Civil Society and the Security Sector

Civil Society and the Security Sector
Author: Marina Caparini
Publisher: LIT Verlag Münster
Total Pages: 268
Release: 2006
Genre: History
ISBN: 9783825893644

This volume analyses the role of civil society in the reform and oversight of the security sector in post- communist countries as a key aspect of the transition towards democracy. It is widely accepted that civil society actors have an important contribution to make in the governance of the security sector. However, that specific role has not been subject to much close or comparative examination. This book constitutes an attempt to examine and compare experiences of civil society participation in security oversight across Central and Eastern Europe. The first part of the volume presents the reader with the theoretical and conceptual background against which the potential role of civil society in security sector governance can be understood and assessed. The remainder of the book is comprised of nine country studies of civil society engagement with the security sector. Reviewing developments over the past 15 years of regime transformation in the region, the book draws upon a rich variety of cases that cast light on the different experiences, challenges, and successes of civil society actors and the media in democratisation, security sector reform, and the exercise of democratic oversight of the security sector.

Counter-terrorism and civil society

Counter-terrorism and civil society
Author: Scott N. Romaniuk
Publisher: Manchester University Press
Total Pages: 465
Release: 2021-09-07
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1526157918

This book examines the intersection between national and international counter-terrorism policies and civil society in numerous national and regional contexts. The 9/11 terrorist attacks against the United States in 2001 led to new waves of scholarship on the proliferation of terrorism and efforts to combat international terrorist groups, organizations, and networks. Civil society organisations have been accused of serving as ideological grounds for the recruitment of potential terrorists and a channel for terrorist financing. Consequently, states around the world have established new ranges of counter-terrorism measures that target the operations of civil society organisations exclusively. Security practices by states have become a common trend and have assisted in the establishment of ‘best practices’ among non-liberal democratic or authoritarian states, and are deeply entrenched in their security infrastructures. In developing or newly democratized states - those deemed democratically weak or fragile - these exceptional securities measures are used as a cover for repressing opposition groups, considered by these states as threats to their national security and political power apparatuses. This timely volume provides a detailed examination of the interplay of counter-terrorism and civil society, offering a critical discussion of the enforcement of global security measures by governments around the world.

Reform and Reconstruction of the Security Sector

Reform and Reconstruction of the Security Sector
Author: Alan Bryden
Publisher: LIT Verlag Münster
Total Pages: 300
Release: 2004
Genre: Armed forces reorganisation
ISBN: 9783825877705

"Security sector reform (SSR) is widely recognised as key to conflict prevention, peace-building, sustainable development and democratisation. SSR has gained most practical relevance in the context of post-conflict reconstruction of so-called failed states' and states emerging from violent internal or inter-state conflict. As this volume shows, almost all states need to reform their security sectors to a greater or lesser extent, according to the specific security, political and socio-economic contexts, as well as in response to the new security challenges resulting from globalisation and post-9/11 developments. Contributions from academics and practitioners elaborate on both the conceptual underpinnings and the practical realities of security sector reform and - a crucial aspect of post-conflict peace-building - security sector reconstruction. "

Global Food Security Governance

Global Food Security Governance
Author: Jessica Duncan
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 254
Release: 2015-03-24
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 1317623207

In 2007/8 world food prices spiked and global economic crisis set in, leaving hundreds of millions of people unable to access adequate food. The international reaction was swift. In a bid for leadership, the 123 member countries of the United Nations’ Committee on World Food Security (CFS) adopted a series of reforms with the aim of becoming the foremost international, inclusive and intergovernmental platform for food security. Central to the reform was the inclusion of participants (including civil society and the private sector) across all activities of the Committee. Drawing on data collected from policy documents, interviews and participant observation, this book examines the re-organization and functioning of a UN Committee that is coming to be known as a best practice in global governance. Framed by key challenges that plague global governance, the impact and implication of increased civil society engagement are examined by tracing policy negotiations within the CFS, in particular, policy roundtables on smallholder sensitive investment and food price volatility and negotiations on the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security, and the Global Strategic Framework for Food Security and Nutrition. The author shows that through their participation in the Committee, civil society actors are influencing policy outcomes. Yet analysis also reveals that the CFS is being undermined by other actors seeking to gain and maintain influence at the global level. By way of this analysis, this book provides empirically-informed insights into increased participation in global governance processes.

