POST-MIDTERM Flashcards
How has poverty been defined historically ?
Historically, researchers and analysts have sued monetary measures to define poverty : households living on less than 1$ or 2$ a day.
How can the poverty line be arbitrary ?
The poverty line is something arbitrary; millions living just above it are also poor, and vulnerable to price stocks and household disasters
How did inflation adjust the poverty line ?
This has adjusted with inflation : the poverty line between 2008 and 2015 was 1.25US a day; the world bank raised this to 1.90US in 2015
During the modernization theory era, policymakers and scholars measure wealth according to _______
GDP
What is the problem with GDP?
presupposes equitable resource distribution, ignores inequality - can give a false sense of stability when there is a large section of the population suffering
Compare high-inequality societies and low-inequality societies in terms of need for growth ?
High-inequality societies need to grow a lot more quickly to reduce the same amount of poverty compared to low-inequality societies
What did a focus on GDP lead to ? What did that result in ?
- A focus on GDP also led to promotions of policies that would boost industrial output and sidelined subsistence agriculture (agriculture were people grow to feed themselves and sell some surplus but no global network- tends to equate poverty but these people are also protection themselves from food insecurity)
- Boost industrial production might increase inequality because of the distribution of profits
- This threatens food security (population secure and reliable access to food) and traditional ways of life (which can destabilize population)
When we talk about the environment and development , what do we need to consider ?
When we talk about the environment, we need to think of it not only as hold off to climate change or impacts. These matter but they interact with other factors such as how they interact with building economies and life outcomes. Ecological factors need to be plugged in into other issues.
What are some non-monetary indicators of poverty ?
Infant mortality, life expectancy and literacy rates (which tends to correlate with inequality, access to education is unequally distributed) stand in for Monetary measures as robust predictors of poverty
What did the consideration of environmental issues and poverty lead to ?
This led the United Nations to adopt sustainable development goals in 2015, building on earlier versions (More holistic approach to a society level of development)
The global community has increasingly come to understand poverty as being intertwined with __________
ecological factors (which don’t exist on their own)
What does female literally rates point at ?
Women tend to have less access to education, and lower female literacy rates pint to differently poverty levels according to gender
What is the political implication programs such as of biometric ID for banking ?
-Political aspect of these programs = through that government support, these initiatives are more likely to succeed
What are indicators/statistic that depict gender and poverty ?
“Today 58% of women have a bank account compared to 65% of men. This means that 1.1 billion women remain unbanked”
“These inequalities persist delisted evidence that women are good money managers”
“In latin-American women led small to medium enterprises default on payments 54% less often than men’s and although they invest 50% less than male entrepreneurs, they tend to make 20% more in revenue”
Need an approach that takes gender ____________
seriously into account across various indicators
Depict an example of Poverty alienation by the state
- Poverty tends to be transgenerational; breaking out of poverty when you’ve been born into it is exceedingly low
- Under left-leaning president Lula da silva, Brazil adopted the bolsa familia (family subsidy) program in 2003
- The Bolsa is a conditional cash transfer program : it provides financial aid to poor Brazilian families, and requires in exchange that parents send their children to school and vaccinate them (addressing two very important indicator of poverty)
- Whenever possible, it is distribution to the female head of a household
- This program addresses poverty in short-term and long-term ways
- About 26% of the population is registered - very significant
- The bolsa helped bring poverty down by 27.7% from 2003-06
Poverty tends to be ____________. What does that mean ?
transgenerational; breaking out of poverty when you’ve been born into it is exceedingly low
What does the Bolsa Familia represent in terms of the state ?
Role of the state : approach development from within the state representing interaction between the state and the population
Why is Bolsa Familia significant politically ?
Usually , key indicators of the state were violent police through which the population experience the States - so one of the most important dimension of the Bolsa familia , is how it represent a fairly radical variation in the interaction between state and population. Represent a transformation
Does Bolsa Familia adhere to Weber’s or Midgal’s framework ? How ?
