Legitimacy in State-Building: A Review of the IR Literature
In this article, which focuses on different concepts of state-building and legitimacy as used in the mainstream International Relations (IR) literature, I suggest that recent debates may be categorized in a two-by-two matrix. The axes concern the choice between a normative or a sociological perspective on the one hand, and a focus on state institutions or on society on the other. The article identifies an empiricist-sociological approach. Still, the almost exclusive reliance on an ontology of entities and their attributes hampers foci on relations as constituting both “insides” and “outsides” in state-building, and on legitimacy as important in its own right as ongoing public contestations. In a concluding section, I explore the purchase of a relational sociology for future studies of legitimacy in state-building
Recent contributions to research on health and foreign policy. A report of the International research initiative ’Foreign Policy as Part of Globa...
Synthesis Report of the Baseline Study on Civilian Capacity: A CIVCAP Network Joint Research Project
Turning UNSC Resolution 1325 into operational practise: A cross-country study on implementing Resolution 1325 in peacekeeping and military operations
This report focuses on the integration of gender perspectives in four peacekeeping and military operations: Norwegian participation in the ISAF in Afghanistan (Maymaneh, Fayab province), and United Nations operations in Haiti (MINUSTAH), in South Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO), and in Liberia (UNMIL). UNSC Resolution 1325 (2000) is the first resolution ever passed by the Security Council that specifically addresses the impact of war on women, and women’s contribution to conflict resolution and sustainable peace. Although the adoption of the resolution marked a substantial achievement in international politics at the executive level, practical implementation of the content of this resolution and the follow-up resolutions 1820 (2008), 1888 (2009), 1889 (2009) and 1960 (2010) has proven more difficult. With reference to the standards listed in the UNSC resolutions two goals in particular seem difficult to achieve: (i) the integration of gender perspectives at all levels of military and peacekeeping interventions and operations, and (ii) the participation of women in the armed forces. This report draws inspiration from the milestone report Operational Effectiveness and UN Resolution 1325 - Practices and Lessons from Afghanistan (Olsson & Tejpar, 2009). Olsson’s analytical framework (p. 20) for evaluating the representation and integration of Res. 1325 at the internal and external levels of a NATO-led and UN-led operation offers a meaningful approach to studies also beyond Afghanistan, and has been used in order to analyze the findings of this study.