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China’s interventions in the Indian subcontinent: Challenges for Modi’s foreign policy
No full textThe Indian subcontinent is a vast area located in the southern region of Asia. Being situated at the centre of the sub-continent, India has become the naturally dominating regional actor. It is able to project power through its economic and diplomatic superiority over neighbouring countries. During the subcontinent’s de-colonisation process India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, and Nepal all became independent and free to form their own domestic and international policies. Subsequently, China started asserting its regional influence in economic, diplomatic and political matters: examples include the development of Gwadar port and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC); the strengthening of political and economic relations with Nepal and Bhutan; investment in the Hambantota port of Sri Lanka and the China-Maldives Friendship Bridge. All these Chinese initiatives have challenged India’s historical relationship with its neighbouring countries. They were further augmented in its new Asian connectivity project through the Silk Road “Belt and Road” vision
Cultural exchange rate: role of India’s soft power in binding SAARC nations
No full textWhile Delhi has faced hard power limitations among the SAARC nations’ relationships, India can rely on its soft power capacities to tackle divisive issues. This prospect can be analysed from four angles: state-to-state soft power; state-to-people soft power; people-to-people soft power; and people-to-state soft power. While these dimensions rest on ancient cultural foundations, one may question how these Indian soft power elements can be used on a multilateral scale. Firstly, India’s state-to-state soft power sets an example to the region, given the diplomatic goodwill generated by India accepting the UN Tribunal decision to favour Dhaka in the maritime boundary dispute case. Secondly, state-to-people soft power is demonstrated by India’s training assistance to South Asian neighbours in educational or professional domains. This, however, need not be a one-sided affair with only India being a source of training. There are opportunities for all SAARC nations to learn from each other, for instance from Bhutan’s environmental track record and Bangladesh’s micro-finance network. Thirdly, people - to- state soft power is strongly manifested in the South Asian region. This is seen when ethnic minorities shape foreign policy in other countries. By influencing regional policies on issues such as the Millennium Development Goals, NGOs can also play a crucial role in delivering soft power. And finally, while the other soft power angles require considerable efforts, encouraging signs are being observed on the people-to-people front. Commonalities in culture are a major starting point, albeit one that has begun aeons ago. What stands apart in this era is the opportunity presented by science and technology, including the internet. India can foster aerospace engineering as a profession in the region in order to make SAARC nations self-reliant on space technology. Besides, social media platforms offer limitless possibilities in discovering and reinforcing existing socio-cultural threads. This is possible thanks to English being the lingua franca for urban classes in all SAARC nations, which benefit from the legacy of British colonialism. While the former coloniser drew boundaries that today spark South Asian disputes, it is heartening to see soft power making some headway in polishing rough regional edges. This friction is sometimes generated by India’s well-meaning yet overwhelming influence on the region. Although economic and military influence will cause some wariness among India’s South Asian neighbours, soft power plays a contrasting role. Soft tactics like aid and entertainment industry from India can permeate boundaries without meeting resistance. This paper also raises the question whether soft power can bring a silver lining on the horizon for India-Pakistan relations. This is studied by examining the four trajectories of soft power from the Indian perspective. Amidst these ponderings, the Chinese counter-efforts to Indian attempts cannot be ignored
Timor-Leste: Das historische Narrativ ausgleichen - Die Gründung des Institut Centro Nacional Chega!
No full text2015 veranstaltete die regionale Menschenrechtsorganisation Asia Justice and Rights (AJAR) die erste Familienzusammenführung mit den »gestohlenen Kindern« in Dili, Timor-Leste. Osttimores*innen, die während der Besatzungszeit durch Indonesien (1975–1999) als Kinder nach Indonesien gebracht wurden, hatten jahrzehntelang jeglichen Kontakt mit ihren Familien verloren. Die Suche nach ihnen und ihren Familien wird in den zwei Ländern von einer Gruppe von zivilgesellschaftlichen Organisationen durchgeführt
Human Rights Due Diligence in Mineral Supply Chains: International Developments and Chinese Efforts
No full textSmartphones, electric vehicles and wind turbines all have one thing in common: they cannot be manufactured without critical mineral resources which often originate from conflict-affected or high-risk areas. These minerals which are often termed "conflict minerals", include tin, tantalum, tungsten, gold and, since more recently, cobalt. They make semiconductors faster, batteries more powerful and metal alloys more resistant to extreme temperatures
Challenges of the New Silk Route Initiative (NSRI) for Afghanistan
