Concept Of Security Sector Reform Research Articles

Poradenský tím asistencie bezpečnostným silám - východiská a výsledky

The article discusses the importance of security sector reform. The aim of the article is to present the potential of the concept of security sector reform as a NATO tool for prevention and resolution of internal conflicts on the real example of the deployed military advisory team of the Armed Forces of the Slovak Republic to the ISAF operation in Afghanistan. The authors focus on the orientation in the topic and correlation and causal anchoring of the topic in the introduction and the first part of the article. The second part presents the initial situation of the deployment of the Slovak advisory team in the ISAF operation. The third part and the discussion summarize lessons identified from the deployment of the advisory teams of the Armed Forces of the Slovak Republic. It also illustrates the conceptual framework, conditions and axioms for optimal and effective security force assistance within the efforts of the security sector reform as an important part of the stabilization and reconstruction concept.

Theoretical aspects in multi-level security management of the European Union in the framework of Security Sector Reform (SSR)

Governance is a way for society to get organised, take and implement decisions by means of mutual understanding, reaching agreements and taking actions. It works at every level and is visible in social, political and economic dimensions. It includes a range of instruments, principles, institutions and practical action. States, governmental and non-governmental entities with some competences in governance aim to boost development level and provide security to their citizens. The concept of multi-level governance (MLG) is a characteristic of the European Union (EU) and its areas, where it is capable of exercising its governance at many levels using sectorial internal and external policies. This article focuses on multi-level security management by the European Union within the concept of Security Sector Reform (SSR), dedicated to two sectorial external policies, i.e. the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP), and the Common Security and Defence Policy (CFDP). In this article, the author will attempt to explain what Security Sector Reform actually means for the European Union. For better understanding this analysis author adopted the multi-level governance theory to demonstrate how the SSR concept can be combined with MLG. The author put forward a thesis that, due to many similarities, i.e. in the EU approach to security management in external relations

Posconflicto y reforma militar: reflexiones y rcomendaciones a propósito del caso colombiano tras los acuerdos de la habana

Este artículo propone algunas sugerencias puntuales en relación con la reforma de la fuerza pública en Colombia de cara al posconflicto. Para ello parte del concepto de Reforma del Sector Seguridad y de su horizonte normativo. Posteriormente, se revisan los aspectos esenciales de la reforma militar emprendida en la década de 2000 tanto en sus fortalezas en el debilitamiento de las FARC como en sus deficiencias en términos de control civil democrático y de respeto de los DDHH. Finalmente, en el camino de superar tales deficiencias y de atender a las necesidades de seguridad del nuevo escenario estratégico resultado de los acuerdos de La Habana, se proponen algunas recomendaciones en el corto y largo plazo para avanzar en un posconflicto más estable y construir una paz duradera.

An Anglophone Invention? The Difficult Emergence of a French Security Sector Reform Practice

The concept of security sector reform (SSR) was first formulated by UK development actors. Since 2008, France has officially adopted an SSR strategy and promoted the concept at the European level during the country's 2008 EU Presidency. However, what appears on paper to resemble full support from French institutions is in fact more complex. If the anglophone roots of the policy initiative do not seemingly explain its lack of institutionalization in the French context, it would appear that the difficulty faced by the French administration in finding a whole-of-government agreement on what the content of SSR should be, does.

Security sector stabilisation in counterinsurgency operations: the case of Afghanistan

This article argues that the debate on security sector reform (SSR) needs to be taken further by taking into consideration the fact that, even though the SSR concept was not originally developed as an element in stabilising states undergoing an insurgency, it is very much being used for exactly that. When conducting counterinsurgency with a focus on the creation of stability, the baseline will ultimately have to be security sector stabilisation (SSS) as a precondition for complete SSR implementation. However, the two must be connected to avoid them undermining each other. This is important if a comprehensive approach to programme implementation and especially sustainability is to guide the programme, and not just isolated ‘train and equip’ stand-alone projects that do not solve either the initial need for stabilisation or the long-term need for accountable security forces. Currently, in Afghanistan the surge for security by the international military is in danger of overtaking the other elements of the SSR, thereby undermining the primary end state and thus risking laying the wrong foundation for the long-term process of SSR.

