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29741. The Opioid Crisis in North America

Author:
Global Commission On Drug Policy
Publication Date:
10-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Global Commission On Drug Policy
Abstract:
The opioid-driven public health crisis in North America has reached alarming proportions, contributing in 2016 to an estimated 64,000 deaths from drug overdoses in the US, and some 2,500 in Canada. The members of the Global Commission on Drug Policy, several of whom faced similar crises while occupying the highest levels of government in their own countries, share in this position paper their views and recommendations on how to mitigate this epidemic.
Topic:
Drugs, Public Health, Health Crisis, and Opioid Crisis
Political Geography:
Canada, North America, and United States of America

29742. What Do They Pay? Towards a Public Database to Account for the Economic Activities and Tax Contributions of Multinational Corporation

Author:
Alex Cobham, Jonathan Gray, and Richard Murphy
Publication Date:
02-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
City Political Economy Research Centre (CITYPERC), University of London
Abstract:
This paper reviews the prospects for a global public database on the tax contributions and economic activities of multinational companies. It is divided into four main sections. Firstly, we present a set of user stories, questions, requirements, and scenarios of usage for a database. Secondly, we look at what kinds of information a public database could and should contain. Thirdly, we look at the opportunities and challenges of building a public database drawing on various existing information sources. Fourthly and finally, we suggest next steps for policy, advocacy, and technical work towards a public database.
Topic:
Economics, Multinational Corporations, and Corporate Tax
Political Geography:
Global Focus

29743. A Singapore on the Thames? Post-Brexit Deregulation in the UK

Author:
Anastasia Nesvetailova, Ronen Palan, Stefano Pagliari, John Grahl, Richard Murphy, Izabella Kaminska, and Thomas Christiansen
Publication Date:
01-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
City Political Economy Research Centre (CITYPERC), University of London
Abstract:
The so-called 'Singapore on the Thames' scenarios for post-Brexit UK tend to envisage a country that has abandoned the red tape of EU regulations, likely adopted a unilateral free trade approach and introduced a low taxation regime for the corporate sector. Technically, it is possible to make Britain into a low corporate tax jurisdiction. However, while the abolition of corporation tax would create an entirely tax-free environment for foreign shareholders in UK companies, this measure would end up increasing taxes on UK privately owned businesses. In the financial sector post-Brexit, the deregulated fintech industry is likely to evolve along the historical path of the unregulated Eurodollar markets, creating additional risks for financial stability, transparency and the reputation of the UK. In reality, two sets of political-economic factors will influence the UK's economic strategy post-Brexit: domestic alliances and the international policy context.
Topic:
Regulation, Brexit, and Deregulation
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and Europe

29744. Women’s Peacebuilding Strategies Amidst Conflict: Lessons from Myanmar and Ukraine

Author:
Roslyn Warren, Anne Applebaum, Holly Fuhrman, and Briana Mawby
Publication Date:
01-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS)
Abstract:
In both Myanmar and Ukraine, broad-based and inclusive peace is still a work in progress. Amidst these challenges, women are developing effective strategies to participate in peace and security mechanisms and to advance women’s rights. Based on field interviews with civil society leaders and government officials in Myanmar and Ukraine and a review of the literature, this study examines how women are building peace amidst ongoing conflicts. The study finds that, in both countries, women use a variety of strategies to advance peace and security. While national plans and formal peace processes have had mixed results for women, alternative steps – notably including informal relationships and utilizing other international frameworks and norms – can be highly effective for advancing women’s interests. Several findings emerge that have broader relevance for policymakers and practitioners seeking to advance women’s rights amidst ongoing conflict: Women can leverage regional and international standards and norms to advocate for women’s rights and peace. This is evident in Myanmar, where women promote frameworks such as CEDAW, UNSCR 1325, and the Beijing Platform for Action. In Ukraine, women additionally promote standards in line with EU gender equality policies as a way for peace process stakeholders to improve their international reputation.
Topic:
Security, Women, Conflict, and Peacebuilding
Political Geography:
Europe, Ukraine, Southeast Asia, and Myanmar

