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National Security Concerns and India’s Expanding Naval Presence in the Indian Ocean
Issue:
Volume 4, Issue 3, September 2021
Pages:
72-77
Received:
4 May 2021
Accepted:
29 June 2021
Published:
18 August 2021
Abstract: National security ensures the existence of the state through economic power, political power, diplomacy and military power. In the contemporary times military might and defense preparedness is just one aspect of national security and it surround a wide range of non-military variables such as economic security, energy security, environmental security etc. In this context each country has to devise means and methods to protect itself from internal and external threats. Military or defense preparedness however remain a foremost manifestation of national security. All the super powers, major or regional powers maintain security forces which protect country’s national interest and create deterrents to secure themselves. India is a large country of sub-continental dimensions and a major power of South Asia. Its borders touch Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Nepal, Myanmar, and Pakistan. It has a long maritime boundary, territorial waters and resource rich continental shelf. Its presence into the Indian Ocean is bolstered by hundreds of islands such as the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and the Lakshadweep Islands. India has a security environment around its borders and in the adjoining ocean which is full of challenges. The Indian Ocean, on which depends its maritime trade, its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) from which it extracts bulk of its oil needs need to be protected. India faces the challenge of rising terrorism, Somalia born sea piracy, security of sea lanes of communications (SLOCS), protection of its valuable and coveted assets at sea and a plethora of other national security concerns. These challenges motivated India to build and develop a strong navy and show its naval presence throughout the length and breadth of the Indian Ocean. Over the years, India has expanded its naval outreach to become a leading naval power of the region. It has also made strategic use of its nave and used it as a diplomatic tool to build relationships with other major powers within and outside the region. After a strong and formidable build up, Indian Navy has emerged to become the fifth largest in the world. It is a potent force known for its professional competence. In this light the paper throws light on the expanding might of Indian Navy to protect Country’s national security. The paper is an attempt to understand and analyze the national security threats and contribution of its navy to stamp these threats and help India in its power projection in the Indian Ocean region.
Abstract: National security ensures the existence of the state through economic power, political power, diplomacy and military power. In the contemporary times military might and defense preparedness is just one aspect of national security and it surround a wide range of non-military variables such as economic security, energy security, environmental securit...
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Reflections on Freedom of Thought and Opinion Contained in the Fourth Principle of Pancasila
Theodorus Christian Gunawan
Issue:
Volume 4, Issue 3, September 2021
Pages:
78-82
Received:
26 May 2021
Accepted:
30 July 2021
Published:
18 August 2021
Abstract: One of the human rights is freedom of thought and opinion. This right or freedom is contained in various laws. This freedom of thought and opinion is of course very necessary, especially in an era where democracy seems to be the most widely embraced in various countries. This is because the democratic system emphasizes the greatest possible sovereignty on the people or citizens. However, there are problems related to freedom of thought and opinion. Furthermore, the writer who comes from Indonesia also wants to introduce a state basis that is owned by Indonesia. In Indonesia there is a state foundation called Pancasila. Pancasila itself is a state foundation which is the hallmark of the Indonesian nation. This is because Pancasila is indeed suitable and in accordance with the soul, personality, and ideals of the Indonesian state and nation. The Fourth Principle contains a basis that supports the freedom of thought and opinion for all Indonesian people. However, this freedom of thought and opinion is of course limited by law; this is mainly done to anticipate if there is an abuse of freedom of thought and opinion that deviates from the common goal, namely the common good. From that reason, there is no freedom of human rights, namely freedom of thought and opinion that is purely absolute and unlimited. This limitation is needed especially to ensure that the common good can be realized properly.
Abstract: One of the human rights is freedom of thought and opinion. This right or freedom is contained in various laws. This freedom of thought and opinion is of course very necessary, especially in an era where democracy seems to be the most widely embraced in various countries. This is because the democratic system emphasizes the greatest possible soverei...
