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211. Africa and Anger: Algeria Remembers

Author:
James Jay Carafano
Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Institution:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Abstract:
The publication of Martin Evans and John Phillips' Algeria: Anger of the Dispossessed could not be more timely or necessary. Recently, the Pentagon established the U.S. Africa Command—AFRICOM. Its creation was not due to plans by the military to invade any African nation. In fact, the motivation for creating the command was the opposite: to disprove the notion that the outside world needs to solve the problems of Africans for them. Establishing AFRICOM will make the United States a more knowledgeable and more effective partner in the region, and will not only preclude the need for armed intervention but will also support African solutions to Africa's issues.
Political Geography:
Africa, United States, and Algeria

212. Invisible, Insecure, and Inaccessible: The Humanitarian Crisis in Chad

Author:
Stephanie Getson
Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Institution:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Abstract:
The night before I arrived in Abéché to begin my internship with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Chad, a small group of rebels attacked the UNHCR guesthouse where I was planning to stay. Rebels killed one guard, and bound and gagged two other guards while the rebel leader threatened a colleague at gunpoint until he gathered enough money to pay off the intruders. Incidents like this have become common in Abéché, the third largest city in Chad, which serves as the base of humanitarian operations working to protect the refugees streaming across the border from Darfur. Before arriving in the country I assumed that the Darfur refugee situation was the largest crisis in the region, but I soon found out that there are other equally dire problems that need to be addressed.

213. Perception and the Costs of Waiting: Transition in Cuba

Author:
John-Michael McColl
Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Institution:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Abstract:
Life in Cuba is about waiting. Waiting for buses, waiting in line at banks, waiting for food. I spent most of my time in Cuba waiting for something. Today, Cubans continue to wait for just about everything, including news of the ailing Fidel Castro. The rest of the world, particularly the exile community in Miami, scrutinizes every image of the aging leader, trying to determine if he is more or less frail and scraping for any information that will give them some indication of how much longer it will be until Castro is confined to the history books. Yet, the truth is that El Commandante shuffled off his mortal coil decades ago, when he ceased existing as a man and became an icon. For many, Castro is Cuban communism, pure and simple. They imagine that when he dies, his revolucíon will follow him into oblivion. Some picture a situation similar to the fall of the Berlin Wall, when communism seemingly collapsed overnight. They expect Cubans from Miami and Havana to rush across the water straight into each other's arms. On 24 October, President Bush laid out his plans for the upcoming “transition” in Cuba. Anticipating the day the “Cubans [will] rise upto demand their liberty,” President Bush announced the creation of a multi-billion dollar “Freedom Fund” which promises Cubans access to grants, loans, and debt relief to rebuild their country as soon as they oust the undemocratic regime. To the U.S. president and everyone else who is planning for this big day, I have a piece of advice: don't hold your breath.
Political Geography:
United States and Cuba

214. Rethinking Victory in the "War on Terror"

Author:
Philip H. Gordon
Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Institution:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Abstract:
GJI A: You say in your new book, Winning the Right War: The Path to Security for America and the World , that we've been fighting the wrong war, the war on terror, for the past six years. Why is the war on terror the "wrong" war? What would be the "right" war? What do you mean by the title?
Topic:
War

215. Foreword: Dynamics of Dissent

Publication Date:
06-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Institution:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Abstract:
Today's methods of dissent-sometimes peaceful, often violent, and usually controversial-take many forms in the age-old quest for social and political change. Globalization has become an ever-present force of transformation, affecting how opposition to the status quo arises and how people express their opposition. Technology and trade liberalization provide citizens with immediate access to information that shapes how they voice their dissent. At the same time, traditional factors-ethnic, economic, religious-continue to be a source of tension, provoking dissent in numerous ways. This Forum examines the evolving dynamics of contemporary dissent. While keeping an eye on dissent's consistent themes, such as the exclusion of minorities and debates over non-violent tactics, this Forum also explores the effects of new forces, from the internet to the WTO, on how people experience and confront marginalization. Examining the dynamics of dissent allows us to better understand how changes will continue to unfold as our diverse world becomes ever more integrated.
Topic:
Civil Society, Economics, Globalization, Government, and International Affairs
Political Geography:
London

