Q4 - 2008
| S. No. | Title | Author | Description | Link | Link |
| 001 | Malaysia | World Economic Forum | Country/Economy Profiles |  |
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| 002 | Pakistan | World Economic Forum | Country/Economy Profiles | |
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| 003 | India | World Economic Forum | Country/Economy Profiles | |
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| 004 | Special Economic Zones and Competitiveness A Case Study of Shenzhen, the People's Republic of China |
Wanda Guo and Yueqiu Feng ADB |
Special economic zones (SEZs) have played an important role in advancing economic reform in the People's Republic of China (PRC) and, particularly, in opening up its economy to the rest of the world. The Shenzhen SEZ was the first SEZ to be set up in the PRC. Over the past few decades, Shenzhen has developed from being a small fishing village in Guangdong Province into a major industrial and financial center, benefiting substantially from the liberal economic policies granted by the Central Government to SEZs. Shenzhen's rapid development has showcased the advantages of “open door” policies and market-oriented reforms, served as a “laboratory” for piloting policies, and propelled economic development in the rest of the country. |
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| 005 | Direct Overt U.S. Aid and Military Reimbursements to Pakistan, FY2002-FY2009 | K. Alan Kronstadt, Specialist in South Asian Affairs | |
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| 006 | The Shape of Frontier Rule: Governance and Transition, from the Raj to the Modern Pakistani Frontier |
White, Joshua1 |
This essay examines British colonial debates about governance in India as a means of positing an analytical framework in which to address the current crises of governance in Pakistan's frontier. In light of the collapse of the antiquated system of tribal governance in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), and the spread of insurgent Talibanization into the heart of the ethnically Pashtun settled areas, this analysis maps several possible transition paths for governance reform in both the tribal and settled regions, and argues for an incremental approach that minimizes risks to political stability. “Website © 2008 Ingenta. Article copyright remains with the publisher, society or author(s) as specified within the article” |
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| 007 | State of the States: Mapping India's Northeast |
Bhagat Oinam | |
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| 008 | Violent non-state Actors AnD National and international security |
International relations and security network Phil Williams |
Even a cursory global survey suggests that violent non-state actors (VNSA s) have become a pervasive challenge to nation-states. In Europe, jihadist terrorist organizations have carried out dramatic and well-publicized attacks in Madrid and London and have only been prevented from further actions by proactive intelligence and law enforcement. In Mexico, drug-trafficking organizations are challenging the Mexican state in a particularly brutal manner, and have killed a series of highranking policemen in retaliation for the Calderon administration’s efforts to disrupt their activities and reduce their power. In the favelas of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, drug traffickers and, more recently, militias provide rudimentary forms of governance in urban areas where the state is absent. |
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| 009 | Afghanistan Opium Survey 2008 |
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The following organizations and individuals contributed to the implementation of the 2008 Afghanistan Opium Survey and to the preparation of this report: Survey and Monitoring Directorate of the Ministry of Counter-Narcotics: Eng. Ibrahim Azhar (Director), Mir Abdullah (Deputy Director) Survey Coordinators: Abdul Mateen (Eastern zone), Abdul Latif Ehsan (Western zone), Fida Mohammad (Northern zone), and Mohammed Ishaq Anderabi (North-eastern zone), Hashmatullah Asek (Southern zone). Technical staff: Mohammad Khyber Wardak (Data Expert), Mohammad Ajmal (Data Clerk), Sahar (Data Clerk). |
In 2008 opium has become less important to the Afghan economy. Our summary report, released in August, showed a sharp drop in its physical dimensions: cultivation and production. This final Afghan Opium Survey 2008 assesses the complex nature of the opium economy in Afghanistan this year and prospects for 2009. |
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| 010 | Indian nuclear forces, 2008 | BY Rober t S. Nor is & Hans M. Kristensen | Ten years ago, India officially declared itself a nuclear weapon state and announced its intention to develop and deploy a nuclear triad. Today, the sea- and land-based legs of its triad remain under development, and its fighter bombers constitute the only fully operational leg. Despite its slow pace, India’s nuclear program continues to grow: India is developing a three-stage land-based ballistic missile, a nuclearpowered submarine, and a potentially nuclear-capable cruise missile. |
