PEACE STUDIES SECTION NEWSLETTER
May 1999
From Washington to Los Angeles
Juergen Dedring, City University of New York
Having just completed a revision of my ISA peace research paper for publication in the International Journal of Peace Studies, with a focus on the resolution of violent conflicts by peaceful means, it is extremely difficult to reconcile the intent and conclusion of my essay with the increasingly violent and destructive military operations in Serbia and Kosovo. The undeclared war and its so far unproductive conduct make it ever more urgent for the small community of peace researchers to publicize the basic disutility of violence in the settlement of human differences and to continue the advocacy of violence-free means to pursue peacemaking ends. The human and material cost of the current round of war far exceeds what the public is generally aware of and deepens the dismay about the dual victimization of the oppressed Kosovo Albanians and the widening impact of the war on the civilian population of Serbia and Montenegro. Nobody has an idea of how the war is going to end, nor can so-called experts or average people estimate what the final bill in human and material terms will come to.
The challenge for the peace research community is unmistakable: We need to reiterate our insight and conviction that every effort must be made to reduce overt violence in the coming decades and to redirect our energy to constructive purposes of the human community. The global needs are projected to become progressively larger and the capability of the human species to cope with them will be totally required, which means that wasteful pursuit of military action will be even less feasible than in a time of Western plenty. NATO=s 50th anniversary ceremonies in Washington are unlikely to provide an opportunity for detached and careful reflection about the future purposes and roles of an outdated military alliance.
Much of what I witnessed at the ISA meeting in Washington encouraged me. Numerous panels and roundtables were sponsored or cosponsored by the Peace Studies Section. Attendance was generally quite good, and the participants seemed satisfied with the events and their respective outcomes. The immense efforts of Professors Kriesberg and Stephenson in planning the Washington session and in negotiating the best possible conditions for the section in the context of the whole convention are complimented and applauded. I hope that Los Angeles will turn out to be similarly rewarding.
Today, I want to convey to everybody the fact that the deadline for proposals for the March 2000 Los Angeles congress is rapidly approaching. Frank Harvey, the ISA 2000 Program Chair, has made it very clear that no exceptions to that deadline will be permitted. In private chats in Washington, I appealed to several colleagues to think about initiating a panel or roundtable proposal or submitting a paper proposal. The time to fulfill these ideas and plans and to write up your proposals is now. We look forward to receiving via Frank Harvey numerous suggestions and expect to accommodate all of them as long as they are sincere and salient.
During the general meeting of the Section, a brief exchange took place on critical issues and meaningful topics for the LA meeting. Among these were the following: 1) The issue of economic globalization; 2) The role of rhetoric in conflict; 3) The theme of war and remembrance; 4) The nexus between policy and theory; 5) Aspects of the North-South divide; 6) Disarmanent questions, especially the nuclear nonproliferation issue; and 7) The IMF, the World Bank and INGOs and conflict. Other issues, e.g. conflict prevention and peacebuilding - to name just a few - will remain on the peace research agenda.
Professor Kriesberg reported in Washington about the near-completion of the Section web page that has been developed by Volker Franke at Syracuse University. Furthermore, for the next year, the Nominations Committee was reestablished, and Eileen Babbitt at Tufts University agreed to serve once again as Chair of that committee. Last, not least, Nils Petter Gleditsch proposed at the Section meeting that the Boulding award, which was not awarded this year, should be reexamined. The attending Section members accepted his suggestion and requested Carolyn Stephenson to organize the necessary consultations about the arrangements for the award.
As most of you know, I organized a Roundtable at the ISA meeting in Washington on the provocative question: "A United Nations without the U.S.? - a new debate." The session was quite well attended and launched a lively debate with John Groom, Ben Rivlin and Ofuatey-Kodjoe as discussants. Familiar and more novel aspects of this intractable tense relationship were raised. At the end, it was agreed to continue the debate at the LA congress. For that reason, I am currently putting together one or possibly two panels with regular papers and hope to obtain sponsorship from both the IO and the Peace Studies sections.
I plan myself to contribute a longer paper on the "Role of the UN Security Council in peace and security matters in the nineties" as part of a bigger Security Council project. I would like to seek sponsorship of both Peace Studies and IO sections for my proposal.
In the next newsletter I expect to report together with Carolyn Stephenson about the harvest in panel and paper proposals that will have come in by that time for Los Angeles. In the meantime, accept my regards, and best wishes. I am available for any question, suggestion or exchange of views. There is so much work still to be done for both, negative and positive peace.
