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This article draws on the newly available private papers of Brendan Duddy, the key intermediary in contacts between the British government and the IRA between the early 1970s and the early 1990s when the IRA moved towards a permanent ceasefire and a negotiated settlement of the conflict. It draws too on extensive interviews with Duddy and other key participants in these contacts, and on newly available documents from the UK National Archives to identify some of the key dimensions to the role of intermediary in back-channel communication. It argues that these sources help us to better understand the complexity and ambiguity of the role of intermediary in sensitive covert negotiations, as well as shedding light on the extent to which an intermediary shapes communication between two parties rather than simply acting as a channel between them. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Conflict adversely affects respiratory health in both direct and indirect ways among populations whose health is already compromised through the compounding effects of conflict. Our aim is to review academic and grey literature relevant to respiratory health in the Syrian conflict (now more than a decade in duration) to explore its impacts on populations across Syria. We performed a scoping literature review of academic and grey literature on respiratory health in Syria between March 2011 (taken as the start of the conflict for practicality) and December 2023. Of 11,472 papers screened, 34 met the inclusion criteria, of which 29 were peer reviewed. Key themes identified included the impact of conflict on asthma diagnosis and management; the burden of respiratory tract infections (RTIs) and COVID-19; the impact of chemical weapon use and the impact of destruction and interruptions to the health system(s) across Syria on respiratory health. This review highlights the need for more in-depth exploration of the impact of conflict on respiratory health in Syria with focus on social determinants, for example, shelter, public health interventions, smoking cessation, and supporting early diagnosis and treatment of respiratory conditions to counter the effects that conflict has had on respiratory health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diplomacy is traditionally associated with politeness and civility. As a fundamental element of international relations, diplomacy is rooted in professional skills and codified practices. By moving diplomacy to online platforms, diplomatic statements have been accelerated, sometimes resulting in aggressiveness. The purpose of this paper is to identify outrage in diplomatic communication. Outrage can be defined as uncivil expressions evoking emotion in the audience. This concept is examined based on the tweets produced by the Russian Foreign Ministry account between 1 December 2021, and 24 April 2022 (total: 2485 tweets). Based on the framework proposed by Berry, Jeffrey M., and Sara Sobieraj (2014. The Outrage Industry: Political Opinion Media and The New Incivility. Oxford: Oxford University Press), qualitative analysis identifies 370 outrageous tweets. Frame analysis shows how outrage acts as a narrative tool for activating (self-)representational devices. Moreover, outrage influences the diplomatic tone, international actors' characterisation, and international institutions' delegitimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Political tensions in Sudan between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) escalated into an armed conflict on 15 April 2023, and continues to unfold to date. Besides the severe humanitarian catastrophe, the war disrupted access to basic public services and constrained access to markets and continued to trigger considerable scarcity of life-saving goods and services. In this paper, we utilize satellite data (nitrogen dioxide (NO2) concentration and nightlight intensity) and spatial mapping tools to provide a swift analysis of how the conflict has changed the patterns on economic activity, which are bound to have severe implications on food security in Sudan. We show that immediately after the outbreak of the armed conflict, NO2 concentration and nightlight intensity reduced in those areas affected by the conflict while remaining stable in those areas not directly affected by the conflict. We also demonstrate how these types of remote sensing and remote data collection methods can be deployed to monitor economic activities amidst armed conflicts and similar abrupt crises and guide economic, development and environmental policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines teachers' understandings of affective indoctrination in a conflict-affected society, focusing on how teachers' political orientations are entangled with these understandings. The exploration is conducted through a qualitative study of Greek-Cypriot primary and secondary school teachers who are identified as either conservative or progressive. The findings highlight that regardless of political orientation, teachers interpret the term indoctrination through a negative lens. However, teachers of progressive orientation view affective indoctrination as a part of everyday educational practices, whereas teachers of conservative orientation understand affective indoctrination as an exceptional case. The paper discusses the implications for teaching and teacher education. The relevance of teachers' political orientation makes it all the more necessary that teachers and teacher educators delve deeper into the political and pedagogical implications of the entanglement between political orientations and understandings of affective indoctrination in schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economic shocks, including shocks to commodity export prices, have often been related to civil conflict. However, the literature usually assumes that commodity prices have linear effects. In this paper, we hypothesize that negative and positive commodity export price shocks can have asymmetric effects: while negative shocks are likely to increase conflict, positive shocks can have a smaller conflict-reducing effect or even increase conflict. We test this hypothesis in a dataset for battle deaths during ongoing civil wars. Consistent with the hypothesis, negative price shocks increase battle deaths, but positive price shocks also have a positive effect. The positive effect is concentrated and becomes significant in countries with weak pre-conflict institutions that experience positive price shocks to fossil fuels. We conclude that a combination of institutional reforms, economic diversification, and price stabilization might reduce battle deaths in fuel-dependent countries with weak institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses quantitative and qualitative methods to explore the difficulties and challenges inherent in women's participation and continuation in sport through the experiences of athletes who participated in a national sporting event in South Sudan. Contrary to expectations, it was found that the overwhelming majority of the athletes indicated that they were in favour of women's participation in sport. Furthermore, the data collected revealed that perceptions of sport