The inadequacy of Western media theory in third world internal conflicts : the case of military censorship in Sri Lanka

The literature of communication and conflict is long and deep. However, it has focused primarily on cross-border conflict in the northern hemisphere. Not much academic research has been done on intra-state conflicts in general or on Asian conflicts in particular. This research on the Sri Lankan separatist conflict contributes towards filling this void.Newspaper reports in three languages on Operation Jayasikurui (1997) as well as on the capture of Elephant Pass (2000) were analyzed by trained coders with high reliability. In-depth interviews were conducted with Sri Lankan journalists and military personnel who participated in these incidents. Triangulation sources include Sri Lanka Army materials and the Sri Lanka Government Gazette.

Results clearly show that despite stringent governmental regulations, censorship had no effect on these Sri Lankan newspapers, which employed unique cultural techniques to circumvent these restrictions. Despite their apparent divergent ethnic backgrounds, all newspaper samples are consensual in their depiction of the conflict all the time while managing to set different agendas for their individual readerships. Media regulations could not impose censorship as proposed by Western theoretical constructs. Results show no correspondence between media samples and imposition of government or military policy. The press enjoyed freedom to convey war information to the public and exhibited a distinct streak of social responsibility in their watchdog instincts.Dominant Western propaganda models and theoretical perspectives do not apply to the Sri Lankan context. Understanding the cultural dimensions is essential before theorizing on media behaviour. No particular theoretical framework from the literature could be used to make inferences. One further interesting finding suggested from this research: Internal conflict within the Asian region may have its own unique theoretical perspective. The study concludes by proposing an alternative model.

The inadequacy of Western media theory in third world internal conflicts : the case of military censorship in Sri Lanka

Research on media production and on media effects under military censorship has centred primarily on cross-border conflicts being waged by Western regimes. There is a noticeable void in understanding internal conflicts, particularly so within the Asian region. To help address this lacuna, we content-analyse Sri Lankan newspaper samples of two critical military campaigns within the Sri Lankan separatist conflict to gain insight into an Asian internal conflict within the context of military censorship and culture. We discover that supposedly stringent censorship regulations and the rules of the official communication systems have almost no effect on Sri Lankan newspapers, which demonstrate a unique talent to circumvent these strictures. During these bloody internal conflicts, the Sri Lankan press enjoyed freedom of expression, flaunted social responsibility and their watchdog instincts, and, most interestingly for us, demonstrated the failure of the Western propaganda model and other theoretical perspectives. The importance of understanding cultural dimensions before theorizing media behaviour in order to obtain a more rational understanding of the sociology of media is posited by this study. We conclude with discussion of a new model of media censorship which has more relevance in Asian internal conflicts.

Western propaganda models reconsidered : the "Catherine Whell" of censorship circumvention in developing world internal conflicts

This study is a deep-text analysis of military censorship applied to the national press in the Sri Lankan conflict. We examine press coverage of two Sri Lankan military operations, namely Operation Jayasikurui (1997) and the Capture of Elephant Pass (2000), to identify patterns of signification that help us construct a novel theory of conflict reporting under censorship within the context of ethnic, intrastate conflict. Our study shows that Sri Lankan newspapers, while abiding by censorship regulations, contradictorily also manoeuvred around these regulations as if censorship did not exist. Noteworthy were the censorship circumvention techniques that were used. For example, journalists taught readers how to ‘read’ blank space. They used commentary to educate readers how to read the straight news. They used conflict frames to overcome bias towards official viewpoints. They used multi-source confirmation to avoid pre-dominance of official views. They used respectful words rather than demonised opponents. Great attention
was paid to victims of the conflict, destruction of life and property, and civil society. Our findings do not accord well with previous theoretical models of the media role in society and of press censorship under conflict. The Sri Lankan press is highly intertwined within its cultural context and follows its own value system. We propose the ‘Catherine Wheel Model of Censorship Circumvention’ about press behaviour in times of internal conflict. Our model attempts to explain internal conflict within the developing world context in which the press system is based deeply in culture and is more accustomed to circumventing censorship than obeying it.