Both
Max weber = need for modern state to run such programs in the first place
Midgal = once these programs run, you start to feel the state, interface with the state
What does Bolsa Familia also represent ?
Application of technology too - because of the card
What are 3 factors we need to take into account when it comes to poverty ?
- Path Dependency : histories of colonization, war, and development policy play key roles in determining levels of wealth and inequality ***
- Human capital : peoples’ skills and capabilities, related to their education, which shape their economic productivity
- Natural capital: soils, forests, and fisheries on which peoples’ livelihood depends, and which are connected to broader ecosystems (a countries capacity to sustain itself through these endowments**)
What are 4 effects of climate change in relation to the global south ?
It undermines peoples livelihood in much of the global south. Impacts of climate change are felt much more acutely in the global south (when you depend on fish for subsistence for example**)
It also undermines the State’s ability to provide for citizens welfare
Competition over scarce resources may turn violent, overshadowing other sources of conflict - much evidence that those patterns are already in play, how much more will that intensify
Climate change is a key driver of internal and inter-state refugee flows and cross-border pressures (can also be an indirect cause of violence, as people arrive to new areas and compete for whatever resources may exists)
Impacts of climate change are___________ in _________
disproportionately harder
the global south
Depict 5 aspect of climate change as a threat ?
Climate change is reducing the availability of water for drinking and agriculture
It is acceleration desertificaition, soil erosion, and the loss of arable land
In 2007, the UNEP predicted “a succession of new wars” in Africa based on competition for food
Government in developing counties face increasing challenges ensuring populations access to food, and preventing competition from turning violent
Some food-exporting countries have domestic food shortages (economies configured to export food stuff and at the same time are not successful in feeding their population, using variable land for export, not population)
Depict 6 Impacts of climate change on Latin America, in next 50 years ?
Rising climate change is a security menace
Soils will be less and less fertile
Total agriculture production could fall anywhere between 12% and 24%
Impacts not spread evenly
Some countries productions could be nearly wiped out
In Brazil , as estimated 46M people are food-insecure; such number will rise (that combined with inequality is a recipe for a whole of political disorders)
Climate change is expected to be an _______________
By who ?
accelerant of instability
Adam Neil Morisetti, Royal Navy
Brig. Gen. Stephen Cheney, US army
Africa accounts for____ of the world’s arable land. Yet ____________
60%
african countries spent more than 30$ billion to import basic grains in 2011 according to the UN’s food and agriculture organization (FAO)
What is Africa’s situation in terms of exports and imports? Why ?
Economies geared towards exports not feeding their own people
In 2015, for every $1 African countries earned in agriculture exports (mainly coffee, cotton, and cocoa), they spent nearly 2$ on agricultural imports, mainly food - trade imbalance, trying to get as much foreign currency as possible while spending down cash reserves to feed their own population
What is land grabbing? Name 4 consequences.
Cross-border land acquisitions- “land grabs”
- neglect local rights,
- extract short-term profits at the cost of long term sustainability,
- ignore social standards,
- foster corruption on a large scale
Who are the major player in land grabbing ?
China, the US and UK lead this land-buying trend; S.Korea, Gulf States also heavily involved
What can land grab feed into ?
Land sales are done by politicians which might be corrupt. Usually individual politicians make profit out of the deals, not the people.
What are the impacts of land grab ? What about legal measurements ?
Leads to displacement, marginalization, and impoverishment
This undermines customary and traditional forms of land ownership and use
Legal measurements put into place to safeguard locals peoples rights are often inadequate
What made buying land easier for foreign investor ?
Global South countries began loosening land market regulations as Foreign direct investment increased, making it easier for foreigners to buy land
Who leases foreign land ? What for ?
Transnational corporations and foreign governments often lease or buy land in the global south to grow crops or biofuels
What tend happens to products of foreign land ?
These are then exported to “finance-rich, resource-poor countries” who have the means to pay but not the initial resources
Depict a case study/example of land grabbing ?
