True or False Warning? The United Nations and Threats to Namibia's Independence, 1989
Dr. A. Walter Dorn is Professor of Defence Studies at Canada’s Royal Military College and the Canadian Forces College, where he has been teaching since 2000. He earned his bachelor of science and master of sciences, as well as his Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry, which deals with chemical sensing for arms control, at the University of Toronto. Earlier, Dr. Dorn was a program coordinator for the Parliamentarians for Global Action, a senior research scientist and visiting scholar at the University of New Mexico and the Sandia National Laboratories, and a senior research fellow and visiting fellow at Cornell University’s Institute for African Development and its Peace Studies Program. Interviewed frequently in the print and electronic media, he is the author of Keeping Watch: Monitoring, Technology and Innovation in UN Peace Operations (Tokyo: United Nations University Press, 2011).
Last steps to Uhuru: An eye-witness account of Namibia's transition to independence
New Namibia Books (Pty) Ltd P.O. Box 21601, Windhoek © David Lush, 1993 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers. Cover photographs Layout and Design John Liebenberg New Namibia Books Printed and bound in Namibia by Capital Press, Windhoek ISBN 99916-31-12-7
External shocks to fragile states: Building resilience in Haiti
Whereas the earthquake of 12 January 2010 was an “internal shock” to Haiti, several external shocks had a dramatic impact on the life of Haitians in 2008. That these shocks erupted from exogenous sources is evidence that, in an interdependent global system, all states – but particularly those that are fragile and suffer from weak governance – are vulnerable to phenomena beyond their control: soaring prices of food caused by diverse factors from around the world; climate change and extreme weather, which is prompting stronger and more frequent natural disasters; and the global financial crisis. Around the world these shocks caused major social distress and instigated complex political crises. Together and independently, all three exposed several countries’ vulnerabilities as well as the inability of these states to respond to them. Whereas developed states with large and diversified economies were better positioned to adapt, vulnerable and fragile states were nowhere near as resilient, and often suffered important setbacks on the way out of poverty and underdevelopment. Perhaps nowhere was this more evident than in Haiti, a clear case in which both conditions – vulnerability and fragility – aggravate the quality of life of its population. This chapter sets out to do three things: first, to examine the causes of and links between Haiti’s vulnerability and fragility; second, to assess the negative effects of the three grave crises of 2008 on the statebuilding process; and third, to explore possible ways donors can help to mitigate vulnerability in order to diminish the impact of future external shocks as the country attempts to recover from the worst internal shock of its modern history.