Michigan Journal of International Affairs December 2014
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Michigan Journal of International Affairs December 2014 LETTER FROM THE EDITORIAL BOARD International affairs are often described as a game. As time progresses, we carry an expectation that new participants will reveal unforeseen moves to alter its dynamics. Yet, events from this past year have cast doubt on this notion. Rather than integrating past decisions to form contemporary strategies, we have instead seen a recapitulation of earlier choices. New players have arrived at the table. But they are playing the same cards. Some of these hands have proven to be less than ideal. Despite the World Bank’s seemingly benign support of a hydroelectric dam project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dylan Warner explains how this parallels Belgian colonial exploits of the past. Furthermore, Trevor Grayeb’s article, “Playing War,” notes that in its steps toward remilitarization, Japan has only projected an illusion of strength, as it has repeatedly done in the past, as opposed to developing a concrete foreign policy. Lastly, Evan Charney posits that the Egyptian government’s attempts to suppress the Muslim Brotherhood will fail due to the organization’s experience in having endured similar crackdowns from prior regimes. At the same time, these former ploys can occasionally be effective. In “Just Watch Me,” Cody Giddings references the similarities between Canada’s current challenges and its problems with homegrown terrorism in the 1970s and indicates that Canada should look to the policies employed decades ago to confront the problems it faces today. The “(Un)Changed Game” then does not necessarily imply a cyclical nature of former events repeating in the future. On the contrary, the problems of today are often original, but we still find ourselves, either consciously or unconsciously, gambling with bygone maneuvers. In some cases, countries need to rely on old solutions for new issues, and in other instances, they need to reform previously reliable tactics. Nevertheless, how this reappropriation of old thoughts pans out, for good or for ill, remains to be seen. Michigan Journal of International Affairs, Editorial Board CONTACT // [email protected] WEBSITE // UM-MJIA.COM TABLE OF CONTENTS APRIL 2014 AFRICA 1 - Damming Development on the Congo River — Dylan Warner 2 - The Fear Factor of Ebola — Emma Stout 3 - South Sudanese Autonomy: A Pipe Dream? — Mafeyi Ogundipe 4 - Project: Silicon Savannah — Olivia Singer 5 - Botswana: Diamond Industry under Pressure — Caitlin Thomas 6 - Egypt’s Border Nightmare — Graham Steffens 8 - In South Africa, Guns Don’t Kill People; Culture Does — Leslie Teng 9 - A New Approach to Combating Female Genital Mutilation in Somalia — Laurel Cerier AMERICAS 11 - “Just Watch Me” — Cody Giddings 12 - The Open Gate: Preventing the Outbreak of Disease Along the US-Mexico Border— Stuart Richardson 13 - Turning Back the Clock on Mexican Oil Nationalism: Neoliberalism and Mexico’s Oil Sector — Brian Henderson 14 - Uribe’s Legacy in Colombia— Daniel Medendorp 15 - Oil Slick: How Petroleum is Changing Venezeula’s Political Environment — Shivum Bharill 16 - Brazil’s Balancing Act: Development versus Deforestation in the Amazon— Elisabeth Brennan 17 - Austerity in Quebec: Can Premier Couillard Have His Austerity and Eat His Federalism Too? — Simon Margolis 19 - Assistance Drying Up: How Honduras Can Solve Its Drought Problem — Connor VanDenBosch 20 - Foul Play in Argentina: The Loss of Transparency in the Midst of Argentina’s Financial Woes— Laura Vicinanza ASIA 21 - Playing War— Trevor Grayeb 22 - The Test of Karachi: Resilience/ Disorder, Local Government and Institutions — Sharik Bashir 24 - Loud: How China’s Shift Away From “Quiet Diplomacy” Will Change the World — Vineet Chandra 25 - A Chinese Spring? — Bing Sun 27 - Australia Asylum Seekers — John Soltis 28 - Good Intentions, Wrong Direction — Marnie Ginis 29 - Breaking the Silence: The Hermit Kingdom Opens Up on Human Rights — Megan Cansfield EUROPE 31 - Diffusing Secession: The Failure of Spanish Centralism and Viable Alternatives to Independence in Catalonia —-Gianluca de Gasperi Delpino 33 - Europe Needs to Embrace the Silicon Valley Culture — Anna Quintero 34 - Renzi’s Last Stand for the Jobs Act — Daniel Hecker 36 - An Unfair Addendum: David Cameron and the Conservatives Go Back on Their Promise to Scotland — Katherine Mercieca 37 - Breathe Slow and Relax: An Examination of the European Parliament Election Results — Benjamin Newman 38 - Beyond the Front: The Rise of the Front National in France — Paul Sherman 39 - Power Play: Why the EU Must Take Action Against Hungary’s Putin Wannabe — Daneil Karr 40 - The EU in the Era of Data Privacy — Matt Rosenthal 42 - Bosnian Nationalism in Light of the October Elections — Sindhu Kadhiresan 43 - Live and Let Live: the Rivalry in Georgia’s Executive Branch — Jon Vreede MIDDLE EAST 44 - Omanisation: Moving Beyond the Quotas — Lissa Kryska 45 - Democracy in Post-Spring Middle East: A