Land Grab : Daewoo Logistics in Madagascar
2008 : S-Korea corporation Daewoo Logistics struck a deal with the government of Pres. Marc Ravalomanana for a 99-year lease to farm maize and palm oil on territory half the size of Belgium (3.2 M acres)
The Madagascar government gave this concession for free, expecting to to create many local jobs
Daewoo Logistic planned to use South African labourers
Malagasy people overwhelmingly opposed the deal; complained about neo-colonial land grab
In 2009, Madagascar newly-elected president, Andre Rajoelina , scrapped the deal
What did Andre Rajoelina say about land grabbing ? what does it mean ?
“ We are not against the idea of working with investors, but if we want to sell or rent out land, we have to change the constitution, you have to consult the people”
Access to land is a critical issue a the local level , this case jeopardizes all of that, brings us to realize the full scope to threats to people livelihood in terms of their connection to the land
What is an example of successful regime change ?
South Africa
How was the Cold War a factor for regime change is south Africa ?
Decline and end of cold war as a key factor that brought to a close many conflicts and drove down support for authoritarian regime from the super powers. (South-Africa under the Apartheid had support from the UK and USA which kept that violent regime afloat for quite a while)
- Apartheid = racial inequality institutionalized into law which was supported internationally but the US-UK which kept the regime afloat for a quite a while.
After the Cold War they faced domestic and international pressure to end apartheid
How did successful negotiations concretely translate in South-Africa ?
1990: Mandela (who quickly pick up the group and became leader of ANC again) and others released from prison
Apartheid (racially discriminatory laws) is abolished (meaning separateness)
African National Congress negotiates with South African government
what are factors that brought down Apartheid ?
Mass protest (union strikes[ minors were important because to economy depended on them] , demonstrations, students, [a lot of arrest, death, violence against the protesters]) Grassroots civil society manifestation Armed struggle (the ANC had its own armed wing, armed attacks grew steadily) International pressure (apartheid became increasingly notorious, knowledge of what was happening , governments leading on south Africa to end apartheid)
What does apartheid mean ?
separatness
How does minor unions brought pressure upon the regime in South-Africa ?
minors were important because to economy depended on them
How were armed struggles important to end apartheid?
The ANC had its own armed wing. Armed attacks grew steadily, and even its impossible to defeat apartheid military, the big powers could not take down the rebels either
How were international pressures important to end apartheid?
apartheid became increasingly notorious, knowledge of what was happening , governments leading on south Africa to end apartheid)
How were mass protests important to end apartheid?
(union strikes[ minors were important because to economy depended on them]
demonstrations
students, [a lot of arrest, death, violence against the protesters])
Grassroots civil society manifestation
What is crucial during regime change ?
Effective leadership is CRUCIAL, leaders who are willing and engaged, leadership counts in terms of legitimacy and moral authority and capacity to negotiate
What is is the difference between photos and reality in the case of Mandela and De Klerk ?
All smiles but behind the scenes, they were heated moments where Mandela would call out de Klerk for supporting violence while facilitating the negotiation
What happened in 1994 South-Africa ? What did this imply (3)
1994 free and fair elections
Now everyone could vote
People travelled large distance to vote , waited in sun just to use the ballots
Mandela becomes president and remained a moral authority figure even when coming into power (contrary to Aung san shu swti) - He remained in power but did not try to stay longer than a term
How was Mandela’s presidency significant ?
Mandela becomes president and remained a moral authority figure even when coming into power (contrary to Aung san shu swti) - He remained in power but did not try to stay longer than a term
What were the positive outcomes in South-Africa after regime change ?
- All races can vote- Equal rights
- South Africa passes comprehensive constitutions in terms of all the rights that it recognizes, political rights, economic, social, cultural rights
What remained limited in South Africa after regime change ?
Official and military leased from apartheid regime immune from prosecution , very few were held accountable , very few went to prison, after transition the architects of apartheid they did not suffer consequences, the people who they gave order to were held accountable
Economic power still overwhelmingly in white minority hands (which had its root in apartheid)
What is an example of partly successful democratization ?
Guatemala
What was the situation that led to regime change in Guatemala ?
