Tehrik e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Militancy in Pakistan

Purpose: Negotiations between two parties always have newsworthiness. Results of the negotiations can be strongly influenced by the media coverage. Pakistan’s government was also involved in peace negotiation with Tahrik e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) during January and February 2014. It was the most discussing issue in Pakistani media at that time. The aim of this research is to analyze the editorial policy of three Pakistani English language newspapers; Dawn, Nation and The News to check their favorable or unfavorable behavior regarding peace talks during January and February 2014. Design/Methodology/Approach: Agenda setting, priming and farming theories were used in this study. Qualitative content analysis method was used in this study to analyze the editorial policy of these three newspapers. Findings: The results revealed that all these three newspapers gave significant coverage to the peace talks issue but Nation gave more coverage to the issue. Findings also revealed that Dawn and The News, most of the time showed neutral behavior but tilted towards unfavorable position regarding peace talks. Nation showed strongly unfavorable behavior regarding peace talks. Implications/Originality/Value: So it is concluded that all these three newspapers were mostly against the peace talks and government and media were not on the same page on the issue of peace talks.

The Riga border in the assessments of the British government circles in the first half of the 1920s

The article analyses the assessments given by the representatives of Great Britain government circles to the results of the Polish-Soviet territorial division, installed in the text of the Riga Peace Treaty of 1921. It is revealed, that on the eve of Riga peace negotiation British politicians negatively characterised Poland’s claims to significant advance of its borders in the eastern direction. The line of the Riga border was assessed skeptically, considered as possible only in the conditions of the RSFSR temporary weakness. It is established that British politicians did not exclude Riga border line revising, taking into account the position of the Soviets at the conclusion of the pan-European agreement in Genoa in 1922. It is shown that when deciding not to ratify the Geneva Protocol of 1924, one of the arguments was the assessment of the Riga border region as a potential conflict zone in Europe, in which the UK sought to avoid involvement.

The Fractured Centre: ‘Two-headed government’ and threats to the peace process in Myanmar

This article analyses the evolving nature and dynamics of the relationship between the centre and the periphery by examining how semi-democratic reforms have shaped and influenced the peace negotiation process between the government and ethnic armed organizations (EAOs) since 2011. We demonstrate that while the 2008 constitution has reduced restrictions on political, economic, and cultural activities in Myanmar, it has also inevitably produced a ‘two-headed government’ after the main opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), took charge in 2016 and was forced to share power with the military. This ‘two-headed’ government is the result of the historical distrust between the NLD and the army, combined with the NLD's lack of a clear strategy in dealing with EAOs. This has enabled the army to assert its well-articulated and hardline approach—without itself having an effective strategy or the capacity to end the country's armed insurgencies or bring the peace process forward. We show that the split at the centre has produced inertia and weakened the ability of the central government to formulate and implement effective policy, and further undermined the prospects for national reconciliation. Situating this case study within the wider literature of centre–periphery relationships and democratic transition, this article offers a nuanced and comprehensive analysis of how specific institutional arrangements at the centre in semi-democratic settings affect relations in both the centre and the periphery, as well as centre–periphery relationships.

Models of Constitution Making with Reference to Nepal

Constitution is commonly called as the foundation, framework, guideline, roadmap, charter, established rule or legal order of government. It is the supreme and fundamental law of the state because constitution gives legitimacy or validity to all laws and no laws surviving against the constitution. Law is valid only if it is in conformity with the constitution. Constitution being the basic and organic law of land the process of its making is quite important. Constitution making is the act of creating and reforming the body of fundamental principles that govern a state. Constitution making is, therefore, a critical entry point for shaping the future of a country, the exercise of power and the social compact among citizens and between citizens and their state. There is no universal rule, formula, exact method or model for making a constitution. There are several models used in constitution making such as commission model, expert model, constituent assembly model, referendum model, draft committee model, gift model, colonial model, adherence model, peace negotiation model, national conference model, etc. The models of constitution making is selected according to geographical, social, cultural, religious, economic, historical, political and legal system of a concerned country. Hence, in this article the author clearly presents the clear perspectives of constitution, constitution making and the popular models and the procedures used in making constitution with reference to Nepalese experiences and instances.

