|
|
| by Christopher
Spencer |
Former Senior
Advisor International Organizations, Canadian Department of
Foreign Affairs and International Trade |
| Updated: 13 SEP
08 | |
F.H.Abed"Micro-Credit, Poverty and Development: the Case of Bangladesh"Behind the Headlines
Vol.57/No.2-3 (Winter/Spring 00):-micro-credit -small loans made to poor households/individuals
to finance small-scale entrepreneurial activities- has expanded rapidly(world target is now $20b),
and encouragedhope for major cost-effective global poverty-reduction. "NGOs in Asia, Africa,
and Latin America arelargest providers of micro-credit to those sections of society - rural
landless, disadvantaged women, marginal farmers, and wage labourers - who depend largely on
selling their labour for a living" (12). These target groups reflect the fact that it is often the only
way very poor can break cycle of poverty resulting from a lack of collateral and exorbitant local
interest charges. It produced high success rates not only in poverty-reduction(and repayment:
98%) but in social reform, economic development, education/training, and growth of assets for
both borrowers/lenders, which is reinvested. Abed, director of Bangladesh Rural Advancement
Committee, among world's largest NGO's, offers much globally-relevant information:big issues/
questions; scale/approach/result; specialties(income-useful education, social development).
Morton Abramowitz & Thomas Pickering "Making Intervention Work: Improving the UN's Ability
to Act"(100-108) Foreign Affairs Vol.87/No.5(Sep/Oct 08):-official summary:"In the face of grave
humanitarian crises in countries such as Myanmar and Sudan, the international community has
failed to back up its rhetoric with deeds. To adequately address such situations, the United
Nations must streamline its decision-making, strengthen its peacekeeping capabilities, and
create a crisis-response force". Emphasized extracts:"International clamor must produce
results, not simply more clamor". "The UN needs a limited force to respond to humanitarian
disasters and prevent conflicts from spiraling out of control". Abramowitz is a Senior Fellow at
the Century Foundation and former US Ambassador to Thailand and Turkey. Pickering is Vice
Chair of Hills & Company and has served as US Ambassador to six countries and the UN.
James Adams The Next World War: Computers Are the Weapons and the Front Line Is
Everywhere (New York: Simon & Schuster 98):-not primarily about technology, but rather
warning about (un)anticipated effects of accelerating revolution in many-faceted field of
information warfare(IW). Uses many original sources to explain fundamental changes in nature
of combat. Weapons can be disabling, non-lethal, long-distance, unmanned, multi-use,
minuscule... Wars may be battlefield-less, electronic, adversary-ambiguous, instantaneous...
Intelligence and surveillance will be pervasive/often decisive. At same time, vast technical lead
-and complexity - of rich countries' forces/societies also creates immense (cyber)vulnerability.
In global North-South terms, implies economically-advanced states will prefer to fight by
exploiting their technology, while any less-advanced opponents will tend to concentrate their
attackson that technology's weak points.[World community/UN will find "violent conflict"
(formal inter-state war now very rare)not only creates multiple new diplomatic/legal
issues(time/space limits, sanctions, intervention, lethality, causes, costs, crimes)but, most
difficult of all, is increasingly ambiguous, in terms of "participants" (both initiators and intended
enemies/victims), location(e.g. if electronic, disease-inducing, and/or delayed-action),
aims(already true of terrorism), even very existence(e.g. cyber-, resource- or bio-conflict;
deliberate/ accidental?).One major consequence then is that entire concept of conflict-resolution
transformed.]
Shardul Agrawala and Steinar Andresen, "Indispensability and Indefensibility? The United States
in the Climate Treaty Negotiations" Global Governance Vol.5/No.4(Oct/Dec 99):-insightful essay
not only relevant to most critical environmental issue facing global community(Grubb 99 op.cit);
helps explain both sudden changes or galling intransigence in US positions on variety
multilateral questions(for UN: Lyons op.cit.).Recalls major US environment statements, policies
and positions, and shows them surprisingly erratic even under same president. Then identifies
powers and interests of many forces and often key individuals within US administrations,
Congress, industry, public opinion and dedicated pressure groupsthat influenced environmental
policy, and shows how their interplay affected or determined volatile orstubborn US position on
climate change at various times.
Masood Ahmed & Cheryl Gray Helping Countries Combat Corruption: The Role of the World
Bank(Washington: IBRD 97):-produced by World Bank's Poverty Reduction and Economic
Management Network(PREM). Bank's World Development Report 1997: The State in a Changing
World(op.cit.)also deals with global corruption issues in government context but mainly
descriptively, while PREM reportconcentrates on how Bank can help governments address
corruption as serious development constraint. Daniel Kaufmann(op.cit.)lists more articles and
books on this issue.
AIDS: THIRD WORLD: COST-PATENT DILEMMA; GLOBAL ASSISTANCE
AIDS: THIRD WORLD: INFECTION RATES AND SOCIAL-ECONOMIC ISSUES
The HIV/AIDS pandemic is viewed increasingly as the most serious challenge facing global
society. Almost all material on this subject is found in the media and is included in RECENT
DEVELOPMENTS. To reach all media selections relating to AIDS, click on AIDS Third World.
Kofi A. Annan, Report of the [UN] Secretary-General to the Preparatory Committee for the
High-level International Intergovernmental Event on Financing for Development:-this
collaborative effort(officially UNGA Document A/AC.257/12)runs to 64 pages, makes 87
recommendations, and was commissioned bythe Millennium Summit to help focus discussion
at a Mar 2002 global meeting on development financing(still an" event" since it awaits an official
title). Involved directly in the report's preparation were: many parts of the UN proper(particularly
DESA, UNCTAD and UNDP); UN Agencies; the Bank, Fund and WTO; theregional development
banks; OECD; the Financial Stability Forum; many governments/otherstakeholders(arranged by
the UN regional commissions); the business community; and civil society organizations. Hence
it reflects extremely varied, expert and authoritative views - significant, since some proposals
are quite radical, even if presented solely on the responsibility of the UN Secretariat. The report
consists of an Introduction and six chapters, the latter perhaps being the agenda items of the
"event" : I. Mobilizing domestic financial resources for development; II. Mobilizing international
resources for development: foreign direct investment and other private flows; III. Trade; IV.