Section Members may be interested the work of Peace Research and European Security Studies (AFES-PRESS). The organization recently began distributing its publications, STRADEMED, outside France and Spain globally. The volume No. 6 has just been been published jointly: Antonio Marquina: Mutual Perceptions in the Mediterranean (Madrid: UNISCI/Marcel Pons - Paris: Publisud - Mosbach: AFES-PRESS, 1998). Contact: Peace Research and European Security Studies (AFES-PRESS) Dr. habil. Hans Günter Brauch, Chairman. Alte Bergsteige 47, 74821 Mosbach F 49-6261-12912; 49-6261-15695 E-mail: AFESPRESS@compuserve.com Web Site: http://www.afes-press.de
"The Third Alternative," is published annually in the fall by the Center for the Study of Conflict, Inc. The Center and its publication seek to "locate and publicize ways to find alternatives to contenders' initial negotiating positions [. . . including] alternatives to fighting or walking out when negotiations break down." Center for the Study of Conflict, 5846 Bellona Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21212.
PEACE REVIEW: Upcoming themes: FALL 1999: Alternative Security in the Asia Pacific (deadline: 23 October 1999) ONGOING: Off-Theme Essays, Peace Profiles, Book Reviews. Relevant topics include war, violence, human rights, political economy, development, culture and consciousness, the environment, gender, race, sexuality and related topics. Please Submit 2500-3500 word essays on or off themes on IBM or MAC disk to: Robert Elias, Editor; Peace Review University of San Francisco, 2130 Fulton Street, San Francisco, CA 94117 USA Fax: 415-388-2631/422-2772 Ph:415-422-6349 Email: eliasr@usfca.edu
REVIEW OF RELIGIOUS RESEARCH, an interdisciplinary journal now co-edited by Christopher G. Ellison and Darren E. Sherkat, is seeking manuscripts on any topic dealing with religious beliefs, activities, and organizations. We strongly encourage submissions investigating the connection between religion and social conflict, peace, and anti-war activities. To submit, send 4 copies of manuscripts and an e-mail or disk version of the paper to Darren E. Sherkat, 1811-B Dept. of Sociology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville TN 37235. SHERKADE@CTRVAX.VANDERBILT.EDU . There is a $15 processing fee for scholars who are not members of the Religious Research Association. Membership is only $24, and information can be found at: http://rra.hartsem.edu.
Call for Submissions: ISA 2000
"Reflection, Integration, Cumulation: International Studies past and Future"
Deadline: June 15, 1999
Guidelines: All proposals for papers, posters and panels should be submitted directly to the 2000 ISA Program Chair, Frank Harvey, Department of Political Science, Centre for Foreign Policy Studies, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H 4H6, CANADA. Please use the paper or panel proposal forms found at the following web site: http://csf.colorado.edu/isa/la/ paper.html
The Program Chair will forward proposals to relevant sections. Individuals should identify no more than three Sections to which their proposals might be forwarded in order of preference. All paper or poster proposals should provide (for all authors & co-authors) the name; complete address (including phone, fax, and if available e-mail); affiliation; poster/paper title; and an abstract of 150 words.
ISA-2000 Panel Proposal-- Religious Perspectives of the United Nations
This panel is designed to look at religion and the United Nations. Papers are needed which will either 1) consider the way a specific religion or religious organization views the UN (e.g., Islam, Hinduism, Catholicism, Judaism, Quaker), or 2) use specific religious principles to analyze the UN or the UN Charter. The goal is to create as diverse a panel as possible, with a discussant who can contribute a different perspective than the rest of the panel members.
To be considered for this panel, please send a paper proposal and a short statement of your qualifications/research background in this area to:
Karrin Scapple, Political Science Department, Southwest Missouri State University, 901 S. National Ave., Springfield, MO 65804. (417) 836-6957 phone; (417) 836-6655 fax; kas148f@mail.smsu.edu
If you would also be willing to be considered as a discussant (note: the discussant will not be a panel member), please state that clearly in your proposal. People interested in the discussant role only, should send a short statement on their qualifications/background in this area. DEADLINE: June 1, 1999
A Call for Stories about Peacemakers
We are currently searching for stories about individual acts of heroism in the interest of peace. These individuals and their attempts to resolve conflicts will be presented in our television documentary, THE WOUNDED DOVE. The heroic peace endeavors they performed may be successes or failures. What is important is that, in one way or another, they tried to put an end to violence. The conflict can range from a world war to a minor internal incident in a remote corner of the world long forgotten in 20th century history. The peacemaker may be a famous personality or an unknown and unheralded person who stepped out of an ordinary life and tried to make a difference.
