Forensic Geomorphology

Geomorphology plays a critical role in two areas of geoforensics: searching the land for surface or buried objects and sampling or imaging rural scenes of crime and control locations as evidence. Most of the associated geoscience disciplines have substantial bodies of work dedicated to their relevance in forensic investigations, yet geomorphology (specifically landforms, their mapping and evolution, soils and relationship to geology and biogeography) have had no such exposure. This is strange considering how fundamental to legal enquiries the location of a crime and its evolution are, as this article will demonstrate. This work aims to redress the balance by showing how geomorphology is featured in one of the earliest works on forensic science methods, and has continued to play a role in the sociology, archaeology, criminalistics and geoforensics of crime. The application geomorphology has in military/humanitarian geography and environmental/engineering forensics is briefly discussed as these are also regularly reviewed in courts of law

Military Service Pensions for public and civil servants in independent Ireland

In 1924 the Cumann na nGaedheal government introduced the first Military Service Pensions Act to provide monetary compensation for those who fought for Irish independence between 1916 and 1923. Pensioners who were in receipt of remuneration from the state as civil and public servants had a portion of their pension deducted commensurate with their state income. This controversial provision was criticised by all political parties as representing a mean-spirited attitude towards veterans of the independence campaign and treating civil and public servants differently from those in private employment. It was eventually modified in the 1940s and abolished in the 1950s. This article provides a case study that highlights the parsimonious attitude of Irish governments towards veterans of the independence campaign and shows how the treatment of public and civil servants reflected tensions between the government and the civil service in the early years of the state.

Crime, justice and the legitimacy of military power in the international sphere

This article examines how a discourse of crime and justice is beginning to play a significant role in justifying international military operations. It suggests that although the coupling of war with crime and justice is not a new phenomenon, its present manifestations invite careful consideration of the connection between crime and political theory. It starts by reviewing the notion of sovereignty to look then at the history of the criminalisation of war and the emergence of new norms to constrain sovereign states. In this context, it examines the three ways in which military force has recently been authorised: in Iraq, in Libya and through drones in Yemen, Pakistan and Somalia. It argues the contemporary coupling of military technology with notions of crime and justice allows the reiteration of the perpetration of crimes by the powerful and the representation of violence as pertaining to specific dangerous populations in the space of the international. It further suggests that this authorises new architectures of authority, fundamentally based on military power as a source of social power.

Between Imaginary Lines: Violence and its Justifications at the Military Checkpoints in Occupied Palestine

Looking at one site, the Israeli checkpoints in the occupied Palestinian territory, this article seeks to understand the mechanisms by which violence can present itself as justifiable (or justified), even when it materializes within frames presumably set to annul it. We look at the checkpoints as a condensed microcosmos operating within two such frames. One is the prolonged IsraeliPalestinian ‘peace process’ (the checkpoints became a primary technology of control in the period following the beginning of the peace process), and the other is regulatory power (disciplinary and biopower), which in the Foucauldian framework presumably sidelines the violent form which sovereign power takes. We argue that the checkpoints, which dissect the Palestinian occupied territories into dozens of enclaves and which are one of the most effective and destructive means of control within the current stage of occupation, can be seen as more than obstacles in the way of Palestinian movement; we suggest that they also function as corrective technologies that are meant to fail. It is with this failure that violence can appear as justified. In order to show the operation of this embedded failure, we examine one mechanism operating within the checkpoints: ‘the imaginary line’. The imaginary line is both a component within, and an emblem of a mode of control that constantly undoes itself in order to summon violence. Since it is never visibly marked in the physical space, the imaginary line is bound to be unintentionally crossed, thereby randomly rendering Palestinians as ‘transgressors’ of the rule and thus facilitating eruptions of violence by the soldiers stationed at the checkpoints. This article proposes an analysis of this hidden demarcation of space in order to question the different relations between subjects and power which it both assumes and constitutes.

Adaption and adjustment of military spouses to overseas postings: An online forum study

Little research has examined the impact of being an accompanying spouse on British military foreign postings. The aim of this qualitative study was to investigate the experiences of 13 military spouses from 11 different overseas locations. Data were collected via an online forum and thematic content analysis was conducted. Key findings revealed that, regardless of the location, reactions to overseas posting varied considerably and were related to the military spouse's personality and personal circumstances, as well as their relationship with family, husband and their support networks. Spouses experienced a loss of control over their lives that was in some cases psychologically distressing. The findings corroborate and extend the findings from a previous study that was limited to one location, further highlighting the need for pre-established support resources from the military and healthcare professionals to be readily accessible for all military spouses. Importantly, such support provision may also facilitate the military spouse in regaining some control over their everyday life, enhancing their well-being and the experience for the family.

'Rosie Hackett, the Irish Citizen Army and the Military Service Pensions Collection'

This chapter uses the newly released Military Service Pensions files to examine the contribution of Rosana 'Rosie' Hackett and the members of the Irish Citizen Army to the Irish revolution. It also includes and assessment of the collection as a source for studying the revolution and assesses how it helps reassess the role of the ICA in the revolution. It was produced to mark the naming of a Liffey bridge in Dublin after Rosie Hackett

Tanzanian scepticism of a militarised East African Federation and underlying military concerns

Attitudes towards a regional military force are of paramount importance when exploring public support for regional integration. Until now, however, scholarly research has not considered the influence of attitudes towards a regional military mechanism in the sub-Saharan African context. Using Afrobarometer data, we demonstrate that military concerns are vital when exploring Tanzanian attitudes towards the proposed political federation of the East African Community (EAC), the East African Federation (EAF). More specifically, opposition to military cooperation strongly influences Tanzanian scepticism of the EAF. This finding is highly relevant given that referendums in the participating member states must be passed to facilitate political integration. Heightened opposition towards military cooperation raises the possibility of the public rejecting a politically integrated EAC. This poses a potential obstacle to the implementation of joint security policies and crucial mechanisms to provide a more stable region at large. We account for alternative explanations of Tanzanian opinion formation and reflect on the strength of military-orientated concerns for investigating public support for the East African project specifically and regional integration in sub-Saharan Africa more widely.