Necessary Condition for Stability — Moaz Sinan 47 - Containing the Spillover: Why Lebanon’s Military is the Key to Staving Off Threats from Syria — Ali N. Habhab 48 - Learning from the Past: Funding “Moderate” Rebels — Brendan Failla 50 - Behind Closed Doors: Why Qatar Needs to Stops Funding Terrorism— Jillian Smith 51 - The Iranian Island of Stability and Shadow Alliance — Ryan Strong 52 - Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood: They’ve Been Here Before — Evan Charney 54 - Old Scandals, New Authority: Afghanistan’s Revival of the Kabul Bank Ponzi Scheme — Nisreen Salka Damming Development on the Congo River — Dylan Warner Surveyors from as early as the 1920s have ex- development in tropical African countries like the to make up the Grand Inga Project, which would plored the possibility of harnessing the tumultu- DRC is the lack of energy access for its citizens, end up flooding the Bundi Valley area, home to ous power of Inga Falls, a Congo River rapids in which directly hinders their health, education, some 30,000 Congolese citizens. the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). and ability to generate income. Projects that will Even the possibility that some people may The first attempts at power generation did not oc- help to alleviate this disparity in energy access are have to be displaced for the rest of the country to cur until the late 1960s, though, with the building essential, so it is no wonder that the World Bank benefit from such a large development project is and commissioning of Inga I and, a decade later, and other countries intend to back the Inga dam misguided. Inga III’s potential 4,500 megawatts Inga II, two hydroelectric dams jointly promis- projects. Makhtar Diop, the World Bank’s vice of electricity generated would not extend to the ing 1,775 megawatts of electricity. International 94 percent of people without access to electricity. Rivers reports that currently, the two dams oper- Equally unacceptable, it would be owned by an ate at about 50 percent capacity while primarily international business conglomerate that would being used for mining activities. Yet the price of fund the majority of the project, which would the dams’ construction, initially estimated at $1 then be sold mostly to mining corporations in the billion, has quadrupled, and displaced families area. Of course, the energy crisis in the DRC is forced to leave the dam sites still have not received very real and needs to be resolved, so choosing to compensation. In March of 2014, the World halt all funding to development projects Bank approved a $70 million grant in support of is something that should never be encouraged. the construction of Inga III, a dam larger than its While choosing not to act would save communi- two predecessors combined. Currently, the Inga II Dam on the Congo River oper- ties in the DRC who are being threatened with The World Bank, African Development Bank, ates at only 50 percent capacity. displacement, it would still leave 94 percent of the and other financial institutions should halt all WIKIMEDIA COMMONS Congolese population without electricity. Instead, forms of support for the construction of the Inga president for Africa, quoted by the Inter Press a middle ground has to be reached, where inter- III dam and only reinstate support if the DRC Service News Agency, argues that Inga III “… national institutions can effectively assist in the puts forth a plan to distribute the generated elec- can be a game changer by providing electricity to development of communities without resulting in tricity to surrounding populations with the goal millions of people…” The concept behind Inga more suffering. of development instead of working with private III is noble, but it is clear that the concept fails Funding projects to facilitate development companies to provide a source of energy to be when implemented. The IPS News Agency also should not be stopped, and institutions like the sold at a profit. In 2009, the DRC decided to seek quotes Maurice Carney, executive director of the World Bank have good intentions when they fund cooperation with private industry users to fund Friends of the Congo, who states “the project is projects like the Inga dams. The intent falls short, Inga III in order to use the generated electric- being presented as if it will help the population, though, when certain aspects of the project are ity for mining and other industrial operations in but more often than not, these big dam projects scrutinized. The Inga dams projects are too large southern Africa. This necessitated the assistance of end up serving industry at the expense of local to be financially feasible, and their potential en- financial institutions like the World Bank for the communities…” ergy output attracts private companies, leaving completion of the project, with the United States The ‘expense of local communities’ argument the initial benefactors, the surrounding popula- and some European countries showing interest in holds weight when the history of the previous two tions, sore out of luck.