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Effectiveness of Multitrack Diplomacy Actors in Critical Assessment of Kenya’s Presidential Election Outcomes, 2007-2017
David Owuor Okoth Sanmac,
Pontian Godfrey Okoth,
Elijah Onyango Standslause Odhiambo
Issue:
Volume 4, Issue 3, September 2021
Pages:
83-95
Received:
25 June 2021
Accepted:
5 July 2021
Published:
23 August 2021
Abstract: In Kenya’s last four presidential elections, election observers had been seriously looked upon by both the Kenyan voters and the international community to provide alternative but credible information on the process and outcomes of presidential elections in Kenya. This was expected to promote legitimacy of the outcomes. Given that there was a dearth of specific scholarship to address the question, this study was conducted. This paper therefore examines the effectiveness of multitrack diplomacy in monitoring Kenya’s presidential election outcomes. The study was epistemological. It was conducted in 8 of the 17 constituencies of Nairobi City County which hosts the Kenya’s largest city and its capital with a natural representation of the population of the entire country. Out of the over 4 million residents of Nairobi City County, total sample size was 441 (384 questionnaire respondents, 32 focus group discussion participants and 25 key informant interview respondents). The study reached 436 (384 questionnaire respondents, 32 focus group discussion participants and 20 key informant interview respondents) out of 4 million people. Targeted were Kenya citizens who had voted at least once for a presidential candidate in any of the presidential elections held between 2007 and 2017 for the survey; individuals working with and for government institutions in Kenya’s electoral systems especially the election management body, ministry of foreign affairs, members of parliament, the Chief Justice, pollsters, the media, non-governmental organizations, religious institutions across all faiths as to Muslims, Christians and Hindu, major political parties, former election observers and diplomatic missions. The study found that multitrack diplomacy (MTD) actors or election observer missions (EOMs) observed election irregularities to above 50%. They detected electoral fraud in the 2007 presidential elections, identified election irregularities in the 2013 and the 2017 presidential elections but could not deter nor prevent outcome fraud. The paper, based on the study, concluded that multitrack diplomacy actors that monitored the presidential elections were fairly effective, they had reasonable capacity, fairly above 50%. Overall, multitrack diplomacy is effective in monitoring of Kenya’s presidential election but inefficacious in preventing and deterring election outcome fraud. Multitrack diplomacy actors-the election observation missions (EOMs) to use enhanced technology to match the electoral systems technology, improve on their objectivity during monitoring and be granted full accesses by governments and election management bodies (EMBs) for systematic, comprehensive and accurate monitoring.
Abstract: In Kenya’s last four presidential elections, election observers had been seriously looked upon by both the Kenyan voters and the international community to provide alternative but credible information on the process and outcomes of presidential elections in Kenya. This was expected to promote legitimacy of the outcomes. Given that there was a deart...
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Social Communication and Intercultural Mediation in Decompartmentalizing Identity Groups in Socio-political Crisis Context in Cameroon
Colette Djadeu Nguemedyam,
Estelle Kamga Modjo
Issue:
Volume 4, Issue 3, September 2021
Pages:
96-101
Received:
20 April 2021
Accepted:
14 May 2021
Published:
27 August 2021
Abstract: From the corporatist strike in the North-West and South-West regions in 2016, from which the “Anglophone crisis” arose, to the campaign and the presidential elections of 2018, the results of which were openly contested by one of the candidates, there is the ongoing question of living together routinely emerge in the Cameroonian public space. These events appear as triggers of identity folds, until then latent in the collective subconscious. Among other things, they fostered the propensity and confrontation of hate speech between Cameroonians claiming different territories and identities: anglophone-francophone, tontinard-sardinard, bamiléké-beti. Faced with this, certain public institutions such as the Ministry of Youth and Civic Education and the National Commission for the Promotion of Bilingualism and Multiculturalism, are sending out messages calling for civility, patriotism and tolerance. This paper demonstrate that, despite the limited confidence of Cameroonians in their public institutions, the discourses of these organizations are positioned within the framework of the intercultural tensions observed, as the third party speeh, and contribute to initiating the decompartmentalization of community and identity, with a view to consolidating a true culture and national identity. The Methodology consists precisely in analyzing the messages disseminated by these institutions on their Facebook pages, as well as the comments of their followers.
