Suchergebnisse

The duty of states to consult indigenous communities is a well-established legal principle, but its implications for practice remain uncertain. Sweden is finding itself at a particularly critical juncture as it prepares to legislate a duty to consult the Sami people in line with its international obligations. This paper explores the ability of Swedish state actors to implement the duty to consult, based on lessons from an already existing duty set out in Swedish minority law, namely to ensure the effective participation of minorities in land and resource decisions. Presenting novel empirical material on the views of Sami communities and state officials in ministries and agencies, we demonstrate the existence of considerable implementation gaps linked to practice, sectoral legislation, and political discourse. We argue that if state duties are to promote the intended intercultural reconciliation, then new measures are needed to ensure enforcement, e.g. via mechanisms of appeal and rules of nullification. In addition, sectoral resource regulations should be amended to refer to the duties set out in minority law and/or a potential new bill on consultation duty in a consistent manner. In the near-term, the state should ensure that Sami communities are adequately resourced to engage in consultation and should invest in state authorities' own ability to implement, i.e. through competence development, staffing, intersectoral coordination, and independent evaluation. Much could also be gained if state agencies and Sami communities worked together to develop detailed consultation routines for relevant resource sectors.

In this article the author argues that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) & the Olympic Movement have a more important role in international politics after the Cold War than they had during the Cold War. This is due to three factors: 1) the IOC & the Olympic Movement have taken a more active role in international politics-, 2) the IOC & the Olympic Movement have been given greater freedom of action in international politics; & 3) international organizations, such as the United Nations, to a greater degree than before, see the IOC & the Olympic Movement as important collaborators in achieving their own goals of peace & reconciliation. References. Adapted from the source document.

During the Cold War, the Norwegian Armed Forces were organized to fight an invasion against Norwegian territory. The end of this era should at least in principle imply changes not only in military practices on the ground but also in the training and education of officers. This article analyses the inertia in the internationalization of higher military education programs in Norway, where the strengthening of a subject like International Relations began only at the end of the 1990s. One explanation for the discrepancy between the military curriculum, on the one hand, and the new military environment facing the officers, on the other, is that existing practices were taken for granted and reproduced in social structures. The debate about military education also reflects a traditional conflict between those who have seen an academization of military education as an intervention into the monopoly of knowledge of the officer profession, and those who embraced such a development. Adapted from the source document.

Comments on "refleksprosjektet"; a Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs initiative to define Norwegian foreign policy in a new era faced with global changes in the areas of environment, energy, global warming, health, poverty, world security, technology and communication, international migration, religion, the global economy and changes in Norwegian changes in the areas of oil, the petroleum fund, open society, and global economic dependencies. Comments include the relationship between government initiative reports and practical politics, challenges of future planning, and value of plans to increase experience based learning. Concludes that the value of the initiative is increased focus, interest, debate, and understanding of Norwegian foreign policy issues. References. E. Sundby

Provides an introduction to the history of modern Somalia followed by an analysis of the piracy epidemic that started in 2003. Political scientists consider Somalia the archetype of a failed state. The country is essentially divided in Somaliland, Puntland, Southern Somalia, and a number of smaller chiefdoms lacking a central regime and functioning government institutions. While pirate activity started already in 1991, it took twelve years before the activity became professional and well organized. After capturing several larger ships, such as Sirius Star and MV Faina, the pirates have been able to purchase better weaponry and communication devices making them even larger threats to passing ships. L. Pitkaniemi