Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Cultures of Intervention

Newsletter 2010/05/20 - Cultures of Intervention

OLDENBURG (Own report) - A research group at the Department of Social Sciences at the University of Oldenburg has developed strategies for Western military interventions in developing countries. According to the researchers, the internationally recognized principle of national sovereignty has been "laid to rest" a long time ago, which is why its violations can be considered "legitimate". They describe western military interventions, such as in Afghanistan, to be large scale "projects of social reform." To be successful, the occupying powers must, on the one hand, demonstrate a certain level of "sensitivity toward cultural factors" and, on the other, achieve the rigid "imposition of a monopoly over the use of force" - even at the expense of civilian casualties. In this context, Germans have a certain "amount of catching up to do in knowledge that former colonial powers still have on hand," according to the researchers.

more
http://www.german-foreign-policy.com/en/fulltext/56345