Learning from West African Experiences in Security Sector Governance

Learning from West African Experiences in Security Sector Governance
Author: Alan Bryden
Publisher: Ubiquity Press
Total Pages: 184
Release: 2015-11-05
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1909188689

Many efforts have been undertaken to address dysfunctional security sector governance in West Africa. However, security sector reform (SSR) has fallen short of radical – transformational – change to the fundamental structures of power and governance in the region. Looking more closely at specific examples of SSR in six West African countries, Learning from West African Experiences in Security Sector Governance explores both progress and reversals in efforts by national stakeholders and their international partners to positively influence security sector governance dynamics. Written by eminent national experts based on their personal experiences of these reform contexts, this study offers new insights and practical lessons that should inform processes to improve democratic security sector governance in West Africa and beyond.

Democratic Governance of the Security Sector Beyond the OSCE Area

Democratic Governance of the Security Sector Beyond the OSCE Area
Author: Victor-Yves Ghebali
Publisher:
Total Pages: 328
Release: 2007
Genre: Africa
ISBN:

"The present book addresses the prospects for security sector reform and governance regimes, focusing on democratic civilian control of armed forces. The geographic area of interest goes beyond that of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), i.e. outside the Euro-Atlantic and Eurasian areas. It assesses the extent to which the pioneering OSCE experience has inspired Africa and the Americas - in terms of norms, principles and procedures - within their respective multilateral institutional settings." --Book Jacket.

Civil Society in Post-Euromaidan Ukraine

Civil Society in Post-Euromaidan Ukraine
Author: Natalia Shapovalova
Publisher: Ibidem Press
Total Pages: 400
Release: 2018-10-27
Genre: Civil society
ISBN: 9783838212166

This book is among the first comprehensive efforts to collectively and academically investigate the legacy of the Euromaidan in conflict-torn Ukraine within the domain of civil society broadly understood. The contributions to this book identify, describe, conceptualize, and explain various developments in Ukrainian civil society and its role in Ukraine's democratization, state-building, and conflict resolution by looking at specific understudied sectors and by tracing the situation before, during, and after the Euromaidan. In doing so, this trailblazing collection highlights a number of new themes, challenges, and opportunities related to Ukrainian civil society. They include volunteerism, grassroots community-based activism, social activism of churches, civic efforts of building peace and reconciliation, civic activism of journalists and digital activism, activism of think tanks, diaspora networks and the LGBT movement, challenges of civil society relations with the state, uncivil society, and the closing of civic space.

Civil Society, Peace, and Power

Civil Society, Peace, and Power
Author: David Cortright
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 325
Release: 2016-10-12
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1442258578

Civil society plays an increasingly powerful role in the global landscape, emerging as key actors in preventing and managing conflict, and building more peaceful and sustainable societies . The multiple case studies featured in this volume illustrate the growth of civil society involvement in national, regional, and international peacebuilding policy. The focus is on multi-stakeholder, systems-based approaches to peacebuilding and human security that involve diverse civil society groups (NGOs, religious organizations, media, etc.), government agencies, intergovernmental organizations, and security forces. This unique comprehensive approach encompasses diverse stakeholders seeking to understand the drivers of conflict and the possibilities for working together to build peace. The book illustrates how the involvement of civil society can result in better informed, more inclusive, more accountable government decision making, and more effective peacebuilding policies. Importantly, a number of the case studies provide a gender perspective on peacebuilding and civil society issues, voicing and giving attention to women’s perspectives without being focused only on gender issues. Further, authors from the Global South offer the perspectives of those directly immersed in ongoing struggles for justice and peace.

Security Sector Reform

Security Sector Reform
Author: Jane Chanaa
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 82
Release: 2002
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 9780198516743

Over the last decade the failure of countries to emerge from conflict has focused attention on state security sectors. This book examines how the external approaches to security sector reform (SSR) have evolved and what they entail; the specific problems faced by the SSR agenda; and what policy recommendations for engagement can be drawn from reform experiences.