No full textThis paper argues that, to end the fourteen-year conflict in Afghanistan, the United States came out with a novel idea under the banner of a “New Silk Route Initiative” for conflict resolution and the empowerment of Afghanistan. The purpose of this program was to better integrate Afghanistan with South and Central Asia after 2014 by reinforcing the Ancient Silk Route, first known as the ‘Asia roundabout’ or the ‘bridge between South and Central Asia’. However, this paper asserts that the initiative for Silk Road revival is hard to realize, due to inextricable political, security, and technical challenges. The paper is an attempt to highlight all of these challenges which have contributed to the project’s slow progress. The authors further suggest that these challenges are not unique to the New Silk Route Initiative, but rather are common across all initiatives and development projects which aim to integrate Afghanistan with the rest of the world
Crimes against humanity - An assessment of Bangladesh’s response in a comparative perspective; the cases of Cambodia and Iraq
No full textSADF has dedicated a good number of research papers and events to the Bangladeshi 1971 genocide. SADF has raised the awareness of the international community by organising and attending conferences both in Brussels and in Dhaka. SADF now aims to further develop its previous work on Bangladesh by conducting a comparative analytical study. This study assesses Bangladesh’s contemporary judicial initiative in contrast with the cases of internationally led or influenced initiatives, like the ones of Cambodia and Iraq. In so doing, this paper appraises the application of the rule of law by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), and the Iraqi High Tribunal (IHT) in prosecuting authors of crimes against humanity. Our findings show that the Bangladeshi authorities were able to apply the rule of law and, most importantly, combat impunity, in a far more robust and lawful way than the international community’s highly influenced justice procedures of Iraq and Cambodia
War on drugs for peace in Afghanistan: Lessons from South America
No full textTrafficking of opiates as a means to finance armed conflicts in Afghanistan dates back to the Jihadists’ fight against the Soviet invasion in the 1980s. This policy brief is based on finding a way to eliminate the repercussions of this drug economy both in Afghanistan and in the drug destination countries in the so-called ‘West’. The paper uses the similarly situated conflict between the FARC rebel group and the Colombian government as an inspiration for approaches to peace in Afghanistan. It argues, based on an analysis of the development of illicit crop cultivation in both Afghanistan and Colombia, that Afghan farmers are most likely to be encouraged to cultivate food crops instead of opium poppy, the base plant for opium and heroin, when the profit margins of opium remain consistently low. The paper further asserts that a comprehensive rural reform as well as a voluntary crop substitution scheme, as stipulated by the 2016 FARC peace agreement with the Colombian government, are feasible to be implemented also in Afghanistan. Moreover, the policy brief puts a focus on how the West, as a major market for Afghan heroin, can help the situation in the country. Using the 2013 cannabis legalisation regulations in Uruguay and other cutting-edge approaches to drug use, the paper encourages Western nations to experiment with national measures aimed at reducing the adverse effects of drug consumption while at the same time reducing demand in black-market narcotics. It is suggested that implementing such legislation would help drain profits from transnational drug syndicates and sustain-ably decrease the profit margins of illicit crops, such as opium poppy
Zeit für neue Strategien - Gegenwärtiger Stand des Friedensprozesses in Myanmar
No full textNach fast siebzig Jahren Bürgerkrieg und bewaffneten Konflikten wird der Friedensprozess als grundlegende Basis für ein friedliches Zusammenleben im multiethnischen Myanmar bewertet. Die Friedensverhandlungen unter der ehemaligen Regierung resultierten im sogenannten Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (Landesweiten Waffenstillstandsabkommen), das von acht – aus rund 21 – bewaffneten ethnischen Gruppen unterzeichnet wurde. Die Initiierung der Panglong-Friedenskonferenzen unter der nachfolgenden National League for Democracy-Regierung weckte große Hoffnungen bei den ethnischen Minderheiten im Land. Inzwischen ist jedoch Frustration über die stockenden Verhandlungen eingekehrt. Im Dezember 2017 sprach Christina Grein mit Dr. Sai Oo, Direktor des Pyidaungsu Institute, über den Stand der Verhandlungen und die Herausforderungen im Friedensprozess
Coup d'état? Democracy and National Reconciliation in Sri Lanka once again at stake
No full textThis SADF Focus outlines the causal developments and offers an assessment of Sri Lanka’s current constitutional and political crisis. With the unprecedented return of Mr Mahinda Rajapaksa, domestic and international observers are unsure about the future of Sri Lanka’s national reconciliation, as well as the relationship between the Buddhist Sinhalese majority and the religious minorities. For some, Mr Rajapaksa brings back former patterns of authoritarianism and corruption in Sri Lankan politics, but for others, he is seen as the country’s protector of the Sinhalese Buddhist heritage. The authors argue that the current debate of the legitimacy of ousting Prime Minister (PM) Ranil Wickramasinghe goes beyond the interpretation of the constitution. In fact, the legitimacy question points to the core problem of the power struggle between the institutions of the PM and the President. It will be concluded that Mr Rajapaksa’s return to office could mean a hindrance for Sri Lanka’s peace efforts. Recent violence and mass protests have given a grim projection of Sri Lanka’s peace reconciliation trajectory
Lehrbuch der modernen bengalischen Hochsprachen
No full textDieses Lehrbuch stellt eine grundlegende Einführung in das Bengalische dar. Es ist sowohl ein klassisches Lehrbuch als auch eine umfassende, deskriptive Grammatik. Es eignet sich für den Unterricht mit einem Lehrer, kann aber auch für den Selbstunterricht ohne Lehrer genutzt werden