Political leadership for peace processes: Juan Manuel Santos – Between hawk and dove

Many studies have explored Colombia’s peace process with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – guerrilla group (2012–2016). Conflict negotiation literature indicates that the impact of leadership is particularly relevant to peace processes as leaders have to find a balance between war and peace. Still, little is known about the political leaders in charge. This study deals with the development of a political leader’s leadership in peace initiatives. It uses an in-depth case study of Colombia’s former President Juan Manuel Santos combining leadership and conflict negotiation literature to trace back the origins of his leadership. Santos, a controversial figure, represented a policy of reconciliation to negotiate with the opponents while also appearing tough in order to maintain his political base. Between hawk and dove, he initiated and signed the peace negotiation and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2016. I adopt a personal biography approach using biographical data to explore the origins of Santos’ beliefs and values, his competence and skills and the way others perceived him. Linking this leadership-centred argument with findings from the conflict negotiation suggests that a pragmatic and reconciliation-oriented leadership might be relevant to find solutions to protracted conflicts like the one in Colombia. Most importantly, it contributes to a significant claim: Leaders have at least some level of choice and their biographical factors are relevant for political outcomes.

Las apuestas étnicas por la paz: antagonismos democráticos y diálogos sociales reticulares

Este artículo presenta una reconstrucción interpretativa de la incidencia de las organizaciones indígenas y afrodescendientes en el proceso de negociación de paz de La Habana. A partir del análisis de los diferentes repertorios de acción y de las dinámicas antagónicas que los liderazgos étnicos construyeron para hacer visibles sus demandas y propuestas, se propone una reflexión sobre las posibilidades que brindan los diálogos sociales reticulares para la construcción de paz. Reconociendo el rol de las articulaciones políticas que condujeron a nivel nacional a la conformación de la Comisión Étnica, y prestando igual atención a los procesos locales y regionales en zonas claves como el norte del Cauca, el texto propone algunas dimensiones para pensar diálogos sociales reticulares como impulsores de transformaciones, a partir de antagonismos democráticos y deliberativos. Abstract: This article presents an interpretive reconstruction of the influence of indigenous and afro-descendant organizations in the Havana peace negotiation process. Based on the analysis of the different repertoires of action and the antagonistic dynamics constructed by ethnic leaders to make their demands and proposals more visible, a reflection is proposed on the possibilities offered by reticular social dialogues for the construction of peace. Recognizing the role of the political articulations that led at the national level to the formation of the Ethnic Commission and paying equal attention to local and regional processes in key areas such as northern Cauca, the text proposes some dimensions for thinking about reticular social dialogues as promoters of transformations based on democratic and deliberative antagonisms. Keywords: construction of peace, antagonism, articulation, reticular dialogues.

Asymmetrical Neighbors

Asymmetrical Neighbors explains the variations in state building across the borderland area between China, Myanmar, and Thailand. It presents a comparative historical account of the state and nation-building processes in the ethnically diverse and geographically rugged borderland area where China meets Southeast Asia. It argues the failure of the Myanmar state to consolidate its control over its borderland area is partly due to the political and military meddling by its two more powerful neighbors during the Cold War. Furthermore, both China and Thailand, being more economically advanced than Myanmar, have exerted heavy economic influence on the borderland area at the cost of Myanmar’s economic sovereignty. The book provides a historical account of the borderland that traces the pattern of relations between valley states and upland people before the mid-twentieth century. Then it discusses the implications of the Chinese nationalist KMT troops in Burma and Thailand and Burmese and Thai communist insurgencies since the mid-1960s on attempts by the three states to consolidate their respective borderland areas. The book also portrays the dynamics of the borderland economy and the dominance of both China and Thailand on Myanmar’s borderland territory in the post-Cold War period. It further discusses the comparative nation-building processes among the three states and the implications for the ethnic minority groups in the borderland area and their national identity contestations. Finally, the book provides an updated account of the current ethnic conflicts along Myanmar’s restive borderland and its ongoing peace negotiation process.

Political tolerance of demobilizing armed actors: The case of FARC in Colombia

Recent scholarship has shown the importance of political conservatism, perceived (in)security, and communication channels (i.e. mass media) in increased or decreased tolerance toward certain groups. This study advances our knowledge in this area by integrating the importance of media exposure, interpersonal communication and attitudes toward political elites in shaping tolerance levels toward the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People’s Army (FARC, after the initials in Spanish). For this, the authors analyze national survey data collected in Colombia and carry out a path analysis to explore the formation of political (in)tolerance toward FARC. Results from exploring tolerance toward FARC, a rebel group transitioning from a military force to a political one, show the importance of interpersonal discussion and attitudes toward political elites in fostering tolerance both directly and indirectly via increased preference for a peace negotiation over a military solution. The implications of these findings are discussed.