Kodin ja työn rajavyöhykkeellä - yhteensovittamisen jännitteitä ja ratkaisuja arjessa

The aim of this research is to study the boundary zone of home and work and the tensions people experience while reconciling home and work? How are the requirements of the family, the home and the work taken care of in everyday life? What kind of difficulties does the individual experience when reconciling home activities and job requirements together? What kind of activity policies have families created to ease the everyday life? What kind of goals and requirements do families feel behind the difficulties in adjusting home and work? What kind of changes would make the adjusting of home and work easier? The changing family life, everyday home activities and the changing Finnish working life are studied to describe the adjusting of home and work. In addition the boundary zone of home and work and its tensions are studied. 337 research persons who find reconciling home and work challenging were elected from different sectors of the working life. Research persons were gathered from the public, private and third sectors. The research material was gathered with a semi-structured qualitative questionnaire published in internet. Contents analysis was the analysis method of the research material. The tensions of adjusting home and work are various. Several activity systems meet on the boundary zone of home and work causing boundary zones to expand and tensions to increase and expand like a network. In the everyday life of an individual the boundary zone fades out and home and work overlap. Tensions can be examined as internal conflicts of the individual through the activity system of everyday life. Individuals balance between individualism and familism, feeling bad, suffering from lack of time and struggling with childcare organizing problems and inflexible employers. The solutions to reconciling home and work difficulties are situational. Often is the help of family and friends required without any solid solutions. The conflict of the goals, requirements and the reality is behind the problems as well as the tightening terms of the working life and its growing expectations. Change requests are proposed on the levels of individual, home, work and the society. Reconciling home and work is not only a challenge between the employee and the employer. It s a problem that needs multilateral solutions and changes on the levels of individual, home, work and society. The challenge remaining is to find out if it would be successful to take the everyday life as starting point to negotiate the reconciling of home and work and how the possible family, social and work political solutions appear in everyday life.

Water Management in Cambodia Resources and Relations

In Cambodia, water has a special purpose as a source of life and livelihoods. Along with agriculture, fishing and forest use, industry, hydropower, navigation and tourism compete for the water resources. When rights and responsibilities related to essential and movable water are unclear, conflicts emerge easily. Therefore, water management is needed in order to plan and control the use of water resources. The international context is characterized by the Mekong River that flows through six countries. All of the countries by the river have very different roles and interests already depending on their geographical location. At the same time, water is also a tool for cooperation and peace. Locally, the water resources and related livelihoods create base for well-being, for economical and human resources in particular. They in turn are essential for the local people to participate and defend their rights to water use. They also help to construct the resource base of the state administration. Cambodia is highly dependent on the Mekong River. However, Cambodia has a volatile history whose effects can be seen for example in population structure, once suspended public institutions and weakened trust in the society. Relatively stable conditions came to the country as late as in the 1990s, therefore Cambodia for example has a weak status within the Mekong countries. This Master s thesis forms international, national and local interest groups of water use and analyzes their power relations and resources to affect water management. The state is seen as the salient actor as it has the formal responsibility of the water resources and of the coordination between the actions of different levels. In terms of water use this study focuses on production, in management on planning and in power relations on the resources. Water resources of Cambodia are seen consisting of the Mekong River and Tonle Sap Lake and the time span of the study is between the years 1991 and 2006. The material consists of semi-structured interviews collected during summer 2006 in Finland and in Cambodia as well as of literature and earlier studies. The results of the study show that the central state has difficulties to coordinate the actions of different actors because of its resource deficit and internal conflicts. The lessons of history and the vested interests of the actors of the state make it difficult to plan and to strengthen legislation. It seems that the most needed resources at the central state level are intangible as at the village level instead, the tangible resources (fulfilling the basic needs) are primarily important. The local decision-making bodies, NGOs and private sector mainly require legislation and legitimacy to support their role. However, the civil society and the international supporters are active and there are possibilities for new cooperation networks. Keywords: Water management, resources, participation, Cambodia, Mekong

A ascenção do Partido da Social Democracia Brasileira e a construção de uma nova hegemonia (1988-1998)

Em um contexto de democratização, os partidos políticos adquirem papel importante para a obtenção e a manutenção do poder. Através do seu estudo, podermos analisar uma parte da História desse período. Os partidos políticos nos fornecem informações sobre os grupos que se esforçaram por reunir pessoas tendo em vista uma ação comum sobre o poder ou a organização da sociedade. Nesse sentido, a tese busca estudar a formação e ascensão ao poder do Partido da Social Democracia Brasileira (PSDB). Criada em junho de 1988, a sigla cinco anos depois conseguiria eleger o presidente da República. A tese examina as origens do partido, articulando-as às contradições e conflitos internos do Partido do Movimento Democrático Brasileiro (PMDB). Em seguida, acompanha o processo de formação da nova agremiação política, sem perder de vista as rivalidades internas e externas, que permearam a sua organização. Aborda, ainda, as alianças e disputas que redundaram na vitória eleitoral do seu candidato à presidência, em 1994, Fernando Henrique Cardoso.

