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211. Heat and Hate: Climate Security and Farmer-Herder Conflicts in Africa

Author:
Ulrich J. Eberle, Dominic Rohner, and Mathias Thoenig
Publication Date:
12-2020
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Empirical Studies of Conflict Project (ESOC)
Abstract:
This paper investigates the impact of climate shocks on violence between herders and farmers by using geolocalized data on conflict events for all African countries over the 1997-2014 period. We find that a +1℃ increase in temperature leads to a +54% increase in conflict probability in mixed areas populated by both farmers and herders, compared to +17% increase in non-mixed areas. This result is robust to controlling for the interaction between temperature and ethnic polarization, alternative estimation techniques, disaggregation levels, and coding options of the climatic/conflict/ethnic variables. When quantifying at the continental level the impact on conflict of projected climate change in 2040, we find that, in absence of mixed population areas, global warming is predicted to increase total annual conflicts by about a quarter in whole Africa; when factoring in the magnifying effect of mixed settlements, total annual conflicts are predicted to rise by as much as a third. We also provide two pieces of evidence that resource competition is a major driver of farmer-herder violence. Firstly, conflicts are much more prevalent at the fringe between rangeland and farmland - a geographic buffer of mixed usage that is suitable for both cattle herding and farming but is particularly vulnerable to climate shocks. Secondly, information on groups' mobility reveals that temperature spikes in the ethnic homeland of a nomadic group tend to diffuse its fighting operations outside its homeland, with a magnified spatial spread in the case of conflicts over resources. Finally, we show that violence is substantially reduced in the presence of policies that empower local communities, foster participatory democracy, enforce property rights and regulate land dispute resolution.
Topic:
Agriculture, Climate Change, Conflict, Violence, and Farming
Political Geography:
Africa

212. Palestinian Non-Violence Examples in Facing Internal Disputes

Author:
Talal Abu-Rokba and Islam Musa
Publication Date:
09-2020
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Pal-Think For Strategic Studies
Abstract:
Throughout history, Palestinian non-violence culture was based on a large historical stock of tolerance and coexistence within the Palestinian community. Over time, the Palestinian people have been shaping one nation; they share the same culture, civilization, and political environment as well as equal shared prospects and future. For fifteen centuries, Muslim, Christian, Jewish Palestinians lived together. Usually, their different beliefs were not a reason for dispute or schism. Coexistence and a culture of respect were demonstrated in the Palestinian community. Thereby, it appears in numerous aspects of their lifestyle. For instance, they lived in the same neighborhoods, villages, and cities. Historically, population distributions showed non-religions-based demographics; they were even integrated into social, educational, and political institutions Contemporarily, Palestinians are one body. They are all related to one land where they share and cooperate on social, cultural, political, and economic levels.
Topic:
Religion, Territorial Disputes, Violence, and Community
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, and Palestine

213. The ICRC’s Changing Role In International Humanitarianism

Author:
Peter Maurer
Publication Date:
06-2020
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Brown Journal of World Affairs
Abstract:
Peter Maurer is the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). This interview was conducted at the beginning of March, before the COVID-19 outbreak had reached pandemic levels. Since that time, the ICRC has been adapt- ing its operations to respond to the disease’s impacts in conflict-affected countries. President Maurer wrote about his concerns for vulnerable populations in an opinion column in The Guardian, published 27 March 2020.
Topic:
Health, Humanitarian Aid, Humanitarian Intervention, Violence, Civilians, Medicine, Red Cross, and ICRC
Political Geography:
Global Focus

214. Análisis de las respuestas del estado colombiano ante el problema de violencia Intrafamiliar en Colombia

Author:
Jairo Santander Abril, Andrea del Pilar González Peña, and Sandra Rojas Barrero
Publication Date:
02-2020
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Centro Interdisciplinario de Estudios sobre Desarrollo (CIDER), Universidad de los Andes
Abstract:
El profesor del Cider Jairo Santander, la profesora Andrea del Pilar González Peña del Departamento de Economía de la Universidad Central y Sandra Rojas Barrero, investigadora de la Procuraduría General de la Nación, son los autores del Documento de Trabajo “Análisis de las Repuestas del Estado Colombiano Ante el Problema de Violencia Intrafamiliar en Colombia”.  Publicación que da cuenta de las discusiones actuales sobre la familia y la violencia intrafamiliar y examina las políticas públicas formuladas por el Estado colombiano para hacerle frente.  En su análisis, los investigadores se dan a la tarea de reflexionar acerca de la pertinencia de las políticas públicas contra este la violencia intrafamiliar, basándose en literatura sobre los factores causales de tal problemática, los cuales deberían ser el objetivo principal de tales intervenciones, y contraponiendo los resultados de este análisis con la realidad de las estrategias políticas que el Estado Colombiano ha asumido para contrarrestar el aumento de este tipo de violencia. Así, logran orientar este estudio a la proposición de mejoras de estas políticas públicas para que puedan articularse adecuadamente con la realidad social y la estructura causal del problema.
Topic:
Gender Based Violence, Violence, Public Policy, Family, Economic Development, and Domestic Violence
Political Geography:
Colombia

215. The historical origins of global jihad, revisited

Author:
Thomas Hegghammer and Daniela Pisoiu
Publication Date:
12-2020
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Austrian Institute for International Affairs (OIIP)
Abstract:
Where does transnational jihadism come from? Why did militant Islamists start targeting the West in the 1990s after decades of operating locally? In this lecture, Thomas Hegghammer revisited the historical origins of the phenomenon often referred to as "global jihadism". Using insights from his latest book, The Caravan: Abdallah Azzam and the Rise of Global Jihad (Cambridge, 2020), he argued that the standard narrative established in the years after 9/11 was too West-focused and state-centric, and that local politics and technology played a greater role than is often acknowledged.
Topic:
Science and Technology, History, Non State Actors, Transnational Actors, Violence, Islamism, and Jihad
Political Geography:
Global Focus

