The "empty shell" approach: the setup process of international administrations in Timor-Leste and Kosovo, its consequences and lessons

State-building under the aegis of international administrations has faced various hurdles and obstacles in Kosovo and Timor-Leste — failures that came to full light in March 2004 in Kosovo and in May 2006 in Timor-Leste. However, the international conception buttressing the set up of international administrations — I dub it the "empty-shell" approach — is still present in certain policy circles. This article aims to analyze this international conception by clarifying how the UN came to impose its authority over the two territories in a very similar process. While the literature on each state-building experiment is vast and com- pelling, few authors have attempted to contrast the two case studies, especially regarding the mental conception informing the governance process of these territories since 1999. This article links the empty-shell approach with the delegitimization process that came to be experi- enced by the UN in both cases. The article describes the international policies put in place by the UN to expand its control over the two terri- tories, a mix of co-option of local elites and the marginalization of the local population. Finally, the article reveals some possible solutions in order to avoid the more blatant difficulties pertaining to state-building conducted from the outside-in

The ISCIP Analyst, Volume XI, Issue 3

This repository item contains a single issue of The ISCIP Analyst, an analytical review journal published from 1996 to 2010 by the Boston University Institute for the Study of Conflict, Ideology, and Policy

Civil-military relations in peacebuilding

Civil-military relations are vital to the coherence and effectiveness of post-conflict peacebuilding, but have often been problematic. This article argues that civil-military issues vary systematically in relation to the particular civil and military actors in peacebuilding, and that the coercive content of the external military's mission creates special challenges in each of these sets of relationships. Given the significance of the military footprint, the article presents trade-offs for policymakers intending to use military forces to make peace

The Army, UN Peacekeeping Mission and Democracy in Bangladesh.

This article examines the role of the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Bangladesh in pushing the army in a certain direction with regard to holding elections and supporting political parties. It analyses the reasons why the UN peacekeeping mission has such a strong influence on the Bangladesh army and assesses the implications for future political developments of such foreign involvement. It further argues that whatever the limitations and excesses of democracy, army rule is no solution, rather it is necessary to strengthen democractic institutions and let democratic processes play themselves out. In this sense, the recourse to the army to bring in democracy in Bangladesh was not the best solution to the political impasse witnessed in 2007.Bangladesh; UN Peacekeeping