Paramilitarization and Security Sector Reform: The Afghan National Police

An accelerating trend to establish paramilitarized security forces has been occurring in peace operations to help fill security gaps. But the practice is problematic from a security sector reform (SSR) point of view, because SSR aims at distinguishing between the military and the police and at promoting civilian policing. This article shows that while the SSR concept leaves room for paramilitarization, it demands much caution. The paramilitarization of regular police forces is incompatible with even a flexible interpretation of SSR principles. The US-driven paramilitarization of the Afghan National Police (ANP), reflecting a search for quick fixes, is a dramatic case in point.

Towards an Integrated Security Sector Reform Approach in UN Peace Operations

This article examines the possibilities and constraints of the United Nations in developing and implementing an integrated approach to Security Sector Reform (SSR), with particular emphasis on integrated missions. The article introduces the SSR concept, and examines the UN's engagement in this sector. It then forwards three main strands of argument that support the need for developing an integrated SSR approach, and highlights the impact that this will have on the coherence and efficiency of UN support to national SSR processes. Examining the challenges and obstacles the UN system will face in developing such an approach, the article concludes on a cautious note and questions the extent to which an integrated SSR approach is feasible.

Deconstructing local ownership of security sector reform: A review of the literature

The concept of security sector reform (SSR) entered the repertoire of development cooperation in the late 1990s as a novel aproach emphasising core values such as legality, transparency and accountability, and focusing not only on state security, but also on the safety of individuals. Within this framework, 'local ownership' of reform processes is a central tenet of SSR; however, there is no agreement on the precise meaning of the term, nor on the purposes local ownership of SSR should serve. Despite the theoretical commitment to a broad notion of local ownership, in practice it is often reduced to a demand for acquiescence on the part of recipient governments, leaving other relevant actors out of the equation. The authors argue for an invigorated understanding of the term that would guarantee the participation of those affected by SSR; this implies that both donors and recipients need to develop mechanisms and strategies that would allow all voices in society to be heard and so make SSR an inclusive endeavour.

The OSCE norms and activities related to the Security Sector Reform: An incomplete puzzle

The osce is actively engaged in current activities addressing the various facets of security sector reform (SSR). From the perspective of an institution which considers that the security of States and their citizens are mutually reinforcing, such an engagement appears completely natural. ssr represents a common concern for States in transition from war to peace and from authoritarian rule to democracy, as well as for any rule of law State. Democratic governance of the security sector is essential at all stages of the conflict management cycle: while having the potential for reducing the risk of armed violence in conflict-prone States, it happens to be an inescapable component of compromise packages conducive to a final peace settlement and constitutes a crucial element of peacebuilding strategies in post-conflict settings. A State with a dysfunctional security sector can disrupt political stability within its own region. As the security sector is linked to effective government authority, strong democratic institutions based on the rule of law also contribute to the prevention and combating of transnational threats, risks and challenges such as organized crime, terrorism and illicit trafficking of all kinds. However, the OSCE involvement on the ssr turf is plagued with a regrettable conceptual deficit due to the absence of an integrated concept of SSR. The present analysis offers a critical overview of osce achievements at both the normative (standard-setting) and operational level before assessing the consequence of the lack of overarching guiding principles governing the OSCE's SSR-related activities.

Analysis: The contribution of intelligence services to security sector reform

The concept of security sector reform has introduced the idea that the security sector is a legitimate recipient of donor assistance, but cooperation with intelligence services remains problematic. They are principally seen as a subject for reform rather than a contributor to it. I argue that intelligence services can reduce institutional inertia in the security sector, contribute to the rejection of outdated risks and the identification of new ones, and underpin the process of reform. To do so they require careful management and effective oversight. I propose a new definition of intelligence and a new distinction between intelligence and security that aim to capture the potential contribution of intelligence services to security sector reform.