Outline
Introduction
Max
Weber stated that, "a 'state' if and insofar as its administrative staff
successfully upholds a claim on the monopoly of
the legitimate use of
violence in the enforcement of its order."[1] If
this definition holds true then, if a state is unable to control the ‘monopoly
of violence in its borders then the fail in the essence of being a state. The
Middle East as well as parts of North Africa has long been classified as a
sultanistic/dictatorial region as the majority of leaders have consolidated
power to such an extent that no one dare oppose their rule. However, in recent
years a drastic shift in ideology which resulted in an all-out revolution and
eventually led to the destruction of such aforementioned regimes. There are many
reasons as to why revolutions transpire. These reasons can range from unjust
and ineffective government to the rise and mobilization of the indigenous in
defiance of corrupt government policies. As Goldstone states, there are four
reasons as to why revolutions succeed:
1.
Government must appear unjust and ineffective.
2. Elite in the military must be alienated from the state no longer willing to defend it.
3. There must be the existence of broad based sections of society who are dissatisfied with the regime.
4. International powers either refuse to intervene in to defend the country and refrain from using maximum force to defend the country.[2]
2. Elite in the military must be alienated from the state no longer willing to defend it.
3. There must be the existence of broad based sections of society who are dissatisfied with the regime.
4. International powers either refuse to intervene in to defend the country and refrain from using maximum force to defend the country.[2]
Thesis Paragraph
If these four criteria
are met then it stands to reason that the target sate has failed to meet the
criteria of a state and as such should be denied legitimacy however that is not
the case. So my question to you is why do some states not gain recognition from
external states when they fulfill these criteria when other states who fail do
retain their recognition? The answer to this question is not clear cut; but using
countries like Egypt and Tunisia, I intend to highlight that the International
Community i.e. the UN should not deny territories like Palestine that meet the
criteria of a state recognition, when countries already recognized are failing
at the benchmarks they set in their UN charter.
Body
Paragraphs
A.
Brief explanation of UN Charter
I.
Criteria for becoming a state
II.
Theories on State legitimacy
B.
Loss of Government Legitimacy in
Egyptian Revolution and Tunisian Revolution.
I.
Brief history of both revolutions as
they relate to legitimacy i.e. should they retain recognition.
C.
Can
we recognize Palestine as a state based on criteria?
Conclusion
Answer
the question: should the UN deny territories like
Palestine that meet the criteria of a state recognition, when countries already
recognized are failing at the benchmarks they set in their UN charter?
Sources
Masoud, Tarek. Arabs Want Redistribution, So Why Don’t
They Vote Left? Theory and Evidence from Egypt. No. rwp13-007. 2013.
Goldstone, Jack A. 2011. “Understanding the Revolutions of
2011.” Foreign Affairs. May/Jun2011, Vol. 90 Issue 3, p8-16. 8p.
English.ahram.org.eg. "SCAF: A brief history of
injustice - Politics - Egypt - Ahram Online."
n.d..http://eglish.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/26220/Egypt/Politics-/SCAF-A-brief-history-of-injustice.aspx.
Ziv, Guy. 2013. "Simple vs. Complex Learning Revisited:
Israeli Prime Ministers and the Question of a Palestinian State". Foreign
Policy Analysis. 9 (2): 203-222.
Grant, Thomas D.
"An Institution Restored? Recognition of Governments: Legal Doctrine and
State Practice, 1815-1995. By MJ Peterson. New York, New York: St. Martin's
Press, Inc.; London: Macmillan Press Ltd.(1997).." Va. J. Int'l L. 39,
(1998): 191--1221.
Princeton.edu. "Monopoly on the legitimate use of physical
force." 2013. http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Monopoly_on_the_legitimate_use_of_physical_force.html
(accessed 20 Nov 2013).
Un.org. "UN News
Centre | Becoming a member of the United Nations." n.d.
http://www.un.org/News/dh/infocus/UN_membership.shtml (accessed 20 Nov 2013).
Un.org. "Charter
of the United Nations." n.d.. http://www.un.org/en/documents/charter/
(accessed 20 Nov 2013).
[1] Princeton.edu.
"Monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force." 2013.
http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Monopoly_on_the_legitimate_use_of_physical_force.html
(accessed 20 Nov 2013).
[2] Goldstone,
Jack A. 2011. “Understanding the Revolutions of 2011.” Foreign Affairs.
May/Jun2011, Vol. 90 Issue 3, p8-16. 8p.
Duane!, your topic is very interesting, I believe you are going on the right track. I think that in addition to solely focusing on the UN charter definition and requirements to be a recognized state, you should mention about the politics involved of why a country is not recognized from different perspectives. The major players such as Britain, China, The United States, Russia, and France have strong reasons as to why a country does not become recognized. I think that if you include this, your paper would be much more persuasive and would have a stronger argument as supposed to only using the UN charter, plus you have much more examples as to why a country is not recognized and how politics is deeply-involved.
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