29745. Avoiding the Pitfalls of Prevent

Author:
Joana Cook
Publication Date:
12-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS)
Abstract:
Prevent, one of four strands of the UK government’s counter-terrorism strategy, aims to ‘stop people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism.’ Established in 2003, Prevent has included numerous initiatives that have specifically focused on women, for example in the context of mosque reformation and the inclusion of ‘moderate voices,’ or the creation of women’s stakeholder groups (NMWAG) to advise the government on prevention issues. Some of these have proved to be highly contentious, and have undergone numerous transformations, with some even calling for the termination of the Prevent program altogether. This paper will outline some specific Prevent, and related countering violent extremism (CVE), initiatives that have focused on women and highlight key criticisms of both the initiatives themselves, and the wider UK counter-terrorism and CVE agenda. By interrogating these, it aims to offer a case study of how lessons learned in the UK can inform policy in other contexts where women are being engaged to counter violent extremism.
Topic:
Counter-terrorism, Women, and Countering Violent Extremism
Political Geography:
United Kingdom

29746. Gender Training for Leaders: The Swedish Gender Coach Program

Author:
Louise Olsson and Annika Björkdahl
Publication Date:
10-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS)
Abstract:
Dr. Louise Olsson and Capt. Anna Björsson, in “Gender Training for Leaders: The Swedish Gender Coach Program,” draw lessons from a program which aims to strengthen the ability of senior leaders in security, defense, and foreign affairs ministries to understand and ensure gender equality in their organizations. Senior leadership is instrumental both for creating demand for the organizational changes, and for ensuring an effective use of expert support functions, such as gender advisers. The authors detail the evolution and strengths of this program to offer best practices for leadership training programs in other security forces. They argue that such training must be designed to facilitate the leaders’ ownership of the process, and that key elements include: A parallel support structure, in which the person providing gender training has a similar level of seniority to the person receiving training, allows for potentially sensitive issues to be addressed more effectively; Strong leadership commitment, perseverance, institutionalization of practices, and education of personnel are required to build organizational capacity on gender equality.
Topic:
Leadership, Training, and Gender
Political Geography:
Sweden

29747. Policy Tensions Related to Gender and Peacekeeping: The Need for a Two-Level Game

Author:
Margaret Jenkins
Publication Date:
10-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS)
Abstract:
Dr. Margaret Jenkins, in “Policy Tensions Related to Gender and Peacekeeping: The Need for a Two-Level Game,” critiques the assumptions that typically underlie gender mainstreaming initiatives in peace support operations to understand why progress has been slow. Jenkins argues that there has not been enough focus on the end-goals for gender mainstreaming – analysis of what a completely gender-mainstreamed peacekeeping operation would entail. She examines the tensions between common assumptions on the one hand, and policy and practice on the other, offering specific suggestions to bridge these gaps: Avoid gendered assumptions about how women behave. Advocates for women’s inclusion often make assumptions about the skills and characteristics women can bring to peace and security (e.g., women are better listeners than men, are more sensitive or caring, or are more attuned to the needs of women and children). However, these assumptions have not been fully corroborated; in particular, there is little evidence that the presence of women changes the attitudes of male peacekeepers or reduces sexual exploitation and abuse. Moreover, such assumptions may undermine longer- term gender equality goals. There needs to be more rigorous understanding of how men and women are treated on deployment, whether they have different roles, and whether these different roles have a different effect on the mission and its objectives. Gender mainstreaming should consider possible policy responses to current unequal gender pressures and norms (e.g., care responsibilities at home), while simultaneously working to transform these gender parameters to create truly gender mainstreamed peace support operations.
Topic:
Peacekeeping, Women, Norms, Equality, Inclusion, and Gender
Political Geography:
Global Focus

29748. Cooperative Connections: Connecting Female Artisan Home-Based Workers through Women’s Cooperatives in Jakarta, Indonesia

