Showing papers in "Contemporary Politics in 2009"
TL;DR: The authors provided a brief overview of key political developments in global lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) organizing and advocacy over the past three decades as well as a summary of recent academic research and debates on these issues in politics, sociology and other disciplines.
Abstract: This introduction provides a brief overview of key political developments in global lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) organizing and advocacy over the past three decades as well as a summary of recent academic research and debates on these issues in politics, sociology and other disciplines. It introduces the three questions addressed by the volume's subsequent contributions: (1) How can recent global developments related to LGBT human rights advocacy and organizing be explained by political and sociological theories? (2) What is at stake in focusing on ‘human rights’ rather than concepts such as ‘equality’, ‘justice’, ‘liberation’, ‘self-determination’ and/or ‘queer politics’? (3) How do transnational human rights networks and global norms of LGBT rights affect domestic politics in both the global North and global South? The article pays particular attention to the ‘human rights turn’ of the LGBT movements in the early 1990s and the political successes and failures that have ensued. Finally, ...
181 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a critique of the concepts "sexual orientation" and "gender identity" which are being employed to contest global human rights discourses by prevailing international lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) and human rights activist networks is presented.
Abstract: This article presents a critique of the concepts ‘sexual orientation’ and ‘gender identity’, which are being employed to contest global human rights discourses by prevailing international lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) and human rights activist networks – notably in the Declaration of Montreal (2006) and, especially, the Yogyakarta Principles (2007). Theoretical analysis, informed by social theory and queer theory, is presented of these key concepts shaping human rights debates, particularly in relation to the United Nations. Relationships between the discourses used by international governmental and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), academics and activists are analysed to discern the conceptions of subjectivity and identity operating. With reference to Judith Butler's ‘heterosexual matrix’, it is proposed that the entry of ‘sexual orientation’ and ‘gender identity’ into human rights discourse can be interpreted as installing a distinctive gender and sexuality matrix, but also that def...
119 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore and explain why the international lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) movement has been more successful in lobbying the EU than the UN and argue that the LGBT movement appears to use many of the same entrepreneurial tactics as well as the same human rights framing at both the EU and the UN, but differences in the political opportunity structures of the two institutions explain why demands of LGBT groups have made their way onto the agenda in the EU, but not in the UN.
Abstract: Many social and political movements go international at a certain point in their history. The international gay and lesbian movement was rather late in stepping into the international arena. The International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA) was founded in 1978, but it was not until the 1990s that the movement gained access to the European Union (EU) and managed to get the issue on the EU agenda. At the United Nations (UN), that fight still continues. This contribution explores and seeks to explain why the international lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) movement has been more successful in lobbying the EU than the UN. It argues that the LGBT movement appears to use many of the same entrepreneurial tactics as well as the same human rights framing at both the EU and the UN, but differences in the political opportunity structures of the two institutions explain why the demands of LGBT groups have made their way onto the agenda in the EU, but not in the UN.
87 citations
TL;DR: The authors examines the implications of the use of internationally recognized categories of LGBTI and men who have sex with men (MSM) for the voices of local activists in India and sub-Saharan Africa and suggests that solidaristic categorizations can silence difference as well as articulate it.
Abstract: This contribution responds to the question of how transnational human rights networks affect people's politics in the global south and what is the role of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) category in claiming rights for others. The main concern of the paper is to reflect on the relationship between the people on whose behalf rights are claimed and those who are claiming these rights from within a global context. Theoretically, the argument locates itself within the discussions of politics of recognition and distribution. It examines the implications of the use of internationally recognized categories of LGBTI and men who have sex with men (MSM) for the voices of local activists in India and sub-Saharan Africa and suggests that solidaristic categorizations can silence difference as well as articulate it.
80 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that the European Union, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), and a transnational network of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender activists have played a crucial role in this policy change by creating a soft law norm for relationship recognition and disseminating this norm to policymakers in Western European states.
Abstract: In a period of just under 20 years, 15 Western European countries have adopted national same-sex union (SSU) laws that legally recognize the gay and lesbian couples who chose to enter them. This rather startling case of convergent policy change has largely slipped under the radar screens of political scientists. This article argues that the European Union (EU), the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), and a transnational network of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender activists have played a crucial role in this policy change by creating a soft law norm for relationship recognition and disseminating this norm to policymakers in Western European states. More recently, both the EU and the ECtHR have begun mandating some minimal recognition of same-sex couples. Using Austria and Germany as comparative cases, the article posits further that Europe has had a far greater impact on national policy outcomes when its influence has been felt through the informal processes of norm diffusion and elite socializat...