and women varied between genders and by sport type. However, it is unclear whether its society is accepting of women's participation in sport. Therefore, through the testimonies of athletes, coaches, and the event stakeholders, we examined the challenges women face in sport and how society perceives sport and women. As a result, this paper identified the underlying socio-cultural and economic challenges that make it difficult for women to continue playing sport in the South Sudanese context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to compare the educational attainment of a conflict region (the Deep South) and a non-conflict region (the rest of the South) of Thailand using the Socio-Economic Survey, 2015. This paper employs the Instrumental Variable approach and Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition in an intergenerational regression model. When controlling parental schooling, household income and size, religion, and gender, the results show that children from the Deep South obtain almost one year less schooling than children from the rest of the Southern region. Interestingly, Muslims are ahead in terms of educational attainment when compared to non-Muslims in the non-conflict region, but not in the conflict region. Females outperform males in both regions, but the coefficient of female dummy is higher in the non-conflict region. Moreover, the rate of intergenerational transmission of educational attainment is higher in the Deep South compared to that in the rest of the southern region, which may lead to long-term educational inequality in the Deep South region. The Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition confirms that the 40% schooling gap between these two regions is unexplained but might be due to the chronic social unrest. The findings of this paper show that customized educational reforms and policies to resolve the conflict in the Deep South of Thailand should be employed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that the non-obstante clause in the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code 2016 (IBC), which gives supremacy to the IBC over all previous laws in case of conflict, does not serve its purpose of asset preservation, and highlights problems that arise due to its presence. The paper analyses this provision considering the test for determining inconsistency between statutes in Indian law. It argues that the impact of IBC across different fields of operation brings forth several inconsistencies when deciding a conflict between the IBC and another statute. It presents problems arising due to the supremacy given to the IBC through the non-obstante clause, and exhibits how its application sometimes defeats its purpose. Lastly, the paper analyses insolvency regimes of the UK and Singapore, as well as the UNCITRAL Guide on Insolvency, and presents an example of instituting better cooperation between authorities initiating proceedings against a company under different statutes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, strategic action field theory and public value theory are utilized to develop knowledge about conflicts over public value in public service ecosystems (PSEs), with disabled people's striving for independent living serving as an illustration. Five propositions are developed to show how conflicts in PSEs i) are centred around public value, ii) occur between incumbents and challengers, iii) implicate social skills, iv) are triggered by exogenous shocks, and v) eventually settle. This paper also responds to calls for research on theory building about PSEs by integrating public value with public service logic (PSL) and conceptualizing power in PSL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While regarded as an exemplar of a successfully resolved conflict since the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement in 1998, Northern Ireland remains a deeply divided place. The discord between Republican and Loyalist nationalisms persist as a legacy of the structural and spatial segregation of the Partition of Ireland (1922) and the ethno-national conflict known as the Troubles (1968–1998). So how are people who live in the region encountering and performing peace and trust? Outside of state-sponsored approaches to peacebuilding, in what other ways are peaceful relations fostered? Guided by the concept of 'people's peace praxis', which calls for the study of how ordinary humans, not the state or politicians, generate peace, this paper explores the role of cultural peace work in contemporary Northern Ireland. Cultural peace work refers to the active role of creative cultural production in peacebuilding, examples of which will be examined in the city of Derry/Londonderry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that there is need for current efforts to reintegrate youth militants in the Niger Delta of Nigeria into normal community life to be anchored on a thorough understanding of the peculiar agency of youth and the socio-cultural challenges of post-conflict reintegration. Such efforts should also take cognisance of the complex nature of the problem. The paper contends that while the on-going amnesty programme in the region has achieved partial success, it was founded on a parochial philosophy, which creates a booming economic environment for the managers. Therefore, it recommends that the initiative should be anchored on both a thorough understanding of the youth as social agency and the deleterious impact of the conflict on ideal socio-cultural norms of expectations and roles among different generations of the population in the region. In effect, a proper sociological framing and nuancing of the programme would appear imperative for sustainable peace in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article develops ideas contained in a previous paper on conflict inflation (Rowthorn [1977]. 'Conflict, Inflation and Money.' Cambridge Journal of Economics 1 (3): 215–239). It begins with a summary of that paper, stressing the importance of staggered markets, conflicting aspirations and unanticipated inflation. It then examines three recent articles that share a similar perspective. In the light of this discussion, it makes some general observations about the nature of conflict inflation. Finally It concludes with an application of conflict theory to the recent cost of living crisis in the UK. It argues that private companies have used their market power to defend their profit margins and ensure that the entire burden of higher world prices is borne by consumers, in particular wage and salary earners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tourism development in the 'post-conflict' Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) region of Bangladesh proliferated after the CHT Peace Accord was signed in 1997. The Accord positioned tourism as an important component in reasserting Indigenous Jumma peoples' rights and facilitating regional socio-economic recovery. However, the Jumma people have remained firmly on the periphery of development discourse and the region's growing tourism industry has since paved the way for the forces of settler colonialism - namely through the actions and mobilities of the non-Indigenous Bengali majority - to manifest