Limited Statehood Does Not Equal Civil War

Daedalus ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 147 (1) ◽  
pp. 104-115 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Risse ◽  
Eric Stollenwerk
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
International Organizations ◽  
Service Provision ◽  
State Building ◽  
The State ◽  
Violent Conflict ◽  
State Institutions ◽  
Effective Governance ◽  
External Actors ◽  
Rule Making

Limited statehood is frequently depicted as a major cause for civil war and violent conflict. Consequently, state-building efforts are often considered to be an effective tool for the prevention of civil war and violent conflict. This essay argues, however, that this assumption is misguided in several respects. First, at present and historically, areas of limited statehood are the global default rather than the exception. Thus, efforts to eliminate limited statehood would likely be unsuccessful. Second, limited statehood does not equal civil war and violence. In fact, only a small fraction of areas of limited statehood are affected by civil war. Third, a too-narrow focus on state-building may be counterproductive, as it may foster ineffective or even predatory state institutions. Such a focus also ignores the plurality of governance actors beyond the state that are relevant for effective governance–such as service provision and rule-making–in areas of limited statehood. Therefore, external actors like international organizations and foreign powers should contribute to governance-building rather than state-building, with a focus on service provision and rule-making institutions with a broader scope than the state.

State Building Jihadism: Redefining Gender Hierarchies and “Empowerment”

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 5-27
Author(s):  
Hamoon Khelghat-Doost
Keyword(s):  
State Building ◽  
Field Trips ◽  
The State ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Political Struggle ◽  
State Institutions ◽  
Secondary Sources ◽  
Gender Hierarchies ◽  
Multiple Field

Since the establishment of the Islamic State of Syria and Iraq (ISIS), there was a surge in women’s incorporation into the organization. Traditionally, nationalist and leftist militant movements utilised women only during periods of mobilization and political struggle. Upon the periods of state consolidation, women were discarded and pushed out of the state institutions. Ironically and against the above established trend, this article demonstrates that this trend was reversed in the case of ISIS. By using the ‘mahram’ concept, the article also explains the reason why women were largely absent at the midst of ISIS’s conflict and military clashes and were brought to the stage only after the triumph of the organization in establishing its state. The findings of this research are based on secondary sources and primary data personally collected from more than 150 interviews through multiple field trips to Iraq, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Lebanon, and the borders of ISIS-controlled territories in Syria from July 2015 to January 2017.

Introduction

2018 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Nina Silber
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
Civil Rights ◽  
New Deal ◽  
State Building ◽  
The State ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Debates ◽  
Central Objective ◽  
Familial Influences ◽  
The New Deal

This introduction lays out the book’s central objective: to explore why Americans returned to the Civil War throughout the New Deal years. The Civil War offered a prism for exploring the emotional upheaval people experienced in light of the Depression; the political debates that swirled around the state-building initiatives of the New Deal; and struggles over race and civil rights. Also explored here is the evolution of this book, including personal and familial influences on the author.

State-building challenges in Iraq after 2003

2019 ◽  
pp. 798
Author(s):  
Mohammed Salman Salih
Keyword(s):  
Political Violence ◽  
State Building ◽  
The State ◽  
Integrated System ◽  
Political Regime ◽  
State Institutions ◽  
American Occupation ◽  
Security Challenges ◽  
Political Security ◽  
Political Economic

The state is an institutional, political and economic project, and despite this long period of time (nearly a century) since the founding of the Iraqi state, the various political systems that successively governed Iraq were unable to complete the state-building process, which made it suffer and face political, economic, or security challenges. This country has collapsed At the hands of the American occupation, the Iraqi state and society are going through a difficult and complicated stage as a result of the accumulation of problems, crises, political, economic and security challenges, including political violence, the crisis of displacement, internal and external migration, the phenomenon of unemployment and the war against terrorism. The state has an integrated system between political forces and state institutions, as well as with the help of international organizations, especially the United Nations, and the political regime in Iraq under the American occupation and the collapse of political power and state institutions, and then its establishment again by the American occupier, issued by the Coalition Provisional Authority for the year 2004 issued by the governor Civilian Bremer and the establishment of the Governing Council, and after that, several components were established through parliamentary elections. The nation-building went through a difficult and complicated stage as a result of political, security and economic accumulations, all of which led to a fundamental imbalance in the core of the Iraqi state’s construction, which hindered it from delivering Tasks in achieving security, political, security and economic stability.

Human security and state rebuilding in post-conflict Nepal: Peace at the cost of justice?

2011 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 54-77 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauri Siitonen
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
International Organizations ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Human Security ◽  
The State ◽  
Post Conflict ◽  
State Administration ◽  
The Cost ◽  
External Actors ◽  
The Eu