60 citations
48 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors introduce the notion of the "values/security nexus" to explain the limited impact of EU governance in Belarus and argue that the highly contradictory normative objectives in the Union's current Neighbourhood Policy towards Belarus effectively undermine the EU's credibility in the country: idealist values of "winning the hearts and minds" of the Belarusian population increasingly collide with traditional realist goals of protecting EU interests and the stability of the country.
Abstract: Whereas the European Union (EU) has had some effect on political and economic reforms in the Ukraine and Moldova, it almost completely failed to impress the regime and population of Belarus. Despite growing consensus at the EU level that the Union's policies for Eastern Europe cannot succeed without Belarus, few attempts have been made to account for the failure of EU governance in Belarus. Having recalled the current legal and institutional set-up of EU–Belarus relations, this article introduces the notion of the ‘values/security nexus’ to explain the limited impact of EU governance in Belarus. It argues that the highly contradictory normative objectives in the Union's current Neighbourhood Policy towards Belarus effectively undermine the EU's credibility in the country: idealist values of ‘winning the hearts and minds’ of the Belarusian population increasingly collide with traditional realist goals of protecting EU interests and the stability of the Belarusian state. By way of conclusion, the article hi...
40 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore human rights and citizenship within the context of transgender in the UK and examine the problems of advocating and organizing from the concept of human rights in relation to transgender, and consider whether a conceptual and political framework of "queer politics" is more fruitful for a discussion of transgender citizenship and rights.
Abstract: This piece explores human rights and citizenship within the context of transgender in the UK. It examines the problems of advocating and organizing from the concept of ‘human rights’ in relation to transgender, and considers whether a conceptual and political framework of ‘queer politics’ is more fruitful for a discussion of transgender citizenship and rights. Taking the Gender Recognition Act 2004 as a case study, this article explores the ways in which gender is constructed and reconstructed through the notions and the practices of ‘human rights’ and ‘citizenship’.
39 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors compared the current state of gender representation between democracies and non-democracies focusing on Africa, Central and South America, as well as Asia and the Pacific region, evaluating whether democracies have more female deputies or whether female representation increases with the maturity of democracy.
Abstract: Although there have been many studies that address the representation of women in parliament, there are few analyses that compare the current state of gender representation between democracies and non-democracies. Focusing on Africa, Central and South America, as well as Asia and the Pacific region, this paper evaluates whether democracies have more female deputies or whether female representation increases with the maturity of democracy. While controlling for the type of electoral system, quotas, women's participation in the workforce, a state's GDP, as well as its degree of corruption and Communist regime type, this cross-national analysis reveals that the variable democracy does not affect the representation of the genders in parliament. Women's parliamentary representation also does not increase with the maturity of democracy.
38 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that market-oriented reforms in Korea were relatively successful because they were political projects that went beyond ownership concepts of the IMF and World Bank, and they focus on the capacity of the state to implement these reforms, and challenge the view that successfully implemented market reforms follow a technocratic "best practice" approach.
Abstract: This paper studies the politics of market-oriented reforms in Korea since the 1997/98 financial crisis. It focuses on the capacity of the state to implement these reforms, and challenges the view that successfully implemented market reforms follow a technocratic ‘best practice’ approach. On the contrary, this paper argues that reforms in Korea were relatively successful because they were political projects that went beyond ownership concepts of the IMF and World Bank. The temporary weakness of big business (chaebol) and the formation of reform coalitions by the government created a balance of power between societal interest groups that opened a political space for the government. The state regained some of the autonomy it had lost during the ‘Chaebol Republic’ from 1987 to 1997 and was able to implement reforms in a temporary corporatist framework. However, the chaebol adapted to the new situation and used the market-friendly reforms in their favour. The re-emergence of the chaebol undermined state autono...
33 citations
TL;DR: The authors argue that the hope that the neoconservative chapter in US foreign policy will be definitively closed under Barack Obama's administration is unlikely to be realized in practice, owing to the continuing influence that neoconservatives are able to exercise over national debates regarding the "moral" use of US power in order to shape the international environment.
Abstract: The ‘neoconservative moment’ is widely assumed to have come and gone with the George W. Bush administration. This article argues, however, that the hope that the neoconservative chapter in US foreign policy will be definitively closed under Barack Obama's administration is unlikely to be realized in practice, owing to the continuing influence that neoconservatives are able to exercise over national debates regarding the ‘moral’ use of US power in order to shape the international environment. While the moral agenda of the ‘neocons’ is often misconceived as simply a mask for the naked pursuit of the United States' material and strategic interests, this article demonstrates that this misrepresents the rationale that underpins the neoconservative perspective. Exploring the re-articulation of morality in neoconservative thought reveals the nexus that both links the neoconservative domestic agenda for political change to its foreign policy goals and also provides a framework for understanding the ‘staying power...