Increasing international financial cooperation for development through, inter alia, official
development assistance; V. Debt; VI. Addressing systemic issues: enhancing coherence and
consistency of the international monetary, financial and trading systems in support of
development. For highlights, see UN Press Release DEV/2275at: http://www.un.org/News/Press
/docs/2001/ dev2275.htm. The complete text(which explains all acronyms!)can also be
downloaded from the Web: http://www.un.org/esa/ffd/aac257-12E.htm
orhttp://www.un.org/esa/ffd/aac257-12E.pdf. For three articles about the Report(highlighting the
dirty bits)see: Christopher S. Wren, "U.N. Report Proposes Steps to Fight Global Poverty" in New
York Times 30 Jan 01;Reuters, "Annan Offers Poor Nations 87 Ways to Lure Funds" NYT 30 Jan;
Wren, "The U.N. Offers 87 Remedies to Help Poor Nations Develop" NYT 04 Feb. The UNSG's
opening speech at the subsequentPrepcom meeting is reported in: Reuters "Annan: Poor
Nations Must Set Development Priorities" NYT 12 Feb. It describes his theme as: LDCs "should
play a greater role in setting policy and priorities in thefinancing of global development" and
cease to be "decided in clubs where only rich countries have real influence" . This issue is of
course a perennial one at the UN, where the contribution-weighted voting in Bretton Woods
bodies is seen as "grossly unfair" and "neo-colonialist" by aid recipients, whose very survival
may be at stake, but "absolutely essential" by the investment-oriented donors, who feel"
shareholders" have natural rights to determine where and how their own money is spent. Annan
aims to increase the relative role of" one-country-one-vote" UN fora(UNGA; ECOSOC)in making
broad global development policies and priorities. He also is very concerned to make foreign
investment in LDCs larger and less volatile as ODA continues its decline. Advising him is a
high-level panel(Zedillo, Rubin, Delors...).
John B.Alexander Future War: Non-Lethal Weapons in Twenty-First Century Warfare(New York:
St. Martin's Press 99):-excellent study of immense potential of non-lethal weapons, and impact
of global trends on aims of security. Assumed US/NATO must(via UN)be world police force.
Emerging threats for armed forces/police are: powerful criminal/terrorist organizations, together
with transnational/religious bodies/ groups seeing themselves as politically, economically or
socially deprived. Wide range of non-lethal weaponry includes acoustic, biological, chemical,
electromagnetic weapons, physical restraints, low-impact projectiles, information warfare.
Useful scenarios: peace support(UN)operations; technologicalsanctions; strategic paralysis;
hostages or barricades. Issues addressed: practical limitations, strategicimplications, moral
opposition, legal considerations, and constraints on "winning" .
Mark D.Alleyne News Revolution: Political and Economic Decisions About Global Information
(New York: St. Martin's Press 97):-surprising look at actual degree of media independence in the
post-industrial worldin view of assumption that - with computer networks and instant global
communications - their current freedom is unprecedented. After recounting rise and decline of
LDCs' demand for a NWICO (New World Information and Communication Order) in UNESCO,
author analyses: new and expanded uses of "propaganda"; misfit between "free" (unfettered)
media and real "distributive justice"; media freedom vs other priorities (e.g. privacy); problems
of journalists' safety.
Graham AllisonNuclear Terrorism: The Ultimate Preventable Catastrophe(New York: Owl
Books/Henry Holk & Co 05):-extremely expert/influential report argues in INTRODUCTION
that:"Given the number of actors with serious intent, the accessibility of weapons or nuclear
materials from which elementary weapons could be constructed, and the almost limitless ways
in which terrorists could smuggle a weapon through US borders, [i]n my own considered
judgment, on the current path, a nuclear terrorist attack on US inthe decade ahead is more likely
than not"(15). First chapter concludes:"What all [major terrorist] groups have in common is a
hatred of the US or the West, along with sophisticated organizational structuresand access to
technical know-how. [U]ncomfortable fact is that being the world's only superpower isinevitably
going to breed resentment of one form or another - and it is impossible to mollify every single
group. Challenge to US is to prevent these organizations from acquiring the means to threaten
us with nuclear attack"(42).Then describes"unique destructive power of these terrible weapons",
how/where they could be obtained, and where/when/how attacks might take place(43-120). Then
describes policy changes to reduce chance of attack. List: priority to issue; standard for secure
nuclear weapons/material; globalalliance against nuclear terrorism; global clean-out of all
dangerous fissile material; stop new national production of fissile material; shut down of nuclear
black markets; block emergence of nuclear weaponsstates; full review of global nonproliferation
regime; revise nuclear weapons' postures/pronouncements;global prosecuting war on
terrorism(205). Emphasis is on US but essential involvement must be global.
Lawrence K.Altman "Chimp Virus Is Linked to H.I.V." New York Times 26 May 06:- "By studying
chimpanzee droppings in remote African jungles, scientists reported [25 May] they have found
direct evidence of amissing link between a chimpanzee virus and the one that causes human
AIDS. Scientists have long suspected that chimpanzees are the source of the human AIDS
pandemic because at least one subspecies carries a simian immune deficiency virus closely
related to HIV, the virus that causes AIDS... The genetic and immunologic tests were developed
in stages over the past seven years to help tracethe evolution of HIV and solve the mysterious
origins of AIDS. [S]tudy combined genetics and epidemiology... Team's findings show 'for the
first time a clear picture of the origin of HIV-1 and theseeds of the AIDS pandemic'. HIV-1 is the
virus that causes the vast majority of AIDS cases in the world... Studies estimate that the human
AIDS virus jumped species 50 to 75 years ago. But no one knowswho the first infected person
was or how that person acquired HIV. The earliest HIV infection wasdocumented in 1959 in an
unidentified man in Kinshasa[, Congo]. Team theorized that HIV was first transmitted locally
somewhere in west-central Africa. Because the subspecies of chimpanzees... livesin the wild in
Cameroon, Gabon and Congo Republic, the first infection could have been in any of those
areas... The communities with a high prevalence of infected chimpanees were located south of
theSangha River, which flows into the Congo river and on to Kinshasa. That led... to the theory
that someinfected person carried HIV from a remote area to Kinshasa, where it was then passed
on. It is not known whether chimpanzees infected with SIVcpz become ill... More collections
were needed in other vast areas of Africa to provide a clearer picture of the evolution of AIDS
and to determine if there wereother viruses that could cause epidemics like AIDS" .