in several ways, including the acquisition of land and the marginalisation of Indigenous communities. In response, and without formal support, Indigenous tourism stakeholders have utilised domestic tourism as a form of resistance to help build more stable modes of Indigenous employment and improve community access to education and healthcare. Increasing interest in Indigenous tourism also aided the establishment of 'counter-narratives' to address negative perceptions. In short, tourism has been harnessed by Indigenous communities to address heavily entrenched socio-economic inequalities and long-standing misconceptions of Indigenous cultures even though state-government strategies have largely sought the opposite. Drawing on an interpretivist paradigm, through semi-structured interviews with Jumma participants who are employed in the tourism industry, this paper distils the paradoxical challenges and opposing forces of tourism development in the CHT that continue to simultaneously stabilise and destabilise the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan in 2021 terminated the country's democratisation. The crisis was more an outcome of the two-decade-long flawed state-building and democratisation, and the escalation of the insurgency than an overnight change in the country's politico-military landscape. This paper examines Afghanistan's failed democratization from 2001 to 2021 by focusing on five variables including stateness, welfare, rule of law, political regime, and political community. The paper explains how flawed progress in the five areas gradually eroded the democratisation process resulting in state collapse and the restoration of the Taliban's Islamic Emirate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While previous studies of natural resources and territorial conflict have explored the role that specific resources play in conflict, few have examined the topic of natural resources more broadly and in great depth. This paper generates hypotheses regarding natural resource type, theorizing that the particular characteristic of resource renewability impacts conflict behavior over associated territory. Further, the role of economic development is considered. Utilizing the latest version of the Issue Correlates of War and Correlates of War datasets, these hypotheses are empirically tested. The results demonstrate the importance of renewability and the consistency of findings regarding resources and low-level conflict. Natural resources are found to, in general, discourage more severe forms of conflict, with important caveats. Less developed states are found to play an important role in driving more severe forms of conflict, as are disputes over sea related and oil resources. The paper concludes by outlining the implications for policymakers and scholars studying the topic of territorial conflict. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper briefly reviews major theoretical and clinical changes in American psychoanalysis since its beginning in the early twentieth century. The immigration of European analysts in the 1930s and 40s was of major significance. Infant development research promoted a shift towards the importance of object relations, reducing the importance of the Oedipus complex. The increasing focus on narcissism and borderline personalities is discussed, as well as the applications to dynamic psychotherapy. Dogma dissipated with increasing latitude in theory and clinical work within "classical" psychoanalysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Education is increasingly becoming central to debates about how to promote peace in conflict-affected societies. Equitable access to quality learning, promotion of social justice through educational reforms and conflict-sensitive curricular and pedagogical approaches are viewed as peace supporting educational interventions. Drawing upon the existing body of literature in the area of education, conflict and peace in Southern Thailand and reflecting on Nancy Fraser's theory of social justice and applying the 4Rs framework, this paper provides a critical analysis of inequalities, cultural repression and epistemic domination through education. The paper argues that the 4Rs framework usefully exposes underlying structural tensions in education but does little to show avenues for rupturing unequal power relations and hegemonies that reproduce systems of domination and social exclusion at the macro level. The real hope, however, lies in the potential use of the 4Rs as a tool for grassroots political socialisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The accusation that someone is putting words in someone else's mouth can be heard in everyday conversations, but what does this phenomenon reveal about the ways human beings communicate? This paper aims to show that it is useful to view putting words in someone's mouth as a form of ventriloquation. By theorising this phenomenon, this paper explicates how people discover a version of what they said in their interlocutors' mouths, and in turn react to these ventriloquations. Since this phenomenon is especially visible in conflict situations, this paper demonstrates the value of using a ventriloquial lens to study human interactions through a detailed analysis of a public dispute and a conflict mediation session. Thus, this paper shows how this lens can be used to gain insight into the communicative constitution of conflict as well as its resolution. More broadly, it proposes to conceive of interaction as a process of mutual ventriloquation and highlights the methodological, ethical, and political implications of this analytical move. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, Qatar has emerged as a key actor in humanitarian diplomacy (HD), which has received limited academic attention. This paper provides an analysis of Qatar's engagement with HD, drawing on a literature review and extensive interviews with officials and humanitarian workers in Qatar, observations of state activities and humanitarian agencies, and personal interviews with international humanitarian aid workers. The study reveals Qatar's unique strategy, characterised by its diplomatic stance and the integrated efforts of its governmental and non-governmental sectors, as foundational to its HD efforts. The study also reports challenges hindering those efforts, namely the impacts of the political tensions, the lack of diplomatic immunity for humanitarian workers, and a scarcity of specialised expertise in HD. These are explored in terms of their implications for the effectiveness of Qatar's efforts, emphasising the critical need for enhanced supportive frameworks, targeted capacity-building initiatives, and well-defined protocols for HD engagement. To add to the dialogue on HD, this paper reflects on Qatar's engagement in HD, suggesting that smaller nations can meaningfully contribute when leveraging their strengths and international relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Farmer-herder conflicts have been long standing in Mali's rural areas. It has been shown that it is mostly herders who support and join jihadist groups. By analysing land regimes in farmer-herder contexts and merging studies on different scales of violence, the paper investigates