Abstract
A new wave of transnational civil society campaigning has emerged since the last quarter of the twentieth century. Major changes in world order occurred over this period, which impacted on the context for transnational campaigning. These changes include the end of the Cold War, followed by the embedding of the concept of global governance, including the norm of civil society participation. This article examines the strategies of transnational debt campaigns against this background. It describes the shifts in strategies over time between more consensual engagement approaches and those seeking fundamental transformation, and considers the implications for the relationship between civil society campaigns and states/international decision-makers. It concludes that transnational debt movements fit better with a Gramscian perspective on civil society as containing consensual, and counter-systemic elements, than with a view of civil society as independent of official decision-making structures. It highlights, however, the need to grasp the on-going dynamic between these different elements within civil society.
Résumé
Une nouvelle vague de campagne de la société civile transnationale a vu le jour depuis le dernier quart du XXe siècle. Des changements majeurs dans l’ordre mondial, ayant pesé sur le contexte d’une campagne transnationale, se sont produits au cours de cette période. Ces changements englobent la fin de la guerre froide, suivie de l’intégration du concept de gouvernance mondiale, qui comprend la norme de la participation de la société civile. Cet article étudie les stratégies des campagnes transnationales sur la dette dans ce contexte. Il décrit les changements de stratégies dans le temps entre l’engagement et les approches radicales et examine les conséquences pour la relation entre les campagnes de la société civile et les États/décideurs internationaux. Il conclut que les mouvements transnationaux sur la dette correspondent davantage à une perspective gramscienne sur la société civile puisqu’ils comprennent des éléments consensuels et opposés aux systèmes, qu’à une vision de la société civile comme indépendante des structures décisionnelles officielles. Il souligne, toutefois, la nécessité de saisir la dynamique en cours entre ces différents éléments au sein de la société civile.
Zusammenfassung
Seit dem letzten Quartal des 20. Jahrhunderts hat sich eine neue Kampagne-Welle transnationaler Bürgergesellschaften herauskristallisiert. Große Veränderungen in der Weltordnung während dieser Zeit wirkten sich auf den Kontext für transnationale Kampagnen aus. Zu diesen Veränderungen zählen der Kalte Krieg gefolgt von der Einführung des Konzepts der globalen Steuerung, einschließlich des Standards der Partizipation seitens der Bürgergesellschaft. Vor diesem Hintergrund untersucht die Abhandlung die Strategien transnationaler Schuldenkampagnen. Es werden die im Laufe der Zeit erfolgten Strategieänderungen zwischen Engagement und radikalen Ansätzen beschrieben und die Implikationen für die Beziehung zwischen den Bürgergesellschaftskampagnen und den nationalen bzw. internationalen Entscheidungsträgern betrachtet. Man kommt zu dem Schluss, dass die transnationalen Schuldenkampagnen eher einer gramscianischen Perspektive zur Bürgergesellschaft mit einvernehmlichen und kontrasystemischen Elementen entsprichen, als einer Perspektive, die die Bürgergesellschaft als eine von offiziellen Entscheidungsstrukturen unabhängige Einheit betrachtet. Dabei wird jedoch betont, wie wichtig das Verständnis der andauernden Dynamik zwischen diesen verschiedenen Elementen innerhalb der Bürgergesellschaft ist.
Resumen
Desde el último cuarto del siglo XX, ha surgido una nueva oleada de movilización de la sociedad civil transnacional. Se han producido cambios de importancia en el orden mundial a lo largo de este período, que han afectado al contexto de la movilización transnacional. Estos cambios incluyen el final de la Guerra Fría, seguido por la incorporación del concepto de gobernanza mundial, incluida la norma de participación de la sociedad civil. El presente artículo examina las estrategias de las campañas transnacionales contra la deuda con este telón de fondo. Describe los cambios en las estrategias a lo largo del tiempo entre enfoques de compromiso y radicales, y considera las implicaciones para la relación entre las campañas de la sociedad civil y los responsables políticos internacionales/estatales. Concluye que los movimientos transnacionales contra la deuda encajan mejor con la perspectiva gramsciana sobre la sociedad civil, como contenedora de elementos consensuales y contrasistémicos, que con una visión de la sociedad civil como independiente de las estructuras oficiales de toma de decisiones. Destaca, sin embargo, la necesidad de aprehender la dinámica en curso entre estos diferentes elementos dentro de la sociedad civil.
