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Articles 1 - 20 of 20
Full-Text Articles in International Relations
A Comparative Political Analysis Of Finland And Belarus Based On The 2022 World Happiness Report, Anastasiya Tsapenko
A Comparative Political Analysis Of Finland And Belarus Based On The 2022 World Happiness Report, Anastasiya Tsapenko
FIU Undergraduate Research Journal
This analysis is in the field of Political Science, specifically Comparative Politics. This paper analyzes the scores of two countries Finland and Belarus on the 2022 World Happiness Report. Finland, known as the happiest country in the world is highly esteemed as a leader in democracy, healthcare, and education, and ranks number 1 on the World Happiness Report with a score of 7.821. Belarus*, a former Soviet Republic famously known for its lack of free and fair elections, ranks number 65 with a score of 5.821 (Helliwell et al., 2022). According to the report, the asterisk near Belarus signifies that …
Eu Accession Negotiations In The Shadow Of The Market, Deniss Kaskurs
Eu Accession Negotiations In The Shadow Of The Market, Deniss Kaskurs
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
At the end of the 20th century, the European Union (EU) had decided to expand into Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) by extending accession invitations to ten CEE states. During the accession process, each nation had a bargaining committee which was established to negotiate with EU representatives about the entrance requirements. Formally, negotiations revolve around political and economic bargaining between politicians of the incoming member states and the EU representatives. Informally, however, private commercial entities heavily influence the bargaining process, both from the EU and from the member state side. This scholarly work refers to these entities as transnational interest …
Transformative Constitutionalism And The Adjudication Of Elections In Kenya, Carl Bevelhymer
Transformative Constitutionalism And The Adjudication Of Elections In Kenya, Carl Bevelhymer
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The judicialization of politics has been an ongoing and expanding global phenomenon for decades. In Kenya, the record number of cases brought before courts prior to and following the 2017 elections is evidence of the continued growth and spread of the judicialization of politics, and more specifically elections; it is also the result of Kenya’s 2010 Constitution, which introduced a new form of governance, expanded the number of elective seats and mandated judicial and electoral reforms. One of the most remarkable events of the 2017 election period was the Supreme Court’s nullification of the presidential election due to electoral irregularities. …
A Rising Regional Power: Making Sense Of Ethiopia's Influence In The Horn Of Africa Region, Yonas K. Mulat
A Rising Regional Power: Making Sense Of Ethiopia's Influence In The Horn Of Africa Region, Yonas K. Mulat
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This research investigates the conditions under which a state’s regional influence increases, or a state becomes a regional power, using an in-depth analysis of the case of Ethiopia in the Horn of Africa. I make a two-fold argument (a) developments in the Horn of Africa over the last two decades show that the regional influence of Ethiopia has been growing, and (b) analysis of attributional capabilities – population, military, economy – alone do not fully explain this development. This dissertation tests a hypothesis derived from neo-classical realism recognizing that relative power (vis a vis the neighbors), although key to …
Gender Politics And Policies In Post-Communist Democracies, Vera N. Beloshitzkaya
Gender Politics And Policies In Post-Communist Democracies, Vera N. Beloshitzkaya
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The dissertation investigates why variation exists in gender policies that challenge traditional power hierarchies across central and eastern European (CEE) countries and the role of political parties in this process. I first ask how gender issues get onto party agendas and then test whether parties in government that have campaigned on gender issues ultimately deliver on their promises. I examine three policy domains, marginally affected by the EU and international "soft" norms, affirmative action in the labor market, father's leave, and anti-domestic violence policies.
I argue that parties are least responsive when it comes to altering gender power hierarchies at …
Genocide In The Modern Age: State-Society Relations In The Making Of Mass Political Violence, 1900-2015, Zachary Karazsia
Genocide In The Modern Age: State-Society Relations In The Making Of Mass Political Violence, 1900-2015, Zachary Karazsia
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This dissertation presents a new conceptual framework for understanding genocide and mass political violence. I build upon existing theories of mass violence that take into account motivations for committing mass atrocities, combine these with the task of counting civilian casualties, and propose a new framework based on the perpetrators’ socio-political standing in society. This model develops a four-part typology of perpetrators by examining the level of government participation and societal participation in the process of violence. Four patterns of perpetrators emerge from this deductive assessment of large-scale violence. These mass political violence perpetrator categories are: a) state perpetrators; b) state-society …
Resource Nationalism And Energy Integration In Latin America: The Paradox Of Populism, Brian Hollingsworth
Resource Nationalism And Energy Integration In Latin America: The Paradox Of Populism, Brian Hollingsworth
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This dissertation examines the relationship between resource nationalism and energy integration, and uses Bolivia and Brazil as a test case. Essentially, does resource nationalism affect energy integration? The findings nest within more expansive questions on international political economy and export-driven models of development. Why do populist regimes, historically operating under an economic nationalist cum protectionist paradigm, simultaneously pursue policies of economic integration? What is the relationship between resource nationalists and open markets, especially in the hydrocarbons sector? What is the relationship between populists, who are typically resource nationalists, and their decision to choose policies of energy integration?
