/172-general

Using Passports to Construct Enemies?

►http://www.globalpolicy.org/home/172-general/52142-using-passports-to-construct-enemies.html

In times of increasing mobility of individuals across borders, citizenship rights have become central to understand geopolitical disputes. This is particularly true in Eastern Europe, where passport have become weapons of foreign policy since the fall of the Soviet Union. Russian passports have certainly facilitated Abkhazian and South Ossetian separatism in Georgia and allowed Moscow to launch a military intervention in the country in 2008. Some argue that “Russia has ‘weaponized’ citizenship by combining its right to grant citizenship with its sovereign ‘right’ or ‘duty’ to protect its citizens at home and abroad.” Governments in Georgia, Latvia and Estonia have also used citizenship rights to prevent their ethnic Russian populations from gaining political power in their country. Ultimately, Xenia de Graaf concludes that “ as long as Russia and former Soviet Republics remain insecure about their national identity and need ‘significant others’ to define themselves, passport and citizenship troubles are likely to remain.”

By Xenia de Graaf
International Relations and Security Network
December 12, 2012

’Another World Is Possible’: Nationhood and Global Justice

►http://www.globalpolicy.org/home/172-general/52146-another-world-is-possible-nationhood-and-global-justice-.html

When the Cold War ended, many observers of international relations foresaw a new “globalized era” in which social movements and struggles for justice would be led at the supranational level, at the expense of the nation-state’s classic power channels. While recent geopolitical events have in part been shaped by new global social media, the so-called globalized power is still deeply centralized and nation-states remain the most democratic forums to effect change. In this article, Jamie Mackay argues that “the desire to declare the nation ‘dead’ is premature”: the so-called globalized system remains highly centralized and “continues to depend on key state institutions and their relationship with national communities.”

By Jamie Mackay
Open Democracy
December 11, 2012

Somalia: The End of a Failed State?

►http://www.globalpolicy.org/home/172-general/51887-somalia-the-end-of-a-failed-state-.html

By Konye Obaji Ori
The Africa Report
September 11, 2012

When speaking of war-torn “failed states”, Somalia is often mentioned as the archetype. Indeed, Somalia has not had a functioning central government since 1991 and it is ranked today 222th worldwide in terms of GDP per capita. Yet, on September 10th, Somalia held its first presidential elections in 40 years. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, the new President, is seen as incarnating a drive for change, promoting reform and readjustment after decades of war and poverty. However, the country’s stability is still threatened by resource-driven conflicts, arms smuggling and foreign interventions, all of these worsen by a lack of viable institutions. Will these elections really be a first step on the path towards recovery?

What does Somalia’s first presidential election in 40 years mean to a nation seeking to filter itself from the shadows of a war-torn failed state? 



#somalie #corne-afrique #failed-state #afrique-est
For observers, the answer begins with the implementation of an overwhelmingly free and fair election, respectably accepted by the outgoing president.