The key attribute in choosing these individuals and their stories is whether or not a person, be it a man, woman or child, took an initiative and risked their reputation, fortune or life in the pursuit of peace. This documentary is focused on those who took an exceptional risk and made an active effort to stop or prevent violent conflict.
Because we have the rare opportunity to reach a wide, international audience, we have to place the emphasis on the dramatic individual stories through which broad themes can emerge. THE WOUNDED DOVE The Quest for Peace in the 20th Century is scheduled for broadcast before the Millennium in the U.S., Canada and a number of European countries. We welcome any stories or ideas for stories as well as information concerning the existence and availability of visual support material. Contact: Cheshmak Farhoumand 33 Bingham Street Richmond Hill, Ontario L4C 8Y7 CANADA cheshmak@yorku.ca
Publications by Section Members
Hans Günter Brauch: Klimapolitik der Schwellenstaaten Südkorea, Mexiko und Brasilien. AFES-PRESS Studie für das Umweltbundesamt, 1998, 344p., $ 40. (ISBN 3-926979-70-4). [Climate Policy of Threshold States: South Korea, Mexiko and Brazil] An English summary may be obtained from: http://www.afes-press.de.
Hans Günter Brauch, Czeslaw Mesjasz und Björn Möller: "Controlling weapons in the quest for peace: Non-offensive defence, arms control, disarmament, and conversion" in: Chadwick F. Alger Ed. The Future of the United Nations System: Potential for the Twenty-first Century (Tokyo - New York - Paris: United Nations University Press, 1998): 15-53.
Hans Günter Brauch, Antonio Marquina und John Grin: "Theoretical and conceptual notions of security perception - their relevance for security policy in the Mediterranean region", in: Antonio Marquina (Ed.): Mutual Perceptions in the Mediterranean, Unity and Diversity, Collection Strademed No. 6 (Madrid: UNISCI/Marcel Pons - Paris: Publisud - Mosbach: AFES-PRESS, 1998).
Hans Günter Brauch: "From Confidence to Partnership. Conceptual and Political Efforts at Confidence Building Revisited. CBMs and Partnership Building Measures in Europe and in the Mediterranean", in: H.G. Brauch, Antonio Marquina, Abdelwahab Biad (Eds.): Euro-Mediterranean Partnership for the 21st Century (London: Macmillan, 1999).
Hans Günter Brauch: "Partnership Building Measures to Deal with Long-term Non-military Challenges Affecting North-South Security Relations," in: H.G. Brauch; Antonio Marquina, Abdelwahab Biad (Eds.): Euro-Mediterranean Partnership for the 21st Century (London: Macmillan, 1999)
Roy Licklider, "Early Returns: Results of the First Wave of Statistical Studies of Civil War Termination," Civil Wars, 1, 3 (Autumn, 1998), pp. 120-132
Pierre Atlas and Roy Licklider, "Conflict among Former Allies after Civil War Settlement In Sudan, Zimbabwe, Chad, and Lebanon" Journal of Peace Research, 36, 1 (January, 1999)
Jackie Smith, Melissa Bolyard, and Anna Ippolito, "Human Rights and the Global Economy: A Response to Meyer" Human Rights Quarterly 21: 207-219 (1) (February 1999).
Jackie Smith, "Global Politics and Transnational Social Movement Strategies." In Hanspeter Kriesi, Dieter Rucht and Donatella della Porta, eds. Cross-National Influences and Social Movement Research Macmillan Press (1999). Pp. 170-188.
Section Officers
—Chair: Juergen Dedring, City University of New York, dedring@erols.com
—Past Chair: Louis Kriesberg, Department of Sociology, Syracuse University, lkriesbe@maxwell.syr. edu
—Council: (1998-2000) Eileen Babbitt, Tufts University; Volker Franke, Syracuse University; David Last, Pearson Peacekeeping Center; Alice Ackerman, University of Miami, Coral Gables; Nimet Beriker-Atiyas, Sabanci University, Istanbul; Betts Fetherston, Department of Peace Studies, University of Bradford, UK.
—Newsletter Editors: Jackie Smith, SUNY Stony Brook and Betts Fetherston, Department of Peace Studies, University of Bradford, UK.
NEWSLETTER SUBMISSIONS
We ENCOURAGE Announcements, reviews of books relevant to members of the Peace Studies Section, essays, or notices of resources, ideas, and events of interest to Section members are welcome. Submit inquiries or submissions via e-mail or diskette to Jackie Smith; Dept. of Sociology SUNY-Stony Brook; Stony Brook, NY 11794-4356; E-mail: jacsmith@notes.cc.sunysb.edu. Target deadlines: 1 October, 1 February, and 1 May.