how local dynamics interact with national political violence. It argues that historical precedents and pastoralist grievances related to land governance have created a fertile breeding ground for jihadism to take root and spread. It also contends that local land-related issues can have a considerable impact on state fragility and the eruption and dynamics of violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Events of recent years both in the United States and around the globe have highlighted the fragility of democracy. The invasion of Ukraine by Russia has prompted educators to seek evidence-based civic engagement methods for helping students understand the invasion and its implications. This paper offers a set of recommendations on how to teach the war in Ukraine through the lens of civic engagement education. Over the years, a sizeable body of scholarship has developed addressing the critical role civic education plays in safeguarding democracy and producing effective pedagogical approaches for instilling democratic knowledge, skills, and dispositions. Using this scholarship as a starting point, this paper offers recommendations on how educators in a variety of settings and across disciplines might modify these civic learning models to address the war in Ukraine. Based on my experience as a scholar-practitioner-educator at an institute of politics focused primarily on American democracy, I also offer suggestions on how to integrate teaching the war in Ukraine using these practices to enhance appreciation of civic engagement and the role of the citizen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reflects historically and contemporaneously on the relationship between 'International Education and Development' actors and foreign intervention in our colonial past and present, with a particular focus on Education in Emergencies (EiE), a sub-field of research and practice within 'International Education and Development'. Theoretically, this work is underpinned by a critical application of the 'implicated subject', Rothberg's (2019) conceptual addition to the study of violence and injustice which seeks to go beyond binaries of 'victim and perpetrator' and recognise the way many others are 'implicated' in systems of violence and injustice. In the first section we explore this framing for researchers and practitioners in the field of EiE and the complex ways that researchers and practitioners might be understood as 'implicated subjects'. In the second part we explore two dimensions of EiE actors as 'implicated subjects': Diachronic and Synchronic. In the diachronic dimension we highlight the way the colonial past hangs heavy in the present and in the synchronic dimension we explore the case of Afghanistan, and the links between military, development and education strategy. In the conclusion we reflect on their implication for improved ethical practices in EiE and in the broader field of International Education and Development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, and as a team of researchers/practitioners spanning the globe, we reflect on the historical and ongoing legacies of (neo)colonialism and imperialism in education in emergencies (EiE) research and practice using collaborative auto-ethnography. Specifically, we explore how we've experienced hierarchies of power, positionality and privilege, and how we've benefited and/or been victims of this in the past. We then move to explore how we are striving to realise authentic and meaningful co-production in ACCESS (Accelerating Change for Childrens' and Youths' Education for Systems Strengthening), a 44-month research-practice partnership that aims to improve education provision for out-of-school children and youth. We identify both opportunities and challenges to doing this and highlight how decolonising EiE research/practice is an ongoing process rather than finite, singular actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the multifaceted challenges post-colonial African states face in addressing underdevelopment and ethnoreligious intolerance, resulting in an unstable socio-economic and political environment. It argues that the inability of post-independent African states to foster good governance, accountability, and inclusive politics has given rise to violent non-state actors (VNSAs) seeking to challenge the state's legitimacy due to its failure to provide essential services. With Africa's diverse ethnoreligious makeup, the fragmentation in governance inevitably incites rebellion against the state, fuelling the growth and influence of VNSAs. This paper utilizes a literature review methodology to address the research question and provide insights into the subject matter. By employing the concept of state fragility as an analytical framework, it examines how political elitism and corruption have come to define the modern African state. As a result, violent non-state actors (VNSAs) have emerged as significant challengers to the established rules-based order of the state. Furthermore, these VNSAs find support among marginalized local populations, which have grown disillusioned with political elites exploiting their power and neglecting their responsibility to deliver essential services. In light of these findings, this paper underscores the urgent need for a collective developmental framework that prioritizes the involvement of the African people in the governance process. Without such a framework, VNSAs will persist in questioning the state's legitimacy, leading to dire repercussions for human life and the overall stability of the continent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of non-state actors as channels of aid allocation has been increasingly favoured over the use of government and state agencies. This paper makes use of anecdotal evidence from interviews, focus groups, and surveys in the South-East and South-South regions of Nigeria to explore aid allocation processes with the aim of enhancing the effectiveness of aid, particularly in conflict-affected societies. The findings show that the participants generally prefer bypassing the government in the survey. However, a deeper examination of the interviews and focus groups indicates that bypassing government may not necessarily be the most effective aid allocation process. A hybrid system that essentially involves the government, non-state actors, and particularly the end-users of the aid is encouraged. The findings also indicate that regions with higher levels of instability such as conflict may prefer the allocation of aid via non-state actors than other regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the link between the prevalence of violent conflicts and the extremely low female labor force participation rates observed in South Asian countries. The Labor Force Surveys from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, India, and Pakistan are merged with the Global Terrorism Database to estimate the effect of terrorist attacks on female labor supply. We exploit the geographical variation in exposure to violence to compare administrative units exposed to events with those not exposed. We find that for each wounded and killed person, female labor force participation falls 0.000026 and 0.0001 percentage point, respectively, while male labor force participation remains unchanged, thus widening the gender labor participation gap. We test the non-linearity of various violence effects, finding that the deterring effect is higher in administrative units with higher baseline FLFP rates. We also provide suggestive evidence that terrorism has a negative effect on the intensive margin of female labor supply. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A good collection of existing literature provides limited reflection on classifying post-conflict countries as being 'peaceful'. This is especially so, as the period following the end of a civil war is normally characterised, as a period of 'peace', thereby equating peace to the silence of the guns. Such an understanding of what constitutes peace in post-conflict settings is problematic. This is because, societies in transition, are usually plagued with a plethora of challenges, with the legacies of war normally shaping the resurgence of violence in other forms. Additionally, complex transitions of violence and aggression, which reflect the socio-economic and political gyrations of a society redefining itself, and reconstructing its values are seen in most post-conflict contexts. Thus, using the case of Sierra Leone, this paper argues that some post-conflict settings experience negative peace, and diverse forms of violence that usually render communities unsafe, insecure and not peaceful. Thus, boxing societies in a bracket of being peaceful, because of the end of a violent civil war, limits what peace means in a specific contextual sense. It even undermines the potential for a broader approach towards understanding how the emerging forms of violence and aggression could be addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is part of a continuing discourse in the Caribbean about the exercise of sovereignty and the need to hold steadfast to the concept as a bulwark against imperial erasure of cultural identity. The essay argues against such conventional wisdom. It is intended to move beyond popular notions of sovereignty to unmask the reality of conflict, subordination and violence embedded in the idea of sovereignty. The article also looks at the way sovereignty is deployed in the Caribbean as part of popular, political discourses, and provides examples of how the concept is made unsustainable in its practice. It is an approach which allows for a materialist reading of the political development of the role the state plays in shaping the consciousness of the nation into an understanding of the idea of sovereignty. In conclusion, the paper returns to the specifically cultural logic of sovereignty, engaging the notion of "the sovereignty of the imagination," articulated by the eminent Caribbean novelist, George Lamming, as a way of reconceptualizing this political concept. The paper ends with the notion that sovereignty in the Caribbean is a myth and should be abandoned for a more realistic understanding of the actual power of the postcolonial state in the global political economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that the Justice and Development Party (AKP) has instrumentalised the Turkish army by conducting military operations in the run-up to elections. Although ending military tutelage has been interpreted in other countries as a sign of the professionalisation of the army, in Turkey it has done the opposite: the civilianisation discourse and civilian hegemony over military institutions have led to the instrumentalisation of the army. I demonstrate that the number of military operations significantly increased in the lead-up to elections, which strongly indicates the extent of instrumentalisation. Previous studies have primarily focused on the army’s praetorian role, neglecting the instrumentalisation process in which the military is engaged. This paper analyses the operational aspect of the army and introduces the concept of instrumentalisation. I contend that the cessation of military tutelage in Turkey has resulted in the securitisation of both society and politics. The failed coup in 2016, the double elections of 2015, and the heightened interest in the defence sector during election periods provide strong grounds for examining the instrumentalisation hypothesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the impact the war in Ukraine has had on Russia's great power status. Post-Soviet Russia has been one of the most active status-seekers and sought to re-establish its rank among the existing great power status community. In its claim to high status, Russia has historically relied on traditional status markers, including its permanent seat at the UN Security Council, diplomatic prominence at the summits with other great powers, and the strength of its military. However, as this paper shows, Moscow's fateful choice to launch a war against Ukraine has led to considerable slippage of its status. Russia now struggles to get things done at international fora and has also faced increased diplomatic isolation. Moreover, the war – especially the struggles of the Russian armed forces – challenged Russia's claim of great military power and an exclusive security provider in the former Soviet space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines public leadership for peacebuilding in divided societies emerging from severe violence. It deploys two theories of leadership: social identity and political astuteness, to investigate peacebuilding leadership processes. The paper investigates contradictions in social identity leadership, since peacebuilding leaders reach out beyond their own group to outgroups in hostile contexts. Semi-structured interviews with 32 leaders in Northern Ireland and in Bosnia Herzegovina, reveal that leading for peacebuilding exhibits inverse processes of social identity leadership and that political astuteness is also critical to navigate integration and differentiation within/across groups. Wider implications for public leadership in societies containing division are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last 50 years, civil conflicts have grown increasingly complex due to the proliferation of new armed groups and rebel fragmentation. Yet, existing research on external support for armed groups often ignores this multi-actor dimension, overlooking the unusual amount of discretion sponsors have in deciding whom to support in any given target state. This paper explores how multi-militant conflict environments impact foreign state sponsorship decisions. Conventional wisdom predicts that shared ethnic and ideological ties increase the likelihood of external support for an armed group because these ties signal a lower risk of misuse (agency slack). In contrast, this paper highlights how an increasing number of armed groups in a conflict setting can decrease the importance of shared ties between state sponsors and militants. We argue this change occurs because multi-militant environments reduce a group's willingness to misuse support and improve a sponsor's options to shift support if misuse occurs. We utilize a mixed-methods approach to examine this logic, drawing on an original dataset of 1,402 armed groups and qualitative evidence from Iraq during Saddam Hussein's rule. The results