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| 011 | The Threat of inadvertent nuclear war in South Asia | Matthew G. Gurgel | |
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| 012 | Security along the Line of Control in Kashmir and the Terrorism Conundrum post-Mumbai 11/26 |
Professor Richard Bonney | No sane human being can have anything other than sympathy for the Mumbai victims or horror at the apparently nihilistic assassination mentality of the perpetrators of what took place. Nothing that is said here is intended to justify or condone the actions of a group of vicious operatives for whom the word ‘terrorist’, so devalued today because it has been so overused by politicians the world over, seems too benign an epithet. |
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| 013 | STRUGGLE FOR KABUL: THE TALIBAN ADVANCE | The International Council on Security and Development | To reflect its ongoing expansion of programmes and new research platforms in various zones of conflict, The Senlis Council has changed its name. In keeping with its rapidly developing global footprint, The Senlis Council has become the International Council on Security and Development (ICOS). Now in its sixth year of operation, ICOS is an independent international policy think tank committed to implementing policy change in three key areas: | |
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| 014 | Mountain tensions | Brian Cloughley | over the Aksai Chin desert plateau, abutting two of China’s five autonomous regions, Xinjiang and Tibet, at an altitude of some 4,500 m, with peaks of over 6,700 m. The region has an area of 42,685 km2 (the size of Kentucky or Denmark) and has been occupied by China since the 1950s, but India asserts that it is part of the territory of Indian-administered Kashmir. |
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| 015 | Counter-Narcotics in Afghanistan: The Failure of Success? |
David Mansfield & Adam Pain | November marks the onset of the opium poppy planting season in Afghanistan. Speculation over the scale of cultivation in 2009 also begins in this month. As in previous years, when the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) publishes its annual Rapid Assessment Survey in February, the speculation over the hectarage of opium poppy grown this season will reach a crescendo, dominating coverage in the media and subsequently shaping policy in the coming season. This is all despite the fact that one year’s measure of opium area cannot assess trends of long term change nor does it reveal how any change occurred or, therefore, the likely sustainability of that change. |
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| 016 | Country Report |
Editors: Anjalika Bardalai (editor); Gerard Walsh (consulting editor) | • Political stability is unlikely to improve significantly in 2009-10. Inter-party |
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| 017 | IRI Index Pakistan Public Opinion Survey |
IRI | |
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| 018 | Policing in Afghanistan: Still Searching for a Strategy |
International Crisis Group | Police reform in Afghanistan is receiving more attention and resources than ever before, but such increased efforts are still yet to be matched by significant improvements in police effectiveness and public confidence. Too much emphasis has continued to be placed on using the police to fight the insurgency rather than crime. Corruption and political appointments are derailing attempts to professionalise the force. |
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| 019 | Bangladesh Forthcoming Elections |
Sandeep Bhardwaj Research Officer, IPCS, New Delhi |
Parliamentary elections are scheduled to be held on 29 December in Bangladesh and the political machinery is gearing up. On the one hand, optimism is high and the public has vowed to bring about change in a country riddled with problems. On the other hand, elections are being viewed with great scepticism because the country continues to be dominated by the same political leaders, political parties and agendas. It continues to cling to the past, refusing to accept new leadership or political thought. The elections will be fought on the same issues as ever and determined by the same party politics. |
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| 020 | India: New and protracted displacement ongoing in absence of formalised response | internal displacement monitoring center | In 2007-2008, civilians in various parts of India continued to be displaced by internal armed conflict and separatist, ethnic or communal violence, as well as conflict stemming from the threat of development-induced displacement. Over one third of the country’s 608 districts were affected by insurgent movements in 2007. | |