International Civil Society: International Non-Governmental Organizations in the International System
In: International social science journal: ISSJ, Band 44, S. 417-431
ISSN: 0020-8701
An analysis of how international nongovernment organizations (INGOs) have come to modify or challenge the international system. The introduction of transnational forces -- ie, nonstate entities of a social, political, scientific, religious, environmental, or other nature -- into the study of international relations does not merely shift or cut across boundaries, but calls for a new, intrinsicially pluralistic approach. The interplay of factors & actors outside the conventional frame of reference of territorial sovereign states exposes a multipolar world that encompasses a variety of intersecting sociopolitical "forces of attraction" of a predominantly economic, ethnic, or religious character. The transnational approach particularly emphasizes three aspects of nonstate entities: their historical precedence over the state system; INGOs' role as the subjects & makers of international law; & the latter's effective scope of action in the contemporary world, either as shapers of opinion, as autonomous actors, or in competition with states. As central components of a potential international civil society, their transnationalization poses the question of the universal character of the state, & hence of civil society, & the groupings that structure it across national borders. 2 Illustrations, 41 References. AA