advance understanding of the consequences of conflict fragmentation and external support for non-rebel actors. Durante los últimos cincuenta años, los conflictos civiles se han vuelto cada vez más complejos debido a la proliferación de nuevos grupos armados y a la fragmentación de los grupos rebeldes. Sin embargo, la investigación existente acerca del apoyo externo a los grupos armados ignora, a menudo, esta dimensión formada por agentes múltiples, y pasa por alto la inusual discrecionalidad de la que gozan los Estados a la hora de decidir a quién apoyar en un determinado Estado objetivo. Este artículo analiza cómo los entornos de conflicto con diversos militantes afectan las decisiones de apoyo de los Estados extranjeros. La sabiduría tradicional predice que la existencia de unos lazos étnicos e ideológicos compartidos aumenta la probabilidad de apoyo externo hacia un grupo armado debido a que estos vínculos indican un menor riesgo de uso indebido (holgura de agencia). Por el contrario, este artículo destaca cómo la existencia de un número cada vez mayor de grupos armados en un entorno de conflicto puede hacer disminuir la importancia de los lazos compartidos entre los Estados que proporcionan apoyo y los militantes. Argumentamos que este cambio ocurre porque los entornos con diversos militantes reducen la disposición de un grupo a hacer un mal uso del apoyo y mejoran las opciones de los Estados que proporcionan apoyo a la hora de modificar su apoyo en caso de la existencia de un mal uso. Utilizamos un enfoque de métodos mixtos para estudiar esta lógica. Para ello, nos basamos en un conjunto de datos originales de 1,402 grupos armados y en evidencia cualitativa obtenida de Iraq durante el gobierno de Saddam Hussein. Los resultados amplían la comprensión de las consecuencias de la fragmentación del conflicto y el apoyo externo a los agentes no rebeldes. Ces cinquante dernières années, les conflits civils se sont complexifiés à cause de la prolifération de nouveaux groupes armés et de la fragmentation des rebelles. Pourtant, les travaux de recherche existants sur le soutien externe des groupes armés ignorent souvent ces acteurs multiples, et donc omettent l'ampleur inhabituelle de la discrétion des entités quand il s'agit de décider qui soutenir dans un État cible. Cet article s'intéresse aux conséquences des environnements conflictuels aux multiples militants sur les décisions de soutien d'États étrangers. Il est généralement admis que les liens ethniques et idéologiques accroissent la probabilité de soutien externe pour un groupe armé, car ils diminuent les risques de détournement. Par opposition, cet article met en évidence qu'un nombre croissant de groupes armés au sein d'une zone de conflit est susceptible d'affaiblir l'importance relative des liens qui unissent les États soutiens aux militants. Nous affirmons que cette évolution intervient parce que les environnements aux multiples militants permettent d'orienter les soutiens différemment en cas de détournement. Les groupes sont donc moins enclins à mal agir. Nous employons une stratégie aux méthodes mixtes pour analyser cette logique, en nous appuyant sur un ensemble de données original de 1,402 groupes armés et des éléments probants qualitatifs issus d'Irak à l'époque où Saddam Hussein était au pouvoir. Les résultats enrichissent notre compréhension des conséquences de la fragmentation des conflits et du soutien externe pour des acteurs non rebelles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Labor history and international relations (IR) each offer insights regarding the extent to which women contribute to non-state armed groups and the value of their labor. Yet questions remain about how agency in joining armed movements – and, conversely, the forced participation of women – are operationalized and even fetishized by observers. Positivist empirical work in IR has operationalized agency and coercion as a dichotomy in gendered wartime labor, implying that where women's labor is coerced it may have a lesser impact on the conduct of conflict or conflict outcomes. This paper challenges the existence of an agency-coercion binary, drawing on the case of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Analyzing archival sources in a manner informed by both feminist international relations and labor history scholarship, I show the complex interplay of agency and coercion in women's lived experience within a non-state armed group. I further reflect on how a temporal understanding of labor relations, examining coercion and choice at the moments of entry, work, and exit, contributes to a more complete understanding of the gender dynamics of wartime labor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recognition of Indigenous Peoples' rights has sailed up as one of the most critical issues in land use planning, globally. In this paper, we use a recent planning process for a national park on traditional Sámi territory in northern Sweden to demonstrate how state officials engaged in everyday conservation planning are pivotal in navigating colonial legislation and promoting policy change on Indigenous rights. The analysis contributes, among other, to scholarly debates about the role of conflict in land use planning and the practices of frontline bureaucrats in natural resource governance. Our contribution demonstrates the value of an agonistic lens that attends to the constructive role of conflict in democratic change in pluralistic societies. This concerns both how state officials approach disagreement as well as the way contestation can create novel spaces to promote structural changes towards sustainability and justice. By not assuming collaboration but respectfully seeking it, the state officials succeeded in re-designing a collapsed process to help actors explore larger structural issues around Indigenous rights and government policy. In our agonistic reading, then, contestation should be perceived not as oppositional to the establishment of collaboration but as a necessary, and productive, part of inclusive land use planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The term ‘refugee’ – defined as someone who has been forced to flee his or her country because of persecution, war or violence – carries with it many connotations, ranging from ‘victim’, ‘helpless’, ‘destitute’, on the sympathetic side, to a ‘societal burden’ or ‘bogus’ on the more cynical. In this vein, the link between refugees and the phenomenon known as ethno-national conflict, for the most part, seems a clear one – principally that refugees are the victims, or by-products, of ethno-national conflict in their homelands. This linkage is by no means a controversial one, nor one that this paper seeks to dispute. Rather, what this paper sets out to do is convey that the relationship between refugees and ethno-national conflict is by no means one-directional, by demonstrating that the arrival of refugees, specifically those who had faced ethnic persecution in their homelands, actually generates, under certain conditions, subsequent ethno-national conflict. