 minutes turned the Midlands into a lake, leaving as many as 350,000 homes without power and/or water. Yet, in shades of FEMA, Prime Minister Tony Blair's Labor government had failed to act on reports in 2004 and 2005 that spoke firmly of the need to overhaul obsolete flood defenses, integrate emergency responses, and coordinate information services.
Political Geography:
New York, United Kingdom, and America

403. From South Asian to Diaspora: Missing Women and Migration

Author:
Matthew McCartney and Aisha Gill
Publication Date:
11-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
School of Oriental and African Studies - University of London
Abstract:
The modernisation paradigm is here tested and found wanting in a very particular context; the experience of the migrant. Women in South Asia have a biologically abnormal chance of mortality from conception until their mid-30s. This phenomenon is thought to be related to a range of economic and cultural factors, which include sex selective abortion and gender-biased allocations of health care and nutrition. There is scant research on the manifestation of this phenomenon after migration to developed countries. The modernisation paradigm suggests that migrants will quickly adopt the norms of the host developed country. Some of the proximate causes that generate the excess mortality of females in South Asia are, indeed, not likely to be operational in a developed country; namely, female infanticide and deprivation of nutrition and health care for girls. However, the cultural preference for sons in South Asia has persisted following migration, while the specific way in which this preference is satisfied has changed: sex-selective abortion is replacing post-natal neglect of, and harm done to, girls and women. In some cases, further empirical work is required if the issue of how South Asian practices of gender discrimination might be manifest in the behaviour of migrants to the UK.
Topic:
Demographics, Economics, Gender Issues, Migration, and Poverty
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and South Asia

404. Growth and Responsibility: A Review of Business Action for Africa between the UK and German G8 Presidencies 2005-7

Author:
Richard Reeve
Publication Date:
06-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Chatham House
Abstract:
In March 2005 the report of the Commission for Africa called for a sea change in the way the business community engaged in the development process in Africa. The G8 Gleneagles summit that July made a series of commitments on boosting African development, while in London a new international network was launched to bring G8 and African business leaders together to build on the momentum of the Commission and the UK's dual G8 and EU presidencies. Business Action for Africa (BAA) declared its aims as: to present a clear African and international business voice to promote growth and poverty reduction; to promote more positive, balanced perceptions of Africa; and to develop and showcase good business practice.
Topic:
International Trade and Finance
Political Geography:
Africa, Russia, United States, Japan, United Kingdom, Europe, Asia, and Germany

405. Sierra Leone: Reform or Relapse? Conflict and Governance Reform

Author:
Brian Thomson
Publication Date:
06-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Chatham House
Abstract:
Sierra Leone is a success story of international intervention to put an end to a brutal civil war. Yet there is considerable disillusionment in many quarters at the lack of progress in tackling the issues that caused the war, such as corruption and the exclusion of many from access to resources and public services. This report describes the collaboration between the international community and the Sierra Leone government in building and reforming state institutions during the civil war and its aftermath. It assesses the progress made, draws conclusions about the achievements and suggests lessons for donors that may be applicable more widely.
Topic:
Civil War, Development, and Government
Political Geography:
Africa and United Kingdom

406. The CBRN System: Assessing the threat of terrorist use of chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear weapons in the UK

Author:
Dr Paul Cornish
Publication Date:
02-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Chatham House
Abstract:
In early November 2006 Dame Eliza Manningham-Buller, head of Britain's Security Service (known as MI5) warned that the danger to the United Kingdom of terrorist attack was 'serious' and 'growing', with as many as thirty terrorist plots under way. She argued that 'tomorrow's threat may–I suggest will–include the use of chemicals, bacteriological agents, radioactive materials and even nuclear technology'.
Topic:
Security, Terrorism, and Weapons of Mass Destruction
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and Europe

