W. Andy Knight

Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration and Post-Conflict Peacebuilding in Africa: An Overview

ABSTRACT This article draws on the experience of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) programs on the African continent. It explains the link between DDR in Africa and the evolution of post-conflict peacebuilding as envisioned by former UN Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali, the phases of the DDR process, the actors involved in the practice of DDR—both within the UN system and outside. Seven case studies are used to illustrate how DDR programs have been implemented, the lessons that have been learned as a result, and the challenges that are yet to be overcome. A general evaluation of DDR is provided in the conclusion, which taps into discussions and recommendations emerging from a 2006 conference held on the subject at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC) in Accra, Ghana.

Social contagion and the female face of terror: New trends in the culture of political violence

Increased incidents of female terrorism in places like Chechnya, the Middle East, and Sri Lanka warrant a deeper analytical exploration of what motivates these women to perpetuate such violent acts. This article is grounded on an empirical examination of the recent rash of female suicide bombers in Chechnya and Russia, so as to develop a critical perspective on female terrorism, and to complement the more abstract theoretical thinking about women and violence. We tackle the issue of the link between women and violence, showing the complexity of this problem and the shifts that have occurred, because of it, in gender relations. Our framework of analysis includes: a brief overview of traditional theorizing about gender and violence; an historical and chronological look at the female suicide bombing phenomenon; profiles of recent female suicide terrorists in Chechnya and Russia; and an analysis of the motive(s) driving Chechen female suicide bombers.

Piracy in the Horn of Africa waters: definitions, history, and modern causes

ABSTRACT Throughout history, ocean piracy was common in different parts of the world, but it was rare in the Horn of Africa waters. Although international law clearly defines piracy, the term is often carelessly used interchangeably with different crimes (armed robbery, atrocities against the victims of shipwrecks, maritime terrorism, insurgent attacks, on sea intercommunal conflicts, and at times illegal fishing). In the first section, this article critically examines the link between the multiple definitions of the concept of piracy and how these can explain the various incidents that occurred historically on the coast of Somalia. In the second part, we explain different types of maritime attacks and criminalities that took place in the Horn of Africa waters prior to the upsurge of piracy in late the 1990s. We argue that all attacks and criminal incidents at sea cannot be classified as piracy. We explain why incidents of piracy were rare before the Somali state was established. Finally, utilizing Collier and Hoeffler’s greed and grievance theory, we seek to explain the factors that led to the emergence and spread of piracy. We contend that crime of opportunity explains in large part the motives of the pirates and their ringleaders while statelessness, poverty, illegal fishing, and toxic-waste dumping explain the initial emergence of piracy and tolerance for it among the coastal communities.

Coping with a post‐cold war environment

This paper asks how successful the Liberal government has been in fulfilling the pre‐election foreign policy promises it made. The context of Canadian foreign policy since the end of the cold war, the Conservative governments foreign policy, and the Liberals foreign policy promises and record are examined. The five specific promises include: new directions in Canada‐US relations; peacekeeping; foreign aid; multilateral for a; and open foreign policy‐making. Knight concludes that the extent to which the Canadian government is able to keep its foreign policy promises is directly linked to external and internal aspects of the changing international political environment. The differences between the Conservative and Liberal governments’ foreign policies were discovered to be very small. Once in government, the Liberal Party has discovered that foreign policy promises are much more easily made than kept.

Gauging Social Integration among Canadian Muslims: A Sense of Belonging in an Age of Anxiety

Abstract: While the subject of “Muslim integration” has received extensive scholarly attention, especially in the Western European context, there has been little study of the subject in Canada. Canada has a long history of welcoming immigrants who make up 20 percent of the population. Yet, Canada has not fully escaped the debates and anxieties related to the accommodation of Muslim immigrants and the integration of those populations. In particular, these anxieties have been displayed around the proposal to use religious law in family based disputes in Ontario in 2005, controversies around the wearing of the niqab in the oath of citizenship, the admission of Syrian refugees in 2015, and concerns over homegrown violent extremism after the 11th of September 2001. Employing semi-structured elite-level interviews (n20), the Ethnic Diversity Study (EDS) and Environics’ Survey of Muslims in Canada, the article examines social integration among Canada’s diverse Muslim communities. Using the barometer of a sense of national belonging, it examines the life experiences of Canadian Muslims and their ideas and sentiments related to belonging. It concludes that despite concerns in the community over discrimination and divisive areas of public policy (e.g., security), Canadian Muslims are well integrated socially. Résumé: Bien que la question de « l’intégration des musulmans » ait reçu un intérêt académique important, particulièrement dans le contexte de l’Europe occidentale, il y a eu peu d’études sur cette question au Canada. Le Canada a une longue histoire dans l’accueil des immigrants qui représentent 20 pour cent de la population. Pourtant, le Canada n’a pas totalement échappé aux débats et aux inquiétudes liés à l’accueil des immigrants musulmans et l’intégration de ces populations. En particulier, ces inquiétudes ont été exposées dans la proposition d’utiliser la loi religieuse dans les conflits familiaux en Ontario en 2005, les controverses autour du port du Niqab pendant le serment de citoyenneté, l’admission des réfugiés syriens en 2015, et les préoccupations sur la croissance interne de l’extrémisme violent après le 11 Septembre 2001. Sur la base d’entrevues d’élite semi-structurées (N20), l’étude sur la diversité ethnique (EDS) ainsi que les sondages d’ENVIRONICS auprès des musulmans au Canada, l’article examine l’intégration sociale entre les diverses communautés musulmanes du Canada. En utilisant le baromètre d’un sentiment d’appartenance nationale, il examine les expériences de vie des musulmans canadiens, ainsi que leurs idées et sentiments par rapport à l’appartenance. Il conclut que, malgré les préoccupations de la communauté sur la discrimination et les zones de discorde de la politique publique (sécurité par exemple), les musulmans canadiens sont bien intégrés socialement.