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper models domestic (internal) and cross-border dynamics of instability through the lens of 'ABM modelling–AfriLand-Rebel'. It examines the post-Gaddafi Libya and its export of instability in the region. It gives a useful balance of analysis on socio-cultural and environmental dynamics which transcend national boundaries, such as the influx and out-flux of refugee flows, insurgency, transnational conflict and crime in the Sahel. It examines the broader regional implications of conflict due to refugee flows, proliferation of weapons and spill over effects of insecurity. Methodologically, it employs the use of descriptive analysis relying solely on secondary information for data generation and analysis. The paper therefore posits that ensuring future stability in the region would require investments in education, infrastructure, poverty alleviation and good governance initiatives, all of which are critical to addressing the broader causes and spread of insecurity and violent extremism in the Sahel region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been considerable focus on the widespread destruction of cultural heritage in Afghanistan since the destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas by the Taliban in 2001 and much concern over the future for heritage in the region on the return of a Taliban regime in 2021, yet comparatively little has been written on the fate of Afghanistan's national collection of paintings, manuscripts, and works on paper. Through a quasi-experimental study and using a combination of evaluation methodologies, this paper discusses whether the overall impact achieved in conservation capacity-building and training schemes in conflict zones justify the cost and risk of operating in such regions. Using an international collaborative conservation training course carried out in 2020 at the Afghan National Gallery in Kabul as a case study, it discusses the appropriateness and effectiveness of the signature pedagogies in conservation when working in a conflict scenario, and highlights the limitations present in conservation training programmes in post-conflict scenarios and the need for sustainability of such programmes. The results of the study found that common constructivist-focused, Eurocentric conservation pedagogies may not be effective for training museum professionals in regions where this approach is unfamiliar. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focusing on the epistemic dimension of exclusionary institutional structures in the German cultural sector in relation to cultural production, this article searches for decolonial cultural policy conceptions that are critical of knowledge-related power imbalances and their entanglements. By taking the international art exhibition documenta fifteen in Kassel in 2022 as a case study, the paper examines the community- and collectivity-based practices and methodologies introduced by the Indonesian artist collective ruangrupa. In particular, this empirically grounded inquiry focuses on ruangrupa’s lumbung values as a proposition of epistemic pluriversality. In this way, it also reveals various conflicts that occurred before and during the fifteenth edition of the exhibition, arisen from epistemological differences in perspectives, narratives, aesthetics and artistic methodologies between colonial and capitalism-critical cultural practices and Western art institutions. Following the tenets of the decolonial turn and decolonial thought, the paper explores alternatives to the dominant Eurocentric universalism of knowledge through the example of documenta fifteen, transcending the binary of either/or and advocating pluriversality as a universal option, rather than Eurocentric universalism as a singular totality, as proposed by Walter Mignolo. Following Catherine Walsh, the quest for the recognition and dissemination of pluriversal perspectives is intrinsically linked to the search for other ways of knowing, thinking, theorising and being that resist totalising power. In doing so, the authors ultimately seek to outline some attributes of decolonial conceptions of cultural policymaking, aiming at reducing epistemological inequalities in accessing cultural production for marginalised and racialised artists and cultural practitioners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on evaluating and proposing ways for a breakthrough from the ongoing crisis in Greek–Turkish relations. In particular, the paper adopts a constructivist approach to the Greek–Turkish case and tries to trace the international and domestic actors and the socio-psychological variables in both countries that can contribute to the initiation of a new reconciliation—conflict management procedure—between them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Much of the world's migration today is driven by civil wars, armed conflicts, genocide and other forms of large-scale violence. These experiences have long-lasting effects on individuals who are forced to migrate and rebuild their lives in new contexts, while coming to terms with the violence they have experienced. The papers in this special issue explore the transnational and transgenerational effects of the violent conflict, focusing on how diasporic communities deal with the memories and legacies of the violent past; how these legacies shape the processes of their integration into new contexts of residence and other dimensions of diasporic existence; and how they affect generations after. The introduction to the special issue discusses some of the findings, highlighting common patterns and themes that emerge from the eight papers and discussing them in the context of scholarship on diaspora, transnational migration, conflict, intergenerational transmission, and memory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Even in intense combat scenarios, a significant proportion of a soldier's time is spent passing the time. Tim Hetherington was acutely aware of this contradiction; of the 240 pages of Infidel, his account of the time he spent in Combat Outpost Restrepo in the remote Afghan Korengal valley, only about one sixth show soldiers actually in combat. The remaining pages depict soldiers maintaining their base, passing the time playing cards, wrestling each other, and sleeping. This focus on the lacunary moments between skirmishes and contacts marks out the work as attuned to a more complex understanding of the nature of soldiering in front line situations. This paper situates Hetherington's work into a longer historical engagement with the depiction of soldiers 'killing time' between moments of combat, and in the context of how the homosocial nature of the proximity in which soldiers live and work contributes to their combat motivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the significance of understanding police perspectives on community policing as a means of addressing insecurity, particularly within the context of localised and asymmetrical conflicts. It highlights the pivotal role of the police in shaping community security and the substantial impact they can have (positive or negative) in fragile environments. The study contends that the localised nature of the community policing effectively addresses security and development issues and empowering citizens. Qualitative interviews were conducted with senior police in Islamabad, to assess the implementation and potential impacts of community