Lawrence K.Altman "Report Shows AIDS Epidemic Slowdown in 2005"New York Times 30 May
06:- "Newsurveys suggest that global AIDS epidemic has begun to slow, with decline in new HIV
infections in about 10 countries, leader of UNAID program said. Outside of those countries,..
number of new AIDS infections continues to rise or hover at its current pace. Meanwhile, public
health efforts are reaching only a small proportion of people at risk, Dr.Peter Piot, executive
director of UNAIDS, said at news conference in UN NYC ...India has 5.7m infected people and
South Africa 5.5m, but India's population far greater. Showing no sign of decline, South Africa
has a prevalence rate of about 19% of 47m people.In India, rate is less than 1% of its population
of 1.1b. Progress against AIDS in some regions represents dividends from a surge in financing
since 2001, when UN pledged its commitment to stem epidemic by 2010. Declaration called for
countries to report regularly on their responses to AIDS. This week, UNGAwill receive the
progress that 126 countries have said they have made. Report(op.cit.), most comprehensive
survey ever compiled from country data, pointed to the 2001 UN meeting as a turning point for
AIDS financing. In 2005,.. world spent $8.3b on AIDS, compared with $1.6b in 2001. 'We areseeing
the impact', Piot said. He cited increased condom use, a rise in postponement of sexual
intercourse and a decrease in number of sex partners as factors in slowing of epidemic.
Summarizing report's findings, Piot said '2005 was least bad year in the history of the AIDS
epidemic'... Despite thepositive trends, Piot reported grim findings from China, Indonesia, Papua
New Guinea, Russia andVietnam(op.cit.), with signs of outbreaks in Bangladesh and Pakistan.
Ending the pandemic will depend largely on changing social norms like empowering women,
reducing stigma of the disease andencouraging a greater reduction in the number of sex
partners, report said. Most countries have strong foundations for building an effective response
against AIDS, report said, but systems to carry out plansremain inconsistent. Thoroughness of
the individual national reports varied, and many countries did not provide data for all
categories... Still, replies identified significant weaknesses, he said. Fewer than 50%of young
people achieved comprehensive knowledge levels about HIV, far fewer than the 90% goal.
Only9% of gay men and fewer than 20% of intravenous drug users received any kind of HIV
prevention help in 2005. Services to prevent HIV infections in infants have not scaled up as
rapidly as programs to provide antiretroviral therapy. Just 9% of pregnant women were covered...
Report shows that epicenterof the epidemic remains in sub-Saharan Africa. There epidemic has
reached peak, but incidence remains unacceptably high, Piot said. Across most of Africa, HIV
prevalence among pregnant women attendingclinics has remained roughly level for several
years. UN disputed contentions by some observers thatthe leveling off showed a turning point
in the AIDS epidemic in Africa... Piot said, 'actual number of people infected continues to rise
because of population growth'" ; Lawrence K.Altman "U.N. Urges Tripling of Funds by '08 to Halt
AIDS" NYT 01 Jun 06:- "Stopping epidemic of AIDS will require $22b/year by 2008 and possibly
more in following years, officials of UNAIDS program said. The $22b is nearly triplethe $8.3b
spent 05 by all sources, including governments and private sector. Urging that countries spend
more, UNSG Kofi Annan said a costlier and more sustained effort needed because AIDS
'hasspread further, faster and with more catastrophic long-term effects than any other disease'...
Of projectedfigure, half is needed for prevention and a quarter for treatment and care of infected
people. Remainderis for care of orphans, children at risk of becoming infected and program
costs. UNSG and Piot of UNAIDS spoke as UNGA began meeting aimed at renewing political
commitment and setting new goals for expenditures and for measuring progress... Annan urged
delegates to challenge countries trying to avoid goals that mention gay people, prostitutes,
intravenous-drug users and others at high risk of becoming infected. 'Governments concerned
need to be realistic and responsible', UNSG said. He also said that 'if we are here to try to end
the epidemic, we will not succeed by putting our head in the sandand pretending that these
people do not exist or they do not need help'... Report cards showed that most countries missed
more goals than they met. More than 20m have become infected since 2001 meeting.Now
countries must fundamentally change the way they think and deal with epidemic, moving from
crisis management to 'sustained attention and the kind of "anything it takes" resolve that
member states apply to preventing global financial meltdowns or wars' , Piot said... Global
Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS released a study showing that private companies have become
more likely to provide treatment for employees as cost of antiretroviral drugs has fallen over last
six years, to $140-$300/year,from $10,000. In African countries with a high prevalence, more than
70% of companies surveyed arefully subsidizing access to HIV treatment, coalition said.
Study...found increasing trend to expand such treatment to employees' dependents. Companies
also offering access to voluntary testing/counseling" ; Lawrence K.Altman & Elisabeth Rosenthal
"U.N. Strengthens Call for a Global Battle Against AIDS" NYT 02 Jun 06:- "[UNGA] adopted
strongly worded declaration [02 Jun] aimed at pressing nations of the worldto strengthen their
battle against AIDS, global pandemic [UNSG] called 'greatest challenge of our generation'.
Language of document surprised even anti-AIDS groups, which said that while it did not satisfy
all their objectives, they had feared it would be watered down... Nonbinding declaration reaffirms
commitments made in 01, when UN defined AIDS as far more than a medical issue, framing it in
terms of political/human rights/ economic survival... New document is political blueprint, not
plan of action.Calls for strong commitment to bolster the rights of women/girls so they can
protect themselves from infection with HIV... Declaration calls on countries to: use scientifically
documented prevention strategies, including condoms;make clean needles accessible to drug
users; take steps to provide universal access to prevention programs/ care/antiretroviral drugs.
