Surviving in a Difficult Context: The Quest for Development in Unrecognised States

Abstract

The study of world politics is often overwhelmed by powerful myths that are taken for granted, unquestioned for long periods of time. One. of these myths is the unjustified belief that unrecognised territorial entities are places synonymous with the Hobbesian state of nature. Described by a multitude of terms, such as ‘de facto states’, ‘quasi-states’, ‘unrecognised states’, ‘para-states’ and ‘pseudo-states’, these political entities are depicted as anarchical badlands where the lack of international recognition supports an ongoing state of disorder (Kolsto 2006). Associated with internal warfare, the creation of unrecognised states has often led to ethnic cleansing, forced migration and internal displacement (Caspersen 2012). Traditional conceptions of sovereignty, along with the conditions of non-recognition, significantly affect the common image of non-recognised states. The prevailing view in the academic literature and the international community is a negative one that portrays these entities as the antipode of stable, orderly, sovereign states (Kolossov & O’ Loughlin 1999). This perception strengthens the case for non-recognition, as these entities are deemed undesirable and a potential security threat which provides safe havens for criminal activity, especially trafficking of humans, weapons, drugs and radioactive materials (Kemp 2005).KeywordsShadow EconomyOrganise CrimeTerritorial IntegrityIllegal TradeSociopolitical ContextThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.