36-year civil war (1960-1996) ended in peace treaty between army, rebels
What is the current situation in post regime change Guatemala ?
Very complex dynamics, still very dangerous place
Elections relatively regulate, free and fair since then (but corruption, leaders are very corrupt while in power)
What dimension did violence take in Guatemala ?
Violence has taken a new dimension :
Massive drug-related violence erodes democracy
Ex-military personnel linked to drug smuggling, gang violence
Who is Otto Molina?
President from 2012-2015
Campaigned on the basis of “no corruption” and was then arrested in 2015 for mass corruption
Dogged by war crimes accusations
Who is Rios Montt, what happened to him , what does it mean ?
Justice for past leaders is an important factor
Finally the dictator who oversaw the genocide faced charges MUCH later
Convicted in 2017 but then just died - too little too late ?
What is an example of failed regime change?
Syria
What was pre-turmoil Syria situation ? (3)
Assaad family has governed under secular Arab ideology since 1970
Government has always ruthlessly suppressed
Country is very ethnically and religiously diverse : Sunni. Shi’a, Alawi, Druze, Maronite Christian, Catholic, Armenian, Turkmen
How was Syria government before uprising ?
Assaad family has governed under secular Arab ideology since 1970
Assad family hailed from Alawi sect
How did the arab spring affect Syria ?
Shockwaves from Arab Spring led to anti-government protests in syria march-july 2011
What happened to army officials during the first uprisings ?
Army defenders were asked to shoot on rebels , some refused and got tortured and then some founded rebel movement
Protesters and army defectors founded rebel Free Syrian Army, July 2011
In Syria, Government _________ spiralled into ______
violence against demonstrators, rebel violence
civl war
How and When did syria civil war begin ? What happened to disobedient soldiers ?
April 2011 : Syrian troops sent to quell protests in Dera’a
Soldiers refusing to fire on protesters were shot by government intelligence officers
What did Syrian soldiers found ?when ? what this feed into ?
July 2011 : Ex-soldiers form the rebel Free Syrian Army
Multiple rebel moment emerged : some ethnic (eg Kurds) , some religious (eg: Nusra Front and ISIS)
Who also got involved in Syria and Why ?
External powers got heavily involved : Russia (who intervened to protect the Assad regime from getting overthrown, Iran, USA, Turkey, Gulf Sates, Hezbollah (which were all protecting their own interest)
What does revolutions imply ?
- The overthrow of a regime by the local population
- Always involves a certain degree of violence
- The previous leadership (ministers, politicians, generals) is replaced
People are motivated to overthrow the existing regime because of ________ (3)
Poverty and inequality
State repression ( as people express their grievances, the regime usually ignores them and represses them)
Unfair wages and conditions for workers, peasants
Where are revolutionary leaders usually from ? where do revolutionary movement spark from ? what does that imply, who is their target ?
middle class
working class
They unite (through network) against the political and economic elites
__________ is a _________ but ________ is not necessarily _______
Revolution x2
regime change x2
What do revolutions involve (3) ?
- The overthrow of a regime by the local population (Are rare because they involve a complete turnover)
- Always involves a certain degree of violence (huge civil war or sometimes not)
- The previous leadership (ministers, politicians, generals) is replaced - key change is the complete uprooting of institutions, state, authorities…
Why are revolution so rare ?
they involve a complete turnover
What is the difference between revolution and regime change ?
Revolution mean the complete uprooting of institutions, state, authorities…
No “négociations” as in simple regime change - no “old guard” staying on
What are ingredients for revolution (3) ?
Poverty and inequality (enabling people to mobilize across large spread of population, they are motivated to challenge the government, they feel like they have less to lose, motivating them to maybe but their lives of the line)
State repression ( as people express their grievances through armed or peaceful action, the regime usually ignores and represses them- instead of listening to them, they crack down on them - raising the stakes through represents)
Unfair wages and conditions for workers, peasants ( working very hard but having very little ownership)
Why is poverty and inequality an ingredient for revolution ?
