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Begin New Search Topic Civil Society Political Geography Europe Content Type Journal Article

1. Legacy of the Troubles: The Role of Civil Society in Providing Justice for Victims in Northern Ireland

Author:
Celia C. Sawyer
Publication Date:
05-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Public and International Affairs (JPIA)
Institution:
School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA), Princeton University
Abstract:
The Troubles period in Northern Ireland (1968 to 1998) left victims, their families, and the region with a legacy of trauma that has remained unaddressed for the past 24 years. Despite various legislative proposals to provide victims with forms of recourse, leaders have yet to implement justice provisions detailed in political agreements. As a result of government inaction, victims and survivors have lived without the truth of the past and without the ability to seek criminal charges against perpetrators who inflicted violence against them and/or their loved ones. This paper explores why civil society organizations are the best option to meet victims’ needs in the absence of government intervention.
Topic:
International Relations, Civil Society, Trauma, Accountability, and Justice
Political Geography:
Europe and Northern Ireland

2. Ancillary Units as a Tool of Sublocal Governance in the Polish Major Cities

Author:
Malgorzata Madej
Publication Date:
03-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
After the post-communist transition, decentralisation and subsidiarity have become one of Poland's major principles of political organisation. Moreover, especially the original 1990 reform and establishment of self-governing communes are regarded as a success story, not only in improving the quality of governance and public service provision but also in the civil society and citizen participation, as evidenced by the development of modern urban movements. The article explores legal possibilities for further decentralisation of municipalities, analysing the role of ancillary units in regional capitals. Ancillary units in Poland have developed differently in the countryside and urban communes. Relying on publicly available information and data provided by the respective municipal offices, the article describes the ancillary units' statutory role, competencies, and actual activities. The findings enable the assessment of the application of the sublocal decentralisation solution in Polish cities and the identification of its benefits and shortcomings.
Topic:
Civil Society, Governance, Urban, Local, and Post-Soviet Space
Political Geography:
Europe and Poland

3. The City and the Citizen: Breaking Down Barriers to Active Citizenship

Author:
Didem Cakmakli
Publication Date:
02-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Alternative Politics
Institution:
Department of International Relations, Abant Izzet Baysal University, Turkey
Abstract:
Ideally, democracies are built on the ability of all segments of society to participate in civil society to enhance their community’s well-being or to claim rights. Participation in civic and political activities is a key feature of equal citizenship. Sociopolitical features of a city may influence participation, developing different citizenship practices at the local level. Cities will differ in the types of CSOs that thrive, the particular grievances that CSOs address and the types of civic activities that prevail. This study examines how different sociopolitical settings in Turkey impact the development of active citizenship practices among participants in civil society organizations (CSOs). The conditions under which CSO participation may develop active citizenship is key to understanding the potential transformation of hierarchical and passive conceptualizations and practices of citizenship at the national level in Turkey. The study is based on semi-structured interviews conducted in three cities in Turkey. Findings reveal that sociopolitical differences foster the development of different dimensions of active citizenship at the urban level and hence challenge different legacies of citizenship in Turkey.
Topic:
Civil Society, Citizenship, Urban, and Civic Engagement
Political Geography:
Europe, Turkey, and Asia

4. Conservative Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and Anti-Gender Issues in Croatia, Slovakia, and Poland

Author:
Elif Tektas and Asuman Ozgur Keysan
Publication Date:
02-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Alternative Politics
Institution:
Department of International Relations, Abant Izzet Baysal University, Turkey
Abstract:
The anti-gender movement has been gaining prominence since the 2000s, supporting the idea that gender theory is wrong and unscientific. Conservative civil society organizations (CSOs) have played a leading role in promoting the ideas and demands of the movement. Recent studies have elaborated on the relationship between right-wing populism, Church and anti-gender movement; however, it is still significant to further the studies focussing on the involvement of conservative CSOs in the movement. To serve this aim, this paper will analyze the role of conservative CSOs in the anti-gender movement in Eastern Europe, with particular focus on three conservative groups in Croatia, Slovakia and Poland, providing a ground against gender equality politics. The online presence of three groups – “Vigilare”, “Aliancia za rodinu”, and Centrum Wspierania Inicjatyw dla Życia i Rodziny" will be investigated with thematic analysis. This study argues that contrary to the linear relationship between civil society and democratization established by the mainstream liberal view, conservative CSOs operating within anti-gender movements work to the detriment of democracy.
Topic:
Civil Society, Gender Issues, Conservatism, LGBT+, Sexuality, and Civil Society Organizations
Political Geography:
Europe, Poland, Croatia, and Slovakia

