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Energy: a reinforced obstacle to democracy?

Richard Youngs — 2008-09-05T22:56:34+01:00

Alexander Nemenov/AFP/Getty Images

Rising oil and gas prices appear to have helped shore up autocratic producer states across the world. They also seem to have led Western states to dilute their support for democratic reforms in these countries. But while this conventional wisdom correctly restates the problematic relationship between energy and democracy, the overall picture is more complex.

This paper reveals that the opaque management of increased oil and gas revenues has sparked pressure for governance reforms from within producer states and has also encouraged new international initiatives linking energy security with good governance.

Ukraine: lynchpin for european energy security

Natalia Shapovalova — 2008-09-05T22:56:34+01:00

A 2006 dispute between Russia and Ukraine over gas prices cast a sobering shadow over EU energy security and galvanised new European energy initiatives. Energy-related tension between Russia and Ukraine has continued since that time with periodic flare-ups.

This Backgrounder highlights the importance of Ukraine to EU energy security and explains how Ukraine’s complex internal energy politics and equally complex relationship with Russia affect European interests.

Georgia and Russia: a short war with a long aftermath

Jos Boonstra — 2008-09-05T22:56:34+01:00

Chris Hondros/Getty Images

What started as a provoked assault by Georgia against the separatist regime of South-Ossetia quickly developed into a short though fierce armed conflict between Russia and Georgia.

The Georgians had miscalculated when they excessively attacked South Ossetia’s capital Tskhinvali while Russia took the conflict to another level by bombing and invading Georgia proper.

As developments continue to unfold regarding the implementation of a peace plan, there are a number of consequences that can be discerned from this rude awakening to war in Europe: these include consequences for Georgia and Russia, but also for the Caucasus region and in a broader context for international actors – foremost the EU and US – and international organisations, mainly NATO and the OSCE. Jos Boonstra, Fride's expert in the subject, comments on the current situation.

Europe's inconsistent support for democratic reform in Ukraine

Richard Youngs — 2008-09-05T22:56:34+01:00

Joe Klamar/AFP/Getty Images

Ukraine provides evidence of very different CFSP negotiating dynamics. Part of a project on EU foreign policy dynamics, this paper by Richard Youngs for the UCD Dublin European Institute (DEI),
seeks to explain why European governments have backed Ukraine's Orange Revolution in an apparently united, but also relatively cautious fashion.

A combination of normative entrapment and co-operative bargaining ensured that ‘maximalist’ and ‘minimalist’ member states united around a common position in support of the Orange revolution.

In subsequent debates over whether the EU should offer Ukraine a membership prospect, however, lowest common denominator dynamics prevailed. This case additionally demonstrates that both before and after Ukraine’s democratic transition very specific external geo-strategic factors played an important role in conditioning EU policy outcomes.

Download Working Paper "Europe's inconsistent support for democratic reform in Ukraine" (Pdf)

How serious is the EU about supporting democracy and human rights in its neighbourhood?

Jos Boonstra, Julia Choucair Vizoso, Ana Echagüe, Kristina Kausch — 2008-09-05T22:56:34+01:00

BRANISLAV PULJEVIC/AFP/Getty Imag

Working Papers on the “European Neighbourhood Policy” :

Lebanon by Julia Choucair Vizoso
Jordan by Ana Echagüe
Azerbaijan by Jos Boonstra
Morocco by Kristina Kausch

State weakness

David Sogge — 2008-09-05T22:56:34+01:00

Corbis

Under a variety of terms - weak states, fragile states, states in crisis, countries at risk of instability and low-income countries under pressure - the idea of state failure has become the subject of much attention. An ever-increasing flow of research and proposals for action have come from organisations in the West including the foreign aid system, philanthropic foundations, academic research units and military and security think-tanks.

At the heart of discussions about state failure lies the definition of what states should be, in whose interest they should function, and thus for whom they fail or succeed. Driving today’s approach is the idea that states exist chiefly to promote globalisation’s winners and to police its losers. For Western geo-strategists, non-Western states have the role and duty before all else to protect the West and its interests; only if such tasks are being fulfilled may those states deal with their own situation.

In this paper, David Sogge takes issue with that position. If everyone’s security and well-being is to be safeguarded and improved, states should seek to ensure better life-chances for all citizens – a task which many proved capable of doing after the Second World War. However, in a globalized world, even strong states will not be sufficient.

European efforts in transitional justice

María Avello — 2008-09-05T22:56:34+01:00

J.Vrijdag/AFP/Getty Images

Since 2004, when the UN Secretary General presented a report to the Security Council recommending a new vision of Transitional Justice, with several integrated
and complementary foci, the concept of Transitional Justice has advanced in diverse directions.