It enables people to mobilize across large spread of population, they are motivated to challenge the government, they feel like they have less to lose, motivating them to maybe but their lives of the line
Why is state repression an ingredient for revolution ?
as people express their grievances through armed or peaceful action, the regime usually ignores and represses them- instead of listening to them, they crack down on them - raising the stakes through repression
Why is unfair wages an ingredient for revolution ?
Unfair wages and conditions for workers, peasants ( working very hard but having very little ownership
Who are usual key leaders in revolutions ? What are their implications , what do are their role ? What is an example ?
revolutionary (key) leaders are usually from the middle class (who have some degree of education and tend to network with other movements around the world [example Communists groups], they help to build popular movements)
Where do the revolutionary masses come from? why ?
Revolutionary masses are usually from the working classes or the peasants (who are so disenchanted)
What do key leaders and masses do ? Why ?
They unite (through network) against the political and economic elites (who refuse to implement change)
What preceded the Chinese Revolution ?
Decades of war between communists and nationalists (1931-1949)- each fought the external invasion of Northern China by the Japanese while fighting each other
What source of grievances for Communists during the Chinese Revolution? What was the situation ?
Nationalists were famous for corruption and fully ignored demands of rural and urban workers, the Nationalists responded to protest and demands by shooting them or jailing them (many people that were not Communists got involved in the revolution because of that corruption)
What was the involvement of international actors in the Chinese Revolution ?
US backed nationalists (because they were anti-communists) , USSR backed communists
What was the outcome of the Chinese Revolution ?
Communists took over from Nationalists in 1949 and nationalists moving to Taiwan
What are the implications of Mao’s long walk ? What does this also relate to ?
Mao’s long year journey through the country and hardship became romanticized and a symbol of the revolution
As the rebel becomes successful/in power , they will develop a national narrative around the battle and hardships for power, which is often romanticized
Revolutions tend to ___________ , whether _______
influence each other
they succeed or not
Mao’s writing on revolution were _______
widely read and adopted by different revolutionaries (Vietnam, Peru, developing world …)
What was a key ingredients in Iran’s revolution (2) ?
Widespread Anger throughout society against the corrupt, disconnected, out of touch, pawn of the West; Shah Reza Pahlavi (monarchy)
Resentment of Shah’s alliance with US
What is another characteristics of revolutions ?
the power vacuum in the aftermath of the revolution - not clear who will govern ?
What was significant about the composition of the masses against Shah in Iran ?
Many different factions from Iranian society joined the revolution, including Islamists communists and secular reformists - many factions in society wanted to overthrow him - diverse views amongst the people who wanted to overthrow him, they all participated in the protest and the various strikes who allowed to overthrow Shah
What was the outcome of the Iranian revolution ?
After a period of no one in power, Islamists under Ayathollah Khomeini seized power, became head of state , government on the basis of religion (shia islam)
Protesters burning images of Shah which captures_____________
the popular disenchantment
What happened in the case of the Egytian revolution in terms of government ?
2011: Arab Spring initiated by protests succeeded in toppling Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak (who was in power for 30 years, with a very uncommodating regime, extremely corrupt)
Initial success of the arab spring was distorted into another regime change
2013: Egyptian military intervened, toppled democratically-elected Pres. Morsi
What is an important factor in understanding the Egyptian situation ?
One factor important in understanding the situation is the Musilm brotherhood’s increasing power in Egypt.
When was Muslim brotherhood founded, what happened to its leader? How did it gained force in Egypt ?
1928: Musilm brotherhood founded by Hassan al-Banna (who then was assassinated by the regime but even after he was killed, the MB became very influential within society, it filled a vacuum left by the Egyptian state (who was not provided sufficient services) - so the MB provided the population on a Non-State basis, which led to many people, not on necessarily on a religious basis or complete agreement, were impressed by them.
How did the muslim brotherhood gained force in Egypt ?
Advocated social welfare programs ( literacy and educateion) and political participation
Widespread public support and social welfare programs made brotherhood a force in Egyptian politics
what did the force of the MB lead to in 2000,2005 ?