5. Access to Justice in the Time of Pandemic: Functioning of Legal Forms in North Macedonia

Author:
Ivona Shushak Lozanovska and Vesna Shapkoski
Publication Date:
03-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Liberty and International Affairs
Institution:
Institute for Research and European Studies (IRES)
Abstract:
The international community has significantly increased its focus on the improvement of justice systems around the world, in recent years. With the increase in effort and interventions in the sector, there has been a need to create tools to assess justice systems, to identify the main elements affecting the workings of the justice machinery. In a context of increasing interest and engagement in justice systems reform, the ability of citizens to access justice institutions to address their needs has come to be seen as an essential element of development, human rights, democracy, and the rule of law. The Republic of North Macedonia has been dedicated in a certain amount to improving the access to justice following these global trends. However, the pandemic has brought to the surface many obstacles in the realization of these efforts and imposed serious issues that need to be further solved. In this paper, we will elaborate on the present situation in North Macedonia from the personal experience of law clinics and civil society organizations that work and contribute closely on this issue. Furthermore, we will identify particular points that need to be advanced and relevant stakeholders to be engaged, to improve the situation, and bring justice closer to everyone.
Topic:
Civil Society, Justice, Pandemic, COVID-19, and Legal Aid
Political Geography:
Europe and North Macedonia

6. Global Health: A Pressing Foreign Policy Issue of our Time

Author:
Ayanda Ntsaluba
Publication Date:
12-2020
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Conflict Trends
Institution:
The African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD)
Abstract:
Recognition of the nexus between foreign policy and public health is not new; it has found episodic expression that tended to dissipate, only to re-emerge with time. This has been the case because traditional notions of advancing national interests through foreign policy have tended to be anchored around the fields of trade and defence, with health seen as part of so-called “low politics”. This has tended to underplay the foreign policy dimensions of health.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Civil Society, International Cooperation, Ebola, and Public Health
Political Geography:
Africa and Europe

7. Generationally Diversified Labor Groups in Contemporary Labor Market. A Chance or a Threat for Organizations?

Author:
Rafal Muster
Publication Date:
01-2020
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
Demographic changes connected with aging of Polish society shall determine the situation in the labor market to an ever-growing extent. The increase of average lifespan in combination with limited options of early retirement and smaller supply of employees shall lead to higher percentage of personnel aged 60 and more inside organizations. All these factors signify that more and more frequently contemporary companies shall function with personnel characterized by a truly large age gap. Undoubtedly, age of employees significantly influences their attitude to work, system of values, loyalty toward both the co-workers and the employer, as well their professional ambitions. In spite of these major differences, individuals from various generations will be forced to cooperate in the same teams. This article presents partial results of empiric studies dealing with the issue of generational diversification of human resources conducted in local labor market of the city of Ruda Śląska, both among the employees and employers. Opinions of employees and employers concerning the quality of mutual cooperation of individuals characterized by large age differences have been analyzed and simultaneously potential opportunities for mutual learning of employees belonging to different age groups have been presented.
Topic:
Civil Society, Demographics, Labor Issues, and Labor Market
Political Geography:
Europe and Poland

8. Reaching Georgia's Occupied Territories through Exchanges

Author:
Julius Tsal
Publication Date:
03-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The Ambassadors Review
Institution:
Council of American Ambassadors
Abstract:
In 2018, the U.S. Embassy in Tbilisi initiated people-to-people (P2P) exchanges to the United States for agricultural scientists and university leaders from the Russian-occupied Georgian territory of Abkhazia. An initial study tour in the spring of 2018 focused on mitigating the devastating agricultural damage from the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (BMSB), and a second tour in the fall of 2018 focused on higher education leadership. Despite political sensitivities and logistical hurdles, such people-to-people programs increase participants’ understanding of the United States and give them an unbiased, first-hand experience of American civil society, its culture of innovation and democratic values. For otherwise isolated Abkhaz thought leaders, these experiences directly counter Russian anti-Western propaganda and demonstrate the benefits of Georgia’s pro-Western choice.
Topic:
Agriculture, Civil Society, Imperialism, and Propaganda
Political Geography:
Russia, United States, Europe, Eastern Europe, Georgia, and North America