216. Who Are the People? Why Ethnic Politics Matter

Author:
James Mabry
Publication Date:
06-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Institution:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Abstract:
In the first decade of the twenty-first century, the idea of mass mobilization in order to redirect government is axiomatic. If the environment is degraded, then the solution is to educate and organize concerned citizens. The same can be said of gender inequality, racial prejudice, or, in the form of labor movements, class disparity. Yet of all the challenges a society may launch at its state, the most serious are not those that challenge a particular policy or seek redress of a single social issue, but those that challenge the legitimacy of the state itself. This begs the question: what makes a state legitimate or illegitimate? The short answer is whether or not the state represents the will of the people. But the long answer demands an answer to another question: who are the people? In the global arena, it is implicit that different peoples are different nations, and that different nations have different states. If there is disagreement over the composition of a particular nation, there is by extension disagreement over the composition of the state. If the raison d'etre of the state itself is contentious, this can upset the stability of said state, and, by extension, may threaten the equilibrium of international relations.
Topic:
Civil Society, Globalization, Government, and International Affairs

217. Airpower: The Flip Side of COIN

Author:
Daniel F. Baltrusaitis
Publication Date:
06-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Institution:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Abstract:
Despite the success of the U.S. military in conventional warfare, recent experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan have illustrated the challenges of pursuing a counter-insurgent strategy against “asymmetric threats” such as improvised explosive devices or suicide bombers. The “asymmetric” strategy often adopted by insurgents allows a relatively weak for ce to incapacitate a stronger one by exploiting the stronger force's vulnera-bilities rather than meeting it head-on in conventional com-bat. Our current wars have focused national attention on the ability of the Army and Marine Corps to cope with this “asymmetric” environment, yet the influence of airpower has been conspicuously missing from the debate. Even the core military doctrine for counterinsurgency, or COIN, fails to acknowledge the benefits that airpower can play against these asymmetric threats. The Army and Marine Corps recently released Field Manual (FM) 3-24, Counterinsurgency (designated by the Marine Corps as Warfighting Publication 3-33.5), an impressive and influential 282-page document that skillfully addresses many difficult COIN issues. This doctrine is viewed as the overall plan for COIN operations in Iraq, and will likely become the centerpiece of new joint COIN doctrine that will guide all the armed services. Regrettably, this impressive document fails to inform the COIN strategist, and policymakers, on the influence of highly integrated joint COIN strategy. Rather, it treats the influence of airpower as an adjunct capability confined to a short, five-page annex of “supplemental information.” By failing to integrate the full potential of today's airpower capabilities and by focusing almost exclusively on only the ground dimension, FM 3-24 falls short of offering U.S. decisionmakers a pragmatic, joint solution for the challenge of COIN. The current doctrine fails to integrate all aspects of military power that may be implemented for the most effective counterinsurgency campaign. By failing to integrate airpower (or seapower) into this cornerstone doctrine document, U.S. and coalition forces risk planning operations in a dis-jointed fashion where planners do not understand the strengths and weaknesses of service capabilities. This paper examines the influence of airpower on COIN strategy and articulates the benefits of an integrated joint COIN doctrine to combat effectively the insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Topic:
Civil Society, Globalization, Government, and International Affairs
Political Geography:
Afghanistan and United States

218. The Tigers Abroad: How the LTTE Diaspora Supports the Conflict in Sti Lanka

Author:
Peter Chalk
Publication Date:
06-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Institution:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Abstract:
An integral part of the LTTE support structure is the Sri Lankan Tamil Diaspora, which serves as a critical lifeline by providing international political recognition and monetary support.
Topic:
Civil Society, Globalization, Government, and International Affairs
Political Geography:
Sri Lanka

219. Mothers, Bombers, Beauty Queens: Chechen Women's Roles in Russo-Chechen Conflict

Author:
Francine Banner
Publication Date:
06-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Institution:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Abstract:
The bodies of Chechen women symbolize the dichotomy of tradition and modernity in Chechen national identity.
Topic:
Civil Society, Globalization, Government, and International Affairs

220. Citizenship in the Making

Author:
Gustavo Gordillo
Publication Date:
06-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Institution:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Abstract:
A retrospective analysis of the legality of the 2006 election and Lopez Obrador's presidency in Mexico.
Topic:
Civil Society, Globalization, Government, and International Affairs
Political Geography:
Mexico