TL;DR: In the early 1990s, Citizenship was the new black and everyone was wearing it as discussed by the authors, and it had purchasing power within a liberal democratic tradition, and it was interesting because it had, and still has, purchasing power.
Abstract: The growing interest in human rights discourse is a welcome development for strategic lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) activism and the appropriation of such a global signifier continues to move LGBT political claims into the mainstream. However, such language appropriation or strategic deployment opens debate as to its meaning and the limits of its descriptive power. For example, the popularity of citizenship discourse in the early 1990s led to an array of commentary from social and political theorists sketching the contours of epistemological meaning and potential policy outcomes. In the wake of this, queer social theorists pontificated on the meaning of ‘sexual citizenship’. Citizenship was the new black and everyone was wearing it. Citizenship was interesting because it had, and still has, purchasing power within a liberal democratic tradition. Human rights discourse is interesting for similar reasons. This article's cautionary tale addresses the twofold concern: ‘what is at stake in focu...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine some conceptual and practical tensions related to the application of the external governance framework to the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) in less motivated states, such as Belarus.
Abstract: The article examines some conceptual and practical tensions related to the application of the external governance framework to the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) in less motivated states, such as Belarus. First, it critically analyses the foundations of the external governance framework – from M. Smith's perspective – in order to suggest that the failure of the ENP to legitimize in Belarus should not be solely attributed to the vices of Lukashenko's regime. Second, it argues that an understanding of specifically Belarusian ‘boundaries of order’ – geopolitics and culture – is essential for tailoring a more nuanced policy that will be able to accommodate the needs and interests of ‘less motivated’ ENP partner states. In conclusion, it is suggested that a new policy framework – of extended partnership – should be more technical and less political, based on horizontal networks of cooperation rather than on hitherto hierarchical governance by conditionality that has found little appeal in the less motivat...
TL;DR: The authors explores some of the obstacles to making visible in international human rights law and activism women who transgress social norms around gender and sexuality: specifically, gendered understandings of privacy, the slow realization of the indivisibility of rights, and the limits of the violations-based protectionist model of human rights.
Abstract: Advocacy for sexual rights, including the application of international human rights to sexual orientation and gender identity, has seen many gains but has failed to protect and promote lesbian rights adequately. This article explores some of the obstacles to making visible in international human rights law and activism women who transgress social norms around gender and sexuality: specifically, gendered understandings of privacy, the slow realization of the indivisibility of rights, and the limits of the violations-based protectionist model of human rights. A return to the affirmative discourse of sexual autonomy may offer a means to overcome these challenges in the long term.
TL;DR: The authors argue that given the primacy of the state as an economic actor in developing countries, the variety of capitalism literature could provide a theoretical foundation for firm-level analyses of emerging market multinationals.
Abstract: This article attempts to build a bridge between contemporary studies of global firms from emerging economies and existing theories in comparative political economy. It argues that given the primacy of the state as an economic actor in developing countries, the variety of capitalism literature could provide a theoretical foundation for firm-level analyses of emerging market multinationals. For example, the authors suggest that China and India may be moving towards a ‘hybrid market economy’. They also offer a typology of Indian and Chinese corporates to demonstrate an empirical approach to analysing domestic business–government relationships and the ways in which these firms are shaped by the peculiarities of their respective institutional setting. Finally, they identify some of the likely pitfalls of doing cross-national comparisons of emerging market multinationals, particularly with respect to the reliability of corporate data.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that state terrorism is an example of state terrorism and, eventually, will prove themselves to be flawed counterinsurgency doctrine because, by using state terrorism, the Philippines has experienced a wave of assassinations targeting leftists, an emulation of the Phoenix Program implemented by the United States in Vietnam.
Abstract: An ongoing theme in Filipino history has been the exclusion of the left from electoral politics. Something that may provide an aperture facilitating left-wing participation are the provisions of the 1987 Constitution providing for the election, based on proportional representation, of representatives from traditionally marginalized sectors of society. Since the implementation of these provisions, six party-list groups have become the visible face of the left in Philippine politics. However, since 2001, the Philippines have experienced a wave of assassinations targeting leftists. These killings, an emulation of the Phoenix Program implemented by the United States in Vietnam, are designed to destroy organizations used as ‘fronts’ by the Communist Party of the Philippines and the progressive party-list groups have been specifically targeted. These killings, and the fear they generate, are an example of state terrorism and, eventually, will prove themselves to be flawed counterinsurgency doctrine because, by ...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors analyzed the activity of Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's three times premier, who has made "friendship" a central tenet of his personal foreign policy.
