If the ability to hold credible, peaceful elections is a key litmus test of a country’s progress towards democratic consolidation, the latest evidence from Haiti is far from encouraging. The electoral cycle that began in August 2015 – following months of delays and governance by presidential decree – was meant to renew Haiti’s democratic institutions, but has instead plunged the country back into political crisis.
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Multiple potholes dot Ukraine’s road to a more accountable and liberal political regime: its 12% decline in GDP this year; the military stalemate in the east and the de facto loss of Crimea; and, of course, entrenched political malaise and corruption. It is within this challenging environment that crucial political and security reforms are taking place, which rely to a large degree on internal reformers and external assistance.
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This blog identifies the underlying conditions of the Afghan state from the outset of the late 2001 Bonn political arrangement that has resulted in deep-rooted corrupt clientelistic networks within the Afghan government. This has trickled to the majority of the ministries including the Interior Ministry. Corruption is systemic and hard to combat despite police reform. This is due to the nature of four interrelated explanations of corruption that are subsequently covered.
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Law enforcement in the United States, United Kingdom and Canada has seen a substantial transformation over the past half century, primarily due to its inextricable ties to legislation. Were the events of 9/11 responsible for the transformation of law enforcement and a watershed of legislation in the subject nations? Originally published as a dissertation, the author’s research explores this notion and whether this transformation had been occurring, somewhat inconspicuously, for several decades.
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As Haiti enters a turbulent period of electoral politics, the country’s long-standing drivers of conflict take on a particular significance. Gangs have figured prominently in Haiti’s recent political transitions, as national-level political actors have deployed urban gangs to generate violence and unrest as a strategic instrument of political influence. In return, politicians have offered gangs funding and impunity from arrest. The nexus of politics and organized crime is explored in this article.
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This case study report analyzes Liberia’s progress in security since 2003, after 14 years of conflict. It discusses progress achieved in personal security since 2003, analyzes the factors that contributed to this progress, examines remaining challenges, and identifies policy lessons. When compared to other factors that are driving the change in security, security sector reform has been a small but significant factor to improving Liberia’s security environment.
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Centre for Security Governance Senior Fellow Stephen Baranyi has co-authored a new report, with Yves Sainsiné, on the development of the National Police, public security and the rule of law in Haiti.
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It has been more than 20 years since the paramilitary ceasefires in Northern Ireland. While much has changed in the polity, recent events show that the issue of paramilitarism has not entirely been resolved.
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This article summarizes the policy brief “Building the capacity of the Malian police: Why MINUSMA needs to think outside the box” by the Institute for Security Studies. This policy brief examines the police component of the MINUSMA and recommends how the capacity-building aspect of the peacekeeping mission can be strengthened. It also identifies the real challenges facing MINUSMA and pin points its shortcomings.
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The author argues it is possible to better understand what we can learn from failure and what are ways forward for better, more effective security and justice assistance. He highlights three main elements: 1) the key problems and challenges associated with security governance; 2) what we can learn from failure in the British and European examples; and 3) what we can learn from broader debates about international development and more politically focused approaches.
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Internal oversight of a police service is key to ensuring its smooth functioning. Internal oversight is a sensitive topic since it can lead to the questioning of certain practices that are deeply rooted within the traditions and culture of the police. This blog article aims to provide 10 key tips that the authors believe are the most important when attempting to ensure effective internal oversight.
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Intergovernmental organizations and more recently international foundations and NGOs have provided a wealth of “how to” handbooks and guides. Such organizations are complimented by resource-rich websites from practitioners, networks, global watch dogs, think-tanks and academia. This reading list is a compilation of a number of useful works, on Democratic Policing in Security Sector Reform.
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