Search results

The question of whether traditional liberalism can function as the foundation of social justice in the future is investigated. Liberalism's ambiguous treatment of ethical & moral issues in its attempt to ensure both individual autonomy & cosmopolitanism is reviewed. The problem concerning whether liberalism should treat international justice as both theory & practice is addressed. The need to integrate the concepts of duty & sentiment into contemporary liberal thought is then discussed. Informed by the thought of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, it is subsequently asserted that the language of sentiment offers an alternative that allows democratic societies to accept certain moral laws while avoiding violations of principles of social justice. Difficulties that arise when universalist & particularist thought are negotiated within the context of international justice are also covered. It is concluded that liberalism's claim that membership in a given political community is not an ethical issue requires additional review. 18 References. J. W. Parker

The question of whether traditional liberalism can function as the foundation of social justice in the future is investigated. Liberalism's ambiguous treatment of ethical & moral issues in its attempt to ensure both individual autonomy & cosmopolitanism is reviewed. The problem concerning whether liberalism should treat international justice as both theory & practice is addressed. The need to integrate the concepts of duty & sentiment into contemporary liberal thought is then discussed. Informed by the thought of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, it is subsequently asserted that the language of sentiment offers an alternative that allows democratic societies to accept certain moral laws while avoiding violations of principles of social justice. Difficulties that arise when universalist & particularist thought are negotiated within the context of international justice are also covered. It is concluded that liberalism's claim that membership in a given political community is not an ethical issue requires additional review. 18 References. J. W. Parker

Draws on women's narratives compiled as part of ethnographic work on development & fertility in India, & an analysis of the 1994 International Conference on population & development in Cairo, Egypt, to examine the hidden discourse of whiteness in international programs of population control. The deconstruction, or "provincializing," of whiteness involves challenging the purposes of schemes of progress created by nonnative interests & contextualizing discourses of emancipation/progress in colonialist/neocolonialist ideology. The political, social, & business aspects of the development industry are shown to focus on economic advantages for the West, as exemplified by the enormous financial benefits of family planning enjoyed by the contraceptive industry. The Cairo conference drew increased international attention to female fertility by reviving alarm over expanding populations & finite resources, while ignoring destructive overconsumption in First World nations. Feminist language was incorporated into the patriarchal discourse to present an illusion of the male leadership's cultural sensitivity. These discourses exemplify the maintenance of white power through an agenda of dominance over international media, development, & politics. 35 References. J. Lindroth

Focusing on environmental nongovernmental organizations, this chapter employs the EAR instrument to illustrate the political influence that NGOs exercise on global environmental politics. It investigates the effects of NGO power on the Framework Convention on Climate Change & the Convention on Biological Diversity (1990-1995). It begins by outlining the role that NGOs play in a globalized world. The chapter then discusses political power & political influence. The following sections examine the EAR instrument itself, followed by an application of the EAR instrument to a specific element of the Climate Convention: the issue of "joint implementation." Eighteen cases from the Climate & Biodiversity Conventions are summarized, & an analysis of the pros & cons of the EAR instrument is presented. 2 Tables. K. A. Larsen

An examination of the growth, decline, & resurgence of the international women's movement focuses on how women's groups both reflect & help to shape world culture. Analysis of the discourse & actions of international women's organizations (WINGOs) reveal when women's issues became a global concern & how that concern changed the world polity. The history of the women's movement is traced through three chronological stages: the formative period (1850s-WWI), the interwar period, & post-1945 developments. What began as female-led moral crusades eventually became rationalized actions decreed by official world bodies on behalf of women. It is shown how the goals & structure of women's groups mirrored changes in conceptions of womanhood that advanced from notions of "protection" to principles of equality. Other issues include the proliferation & complexity of WINGOs in both highly developed & Third World regions; the impact of the International Labor Organization & UN groups on women's organizations; tensions between different women's groups; & national/regional factors that affect the international organizing agenda. 1 Figure. J. Lindroth