MB won many seats in parliamentary elections in 2000,2005
What was the situation of the MB as the Arab Spring rose ?
When popular revolt toppled Pres. Mubarak in 2011, Brotherhood was the best-organized political force in Egypt - they had been organizing for decades , they had a history of candidates and elections, they were grassroots, they were centralized (spiralled by social media and the dedicated of protesters from all walks of life)
What was the situation of the popular protestors as the Arab Spring rose ?
Most protesters were not from MB , everyone was mobilizing but they were not organized (which was successful for overthrowing the government but not useful for elections after)
What was the MB able to do after the arab spring- how and why ?
Even though a minority were not aligned with the MB (they even wanted a secular state), Yet it won almost half of 498 sets in 2011-12 parliamentary election because they were so organized
Its candidate, Mohammed Morsi, won the 2012 presidential election
what happened after Morsi’s election ? why (3) ?
Turbulence rose again after his election (9000 protests during his year in power )
- Put a new, religiously influenced draft constitution to a referendum (the people were angry because they did not just overthrow past ruler to have a government aligned with religion.)
- Granted himself the power to legislate without constitutional oversight (but even those who were willing to give him a chance, he started to act like an authoritarian regime.)
- Oversaw prosecution of journalists, violent MB mobs, laws permitting 30-day detention without trial, impunity for attacks on Copts (christian who had been coexisting with muslims for so long but were now under attack )
What were Morsi’s authoritarian flavours ?
- Granted himself the power to legislate without constitutional oversight
- Oversaw prosecution of journalists, violent MB mobs, laws permitting 30-day detention without trial, impunity for attacks on Copts (christian who had been coexisting with muslims for so long but were now under attack )
What happened on Morsi’s election anniversary ? What did this lead to ?
Massive, widespread anti-Morsi protests on anniversary of his election to power
Three days later, Armed Forces commander Abdel Fattah al-sisi orders Morsi’s overthrow
How was Morsi’s overthrown? What happened ?
Army cracks down on Morsi supports, kills hundreds of protestors
Military assumed power, “Enough of this democracy experiment”
Morsi, sentenced to death (april 2015)
How did the revolution failed in Egypt ?
Revolutionary opening crushed by the military , slamming shut the door on any possibility of democratic future
What is the difference between Iraqui civilization and the Iraq we know today ?
Iraqui civilization on the one hand goes way back to Mesopotamia, but the other hand Iraq as it exists today is a recent creation with arbitrary boundaries drawn to determine which Western powers would be in control during WW1.
What happened to the Ottoman Empire during WW1? What did this lead to ?
The war included the Ottoman Empire (mordern day Turkey), which extended across a lot of territory and fell apart during WW1.
The British and French were looking ahead to the post war are trying to figure out which territory they might control.
What is Skykes-Picot agreement ? When was it signed ? What does it imply ?
1916
As the Ottoman Empire fell; the UK and France made a secret pact to carve up their respective spheres of influence in the Middle East
What happened in 1920 Iraq ? What did that imply ?
Iraq (mesopotamia) fell under British rule - essentially colonial rulers.
Iraq became a British protectorate, the British oversaw the government- in practice, the British were basically colonial rules asserting their power using also military.
What happened in 1958 in Iraq? Why did it happen ?
Extend British power thought independence (because they became independent under the monarchy) which lead to : Military coup overthrows British- aligned monarchy, installs secular Arab Nationalist government (an ideology mobilizing around a notion of Arab identity as political unifying force )
What is an Arab Nationalist ideology ?
an ideology mobilizing around a notion of Arab identity as political unifying force
Who do most people think we thinking about Iraq ? Why is he important for our analysis ?
Most people think of Saddam Hussein when they think of Iraq.
The ways in which he exercised power is important to our understanding of how Iraq presents as a weak state.
When did Hussein gain power ? How long did he rule, how did it end ? How did he rule ?
Hussein seized power in 1979
ruled till US forces overthrew him in 2003
one of the most brutal leaders in the region’s history
Under Hussein, how was the state of Iraq ? what is the important distinction ? Why?
