November 2018 Review

TransConflict is pleased to present a selection of articles published during November, plus updates from the Global Coalition for Conflict Transformation.

1) Arms race redux

Matthew Parish – The logic of the second arms race is that, drones aside, seldom will this equipment be used one against the other. Instead this equipment is designed, created, then re-designed and re-created so that the new group of Superpowers can engage one with the other in a contest of developing the latest state-of-the-art equipment and perpetually try to outdo one-another. The logic of the second arms race thus strikes a remarkable parallel with the Cold War period. Read on…

2) The Komšić affair, redux – plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose

Gordon N. Bardos – Balkan history is replete with examples of how disingenuous political tactics used to establish an ethnic hegemony lead to tragedy. Unfortunately, people who refuse to recognize history’s mistakes are prone to repeating them. Read on…

3) The Saudi butchery in Yemen and the world’s apathy

Dr. Alon Ben-Meir – It is time for Muslims to stop killing each other. The lesson from Yemen should leave an indelible mark on the psyche of every Saudi and Iranian that the way out of their morass in Yemen is reconciliation and peaceful coexistence. Trump, who can turn on a dime, may well be in a unique position to make it happen. Read on…

4) How should a modern democracy select its judges?

Matthew Parish – The chaos and agonies of a partisan Justice Kavanaugh confirmation process may be outweighed by the benefits of political transparency that a public procedure adds to the inevitably political angle involved in appointment of Judges to a country’s Supreme Court. Read on…

5) Nadia Murad – a Yazidi voice against slavery

René Wadlow – While it is dangerous to fall into a good/evil analysis of world politics, there is little to see of “good” in the ISIS actions. Thus, Nadia Murad can be seen as a bringer of light into a dark time. Read on…

6) Sri Lanka – steps forward, steps backward

Sri Lanka Campaign for Peace and Justice – There were several indications this past week of attempts to use the unfolding crisis in Sri Lanka to shield perpetrators of serious human rights violations from justice. Read on…

7) Precedents – entering an unstable era

Miloš Petrović – The lack of consensus regarding what a certain territory makes special (and its corresponding rights especially different comparing to others) is not only a specificum of the Kosovan case. And while pleading for precedents loses its persuasiveness with each next case, the international community grows more divided; likewise, legal arguments are turning more into an instrument, instead of guaranteeing stability. Read on…

8) Erdogan’s hooligans came knocking on NYU’s doors

Dr. Alon Ben-Meir – It is about time that the US and the EU demand that Erdogan ceases his purges against his own people, end his blatant support of Muslim extremists, stop his meddling in the internal affairs of other countries, halt fighting the Syrian Kurds, cancel its weapons deal with Russia, and stop colluding with Iran, which undermine the US’ allies in the region. Read on…

9) Central African Republic: continuing collapse – local peace building needed

Rene Wadlow – What is required today in the Central African Republic are reconciliation bridge-builders, persons who are able to restore relations among the ethnic groups of an area. The U.N., national governments, and non-governmental organizations need to develop bridge-building teams that can help to strengthen local efforts at conflict resolution and re-establish community relations. Read on…

9) Central African Republic: continuing collapse – local peace building needed

10) A moment of reckoning for decentralisation in Morocco

Yossef Ben-Meir – Morocco is an early champion of decentralisation and its thoughtful and progressive road map that it established for itself at the outset, ten years ago, remains vital to implement. Nevertheless, the questions remain: will it transfer power to people in a way that they can actually interact with and gain access to? Will the nation create a participatory environment to enable the benefits of decentralisation to form productive, mutually affirming relationships? Will the country just pass yet another charter, an inspiring programme or policy, or will it actually complete its journey into the real and daily experiences of the people? Read on…

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