Kenyan Somali Islamist Radicalisation
Issue:Marginalisation
International Crisis Group has released a briefing paper illustrating the Islamist radicalisation of ethnic Somalis in Kenya, and the causes behind the trend. Decades of economic marginalisation of the Somali-dominated North Eastern Province border region has combined with government and public suspicion of ethnic Somalis to produce an unpleasant climate where either Somali loyalty is questioned, or Somalis are accused of ‘taking over’ when they move into the cities or succeed in business and politics. On the other hand, this has been compounded by the shift of East African Muslims in general away from Sufism and towards the conservative strand of Wahhabi Islam that posits the Muslim umma against the secular state, thereby enabling Somalia-based Al-Shabaab to capitalise on grievances in Kenya and encourage oppositional and even irredentist tendencies. The response of the government has overwhelmingly been one of force.
Article Source: International Crisis Group
Image Source: tik_tok
Read more »Posted on 30/01/12
Someday, none of this will be yours: the predatory state eyes ‘public’ land
Issue:Competition over resources
Ambiguous legal structures bequeathed to post-colonial and other developing states have complicated the meaning of ‘public’ land. Recent interpretations have followed the trends of either the development and human rights communities, such as attempts at post-conflict restitution; or the private property rights of foreign investors vis-á-vis state control. As described below by Rhodri C. Williams in his TerraNullius blog, at the heart of the issue is the highly contested nature of the line between private and public land ownership, leading to grey-area treatment of some land. Williams also explains how violence can arise when the basic human attachment to land conflicts with state claims, and how policy recommendations from international donors and institutions such as the World Bank can aggravate delicate and conflict-prone situations.
Article Source: Terra Nullius
Image Source: rudenoon
Read more »Posted on 30/01/12
WEF examines the Risks of Global Marginalisation
Issue:Marginalisation
A new report from the World Economic Forum highlights the increasing importance of marginalisation as a security issue over the coming decades. The seventh edition of the WEF’s Global Risks report describes what they see as the ‘seeds of dystopia’ threatening both social and political stability across the world.
Image source: ectopic (ibandera).
Read more »Posted on 17/01/12
Stories of harassment, violence and discrimination: migrant experiences between India, Nepal and Bangladesh
Issue:Marginalisation
A recently published Project Briefing from the Overseas Development Institute reports on the findings of a study examining the experience of Nepalese and Bangladeshi migrants in India. This vulnerable group of people face marginalisation on many different levels, having been compelled to emigrate in the first place because of economic hardship; and facing job-, wage-, and housing-insecurity on arrival because of their ambiguous legal status. Fear of disclosure or of being identified by their accents prevents migrants not only from taking a stand against exploitation, but also from forming networks within the host communities, thereby compounding the other forms of insecurity. In addition, migrants are often marginalised on their return home: "There is a common belief that women who Migrate to india engage voluntarily in commercial sex work once there," while husbands left behind suffer from the stigma surrounding their wives' supposed profession. The briefing concludes with recommendations for mitigating insecurity experienced by this group, who would otherwise be at permanent risk of violence and exploitation.
To read the full briefing, click here
Image Source: FriskoDude
Read more »Posted on 11/01/12
South Sudan: Conflict is 'fact of life'
Issues:Competition over resources, Global militarisation
In a radio interview for the BBC, Dr Sara Pantuliano of the Overseas Development Institute highlights a tribal conflict in Jonglei State that has grown particularly violent. The conflict between the Murle and Luo-Nuer groups has traditionally centred on cattle-raiding (cattle being a vital element of the region's economy for centuries), but recently it has taken on the character of a 'military assault' along ethnic lines. Dr Pantuliano attributes this change to both the sheer number of weapons flooding the region, and to the anonymity and consequent remoteness of modern warfare. Compounding these factors is the diminished status of chiefs and elders and the effectiveness of the traditional checks and balances that they enforce, compromised as they have been by the protracted civil wars of the past.
Article Source: BBC
Image Source: Oxfam International
Read more »Posted on 4/01/12
Land, livelihoods and identities: Inter-community conflicts in East Africa
Issues:Competition over resources, Marginalisation
In a report published in December 2011, Minority Rights Group International highlights the problems facing minority groups, specifically in an area covering Kenya, Uganda and Jonglei State in South Sudan. Competition over resources has increased the potential for confrontation not only with local dominant ethnic groups, but also with the state and international corporations, thereby increasing the liklihood of different forms of conflict on different levels. Progressive legal protections are often not enforced because of a disconnect at state-level between legislation and law-enforcement, which only exacerbates existing problems caused by long-standing discrimination. Moreover, conflict involving already marginalised people adversely affects the women and children in these groups in particular, which in turn re-impacts on the community because of the traditional roles that women play in family cohesion and as food producers.
Many problems arise not simply because people belonging to minority groups are themselves marginalised, but also their community and governance structures which previously had been successful in mediating conflict such as (in an East African context) cattle raiding. Marginalisation not only discriminates against individuals because of their backgrounds or beliefs but also rides roughshod over communal organisation and mediation, leaving groups unable to adapt to change or protect their interests when threatened by more powerful entities.
To read the full report and press release, click here
Image Source: Leonie_x
Read more »Posted on 31/12/11