policing in Pakistan's Federal Capital Territory. The findings reveal how the historical foundations of police structures and operations – which date back to the colonial period – have led to the promotion of fear, mistrust and manipulation under successive regimes. Despite these challenges, the findings are promising highlighting enhanced human security through context-specific community policing. Finally, the paper argues that the movement towards community-oriented policing marks a departure from the control of elites within state systems, and encourages values such as local ownership, social cohesion, mutual engagement, accountability and agency. These developments have profound implications for global security and justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Desertification-induced conflict involving pastoralists and farmers is primarily driven by competition for water, forage, and land, other factors like ethnicity and religion also come into play. This paper utilizes descriptive analysis and secondary data, adopting the Economic & Migration Theory to explain the issue in the southern frontiers. Findings from the paper show that in the southward frontiers, the conflict has taken a different dimension due to differences in culture and religion. The migration from the core north which has been ravaged by desertification to the south has increased confrontation between these groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the long-term relationship between conflict-related migration and individual socioeconomic inequality. Looking at the post-conflict environment of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), a former Yugoslav state most heavily impacted by the wars of the early 1990s, the paper focuses on differences in educational performance and income between four groups: migrants, internally displaced persons, former external migrants, and those who did not move. The analysis leverages a municipality-representative survey (n ≈ 6,000) that captured self-reported education and income outcomes as well as migration histories. We find that individuals with greater exposure to conflict had systematically worse educational performance and lower earnings two decades after the war. Former external migrants now living in BiH have better educational and economic outcomes than those who did not migrate, but these advantages are smaller for external migrants who were forced to move. We recommend that policies intended to address migration-related discrepancies should be targeted on the basis of individual and family experiences caused by conflict. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been an increasing effort to deliver Education in Emergencies (EiE) from the international community since the 1990s because of protracted humanitarian situations. Despite the growing attention to EiE, many children in conflict-affected situations miss schooling without having the opportunity to receive a second chance education (SCE), or voice their perspectives on this situation. Given the gaps within EiE, this paper focuses on the largely overlooked issue of out-of-school children and young people resulting from conflict, and potential for an SCE. Based on 23 life story interviews conducted in Rwanda, it examines how learners in post-genocide Rwanda made sense of the complex education journey that they undertook and their motivations for an SCE. The research demonstrates various motivations, including both intrinsic and extrinsic, using self-determination theory. It provides learners' perspectives on education that are currently missing in the EiE field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conflicts around transport mega-projects, driven by social and environmental impacts, are increasingly prevalent around the world. While environmental impacts have received significant attention, less is known about how the intangible social impacts of these projects stimulate conflict. Assessment of these impacts is crucial; however, the process is often influenced by the underlying power relationships within neoliberal governance. This paper analyses the discursive context of state-community conflicts in transport mega-projects and explores how power dynamics shape the perceptions of both the intensity and extent of its social impacts. Drawing on a case study of the WestConnex project, a controversial motorway development in Sydney, the paper analyses government policy documents and online community submissions to explore the conflicts around the project. Through critical discourse analysis, the paper provides insights into the nature of power relationships that limit the scope of impact assessment and underpin conflicts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conflict-induced displacement is associated with loss of human and physical capital as well as psychological trauma. Households and social structures that produce and reproduce gender norms are disrupted. This paper investigates the extent to which gender norms relax in situations of displacement using predetermined indicators in the Colombia Demographic and Health Survey. Results of a two-step estimation involving kernel-based propensity score matching and multilevel linear regression models show that gender norms condoning violence against women relaxed with displacement, while those that limit women’s economic opportunities became more rigid. Findings also reveal a misalignment between attitudes and behaviors in specific domains of gender norms. Displaced women expressed lower support for patriarchy than non-displaced women, but they had less ability to make independent decisions over the use of contraceptives and over their own earnings. This implies that attitudes and behaviors do not always shift together, and, in displacement settings, do not always progress towards greater gender equality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper proposes an instrument to measure the risk of terrorist conflicts through the concept of affiliation to a terrorist organization. The proposed instrument is called the Tool for the Assessment of Terrorist Affiliation Degree (TATAD) and measures how close the respondents are to a complete affiliation, on a scale of four degrees. Based on the Methodology for the Analysis of Computerised Textual Data, each degree is characterized by specific interactive modalities that differ in the ways they contribute to conflict or to community cohesion. Based on the degree of affiliation, it is possible to anticipate acts of conflict that are coherent with the modality of interaction measured by TATAD. By considering the interactive modalities, and not only the contents linked to terrorism, the process of affiliation is the same independently of the type of terrorist society and its beliefs (ideological, religious, etc.). Therefore, TATAD can be used independently of the specific context and motives of terrorism. By detecting critical modalities of interaction, TATAD can be used to support decision making and plan interventions to promote community cohesion in prisons and migration services, and to evaluate the efficiency of counter-terrorism strategies, policies and projects aimed at promoting social cohesion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]