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3352. Civil Society and Democratic Civil-Military Relations - the Case of Hungary
- Author:
- Ferenc Molnar
- Publication Date:
- 10-2002
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance (DCAF)
- Abstract:
- The argument of this paper is that the early success of building DCMR does not mean real consolidation without active non-governmental actors and a dynamic civil society. Drawing attention to the non-state side of civil-military relations is crucial to improving the quality of DCMR in Hungary, and probably in general as well. The .horizontal actors. of civil-military relations could provide independent experts, or at least relatively independent experts other than the political parties. experts, for monitoring certain areas of civil-military relations. These organizations could be potential sources for civilian experts and could help decrease the level of corruption and the nonfunctional effects of political/bureaucratic coalition building between civilians and military leaders. In other words, it would improve the effective control of civilians over the military. Additionally, its role is to prevent the further alienation of citizens on military-related issues. Thus, a stronger horizontal dimension to CMR would also improve military integration into society.
- Topic:
- Security, Civil Society, and Development
- Political Geography:
- Europe
3353. Ámbito y Papel de los Especialistas en las Reformas en los Sistemas de Salud: Los Casos de Brasil y México
- Author:
- Raquel Abrantes Pêgo and Célia Almeida
- Publication Date:
- 09-2002
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Kellogg Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- The purpose of this study is to consider the role played by the community of public health experts in the contemporary health sector reform process. It discusses the issue based on the case of Brazil and Mexico, because, as specialists, public health researchers in both countries have directed their participation to influencing the conflict over the reorientation of health policy in their respective countries. One of their approaches has consisted in developing a new cognitive framework that underpins technical health sector reform projects understood as policy proposals with technical content. Our purpose is to show that these experts manage to influence the national debate over health sector reform when the technical and scientific discussion leaves the academic sphere and goes to the realm of social and political debate. In our opinion, this occurs because this technical and scientific knowledge has been held out, independently of its intrinsic value, as a political and ideological alternative platform for sustaining a health sector reform proposal which, once transformed into a policy project, has served to aggregate certain political and social forces and not others. The study sets out each case separately, in each showing first the emergence of a new body of thinking in the field of public health (Collective Health in Brazil and New Public Health in Mexico). It then demonstrates how these groups of experts have articulated and interacted with specific political and social forces within their respective societies, and analyses how they have become a political stream within health institutions in the struggle to control the sector's future.
- Topic:
- Development and Human Welfare
- Political Geography:
- Brazil, South America, Latin America, Central America, North America, and Mexico
3354. Fujimori's Financiers: How Japan Became the Largest Aid Donor in Latin America and Its Implications for Future Economic Development
- Author:
- Michael G. Donovan and Kwan S. Kim
- Publication Date:
- 01-2002
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Kellogg Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- This paper analyzes the historical development of Japan's economic relationship with Latin America and describes trends observed in the short and medium term. The main types of relations examined are trade, direct foreign investment, and official development assistance. Emphasis is placed on how Japan's postwar economic development is mirrored in its changing relationship with Latin America. The importance of relationships for both Japan and the United States is discussed, as are competing broad theoretical hypotheses about the nature and evolution of these relationships. The concluding section explores the impact of the Asian economic crisis on Latin America and assesses the feasibility of free trade agreements between Japan and certain Latin American nations.
- Topic:
- Development and Politics
- Political Geography:
- United States, Japan, Asia, South America, and Latin America
3355. The Institutional Dimension of WTO Accession Observations and Practical Guidelines for Improving National Trade-related Governance Capacities
- Author:
- Uwe Schmidt
- Publication Date:
- 11-2002
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Institute for Development and Peace
- Abstract:
- For developing countries and economies in transition, accession to and membership in the global trade body is a delicate and cumbersome experience. The need to bring national legislation into conformity with WTO rules, negotiating and implementing concessions on market access for trade in goods and services, transparency requirements, emerging new trade issues (e. g. environmental standards), and the necessity to establish and maintain professional trade-related research competence places heavy burdens on applicants and developing members that not infrequently exceed their institutional capacity for formulating policy options or negotiation strategies.
