Civil Democracy Protection is an overview of attempts by organisations to oppose groups that are perceived to threaten democracy. The book traces the history of civil democracy protection actors from the establishment of democratic constitutional states up to the present day and develops a set of systematic and comparative approaches. The central question it explores is: What significance do civil actors have for the establishment and consolidation of democratic constitutional states, especially in relation to the protection of democracy by state institutions? The volume includes contributions from historians and social scientists, who combine idiographic approaches that focus on the specifics of individual cases with nomothetic approaches that aim to provide generalisable insights, incorporating historical experiences from various European countries and the USA in the 20th and early 21st century. This book will be of interest to scholars of democracy protection, civil society, consolidation of democracy, and anti- extremism. The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) 4.0 International license.

The past decade has seen increasing international recognition of civic space as a cornerstone of functioning democracies, alongside efforts to promote and protect it. Countries that foster civic space are better placed to reap the many benefits of higher levels of citizen engagement, strengthened transparency and accountability, and empowered citizens and civil society. In the longer term, a vibrant civic space can help to improve government effectiveness and responsiveness, contribute to more citizen-centred policies, and boost social cohesion.

This volume analyses the role of civil society in the reform and oversight of the security sector in post- communist countries as a key aspect of the transition towards democracy. It is widely accepted that civil society actors have an important contribution to make in the governance of the security sector. However, that specific role has not been subject to much close or comparative examination. This book constitutes an attempt to examine and compare experiences of civil society participation in security oversight across Central and Eastern Europe. The first part of the volume presents the reader with the theoretical and conceptual background against which the potential role of civil society in security sector governance can be understood and assessed. The remainder of the book is comprised of nine country studies of civil society engagement with the security sector. Reviewing developments over the past 15 years of regime transformation in the region, the book draws upon a rich variety of cases that cast light on the different experiences, challenges, and successes of civil society actors and the media in democratisation, security sector reform, and the exercise of democratic oversight of the security sector.

Although "democracy promotion" has become a popular term for policy makers and scholars, democratization is rarely a smooth or linear transition. While some countries quickly democratize, others lag behind despite a long period of democracy promotion activities. Furthermore, while democracy promotion itself has been widely studied, there is a paucity of literature available assessing the outcome or the impact of democracy promotion. This book investigates democracy promotion by the European Union and the United States of America, and seeks to uncover why intensive democracy promotion has resulted in limited democratic progress. Exploring case studies of Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia, this book examines the conditions in which democracy promotion is more likely to result in democratic transformation. In addition, it introduces the concept of the "democracy blocker," a powerful authoritarian regional actor that is capable of blocking democratization in other countries. This book will be of interest to students and scholars of Political Science, Democracy, Democratization, EU Studies, US Politics, Comparative Politics, and Foreign Policy.

With contributions from experts on democracy promotion, this volume examines civil society development and external civil society promotion in post-socialist Europe. It focuses on countries with a failed or deficient process of democratic consolidation looking at unintended consequences of external democracy promotion on civil society development.

Security sector reform (SSR) is central to the democratic transitions currently unfolding across the globe, as a diverse range of countries grapple with how to transform militias, tribal forces, and dominant military, police, and intelligence agencies into democratically controlled and accountable security services. SSR will be a key element in shifts from authoritarian to democratic rule for the foreseeable future, since abuse of the security sector is a central technique of autocratic government. This edited collection advances solutions through a selection of case studies from around the world that cover a wide range of contexts.

Southern Africa has embarked on one of the world's most ambitious security co-operation initiatives, seeking to roll out the principles of the United Nations at regional levels. This book examines the triangular relationship between democratisation, the character of democracy and its deficits, and national security practices and perceptions of eleven southern African states. It explores what impact these processes and practices have had on the collaborative security project in the region. Based on national studies conducted by African academics and security practitioners over three years, it includes an examination of the way security is conceived and managed, as well as a comparative analysis of regional security co-operation in the developing world.

First Published in 2007. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

This book focuses, for the first time ever, on the protection roles of human rights NGOs since the establishment of the United Nations and the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It also looks at how NGOs are responding to future challenges such as artificial Intelligence, robots in armed conflicts, digital threats, and the protection of human rights in outer space. Written by leading NGO human rights practitioners from different parts of the world, it sheds light on the multiple roles of the leading pillar of the global human rights movement, the Non-Governmental Organizations.

This book provides innovative thinking from a variety of perspectives on the important human rights, human security, and national security policy issues of today—and how these issues intersect. The issue of human security comes into play in nearly every important policy debate in global politics, and the protection of human rights is now recognized as one of the main functions of any legitimate modern state. How can the international community best ensure that human rights are protected while simultaneously protecting state security? Who should intervene in cases of mass, gross violations, and when are military actions justified? This book seeks to address and explore these difficult and pressing questions by presenting the differing views of commentators from various ends of the spectrum. Human Rights, Human Security, and State Security: The Intersection consists of three volumes, with each focusing primarily on one of the three broad areas while also drawing connections between them. A powerful resource for policy makers and practitioners in national governments, members of international organizations, and scholars, the innovative thinking presented will give readers a deepened understanding of the various international issues and help them to formulate effective policies in today's complex international landscape.