State Failure And State Weakness In A Time Of Terror

Since September 11, the threat of terror gives the failed state problem an immediacy and an importance that transcends its previous humanitarian dimension. In the past, failure had fewer implications for peace and security. Now failed states pose dangers to themselves, theirneighbors, and to people around the globe. Preventing nation states from failing, and reviving those that do fail, has become a strategic, as well as moral, imperative.The introduction to this innovative book develops a theory of state failure and suggests how it may guarded against. The subsequent chapters illustrate the state failure paradigm by examining cases of state collapse (Somalia), state failure (Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone, and the Sudan), and states at risk for failure (Colombia, Fiji, Haiti, Indonesia, Lebanon, Sri Lanka, and Tajikistan). The last chapters ask when and how weak states succumb to failure, and how that fatal slide can be arrested.Contributors (all of whom have participated in a large Harvard University project on state failure): Oren Barak, Walter Clarke, Nasrin Dadmehr, Marlye Gelin-Adams, Rachel Gisselquist, Robert Gosende, Erin Jennie, Harvey Kline, Stephanie Lawson, Rene Lemarchand, Michael Malley, David Malone, Gerard Prunier, Will Reno, and Robert I. Rotberg.

Since September 11, the threat of terror gives the failed state problem an immediacy and an importance that transcends its previous humanitarian dimension. In the past, failure had fewer implications for peace and security. Now failed states pose dangers to themselves, theirneighbors, and to people around the globe. Preventing nation states from failing, and reviving those that do fail, has become a strategic, as well as moral, imperative.The introduction to this innovative book develops a theory of state failure and suggests how it may guarded against. The subsequent chapters illustrate the state failure paradigm by examining cases of state collapse (Somalia), state failure (Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone, and the Sudan), and states at risk for failure (Colombia, Fiji, Haiti, Indonesia, Lebanon, Sri Lanka, and Tajikistan). The last chapters ask when and how weak states succumb to failure, and how that fatal slide can be arrested.Contributors (all of whom have participated in a large Harvard University project on state failure): Oren Barak, Walter Clarke, Nasrin Dadmehr, Marlye Gelin-Adams, Rachel Gisselquist, Robert Gosende, Erin Jennie, Harvey Kline, Stephanie Lawson, Rene Lemarchand, Michael Malley, David Malone, Gerard Prunier, Will Reno, and Robert I. Rotberg.

The threat of terror, which flares in Africa and Indonesia, has given the problem of failed states an unprecedented immediacy and importance. In the past, failure had a primarily humanitarian dimension, with fewer implications for peace and security. Now nation-states that fail, or may do so, pose dangers to themselves, to their neighbors, and to people around the globe: preventing their failure, and reviving those that do fail, has become a strategic as well as a moral imperative. State Failure and State Weakness in a Time of Terror develops an innovative theory of state failure that classifies and categorizes states along a continuum from weak to failed to collapsed. By understanding the mechanisms and identifying the tell-tale indicators of state failure, it is possible to develop strategies to arrest the fatal slide from weakness to collapse. This state failure paradigm is illustrated through detailed case studies of states that have failed and collapsed (the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone, the Sudan, Somalia), states that are dangerously weak (Colombia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan), and states that are weak but safe (Fiji, Haiti, Lebanon).

Since 1990, more than 10 million people have been killed in the civil wars of failed states, and hundreds of millions more have been deprived of fundamental rights. The threat of terrorism has only heightened the problem posed by failed states. When States Fail is the first book to examine how and why states decay and what, if anything, can be done to prevent them from collapsing. It defines and categorizes strong, weak, failing, and collapsed nation-states according to political, social, and economic criteria. And it offers a comprehensive recipe for their reconstruction. The book comprises fourteen essays by leading scholars and practitioners who help structure this disparate field of research, provide useful empirical descriptions, and offer policy recommendations. Robert Rotberg's substantial opening chapter sets out a theory and taxonomy of state failure. It is followed by two sets of chapters, the first on the nature and correlates of failure, the second on methods of preventing state failure and reconstructing those states that do fail. Economic jump-starting, legal refurbishing, elections, the demobilizing of ex-combatants, and civil society are among the many topics discussed. All of the essays are previously unpublished. In addition to Rotberg, the contributors include David Carment, Christopher Clapham, Nat J. Colletta, Jeffrey Herbst, Nelson Kasfir, Michael T. Klare, Markus Kostner, Terrence Lyons, Jens Meierhenrich, Daniel N. Posner, Susan Rose-Ackerman, Donald R. Snodgrass, Nicolas van de Walle, Jennifer A. Widner, and Ingo Wiederhofer.

This text examines how and why States decay and what, if anything, can be done to prevent them from collapsing. The disparate field of research is structured acording to political, social and economic criteria.

This book is the first legal study of state failure in international law. Dr. Giorgetti specifically analyses health, environmental and human rights emergencies and suggests concrete instruments for international actors facing emergencies in failing states. Her Principles for Action are an important contribution to the development of international law.

1998: A REPLAY OF 1996?

The point of departure for this collection of articles is the idea that there is a link between international peace and strong states respectful of human rights and robust civil societies. Presented by Chesterman (New York U. School of Law, US), Ignatieff (Harvard U.'s John F. Kennedy School of Government, US), and Thakur (United Nations Universi