9. Crowdsourced War: The Political and Military Implications of Ukraine’s Volunteer Battalions 2014-2015

Author:
Montana Hunter
Publication Date:
04-2018
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Military and Strategic Studies
Institution:
Centre for Military, Security and Strategic Studies
Abstract:
This article explores the use of crowdsourced volunteer battalions by the Ukrainian government in response to Russian aggression in the Donbas region. It examines the weakness of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, contributions of civil-society, and the creation, development, and combat operations of volunteer battalions. The use of crowdsourcing provided the emergency military force that the Ukrainian Government needed to stabilise the Donbas region in the face of the 2014 Russian-backed separatist offensive. The article concludes by raising concerns that the negative consequences of crowdsourcing war, while mitigated by actions taken by the Ukrainian Government, have the potential to return if the situation in Ukraine deteriorates.
Topic:
Civil Society, Military Strategy, Military Affairs, and Conflict
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, Ukraine, and Eastern Europe

10. Civil society institutions crucial in securing human rights and freedoms

Author:
Bakhrom Babaev
Publication Date:
06-2016
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Nowa Polityka Wschodnia
Institution:
Faculty of Political Science and International Studies, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń
Abstract:
A roundtable discussion has taken place in Paris to deliberate on the experience of Uzbekistan and France in civil society development The event was organized by the diplomatic mission of Uzbekistan in collaboration with the Institute for Forecasting and Security in Europe (IPSE). Representatives of socio-political, expert-analytical circles and non-state sector of France attended the occasion. Event participants were familiarized with large-scale efforts undertaken in Uzbekistan in encouraging the development of civil society institutions, consolidation of their role and significance in public affairs, in augmenting the socio-economic activity and law culture of the population, ensuring human rights, freedoms and legitimate interests. Organizational and normative measures approved in the framework of implementation of the Concept of Intensification of Democratic Reforms and Formation of Civil Society in the Country triggered keen interest among French experts.
Topic:
Civil Society, Human Rights, Institutions, and Freedom
Political Geography:
Europe, Central Asia, France, and Uzbekistan

11. Backlash against International Courts in West, East and Southern Africa: Causes and Consequences

Author:
Karen J. Alter, James T. Gathii, and Laurence R. Helfer
Publication Date:
01-2016
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
This article discusses three credible attempts by African governments to restrict the jurisdiction of three similarly situated sub-regional courts in response to politically controversial rulings. In West Africa, when the Court of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) upheld allegations of torture by opposition journalists in Gambia, that country’s political leaders sought to restrict the Court’s power to review human rights complaints. The other member states ultimately defeated Gambia’s proposal. In East Africa, Kenya failed in its efforts to eliminate the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) and to remove some of its judges after a decision challenging an election to a sub-regional legislature. However, the member states agreed to restructure the EACJ in ways that have significantly affected the Court’s subsequent trajectory. In Southern Africa, after the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Tribunal ruled in favour of white farmers in disputes over land seizures, Zimbabwe prevailed upon SADC member states to suspend the Tribunal and strip its power to review complaints from private litigants. Variations in the mobilization efforts of community secretariats, civil society groups and sub-regional parliaments explain why efforts to eliminate the three courts or narrow their jurisdiction were defeated in ECOWAS, scaled back in the EACJ and largely succeeded in the SADC.
Topic:
Civil Society, Human Rights, International Law, and Courts
Political Geography:
Kenya, Africa, Europe, South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Gambia

12. Authoritarianism Goes Global (II): The Leninist Roots of Civil Society Repression

Author:
Anne Applebaum
Publication Date:
10-2015
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Democracy
Institution:
National Endowment for Democracy
Abstract:
In the early part of the twentieth century, the small group of revolutionaries who became the Russian Bolsheviks developed an alternative theory of civil society. Burke, Tocqueville, and even Russian intellectuals believed that civil society was fundamental to democracy; Lenin believed that the destruction of civil society was crucial to totalitarian dictatorship. But by attempting to control every aspect of society, totalitarian regimes would eventually turn every aspect of society into a potential source of dissent, as in the cases of Czechoslovakia and Poland. Yet in many other societies heavily influenced by Soviet ideology—those in Belarus, Central Asia, China, Cuba, parts of Africa, and much of the Arab world—those in power remain attached to the old Bolshevik idea that independent civic institutions are a threat to the state.
Topic:
Civil Society, Authoritarianism, Media, Repression, and Dictatorship
Political Geography:
Africa, China, Europe, Central Asia, Middle East, Asia, Cuba, North America, and Belarus