In the 1990s it went from being considered a purely legal question to one of the key aspects in democratisation processes, thereby leading to new instruments such as Truth Commissions. Likewise, the wars in the Balkans and Rwanda, together with the subsequent creation of international tribunals to address the massive violations of human rights which took place, led to the incorporation of international law in the area of Transitional Justice. As a result of these events, the peace processes that unfolded during the 1990s have developed essential tools for the construction and maintenance of peace.

This FRIDE working paper analyses the diverse legislation and international organisations that exist in the area of Transitional Justice, while also evaluating the new initiatives and tools designed to confront the consequences of generalised and systematic violations of human rights.

After the peace comes the storm: Somalia's relentless crisis

Richard Cornwell — 2008-09-05T22:56:34+01:00

After 17 years without a functional national state, hopes for peace in the war-torn African country rose after a surprising agreement in June between the government and the opposition-in-exile, blessed by the United Nations. But the fragmentation of armed groups, the calculations of foreign governments and continuing militia violence in this country of nine million people has meant that the chances of an end to a worsening humanitarian crisis are more remote than ever.

In this Comment article Richard Cornwell explores the prospects for peace and asks what lies ahead for the people of the troubled nation.

Bolivia: a national clash over multiple worlds

Jon Bright — 2008-09-05T22:56:34+01:00

Rodrigo Buendia/AFP/Getty Images

Two and a half years into his presidency, the Evo Morales reform programme has stalled, and Bolivia is in political deadlock. His far reaching constitutional project, which would serve not only to redistribute the country’s land and resource wealth but refound Bolivia on “plurinational” lines, has been approved by the constituent assembly, but without the presence of the main opposition party, who bitterly oppose the way the document distributes economic and political power in the country.

The fallout from an imminent recall vote – and the political manoeuvring around it – will decide whether his project gets moving again, or remains grounded. If it can be passed, however, the constitution as it stands could construct an uncertain future for the country. Whether it will provide a framework under which Bolivia’s multiple worldviews can mutually coexist and cooperate, or lay the foundations for a country permanently divided, remains to be seen.

This paper analyses the situation in Bolivia on two levels – looking first at the current debate over distribution of land and resource wealth and the political context of the forthcoming August 10th recall vote, before moving on to a more in depth analysis of Bolivia’s new constitution, looking in particular and the possible effects of trying to found a “plurinational” country.

Afghanistan, the limits of counter-insurgency

Juan Garrigues, Robert Matthews — 2008-09-05T22:56:34+01:00

Getty Images

As the conflict in Afghanistan worsens and extends, a series of debates is unfolding in NATO and the need for discussion about the political options available to the international community and the political forces within Afghanistan is becoming increasingly urgent. One option suggested by many analysts is to promote an agenda of national reconciliation that includes the Taliban in negotiations.

In order to address the issues that surround a revised counter-insurgency strategy and political reconciliation, FRIDE organised a seminar last March in Madrid entitled: “Afghanistan: is there a political solution?”. The event was attended by more than 40 experts, government workers and members of the armed forces.

Strengthening Women's Citizenship: the experience of Sierra Leone

Clare Castillejo — 2008-09-05T22:56:34+01:00

Issouf Sanogo/AFP/Getty Images

There is currently great interest in citizenship within the development community. Strong citizenship has come to be seen as a vital ingredient for good governance and development, and strengthening the citizenship of poor people is viewed as a way to ensure their rights and participation in governance.

However, one of the biggest challenges is how to strengthen citizenship for women in developing countries. In many African countries women have little contact with the formal state and their lives are governed by customary governance systems that seriously limit their rights and opportunities for political participation. This is particularly true for women in fragile states, where the formal state is weak and inaccessible.

CGG

Based on field research in Sierra Leone conducted by FRIDE and CGG, this Working Paper by Clare Castillejo examines how processes of post-conflict state-building have redrawn the boundaries of authority between the formal state and customary governance systems, and thereby provided new citizenship opportunities for women.

The paper explores the changes that are taking place in women’s rights, women’s political participation and women’s mobilisation in Sierra Leone, in the context of state-building. It also makes recommendations for how donors can support the strengthening of women’s citizenship within their support for state-building in Africa.

The aid effectiveness agenda and decentralised cooperation

Miguel González Martín — 2008-09-05T22:56:34+01:00

Atelier Teee, Flickr

Decentralised cooperation represents approximately 15 percent of total Spanish ODA. To its significant quantitative reach must also be added the important institutional development which it has experienced in recent years through autonomous legislation, strategic planning, the creation of new agencies and the opening of new offices and expatriation of personnel. The debate over the effectiveness of aid that has emerged in the international arena in recent years, and which crystallised in the Paris Declaration, is conceived by and for states.