The most common …
Making African Civil Society Work: Assessing Conditions For Democratic State-Society Relations In Rwanda, Fiacre Bienvenu
Making African Civil Society Work: Assessing Conditions For Democratic State-Society Relations In Rwanda, Fiacre Bienvenu
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This dissertation offers a single case in-depth analysis of factors precluding civil society from democratizing African polities. Synthesizing existing literature on Rwanda, I first undertake an historical search to trace the origins and qualities of civil society in the colonial era. This effort shows, however, that the central authority—commencing before the inception of the Republic in 1962—consistently organized civil society to buttress its activities, not to challenge them. Next, using ethnographic research, I challenge conventional economic and institutional accounts of civil society’s role in democratization. I show that institutional change and the economic clout of organized groups are marginal and …
The Syrian Refugee Crisis And The European Union: A Case Study Of Germany And Hungary, Simone-Ariane Schelb
The Syrian Refugee Crisis And The European Union: A Case Study Of Germany And Hungary, Simone-Ariane Schelb
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This thesis explores the impact of the Syrian refugee crisis on the Common European Asylum System. It evaluates the extent to which the European Union was able to implement a common asylum system, identifies discrepancies between different European countries, primarily Germany and Hungary, and briefly examines the roots of these differences. To this end, the structure of the international refugee protection regime and the German and Hungarian asylum systems are analyzed. Furthermore, the thesis explores how the governments of the two countries perceive the rights of refugees and how their views have affected their handling of the crisis. The case …
The Impact Of Transitional Justice On The Development Of The Rule Of Law, Craig Lang
The Impact Of Transitional Justice On The Development Of The Rule Of Law, Craig Lang
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Little is known about the effects of transitional justice on the development of the rule of law in post-conflict states. There are assumptions in the literature that the prosecution of those responsible for human rights violations or convening a truth commission will help improve the rule of law. Using a mixed-method approach, which combined statistical analysis with in-country fieldwork, this investigation found that the impact of transitional justice, particularly trials, on the development of the rule of law is minimal and not automatic. In each of the four states examined, Colombia, Peru, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo, meaningful effects from …
Contemporary State Policies Toward Anti-Semitism In Germany And Poland, Thomas Just
Contemporary State Policies Toward Anti-Semitism In Germany And Poland, Thomas Just
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Broadly speaking, this research is intended to shed light on how post-genocide societies attempt to address a traumatic history and reconcile the problems of ethnic and religious hatred. Germany and Poland are especially ripe cases for such research given their historical memories of the Holocaust and unique legal and diplomatic efforts to counter anti-Semitism. However, since many of the policies on this issue have only been implemented in the past ten to fifteen years, there has not yet been a comprehensive study that has evaluated their effectiveness. This dissertation will attempt to fill this gap in the literature and provide …
Degree And Patterns Of Formal Ngo Participation Within The United Nations Economic And Social Committee (Ecosoc): An Appraisal Of Ngo Consultative Status Relative To Political Pluralism, Barry D. Mowell
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The United Nations (UN) has invested increasing levels of effort in recent decades to cultivate a more effective, diverse and democratic institutional culture via the inclusion of and interaction among international civil society organizations (CSOs) and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to supplement the traditional role of states as the primary transnational actors. The principle vehicle for the UN-civil society dynamic is the consultative status (CS) program within the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), wherein a diverse range of nearly 5,000 transnational organizations ostensibly participate.
This research examined patterns of participation and the nature/level of CSO/NGO involvement within the UN, with particular …
Disaster Capitalism: Empirical Evidence From Latin America And The Caribbean, Ransford F. Edwards Jr.
Disaster Capitalism: Empirical Evidence From Latin America And The Caribbean, Ransford F. Edwards Jr.
