Civil Society and Conflict Transformation in Abkhazia, Israel/Palestine, Nagorno-Karabakh, Transnistria and Western Sahara

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nona Mikhelidze ◽  
Nicoletta Pirozzi
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Conflict Transformation ◽  
Western Sahara

Conflict Transformation and Civil Society: The Case of Nagorno-Karabakh

2016 ◽  
Vol 68 (3) ◽  
pp. 441-459 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vincenc Kopecek ◽  
Tomas Hoch ◽  
Vladimir Baar
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Conflict Transformation

scholarly journals A People vs. Corporations? Self-determination, Natural Resources and Transnational Corporations in Western Sahara

2017 ◽  
pp. 15-66
Author(s):  
Raphaël Fišera
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Natural Resources ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Transnational Corporations ◽  
Global Civil Society ◽  
Self Determination ◽  
Corporate Accountability ◽  
Media Campaigns ◽  
Western Sahara ◽  
Playing Field

Since the mid-1970s, the Western Saharan conflict has defied both resolution and understanding, as an entire people, split between refugee camps in the Algerian desert and the Moroccan occupied territory, has been waiting for the international community to effectively enforce its right to self-determination. Through a combination of legal and geopolitical perspectives on the issues related to the exploitation of the rich natural resources in the last African territory still to be decolonised, this research paper will argue that transnational corporations (TNCs) can directly affect the welfare and the self-determination of a people, while the means to enforce corporate accountability remain limited and poorly adapted to the current global realities. The recent media campaigns led by NGOs against TNCs active in this area demonstrate the key role of global civil society in the emergence of corporate accountability and in reminding individuals, corporations and governments of their ethical and legal obligations towards indigenous peoples such as the Saharawi’s. This paper will first consider the historical and socio-economic context of the conflict and the importance of natural resources in this dispute (chapter I) before addressing the legal dimension of the exploitation of these resources by the occupying power and third parties (II). I will then argue that the decision of Morocco to involve Western oil and gas TNCs in the Western Sahara represents a complicating factor to the conflict and has created a new, corporate playing field for the conflicting parties (III). The last chapter of this analysis will address the current political and legal mechanisms for ensuring the accountability of such TNCs and assess whether campaigns by global civil society actors provide an effective, alternative avenue for corporate accountability (IV).Published online: 11 December 2017

Western Sahara: A frozen conflict

2012 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 139-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolina Chavez-Fregoso ◽  
Nikola Živković
Keyword(s):  
North Africa ◽  
Foreign Relations ◽  
Conflict Transformation ◽  
High Involvement ◽  
Western Sahara ◽  
Political Interests ◽  
External Actors ◽  
Frozen Conflict

The conflict in the Western Sahara is one of the oldest and most neglected. It is a conflict that moves yet fails to transform. It includes a number of internal and external traits, a high involvement of external actors and, apparently, no real desire to negotiate, impeding the disputing parties from transforming their initial positions that render this conflict frozen. It is a conflict in which, despite decades of negotiations and the expressed desire to reach a resolution (whether by autonomy, annexation or independence), economic and political interests, identities and the influence of foreign relations seem to obstruct rather than contribute to the conflict transformation. !is article offers arguments that explain the Western Sahara conflict as a frozen one, and argues that acknowledgment of this reality is necessary to enable a conflict transformation that would contribute to the security of the region of North Africa.

Remarks by Donald Steinberg

2020 ◽  
Vol 114 ◽  
pp. 235-238
Author(s):  
Donald Steinberg
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Older Men ◽  
Conflict Transformation ◽  
Direct Experience ◽  
Religious Minorities ◽  
Diversity And Inclusion ◽  
Marginalized Groups ◽  
The U.S

My work over the last forty-five years has been at the intersection of human rights, conflict transformation, and development with the U.S. government, civil society, and the United Nations. The clearest lesson I have learned is that peaceful, prosperous, and just societies only emerge when we draw on the leadership and contributions of all of society, including women, people with disabilities, racial and religious minorities, the LGBTQ community, displaced persons, and other marginalized groups. The paradox we face is that most of the policymakers and gatekeepers who are key to ensuring this diversity and inclusion are people like me: privileged, straight, older men with little direct experience of exclusion and abuse based on identity factors.

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