Even if moves have been made to incorporate civil society into the debate, there is still little sign of serious efforts to include sub-state actors in the process of reflection. In the Spanish case, the debate over aid effectiveness, along with other questions, is fuelling a growing level of analysis and increasing numbers of proposals regarding the role decentralised cooperation should play in the overall framework of Spanish development aid.

On one hand, analysts speak of the necessary coordination of autonomous and centrally managed cooperation, in order to avoid duplication and overlapping and thereby cultivate the efficiency of the system. At present, the difficulties of coordination extend from the limitations of existing mechanisms to the lack of real political will, not to mention the absence of an adequate framework of incentives for coordination.

On the other hand, it is also argued that decentralised cooperation could specialise in certain sectors or geographical areas, applying at the internal level some of the principles inspired by the division of labour among donors proposed by the EU.

However, even though coordination is very necessary and a debate about the potential areas for decentralised cooperation is possible, this Comment article argues that the added value of decentralised cooperation must be sought out by fostering a dynamic of cooperation that is born of closeness to the citizenry. The objective should be to thereby underline, in a new way, the relationship between the various actors who participate in cooperation.

Democratic ownership and mutual accountability

Paolo de Renzio, Lucy Hayes, Stefan Meyer, Felix Zimmermann — 2008-09-05T22:56:34+01:00

Democratic ownership” and “mutual accountability” are the two main fields of political contestation in the global governance of aid.

Democratic ownership describes the aim of extending the creation and implementation of development strategies beyond the government, and towards parliaments, major auditing institutions and civil society. Mutual accountability refers to the negotiation, measurement and implementation of the two sides of the aid relation: good governance on part of the Southern states and good aid provision on the part of Northern donors.

These issues are being discussed in a series of multilateral, high-level events in 2008. In June 2008, FRIDE invited three experts to Spain, to present aspects of the international debate.

This activity brief by Stefan Meyer, reflects some of the key points of the debate. Includes three short statements by the Felix Zimmermann, Lucy Hayes, and Paolo de Renzio.

Brazil as a new international development actor

Sarah-Lea John de Sousa — 2008-09-05T22:56:34+01:00

Brazil’s position in the global system is marked by different factors: Being aware of its hybrid position between the North and the South, and the external perceptions that identifies Brazil as an important and crucial country for the regional stability and development (concept anchor country launched for example by the German Development Agency), Brazil projects its global identity as a “voice” for the developing world in crucial international debates. In this context, Brazil refuses to be seen as a donor, but identifies itself as a partner for development.

Although it has less economic, demographic and territorial resources than other emerging actors, like China and India, Brazil is an interesting partner for a triangular development cooperation projects as it shares key values with the EU and countries like Canada (for example, in the fields of democracy, human rights and its approach to multilateralism). It also has special know-how due to its domestic experiences in combating underdevelopment, hunger and health problems, and it has the added value of local, historical (postcolonial) and cultural “nearness” to the developing world, especially SA, the Caribbean and Lusophone countries in Africa and Asia.

The original version of this comment in english is available in The North-South Institute web.

Financing for gender equality

Ana Lydia Fernández-Layos — 2008-09-05T22:56:34+01:00

Gary.fotu in Flickr

The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), an organism of the United Nations Economic and Social Council, is dedicated to following up on and assuring compliance with multilateral commitments on gender equality. Among these is the Beijing Platform for Action. Each year a two-week meeting is organised bringing together government representatives and a large number of non-governmental organisations for negotiations, reflection and the exchange of ideas. The 52nd session, held in 2008, has centred on financing for gender equality.

With a new consensus based on the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness (2005), the amount of finance going to gender equality and women’s empowerment has been reduced. At the same time, while the emphasis of development aid has changed from specific projects to the use of multiple pragmatic foci and the revision of policies, new opportunities have opened up for the adaptation of existing strategies and instruments to facilitate gender equality.

Ana Lydia Fernández-Lagos argue that in recent years gender equality has not been adequately taken into consideration in the new aid architecture. For this reason, the international summits that will take place this year, for example the High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Accra and the revision of the Monterrey Consensus on development finance in Doha, offer an important space for the global feminist movements to win concrete commitments with regard to the promotion of gender equality through development aid.

The 52nd Session of the CSW in February and March 2008 made the integration of gender perspectives in the international development aid a priority. Taking a civil society standpoint, this Comment article explores the key issues being negotiated between North and South, and between governments and NGOs, and proposes courses of action to move forward with the promotion of gender equality .