Abstract: From the corporatist strike in the North-West and South-West regions in 2016, from which the “Anglophone crisis” arose, to the campaign and the presidential elections of 2018, the results of which were openly contested by one of the candidates, there is the ongoing question of living together routinely emerge in the Cameroonian public space. These ...
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Zero Calculated Ambiguity: Unconditional Security Assurances for NWFZ-States Limit the Space for Deterrence
Issue:
Volume 4, Issue 3, September 2021
Pages:
102-111
Received:
25 May 2021
Accepted:
16 August 2021
Published:
31 August 2021
Abstract: Calculated Ambiguity is a policy applied by the nuclear weapon states on negative security assurances given to the non-nuclear states. The goal of these assurances is to guarantee that states that have abstained from nuclear weapons will not be attacked by these weapons. The article demonstrates how these assurances have been watered down since the negotiations of the Non-Proliferation Treaty, the NPT, in the 60s. In “Renegotiating the Nuclear Order: A Sociological Approach” I have applied the “sociology of technology” in order to understand the non-nuclear states´ potential policies to counter this trend. As a result the study focuses on states that belong to the nuclear weapon-free zones (NWFZ-states). These states have a treaty-based commitment to a nuclear weapon-free status and the nuclear weapon states are, in a protocol to the treaties, required to confirm this status and to refrain from nuclear attacks. As ambiguity is built into these assurances the article explores a process by which the NWFZ-states, by walking out of a NPT Review Conference, could achieve unconditional guarantees. The case of the “Mexican amendments” from the early NPT-negotiations is selected as a parallel example to empower the NWFZ-states for collective action. Nevertheless, this implies that the NWFZ-states be organized, not only regionally, but also globally. The article concludes with a comment on how these unconditional assurances could form a critical step towards a nuclear weapon-free world.
Abstract: Calculated Ambiguity is a policy applied by the nuclear weapon states on negative security assurances given to the non-nuclear states. The goal of these assurances is to guarantee that states that have abstained from nuclear weapons will not be attacked by these weapons. The article demonstrates how these assurances have been watered down since the...
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Decision Making Processes in Counter-Terrorism Operations in Israel
Issue:
Volume 4, Issue 3, September 2021
Pages:
112-124
Received:
23 August 2021
Accepted:
4 September 2021
Published:
11 September 2021
Abstract: Israel is fighting terrorism from its very early days. The terror acts are characterized by carrying out lethal attack on Israeli residents and/ or the abduction of civilians / soldiers in order to free Palestinians imprisoned in Israeli jail. During the years Israel's counterinsurgency doctrine was shaped based on two main cornerstones – Moshe Dayan’s doctrine of reprisal actions on terror attacks, formulated in the early 1950s, and the "Rabin Doctrine" on dealing with abducted Israelis. This article will analyze the processes of decision- making in Israel when fighting the two main forms of terror acts. After reviewing the main decision – making model a new decision- making model will be presented - the Two-Group Decision Making Model that will be demonstrated through analysis of four case studies: two cases of terror attack that Israel reacted by a military reprisal operation and two cases in which Israelis were abducted and the decision- makers had to choose to surrender to the terrorists demands or to launch a military rescue operation. The main conclusions of this article are that most of the decision- making process is made within a very small and intimate group headed by the leader and in most cases the Israeli decision – makers prefer to carry out a military operation on negotiations or any other course of action.
Abstract: Israel is fighting terrorism from its very early days. The terror acts are characterized by carrying out lethal attack on Israeli residents and/ or the abduction of civilians / soldiers in order to free Palestinians imprisoned in Israeli jail. During the years Israel's counterinsurgency doctrine was shaped based on two main cornerstones – Moshe Day...
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