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141. A Political Storm Over the Nile

Author:
Adonia Ayebare
Publication Date:
12-2010
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
International Peace Institute
Abstract:
The Nile River basin is a vast area covering ten states, of which five are among the poorest in the world. Home to more than 350 million people, it is a troubled region that has been ravaged by armed conflicts, state failure, genocide, severe drought, and aid dependency. But it is also an area with great potential and geopolitical significance. In the past, the Nile River, with its origin in East and Central Africa, has been at the center of international affairs, most critically during the Suez Canal Crisis in 1956. Currently, the Nile is among the postreferendum issues being negotiated by parties to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in Sudan: the National Congress Party (NCP) and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM).
Topic:
Natural Resources and Water
Political Geography:
Africa, Sudan, Arabia, and North Africa

142. Preventing Identity Conflicts Leading to Genocide and Mass Killings

Author:
I. William Zartman
Publication Date:
11-2010
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
International Peace Institute
Abstract:
Genocide and mass killings are preceded and prepared by identity conflicts that escalate into targeted mass killing. They can be the work of rebel movements, but frequently are that of the sovereign state against its own people. They are generally pathologically defensive reactions to a perceived existential threat. What is required to prevent this situation is a return to (or move toward) the ideal condition of “normal politics,” where government responds to the needs and demands of its citizens, and the citizens regularly review its record in adequately providing this response. It is the object of the intervention—the shortcoming to be prevented—that confers a responsibility to protect the target of identity conflict, but there is no agreed threshold of seriousness that compels intervention. Early warnings abound; early awareness and early action are lacking; a “Security Weather Agency” is needed.
Topic:
Conflict Prevention, Genocide, Human Rights, and International Cooperation
Political Geography:
United Nations

143. The Sudan Referenda: What Role for International Actors?

Author:
Paul Romita
Publication Date:
11-2010
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
International Peace Institute
Abstract:
Two referenda are scheduled for January 9, 2011, in Sudan. In one, the people of Southern Sudan will decide whether they will remain part of the Republic of the Sudan or form an independent country with its capital in Juba; in the other, residents of the Abyei region will determine whether or not Abyei will become part of Southern Sudan.
Topic:
Civil War, Islam, Peace Studies, Treaties and Agreements, Sectarian violence, and Peacekeeping
Political Geography:
Africa and Juba

144. Issue Brief: Reaching the OSCE Summit in Astana

Author:
Walter Kemp
Publication Date:
09-2010
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
International Peace Institute
Abstract:
On December 1 and 2, 2010, Kazakhstan will host the heads of state or government of fifty-six countries for the first summit of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) since 1999. This is a major achievement for a country that was considered by some to be an inappropriate choice to lead the OSCE. Yet the Astana summit is not a test of Kazakhstan's leadership. It is about the future of Euro-Atlantic and Eurasian security, and the viability of the OSCE. At a time when the European Union, Russia, and the United States are redefining their relationships and looking for common ground, the Astana summit provides an opportunity to focus on issues that unite all stakeholders—finding a sense of common purpose to deal with common threats and challenges on the basis of common principles. This brief looks at what it will take to reach the “summit” at Astana, examines the main issues at stake, and considers the relevance and future direction of the OSCE.
Topic:
Security and International Cooperation
Political Geography:
Russia, United States, Europe, Central Asia, Kazakhstan, and Asia

145. Power, Politics, and Change: How International Actors Assess Local Context

Author:
Paul Romita and Vanessa Wyeth
Publication Date:
06-2010
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Peace Institute
Abstract:
In recent years, donor governments and international organizations such as the UN and the World Bank have developed a number of frameworks and tools to assess governance, conflict, and fragility. This report argues that there are multiple, and often contradictory, objectives underlying the development and use of such assessment tools. Underpinning this multiplicity of objectives are deep assumptions, many of which remain unstated. Different agencies tend to define the problem through their own institutional lens, and the assessment tools they create reflect these biases. As the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development—Development Assistant Committee's (OECD-DAC's) work on governance assessments has pointed out, assumptions underlying governance assessment methodologies are usually not explicit, but tend to measure governance against existing norms in OECD countries. Similarly, the different approaches to conflict assessment adopted by major bilateral and multilateral actors demonstrate conceptual and intellectual differences in their understanding of the nature of conflict; the same may be said for various donors' approaches to assessing state fragility.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, Conflict Prevention, International Relations, and International Cooperation
Political Geography:
United Nations