407. The UK Contribution to the G8 Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons of Mass Destruction, 2002-06

Author:
Paul Cornish
Publication Date:
01-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Chatham House
Abstract:
The G8 Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction was established at the G8 summit meeting in Kananaskis, Canada in June 2002. The Kananaskis summit produced a new prescription for international cooperation in non-proliferation. The 'ten plus ten over ten' formula was intended to provide the means for tighter control over chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) weapons and materials, initially in Russia and then elsewhere, and particularly to prevent terrorist acquisition of such devices and technologies. In the founding document of the Global Partnership, the 'Statement by G8 Leaders', the following were listed as 'among our priority concerns': the destruction of chemical weapons; the dismantlement of decommissioned nuclear submarines; the disposal of fissile materials; and finding alternative employment for former weapons scientists. The UK government had been contributing to work in this field for several years before Kananaskis, and has been a leading participant in the G8 Global Partnership since its inception.
Topic:
Nuclear Weapons, Weapons of Mass Destruction, and International Security
Political Geography:
Russia, United States, Japan, United Kingdom, Europe, Canada, and Asia

408. Recalcitrance, Inefficiency, and Support for European Integration: Why Member States Do (Not) Comply with European Law

Author:
Tanja A. Börzel, Meike Dudziak, Tobias Hofmann, Carina Sprungk, and Diana Panke
Publication Date:
01-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
Abstract:
This paper seeks to explain inter-state variation in non-compliance with European law. While non-compliance has not significantly increased over time, some member states violate European law more frequently than others. In order to account for the variance observed, we draw on three prominent approaches in the compliance literature–enforcement, management, and legitimacy. In the first place, we develop a set of hypotheses for each of the three theories. We then discuss how they can be combined in theoretically consistent ways and develop three integrated models. Finally, we empirically test these models drawing on a unique and comprehensive dataset, which comprises more than 6,300 instances of member-state non-compliance with European law between 1978 and 1999. The empirical findings show that the combined model of the enforcement and the management approach turns out to have the highest explanatory power. Politically powerful member states are most likely to violate European law while the best compliers are small countries with highly efficient bureaucracies. Yet, administrative capacity also matters for powerful member states. The UK and Germany are much more compliant than France and Italy, which command similar political power but whose administrations are ridden by bureaucratic inefficiency and corruption.
Political Geography:
United Kingdom, Europe, France, and Italy

409. Bridging Boundaries: The Equalization Strategies of Stigmatized Ethno-racial Groups Compared

Author:
Michèle Lamont and Christopher Bail
Publication Date:
01-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
Abstract:
This article offers a framework for analyzing variations in how members of stigmatized ethnoracial groups establish equivalence with dominant groups through the comparative study of “equalization strategies.” Whereas extant scholarship on anti-racism has focused on the struggle of social movements against institutional and political exclusion and social justice, we are concerned with the “everyday” anti-racist strategies deployed by members of stigmatized groups. We seek to compare how these strategies vary according to the permeability of inter-group boundaries. The first section defines our research problem and the second section locates our agenda within the current literature. The third section sketches an empirical context for the comparative analysis of equalization strategies across four cases: Palestinian citizens of Israel, Catholics in Northern Ireland, blacks in Brazil, and Québécois in Canada. Whereas the first two cases are examples of ethnic conflict where group boundaries are tightly policed, the second cases exemplify more permeable boundaries. We conclude by offering tentative hypotheses about the relationship between the permeability of inter-group boundaries and the salience and range of equalization strategies used by members of stigmatized ethno-racial groups to establish equivalence with their counterparts in dominant majority groups.
Topic:
Civil Society
Political Geography:
United Kingdom, Europe, Middle East, Canada, Israel, Brazil, South America, and North Ireland

410. A Beginner's Guide to Security Sector Reform (SSR)

Publication Date:
12-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Global Facilitation Network for Security Sector Reform
Abstract:
This guide serves as an introduction to SSR and suggests some key sources for further reading. It is available as a downloadable document from www.ssrnetwork.net along with a database of key UK and international actors in SSR and a comprehensive SSR acronyms list, which form useful complementary reading to this guide.
Topic:
Security and Crime
Political Geography:
United Kingdom, Europe, and United Nations