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5741. Eldar Sarajlic and Davor Marko (eds.), State or Nation? The Challenges of Political Transition in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Sarajevo: University of Sarajevo, 2011)

Author:
Maja Nenadovic
Publication Date:
04-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Central European University Political Science Journal
Institution:
Central European University
Abstract:
This edited volume brings together “the coming generation of Balkan social scientists” in an effort to open up discussion and shed light in various elements of Bosnia-Herzegovina's troubled post-conflict transition processes. The book, like others focusing on the same subject, illustrates why Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH) remains the most intriguing piece in the puzzle of Yugoslavia's disintegration. In the most ethnically diverse republic of Yugoslavia, the particularly bloody conflict shocked the world that was watching in disbelief as international community scrambled to respond to the escalating crisis. The Dayton Peace Agreement put an end to the war but put into place a dysfunctional political system fashioned with consociational characteristics that resulted in ethnicization of politics, education and just about every other aspect of life in the country. Finally, the unprecedented international intervention that culminated in the institution of 'international administration', as embodied by the Office of the High Representative (OHR), made BiH the 'perfect' social experiment in the making. As an extreme or crucial case study, it attracted hordes of social scientists analyzing peace building, intervention, state building, nation-building and post-conflict reconstruction. With the international administration now in its sixteenth year of presence on the ground and with the political situation spiraling out of control to the point of talk among (nationalist) political elites of renewed conflict, it is not difficult to understand why the country is a mess that continues to fascinate.
Political Geography:
Bosnia, Yugoslavia, and Balkans

5742. Jessica C.E. Gienow–Hecht and Mark C. Donfried (eds.), Searching for a Cultural Diplomacy (New York and Oxford: Berghahn Books, 2010)

Author:
Oana Elena Brânda
Publication Date:
04-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Central European University Political Science Journal
Institution:
Central European University
Abstract:
Cultural diplomacy is usually limited spatially to the European and American areas and most is mostly investigated for the period of the Cold Wr. What the two intend to do is extend both the geographical and temporal limits to African and Asian continents as well as back to the middle of the 19th century, as is the Japanese case. What Jessica C.E. Gienow-Hect and mark C. Donfried attempt in this work is to offer a comprehensive view of the term "cultural diplomacy" not only by looking as its multiple aspects, but also offering throughout time and space various examples of such a practice. As "cultural diplomacy" is not only a term, but also a valuable practice employed by both state and non-state actors.
Topic:
Non State Actors
Political Geography:
Africa, New York, America, and Europe

5743. Lessons from a Divided Society: How to Deal with Party Factionalism

Author:
Alexandra Ionascu
Publication Date:
07-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Romanian Journal of Political Science
Institution:
Romanian Academic Society
Abstract:
Despite the fact that party dissolutions and degenerative forms of factionalism, no major splits or internal divides shaded the image of the main ethnic based party: the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (DAHR). Similarly to other post communist countries, the minority representation in Romania constitutes an electoral success story. In a general framework of fragmentation and organisational instability, the DAHR's political performance and continuity were doubled by an exceptional organisational strength. Although the ethnic based parties do tend to manifest higher levels of external cohesion as a result of their single-issue nature, their organisational continuity constitutes rather a cas a part which deserves further investigation. Consequently, the following article focuses on highlighting the mechanisms conducive to the accommodation of different factions considering that the anatomy of such internal arrangements constitutes an important resource for the understanding of party organisational survival. The analysis will show that even if DAHR seems to describe a mixture of party types, with important elements of party centralisation and party discontent among elites and delegates, the internal party regulations, notably the party primary system, balanced the power struggles within the organisation, resulting thus in a general model of auto proclaimed party democracy.

5744. CONTENTS

Publication Date:
01-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Institution:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Abstract:
No abstract is available.

5745. The Study of Terrorism 10 Years After 9/11: Successes, Issues, Challenges

Author:
Richard Jackson
Publication Date:
01-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Institution:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Abstract:
This article surveys the field of terrorism studies since 9/11 and attempts to assess some of its main successes, perennial issues and future challenges. It suggests that terrorism studies has grown and matured in the decade since the attacks, in part through its rising popularity and institutionalization in new university teaching programs, a growing number of think tanks and research institutes, and scholarly activity in new networks and journals. While some of its successes include new dedicated scholars and researchers, improving standards of scholarship, and diversification of research and methodological approaches (including the rise of critical terrorism studies), a number of perennial issues continue to haunt the field. These include, among others: tendencies towards decontextualisation, de-historicisation and knowledge subjugation within the field; skewed research priorities; normative-political issues surrounding policy engagement and problem-solving; the lack of reflexivity and engagement with critical terrorism studies and other critical movements; and the low entry barriers to terrorism expertise and the rise of pseudo-experts. The article concludes with a discussion of some of the main challenges facing the field, such as avoiding a bifurcation into critical and orthodox intellectual ghettos, bridging the trans-Atlantic divide between scholars, negotiating the complex legal environment posed by domestic counter-terrorism legislation, developing standards and safeguards for primary research and integrating the relevant knowledge of cognate fields such as peace studies into the research and teaching of terrorism studies. Overall, the article concludes that it is an opportune time to be involved in terrorism studies and there reasons for being cautiously optimistic about the next decade of terrorism research.

