INR2002 Final Exam Study Guide Chapter 10 Do Transnational Advocacy Networks Make A Difference Changing Minds Altering Interests International Campaign to Ban Landmines ICBL A network of 1 400 non governmental organizations NGO s from over 90 countries working to outlaw and re move land mines which are estimated to wound or kill approximately 15 00 to 20 00 people worldwide each year Transnational advocacy networks TANs are sets of activists comprising many individuals and nongovernmental organizations NGO s acting in pursuit of a normative objective including human rights the environment economic and social justice democracy women s rights and abortion TANs coordinate the activities of participants around the globe and initiate lead and actively direct collective action on issues of concern Popular attention to TANs stems from a belief in the power of ideas to alter per ceived interests and to change behavior at the individual and state level Bringing new knowledge to public attention Example By increasing public attention TANs have persuaded individuals to place a higher priority on stopping global warming TANs also change how actors conceive of their interests by promoting new norms Norms are standards or behavior for actors with a given identity they define what actions are right or appropriate under particular circumstances Norms are easily observed when they are violated The laws of war embodied at the Geneva Conventions codify norms on the treatment of prisoners captured on the battlefield and civilians Nuclear Taboo Norm that prohibits the first time use of nuclear weapons One important function of TANs is to encourage and support socially appropriate behavior and help spread norms across national borders Martha Finnemore and Kathryn Sikkink three stage norm cycle First Stage Norms entrepreneurs individuals or groups with strong beliefs about de sirable behavior actively work to convince a critical mass of other individuals in other states to embrace their beliefs Norm entrepreneurs frame issues to make them comprehensible to target audi ences to attract attention and encourage action and to fit with favorable institutional venues Second Stage once a new frame has taken hold a norms cascade occurs as the number of adherents passes a tipping point beyond which the idea gains sufficient sup port that it becomes nearly universal standard of behavior to which others can be held accountable Conformity to the new norm can then be established through coercion such as economic sanctions in the case of human rights norms or through socialization a process akin to peer pressure in which say states adopt new behaviors that is what good states do Third Stage Norms are internalized or become widely accepted that they acquire a taken for granted quality that makes conforming almost automatic Putting Pressure on States TANs exert leverage over states directly by calling attention to violations of widely held norms a practice known as naming and shaming States typically value their reputations as good countries that respect and comply with standards of appro priate behavior If countries violate norms frequently and are called to account repeatedly by TANs they risk becoming international pariahs that other states will be reluctant to trust In the boomerang model proposed by Margaret Keck and Kathryn Sikkink NGOs in one state are able to activate transnational linkages to bring pressure from other states on their own governments Example of Boomerang Model in action The anti apartheid movement in South Africa Facilitating Cooperation TANs can also effect behavior and outcomes by providing information to states both before a final agreement is reached as endorsers and afterwards as monitors TANs as monitors Rely on the self reports of others States can monitor one another s behavior directly States can monitor indirectly by listening to the testimony of trustworthy third parties Why Do Some Transnational Networks Choose Violence Terrorism is the use or threatened use of premeditated politically motivated vi olence against noncombatant targets by sub national groups or clandestine agents usually intended to influence an audience Terrorism is transnational and properly the subject of international relations when it crosses an international border by involving a perpetrator or victim from an other country or when it aims to alter the behavior of a foreign government Depending on the nature of the informational asymmetries they face terrorists employ four different strategies Coercion provocation spoiling and outbidding each with a unique logic Are Terrorists Rational Groups that resort to violence often posses interests that are not widely shared especially by the target audience A persons choice to become a terrorist especially to become a suicide bomber may entail costs larger than the gains to that individual and thus appears not to be an effective strategy for obtaining ones goals Terrorist attacks are sometimes random The Strategic Logic of Terrorism Terrorism is an extreme form of asymmetrical warfare or fighting between par ties of highly unequal military capabilities States are nearly always stronger politically and militarily than the terrorist networks they face The object of war is to defeat the other side s military so that the victor can im pose its political will on the now defenseless opponent The object of terrorism in contrast is to bypass the other side s military and inflict pain and suffering on the tar get population so as to induce political change Terrorists are also extremists in the sense that they are politically relative to their demands Extremists may want to create a new Utopia under their preferred laws and practices but in reality they lack the capability to realize their aims in the foresee able future Why do Terrorists Use Violence Like states in conflict terrorists have private information and incentives to mis represent that information to targets Terrorism from Commitment Problems Terrorists can most credibly demonstrate their commitment to peace by publicly re nouncing terror disarming and giving the target or some neutral third party full access to the network so as to alleviate any lingering informational asymmetries How Can Terrorists Hope to Win Terrorists can attack or threaten to attack to coerce a target into making conces sions Coercion indices policy change by imposing costs usually civilian deaths and casualties on the target If the threat is
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