Material and Discursive Militarisation in Democracies
| Autor: | Kuehn, David, Levy, Yagil |
|---|---|
| Přispěvatelé: | GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies - Leibniz-Institut für Globale und Regionale Studien |
| Rok vydání: | 2020 |
| Předmět: |
Politikwissenschaft
Political science Friedens- und Konfliktforschung Sicherheitspolitik Peace and Conflict Research International Conflicts Security Policy Demokratie Militär Gesellschaft staatliche Einflussnahme Militarisierung Risiko Sicherheit democracy military society exertion of government pressure militarization risk security 10500 |
| Zdroj: | 6, GIGA Focus Global, 14 |
| Druh dokumentu: | Arbeitspapier<br />working paper |
| ISSN: | 1862-3581 |
| Popis: | Recent years have seen the expansion of the military's visibility and social role in many democracies. Even before the Covid-19 pandemic- democracies across the world had been deploying their militaries in an expanding range of operations. This has raised concerns about a return of the military as a political actor and the militarisation of democratic politics. Worries about the military becoming the "gravedigger of democracy" have resurfaced once again in recent years. Military coups in Africa, the expansion of military roles in law enforcement in Latin America, and an intensification of geostrategic conflicts in Asia have raised concerns about the militarisation of politics and its dangers for democratic processes, political rights, and civil liberties. However, across the world's democracies, there are few signs of a coherent trend towards the "material" militarisation of politics. Military coups and other forms of undue military influence on government formation are the exception in democratic countries, and the relative resource endowment of the military has actually declined over the last three decades. Nonetheless, there has been a worrying trend of democracies deploying their militaries for an increasing range of non-traditional missions in response to external or domestic security threats, including anti-terrorism activities, crime fighting, and the maintenance of law and order. To legitimate these non-traditional missions, democratic governments have engaged in a militarisation of the security discourse which portrays the use of military force as justified and "normal." Over the medium to long term, these militarised discourses may lead to material militarisation and the erosion of civilian control and democratic quality. Democracies deploy their militaries in a range of operations, which are often accompanied by a militarised security discourse to legitimise the use of military force as a socially acceptable or "normal" tool of civilian politics. Over time, these militarised discourses may lead to material militarisation and the erosion of civilian control and democratic quality. External actors should, therefore, focus not only on reining in military coups and other forms of undue military influence on democratic politics, but also support the demilitarisation of security discourses in recipient countries. |
| Databáze: | SSOAR – Social Science Open Access Repository |
| Externí odkaz: |
|