CIAO DATE: 11/2012
Volume: 12, Issue: 2
Summer/Fall 2011
Resilience: The Will to Overcome
Michael McKeon, Imani Tate
Introduction
Matthew Carnes SJ
Resilience in communities around the world can be found in a multitude of contexts. This issue’s Forum delves into the varied experiences and events that have shaped what it means to be resilient in today’s society and what it takes to restore normalcy after periods of crisis.
Post-Conflict Resilience:The Liberian Experience
D. Elwood Dunn
Fighting for the Right: Community Participation in Latin American Post-Transitional Democracies
Manuel Orozco, Beatriz Slooten
Repression, Resistance, and Resilience in Tibet
Michael C. Davis
Survival and Prospects for Peace: Refugee Communities in Chad
Randy Newcomb
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization : A Study in Institutional Resilience
Brian Sayers
Disaster Risk Reduction: U.S. Responses to the 2005 Earthquake and 2010 Floods in Pakistan
Mark Ward
Behind the Facade of Rwanda's Elections
Filip Reyntjens
Rwanda is a de facto one-party state where the ruling party maintains a façade of legitimacy through a sham electoral process. The country’s turbulent past has given rise to a tense, and at times, violent political environment. The international community must develop a comprehensive strategy with the people of Rwanda to establish a legitimate and functioning democratic process.
An Unfinished Revolution (PDF)
Shadi Hamid
Following the monumental events in the country at the beginning of the year, the author examines the political landscape of a post-Mubarak Egypt. The military continues to play a central role in government, and the Muslim Brotherhood has risen as the most powerful political movement in the country. However, the transition to democracy will be the key to lasting stability in the country. Egyptians must consider the structure and institutions that are needed for a proper democracy to function.
Drone Attacks Inside Pakistan- Wayang or Willing Suspension of Disbelief? (PDF)
Shuja Nawaz
The controversial nature of U.S. drone attacks in Pakistan is a symbol of the distrustful relationship between the two countries that has persisted for decades. The author addresses the effects, legality, and implications of these attacks in Pakistan’s FATA region, where a number of terrorist organizations have found refuge.
Crisis Aftershocks and European Welfare State Futures
Anton Hemerijck
While the current financial crisis has proved a challenge for the European welfare states, it need not destroy them if policymakers can create a vision for a new social policy more suited to a changing and increasingly globalized world.
Repatriating Justice: New Trends in Stolen Asset Recovery and Fighting Corruption
Mark V. Vlasic, Greg Cooper
Historically, recovering financial assets stolen by corrupt leaders such as Haiti’s Jean-Claude Duvalier has been very difficult. Although challenges remain, a combination of efforts by key nations such as the United States and Switzerland, as well as a renewed focus on the issue by international institutions have created some momentum in recovering these assets.
Realpolitik and the IMF
Jo Marie Griesgraber
The Financial Crisis has emphasized the need for a radical change in the governance of global financial institutions. With help from the G20, the IMF changed from a moribund and almost penurious body to a competitor for global preeminence as global financial rule-maker, reviewer, and implementer. For IMF governance, the financial crisis had the effect of removing any democratic façade, revealing the realities of realpolitik decision-making. Discontent from the financial crisis persists, however, and rumors of new power principles warrant analysis and support.
Converging Africa: The 21st Century Development Dilemma
Rosa Whitaker
The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) is the cornerstone of a U.S. policy that seeks, through a market-based approach, to integrate Africa into the global economy. Over the past ten years, AGOA has made tangible contributions on the continent and has helped to shift the global discussion from Africa as aid-dependent to Africa as a destination for investment. Capitalizing on Africa’s opportunities and momentum requires policy tools acutely tuned to private sector needs.
China is My Backyard: China's Environmental Degradation in a Global Context
Darrin Magee
China’s environmental degradation and resultant human health impacts are embedded in global political and economic cycles. There is an urgent need to minimize the release of noxious byproducts of manufacturing and de-manufacturing into the environment. This will likely only be achieved by the coordinated efforts of Chinese authorities to tighten regulations and strengthen enforcement, by the demands of corporations for higher standards along their supply chains, and by the demands of consumers via purchasing decisions for manufacturers to prioritize environmental and health concerns.
Weirdos and Old Men
Melinda Reyes
Turkey might seem monolithically Muslim from the outside, but there is great diversity among the religious, and a wide spread of opinions regarding religion among the general population.
Calls for Reform: Challenges to Saudi Arabia's Education System
Karen Courington, Vanessa Zuabi
Education in Saudi Arabia faces a twofold challenge. The weak existing education system creates a serious mismatch between skills and demand for domestic workers. Moreover, the religious, clerical, and societal forces hinder educational advancement. These problems must be solved in the interest of reform if Saudi Arabia is to avoid the youth unrest and instability that has plagued its neighbors.
Inside an Embassy: Perspectives from a U.S. Ambassador
James Jeffrey
James Jeffrey talks about his experiences as U.S. Ambassador to Iraq and Turkey, as well as the U.S. missions in these countries, Turkey, and the European Union, progress and development in Iraq, and relations among countries in the region.