Three major peace and security reviews conducted in 2015 have taken stock of the changing global environment; analyzed UN responses; and come up with several key policy messages, as well as a number of complementary recommendations which, if implemented, could help the UN peace and security architecture be better fit for purpose.
Author: Youssef Mahmoud
-
-
Despite the increasing public acknowledgment of the limitations of military responses and the recognition that responding to violence with more violence makes us all more insecure, there continues to be deliberate reluctance to dig deeper in diagnosing some of the powerful drivers of violent extremists.
-
Outside Tunisia, the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize generated a great deal of praise and congratulations for the Tunisian people, mostly from Western nations’ leaders and media.
-
The resilience demonstrated by African citizens in their quest for freedom and democracy, justice, and the rule of law is ushering significant changes in the way power is acquired, exercised and maintained.
-
Many Tunisians, including political leaders and human rights advocates, are already questioning whether the emergency declaration was necessary.
-
Tunisians and their leaders are aware that the use of force alone is not the answer, given the nature of the underlying conditions that drive and sustain violent extremism. They do not want to fall into the trap laid by extremists of sacrificing their hard-won fundamental values on the altar of counter-terrorism.
-
A product of negotiations, the 17 SDGs may not be perfect, but they can serve as clear goals for popular movements, local communities, and all manner of networks.
-
The crisis of legitimacy that is increasingly affecting citizen-state relations shows the need for better and stronger social cohesion within fragile states.
-
What are the merits and shortcomings of the newly adopted Tunisian constitution?
-
The election of new interim president Catherine Samba-Panza brings fresh hopes to CAR, but without support from CAR nationals, regional actors, and the international community, the problems will remain insurmountable.