Includes politically charged terms like 'condoms' /'vulnerable groups' , though those groups not
specified... Countries expected to measuretheir progress over next 5 years against targets to be
determined by UN... Said world will need to spend up to $23b/year by 2010... Earlier in day, UNSG
Annan delivered a gloomy assessment, saying world waslosing the battle. 'The epidemic
continues to outpace us' , he told packed UNGA. 'There are more new infections than ever
before; more deaths than ever before; more women/girls infected than ever before'... [US' s]
Mrs.Bush speech steered away from many of the criticisms that have been labled against
administration, notably that it promotes sexual abstinence over scientifically proven
strategies,particularly condom use. Indeed, she said, 'ABC'model - initials stand for abstain, be
faithful and usecondoms - had brought sharp declines in infections in Africa. Britain's
international development[minister] said in interview: abstinence alone did not work ...Dr. Peter
Piot [UNAIDS] said: while nodocument could make anyone '100% happy', final version was 'a
major advance'and far stronger thanweaker drafts circulating earlier in week" .
Chris Anderson, "The Young(stressing Youth and Age)" The Economist 23 Dec 00(Survey
1-16):-explorescauses/ elements/global impact of major social trend, strong in North America,
spreading through advanced/emerging societies and already changing poorer countries(Japan,
Germany, China)." About...growing influence of young adults in world, and especially working
world...thanks to convergence of forces that play to youth's strength -from technology to...pace
of change to...tearing down of traditional...order.[T]hey are...first young who are both in position
to change world, and are actually doing so.[Y]oung people increasingly make own environment,
thanks to shift in power that gives them opportunity, responsibility and tools once reserved for
their elders" .Rapid, relentless pace ofchange(technological/social)favours young, since they
learn/relearn faster/easier/can afford to risk more to try new things(including jobs).In
organizations, hierarchies of mature giving way to meritocracies in order to compete/ survive,
initiate/adjust to change, and as knowledge/skill/even experience needs constant
updating/replacement. Youth: welcome change; think flexibly/technologically;
exploit(mobile)skills; riskfutures; prefer opportunity to wealth/ security; demand/deserve
respect. "Youth and Government" in issue(61-2)reports youth's growing role/impact in
decision-making.[ "W]ell-prepared input can be more influential than[votes - point often made
about NGOs' power being in knowledge]Young people...are not only leaders of tomorrow;
increasingly they are leaders of today" .
Kofi A. Annan, "The Quiet Revolution" Global Governance Vol.4/No.2(Apr-Jun 98):-fine updating
of Secretary-General worldview and priorities. Globalization is "most rapid reconfiguration
of...economic geography ever" so UN must exploit"mutual benefits of change while managing
adverse effects...UN's past pattern of incremental adaptations will not suffice." Must do what "it
does better than others" ;collaborate more with international bodies/civil society: NGOs
/business/academe. UN aim"strategic resource deployment, unity ofpurpose, coherence of
effort/agility/flexibility" .
Kofi A. Annan, "UN Committed to Ensuring World Water Security and 'Blue Revolution', Says
Secretary-General, in Message to World Water Forum" in UN Press Release SG/SM/7334 21 Mar
00:-urgent global problem is finding huge additional quantities of affordable water to meet
increasing needs of population growth/concentration and rising agricultural/industrial demand,
and to make up for global pollution andfalling water tables(see Worldwatch Institute: Lester R.
Brown, "Water: Emerging Constraint on Growth" (123-5)in State of the World(1999)op.cit.). Hence
"world's impending water crisis" was theme of UNSG's text. He reported that "every year, more
than 5 million people[over 50% children]die as a result of poor water quality - 10 times the
number killed in wars...[W]ithin 25 years two out of every three people on Earth will live in
water-stressed conditions. Indeed, the declining state of the world's freshwater resources, in
terms of quantity and quality, may well prove to be the dominant issue on the environment and
development agenda of the new century" . UN Newservice 21 Mar 00: Klaus Toepfer, UNEP head,
at the Forum: "The battle for the conservation of water will be won or lost in the mega-cities of
the world" .[Technology can help:]Douglas Jehl, "Tampa Bay Looks to the Sea to Quench Its
Thirst" in New York Times12 Mar 00:-US appears to be just reaching the stage when many
high-density areas need, or find it economic, to desalinate sea or brackish water. Tampa
Bay(2.3m residents)will be the first large urban areato do so, planning the largest(25m
gallons/day)desalinization plant outside Saudi Arabia(whose economics are totally different). As
of writing, five states(cheaply)desalinate brackish water, while two cities which built sea-water
plants decades ago, now use them for backup due to cost. But Tampa cost estimates have fallen
from $4-6 per 1,000 gallons to $2.08. With several cities planning desalinization, and many more
facing the need, economics/technology may now produce a global cost breakthrough. [World
FDI and ODA may soon include large expenditures on desalination.]
Kofi A. Annan, "We the Peoples: The Role of the United Nations in the 21st Century" Millennium
Report of S-G presented 03 Apr 00 to UNGA in preparation for the Millennial Summit 6-8 Sep 00:-
Executive Summary, Key Proposals, Full Report, Fact Sheet, Press Releases, SG UNGA
Statement, SG Press Conference Transcript: all under http://www.un.org/millennium/sg/report/.
Annan said report "attempts to present a comprehensive account of the challenges facing
humanity as we enter the twenty-first century, combined with a plan of action for dealing with
them" . Section titles with(very tight)summaries: I. New Century, New Challenges: New
millennium-Summit offers unique occasion to reflect on world's common destiny, since
interconnected as never before. UN can help meet challenges ahead and be reshaped now to
make a real difference. II. Globalization and Governance: Globalization unequally distributed and
lacks shared social objectives. More people(plus crime, drugs, terrorism, pollution, disease,
weapons, migrants, refugees)interact across frontiers faster, and feel more threatened/ horrified
by distant events/conditions. New technologies enable common understanding/action, so must
learn to govern better, together. States need mutual help via common institutions, from
non-state actors, and informal policy networks. The unequal/unstable/unsustainable world
development model needs agreed remedial measures. III. Freedom From Want: .5b live on less
than $1 a day, so must reduce extreme poverty by half before 2015. Priorities: sustained growth;
all children complete primary school by 2015 and all youth finddecent work; by 2010 HIV
infection rate in young cut by 25% -one result of more LDC-relevant research; improve lives of
100m slum dwellers by 2020; experts/charities to tackle low agricultural productivity in Africa,
as governments give higher priority to poverty; maximize LDC access to infonets to speed
development; rich states open markets to LDCs, offer more debt relief, and focus increased
ODA. IV.Freedom From Fear: internal wars killed 5m in decade; WMD remain threat; security
protects people, not territory. Tackle conflict by: prevention, more balanced development,
human/minority rights, exposingweapons/money/resource smuggling; protect the vulnerable by
enforcing international/human rights law; using UNSC for armed intervention when rights and
lives are massively violated; consider peace operations review panel proposals; target "smart"
sanctions more; improve control of small arms transfers, and reduce dangers of existing nuclear
arms and proliferation. V. Sustaining Our Future: Most planet-sustaining actions are too few,
little, and late. Before 2002, must: cope with climate change: reduce emissions 60% by
efficient/renewable energy, implementing Kyoto Protocol; meet water crisis: accept 2015 target
of 50% reduction in those without safe/affordable water, raise agricultural productivity per unit
of water, improve management; defend soil: biotechnology may be best hope for sufficient food
production, so debate must be resolved globally; preserve forests, fisheries, biodiversity with
joint government/private sector conservation; build new stewardship ethic: public education,
integration ofenvironment into economic policy, regulations/ incentives, accurate scientific data.