Socioeconomic assessment of shrimp farming in relation to local livelihoods in the south-west coastal Bangladesh

Nine different categories of stakeholders in shrimp farming industry ·were assessed to show the socioeconomic impact of shrimp farming in south-west Bangladesh. Among all the stakeholders the shrimp farmer's average own land was 4 ha whereas the seed collectors and faria's had lowest amount of average land, 0.1 and 0.5 ha respectively. The shrimp farming positively impacted to the livelihood of stakeholders. Income of the coastal people, sanitation, working facilities of women, employment, health condition and the literacy rate increased due to shrimp farming. On the other hand shrimp farming had negative impact on the rice production, livestock, drinking water supply, and social conflict and violence had increased due to shrimp farming. There were internal conflicts between different stakeholders; the farias conflict with the depot owners and shrimp farmers, marginal farmers' conflict with the rich shrimp farmers about leasing lands and saline water control, the rice farmers conflicts with the shrimp farmers about agricultural crop production.

Low-carbon off-grid electrification for rural areas in the United Kingdom: Lessons from the developing world

Low-carbon off-grid electrification for rural areas is becoming increasingly popular in the United Kingdom. However, many developing countries have been electrifying their rural areas in this way for decades. Case study fieldwork in Nepal and findings from United Kingdom based research will be used to examine how developed nations can learn from the experience of developing countries with regard to the institutional environment and delivery approach adopted in renewable energy off-grid rural electrification. A clearer institutional framework and more direct external assistance during project development are advised. External coordinators should also engage the community in a mobilization process a priori to help alleviate internal conflicts of interest that could later impede a project. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd.

Low-carbon off-grid electrification for rural areas: Lessons from the developing world

Low-carbon off-grid electrification for rural areas is becoming increasingly popular in developed nations such as the United Kingdom. However, many developing countries have been electrifying their rural areas in this way for decades. Case study fieldwork in Nepal and findings from UK-based research will be used to examine how developed nations can learn from the experience of developing countries with regards the institutional environment and delivery approach adopted in renewable energy off-grid rural electrification. A clearer institutional framework and more direct external assistance during project development are advised. External coordinators should also engage the community in a mobilization process a priori to help alleviate internal conflicts of interest that could later impede a project. ©2010 IEEE.

Models and tools for value systems analysis in collaborative environments

Dissertation to obtain the degree of Doctor in Electrical and Computer Engineering, specialization of Collaborative Networks

La responsabilité de protéger et l’intervention humanitaire : de la reconceptualisation de la souveraineté des États à l’individualisme normatif

La recrudescence des conflits internes dans le contexte post-guerre froide a permis de propulser à l’avant-plan la préoccupation pour les individus. Alors que la paix et la sécurité internationales ont historiquement constitué les piliers du système institutionnel international, une porte s’ouvrait pour rendre effectif un régime de protection des droits de l’homme par-delà les frontières. Pour les humanistes, l’intervention humanitaire représentait un mal nécessaire pour pallier aux souffrances humaines souvent causées par des divergences ethniques et religieuses. Pourtant, cette pratique est encore souvent perçue comme une forme de néo-colonialisme et entre en contradiction avec les plus hautes normes régissant les relations internationales, soit les principes de souveraineté des États et de non-intervention. La problématique du présent mémoire s’inscrit précisément dans cette polémique entre la préséance des droits de l’État et la prédilection pour les droits humains universels, deux fins antinomiques que la Commission internationales pour l’intervention et la souveraineté des États (CIISE) a tenté de concilier en élaborant son concept de responsabilité de protéger. Notre mémoire s’inscrit dans le champ de la science politique en études internationales mais s’articule surtout autour des notions et enjeux propres à la philosophie politique, plus précisément à l’éthique des relations internationales. Le travail se veut une réflexion critique et théorique des conclusions du rapport La responsabilité de protéger, particulièrement en ce qui concerne le critère de la juste cause et, dans une moindre mesure, celui d’autorité appropriée. Notre lecture des conditions de la CIISE à la justification morale du déclenchement d’une intervention humanitaire – critères issues de la doctrine de la guerre juste relativement au jus ad bellum – révèle une position mitoyenne entre une conception progressiste cosmopolitique et une vision conservatrice d’un ordre international composé d’États souverains. D’une part, la commission se dissocie du droit international en faisant valoir un devoir éthique d’outrepasser les frontières dans le but de mettre un terme aux violations massives des droits de l’homme et, d’autre part, elle craint les ingérences à outrance, comme en font foi l’établissement d’un seuil de la juste cause relativement élevé et la désignation d’une autorité multilatérale à titre de légitimateur de l’intervention. Ce travail dialectique vise premièrement à présenter et situer les recommandations de la CIISE dans la tradition de la guerre juste. Ensuite, il s’agit de relever les prémisses philosophiques tacites dans le rapport de la CIISE qui sous-tendent le choix de préserver une règle de non-intervention ferme de laquelle la dérogation n’est exigée qu’en des circonstances exceptionnelles. Nous identifions trois arguments allant en ce sens : la reconnaissance du relativisme moral et culturel; la nécessité de respecter l’autonomie et l’indépendance des communautés politiques en raison d’une conception communautarienne de la légitimité de l’État, des réquisits de la tolérance et des avantages d’une responsabilité assignée; enfin, l’appréhension d’un bouleversement de l’ordre international sur la base de postulats du réalisme classique. Pour finir, nous nuançons chacune de ces thèses en souscrivant à un mode de raisonnement cosmopolitique et conséquentialiste. Notre adhésion au discours individualiste normatif nous amène à inclure dans la juste cause de la CIISE les violations systématiques des droits individuels fondamentaux et à cautionner l’intervention conduite par une coalition ou un État individuel, pourvu qu’elle produise les effets bénéfiques désirés en termes humanitaires.

