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Interdisciplinary Journal of International Studies
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This is an Open Access Journal

Open Access journal
ISSN (Print) 1602-9097 - ISSN (Online) 1604-7095
Published by Aalborg University

[18 journals]

Volume 12 Issue 1 2022 Introduction
- Authors: Ariadni Stavroula Zormpa, Maria Sierro Fernandez, Kristian Jensen, Eveliina Viivi Lepistö
  Pages: 5 - 5
  Abstract: This Issue of the Interdisciplinary Journal of International Studies (IJIS) discusses the topic ‘Crisis’.
  PubDate: 2022-04-04
  DOI: 10.5278/ojs.ijis.v12i1.7236
  Issue No: Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
Parallel discursive arenas and LGBT Asylum: enhancing the protection of
LGBT+ people on the run outside of Europe
- Authors: María Sierro
  Pages: 7 - 7
  Abstract: More than 70 countries in the world criminalize same-sex sexual activity or the “promotion” of such activity (ILGA, 2017, as cited in Vitikainen, 2020, p. 64). Beyond criminalization, LGBT+ people across the world are subject to stigma and other disadvantages and dangers (Vitikainen, 2020, p. 64) that might force them to flee and seek protection as “refugees” in a different country. However, discourses of “crisis” that are often used when addressing humanitarian emergencies, such as the so-called “refugee crisis” of 2015, might conceal the diversity of displaced populations and the specific needs of different categories of refugees, including LGBT+ refugees. This essay discusses the problems of the “crisis” vocabulary and the potential of the categorization of “LGBT+ refugees” to recognize the specifics of their plight and develop humanitarian responses better adapted to their needs. Furthermore, it presents the example of a workshop which can be considered as a “parallel discursive arena” where students and professionals working with refugees could reflect on the identities, interests, and needs of LGBT+ refugees and work towards rights-based humanitarian strategies to tackle the challenges faced by LGBT+ people on the run outside of Europe.
  PubDate: 2022-04-04
  DOI: 10.5278/ojs.ijis.v12i1.7143
  Issue No: Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
The Crisis in Syria and the Responsibility to Protect (R2P)
- Authors: Alex Berg
  Pages: 7 - 7
  Abstract: When the Syrian regime failed to protect its population, an intervention by the International Community would be deemed necessary according to the obligations set under the “Responsibility to Protect” norms. The intervention would have changed the nature of the war though not necessarily ended it. The Responsibility to Protect came about to address the dilemmas that powerful countries face when they decide to prevent war crimes and genocides. The crisis in Syria can be an example of how countries become hesitant to intervene when there is no foreseen direct threat or economic and geographical interest in the concerned country.
  PubDate: 2022-04-04
  DOI: 10.5278/ojs.ijis.v12i1.6896
  Issue No: Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
The Magical Realism of Danish Counter Terrorism Policy, the Hunt for
Witches and How to resist it
- Authors: Magnus Christensen
  Pages: 14 - 14
  Abstract: This article explores what perception of the terror threat legitimized the ongoing imprisonment of 6 Danish women and their 19 children in the Kurdish led imprisonment camps Al-Hol and Al-Roj in Syria. It argues that by framing the terror threat as an incomprehensible threat, the state successfully instills fear that can only be handled by exceptional measures. The article reads Danish counter terrorism policy as a text of magical realism to identify how the War on Terror speaks to an in-betweenness of realism and supernatural in the performance of threat. The framework enables scholars to point out states’ unreasonable security claims, and thereby resist counter terrorism policy.
  PubDate: 2022-04-04
  DOI: 10.5278/ojs.ijis.v12i1.6995
  Issue No: Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
Balancing 'the heartless head and the headless heart'
- Authors: Kristine Heimstad
  Pages: 16 - 16
  Abstract: Originally a master’s thesis, this narrowed-down article aims at examining the term sustainable immigration by applying it to a Norwegian context. It concludes that the term lacks value due to its vague nature and finds that it is difficult to measure. Further, by assessing Norwegian immigration policy in terms of sustainability, the article showcases that i) Norway rescues fragile societies from mass despair by providing humanitarian aid, but by doing so, it promotes brain drain; ii) Norway assists and protects refugees on paper but rather doubtful in practice; iii) Norway’s voting patterns reveal citizens’ preference of restrictive immigration policies but opinion polls and surveys indicate a nuanced picture; iv) Norway makes an effort to inform would-be migrants but migrants still seek to be returned to their country of origin v) Norway disregards the origin state when drafting immigration policy and; vi) Norway bases its immigration policy on long-term demographic, economic and social forecasts.
  
