Life in the Occupied Zone: One Negros Planter's Experience of War

1996 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 82-94
Author(s):  
Josefina Dalupan Hofileña
Keyword(s):  
Armed Groups ◽  
Japanese Occupation ◽  
Civilian Population ◽  
Occupied Zone

Throughout the Japanese occupation of the Visayan island of Negros in the central Philippines, two armed groups — the Japanese and the Negros guerrillas — sought to win the support and cooperation of the civilian population. The wartime experiences of Negros sugar planter Jose Gaston reveal, however, that this need to cultivate civilian support did not shield civilians from abuses by both sides.

Simple soldiers? Blurring the distinction between compulsion and commitment among Rwandan rebels in Eastern Congo

Africa ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 87 (4) ◽  
pp. 720-738 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Hedlund
Keyword(s):  
Political Ideology ◽  
Armed Groups ◽  
Civilian Population ◽  
Armed Group ◽  
Sharp Distinction ◽  
Ethnographic Fieldwork ◽  
Dual Identity ◽  
Eastern Congo ◽  
Main Factor ◽  
Violent Events

AbstractMedia descriptions of the conflicts in the Eastern Congo usually depict violent events as being systematic attacks by rebels and militias (perpetrators) on the civilian population (victims). While much attention has been given to the victims of such violence, less effort has been made to understand the perspectives and underlying motives for violence of those who are actively engaged in fighting the war. Using anthropological arguments, this article argues that the use of the terms ‘perpetrator’ and ‘victim’ are scientifically problematic when attempting to explain contemporary conflict(s) in the Eastern Congo and other similar war situations in Africa. Based on ethnographic fieldwork among the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), whose leadership was an orchestrating agent in the genocide in Rwanda in 1994, I demonstrate that not only is the victim/perpetrator dichotomy unclear, but also that combatants may frequently regard themselves as being both victims and perpetrators at one and the same time. I argue that the main factor behind this dual identity is that, while combatants in the Congo may be under a compulsion to commit violence, they may simultaneously be fully committed to their armed group and to its collective political ideology. While our conventional understanding of the membership of armed groups tends to make a sharp distinction between compulsory participation and commitment to a cause, I show how, in the context of the Eastern Congo, these categories are not, in fact, mutually exclusive.

scholarly journals The logic of security markets: Security governance in failed states

2011 ◽  
Vol 42 (6) ◽  
pp. 553-569 ◽  
Author(s):  
Željko Branović ◽  
Sven Chojnacki
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Design ◽  
State Failure ◽  
Failed States ◽  
Armed Groups ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Civilian Population ◽  
Security Governance ◽  
Security Markets ◽  
And Control ◽  
Central Purpose

This article presents a theoretical framework with which to discuss how non-state modes of security governance evolve in the context of state failure and/or collapse. To address this issue, we present the logic of security markets, which assumes that the evolution of security governance by non-state groups in failed states is a function of both resource availability and the strategies that armed groups apply to extract resources from the civilian population. Axiomatically, we expect that in the short term the central purpose for the use of force is survival and achieving the ability to finance one’s capabilities to use force, although ultimately this also includes the seizure and control of territory. The main argument is that the changing competitive conditions in security markets – which we measure in terms of the total number of violent groups and their organizational design, size and strength – explain the rationales behind the decisions of armed groups either to use violence against the civilian population or to invest in the provision of security.

The Post-1945 Food Shortage in British Malaya

1988 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul H. Kratoska
Keyword(s):  
Population Growth ◽  
Food Shortage ◽  
Rice Cultivation ◽  
Considerable Proportion ◽  
Japanese Occupation ◽  
Domestic Production ◽  
Civilian Population ◽  
Food Shortages ◽  
The Government

British Malaya before the Japanese occupation was heavily dependent on imported rice, producing on average only 35 per cent of its requirements between 1920 and 1940. During the 1930s, efforts were made to expand rice cultivation, but progress was slow and did not even keep pace with population growth: imports increased at the same rate as domestic production.As war approached, the government of Malaya built up a stockpile of rice and had about one year's supply in reserve when the occupation began. However, a considerable proportion of this grain was appropriated for military use and the civilian population soon faced food shortages.

Do Non-State Armed Groups Have a Legal Right to Consent to Offers of International Humanitarian Relief?

2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 317-341
Author(s):  
Matthias Vanhullebusch
Keyword(s):  
Security Council ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Armed Groups ◽  
Humanitarian Relief ◽  
Civilian Population ◽  
Operational Level ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Right ◽  
Equal Right ◽  
Exclusive Right

Abstract During non-international armed conflicts, fighting parties have repeatedly denied international humanitarian relief to the civilian population under their territorial control leaving them at the brink of starvation. Debates on criminal accountability for violating the prohibition of the use of starvation against the civilian population as a method of warfare have yet to address the question of ownership of the right to consent to offers of international humanitarian relief before criminalising their denial. In respect of such right to consent at the strategic level, there are divergent interpretations on the application of the principle of symmetrical rights and obligations of fighting parties in the realm of international humanitarian relief. Humanitarian and state-centric perspectives, respectively, grant or deny non-state armed groups an independent right to consent to offers of international humanitarian relief. The humanitarian perspective argues that the asymmetry of such right in favour of the government party to the conflict and at the expense of the non-state armed groups is no longer justified, especially when the right of control at the operational level (after an offer has been accepted) is equally bestowed upon all parties to the conflict. The state-centric perspective defends the exclusive right of the government party to the conflict and fears that an equal right to strategic consent for non-state armed groups would increase their legitimacy. This study argues that neutrality upheld by international humanitarian relief actors, including impartial humanitarian bodies, such as the ICRC, and the Security Council gives rise to an interdependent exercise of the right to strategic consent by all fighting parties instead.