Être motard : Hells Angels malgré tout

Les Hells Angels (HA) sont un groupe de motards qui surprennent par leur longévité. Implantés dans la province en 1977, ils sont toujours présents et actifs. Pourtant, ils ont évolué dans un contexte où les risques endogènes et exogènes furent croissants : conflits internes chez les motards, hostilités et rivalités inter groupes, opérations policières, incarcérations massives et changements législatifs sont autant d’obstacles qui se sont dressés devant eux. Que signifie être un motard et comment sont-ils demeurés résilients? Bien que différentes forces matérielles et organisationnelles aident les HA à surmonter les difficultés, nous avançons que l’élément clé de cette continuité réside dans leur réputation. En ce sens, nous adhérons à la thèse de Gambetta (2009) qui affirme que la persistance de la croyance en l’immortalité de la mafia provoque un phénomène de self-fulfilling prophecy qui rend l’organisation effectivement résiliente. Cet argument est ici appliqué aux Hells du Québec. Des entrevues auprès de motards incarcérés et non incarcérés, de délinquants non motards et de membres du personnel du Service correctionnel du Canada, ont permis de constater que l’étiquette de « Hells Angels » influence la vie des individus qui la portent. Les résultats supportent l’hypothèse que la réputation d’être une organisation dangereuse offre au groupe une valeur économique et symbolique. Néanmoins, la réputation des Hells Angels engendre des aspects négatifs pour les individus qui endossent ce nom. Il devient intéressant de comprendre l’impact d’une telle étiquette à travers différentes phases d’une carrière collective.

La problématique de l'effectivité du droit de l'enfant à la santé et à l'éducation dans les situations de conflit armé interne en Afrique: réflexions à la lumière de la crise en Côte d'Ivoire

Avec l’entrée en vigueur de la Convention des droits de l’enfant (CDE) en 1990, la communauté internationale a formellement matérialisé sa volonté de faire des droits de l’enfant, des droits à protéger en tout temps. La CDE vient compléter le dispositif juridique mis en place par le droit international humanitaire (DIH) pour protéger lesdits droits en période de conflit et inspirera la Charte africaine des droits et bien-être de l’enfant. Les Etats s’engagent ainsi à en faire une réalité, quelles que soient les circonstances. Mais l’engagement juridique est confronté aux conflits armés internes qui remettent en cause les droits fondamentaux clairement énoncés, notamment le droit à la santé et à l’éducation et qui favorisent la violation de ces droits. Dans ce mémoire, nous nous sommes interrogés sur les éventuelles causes qui peuvent expliquer que les engagements juridiques ne soient pas politiquement traduits en réalité concrète. Il s’agit de vérifier si le dispositif juridique de protection ne porte pas en lui-même les germes de cette violation. Une autre hypothèse serait que l’absence de reconnaissance formelle de la responsabilité des groupes armés non étatiques impliqués dans ces conflits, en ce qui concerne le respect des droits pourrait être un élément qui favorise les violations. Ainsi, dans la première partie, après avoir retracé l’évolution historique et juridique de la reconnaissance des droits de l’enfant, nous nous sommes inscrits dans le contexte du conflit en Côte d’Ivoire entre 2002 et 2011, pour montrer les impacts des conflits armés internes sur la jouissance des droits de l’enfant, notamment à la santé et à l’éducation. La deuxième partie nous permet de relever d’une part, les insuffisances du dispositif de protection, les lacunes relatives à la non prise en compte formelle des entités armées non étatiques, et de faire des réflexions en termes de perspectives pour une meilleure effectivité du respect des droits de l’enfant en période de conflit armé non international, d’autre part.