International(IST) citizenship: Canada and the international criminal court

This article explores the possibilities and limits of an ethical foreign policy in the context of a changing world order. A useful ideal expressing this possibility is ‘good international citizenship’. This normative standard is one that resonates with the self-understandings of foreign policy-makers who pursue ‘humane internationalism’. It has recently been suggested, however, that this ideal also provides a standard against which to measure such governments’ actual performance in realizing declared ethical goals (Wheeler and Dunne 1998). This insight is important because it suggests a role for civil society, both domestic and transnational, in rendering the foreign policy-making process more accountable and consistently applicable towards ethical goals. The ideal assumes that the moral ends governments publically endorse are not mere rhetoric, but contested norms that can be deployed against state decisions, actions, and omissions. In other words, there is a large measure of internal legitimacy at stake with states committed to ethical foreign policy agendas. In this article we argue for the importance of an additional, yet under-theorized, element of good international citizenship: the ability and willingness of states to deploy creatively moral norms vis-à-vis other states. Adapting the concept of ‘norm entrepreneurship,’ developed recently by social theorists of global politics, we claim that good international citizenship also entails the use by states of moral ideals to create powerful ‘coalitions of the willing’ around ‘high-minded’ causes.1 The achievement of a Statute for an International Criminal Court (ICC) is a useful case for exploring the connection between ethics and foreign policy through the concept of good international citizenship. We demonstrate that Canada’s commitment to and diplomatic skill in reaching a strong, independent, and permanent court for individual international crimes – against the objections of the United States – can be interpreted in light of good international citizenship. To be clear, our aim is to provide a normative account of foreign policy generally and then to illustrate it with a specific and limited example – it is not, therefore, an argument about the intrinsically ‘ethical’ character of Canadian foreign policy. Nevertheless, Canada has long considered itself an adherent of the core principles of international law. Its recent efforts to join together with like-minded states in an attempt to consolidate international humanitarian and 51

Homegrown Violent Extremism in Trinidad and Tobago: Local Patterns, Global Trends

ABSTRACT The article examines the subject of homegrown violent extremism related to militant Islamism in the dual-Island Caribbean state of Trinidad and Tobago (T & T). It employs original research drawn from a series of semi-structured interviews and focus groups conducted between November 2015 and January 2016. Tracing the evolution of endogenous forms of radicalism and extremism the article considers how globalized-exogenous forms of militant Islamism associated with Al Qaeda and its offshoots, such as the so-called Islamic State, have impacted local patterns of violent extremism. The case study draws attention to a state and a region that have received scant attention in terrorism studies. As demonstrated by the article, this oversight is imprudent. There are a number of noteworthy findings from this case study for terrorism studies scholars: the unique historical legacy of radicalism, extremism and insurrection among T & Ts Islamists; the countrys markedly high levels of extremist travelers on a per capita basis and the high rate of religious converts among those travelers; the inter-linkages between criminality and political violence; and the potential threat posed by Trinidadian and Tobagonian militancy regionally.

Countering piracy through private security in the Horn of Africa: prospects and pitfalls

Abstract Employing secondary research and semi-structured interviews, this article examines the use of private maritime security companies (PMSC) in providing maritime security services in the Horn of Africa. It consists of four parts. The first part explains the origins and development of the use of PMSC in the Horn of Africa. The second section discusses the regulation of the private security industry, paying particular attention to the maritime context. Part three examines the challenges associated with the use of maritime PMSC in the Horn of Africa, including negative human rights implications, compromising the innocent passage of commercial ships, and creating confusion in the hierarchical control of ships. Finally, the paper analyses the findings and concludes that PMSC, despite their apparent short-term effectiveness, cannot be regarded as a long-term solution to the piracy phenomenon in the Horn of Africa.

The Managed Change Process at the UN

One of the primary observations made in the analysis of the reflexive adaptation process at the UN is that this process disregards, more often than not, the internal limitations of the organization. In trying, reactively, to meet the constantly changing demands of international society and the society of states, the structure, functions and goals of the UN system were forced to stretch, expand and elongate. In the process, questions of efficiency and effectiveness were largely ignored and, because of the absence of strategic planning, financial problems put the organization’s future at risk. This state of affairs did not go completely unnoticed by some UN staff and member state representatives. As will be shown below, on several occasions attempts were made to place the unbridled reflexive change process in check through implementing a rational and purposive ‘planned change’ process.

Subsidiarity and Global Governance

It seemed reasonable, in 1945, to conceive of a single international organization with the task of global governing. The UN Charter, in part, reflected this thinking; it also reflected the views of realists who wanted to protect the concept of sovereignty from the encroachment of centralized global governing arrangements. So at least there was a recognition from the beginning that the UN would not be the only mechanism of global governance.