A response to Judith Adler Hellman's (2000) critique of the Zapatista movement argues that the movement not only represents a fight against both the state & the momentum of global capital, but promotes a "globalized solidarity" with other struggles against neoliberalism. Hellman's overly severe analysis is said to be too narrow to fully appreciate Zapatismo & the relationship of solidarity activists to it. Objections are raised to her claim that foreign activists have been subjected to a "flattened version of events in Chiapas" & outside fascination resulted from the appeal of events seen from a great distance rather than actual Zapatista proposals. Special attention is given to the land issue in Chiapas, the complexity of the "indigenous question," & Hellman's description of foreign Zapatista activists as "Internet Junkies." Strategies of the Ejercito Zapatista de Liberacion Nacional are explored in relation to their centrality to the movement of neoliberalism to show that international support was based on a genuine appreciation of, & identification with, the Zapatista struggle. J. Lindroth

A response to Judith Adler Hellman's (2000) critique of the Zapatista movement argues that the movement not only represents a fight against both the state & the momentum of global capital, but promotes a "globalized solidarity" with other struggles against neoliberalism. Hellman's overly severe analysis is said to be too narrow to fully appreciate Zapatismo & the relationship of solidarity activists to it. Objections are raised to her claim that foreign activists have been subjected to a "flattened version of events in Chiapas" & outside fascination resulted from the appeal of events seen from a great distance rather than actual Zapatista proposals. Special attention is given to the land issue in Chiapas, the complexity of the "indigenous question," & Hellman's description of foreign Zapatista activists as "Internet Junkies." Strategies of the Ejercito Zapatista de Liberacion Nacional are explored in relation to their centrality to the movement of neoliberalism to show that international support was based on a genuine appreciation of, & identification with, the Zapatista struggle. J. Lindroth

"This essay treats three major themes or questions that have emerged in the study of the politics of international migration. The first major theme revolves around the question of control, that is the role of the nation-state in establishing rules of entry and exit. To what extent can states control their borders? What are the factors that define the capacity and limits of control? These questions will lead us directly to the second major theme of the essay which is the impact of migration an international relations. How does migration affect the sovereignty and autonomy of the nation-state? What are the possibilities for controlling or managing migration at the international, as opposed to the domestic, level? What is the relationship between migration, national security, and foreign policy. And why do states "risk migration?" The third theme to be explored is intricately related to the first two. It revolves around the issue of incorporation, specifically the impact of immigration on citizenship, the social contract, and the polity itself. How do emigration and immigration affect the political behavior of individuals, natives as well as migrants? What role does the state play in incorporating immigrants into society and the economy? And what is the relationship between social and political citizenship? These questions lead inevitably to discussions of national identity, citizenship, and rights, which are at the heart of the way in which every polity defines itself. The final section of the essay will link these three themes (control, sovereignty and incorporation) together, focusing on political explanations for international migration and the role of the state in encouraging or discouraging migration. Demarcating the politics of international migration is a first and essential step to talking across the disciplines." (extract)

The author assesses the roles of international organizations & local-level forces in causing the disintegration of Yugoslavia. She argues that nostalgia for an ethnic identity led local actors to attempt to recover that identity through communal violence. However, this longing for a lost home was not the cause of the broader conflict, even though it provided the local context in which the violence was actualized. The origins of Yugoslavia's internal violence emerged during the last decade of the Cold War, when the Yugoslavian state was faced with a series of crises that eventually overwhelmed it. After the state broke down, communal violence emerged because of "the demand for majority rights in a land of minorities." However, this communal violence was a minor danger compared to the violence generated by the response of the international community. NATO, the International Monetary Fund, the UN, the US, & individual European governments all contributed to the Balkan debacle. International actors used such concepts as "culture of violence" & "violence-prone area" to attribute a form of dangerous subjectivity to the inhabitants of the region & to rationalize their own role in Yugoslavia's dissolution. The politics of international relations & agencies pushed Yugoslavia to the point of complete disintegration. 17 References. A. Funderburg