ICRC Q&A and lexicon on humanitarian access

2014 ◽  
Vol 96 (893) ◽  
pp. 359-375 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Armed Groups ◽  
Civilian Population

A considerable number of countries have been the theatre of armed conflicts – whether international or non-international – with all the devastation and suffering that this entails, chiefly among the civilian population. Indeed, civilians continue to be the primary victims of violations of international humanitarian law (IHL) committed by both State parties and non-State armed groups. Recurring violations in hostilities include deliberate and indiscriminate attacks against civilians, the destruction of infrastructure and goods indispensable to their survival, and the forcible displacement of the civilian population. All too frequently, civilians lack basic supplies and services, such as food, water and health care.

Forced displacement in Colombia: Magnitude and causes

2009 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Maria Ibanez
Keyword(s):  
State Policy ◽  
Forced Migration ◽  
Refugee Camps ◽  
Illegal Drugs ◽  
Armed Groups ◽  
Forced Displacement ◽  
Humanitarian Crisis ◽  
Individual Basis ◽  
The Impact

The article describes the magnitude, geographical extent,  and causes of forced population displacements in Colombia. Forced migration in Colombia is a war strategy adopted by armed groups to strengthen territorial strongholds, weaken civilian support to the enemy, seize valuable lands, and produce and transport illegal drugs with ease. Forced displacement in Colombia today affects 3.5 million people. Equivalent to 7.8 percent of Colombia's population, and second worldwide only to Sudan, this shows the magnitude of the humanitarian crisis the country is facing. The phenomenon involves all of Colombia's territory and nearly 90 percent of the country's municipalities expel or receive population. In contrast to other countries, forced migration in Colombia is largely internal. Illegal armed groups are the main responsible parties, migration does not result in massive refugee streams but occurs on an individual basis, and the displaced population is dispersed throughout the territory and not focused in refugee camps. These characteristics pose unique challenges for crafting state policy that can effectively mitigate the impact of displacement.

BKR (BADAN KEAMANAN RAKYAT): Cikal Bakal Tentara Indonesia?

Metahumaniora ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 389
Author(s):  
Widyo Nugrahanto
Keyword(s):  
Armed Forces ◽  
Civil Defense ◽  
The Other ◽  
Main Subject ◽  
Japanese Occupation ◽  
Historical Method ◽  
New Interpretation

AbstrakPenelitian ini berjudul BKR (Badan Kemanan Rakyat):Cikal Bakal Tentara Indonesia?!. Penelitian ini merupakan interpretasi baru tentang cikal bakal TNI, yang umumnya banyak merujuk pada PETA (Pembela Tanah Air). Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah Metode Sejarah.Metode Sejarah memiliki empat tahapan yaitu Heuristik, Kritik, Interpretasi dan Historiografi.Sumber-sumber penelitian ini menggunakan koran-koran sezaman, majalah sezaman, dan buku. BKR dianggap sebagai cikal bakal TNI didasarkan beberapa sebab. Pertama, atas dasar legalitas formal, PETA telah dibubarkan sehingga BKR adalah satuan militer yang pertama kali dibentuk setelah Indonesia merdeka. BKR selanjutnya melahirkan pembentukan TKR (Tentara Keamanan Rakyat), TKR (Tentara Keselamatan Rakyat), TRI (Tentara Republik Indonesia) dan TNI (Tentara Nasional Indonesia). Kedua, jika PETA dianggap sebagai cikal bakal TNI, maka KNIL dan beberapa satuan keprajuritan diabaikan. Padahal, beberapa bekas perwira KNIL memiliki peran penting di tubuh BKR hingga TNI.Kata kunci: BKR, Tentara, TNIAbstractThe main subject this study is BKR – Indonesian civil defense corps – as origin of Indonesian Military. This study is new interpretation about the origin of TNI (Indonesian National Armed Forces) now. Many opinion refer to PETA as civil defense corps in Japanese occupation era. Study emlpoys a Historical Method, which consists of four stage: Heuristic, Critic, Interpretation, Historiography. The study utilize some sources such as newspaper, magazine, and book. Main finding of this study is PETA had dispersed as legality and formally and BKR was formed as the firts corps after Independence of Indonesia. Futhermore, BKR changed to TKR (Tentara Keamanan Rakyat), TKR (Tentara Keselamatan Rakyat), TRI (Tentara Republik Indonesia) until TNI (Tentara Nasional Indonesia). If PETA is considered as origins of Indonesian Military, then it ignore KNIL – a colonial armed forces – and the other defence corps. Even though the eks KNIL’s officer have important role in military managenment of BKR until TNI.Keywords: BKR, Military, TNI

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