
At the dawn of the 21st century the specter of terror has come to haunt the minds of the citizenary and policymakers alike. Three reasons seem to be responsible for this. Firstly, the empowering status of non-state entities. Secondly, the easy availability of deadly, weaponry, including the knowledge of turning grocery items into improvised explosive devices. And thirdly, the arrival of suicide bombers priding on civilian targets, and that again, with an aggressiveness primarily grounded in faith rather than on reason.
Understanding the state of national security, both traditional and non-traditional, is vital for formulating and implementing national policies in Bangladesh. The Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS) has initiated its annual report on national security. The present volume is the third in the series that covers the developments and events in the year 2009. Two earlier volumes in the series dealt with both traditional and non-traditional nature.
Sri Lanka at independence in 1948 was an oasis of stability, peace and security. It was a shining example of parliamentary democracy in the Third World. During the 1980s, however, violent ethnic conflict, emergency rule, the manipulation of the electoral process and the erosion of the welfare safety-net transformed Sri Lanka into a highly volatile locus of ethno-political conflict with severe human security deficit. The book explores the symbiotic relationship between traditional and human security in Sri Lanka in academic as well as in practical terms.
Bangladesh has witnessed rising Islamic radicalization, extremism and militancy in various manifestations for more than 10 years. In the aftermath of 9/11, religious militancy has intensified in South Asia. The dramatic rise in terrorist activities in recent years has taken on the form of bomb explosions and suicide bombings generating fear, undermining political stability and hurting business confidence.
This study narrates the context and complexity of the state-society relations in Nepal and puts the socio-economic and political situation of Nepal into perspective against the background of the emerging discourses on non-traditional security. Nepali state, which is traditionally seized by the misgovernance of its political leaderships, has never been sensitive towards the dignity of its citizenry.
This book is an attempt to bring the complexities and multiplicities of violence inflicted against women and the different dimensions of militarisation. Several issues however inform and shape the South Asian complexities with respect to women and militancy, and the book attempts to address them both theoretically and empirically. Firstly, the book looks at the challenges and contradiction. South Asia has outstanding women leaders at the state level, but violence against women and that too of varied nature is on the rise.
This volume consists of 26 columns published earlier in various leading dailies between the years 2004 and 2006. The need for publication of the columns was felt because of the almost unending debate on religion-based militancy. The major political parties did not fail to have polarised views on the issue based on politics of denial and politics of confrontation. The media and the civil society, on the other hand, contributed to a more informed understanding of the much-debated subject of terrorism.
In positivist social sciences measurement is an important exercise in determining casual and correlational relationship. Efforts at constructing Human Security Index (HIS) picked up momentum following the introduction of Human Development Index (HDI) by the end in 1993. He provides the site for measuring the interface between the downsides of development and various levels and sources of insecurities. The traditional debate between ‘freedom from want’ and ‘freedom from fear’ is also reflected here.