VI. Renewing the UN: Must find consensus solutions among governments, private sector, NGOs,
and IOs, with UN as catalyst. Build on core UN strengths(norm-setting, global actions,
humanitarian trust)to press rule of law, adapt UNSC, and work with NGOs, private sector and
foundations, including through informal policy networks; work with industry to exploit
information technology; improve UN management throughstructural/agenda reform,
priority-setting, more flexibility, results-based budgeting. VII. For Consideration by the Summit:
Act on basis of shared Charter values: Freedom, Equity and Solidarity, Tolerance, Non-Violence,
Respect for Nature, Shared Responsibility. Adopt resolutions drawn from Report as
evidence.Reviews: Barbara Crossette, "Annan Urges High-Tech Aid for Poor Countries" in New
York Times 4 Apr;The Economist 8 Apr: "Kofi Annan's Words to the World: Bouncing to a Fairer
World"(51).
"Anonymous"Imperial Hubris: Why the West Is Losing the War on Terror(DullesVA: Brassey's
04):-author is a senior US intelligence official with nearly 20 years experience in national security
issues related to Afghanistan and South Asia. This strong critique of arrogant US/allies' policies
towards Osama bin Laden/al Qaeda, and military action against Afghanistan/Iraq, proved quickly
influential in many respects, and advocates less US loyalty to Israel/corrupt Muslim regimes or
presence in Mideast. Motivation of Muslim terrorists is identified not as hatred/fear of Western
national systems but of their broadly negative actions against Islamic peoples. All complex
chapter titles: (1)Some Thoughts on the Power of Focused, Principled Hatred. (2) An Unprepared
and Ignorant Lunge to Defeat - The US in Afghanistan. (3) Not Down, Not Out: Al Qaeda's
Resiliency, Expansion, and Momentum. (4) The World's View of bin Laden: A Muslim Leader and
Hero Coming into Focus? (5) Bin Laden Views the World: Some Old, Some New, and a Twist. (6)
Blinding Hubris Abounding: Inflicting Defeat on Ourselves - Non-War, Leaks, and Missionary
Democracy. (7) When the Enemy Sets the Stage: How US's Stubborn Obtuseness Aids Its Foes.
(8) The Way Ahead: A Few Suggestions for Debate. Epilogue: No Basis for Optimism.
Clair Apodaca, Michael Stohl, George Lopez, "Moving Norms to Political Reality:
Institutionalizing Human Rights Standards through the United Nations System" (185-220)in The
Future of the United Nations System: Potential for the Twenty-First Century(New York: UN Univ.
98):-extremely useful study of UN human rights structures, treaties and activities, employing a
new sense that state legitimacy derives from internal order and regard for standards. Four main
UN purposes include promotion of human rights, set down in Universal Declaration(48)and
amplified in two International Covenants(76).All three now binding on all states. Many more
specific UN System treaties, with recent emphasis on Humanitarian Law.Growing human rights
roles of NGOs, High Commissioner and complex UN structures are explained.Reform proposals
involve structure, NGO protection and regional action.
John Arquilla and David Ronfeldt, edit., In Athena's Camp: Preparing for Conflict in the
Information Age(Santa Monica: RAND, 1997):-while addressed to US concerns, issues raised are
global. Included are: thenew world epoch of conflict will revolve around knowledge; the
information revolution, being both organizational and technological, empowers small, non-state,
networked actors vis-a-vis hierarchies(i.e. states); threats are diffused, nonlinear and complex;
conflict tends militarily towards "cyberwar" , sociallyto diverse but comprehensive "netwar" ;
new trends are found in: state, business, and NGO roles,information warfare, global crime and
terrorist capacity. Information on balance promotes peace. All these developments affect the UN
role in maintaining peace and security.
Reza Aslan No god but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam(New York: Random
House 05):-The widely-read author defines his aim in the Prologue: "This book is not just critical
reexamination of the origins and evolution of Islam, nor is it merely an account of the current
struggle among Muslims to define the future of this magnificent yet misunderstood faith. This
book is, above all else, an argument for reform"(xx). William Grimes, in his New York Times 04
May 05 review, quotes the book:"What is taking place now in the Muslim world is an internal
conflict between Muslims, not an external battle between Islam and the West"(248). Grimes
himself argues: "[Islam's] history, grippingly narrated and thoughtfully examined, takes up nearly
all of 'No god but God'. Aslan... has written a literate, accessible introduction to Islam.,. carefully
placing its message/rituals in historical context. Complete with glossary/annotated bibliography,
it could easily serve as a college textbook". The 310-page book includes 21st century arguments:
"[T]he attacks of 11 Sep 01 were not a defensive strike against a specific act of aggression
against Islam. They were never sanctioned by a qualified mujtahid. They made no differentiation
between combatant/noncombatant.,. indiscriminately killed women, children, and approximately
200 Muslims. In other words, they fell far short of the regulations imposed by Muhammad for a
legitimate jihadi response, which is why, despite common perception in the West, they were so
roundly condemned by the vast majority of the world's Muslims"(87). "Tragic events of 11 Sep...
initiated a vibrant discourse among Muslims about meaning/message of Islam in 21st century...
It may be too early to know who will write the next chapter of Islam's story, but it is not too early
to recognize who will ultimately win the war between reform/counterreform... But the cleansing
inevitable, and tide of reform cannot be stopped. Islamic Reformation is already here"(266).
