Dual Role of Security Sector - Essay Example

Dual role of Security Sector This article will converse lack of ample attention to the Arab Security Sector and its complex political and social roles in the Arab states. The research will demonstrate insufficient scholarly attention as depicted by different academic publication in Middle East Studies. Lastly, the research will highlight the role of Arab Security Sector in the process of state formation, connections in the political system, and reinforcing intersectional relations in the Arab States. Berglieng et al. (98) argues that the Rule of Law (ROL) and Security Sector Reform (SSR) can assist in post-conflict and all events related to the Arab Spring. ROL promotion by international community will enable securitization explain the reforms in practice to assist post-communist transitions. Arab States are the majority in Middle East region characterized by a high complex relationship between the military agencies and other security enforcement agencies in the state, politics, and the society. Kodmani, Bassma, and May (97) claim that Arab Security Sector still receives little attention in the recent years with rare information on comparative advances in the study of the security sector. The objective of the study is to inform the role of Arab Security Sector in the state, politics, and the society. The study will evaluate scholarly journal information in the field of Security Studies in Middle East in both English and Arabic press. Different themes receive considerable attention in the theoretical and comparative literature on civil society relating to Arab Security Sector. The role of the security sector in the socio cultural facets affects the role of status and legitimacy of the security. Formal and informal connections operate within the security sector in the civilian and political system. The role of the security sector reflects and reinforces the relationship between major sectors of the society. Al-Khalifah (24) emphasizes from the beginning that better relationships with the Arab Security Sector fails to result to successful policies toward Middle East. According to Kodmani et al. (97), one of the critical policy junctures is the Unites States strategy to scatter Iraqi Army after the invasion attack. At the time prior, the invasion Iraqi Army had 350,000 troops. Iraqi complex political-military relationship leads to imposition of effective and formal civilian control in the newly established Iraqi Security Forces. Since that time, Kurdish and Shiite militias penetrate the Security Forces. The relationship between Iraqi Army and intersectional relationships in the state suggests the replacement of the military institution dominated by Shiite. Al-Khalifah (24) argues that that the militia movement is liable to impinge the legitimacy of the new security sector. The neglect of the Arab Security Sector in the era of major developments in Middle East and the international system in the civil-security relations in the theoretical and comparative level. Arab Security Sector applies current theoretical advances to study complex relationships with the politics, state, and society as well as interplay of primary resources. Barak and Gabriel (1) state that Security Sector consists of intelligence agencies, military industries, paramilitary forces, internal security, police forces, coast guards, border guards, and the military constitute. In most states of the world such as the Arab States, the military is the main security service in terms of resources, association, size, and process of state formation. According to Bergling et al. (99), security agencies in the Arab States have to improve their internal security apparatuses. The security sector deserves additional consideration to covert activities difficult in the military. Barak and Gabriel (1) state that recent events and experiences in the Middle East countries make a transition from authoritarian to democratic regime such as Egypt, Iraq, and Israel. Such environments require heavy hand on post-conflict ROL and SSR response package that focus on restraining specific sector of the state. The countries that undergo fragile democratic transition require a more nuanced and tailored democratic assistance especially in the areas of constitutional reform, administrative reforms, and security machinery. According to Kodmani et al. (98), ROL and SSR are methodological, organizational, and political that can enhance conceptual clarity to improve priority in the response. Additionally, ROI and SSR will assist in formulating better-adapted mission strategies in crisis management. At the conceptual level, ROL refers to the aspiration ideal where the law exercises state power in the interest of the populace. Alternatively, ROL is a form of practical and academic work and thinking on how to consolidate and promote in the crisis management. SSR is a sector populated by set of instructions with an aim to create or strengthen security at the primary and national level. SSR can promote or establish the conditions necessary for ROL reform. Recently, ROL experiences controversy due to internal re-assessment, internal re-evaluation, and critic since it is yet to deliver its promises. The criticism that started in relation to development cooperation and subsequent spilled post-conflict peace operations and crisis management. The Security Sector until 1990s In the late 1940s, during the heyday of military coups in Middle East, the Arab Security Sector ranks high on the agenda