It was a “hard” but not a “strong” state
Iraq was a “hard state” and a “fierce state” (very powerful leader, economic power because of oil money , using strong military murdering any one standing against him) but not a strong state (it ruled by fear)
How did Hussein rule ? What was his approach ? (4)
governed through an approach divided rule( picking groups against each other as a way to remain in power)
promoted communal ethnic, and inter religious mistrusts (promoting his own tribe, the Al-Takritid, and playing others off against each other)
developed patronage networks’ and rushed dissent
Used the country oil money to buy loyalties and used the full force of the Iraqi military to crush anyone who told in opposition
Hussein ______ rivals
excluded
How did Hussein use the country’s oil money ? How did he use the military ?
Used the country oil money to buy loyalties and used the full force of the Iraqi military to crush anyone who told in opposition
The Iraqui state was very powerful in terms of _____________ but lacked___________
monopoly over the use of force
popular legitimacy
In Iraq what arbitrarily drawn borders fail to provide ? what did this lead to ?
(did not provide a state or autonomy of any kind for the Kurds)
Iraq has had separatists ethno- regional elements (kurds) seeing independence, struggling against the central government or aligning with foreign powers (Iran)
Since 1960s, Iraq waged a protracted__________ against the ______
protracted low-intensity war
Separatist Kurds
Under Saddam Hussein’s dictatorship, Iraq launched an extremely long and bloody war with ___________.
When ?
Neighbouring Iran
1980-88
Saddam launched a military invasion of neighbouring oil rich ______ in ______ . Why?
Kuwait
1990
(because oil was appealing to him)
What did the invasion of Kuwait lead to ? How did this manifest (2 events, two years) ?
Invasion of Kuwait lead to a multinational response to fight Iraq
External powers led by the US fought large-scale wars against Iraq in 1990-1 (Operation desert storm) and 2003 [which toppled Saddam Hussein] (Operation Iraqui Freedom)
were the different of conflicts in Iraq a result of ?
Some of these conflict were a result of how borders were drawn
others were just some that Saddam chose himself (Iran, Kuwait…)
the 2003 invasion was just the US seeing opportunity to overthrow Hussein
This ongoing series of conflicts served to ________ Iraq for a long time
destabilize
What can we notice when looking at Iraq’s population ? what its its significant characteristic ?
Speaks to the arbitrary borders
the diversity of Iraq’s population
How are different groups distributed in Iraq?
In ethnic terms (kurds) and religious (sunni and Shia)
Division don’t mean that you’ll have _______ but these _______m were ___________ by Saddam Hussein’s regime
conflict
colonial borders
exacerbated
How were Iraqi Sunni and Shi’a muslim historically ? What happened ?
Historically, Iraqi Sunni and Shi’a muslim got along well and intermarried
But Saddam Hussein played different groups against each other (making the division much worse)
What was a deadly consequence of Hussein’s regime ?
Hussein’s regime killed over 200,000 Iraqui citizen
What is a deadly consequence of 2003 US-UK invasion ?
2003 US-UK invasion and violent aftermath have killed untold thousands of Iraqis
What is the demographic outmode of violence and conflicts in Iraq ?
Almost 50% of Iraquis are under 19 (result of factors and speaks to lack of institutional continuity) ; between 55% and 65% are women (many men perishing during wars)
What did the US-UK destroy ? What did that lead to ?
The US invasions completely destroyed the existing institutions - the US fired everybody in the government and security forces (recipe for disaster because these people had no more job and a lot of arms) INSTEAD of hiring these officials or re-shaping the institutions
What was the rationale for invading Iraq ? What was significant about it ?
terrorism (post 9/11) and building weapons of mass destruction, claims which have been discredited (Misconceived rational for invasion)
How did Iraquis see the new US installed government ?
government organized by invaders
what happened under US occupation ? what is a very important nuance ?