El ideal administrativo, nueva visión de la gestión directiva

Las recientes crisis económicas que ha vivido el mundo nos llevan a hacer una reflexión en torno a las responsabilidades que tienen los dirigentes empresariales en los cambios económicos e incluso sociales que se están viviendo. Es por tanto el momento para hacer un análisis más profundo del aporte que la administración, como ciencia, ha hecho a la sociedad. Se ha identificado que la administración permite el desarrollo y crecimiento de un individuo, al tiempo que es un medio de crecimiento y desarrollo para una comunidad, una región y una cultura, lo que se convierte en una realidad indiscutible que nos lleva a reflexionar acerca del porqué, ocurren problemas como las quiebras, ausencia de recursos, y conflictos internos en las organizaciones. En esa medida, una reflexión puede ser que los ideales que ha venido liderando la administración han sido desvirtuados y apartados de una moral y ética empresarial que permita al directivo pensar en algo más que utilidades. Podría parecer extraño decir que la empresa y la acción gerencial deben ir más allá. Podríamos iniciar con el análisis de la obsolescencia de los ideales administrativos o incluso en la ausencia de ideales en la administración. Sobre si se está teniendo en cuenta que la administración que conocemos y aprendemos sigue vigente en un mundo que ha evolucionado y cambiado, el mundo de hoy es distinto al que conocimos incluso en nuestra época de formación profesional, pues se nos enseñó a pensar linealmente, causa y efecto, todo cumple un orden y un plan predeterminado, hoy la visión de certidumbre y control del hombre sobre las decisiones son guiadas por el azar, y por más que el hombre trabaja y diseña estrategias, éstas serán transformadas de acuerdo a las emergencias. Por lo anterior, es importante entender que para avanzar y dejar la obsolescencia en los ideales que ha definido la administración, los directivos deben cambiar su visón y entender la dinámica de interrelación de sus organizaciones en un mundo en permanente caos. Debemos estudiar desde dinámicas diferentes a la de funcionalidad, y saber que es momento para que la administración tenga una nueva visión de la gestión administrativa, por lo que debemos ampliar nuestro horizonte y ver a través de la complejidad. Las decisiones que toman los directivos, las estrategias que definen y la forma de relacionarse con la competencia en mercados altamente competitivos requiere de un cambio en la administración y de un marco ético muy distinto, debe concebirse la gestión directiva y administrativa para mantener y conservar la vida del sector, de la empresa y, por ende, mantener el medio que nos rodea. Por ello se propone ejercer la administración desde la bioética.

La democratización y la construcción de la paz como procesos interdependientes que hicieron posible la resolución del conflicto interno en Guatemala (años 1983 - 1999)

Tras casi 30 años de conflicto, en 1990 el gobierno y las guerrillas guatemaltecas, se embarcaron en una serie de negociaciones en el marco de un proceso de construcción de paz que concluyó seis años después con la firma de los Acuerdos finales. Si bien los compromisos acordados incluyeron entre otros asuntos, una serie de reformas en torno a la transformación del sistema político con el fin de promover la consolidación de un orden democrático, esta transformación no inició en 1996, sino que se gestó años antes del emprendimiento de las negociaciones y de hecho, tuvo un efecto imprescindible en el inicio y la efectividad de las mismas al generar un clima propicio para la construcción de la paz. De igual forma, el desarrollo de ambos procesos influyó en las circunstancias del conflicto interno de Guatemala. El siguiente trabajo analiza precisamente el desarrollo entre 1983 y 1999 de estos procesos, de la relación interdependiente surgida entre ellos y los efectos que tuvieron estos lazos sobre el conflicto interno en Guatemala. Para ello se tomaron una serie de enfoques teóricos que proponen la existencia de un vínculo entre democracia y paz y su aporte a la prevención y manejo de los conflictos internos. Estos enfoques argumentan que la democracia se constituye en un mecanismo capaz de regular los conflictos internos a través de medios pacíficos, como la negociación y el debate público, y en que esta democracia necesita de unas condiciones mínimas de paz para poder desarrollarse de manera íntegra.