of the region’s students. The political role of the Arab militaries receives most attention while other processes of the state formation promote modernization and national integration. Later on, Arab War in 1967 and subsequent civilization of the revolutionary regimes in Syria, Egypt, and Syria began paying attention to the social, political, and economic role of the Arab Security Sector. In 1980s, students of the Middle East have the preoccupation of political liberalization in some of the Arab States such as Jordan, Egypt, and Morocco. The students raise the expectations of democratization like the Latin America and East European models. Al-Khalifah (24) cites that the rise of political Islam appears as a challenge to the existing political and socioeconomic order in the Arab States. The considerable impact of the Arab Security Sector forestalls the expansion of political participation in the Arab States to suppress Islamists. The Current State of Neglect Loewe (3) scans different journals from 1990-2005 for items relating to the security sector in the Middle East specifically Arab Security Sector. Loewe (4) identifies notable gaps in the study of the Arab Security Sector. Some of the peer-reviewed journals include Middle Eastern Studies (MES), Middle East Quarterly (MEQ). Arab Studies Quarterly, Security Studies (SS), and Armed Forces & Society (AFS). Loewe (4) informs that conceptual framework consists of three different axes of analyses that include (1) Arab Security Sector and broad Middle East Security Sector. (2) Analysis on armed conflicts in the Middle East, strategic balance, armament, and regional security in the region. (3) Some of the distinct groups of Arab States that have military capabilities that include Syria, Egypt, and Iraq. Barak and Assaf (810) investigate that Theoretical and comparative journals devote less than 10 articles of their articles to Middle Eastern Security sector. Barak and Assaf (810) observe that Armed Forces & Security pays more attention contemporary Arab Security Sector while concentrating on Israel. Loewe (5) comparison of non-Arab states in Middle East to the Arab States emerges that non-Arab states have more attention. Some of the conclusions emerging in the results demonstrate little scholarly attention accorded to the Middle East in comparison to other issues in the regional states. A glance at academic publications in the same period yields similar results. Most books that deal with Middle East Studies have only a few of them focusing exclusively on the Middle East Security Sector. Mostly the books depict military balance in the region, Arab armies, limitations of the military, Gulf security, weapons of mass destruction, and Arab Israeli wars. Only a handful of books adopt a regional perspective on militaries in Middle East. Researchers prefer to investigate Israel as Turkey and Iran lag behind. Aydinli (1144) stress that number of academic books devoted exclusively to the Arab Security Sector is low. Shaker al-Nabusi’s book called “The Rise of the Arab Militarist Society in Egypt and Syria,” epitomizes the paucity of Arabic contributions on the Arab Security Sector. Nabuisi has the objective of presenting a critical account of Arab military and properties of Arab regimes of a special organization. Nabuisi does not employ plenty of Arabic content available on Arab civil-security relations. The author seems to rely on outdated Arabic books concerning Arab militaries and few periodicals on Arab militarism. The examination of published academic journals from 1990s to present suggest that modest attention on Middle East Security Sector focuses on the strategic and war-related aspects instead of regional patterns of civil security relations. The existing literal works seem to incline on the non-Arab states as few publications focus on the Arab States. The publication favors the states with sizable militaries or economic wealth that receive most attention. The shortage of up-to-date works on Arab Security Sector suggests that the relationship with the state, politics, and society is insignificant. Arab Security Sector and the State Some of the facets of state formation include centralization on government instruments, monopolization, statecraft in the enhancement of state power, and national integration to invest in the citizens. According to Aydinli (1145), state building in the Arab Security Sector denotes the relationship between war making and state making in the Middle East region. Tremendous costs of the region armed conflict and resources mobilized such as ammunition originate from outside the region. The role of the Arab Security Sector in the process of state formation depicts also the socio cultural aspects. Arab Security Sector makes a considerable effort to construct an autonomous actor through routine actions such as military drills and exercises. The Arab Security Sector continuously seeks to elicit popular identification that disseminating national symbols and official historical narratives of the entire society. The Lebanese Army appears in 1942 before the country attains independence. The Army traditionally uses official bulletins of the Arab security agencies to portray itself as a melting pot for members of various sectors of Lebanese society. In addition to the official publications and bulletins of the Arab Security Sector that ranges from orientation bulletins to quasi-academic journals on security affairs. The recent years have seen a rise in the number of Internet Web Sites operated by