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1. Buying Them Off or Scaring Them Straight: Explaining Warlord Democrats’ Electoral Rhetoric

Author:
Anders Themner and Roxanna Sjostedt
Publication Date:
11-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Security Studies
Institution:
Security Studies
Abstract:
Post–civil war democracies are characterized by intense electoral competition. To ensure continued political relevance, ex-military-turned-politicians, or “warlord democrats” (WDs), can either engage in a rhetoric of fear or ease societal tensions by employing a rhetoric of peace. WDs’ choice of rhetoric can have a profound impact on durable peace by altering societal discourses concerning the legitimacy of using violence. A key question is therefore: Why do some WDs employ a rhetoric of fear, and others a rhetoric of peace, when running for office? We argue that the choice of rhetoric is a function of the patrimonial endowments WDs possess; if WDs lack the resources and social networks needed to distribute patronage, they may instead use a rhetoric of fear to rally voters. To highlight the explanatory value of this proposition, we compare two Liberian WDs who ran for the Senate in 2005—Adolphus Dolo and Prince Johnson.
Topic:
Civil War, Authoritarianism, Democracy, State Violence, and Legitimacy
Political Geography:
Global Focus

2. Killing Norms Softly: US Targeted Killing, Quasi-secrecy and the Assassination Ban

Author:
Andris Banka and Adam Quinn
Publication Date:
07-2018
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Security Studies
Institution:
Security Studies
Abstract:
This article argues that when actors engage in controversial new security practices, it is misconceived to view secrecy as an opposed, counterproductive alternative to the pursuit of legitimation. Rather, we propose, deployment of “quasi-secrecy”—a combination of official secrecy with leaks, selective disclosure, and de facto public awareness—can be an effective strategy for achieving normalization and legitimation while containing the risks entailed by disclosure. We support this claim via a detailed case study of US targeted killing. First, we establish the existence of an American norm against targeted killing during the period 1976–2001. We then detail the process by which an innovation in practice was secretly approved, implemented, became known, and was gradually, partially officially acknowledged. We argue that even if quasi-secrecy was not in this instance a coherently-conceived and deliberately pursued strategy from start to finish, the case provides proof of concept for its potential to be deployed as such.
Topic:
Security, Legitimacy, Normalization, and Secrecy
Political Geography:
Global Focus