Associated Press," Researchers Produce a Healthier Rice" in New York Times 14 Jan 00: -item
reports that " scientists have genetically engineered a type of rice that could end vitamin A
deficiency in the developing world" . About 14m children worldwide are deficient; so besides
reducing widespread blindness, raising vitamin A levels could prevent 1-2m deaths a year. Swiss
researchers successfully spliced three genes into rice to make it rich in beta carotene, a source
of vitamin A. While tests are ensuring the original nutritional value is maintained, the famous
International Rice Research Institute(IRRI) is working tobreed the trait into popular rice varieties.
New developments reported in David Barboza"AstraZeneca to Sell a Genetically Engineered
Strain of Rice" NYT 16 May(Note to Anthony DePalma "Super Seeds Sweeping Major Markets...").
Associated Press, "Activists Seek Cluster Bomb Ban" New York Times 08 Aug 00:-British arm
of International Campaign to Ban Land Mines has called for global moratorium on use,
manufacture and sale of cluster bombs, pending in-depth review of their legality and impact.
While designed to scatter immediately-exploding "bomblets" over large area, significant
numbers of bomblets fail to explode on first impact; so effectively become land mines. By
causing civilian casualties for years after hostilities end, charged their use is "indiscriminate and
in clear breach of international humanitarian law." Group calls for laws requiring clearance after
combat, compensation of civilian casualties and deployment records.Reuters, "UK Anti-Land
Mine Group Seeks Ban on Cluster Bombs" NYT 8 Aug :- gives similar facts, but adds bomblets
can blight farmland, impede economic recovery, grow in lethality over time.
Associated Press"AIDS Said Orphaned 1.5M Asia - Pacific Kids"New York Times 22 Mar
06:-"AIDS hasorphaned an estimated 1.5m children in Asia-Pacific region, but they are often
overlooked in the mix of other issues surrounding a disease that has historically focused on
adults, officials told a regional conference... About 121,000 children in the region have been
infected by the disease, according to UNAIDS figures from 2004. Another 35,000 also need
anti-retroviral drug treatment to survive. Three-day meeting has drawn some 250 delegates from
UN agencies, governments and NGOs to Hanoi to discusswhat can be done to limit spread of
the disease among youth and how to help children already infected or orphaned by it... UNICEF
regional director... said there needs to be increased prevention efforts targeting youth, more
focus on prevention of mother to child transmission, provision of drugs to children suffering
from the disease, and creation of support groups for kids infected with the virus or orphaned by
it... A Save the Children survey... found that many children cannot go to school because
someone in their family is sick with the disease, they are commonly ridiculed and ostracized by
society and are sometimes forced to work as slaves or sex workers after becoming orphans";
AP"Group Warns of More Child AIDS Deaths"NYT 24 Mar 06:-"Number of children orphaned by
AIDS in East Asia-Pacificregion could grow from 450,000 to 1.7m in less than a decade if
resources aren't increased for prevention and treatment, UNICEF official said... Also said number
of child deaths could reach nearly 20,000 a year during that time if more isn't done... It would
take up to $5.5b annually until 2015 to lessen effects of HIV/AIDS on children in the region, in
increasing to an estimated $6b a year after that, he said... [UNICEF epidemiologist also said]
there are an estimated 450,000 children in the region who have lost one or both parents to the
disease, and that could grow to 1.7m by 2015 without more funding... A documentreleased at end
of conference called for reducing the stigma and discrimination associated with HIV,boosting
steps to prevent mother-to-child transmission, and enhansing care and protection for children.
Other provisions included more pediatric HIV testing and greater access to anti-retroviral drugs
for children.HIV/AIDS epidemic is growing faster in East Asia than anywhere else in the world.
In many countriesepidemic still largely concentrated in high-risk groups.
Associated Press"AIDS Conference Ends With Appeals"New York Times 26 Apr 06:-
"International AIDS conference [in Cape Town, of 1,000 scientists/researchers,] ended [26 Apr]
with impassioned appeals to political/pharmaceutical industry leaders to fund development of
a virus-killing [vaginal] gel to protect women from the disease and so save millions of lives. Peter
Piot, head of UNAIDS,.. said safe/effective microbicides could be ready in 5-7 years, with only
minimal additional funding, and thus turn the dream of saving millions of lives into reality... In
the hard hit African countries, women account for nearly 60% of infections. Most are infected
through heterosexual intercourse... UNAIDS/WHO have long promotedmicrobicides as a
potentially valuable weapon in fight against the epidemic, not least because it allows women to
protect themselves without having to rely on partners who refuse to wear a condom or befaithful.
Yet despite this, research has proceeded slowly. [Piot] said investment in microbicide
development should be doubled - and even then would still only reach about US$150m per
year...Microbicides can take the form of a gel, cream, sponge or ring that releases an ingredient
that can kill or deactivate HIV during intercourse. There are currently five different products
being tested[, mainly in Africa on thousand of women]. Dozens of agents that could interrupt HIV
transmission have so far beenidentified. There are also hopes that the microbicides could be
used to prevent other sexually transmitteddiseases and unwanted pregnancies. One of the
products, cellulose sulphate, has the potential to bea contraceptive and shield against HIV...
Another microbicide, Carragard, coats vaginal cells and preventsthe virus from entering...Much
of funding for research comes from Gates Foundation and US government... Trying to dismiss
fears that microbicides would mainly be used in developing countries and therefore offer only
low profit margins, [WHO] cited their potential for use in contraception in wealthy countries".