5746. 'Old' vs. 'New' Terrorism: What's in a Name?

Author:
Andreas Gofas
Publication Date:
01-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Institution:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Abstract:
The question of “old” versus “new” terrorism has been debated vigorously. Proponents of “new terrorism” point to a radical transformation in the character of terrorism, while skeptics point out that today's terrorism is not a fundamentally or qualitatively new phenomenon but grounded in an evolving historical context. In this paper I take stoke of the debate by means of juxtaposing ideal types of “traditional” and “new” terrorism along the axis of five distinguishing variables: organizational structure; operational range; motives; tactics; and attitude towards the Westphalian system. The analysis reveals several similarities, instead of rigid distinctions, that point in favour of evolution rather the revolution of terrorist activity. Article, thus, question both the analytical value and empirical veracity of “new terrorism”.

5747. Defining the "New Terrorism": Reconstruction of the Enemy in the Global Risk Society

Author:
Münevver cebeci
Publication Date:
01-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Institution:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Abstract:
Employing the conceptual frameworks provided by Ulrich Beck and Carl Schmitt; this article argues that the reconstruction of the enemy in the global risk society reflects a reincarnation of a “crude” form of “the political”. As the powerful –the US– determines our knowledge on global terrorism, the global risk society itself becomes political, through the reconstruction of the enemy as inhuman and, thus, right-less: an enemy who should be captured and punished severely. This also refers to a deconstruction of the classical conception of war and its reconstruction as a special kind of war which involves the use and legitimization of measures that violate all rules of war, international law and human rights. This article concludes that attempts to define the “new terrorism” on positivist lines risk contributing to such reconstruction of the enemy and war, and, therefore, critical and poststructuralist approaches might offer more insight into understanding the post-9/11 world.

5748. The Only Thing We Have to Fear: Post 9/11 Institutionalization of In-security

Author:
Mitat Çelikpala and Duygu Öztürk
Publication Date:
01-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Institution:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Abstract:
During the last decade, billions of dollars have been spent to increase security measures in the United States. New institutions, including a department for homeland security, have been established, new security tools have been developed, and surveillance of Americans has been increased. However, despite the creation of 'safety zones,' neither the level of the Americans' feeling of security from further terrorist attacks, nor their confidence in the ability of US governments to prevent attacks, has seen an increase. According to Beck, who introduced the concepts of 'world risk society' and 'reflexive modernity', terrorism is one of the products of reflexive modernity which cannot be addressed by traditional security measures. Within this framework, this paper analyzes the case of the Americans since 9/11 attacks. In this vein, it is argued that the gap which has arisen as a result of addressing non-territory and non-state-based terrorism through state-based security measures has caused a continuation of a high level of insecurity, fear, and anxiety among the Americans. Public opinion surveys conducted in the United States since the 9/11 attacks by various institutions are used to analyze Americans' thoughts about security and the terror risk in the United States.
Political Geography:
United States

5749. 'War on Terror' and Hegemony: International Law-Making Regarding Terrorism After 9/11

Author:
Müge Kınacıoğ
Publication Date:
01-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Institution:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Abstract:
The focus of analysis in this article is the process of hegemonic law-making regarding terrorism utilizing unilateral power and the collective legitimization function of the UN. In order to explore how hegemony influences the development of international legal norms concerning the use of force and terrorism, the article examines the ways in which the United States as a prevailing actor in the international system has sought to translate its political power to develop a new norm of preemption and to impose international legal obligations on states with regards to the suppression of terrorism through the United Nations Security Council's Chapter VII resolutions after September 11 terrorist attacks.

5750. Is Terrorism Still a Democratic Phenomenon?

Author:
Erica Chenoweth
Publication Date:
01-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Institution:
Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Abstract:
In recent years, multiple studies have confirmed that terrorism occurs in democracies more often than in nondemocratic regimes. There are five primary groups of explanations for this phenomenon, including the openness of democratic systems, organizational pressures resulting from democratic competition, the problem of underreporting in authoritarian regimes, gridlock resulting from multiparty institutions, and the coercive effectiveness of terrorism against democracies. Most of these studies, however, examine the relationship only through 1997. In this article, I explore whether terrorism has continued to occur more in democratic countries through 2010. I find that while terrorism is still prevalent in democracies, it has increased in “anocracies,” countries that policymakers would often describe as “weak” or “failed” states. I offer a potential reason for this increase: the American-led occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan. I conclude by offering some insights into how the rise of terrorism in anocracies affects the typical explanations for terrorism and democracy, and I suggest a few ways to improve on our current understanding.
Political Geography:
Afghanistan, Iraq, and America