For those of you who weren’t able to attend in person, the video of our Human Trafficking in New England event, presented by WGBH reporter and Fletcher alumnus Philip Martin, can be found below. Mr. Martin continues to report on human trafficking in the New England area for WGBH. His latest stories on the subject can be found here.
Much thanks to our fellow event sponsor, the Fletcher School’s chapter of the Ralph Bunche Society.
From Aeon Magazine’s James Palmer: an article on the phenomenon of the ernai, or “second woman”, in China, where rural and urban women alike become the mistresses of politically powerful Chinese men. Seeing this fast-moving socioeconomic scene through the eyes of its female participants, Palmer paints a richly layered picture of Chinese women struggling to achieve the possibility of a secure future in a complex and competitive world.
For more on:
Sex, power, and security in China:
- Red Lights: The Lives of Sex Workers in Postsocialist China, by Tiantian Zheng (2009).
Women and the rural-urban migration in China:
- Factory Girls: From Village to City in a Changing China, by Leslie T. Chang (2009).
The internal dynamics of the Chinese Communist Party:
- The Party: The Secret World of China’s Communist Rulers, by Richard McGregor (2012).
Migration, sex, and labor in the context of globalization:
- Cosmopolitan Sex Workers: Women and Migration in a Global City, by Christine B.N. Chin (2013).
Dr. Maung Zarni is an exile, commentator, critic and expert on the political affairs of Myanmar. His research interests include the political economy of violence, international development and conflict, as well as democratic transitions in Asia. He is Visiting Fellow (2011-2013) at the Civil Society and Human Security Research Unit, London School of Economics and Political Science, and Visiting Senior Research Fellow at the University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur.
Zarni spoke with PRAXIS on February 28, 2012 while he was attending a World Peace Foundation seminar on advocacy and human rights.
PRAXIS: What do you think are the greatest prospects and greatest challenges facing Myanmar – both socially and economically – as it emerges from the last six decades of direct military rule and global isolationism?
Zarni: On the future of Burma: No one is in a position to figure it out exactly. It’s not crystal ball gazing either. I’m a structuralist and look at interests as structures, such as commercial, strategic, etc. I don’t see a bright future for the country, but that doesn’t mean that I’m completely hopeless or desperate in the situation. The buzz word being used is “opening up” and the way “the new Myanmar/Burma” is framed in the Western discourse and the media, especially in government policy and institutions such as the World Bank, IMF, or the UN, no one has a better framing of Burma than Barack Obama, who framed Burma as his foreign policy success story in the [2013] State of the Union Address. That is outrageous. That’s the hype. Continue reading
We are proud to announce the on-line publication of the journal’s twenty-eighth edition, “Inclusive Justice: Human Security as an Integral Element of Global Justice.”
PRAXIS: The Fletcher Journal of Human Security views the complexities of pressing global issues through a multidisciplinary lens. We believe that the security of individuals is best understood by drawing on the intersecting fields of human rights, conflict resolution, humanitarian assistance, and international development. This year we have modernized the journal by expanding our online presence with the PRAXIS blog, as well as developing a new logo and cover design. Along with these exciting new developments, PRAXIS remains fully dedicated to its primary mission as an academic journal, and we are pleased to present the twenty-eighth edition of scholarly articles. This year’s articles focus on different facets of inclusive global justice, with authors investigating human-centric mechanisms of transitional justice, peace processes, and international development.
In our first article, Adan E. Suazo argues for the importance of long-term political inclusion of former combatants to prevent the reoccurrence of conflict. Through three case studies, he investigates different political inclusion mechanisms contained in peace treaties and the ability of former warring parties to obtain electoral success in post-conflict. He concludes by defining the types of inclusive strategies that may be the most conducive to peace by allowing parties a true opportunity to gain political power.
“Shkool kub bhalo lagey!” was the joyous sentiment we heard coming from the crowd of beautiful, young schoolgirls at the Sundarban Girls Secondary School. We asked them if they liked school, and they repeatedly met our question with a resounding “Yes! We love school!”
Unfortunately, access to education for many girls in Bangladesh does not come without constant struggle and steadfast dedication. As is the case in over 95 percent of all secondary schools in Bangladesh, the government did not establish this school.[1] The Bangladeshi Constitution mandates that the government provide free and compulsory education “to such stage as may be determined by law.”[2] This stage, evidently, ends after primary school. Additionally, Bangladesh is arguably not honoring its obligation under international law as a signatory to the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights. Article 13(2)(b) maintains that states should strive for secondary education to be generally available “to all by every appropriate means,” including the introduction of free education.[3] Instead, it is the responsibility of villages to organize, plan, build, staff, and maintain schools for their children. Once up and running, the government provides small subsidies for teacher salaries, but the village must cover all additional operation and overhead costs. It is miraculous that many impoverished, rural populations, with so few resources, are able to make these schools a reality.