Under US occupation, Iraq became a democracy with multiparty elections and a constitution you might think that a good thing (US doing Iraq a favour) BUT few Iraqis regard the new government as legitimate
The Iraqi sate, since its US installation has been ____________ and _________
paralyzed by extreme corruption
deep sectarian divisions
What happened to Iraqui’s economy and services after installed state ?
Iraqi’s economy has stagnated; malnutrition and food insecurity have increased; health services have deteriorated
What happened to the US-trained army in 2014 ? why ? what does this indicate ?
In 2014, the US-trained Iraqi army was rapidly defeated by the much smaller ISIS forces even though they were superior in number and equipment
due to lack of cohesion and motivation
This speaks to the weakness of the state, their institutions (Military and security) and their ineffectiveness
What gap does post-invasion Iraq points at ?
Gap between Iraq as a state that had long had a lot of money (due to resources) , had lot of power due to its violent ruler but nonetheless a weak state due to its lack of legitimacy and genuine presence in the lives of its citizens
What was an occurrence that played for ISIS?
When Iraqi state (better equipped and populated) lost to ISIS, they left their weapons behind for ISIS to take [which allowed them to gain power]
Which rule was put in place during US invasion ? Who claimed it ? What does it mean ?
pottery barn rule
Collen Powell
(you break it you own it; if the United state invaded Iraq, it would break it and therefore own it, would be on the hook to repair that problem because it would now belong to the US )
How did the US feel about the invasion ?
Great confidence that invasion would be a success, that they would be welcomed as liberators
What were the two views on Bush in his flight suit ?
Bush hailed for his flight suit masculinity but also national geographic “mission not accomplished”
How was Iraq a “mission not accomplished” ? What does it highlight ?
Mission NOT accomplished : You’ve eradicated the government but you’ve installed nothing and opened a pandora’s box of rebel movement and lack of services
Highlight chronic sate weakness in Iraq since 2003
How has territory been since the invasion ?
Control of territory has been fragmented between government, Kurds and ISIS (their territory shrunk recently) - Country remains fragmented
What comes into question when looking at Iraq today ?
the meaning and value of its democracy
Despite successive _________ , Iraq remained ________
free-and-fair elections
plagued by chronic political violence
Despite getting _____ , Iraqi women are in many ways _______________
suffrage
worse off than in Hussein’s time
Who does the growing insecurity targets in Iraq? What did this lead to ?
women disproportionately, and they have withdrawn from the social and economic spheres
What did images of Iraqi women represent ?
“Iraq joining the rail of democracy”
What is another political issue in Iraq in terms of women ?
Women also have very little political representation
What underscores the expression of women rights in Iraq ? what does that mean ?
insecurities and violence underscores the expression of women’s right.
They have rights in theory but they are in danger in practice ( a lot of targeted violence targeted at women)
What are photos of Iraqi women suppose to be ?
emblematic of how women had now more rights, representing the transferring/export of western norms (gender equality) to the middle east. how the US and the UK “helped” and brought that to Iraq
What is the gap in Iraq in terms of women’s rights?
Gap between women legal rights and the pragmatic reality of women having these rights in theory but are in danger in practice
Broadly, the _________ and _______ causes us to call into question the ____________
political instability and chronic violence
meaning of Iraqi democracy
Long history _______ with Mexico’s history
violence
When and how did Mexico gain their independence ?
Mexico gained independence from Spain 1821, after 10 years of war
How was Mexico after independence ?
After independence, the country was internally fragmented.
governed by a collection of local strongmen (caudillos), political power investment in their hands only.
the state lack of centralization, very uneven control, the further you went from the city, the less power the state possessed.
In post independence Mexico what did the state power reside in?
power in the ability to project armed violence
What else happened in terms of Mexican wars ? what impact did this have?
Mexico also fought costly wars against USA and France, losing nearly half its territory (which became states in the US) in the 1846-48 war vs. USA
impact on the country economy and state power
What shaped the Mexican state?
Recurring war
What is Mexico’s history with civil war ?
Mexico underwent a civil war (1910-20) during a critical period of state development, which killed about 1.4M people out of a total population of 15.2M
