Taliban soldiers form core of Afghan new model army

Significance They have started by renaming the old army corps and beginning to retrain Taliban combatants. In adopting the trappings of a conventional army, they have made their men wear uniform and held military parades. The aim is to show neighbouring countries that the Taliban government is running a real state with appropriate standards for its security forces. Impacts Neighbouring states will be reassured by an army that resembles its predecessor and has no real capabilities beyond domestic security. The Taliban have limited capacity to absorb and use new equipment for now, even if some donor were willing to provide it. Limited help may be available: Chinese, Russian and Pakistan military trainers and advisers are reportedly present.

Conditional cross-border effects of terrorism in China

This paper explores whether the cross-border effect of ethnic violence is contingent on internal factors, such as domestic security measures, distribution of religious sites, availability of communication tools, and proximity to turbulent neighboring countries. Using county-level data from Xinjiang (1995–2012), our analyses show no support for direct violence-enhancing effects of outside terrorism in Xinjiang. When terrorist attacks increase globally or in neighboring countries, overall violence in Xinjiang diminishes. We attribute this to increased security measures by the government. However, the reduction in violence is highly conditional on local factors. We find that historical religiosity and geographic proximity to the border reduce the subsident effects of external terrorism.

TRI ATIPIČNA PRAVA REALNOG OBEZBEĐENjA POTRAŽIVANjA U SRPSKOM I U „MEKOM“ PRAVU EVROPSKE UNIJE

By using a comparative and axiological method, the author analyzes three specific civil law institutes, locating their similarities and differences: the right of retaining possession; the right of retained property, ie. pactum reservati dominii (as institutes that exist in domestic Law on obligations); and fiduciary transfer of property (which is not regulated in domestic positive law). The subject of consideration in the paper are: the concept; properties; establishment conditions; functions; similarities and differences among these three security rights in rem, first in domestic law, and then in the law of the European Union. The aim of this paper is to formulate an answer to the question of the justification of the existence of these institutes in the future Serbian law, with their previous delimitation; as well as the degree of harmonization of domestic positive law and two drafts of potential future Serbian civil law with EU law. The author estimates that these three institutes are significantly different, and in many ways useful for Serbian law de lege ferenda, and they should coexist, so author advocate the formal introduction of fiduciary transfer of property for security purposes in Serbian law, which would expand the range of domestic security rights in rem, which is in line with the solution of the DCFR, ie. EU “soft” law, that the domestic solution needs to be harmonized with.

Rice Bunnies vs. the River Crab: China’s Feminists, #MeToo, and Networked Authoritarianism

As censorship algorithms for digital communications evolve in China, so do netizens’ evasion techniques. In the last two decades, strategic users have employed the language of satire to slip sensitive content past censors in the form of euphemisms or analogies, with messages ranging from lighthearted frustration to wide scale resistance against repressive government policies. In recent years activists have used spoofs to discuss controversial subjects, including the president, violent arrests by the Domestic Security Department, and even the #MeToo movement. In addition to providing an outlet for criticism and free speech, spoofs can also be a powerful organizational tool for activists in authoritarian societies through their ability to facilitate decentralized, personalized, and flexible connective action. This paper investigates how feminists used spoofs for social mobilization throughout China’s #MeToo movement while evaluating potential frameworks for measuring activists’ success against the media censorship and political repression of a networked authoritarian regime.

Upgrading Big Brother: Local Strategic Adaptation in China’s Security Industry

What are the circumstances under which latecomer firms can develop indigenous innovative capacity and compete globally? China’s construction of a vast domestic security apparatus has contributed to it becoming the world’s largest supplier and consumer of video surveillance products and services. It has also produced several globally competitive companies, including those engaged in digital surveillance. Although security equipment producers initially emerged in Guangdong province, China’s leading technology companies are concentrated in Zhejiang province. This comparative study is motivated by the puzzle of why Guangdong, which has a larger security equipment industry with more local investment and earlier introduction of foreign technology, has lagged behind Zhejiang in technological upgrading. We trace this provincial variation to the policy choices of local state bureaucracies and the business strategies of local enterprises. While macro-level variables such as market demand and establishing national industry standards are important for industrial development, this study demonstrates the critical role of local technocrats and entrepreneurs in facilitating technological innovation in a rapidly evolving surveillance regime. Our analysis also reveals how latecomers to a technology-intensive industry were able to adapt their products strategically to meet the technical demands of a major segment of the domestic market, China’s public security sector.

Strategies in Countering Hoax and Hate Speech in Indonesia

Hoax and Hate Speech are cyber-crimes that are closely related to ideological, political and religious issues. In Indonesia, just before the 2019 Presidential Election, this crime is very common, mainly used to attack political opponents. In this study, we provide several samples of Hoax and Hate Speech crimes, namely those with ideological, political and religious nuances. We consider these three crime samples to be sufficient to illustrate that Hoax and Hate Speech greatly influence the stability of domestic security. Based on the results of research conducted at the Directorate of Cyber Crime Enforcement of the Indonesian Police Criminal Investigation Agency, we can conclude that the strategic steps that must be taken to tackle Hoax and Hate Speech are Preventive Efforts in the form of Cyber Patrol, Hoax labeling, analyzing media opinion trends, dissemination positive news through text media, clarification and public information, security carried out by cover names, cover jobs, and cover stories, and countermeasures. Then, to provide a deterrent effect to the community, repressive efforts through law enforcement activities must be carried out including investigations by means of the Cyber Patrol to find cyber-crime, providing technical assistance and tactical investigations, investigating units in the region in order to uncover networks of cyber perpetrators, providing assistance in examining digital evidence, and cooperating by exchanging information for the purpose of researching and investigating cyber-crime. With the coping methods described above, especially inter-regional police cooperation that is centrally controlled by maximizing technology, the Indonesian police are able to uncover and dismantle networks of cyber-crime perpetrators that occur in Indonesia such as hoaxes, hate speeches and terrorism.

Somalia’s peacekeeping transition faces dilemmas

Significance The report and the reactions to it have raised serious questions about the future of peacekeeping in Somalia. Impacts Peacekeepers playing a larger role in service delivery may disincentivise Somali authorities from taking responsibility for these tasks. New troop contributors could refresh AMISOM’s flagging fortunes, but would face a steep learning curve in a tough operating environment. External actors could play a vital advisory role in support of Somali efforts to overhaul the domestic security architecture.

Patterns of Peaceful Cooperation in Medieval Muslim Medina and Its Relevance to the Present

The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) managed to reconcile multi-tribal, multi-religious society of Medina by treating people with dignity and honour. He created a society without racism and racial superiority; it brought various faiths and flavors together and helped to remove barriers of tribal biases. The Prophet used nonviolent methods to resist those who persecuted him and considered peacemaking to be more effective than aggression and violence. Despite some clashes that took place between Muslims and Jews during domestic security arrangements in Medina, the Prophet (PBUH) welcomed the increasing racial and ethnic diversity and engaged in linguistic and cultural interactions. People of all colors felt safer under Muslim rule because there was no racism against blacks and no concept of white and Arab supremacy, Islamic philosophy has only two categories of human beings (believers and unbelievers). Dialogue begins when people meet each other and depends upon mutual understanding that is why the Prophet (PBUH) had frequent social interactions with people of different backgrounds and to improve the quality of relationships within local community, the Prophet (PBUH) explored different tools. This paper discusses the Prophet's (PBUH) attitude towards other communities and the nature of religious accommodation and coexistence.