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Natural disasters are uniquely transformative events. They can drastically transform physical terrain and the lives of those unfortunate enough to be caught in their wrath. However, natural disasters also provide an opportunity to reflect on past failures and, at times, a clean slate to correct those shortcomings. This project takes a political economic approach and recognizes natural disasters as occasions for agenda-setting on behalf of transnational commercial enterprises and market-oriented policy elites. These reformers often use the post-disaster policy space to articulate long-term development strategies based on market fundamentalism, and, more importantly, advance a set of policies consistent with their …
Explaining China's Contradictory Grand Strategy: Why Legitimacy Matters, Lukas K. Danner
Explaining China's Contradictory Grand Strategy: Why Legitimacy Matters, Lukas K. Danner
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This dissertation analyzed the internal incoherence of China’s grand strategy. To do so, it used the cultural driver of honor to explain the contradictory behavior of China, which ranges from peaceful, responsible international actor to assertive, revisionist rising power with hegemonic ambitions. The central research question asked why China often diverges from Peaceful Development, thus leading to major contradictions as well as possible misperceptions on the part of other nations. Honor was the standard of reference that was utilized and examined in order to establish congruence and coherence between deed and praxis. Accordingly, the first hypothesis of this study posited …
Transnational Capitalism And The Middle East: Understanding The Transnational Elites Of The Gulf Cooperation Council, Seyed Ahmad Mirtaheri
Transnational Capitalism And The Middle East: Understanding The Transnational Elites Of The Gulf Cooperation Council, Seyed Ahmad Mirtaheri
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
In this dissertation, I argue that transnational elites within the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have been integrated within a Transnational Capitalist Class (TCC) economically, militarily and politically through relationships that transcend the boundaries of the nation-state. These relationships exist within the context of a global capitalist structure of accumulation that is dependent on the maintenance of a repressive state apparatus in the GCC. There have been few attempts to analyze the relationships that Middle Eastern political and economic elites have developed with global elite networks. This work fills an important gap in the scholarly literature by linking the political and …
China And The Eu: Development Competitors Or Partners?, Lukas K. Danner
China And The Eu: Development Competitors Or Partners?, Lukas K. Danner
Lukas K. Danner
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In Search Of Safety, Negotiating Everyday Forms Of Risk: Sex Work, Criminalization, And Hiv/Aids In The Slums Of Kampala, Serena Cruz
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This dissertation offers an in-depth descriptive account of how women manage daily risks associated with sex work, criminalization, and HIV/AIDS. Primary data collection took place within two slums in Kampala, Uganda over the course of fourteen months. The emphasis was on ethnographic methodologies involving participant observation and informal and unstructured interviewing. Insights then informed document analysis of international and national policies concerning HIV prevention and treatment strategies in the context of Uganda. The dissertation finds social networks and social capital provide the basis for community formation in the sex trade. It holds that these interpersonal processes are necessary components for …
The Modern State And The Re-Creation Of The Indigenous Other: The Case Of The Authentic Sámi In Sweden And The White Man’S Indian In The United States Of America., Luca Zini
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The present study comparatively examined the socio-political and economic transformation of the indigenous Sámi in Sweden and the Indian American in the United States of America occurring first as a consequence of colonization and later as a product of interaction with the modern territorial and industrial state, from approximately 1500 to 1900.
The first colonial encounters of the Europeans with these autochthonous populations ultimately created an imagery of the exotic Other and of the noble savage. Despite these disparaging representations, the cross-cultural settings in which these interactions took place also produced the hybrid communities and syncretic life that allowed levels …
The Dark Side Of Globalization: The Transnationalization Of Garrisons In The Case Of Jamaica, Michelle Angela Munroe
The Dark Side Of Globalization: The Transnationalization Of Garrisons In The Case Of Jamaica, Michelle Angela Munroe
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The current study is concerned with the role that transnational criminal organizations play in the ability of a small country, such as Jamaica, to govern itself effectively. Jamaica is identified as a major producer and distributor of cannabis, since the 1970s, and today plays an active role in other established illicit markets for cocaine and illegal weapons. Despite a long-term and continued involvement in U.S. funded drug trafficking and counterdrug programs, and the establishment of several anti-crime organizations within the country, Jamaica’s successes have been marginal. The current study attempts to examine first, how criminal groups located within the garrisons …
Escaping The Resource Curse: The Sources Of Institutional Quality In Botswana, Angela Gapa
Escaping The Resource Curse: The Sources Of Institutional Quality In Botswana, Angela Gapa
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Botswana has recently garnered analytic attention as an anomaly of the “resource curse” phenomenon. Worldwide, countries whose economies are highly skewed towards a dependence on the export of non-renewable natural resources such as oil, diamonds and uranium, have been among the most troubled, authoritarian, poverty-stricken and conflict-prone; a phenomenon widely regarded as the “resource curse". The resource curse explains the varying fortunes of countries based on their resource wealth, with resource-rich countries faring much worse than their resource-poor counterparts. However, Botswana, with diamond exports accounting for 50percent of government revenues and 80percent of total exports, has achieved one of the …