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International Organizations

International Organizations. Internationalization Globalization Conflict and cooperation on the international scale Reducing conflict and enhancing cooperation Issues: How to provide for human security How to facilitate social development How to protect and advance human rights

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International Organizations

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  1. International Organizations

  2. Internationalization • Globalization • Conflict and cooperation on the international scale • Reducing conflict and enhancing cooperation • Issues: • How to provide for human security • How to facilitate social development • How to protect and advance human rights • Organizing an international order • As an alternative to international anarchy

  3. HOW TO BUILD AN INTERNATIONAL ORDER • 1. The oldest method: an empire • Direct compulsion of the weak by the strong, or: • “Hegemonic stability” • 2. A more democratic approach: sovereign states • Voluntary agreements between sovereign states to work out and maintain international rules ofbehaviour (international law) • Where are the guarantees that states will abide by the rules? • 3. The states must be democratic • Democratic in what sense? Have elections? • 4. Transform societies to establish conditions for social justice, equality, development, well-being • THE 20TH CENTURY EXPERIENCE

  4. International governance and state sovereignty Are they at odds? • International governance presumes limits on national sovereignty – • But many states feel they are not sovereign enough • So, the issue is not how much sovereignty, but what kind of sovereignty? • Sovereignty to control a nation’s resources? • Sovereignty to ignore international environmental protection rules? • Sovereignty to violate human rights?

  5. On the one hand: • The sovereign state remains the key organizing principle of the global society • The nation-state is considered the legitimate political unit • Empires are no longer considered legitimate • Struggle for state sovereignty is continuing – • power to regulate economic forces in the interests of the nation is clearly insufficient • Inequalities of power among states • “Concert of Great Powers” • The Superpowers • Nuclear vs. non-nuclear states

  6. The proliferation of sovereign states has a positive impact on world politics • The greater the number of sovereign states, • The more dispersedthe power in the global society • The more collective the international governance • Multilateralism vs. unilateralism

  7. On the other hand, sovereignty can be abused. It can be invoked: • To violate human rights • To justify acts of aggression • To violate international law • To ignore international opinion • Nationalism has two faces: • National liberation • Imperialism

  8. The key variable: democracy • The more democratic a state, • the less likely are its rulers to abuse sovereignty • the more cooperative and responsible it will be in its relations with other states • the more interested it will be in democratic international governance Democracy enhances sovereignty by giving the state a strong base in society - And it also limits it by making the rulers more accountable both domestically and internationally

  9. But what about cases when democracy destroys a state? Or makes it incapable of any independent actions? In such cases, a state may go authoritarian to defend its sovereignty Should democratic states tolerate this authoritarianism? • Or should they violate state sovereignty in the name of democracy? • Current consensus: only in extreme cases

  10. International organizations are created on the basis of interests and concerns which transcend interstate borders • Examples: • Universal Postal Union Universal Postal Union, UPU: Worldwide postal organization • International Red Cross/Red Crescent International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) - Home • International Labour Organization International Labour Organization - ILO Web site • World Health Organization WHO | World Health Organization • Greenpeace http://www.greenpeace.org/international/ • Amnesty International Amnesty International - Working To Protect Human Rights Worldwide • Medecins Sans Frontieres/Doctors Without Borders Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) U.S. Web Site • The Trilateral Commission The Trilateral Commission • North Atlantic Treaty Organization http://www.nato.int

  11. Structures and networks of the growing global society • What do they do? • What goals do they pursue? • What impact do they make on the human condition? • World government or global governance?

  12. Types of international organizations By membership: • States: Intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) • Global (UN, IMF)) • Regional (NAFTA, EU, NATO) • Investors: Transnational corporations (TNCs) • Individuals: Civil society organizations (CSOs) • Legitimate • Illegitimate (terrorist groups, organized crime structures)

  13. By focus of activity: • International security • Trade and investment • Economic development • Human rights • Social problems • Protection of the environment • Political agendas • Others UNIVERSAL (all of the above) – The United Nations system

  14. What interests, what forces determine the activities of these organizations? • Powerful states weigh in on political issues • TNCs weigh in on economic issues • The global society is shaped by the structures of power in the same way as are national societies: • those possessing more power will have more say in making policy • So, the challenge is to develop international organizations in such a way as to reduce the inequalities of power • The struggle for a democratic global society - • The best path to a viable international order

  15. Issues in the struggle • How representative are the IGOs? • Do the IGOs have influence over TNCs? • Do CSOs have influence over IGOs? • The status quo: • IGOs are dominated by the most powerful states • They have lesspower than TNCs • CSOs have minimum impact on IGOs • Concentration of political, economic and military power on a global scale

  16. An alternative model, based on democratic principles: • Power in IGOs would be distributed more equally between states • IGOs would be directly accountable to citizens • CSOs would have real influence on IGOs • As a result, international institutions have a greater amount of democratic power - • To counterbalance the current concentration of state/corporate power

  17. Citizens will have more control over nation-states and IGOs • The power gap between major powers and the other states will be reduced • The global society will have more control over the TNCs • Can it be done?

  18. The United Nations System • Welcome to the UN. It's your world.

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