Abstract: Governments are run by humans who have sympathies and moods. The study of leaders' personalities, albeit not widespread, is an important tool for foreign policy analysis. Plus, friendship is a feeling that decision-makers like to express for each other. This paper analyses the activity of Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's three times premier, who has made ‘friendship’ a central tenet of his personal foreign policy. Three cases are considered, namely, Berlusconi's relationship with George W. Bush, Tony Blair and Vladimir Putin. The paper concludes that his friendship-based foreign policy has somehow worked; but, because he decided to ignore Italy's structural constraints in the international arena, he ended up wasting opportunities and resources.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors point out how constructions of risk, the deployment of 'otherizing' discourses and the mobilization of gender and colonial tropes assisted not only in the normalization of financial practices but also the imperial order of Western-derived financial governance institutions as well.
Abstract: This article seeks to prick the pretension of neutrality and objectivity in finance as a knowledge construct and regime of power. It does this by focusing on how constructions of risk, the deployment of ‘otherizing’ discourses and, importantly, the mobilization of gender and colonial tropes assisted(s) not only in the normalization of financial practices but also the imperial order of Western-derived financial governance institutions as well.
TL;DR: This article examined the role of gender in institutional strengthening policies at the World Bank and found that couplehood between men and women has been identified as a key informal institution necessary for development, and that gender reform has been positioned as an institutional change issue requiring attention to issues such as social marketing.
Abstract: This article examines the gendered nature of institutional strengthening policies at the World Bank, as part of an attempt to analyse what role gender plays in the institutionalist turn within development policy. It focuses on three snapshots of Bank action wherein debates about gender and institutional strengthening are particularly pertinent: Washington, DC policy texts and Presidential speeches; gender policy enacted in the Latin American and Caribbean region; and an Argentine project loan on social capital promotion and family strengthening. Two themes emerge from these sites: (1) that couplehood between men and women has been identified as a key informal institution necessary for development; and (2) that gender reform has been positioned as an institutional change issue requiring attention to issues such as social marketing. New norms about gender interaction thus emerge as an explicit part of the Bank's reform agenda, and are shaping project experiences across Latin America.
TL;DR: The authors examines the policy of targeted killing from a moral perspective and defends the possibility that under certain circumstances it is paradoxically both morally justified and morally reprehensible, and argues that those who authorize and partake in such actions end up, at best, with dirty hands.
Abstract: This paper examines the policy of targeted killing from a moral perspective and defends the possibility that under certain circumstances it is paradoxically both morally justified and morally reprehensible. Governments and their agents who authorize and partake in a policy of targeted killing end up, at best, with ‘dirty hands’ – they do wrong in order to do right. When faced with intractable moral conflicts/dilemmas, politicians and military strategists are forced to choose between lesser evils, rather than between good and bad options. Consequently, supporters and critics of the policy of targeted killing, those who in turn argue that such actions are either entirely justifiable or to be unequivocally condemned, fail to grasp properly the moral complexities of such situations. The paper examines the highly controversial targeted killing of Salah Shehada by the Israel Defence Forces in 2002 to illustrate the complexities and insights of a dirty hands analysis.
TL;DR: Mbeki, South Africa's second democratically elected president, was born into left-wing politics and became the face of the African National Congress (ANC) and developed a reputation as a modernizer as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Thabo Mbeki, South Africa's second democratically elected president, was born into left-wing politics. In exile, he became the face of the African National Congress (ANC) and developed a reputation as a modernizer. He returned to the country and built relations, not with the ANC's internal allies, but with the country's business community. In 1996, as Mandela's deputy, Mbeki implemented a neo-liberal economic package, called GEAR, which alienated many. In office, he both failed to acknowledge the threat of HIV/AIDS to the country and refused to pressure the failing regime in Zimbabwe; but it was his bypassing of parliament that ultimately led to his failure as president.
TL;DR: The human rights agenda of the United Nations has faltered over recent years as mentioned in this paper, and an examination of conditions in a country such as the Philippines highlights some of the reasons why.
Abstract: The human rights agenda of the United Nations has faltered over recent years. An examination of conditions in a country such as the Philippines highlights some of the reasons. The appallingly high number of political killings in that country was investigated by Philip Alston, UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions, early in 2007. Following a well-defined process of review, he spent a short but difficult time examining the situation. His report condemned repressive elements of the Philippine state and directed specific criticisms at the armed forces, noting the omnipresent role of counter-insurgency. He found that a culture of impunity prevailed within the military and that the Arroyo administration had not done enough to address the problem or to protect the rights of its citizens. Alston's visit provided an insight into both the Philippine government's inadequate human rights record and the failure of UN mechanisms established to redress such poor performance.