Author:
Andrew Walker
Publication Date:
09-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS)
Abstract:
This study provides new evidence about the ways in which cooperatives can support women’s economic empowerment. Cooperatives can expand women’s access to small-scale finance, markets, and training, and can provide connections to social services. Formal institutions in the government and private sector can build on the cooperatives’ local networks to enable better outreach and deliver services. Cooperative Connections examines the extent to which these possibilities are being realized in Jakarta, Indonesia, in the case of female artisan home-based workers. In Indonesia, women’s labor force participation lags behind that of men by more than 30 percentage points. Most women who participate in the economy do so informally, and many of these informal workers produce goods at home as artisans. As elsewhere in the world, many home-based workers lack legal and social protection, and face challenges such as limited access to capital, intensive competition in low-value sectors, and difficulties balancing paid work with household work and child care. Past studies suggest that organizing into groups like cooperatives can provide informal workers greater voice and visibility, and increase prospects for artisans to expand their businesses, improve the quality of their products, and enable them to compete in external markets. We examine whether this is the case in Jakarta. Indonesia has more than 150,000 active cooperatives, with more than 6,000 in Jakarta alone. Cooperatives in Indonesia are extensively regulated and supported by the government, particularly the Ministry of Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises. Development partners like the International Labor Organization and civil society organizations are also active in this space. We assessed how cooperative membership in Jakarta supports women’s economic empowerment.
Topic:
Women, Labor Market, Workforce, and Cooperation
Political Geography:
Indonesia and Southeast Asia

29749. Inclusive Justice: How Women Shape Transitional Justice in Tunisia and Colombia

Author:
Roslyn Warren, Anne Applebaum, Briana Mawby, Holly Fuhrman, Rebecca Turkington, and Mayesha Alam
Publication Date:
08-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS)
Abstract:
Most countries relapse into conflict within ten years of making peace. Building long-lasting peace requires recognizing and reconciling the deep-rooted causes of conflict and its impacts. Transitional justice can contribute to sustained peace through a set of processes and mechanisms that facilitate accountability and reconciliation after conflict or political change. Effectively addressing past wrongs to build sustainable peace means addressing the needs of all those involved. Women and men experience conflict differently – due to gender roles and social norms – and to succeed, transitional justice processes need to account for these differences. This study looks at how women shape transitional justice in Tunisia and Colombia – two very different contexts – and suggests why, and how, these cases provide valuable lessons for other nations undergoing political transition. Findings Both cases establish a high standard for women’s inclusion in transitional justice, described in “Inclusive Justice: How Women Shape Transitional Justice in Tunisia and Colombia.” Tunisian and Colombian women participated in official capacities early in each process. Female officials and women’s civil society organizations (CSOs) advocated for and gained formal recognition of specific harms that women faced under dictatorship in Tunisia and during civil war in Colombia. As a result, the definition of victimhood in Tunisia was expanded to include socio-economic harms (such as being barred from educational and employment opportunities); in Colombia, amnesty for the crime of sexual violence – prevalent in the decades-long conflict – was explicitly barred in the final peace agreement. In both cases, women’s leadership spurred inclusive mechanisms through which female victims could participate more fully in the process, and in greater numbers. Inclusive mechanisms can help to ensure lasting peace. The creation of specific structures, such as the Women’s Commission in Tunisia and the Gender Sub-Commission in Colombia, allowed more citizens to participate in the unfolding political transitions. This may both enable states to better address root causes of violence and confer legitimacy on their political agreements. In each case, women’s active and early participation as officials and in civil society helped make innovative and inclusive mechanisms possible.
Topic:
Women, Transitional Justice, Conflict, and Peace
Political Geography:
Colombia, South America, North Africa, and Tunisia

29750. Women and Transitional Justice

Author:
Peace and Security (GIWPS) Georgetown Institute for Women
Publication Date:
08-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS)
Abstract:
This volume attempts to share some of the ideas outlined in a Bridging Theory and Practice Symposium on the topic of women and transitional justice. In the following pages, Jennifer Moore presents a useful framework for how to conduct qualitative research that focuses on the work of women-led, community-based organizations in Uganda, Sierra Leone, and Burundi, and in doing so helps construct a research model that can be adapted across contexts. Rebekka Friedman provides reflections on women’s experiences in culturally mediated grieving and recovery processes in northern Sri Lanka. Anna Applebaum and Briana Mawby discuss the opportunities and challenges to engendering transitional justice processes in Kenya after the 2007-2008 post-election violence, paying particular attention to the ongoing and yet-to-be fully implemented Restorative Justice Fund.
Topic:
Elections, Women, Transitional Justice, Violence, and Community-based Organizations
Political Geography:
Uganda, Kenya, Africa, Sri Lanka, Sierra Leone, and Burundi