States + Sovereignty Flashcards
What does a state comprise?
- a government and all that entails.
- centralised bureaucracies
- fixes territory
What is the declarative theory of statehood?
- Montevideo convention treaty
- permanent population
- an effective government (makes decisions and can enforce them)
- capacity to enter into relations with other states (open embassies and become a legal character)
What is the constitutive theory of statehood?
Enough people claim a state
What are the 3 types of authoritarian states?
- totalitarian
- oligarchic
- 1 party state
What is a totalitarian state and examples?
All power rests with a single person ( Nazi Germany, North Korea)
What is an oligarchy, give examples?
Power with a small group- mass not consulted. Eg power with armed/ intelligence forces. (Russia, Turkey)
What is a 1 party state, give examples?
A single parry controls armed forces (China)
What are 4 types of democratic state?
- parliamentary (UK)
- presidential (US)
- French model
- direct/ participatory/ Athenian
What is a parliamentary state?
A state where the parliament can overturn the will of court
What is a presidential state?
A state where power is written in the constitution, legislative and judicial
What is the French model?
Between parliamentary and presidential- president is not elected through parliament, prime minister is appointed over senate/ parliamentary majority.
What is an Athenian state?
A state where every person affected by a decision has a say
What are methods of state change?
- peaceful protest
- elections/ referenda
- coups d’etat
- revolution
- civil war
What is sovereignty?
The principle that the state is a legitimate power over every actor within their borders
What is internal sovereignty?
The right to enforce law/ enjoy monopoly of legitimate force over its territory
What is external sovereignty?
A state’s independence and equality as recognised by other states
What is negative sovereignty?
The prevention of interference
What is positive sovereignty?
The creation of a strong, stable state with support of citizens
What was the peace of Westphalia?
At the end of the 30 years war, it was declared that the pope, head of the church, can not interfere with laws of sovereignties. As a result, states are free from interference, have the right to self defence, and have to accept fixed boundaries.
How established is sovereignty?
- state process could be reversed by rebellion, civil wars etc
- 1/5 of worlds states don’t have internal sovereignty
- states are supposed to be recognised as equal, but powerful states violate the sovereignty of weaker states (Iraq, Crimea)
- quasi- states, some don’t yet have internal sovereignty but enjoy external (Somalia)
How is globalisation impacting sovereignty?
- states are losing economic sovereignty to trans national corporations
- rights to war/ self defence is limited by UNSC
- internal right against intervention is conditional to the government protecting its citizens- ( humanitarian intervention in Libya)
- sovereignty is shared between state and super state authorities (EU, UN)- EU can override democratic decisions of states
What is the realist reaction to the impact of globalisation on sovereignty?
Only states have legitimate authority over territory, but sovereignty can be more effectively protected by giving up a bit to super state organizations