TL;DR: This article examined the factors that contribute to individuals' perceptions about US soft power in seven Asian nations, including China, India, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
Abstract: The changing dynamics of international politics such as the expansion of the European Union, the growing importance of Asia, and the post-11 September environment have raised great concern about US soft power all over the world. At the governmental level, transpacific relationships may have encouraged military, economic and sociopolitical collaboration. The Asians' perceptions about US soft power at the individual level, however, may not be consistent with the governmental level. By using the 2003 AsiaBarometer survey, this article examines the factors that contribute to individuals' perceptions about US soft power in seven Asian nations – China, India, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Three main factors – military, economic and sociopolitical – are considered. Higher assistance by the US government engenders positive responses from the respondents. For causal relationships, economic and sociopolitical variables, rather than the military variable, enforce individuals' positive percept...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors address the shift from objective problem to subjective question by examining the political economy of the crisis and the ensemble of factors, ideology, the history of deregulation and politics as well as technical matters.
Abstract: Although the global financial crisis is deepening and becoming increasingly unresponsive to ‘management’, most academic analysts still give priority to the technical aspects of the problem, while governments continue to act as though solutions can be found that will result in a return to ‘normality’. Such functional approaches may be necessary for understanding elements of the crisis and dealing with immediate issues, but are insufficient in the context of what is now revealing itself as a systemic failure: a process that is negatively affecting the economy and society, obliging people to give greater consideration to the kind of world in which they live. This article will seek to address the shift from objective problem to subjective question by examining the political economy of the crisis and the ensemble of factors, ideology, the history of deregulation and politics as well as technical matters, which have led us to this juncture.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that in order for any multilateral agreement to become economically beneficial in Africa, the continental elites must first implement good governance best practices, and the onus is on the...
Abstract: The past 50 years of Africa's history have been blighted by a lack of good governance, which has hindered economic growth and political stability. The continent continues to maintain weak states which are clearly evident in the persistent corruption, unconstitutional behaviour, inefficiency, waste and unnecessary bureaucracy that remain widely practised. However, owing to emerging markets such as China and India that have promoted foreign direct investment in developing countries, a lot of speculation has arisen regarding the impact of the Forum for Cooperation between Africa and China on continental governance. The speculation tends to focus on whether the multilateral trade agreement between Africa and China will be mutually beneficial, or promote bad governance practices such as corruption. This paper argues that in order for any multilateral agreement to become economically beneficial in Africa, the continental elites must first implement good governance best practices. Furthermore, the onus is on the...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigate the political process in the framework of the Tulip Revolution that took place in 2005, and the contemporary implications of these dynamics are examined in detail.
Abstract: Kyrgyzstan is a country that has recently attracted attention with its different features in post-Soviet Central Asia. The country could not be institutionalized by either an authoritarian means or a democratic regime after her independence in 1992. Political life has been shaped by political confrontation between administrative authorities that have tendencies to strengthen the authoritarian regime and local political leaders who act centrifugally. This article, in the light of this background, aims to investigate the political process in the framework of the ‘Tulip Revolution’ that took place in 2005. Initially, social, economic and cultural dynamics, which have impacts on the political processes, are analysed, and next, the contemporary implications of these dynamics are examined in detail. Finally, probable influences of the political developments witnessed after 2005 and the potential direction of transformation of the political regime are discussed.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors draw on the concept of strategic culture to examine India and Pakistan's nuclear policy options/policies, and argue that the perceptions of India's strategic insecurities as interpreted by their security managers, through the prism of their strategic cultures, have, in conjunction with material, domestic and technological factors, defined their nuclear trajectories.
Abstract: In this paper, Ken Booth's concept of strategic culture is drawn on to examine India and Pakistan's nuclear policy options/policies. The thrust of the argument is that the perceptions of India and Pakistan's strategic insecurities as interpreted by their security managers, through the prism of their strategic cultures, have, in conjunction with material, domestic and technological factors, defined their nuclear trajectories. In framing the argument, although appreciative of the material (realist) realm, attention is drawn simultaneously to the inter-subjective (constructivist) realm, namely, that productions of insecurities are also ‘cultural’. This constructivist line of analysis, which draws attention to culture ‘as both a source of insecurity and an object of analysis’ in international relations, has implications on the future of a nuclearized South Asia.