Associated Press"Maritime Authorities OK Tracking Measure"New York Times 19 May
06:-"Maritime authorities have agreed upon new legislation that will allow for long-range tracking
of merchant ships - a key measure in tackling the threat of seaborne terrorist attacks, the UN
International Maritime Organization said [19 May]. A total of 166 countries have agreed to the
new rules for merchant vessels, which would also allow countries to conduct surveillance on
vessels suspected of carrying illicit cargo.Organization said signatory governments had
provisionally agreed to the changes in the Safety of Life at Sea convention... 'Ships will be
required to transmit their identity, location and date and time of theirposition to be tracked by
satellite', said UN shipping agency's external relations officer... New legislation will mean a
ship's position can be identified up to 1,000 nautical miles from shore. Current systems
arelimited to a range of a few hundred nautical miles... Merchant vessels trading in international
waters willneed to switch to new long-range system by Jan 08, offering maritime authorities a
system similar tothat used by air traffic controllers";
Associated Press "Annan Paints Grim Picture to Assembly"New York Times 19 Sep
06:-"Addressing world leaders for last time as UNSG, Kofi Annan painted a grim picture of an
unjust world economy, global disorder, widespread contempt for human rights, and appealed
for nations/peoples to truly unite. As theannual UN General Assembly [UNGA] ministerial
meeting got under way, 192 UN member states facedambitious agenda including trying to
promote Mideast peace, curb Iran's nuclear ambitions, get UN peacekeepers into
conflict-wracked Darfur, promote democracy... Annan, whose second five-year term ends 31 Dec
06, said the past decade has seen progress in development, security, rule of law - the threegreat
challenges he said humanity faced in first address to UNGA in 97. But UNSG said too many still
exposed to brutal conflict, and fear of terrorism has increased clash of civilizations/religions.
Terrorismbeing used as pretext to limit or abolish human rights, and globalization risks driving
richer and poorer apart, he said. 'Events of last 10 years have not resolved, but sharpened, three
great challenges - unjust world economy, world disorder, and widespread contempt for human
rights and rule of law', Annan said.'As result, we face world whose divisions threaten very notion
of an international community, upon which this institution stands. I remain convinced that only
answer to this divided world must be a truly United Nations' , he said. In annual report, UNSG
touched on some of most difficult issues confronting leaders... [Arab-Israeli conflict; Iraq;
Afghanistan; Sudan/Darfur]. 'Together we have pushed some big rocks to top of the mountain,
even if others have slipped from our grasp and rolled back. But this mountain... is best place on
earth to be',UNSG said.'I yield my place to others with an obstinate feeling of hope for our
common future', Annan said. [UNGA] loud applause/rose in sustained standing ovation".
Séverine Autesserre"The Trouble With Congo: How Local Disputes Fuel Regional Conflict"(94-110)Foreign Affairs Vol.87/No.3(May/Jun 08):-official summary:"Although the war in Congo
officially ended in 2003, 2m people have died since. One of the reasons is that the international
community's peacekeeping efforts there have not focused on the local grievances in eastern
Congo, especially those over land, that are fueling much of the broader tensions. Until they do,
the nation's security and that of wider Great Lakes region will remain uncertain". Emphasized
extracts:"Congo is now the stage for the largest humanitarian disaster in the world - far larger
than the crisis in Sudan. [I]nternational actors must tackle situation in Congo from the ground
up". Autesserre is Assistant Professor of Political Science at Barnard College, Columbia Univ.
Deborah Avant "THINK AGAIN: Mercenaries" Foreign Policy No.143(Jul/Aug 04):-a correction of
ten public (mis)concepts about the current activities and value of(mainly US-employed)PRIVATE
SECURITY FIRMS vs (traditional)MERCENARIES.(See also Sarah V. Percy op.cit.) Avant first
offers widely-believed view about such firms ( "Quoted/Under-lined Phrases" ); then states a
FIRM ONE/TWO-WORD REACTION; then saysat length her views of the actual truth. "Private
Security Companies Are Mercenaries" -NO. "'Mercenary'describes wide variety of military
activities, many of which bear little resemblance to those of today's...corporate endeavours that
perform logistics support, training, security, intelligence work, risk analysis, and much more"
. "The Bush Administration Has Dramatically Expanded Use of Military Contractors" -WRONG.
"US ramped up military outsourcing during 1990s, after end of Cold War brought reductions in
force size and numerous ethnic and regional conflicts emerged requiring intervention" .
"Contractors Don't Engage in Combat or Other Essential Military Tasks" -FALSE. " Although...
Rumsfeld said Pentagon would outsource all but core military tasks, these tasks are changing,
and military contractors perform many of them. Contractors have technical expertise to support
increasingly complex weapons systems[andintelligence services for war on terrorism]" .
"Military Contractors Are Cheaper than Regular Soldiers" -PROVE IT. "Two conditions must be
present for private sector to deliver services more efficiently than government: competitive
market and contractor flexibility in fulfilling their obligations.[G]overnmentsfrequently curtail
competition to preserve reliability and continuity[and]impose conditions that reduce contractors'
flexibility" . "Contractors Are Accountable to No One" -AN EXAGGERATION. "Manygovernments
regulate security contractors to greater or lesser degrees... Contractors are accountable to range
of employers and respond most effectively to market incentives...Use of contractors to
avoidgovernmental accountability is more worrisome. "Contractors Value Profits More than
Peace" -NOT ALWAYS." Although many critics argue that military contractors have economic
interest in prolonging conflict rather than reducing it, employees of private military companies
rarely have been accused of aggravating conflict intentionally to keep profits flowing" .
"Contractors Operate Outside the Law" -FREQUENTLY "Legal status of contractors varies
considerably. Sometimes they are subject to laws of territory in which they operate and other
times to those of their home territory, but too often distinction isunclear...Status of contractors
is even more contentious under international law. Most...activity falls outside purview of 1989
UN Convention on Mercenaries" . "Only Governments Hire Private Security Companies"
-WRONG. "Security contractors work for governments, transnational corporations, and
nongovernmental organizations(NGOs). Oil, diamond, and other extractive industries hire
contractors toguard their facilities, and UN and NGOs employ convoy guards. In Iraq, nearly
every foreign entity...requiresprivate security" . "The United Nations Should Outsource
Peacekeeping to Private Contractors" -NO. "Those who advocate that UN hire private
contractors are not looking to replace UN peacekeeping forces. Rather, they hope to make them
more flexible and easier to use...Outsourced peacekeeping is...unlikely.UNSC and UNGA have
been reluctant to consider it because of weak governments' concern that private security forces
could be used against them" . "Private Military Contractors Undermine State Power" -NOT
ALWAYS. "Contractors undermine states' collective monopoly on violence. Fact that US, Britain,
Australia and UN hire private security makes it hard for nations that oppose military contracting
to restrict security firms based in their country" . For another excellent (different) description of
current use of mercenaries, see The Economist 04 Nov 06"Mercenaries: Blood and
Treasure"(70-1):-Highlight is:"In recent decades,mercenaries... pushed to the wilder edges of
global conflict: the 'dogs of war'who fight nasty little campaigns in Africa. But for a new kind of
soldier of fortune, the fighting in Iraq has proved to be a pot of gold". Item's own summary:"After
the windfall of Iraq, where is the next fortune to be found?".