Arab security agencies. The Jordanian and Lebanese armies and Lebanon’s internal Security Forces to highlight past and present achievements, commemorate fallen personnel, past commanders, and during emergencies and ordinary times. Some of the Web sites provide daily summaries of press times on the Arab Security Sector. The New Arab Media includes Arab satellite TV channels, blogosphere, and forums to present Arab Security Sector with a new form of legitimacy especially from the civil society groups. The Arab security agencies use the media platform to denounce offensive remarks from the political class and other stakeholders. For instance, Lebanese Army organizes meetings with media journalists where their leadership stresses on support of the security using civil society. Arab Security Sector has a growing awareness of the public image that devote entirely on civil issues. Arab Security Sector and Politics The existing studies on civilian-security relations in the Arab States have a dynamic and constant changing nature. The new research has the following general theoretical advances that include studies on the impact of informal policy networks in the realm of national security, experts that share a common understanding to influence policymakers, treat securitization, and studies on Security Sector Reform. The Arab press and the New Arab Media permit students of the Arab Security Sector to employ aforementioned theories. The establishment of formal institutions in the Arab States trains the security officers as civil officials. The Human Rights Watch and international organizations address human rights issues in the Arab States. For instance states such as Jordan is open to organizational activities and depends on interview reports with top security officials. The media perception of the Arab militaries during the war between Israel and Hezbollah reveals intense debates of Arab militaries over security-related issues such as military expenditures in the Arab States. The independent Internet Web sites provide up-to-date information on Arab security issues from a non-partisan point of view. The Arab Security Sector and Society Most of the states in the Middle East that include Arab States have different ethnic groups, clans, and families in diverse geographical regions. Scholars rely on the general theoretical and comparative studies to address profound changes in the civil-security interface after the Cold War to include relationships between the security sector and society. Attention to critical conflicting issues helps one to comprehend complex relationships between the security sector and society in the Arab States. Some of the periods of conflict and political change in Iraq include Arab Sunnis to dominate the security sector until United States leads the invasion in 2003. At that time, Kurds and Shi’is dominate the Iraqi security forces established in its upshot. The factor that best explains the security sector in Iraq is the issue of trepidation and mistrust from noteworthy segments of the society both before and removal of Saddam and Baath regime. Lebanon contrasts Iraqi since the security sector manages to transform itself as an institution dominated by Christian communities that participate in all the community sectors. The introduction of power sharing in Lebanese Army includes the creation of a more balanced officer corps, installment of power sharing in the army’s command and control of civilian bodies. That happens with the objective of reaching a consensus on all the tasks of the army that will enhance legitimacy of the institution to ensure positive reforms on the political reforms in Lebanon. Role of Arab Security in the State, Politics, and Society Barak and Assaf (822) think that Arab Security Sector should link with the state and the political system. That will strive to empower the security sector in relation to the political actors in the region. In summary, this article takes note on the academic neglect of the Arabic States while it plays a poignant role in the state, politics, and society. The articles address the serious gap in the study of Arab Security Sector while observing potential linkages with state, politics, and society. The Arab Security Sector comprises of a network of retired security officials and political partners. Works Cited Al-Khalifah, Nasser S. "First Arab Palm Conference On The Development Of Date Palm And Dates Sector In The Arab World." Emirates Journal Of Food & Agriculture (EJFA) 24.5 (2012): 1-2. Aydinli, Ersel. "The Reform-Security Dilemma In Democratic Transitions: The Turkish Experience As Model?." Democratization 20.6 (2013): 1144-1164. Barak, Oren, and Assaf David. "The Arab Security Sector: A New Research Agenda For A Neglected Topic." Armed Forces & Society (0095327X) 36.5 (2010): 804-824. Barak, Oren, and Gabriel Sheffer. "Israel?S ?Security Network? In A Comparative Perspective: An Exploratory Investigation." Conference Papers -- International Studies Association (2007): 1. Bergling, Per, Erik Wennerström, and Richard Zajac Sannerholm. "Rule Of Law And Security Sector Reform: Casual Assumptions, Unintended Risks And The Need For Norms." Hague Journal Of The Rule Of Law 4.1 (2012): 98-119. Kodmani, Bassma, and May Chartouni-Dubarry. "The Security Sector In Arab Countries: Can It Be Reformed?." IDS Bulletin 40.2 (2009): 96-104. Loewe, Markus. "New Avenues To Be Opened For Social Protection In The Arab World: The Case Of Egypt." International Journal Of Social Welfare 13.1 (2004): 3-14. Read More