The UN’s Intellectual Challenge Today
The future is here, the world is changing, and the United Nations must as well. In view of that, the United Nations Intellectual History Project (UNIHP) nears completion. It identifies three types of challenges for the UN: Intellectual, participatory, and personnel. Louis Emmerij, co-director of the UNIHP, brings us this synopsis of the project and what it means for the UN.
Reconstructing the Notion of Youth
Youth are variously described as the hope and future of our species or the most irresponsible and potentially violent of our kind. Unfortunately, it seems as though this later view has gained ground among certain social critics who see a large youth populations as potentially destabilizing to society. As Shahbaz Israr Khan argues, it’s time to reconstruct our notion of “youth”.
“Slim”: HIV/AIDS in Uganda
HIV/AIDS was first discovered in Uganda in a small fishing village on Lake Victoria in 1982. Patients lost so much weight that the mystified villagers called the disease simply “slim.” By 1999, there were 1,438,000 Ugandans infected with the disease. Along with taking a heavy toll in human life, the disease has ravaged the country’s economy and infrastructure, and essentially become serious threat to human security in general.
How Privatized is War?
Some security analysts believe that the private sector is so firmly embedded in combat and occupation that the phenomenon may have reached the point of no return. The U.S. army estimates that of the $87 billion earmarked in the year 2003 for the broader Iraqi campaigns including Central Asia and Afghanistan, one third has been spent on contracts to private companies. Pujya Pascal discusses corporate adventurism in the context of the latest concerns relating to Private Military Companies.
Transitional Justice in Burundi: Expectations and Concerns
Vital Nshimirimana discusses the transitional justice process as planned by the government of Burundi for 2012. He argues that issues including ongoing insecurity, human rights abuses, lack of dialogue and trust among social partners, as well as lack of rule of law will undermine the process.
Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration of Ex-Combatants in Conflict Affected Northern Uganda
This paper shall apply a discourse analysis of Disarmament, Resettlement and Reintegration (DRR) of ex-combatants with special emphasis on Northern Uganda, a region which has faced conflicts for over two decades. I apply knowledge and skills required to plan, manage and implement programmes for sustainable recovery of war-torn Northern Uganda. The paper will showcase skills in rehabilitation, reconstruction, peacebuilding and the role of civil society. My prior engagement in a post-conflict recovery human rights project in Uganda, as well as my experiences supporting DRR under the Amnesty Commission, will be used to address the topic from a practical point of view. The paper includes a general overview, key actors in the conflict, DRR in detail, Sexual Gender Based Violence (SGBV) issues, DRR challenges, appropriate responses or recommendations and conclusion. I believe this study will also empower me to effectively and efficiently serve in conflict management, peacekeeping and peacebuilding foras.
Key words= ex-combatants, disarmament, demobilization, reintegration
Challenges to Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration: The Case of the Niger Delta
It is my contention that, desirable as it is to conduct a DDR programme in the region, there are certain critical preconditions that have to be met for it to be successful. Analysing these preconditions was the main focus of this paper and contribution to the proposed DDR in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria.
But it will take more than disarmament, commitment and drawn out negotiations to obtain peace in the Niger Delta.
Not only are stakeholders faced with a history of corruption and bad governance, poverty and youth unemployment, but also and arguably the biggest challenge of the future: trust. Solomon Inuwa analyses, with first hand experience, the core needs to be met before embarking on the first steps towards peace.
Nigeria: Fuel subsidy removal and the national crisis
Nigerians were taken by surprise earlier this year when the government dropped fuel subsidies, a move which effectively double the cost of living for many, and prompted massive protests. Labour organizations, #OccupyNigeria groups, unemployed youth, and many other Nigerian citizens have since begun to cross religious, geographic, age, and class divides to seize this historic opportunity and participate more effectively in the political process. In this article, Fatima Kyari Mohammed shares her insights, and some of her photos.
Three Approaches to the Human Security Risk of Climate Change
In this paper, I will construct potential ‘solutions’ to the problem of global climate change within the theoretical frameworks of hegemonic peace, liberal peace, and cosmopolitan peace.
A Tale of Nationalism and Dissidence
Cultural disconnect is at the heart of Cameroon’s political incongruity. Split in two, the government falls in the hands of the Francophones, natural resources in the hands of the Anglophones.