13. The International Civil Servant in Theory and Practice: Law, Morality, and Expertise. Review of Carsten Stahn and Henning Melber (eds). Peace Diplomacy, Global Justice and International Agency: Rethinking Human Security and Ethics in the Spirit of Dag Hammarskjöld; Roger Lipsey. Hammarskjöld: A Life; Lise Namikas. Battleground Africa: Cold War in the Congo, 1960–1965; Anne Orford. International Authority and the Responsibility to Protect

Author:
Guy Fiti Sinclair
Publication Date:
07-2015
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
Reflecting upon the ambiguous relationship between international civil servants and international law in both theory and practice, this review essay examines several recent books that address the life and legacy of Dag Hammarskjöld, the second Secretary-General of the United Nations. Drawing upon recent theoretical work regarding international organizations, the essay argues that the authority of international civil servants should be understood as operating through three distinct yet interconnected modalities of discourse and practice: legal, moral and expert. Moreover, a comprehensive account of the authority exercised by international civil servants must take account of how they respond to any tensions that arise between their bases of authority as well as of their shifting relations with other ‘global governors’. The essay considers the depiction of Hammarskjöld by each of the books under review, highlighting the sometimes overlooked interconnections between the different sources of authority upon which he drew and suggesting some starting points for an alternative, integrated account of his thought and practice.
Topic:
Civil Society, Diplomacy, International Law, International Organization, and Humanitarian Intervention
Political Geography:
Africa and Europe

14. El largo camino hacia la gestión integral de la Crisis en la Unión Europea

Author:
Guillem Colom
Publication Date:
01-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Revista UNISCI/UNISCI Journal
Institution:
Unidad de investigación sobre seguridad y cooperación (UNISCI)
Abstract:
Las operaciones de gestión de crisis realizadas desde el fin de la Guerra Fría han puesto de manifiesto la necesidad de armonizar la cooperación multinacional para incrementar la coherencia de la operación. Éste es el principio fundamental del Enfoque Integral, definido como la concertación de las estrategias y las acciones de los actores participantes en la gestión de crisis a todos los niveles y planos de la misma. Desde 2008, la Unión Europea está definiendo su propio modelo para mejorar su unidad de acción en materia de gestión de crisis, ampliar su cooperación práctica con el resto de los actores implicados en la resolución de la misma y apoyar el desarrollo de capacidades civiles y militares. El trabajo analiza sus antecedentes y estado actual.
Topic:
Security, Defense Policy, Civil Society, Military Affairs, European Union, and Crisis Management
Political Geography:
Europe

15. Fostering of Civil Society by Muslim Women’s NGO-s in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Author:
Muhidin Mulalic
Publication Date:
12-2013
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Bilgi
Institution:
Sakarya University (SAU)
Abstract:
The fostering of civil society is vital in multiethnic, multicultural, multi-religious and post-conflict societies such as that of BosniaHerzegovina. Therefore, this paper examines the role of Muslim women’s Non Government Organisations (NGOs) in fostering civil society in BosniaHerzegovina. In this regard, this paper puts in perspective the present role of Muslim women’s NGOs by providing the theoretical background and a survey of NGOs in Bosnia-Herzegovina. In order to determine the role and function of Muslim women’s NGOs, the author examines the main criteria of civil society functions such as control of political power, monitoring of political participation and elections, promoting anti-corruption awareness, advocating values of human rights, tolerance and understanding, offering civic training, promoting civic education and public issues through media, and promoting conflict resolution and inter-faith dialogue. By analyzing civil society functions this paper answers the question of Muslim women’s NGOs involvement in socio-political aspects of a democratic state and fostering of civil society in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The author uses an ethnographic methodology, written sources and interviews in analyzing two leading Muslim Women’s NGOs such as Nahla Education Center for Women and Kewser-Zehra Association of Muslim Women. The results of this paper indicate that although Muslim women’s NGOs in theory do not meet some of the criteria to be considered a civil society actor, especially those of a political and legal nature, they are, nonetheless, significantly involved through their various activities in sociopolitical aspects of the democratic state and, as such, they have contributed significantly towards fostering of civil society in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Topic:
Civil Society, Gender Issues, Religion, NGOs, and State Building
Political Geography:
Europe and Bosnia and Herzegovina