Lloyd Axworthy and Sarah Taylor, "A Ban for All Seasons: The Landmines Convention and Its
Implications for Canadian Diplomacy" International Journal Vol.LIII/No.2(Spring 98):-almost
entirely on techniques used to persuade 122 governments to sign Convention(Dec 97)to
eliminate the manufacture/use/export of anti-personnel landmines. Thrust: "Ottawa process"
required governments and civil society to work together as team. This "soft power" approach
is more appropriate because of changed international issues/relations/outcomes that also call
for more focus on human(vs state)security and humanitarian law.(See Hampson-Oliver
op.cit.)The Economist 04 Dec 04 "Lifting Landmines: Easy To Lay, Hard To Dig Up"
(46):-describes how one of world's worst minefields being cleared, and reports on
techniques/global issues, at the time of an international landmine conference in Nairobi. "Rats,
sniffer dogs and armour-plated bulldozers can help, but most mine-clearing still done by hand,
usually by man with pointed stickand plastic mask." Those in Angola use no metal detectors
since ground scattered with bullet casings as well. De-miners are rarely killed. "In five years
since global ban agreed in Ottawa, nearly 40m landmines ...destroyed. Most were in stockpiles,
but some 4m were painstakingly found and dug up. Nonetheless,devices still kill or maim 40
people/day...Some armies, such as Sudan's, continue to plant them.Guerrillas and rebels respect
no treaties. Only complete destruction of existing stocks and end to manufacture would cut off
supply. But that would require all countries to sign up to Ottawa treaty. So far144 countries have,
but China, Russia, Pakistan, India, US still refuse. China...considering signing, butUS will not,
mostly because minefields help keep North Koreans out of South Korea...US plans to switch to
using mines that self-destruct after a few weeks(though not always reliably)will be used as
excuse never to sign treaty. Men...will be prodding gingerly for long time yet."
Robert Baer"THE FP MEMO:- Wanted: Spies Unlike Us"Foreign Policy No.147(Mar/Apr
05):-former CIA case officer 1976-97, and author -See No Evil: The True Story of a Ground Soldier
in the CIA's War on Terrorism(New York: Crown Publishers 02), drafts a MEMORANDUM from
himself to Porter Goss, U.S. Director of Central Intelligence, entitled"Getting the CIA Back in the
Game". He writes"CIA is clearly broken, and you have a chance to fix it... Reform is needed
across the board, but the Directorate of Operations(DO) should be your first target. Its mission
- recruiting and running foreign spies - should be the agency's core function.Give DO the tools
it needs, and intelligence analysis will take care of itself...Here are my suggestions(forming
remainder of the MEMO under following headings): Reform the Promotion System; Know Your
Sources;Recruit on College Campuses; Lower the Retirement Age; Stop Relying on Foreign
Governments;Change the Security Clearance System; Recruit on the Dark Side. [I would myself
disagree with the proposed total lack of cooperation with the world's 200 or so "Foreign
Governments". Even the US could not gain unilaterally all the global information it is going to
need. The global danger of all types/sources of terrorism in the world can only be constrained
if all governments ideally/ostensibly work together.Genuine intelligence activity abroad
could/would lie on top of that.]
Carter F.Bales & Richard D.Duke "Containing Climate Change: An Opportunity for U.S.
Leadership"(78-89) Foreign Affairs Vol.87/No.5(Sep/Oct 08):-official summary:"Greenhouse gas
emissions are harming the environment and the global economy. After cleaning up its own act,
US must enlist developing countries in a new climate-control regime that promises to
dramatically reduce emissions and encourage energy efficiency and the development of clean-energy technology". Emphasized extracts:"A cap-and-invest strategy would allow US to develop
a clean economy at little or no net cost". "Time has come for US to lead the fight against global
warming at home and abroad". Bales: Managing Partner Emeritus of Wicks Group of Companies.
Duke: Director of Natural Resources Defense Council's Center for Market Innovation.
Benjamin R. Barber, Jihad vs. McWorld: How the Planet is Both Falling Apart and Coming
Together and What This Means for Democracy(New York: Times Books 95):-unusual and
debatable perception of some broad global trends that has generated new interest - though not
necessarily credibility for its conclusion - since its publication. Argues world experiencing basic
conflict between homogenizing power of post-industrial capitalism/ "fundamentalist"
ethnic-religious reaction. Believes both forces undermine state(presumably in terms of
traditional sovereignty)and hence democracy.[Why and how is democracy so dependent upon
sanctity of Westphalian nation-state?]Sources of new interest derive, of course, from growth of
anti-globalization movement, however disunited it may be in both fears and formulas, and "Clash
of Civilizations" thesis put forward by Samuel P. Huntington(op.cit.)and apparently illustrated
-all too violently-by Osama bin Laden.
Scott Barrett Why Cooperate? The Incentive to Supply Global Public Goods (New York: Oxford
Univ Press 07):-surprisingly well written -considering the complexity of issues- in: (1) describing
the existing global challenges (e.g. climate change, nuclear proliferation, worldwide pandemics)
and those that threaten the entire planet (e.g. terrorism, physical/chemical/biological instabilities,
asteroids); and (2) reporting on how such problems have been successfully or badly handled
in the past, the rationales involved, and the various cooperations that would/might work best in
future. Barrett's "threat" approach differs from my item "EARTH MUST COOPERATE...", mainly
in stressing "Global Public Goods" actions of the recent past (e.g.often successful United
Nations; wonderful "Montreal Protocol" ozone treaty), whereas my gloomy and concentrated
"page" is designed almost solely to identify: (1) the exploding scale/variety of global threats; (2)
the human tendencies that have created/will create them; and (3) why we must change a number
of very old human views/feelings. Both press broader global diplomacy as essential tool. Most
chapters focus on distinct types of issue/solution. [Even a study of brief bit(s) of 275p would be
valuable.] Titles: Incentives to Supply Global Public Goods [GPG]; (1) Single Best Efforts: GPG
that Can Be |