Examines how the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) was able to convince states to adopt humanitarian rules of war laid out by the first Geneva Convention. Exploration of the theoretical arguments underlying humanitarian principles focuses on their desirability from an individual perspective, as well as the threat they pose to sovereignty & traditional understandings about international politics. A world-cultural argument is used to explain the context in which the Red Cross succeeded, arguing that functional & interest-related explanations are insufficient. War is viewed as an organized cultural institution with changing rules &, since state & personal survival conflict during war, other social/cultural values are needed to motivate soldiers to risk their lives. Cultural models also determine the "right" way to fight, & these rules of war have become increasingly globalized. An overview is presented of the origin, content, & spread of the rules of warfare contained in the Geneva Conventions, maintaining that the worldview & moral code expressed in this early period impacted all subsequent ICRC humanitarian efforts. J. Lindroth

An exploration of science in professional associations focuses on international nongovernmental organizations (INGOs) that are strictly science- or socially oriented. It is shown that, although science-oriented INGOs were the first to emerge, socially oriented bodies have expanded greatly in recent decades as science has become part of contemporary models of national development. The goals, structures, & activities of the approximately 350 international science associations that were active in 1994 are described, showing how they reflect & embody world culture. The implications of the increase in these organizations are discussed in regard to the general expansion of scientific authority, the "scientization" of many social realms, & the emergence of new cognitive models linking scientific activity to societal development that have led to greater levels of international organization around science. It is shown that scientific INGOs are not only important to professionals in peripheral states, but have often provided the impetus for states to develop science policies. Possible future implications of the increasing presence of science in governance are discussed. 2 Tables, 2 Figures. J. Lindroth

The 1978 Long Term Trade Agreement between the People's Republic of China & Japan called for a special bilateral relationship between the two countries, but China's market-oriented reforms & internationalization have affected economic relations with Japan. With China's recognition of international economic interdependence, especially within the Asia Pacific region, & China's shift in its mix of goods, labor, & investments, Japan is no longer China's predominant trading partner. Domestic interests in both countries have affected exports, leading to trade friction. A centralized bilateral mechanism has proved to be unfeasible in the face of decentralized market forces. Japan & China have enormous differences in lifestyles, values, decision-making practices, & politics, but these may lessen as China approaches Japan & the West economically. A multilateral, rules-based framework in which Japan participates can facilitate China's integration into the world economy & resolve Sino-Japanese friction. 5 Tables. M. Pflum

Examines the role of the media in the global era of international politics & its impact on international relations from two directions: (1) the limitations of current international understanding of the mass media & (2) empirical research findings on the role of the media from two events in 1991 -- the Gulf War & the Kurdish refugee crises. This approach is then applied to the 1999 conflict in Kosovo to point out issues of war & peace in the new circumstances of state relations. Five main issues are considered to overcome the limitations of the literature on the media in the Gulf War: (1) Domestic & interstate politics within global politics are increasing connections; (2) Global politics are mediated in a somewhat common framework; (3) Global media spaces are contested by many social actors & by journalists of differing ideologies; (4) Media is a location of civil society on both national & global levels; & (5) The dynamics of film, commentary & text generate political impact. Media coverage was instrumental in gaining Western intervention in the Kurdish revolt after the Gulf War & in speeding the North Atlantic Treaty Organization liberation of Kosovar refugees. L. A. Hoffman

The implications of the historical conflict between Turkey & Greece & the US's foreign policies toward both nations for future Turkish-American relations are considered. An overview of US foreign policy toward Turkey & Greece reveals the US's interest in improving relations with both nations & notes the constraints that hinder relations-building processes. Two principal points of contention between Turkey & Greece are identified: (1) each nation's claim over the island of Cyprus & the tensions that have developed from these competing claims; & (2) questions concerning airspace rights over the Aegean Sea. Although military conflicts between Turkey & Greece have been minimal during the late 20th century, each country nonetheless perceives the other as a national security threat. Moreover, several historical & present-day developments that could escalate the conflict are identified. After detailing the failure of previous Turkish-Greek negotiations, it is claimed that the mutual compassion & goodwill following both nations' experience of devastating earthquakes in 1999 & the EU's consideration of Turkey as a candidate for membership have reduced interstate hostilities. It is concluded that the US & the EU should collaborate to resolve the Turkish-Greek conflict concerning Cyprus to enhance relations with both Turkey & Greece. J. W. Parker