146. Transnational Organized Crime and the Palermo Convention: A Reality Check

Author:
André Standing
Publication Date:
12-2010
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Peace Institute
Abstract:
Ten years have passed since the adoption of the Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (the Palermo Convention) by the UN General Assembly on November 15, 2000. At the signing of the convention in Palermo, Sicily, in December 2000, many government delegations welcomed the Palermo Convention as an important step in the fight against organized crime. Some warned against viewing it as a final measure and stressed that the convention and its protocols should be considered as a starting point rather than an end in itself.
Topic:
Crime, Globalization, International Cooperation, Terrorism, and United Nations
Political Geography:
United States

147. West Africa: Governance and Security in a Changing Region

Author:
Abdel-Fatau Musah
Publication Date:
02-2009
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Peace Institute
Abstract:
This paper addresses the challenges to human and regional security in the territory covered by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). It examines causal factors and their effects, profiles the actors shaping the security environment, and describes the nature and impacts of their interventions. Finally, it projects possible future scenarios based on the current security dynamics. The paper examines the geopolitical environment of West Africa, with emphasis on the strategic importance of the region and the vulnerabilities emanating from its location. Within this context, it discusses the roles of local, regional, and international actors in the evolving regional security architecture, sifting through their actions, motivations, and interventions. It analyzes the attempts by national, regional, and international institutions to transform the security environment, highlighting their roles, strengths, and weaknesses; and it projects various security scenarios, proposing policy options to meet the challenges that these scenarios present.
Topic:
Security, Development, Government, and Political Economy
Political Geography:
Africa

148. Transnational Organized Crime

Publication Date:
01-2009
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Peace Institute
Abstract:
Transnational organized crime (TOC) is no longer the sole preserve of specialist criminal organizations. It is now an essential strategy for armed groups around the world, and a source of funding for terrorists, corrupt politicians, warlords, and rogue governments. But states and international organizations have largely failed to anticipate the evolution of TOC into a strategic threat to governments, societies, and economies. At the international level, an outdated understanding of TOC does not adequately contemplate the strategic impact of TOC and fails to ensure that peace efforts and crime fighting are not working at cross-purposes.
Topic:
International Relations, Security, Crime, International Law, Peace Studies, War on Drugs, and Weapons of Mass Destruction

149. Private Military and Security Companies: A Framework for Regulation

Author:
James Cockayne and Emily Speers Mears
Publication Date:
03-2009
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Peace Institute
Abstract:
In late 2008, seventeen states, including the US, UK, China, Iraq, and Afghanistan, endorsed the Montreux Document on Pertinent International Legal Obligations and Good Practices for States Related to Operations of Private Military and Security Companies During Armed Conflict. This provides important guidance to states in regulating Private Military and Security Companies (PMSCs). But there is a need to do more, to provide increased guidance to industry and ensure standards are enforced.
Topic:
Security, International Law, Privatization, Treaties and Agreements, and War
Political Geography:
Afghanistan, United States, China, Iraq, and United Kingdom

150. Conflict Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect

Publication Date:
04-2009
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Peace Institute
Abstract:
The multilateral system has struggled to respond to the changing nature of conflict and its increasingly brutal effects on civilians. Countless eloquent speeches have been made and ink spilled on the urgent need to prevent conflict and protect civilians. Yet the gulf between rhetoric and reality is still unacceptably wide.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, Conflict Prevention, Security, Human Rights, Human Welfare, and War