International Relations Essay 2 ONLY ONTIME
agjrn574
Type author names here
© Oxford University Press, 2014. All rights reserved.
The Globalization of World Politics (6e)
29. Human security
Baylis, Smith & Owens
Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e
What is human security?
• The 1994 Human Development Report (by the UNDP) defined the scope of human security to include seven areas: – Economic security – Food security – Health security – Environmental security – Personal security – Community security – Political security
Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e
What is human security?
• Attempts to create a broader paradigm for developments have been mirrored by growing concerns about the negative impact of defence spending on development (the ‘guns versus butter’ dilemma)
• A growing emphasis in the post-Cold War era has been human rights and humanitarian intervention
Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e
Debates about human security
• For critics of human security, the concept is too broad to be analytically meaningful or useful as a tool of policy- making
• Another criticism is that the concept might cause more harm than good – because it is too moralistic and hence unattainable and unrealistic
• A third critical point is that it neglects the role of the state as a provider of security
Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e
Debates about human security
• A major debate about human security has occurred over the scope of the concept, and whether it should primarily be about freedom from fear, or freedom from want
• The differences between the two conceptualizations of human security can however be overstated: both focus on the individual and both acknowledge the role of globalization and the nature of armed conflict
Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e
Dimensions of human security
• Many armed conflicts have indirect consequences on human life and well-being: – Economic disruption, leading to poverty – Disease – Education and other social systems – Ecological destruction – Women’s social standing
Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e
Promoting human security
• The most important multilateral actions to promote human security include: – Several War Crimes Tribunals – The International criminal Court (ICC) was
established in 2002, and has the power to ‘exercise its jurisdiction of persons for the most serious crimes of international concern’, e.g. genocide – when national courts are unwilling or unable to to take on such crimes
– The Antipersonnel Landmines Treaty (1997)
Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e
Promoting human security
• Challenges to the promotion of human security include: – The prevailing importance of national/state
security over human security – State sovereignty and territorial integrity
usually take precedence over security of the individual
– The so-called ‘war on terror’ has heightened these concerns, and has even led to some questioning of the applicability of the Geneva Conventions
Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e
• The 2010 earthquake in Haiti killed more than 300,000 people and displaced more than 1.5 million people
• Short-term relief was not matched by long-term reconstruction aid
• Two years after the disaster only about half of the promised reconstruction aid had come in
• Most of the actual relief and reconstruction funding was channeled through various NGOs – not through the Haitian government
Case study 2: Human security and international aid to Haiti
Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e
• The inflated role of the NGOs led to Haiti being called a ‘republic of NGOs’
• Many of the numerous NGOs and civil society organizations operated with very little transparency or accountability
• Coordination among the NGOs and other relief agencies was poor
• The lesson is to build domestic capacity and to empower local NGOs to avoid a superior– subordinate relationship
Case study 2: Human security and international aid to Haiti