Contestation or Regulation - New Politics in Southeast Asia. By providing a greater understanding of the region's polities and societies the study can enhance all forms of Australian engagement with Southeast Asia. It offers insights into differential intra-regional capacities and orientations of political systems to absorb diverse social forces into the political process. This knowledge provides a basis for strategies to promote effective governance reform and other Australian aid programs. It ....Contestation or Regulation - New Politics in Southeast Asia. By providing a greater understanding of the region's polities and societies the study can enhance all forms of Australian engagement with Southeast Asia. It offers insights into differential intra-regional capacities and orientations of political systems to absorb diverse social forces into the political process. This knowledge provides a basis for strategies to promote effective governance reform and other Australian aid programs. It will also assist policymakers seeking to influence the management of, or resolution to, conflicts threatening stability in the region. Read moreRead less
Strengthening Parliamentary Institutions: Australia in Comparative Perspective. Australia has a valuable international record as a parliamentary democracy, with much to teach, as well as much to learn from, the international community about effective parliamentary institutions. This joint ANU-Commonwealth Parliament project will be based at the ANU's new Parliamentary Studies Centre and managed by that Centre's inaugural director, Professor John Uhr. The project will greatly strengthen the intel ....Strengthening Parliamentary Institutions: Australia in Comparative Perspective. Australia has a valuable international record as a parliamentary democracy, with much to teach, as well as much to learn from, the international community about effective parliamentary institutions. This joint ANU-Commonwealth Parliament project will be based at the ANU's new Parliamentary Studies Centre and managed by that Centre's inaugural director, Professor John Uhr. The project will greatly strengthen the intellectual and policy framework of Australia's democracy assistance in the Asia Pacific region.Read moreRead less
Impediments to Security Sector Reform in Southeast Asia. This project investigates the impediments to security sector reform in Southeast Asia. It applies an original framework of analysis that identifies five types of impediment to security reform in four critically important regional case studies: Thailand, Malaysia, The Philippines and Indonesia. Because effectively implemented security sector reform will enhance regional peace and security by creating armed forces that are democratically con ....Impediments to Security Sector Reform in Southeast Asia. This project investigates the impediments to security sector reform in Southeast Asia. It applies an original framework of analysis that identifies five types of impediment to security reform in four critically important regional case studies: Thailand, Malaysia, The Philippines and Indonesia. Because effectively implemented security sector reform will enhance regional peace and security by creating armed forces that are democratically controlled, transparent and professional, understanding the impediments to reform has the potential to significantly enhance Australia's domestic and international security position. This research will provide the first theoretically informed empirical analysis of security sector reform in Southeast Asia.Read moreRead less
Humanitarian intervention and the conflict between national and international responsibility. The project will address the question of how the Australian government can maintain its reputation as a good global citizen without compromising its ethical standing with the Australian people. It will provide valuable insights into the privatization of military force and the increasingly common use of civilian contractors, and may provide information to the Australian Defence Force on the ethically app ....Humanitarian intervention and the conflict between national and international responsibility. The project will address the question of how the Australian government can maintain its reputation as a good global citizen without compromising its ethical standing with the Australian people. It will provide valuable insights into the privatization of military force and the increasingly common use of civilian contractors, and may provide information to the Australian Defence Force on the ethically appropriate level of force protection for future humanitarian and peace-keeping missions, in addition to motivating the more efficient use of ADF resources. Finally, the project will further Australia's reputation as the source of high quality innovative research in applied philosophy, and especially military ethics.Read moreRead less
New Concepts of Human Security and AIDS. This project recognises that the AIDS pandemic is a significant example of non-military threats to international security, and that different national responses to AIDS are a product of different political, economic and cultural factors. It seeks to explore the complex relationship between national, international and grass roots responses to HIV/AIDS, with some emphasis on those countries most significant to Australia's security needs. It seeks to use soc ....New Concepts of Human Security and AIDS. This project recognises that the AIDS pandemic is a significant example of non-military threats to international security, and that different national responses to AIDS are a product of different political, economic and cultural factors. It seeks to explore the complex relationship between national, international and grass roots responses to HIV/AIDS, with some emphasis on those countries most significant to Australia's security needs. It seeks to use social theory to illuminate practical issues facing HIV/AIDS advocacy at local, national and international levels, in particular how does one assure effective responses from all stakeholders.Read moreRead less