16. Public and Elite Views on Europe vs. China in Africa

Author:
Lorenzo Fioramonti and Patrick Kimunguyi
Publication Date:
03-2011
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The International Spectator
Institution:
Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:
Europe has been the privileged economic and political partner of Africa, but more recently China has increased its foothold in Africa through important financial investments and trade agreements. Against this backdrop, the empirical research conducted in 2007-08 in Kenya and South Africa as part of a pioneering international project investigates the perceptions of public opinion, political leaders, civil society activists and media operators. While confirming their continent's traditional proximity to Europe, African citizens are increasingly interested in China and its impact on Africa's development. Europe is criticised for not having been able to dismiss the traditionally 'patronising' attitude towards Africa. While African civil society leaders and media operators describe China as an opportunity for Africa to break free of its historical dependence on European markets, other opinion leaders warn against too much enthusiasm for the Asian giant. There is a suspicion that the Chinese strategy might, in the long run, turn into a new form of economic patronage.
Topic:
Civil Society and Economics
Political Geography:
Kenya, Africa, China, Europe, Asia, and South Africa

17. How Media and Politics Shape Each Other in the New Europe

Author:
Alina Mungiu Pippidi
Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Romanian Journal of Political Science
Institution:
Romanian Academic Society
Abstract:
Denying the huge influence of 'new' media over politics in our times would be foolish: and since politicians are no fools the development of the new media seems to be accompanied by the development of new strategies to control media contents and influence. While it remains undeniable that the social control patterns of a given society have a considerable influence over how the media system is shaped, I believe that globalization has opened the door to outside influences on a scale undreamed at the times of Four Theories of the Press.
Topic:
Civil Society and Democratization
Political Geography:
Europe and Eastern Europe

18. The Romanian Revolution of December 1989

Author:
Milena Marin
Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Romanian Journal of Political Science
Institution:
Romanian Academic Society
Abstract:
After almost 10 years since the Romanian revolution of December 1989, both the academic community and public opinion of Romania, have still many doubts regarding the nature and the exact unfolding of those events. Peter Siani- Davies, one of the few western researchers involved in the study of the Romanian society, through his excellent work “The Romanian Revolution of December 1989”, offers a detailed account of the Romanian revolutionary upheaval and of the difficult birth of democracy in Romania, giving at the same time an important contribution on the elucidation of the myths and realities of the Romanian revolution.
Topic:
Civil Society
Political Geography:
Europe, Eastern Europe, Romania, and Sydney

19. Four Best Practices in Cooperation between Civil Society and Authorities with a View to the Prevention of the Violent Radicalization in Spain

Author:
José Antonio Peña-Ramos
Publication Date:
07-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Athena Intelligence Journal
Institution:
Athena Intelligence
Abstract:
Madrid and London terrorist attacks in 2004 and 2005, European counterparts to those carried out in New York and Washington during 2001, have steadily increased EU institutions' concern about the phenomenon of violent radicalization, specially that of Islamist nature, as a possible previous step leading to Jihadist terrorism in a context of a continuous and even growing flow of immigration, namely from Muslim origins. The European Council deems paramount to achieve a deeper cooperation between civil society and authorities towards the prevention of these radicalization phenomena.
Topic:
Civil Society, Islam, Migration, and Terrorism
Political Geography:
Europe, Gaza, Romania, and Spain

20. Writer Ryszard Kapuscinski: An Optimist in the Heart of Darkness

Author:
Tomasz Zalewski
Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
European Affairs
Institution:
The European Institute
Abstract:
Polish journalist Ryszard Kapuscinski was an exception in gaining an international following for his writings – in translation, of course. He succeeded by writing directly about the people in oppressed, poor continents. His humanity stemmed partly from his origins in Soviet-era Poland.
Topic:
Civil Society and History
Political Geography:
Europe, Poland, and Soviet Union