Marginalisation of the majority world

A complex interplay of discrimination, global poverty, inequality and deepening socio-economic divisions, together make for key elements of global insecurity. While overall global wealth has increased, the benefits of this economic growth have not been equally shared. The rich-poor divide is actually growing, with a very heavy concentration of growth in relatively few parts of the world, and poverty getting much worse in many other regions. The ‘majority world’ of Asia, Africa and Latin America feel the strongest effects of marginalisation as a result of global elites, concentrated in North America and Europe, striving to maintain political, cultural, economic and military global dominance.

A New Strategy for the US: From the Control Paradigm to Sustainable Security

Schuyler Null | The New Security Beat | May 2011

Issues:Climate change, Competition over resources, Global militarisation, Marginalisation

Writing for the New Security Beat, Schuyler Null discusses a recent event on creating a new national security narrative for the US held at the Woodrow Wilson Center. The event was based on a white paper by two active military officers writing under the pseudonym “Mr. Y” (echoing George Kennan’s famous “X” article). In “A National Strategic Narrative,” Captain Wayne Porter (USN) and Colonel Mark Mykleby (USMC) argue that the United States needs to move away from an outmoded 20th century model of containment, deterrence, and control towards a “strategy of sustainability.”

Image source: LizaP.

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Posted on 5/05/11

Sustainable Security and Environmental Limits

Rachel Tansey | Quaker Council for European Affairs | May 2011

Issues:Climate change, Competition over resources, Global militarisation, Marginalisation

The Quaker Council for European Affairs publicises a briefing on the topic of Sustainable Security, specifically highlighting environmental concerns:

"The treatment of the natural world by humankind has contributed towards the two related major trends that are likely to drive insecurity in the coming decades: climate change and competition over natural resources."

Article source: Quaker Council for European Affairs

Image source: kretyen

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Posted on 4/05/11

Human Security and Marginalisation: A case of Pastoralists in the Mandera triangle

Abdul Ebrahim Haro | Exclusively written for sustainablesecurity.org | May 2011

Issues:Competition over resources, Marginalisation

This paper seeks to bring out the relevance of human security in pastoral areas of Mandera triangle and the relationships and contradictions that exist between it and national security. The “Mandera Triangle” encompasses a tri-border region of Ethiopia, Somalia, and Kenya that exemplifies, in a microcosm, both a complex and a chronic humanitarian crisis that transcends national boundaries. The resident Somali pastoral population is highly vulnerable to periodic droughts and floods; high levels of poverty; long-term disruption to the traditional systems of livelihood; ongoing inter-clan conflicts and border tensions between states. 

Image source: TURKAIRO

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Posted on 4/05/11

The economic relationship of armed groups with displaced populations

Josep Maria Royo Aspa | Forced Migration Review | March 2011

Issues:Global militarisation, Marginalisation

Practically all armed groups are heavily dependent on external support. Armed groups primarily seek support from both other states and from the diasporas, displaced populations and other armed groups, in order to prevent the burden of  the war effort from falling entirely on the civil population they claim to protect, a situation that has its own political costs. States too need external support to deal with outbreaks of instability and violence; during the Cold War this was normal and it still continues today in most current armed conflicts.

Image source: Gustavo Montes de Oca

Article source: Forced Migration Review

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Posted on 28/04/11

NGOs Call for Immediate and Full Reporting of Every Casualty in Libya

NGO coalition | Oxford Research Group | April 2011

Issues:Global militarisation, Marginalisation

As rebel forces reportedly claim that 10,000 deaths have occurred and up to 55,000 have been injured since the start of the conflict in Libya, a group of NGOs have sent a call to those intervening in Libya to commit to properly monitoring and recording every casualty in the conflict.

This call is made in the belief that the accurate recording and reporting of all casualties will benefit accountability, any assessment of the international intervention, and humanitarian programming.

Article source: Oxford Research Group

Image source: Defence Images

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Posted on 26/04/11

How the Competing Security Needs of Caribbean Community Members have Crystallized Through Multilateralism and Consensual Decision-Making

Serena Joseph-Harris | Exclusively written for sustainablesecurity.org | April 2011

Issues:Competition over resources, Global militarisation, Marginalisation

In a paper exclusively written for sustainablesecurity.org, Serena Joseph-Harris (former High Commissioner for Trinidad and Tobago) focuses on competition over natural resources, the role of maritime routes in the Caribbean, and the importance of multilateral approaches to finding sustainable solutions in the Caribbean.

Image source: Len@Loblolly

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Posted on 26/04/11