There is a possible conflict between two current policy guidelines in post-conflict countries, human security, and state rebuilding. This article analyzes how weak statehood and low human security are mutually interlinked in complex ways in the case of post-conflict Nepal. The analysis is based on economic, political, and social data, recent reports by international organizations and NGOs, as well as on statements by major politicians and political parties. A dilemma can be identified in post-conflict Nepal: in order to remedy weak statehood and decrease the level of crime, the presence of the state in the rural areas needs to be enhanced. Yet people feel mistrust toward the police and state administration, which keep many people marginalized. Therefore external actors, particularly the EU, should strengthen their support for democratization of the state while at the same time keeping an eye on the peace process.Spanish Existe un posible conflicto entre dos orientaciones de las políticas actuales en los países post-conflicto: la seguridad humana y la reconstrucción del Estado. Este artículo analiza cómo la debilidad estatal y la seguridad humana están mutuamente relacionadas entre sí de manera compleja en el caso del post-conflicto en Nepal. El análisis se basa en los datos económicos, políticos y sociales, en los últimos informes de las organizaciones internacionales y no-gubernamentales, así como en las declaraciones de los más importantes políticos y partidos políticos. Es posible identificar un dilema en el Nepal post-conflicto: con el fin de fortalecer al Estado débil y disminuir el nivel de la criminalidad, es preciso mejorar la presencia del Estado en las zonas rurales. Sin embargo, la gente siente desconfianza hacia la policía y la administración estatal, que mantienen a un gran número de personas en la marginalidad. Por lo tanto los actores externos, especialmente la UE, deben fortalecer su apoyo a la democratización del Estado a la vez que deben estar atentos al proceso de paz.French Il existe une possibilité de conflit entre les deux actuelles lignes directrices en matière de politiques dans les pays en sortie de guerre, à savoir entre la sécurité humaine et la reconstruction de l'État. Cet article analyse comment un état défaillant et une faible sécurité humaine sont reliés mutuellement de façon complexe dans le contexte d'après-guerre au Népal. L'analyse est basée sur des données économiques, politiques et sociales, des rapports récents d'organisations internationales et d'ONG, ainsi que sur les discours des plus importants politiciens et partis politiques. Un dilemme apparaît dans le cas du Népal : afin de renforcer le pouvoir de l'État et de diminuer les taux de criminalité, la présence de l'État doit être accrue dans les milieux ruraux. Or, la population montre une certaine méfiance envers la police et l'administration publique, instances considérées comme responsables de la marginalisation d'une grande partie de la société. C'est pourquoi des acteurs externes, telle l'Union Européenne, devraient renforcer leur aide à la démocratisation de l'État et surveiller en même temps le processus de paix.

scholarly journals Summer Camps and Civil War

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 44-95
Author(s):  
Hannah Klapprodt
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
The United States ◽  
State Building ◽  
State Violence ◽  
The State ◽  
Summer Camps ◽  
Nation State ◽  
Security Threat ◽  
Youth Movement ◽  
Building Process

This project investigates the rise of the Yemeni insurgent group, AnsarAllah (commonly known as the Huthis), from its conception in the summer camps of the Zaidi Believing Youth movement to its successful rebellion against the internationally-backed Yemeni government in September 2014. The Huthi movement gained a large following by protesting government corruption, injustice, and Saudi and American activity in Yemen. A constructivist analysis of these grievances reveals flaws in the Yemeni nation-state building process as nationalist narratives were created in opposition to Zaidism—the second most practiced branch of Islam in Yemen and a defining element of Huthi identity. Under the guise of “transitional democracy,” the Yemeni state developed as a pluralist authoritarian regime that marginalized Zaidi communities. Anti-Zaidi discourse created exclusionary categories of Yemeni identity, which were intensified by a series of hostile interactions between the state and Huthi leaders. In 2004, the state rationalized violence against the Huthis by framing them as a “national security threat” and an Iranian proxy. These discourses mobilized additional domestic and international actors against the Huthis and catalyzed a series of complex conflicts that eventually culminated in the current civil war. Overall, the Huthis’ journey from summer camps to militancy was driven by marginalization in the new Yemeni nation-state, perceived threats from Saudi Arabia and the United States, and the explosion of state violence against their dissidence.

Imposed State-Building

2018 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 327-349 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanna Shelest
Keyword(s):  
Conflict Management ◽  
State Building ◽  
The State ◽  
Federal State ◽  
State Structure ◽  
Peace Agreement ◽  
The Past ◽  
Peace Negotiations ◽  
Peace Processes ◽  
External Actors

For the past two years, there have been constant discussions about the possible ‘Bosnianisation’ of Ukrainian conflict management and peacebuilding, meaning both the Dayton process mechanism’s implementation and the possible ‘federalisation’ of Ukraine due to the Minsk agreements. While the two conflicts have significant differences in terms of roots, reasons and development, attempts at their resolution, as well as possible outcomes of the peace processes, have certain similarities. In this article, based on the constructivist approach and method of induction, the author compares the outcomes of the agreements reached in Dayton in 1995 and in Minsk in 2015 and analyses securitisation of state-building, ‘federalisation’ and identity issues during the peace negotiations, along with a state structure imposed by the external actors. Hereby we argue that the Dayton scenario in terms of the state-building is significantly different from what has happened in Ukraine due to their respective historical and ethnic backgrounds. Moreover, a peace agreement per se is not able to form a federal state if there are not sufficient preconditions for substantial decentralisation of the state.

Local fiefdoms will undermine Syrian service provision

2017 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
Service Provision ◽  
International Aid ◽  
The State ◽  
Foreseeable Future ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Extremist Groups ◽  
The Government

Significance Syria’s civil war is fought not just with bombs and bullets, but with salaries and services. The government has been able to win this aspect of the war by denying services to targeted opposition-held areas, and depopulating districts by constraining residents’ access to basic necessities such as food, water, fuel and electricity. Impacts The Syrian state will be deeply fragmented for the foreseeable future. Rival local fiefdoms will complicate efforts to direct international aid funds for reconstruction. Islamic extremist groups will find ‘havens’ to wage a long-lasting insurgency against the state, despite reduced access to funds.

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