  PubDate: 2022-04-04
  DOI: 10.5278/ojs.ijis.v12i1.7122
  Issue No: Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
Sexual and Gender-Based Violence on Refugee Women’s Journeys
- Authors: Emma Vinter
  Pages: 16 - 16
  Abstract: In the wake of the refugee ‘crisis’, an abundance of anti-refugee sentiments can be found in the mass media. Curiously, the focus is centred on men, and refugee women are largely ignored in the media, yet this is not the case in the academic literature. Through a literature review, I uncover that the agency of these women is often forgotten by scholars. Focusing on the refugee ‘crisis’, I explore the obstacles that refugee women face on their journeys regarding sexual and gender-based violence. I pose the question: How does sexual and gender-based violence affect refugee women’s journeys' To avoid representing refugee women as passive victims, I employ a gendered lens on the autonomy of migration approach. Overall, I argue that refugee women should be decoupled with notions of vulnerability and should instead be reframed as resilient women who constantly navigate difficult and dangerous pathways to fight for a better future.
  PubDate: 2022-04-04
  DOI: 10.5278/ojs.ijis.v12i1.7119
  Issue No: Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
Hybrid warfare: weaponized migration on the eastern border of the EU'
- Authors: Viesturs Berzins
  Pages: 19 - 19
  Abstract: After a forced landing of a Ryanair flight which was carrying a journalist and opposition activist highlighting the human rights violations in Belarus, the EU decided to expand the sanctions against the Belorussian regime. The sanctions have been increasing since the disputed re-election of President Alyaksandr Lukashenka. After the introduction of the last wave of sanctions, the Belarus-EU migrant crisis started. This article provides an overview of the migrant crisis on the Belorussian border with the EU, in the beginning of summer 2021. The research explores the possibility that this increase in irregular migration is an attempt to destabilize the states receiving the migrants. The theory of hybrid warfare suggests that striking a state’s weakest link is an efficient way to destabilize it. This article seeks to answer if Belarus is using tools of hybrid warfare as a response to the EU sanctions.
  PubDate: 2022-04-04
  DOI: 10.5278/ojs.ijis.v12i1.6992
  Issue No: Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
Crisis and Credit: The Case for Running a Financial Inclusion Program
through a Public-Private Partnership as a Method of Poverty-Alleviation
- Authors: Zahra Gardezi, Muhammad Ahmad Hassan, Muhammad Ahmad Hassan
  Pages: 20 - 20
  Abstract: The globally-prevalent crisis of financial exclusion ails millions especially in developing countries, by trapping low-income households in a vicious cycle of poverty. One public policy measure to address this is through the provision of low-cost microfinance under countrywide financial inclusion programs. This paper explores one such financial inclusion program launched as a public-private partnership (PPP) across Pakistan in October 2021, titled “Kamyab Pakistan Program” (KPP). More specifically, it explores the role of AIM, a high-impact Pakistani microfinance organization, as one of the implementing partners under this PPP, and posits this as an ideal PPP with potential for success. This hypothesis generating case study is analyzed through a principal-agent framework by identifying the factors under which the expected success of this PPP is predicated on. Resultantly, three hypotheses are generated that identify the following three factors: 1) ideological confluence between the government-led Program and the microfinance institution, 2) past involvement in design of the Program by the microfinance institution, and 3) creation of subjectively perceived social responsibility by the microfinance institution. This paper reaches the conclusion that a public-private partnership of the nature explored in the case-study – such that there is a certain level of confluence between both parties involved in terms of both a philosophical basis as well as operational processes – is an effective method by which to achieve financial inclusion, which is aimed specifically at poverty-reduction.
  PubDate: 2022-04-04
  DOI: 10.5278/ojs.ijis.v12i1.7079
  Issue No: Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)
Volume 12 Issue 1 2022 Entire Issue
- Authors: Ariadni Stavroula Zormpa
  Pages: 101 - 101
  Abstract: Volume 12 Issue 1 2022 Entire Issue
  PubDate: 2022-04-04
  DOI: 10.5278/ojs.ijis.v12i1.7237
  Issue No: Vol. 12, No. 1 (2022)