216. Violence Prevention through Election Observation

Author:
Larry Garber
Publication Date:
08-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
United States Institute of Peace
Abstract:
For many years, election-related violence has posed a serious threat to the integrity of electoral processes worldwide. To prevent or minimize such violence, the international community has often relied upon election observation missions, which incorporate an extended on-the-ground presence and proactive mediation by international and domestic actors. This report discusses the challenge observer missions face in confronting election violence, and suggests how preventive efforts can be enhanced through improved, multi-mandate observation practices.
Topic:
Conflict Prevention, Elections, and Violence
Political Geography:
Global Focus

217. Is a Plan B Needed to Save Afghanistan?

Author:
Marvin G. Weinbaum, Saad Mohseni, Anthony H. Cordesman, Muqaddesa Yourish, David Sedney, and Ali Jalali
Publication Date:
09-2020
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Middle East Institute (MEI)
Abstract:
The future of Afghanistan’s constitutionally liberal democratic system is very much at issue. On its survival rests the aspiration of the greatest number of its people, the deep investment of the international community in the country’s stability and wellbeing, and ultimately the security of the region and beyond. Negotiations are beginning in what is certain to be a lengthy process that may in the name of a compromise trade away social and economic gains realized over nearly two decades. Afghanistan has additionally to cope with the disengagement of foreign forces just at a time when their leverage militarily and diplomatically could be critical. In the absence of a verifiable ceasefire, the country confronts a prospect of exploding violence and possible descent into chaos. Can Afghanistan pull itself together to not only protect its achievements but to overcome past errors? Should Afghans and their international partners think about formulating a Plan B to save the republic while striving for true reconciliation with the insurgency? The Middle East Institute is pleased to host a panel of experts to discuss these questions and more.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Political stability, Domestic Politics, and Violence
Political Geography:
Afghanistan and United States of America

218. GENDER AND POLITICAL VIOLENCE

Author:
Rose McDermott
Publication Date:
12-2020
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Political Violence @ A Glance
Abstract:
Recent commentary has noted that countries run by women have done a markedly better job at containing the COVID-19 pandemic than countries run by men. Previous commentary has also suggested that the public tends to think that female leaders do a better job on issues related to health and education. But the COVID-19 pandemic is not simply a health issue; it also presents major challenges in international relations, which begs the question: how does gender influence international relations? Gender affects international relations in many ways. It is at the root of many types and forms of conflict, from domestic violence to war. War is usually thought of as being something that is supported primarily by men even if the negative effects disproportionately fall on women. However, a great deal of conflict begins in and around battles over status between men, and between men and women. This is true in both domestic and international realms. Conflict, like much else, begins in the home. Children watch their parents disagree and observe how fights take place. Do parents have reasoned arguments that end in negotiated compromises? Or does their father beat their mother into submission? Children learn from watching, and take lessons about how to resolve conflict—and the role of domination and coercion in relationships—into the larger world, and use these models as the basis for how they feel they, and their nations, should behave.
Topic:
Political Violence, Gender Issues, Women, Leadership, Violence, and Peace
Political Geography:
Global Focus

219. Mapping State Interventions Towards Women and Child Protection in Maharashtra

Author:
Accountability Initiative
Publication Date:
11-2020
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Centre for Policy Research, India
Abstract:
This study examined interventions addressing violence against women (VAW) and violence against children (VAC) in Maharashtra. The study, conducted between August 2018 and October 2019, analyses budgetary allocations, expenditures, and utilisation for measures addressing VAW and VAC over 5 years FY 2014-15 to FY 2018-19. This study was commissioned by UNICEF Maharashtra as a part of a larger project between UNICEF, UN Women and Government of Maharashtra on tracking outlays to outcomes for women and children.
Topic:
Governance, Children, Women, Violence, and Public Policy
Political Geography:
South Asia and India

220. The Rise of Kata’ib Hezbollah’s Hegemonic ‘Resistance’

Author:
Hamdi Malik
Publication Date:
12-2020
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:
The Iraq-based Kata’ib Hezbollah (KH) is diligently and meticulously working to achieve hegemony among Iran-backed 'resistance' militias in Iraq. The group is positioning itself as the 'true resistance' faction and obliging other Iran-backed groups to follow its lead. In order to achieve this goal, KH is operating on military and non-military fronts. KH is stepping up its non-military vigilante activities, drawing heavily on its youth movements that have been developing in the past decade. These organizations serve to promote the most radical version of the anti-U.S. Shia Islamist ideology promulgated by the ‘axis of resistance’, and they work to squash opposing views in Iraqi society. These efforts work in tandem with the group’s military front, where KH has managed to lead attacks against U.S. interests following the assassination of Qassem Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis. While details of KH’s military wing have been covered in my piece “ The Still Growing Threat of Iran’s Chosen Proxy in Iraq’’ and Michael Knights’s Back into the Shadows? The Future of Kata’ib Hezbollah and Iran’s Other Proxies in Iraq,” it is worth examining the group’s growing non-military activities as well.
Topic:
Non State Actors, Violence, Militias, and Kata'ib Hezbollah (KH)
Political Geography:
Iraq and Middle East