International Organizations and Legislative Oversight: Improving Governance in Asia and the Pacific. This project will provide a better understanding of what makes legislative oversight of government effective. It will study the success of specific oversight bodies, such as Public Account Committees and Audit Offices, to determine whether their success depends on how they are institutionalised, or rather, on the ethical standards of the individuals who are expected to perform the oversight tasks ....International Organizations and Legislative Oversight: Improving Governance in Asia and the Pacific. This project will provide a better understanding of what makes legislative oversight of government effective. It will study the success of specific oversight bodies, such as Public Account Committees and Audit Offices, to determine whether their success depends on how they are institutionalised, or rather, on the ethical standards of the individuals who are expected to perform the oversight tasks. This project will contribute to the strengthening of what are currently regarded as fragile states and create the conditions for the further consolidation of their democratic systems and for sustainable socio-economic development in the Asia-Pacific region.Read moreRead less
Improving effectiveness of Australian aid to the island-Pacific. Improving the effectiveness of aid to the island Pacific so as to secure peace and prosperity within our immediate neighbourhood is in Australia's own national interest. This research investigates issues of state functioning and state failure with a view to improving the effectiveness of external interventions and of bolstering state capacity in the South Pacific. It is now widely acknowledged that ?failed states? can generate ref ....Improving effectiveness of Australian aid to the island-Pacific. Improving the effectiveness of aid to the island Pacific so as to secure peace and prosperity within our immediate neighbourhood is in Australia's own national interest. This research investigates issues of state functioning and state failure with a view to improving the effectiveness of external interventions and of bolstering state capacity in the South Pacific. It is now widely acknowledged that ?failed states? can generate refugee flows and create havens for organised crime or terrorist groups, thus becoming a threat to neighbouring states. Such cross-border spillovers have major implications for Australia's national security and have been the primary rationale for the recent interventions into Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands.Read moreRead less
Transparency International and the Problem of Corruption. The project aims first, to produce a history of the emergence and rise to prominence of Transparency International (TI), a unique international non-governmental organisation devoted exclusively to the fight against corruption. Secondly, it will use this history as a framework (and substantial empirical anchor) for investigating some of the more important recent developments both in the conceptualisation of corruption and in anti-corruptio ....Transparency International and the Problem of Corruption. The project aims first, to produce a history of the emergence and rise to prominence of Transparency International (TI), a unique international non-governmental organisation devoted exclusively to the fight against corruption. Secondly, it will use this history as a framework (and substantial empirical anchor) for investigating some of the more important recent developments both in the conceptualisation of corruption and in anti-corruption practice: the increasing influence of economic perspectives on corruption; changing perceptions of the relationship between corruption and development; and the internationalisation of the problem of corruption.Read moreRead less
Governance for Peace - A study of Indigenous and International Peacebuilding in East Timor. Through an in-depth study of peacebuilding in East Timor, this project aims to contribute both to understanding how people rebuild political relationships after widespread conflict and to the development of evaluatory mechanisms for international peacebuilding processes. While focussing on indigenous efforts to work against violence, the study will explore the interaction of indigenous and international p ....Governance for Peace - A study of Indigenous and International Peacebuilding in East Timor. Through an in-depth study of peacebuilding in East Timor, this project aims to contribute both to understanding how people rebuild political relationships after widespread conflict and to the development of evaluatory mechanisms for international peacebuilding processes. While focussing on indigenous efforts to work against violence, the study will explore the interaction of indigenous and international peacebuilding, and local and national level mechanisms. The outcomes will be a book on peacebuilding, a training manual and courses for fieldworkers, and contribution to the relationships between communities in Australia and East Timor.Read moreRead less