- Topic:
- Development, Economics, Globalization, and International Trade and Finance
- Political Geography:
- United States
3356. How does globalisation affect local production and knowledge systems? The surgical instrument cluster of Tuttlingen, Germany
- Author:
- Gerhard Halder
- Publication Date:
- 03-2002
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Institute for Development and Peace
- Abstract:
- The recent discussion of the winners and losersfrom globalisation has given prominence to regional development and industrial clusters in the global organisation of production and know-how. Tuttlingen, in southern Germany, is the recognised world leader in the global surgical instruments industry. However, price competition from emerging low-cost locations in South and South/East Asia and Eastern Europe, and rapid technological developments in medical engineering pose new challenges for the Tuttlingen cluster. In the past, institutional joint action was one of the pillars of the cluster's success, but there are doubts as to whether such institutions can face the new challenges. New public-private initiatives suggest a way forward, but it is too early to gauge their impact. In the past there wereimportant examples of small and medium sized firms coming togetherin joint marketing, production, and research and development efforts. While they continue, local competition has become more intense, making inter-firm co-operation more difficult. Some firms do, however, co-operate with suppliers further down the value chain, particularly those in Pakistan and Malaysia. The new challenges are also leading to further differentiation, both amongst firms as well as between producers and traders within the cluster. The most radical forms of product and functional upgrading are being concentrated in the cluster' sleading large firms. Innovation seems to be linked to close ties with end-users, the concentration of knowledge in medical engineering, and changes in surgical practices and health care delivery. Thus, the cluster while the 'big fish' in its own pond of surgical instruments, is having to come to terms with being a 'small fry' in the larger sea that constitutes the global health care sector.
- Topic:
- Development, Economics, Globalization, and Regional Cooperation
- Political Geography:
- Europe, East Asia, and Germany
3357. Sustaining Global Democratization: Priority Task Now More Than Ever
- Author:
- Morton H. Halperin, Paula Dobriansky, Paul Collier, Wayne Merry, Mark Palmer, and Elizabeth Spiro Clark
- Publication Date:
- 01-2002
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Institute for the Study of Diplomacy, Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University
- Abstract:
- October 1, Mayor Rudy Guiliani told the UN Special Session on Terrorism “The best long term deterrent to terrorism . . . is the spread of our principles of freedom, democracy, the rule of law, and respect for human life. The more that spreads around the globe, the safer we will all be. These are very powerful ideas and once they gain a foothold, they cannot be stopped.” This forum on sustaining global democratization was planned well before September 11. However, the premise of our discussion is that the spread of democracy is now more important than ever in building a safe world.
- Topic:
- Democratization, Development, and Globalization
- Political Geography:
- United States
3358. Elections and International Civilian Policing: History and Practice in Peace Operations
- Author:
- Jeff Fischer
- Publication Date:
- 06-2002
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Academy of Political Science
- Abstract:
- This paper explores the role that international civilian police (CIVPOL) have played in transitional elections and profiles specific electoral missions in which CIVPOL have performed a supporting role. The paper continues with a summary and analysis of the electoral activities and responsibilities undertaken by CIVPOL in the case studies. The conclusion looks ahead to areas of potential institutional support to enhance the effectiveness of international civilian policing in electoral missions through capacity development, standardized training, and integrated planning and support of CIVPOL in democracy development.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Conflict Prevention, Development, and Government
3359. Electoral Conflict and Violence: A Strategy for Study and Prevention
- Author:
- Jeff Fischer
- Publication Date:
- 02-2002
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Academy of Political Science
- Abstract:
- An electoral process is an alternative to violence as it is a means of achieving governance. It is when an electoral process is perceived as unfair, unresponsive, or corrupt, that its political legitimacy is compromised and stakeholders are motivated to go outside the established norms to achieve their objectives. Electoral conflict and violence become tactics in political competition.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Conflict Prevention, Development, and Government
3360. The Infrastructure of Peace in Africa: Assessing the Peacebuilding Capacity of African Institutions
- Author:
- Monica Juma and Aida Mengistu
- Publication Date:
- 09-2002
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- International Peace Institute
- Abstract:
- In October 2000, the Ford Foundation requested the International Peace Academy's (IPA) Africa Program to generate a database of institutions managing conflicts and crises in Africa. After consultations, the scope of this project was expanded to comprise an assessment of capacity, and determination of the potential of institutions to respond to crises and conflicts in Africa. This report is the outcome of that exercise and hopes to guide and facilitate the design of the Ford Foundation's funding strategy for peacebuilding in sub-Saharan Africa. However, it is hoped that this report will also serve to stimulate further discussion by the Ford Foundation and IPA staff, with the involvement of other relevant donors, about the challenges and opportunities for supporting peace and development in Africa. To that end, this report landscapes the condition of capacity in Africa, provides a diagnostic overview of institutional layout at the regional, national and local levels and proposes areas of intervention that can bolster and improve performance. It must be noted from the start that this report claims to be neither exhaustive nor comprehensive. Many important organizations engaged in useful peacebuilding work in Africa have not been included in this report due to logistical and time constraints. The organizations included in the report are merely illustrative of some of the peacebuilding work being conducted in Africa, and are mainly concentrated in conflict areas.
- Topic:
- Civil Society, Development, and Peace Studies
- Political Geography:
- Africa