摘要
自20世纪最后25年来, 产生了新一轮的跨国民权社会运动。 世界秩序在这一期间的主要变化影响跨国民权社会运动的社会环境,这些变化包括冷战结束后全球治理的概念的植入,包括民民权社会的参与规范。 本文考察了跨国债务运动在这一背景下的战略,描述了随着时间的推移,战略在参与和激进措施之间的转换,以及这种转换对民权社会运动和国家/国际决策人之间的关系的影响。文章结论认为, 跨国债务运动更适合 从葛兰西的角度将民权社会视为含有共识的和反系统的元素,而非将民权社会视为独立于正式的决策框架之外,但是,文章强调需要掌握民权社会内部这些不同的要素的动态。
ملخص
لقد ظهرت موجة جديدة من حملات المجتمع المدني عبر الوطنية منذ الربع الأخير من القرن العشرين. حدثت تغييرات كبيرة في النظام العالمي خلال هذه الفترة، التي أثرت على سياق الحملة الإنتخابية عبر الوطنية. تشمل هذه التغييرات نهاية الحرب الباردة، تليها تضمين مفهوم الحوكمة العالمية، بما في ذلك قاعدة مشاركة المجتمع المدني. يفحص هذا المقال إستراتيجيات حملات الديون عبر الوطنية إستعدادا” لهذه الخلفية. فهو يصف التحولات في الإستراتيجيات بمرور الوقت بين المشاركة والنهج الراديكالي، تعتبر الآثار المترتبة على العلاقة بين حملات المجتمع المدني والدول/صناع القرار الدولي. نختتم بأن حركات الديون عبر الوطنية تناسب بشكل أفضل مع منظور نظرية (Gramscian)على المجتمع المدني كما يحتوي على توافقي، وعناصر مضادة نظامية، مما بهدف المجتمع المدني مستقلة عن هياكل صنع القرار الرسمي. يسلط التقرير الضوء، مع ذلك، فإن الحاجة لفهم الديناميكية بين هذه العناصر المختلفة داخل المجتمع المدني مستمرة.
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Interviewees Cited
Interviewee Belgium No.1: civil society debt informant, interviewed in Brussels, 3 March 2010.
Interviewee Belgium No. 2: civil society debt informant, interviewed by telephone, 19 March 2012.
Interviewee Eurodad ex-Coordinator: interviewed by telephone, 9 March 2012.
Interviewee France No. 1: civil society debt informant, interviewed by telephone, 12 March 2012.
Interviewee France No. 2: civil society debt informant, interviewed by telephone, 7 June 2012.
Interviewee Germany No. 1: civil society debt informant, interviewed by telephone 9 October 2009.
Interviewee Germany No. 2: civil society debt informant, interviewed in Dusseldorf, 30 November 2010.
Interviewee Germany No. 3 : civil society debt informant, interviewed in Cologne, 1 December 2010.
Interviewee Italy: civil society debt informant, interviewed by telephone, 2 May 2012.
Interviewee Netherlands No. 1: civil society debt informant, interviewed in Zwolle, Netherlands, 1 December 2010.
Interviewee Peru: civil society debt informant, interviewed by Skype, 4 March 2012.
Interviewee Philippines/Jubilee South: civil society debt informant, interviewed in Dub-lin, 8 November 2006.
Interviewee Spain: civil society debt informant, interviewed by telephone, 6 August 2012.
Interviewee Uganda: civil society debt informant, interviewed by telephone, 30 March 2012.
Interviewee UK No. 1: civil society debt informant, interviewed by Skype, 17 October 2012. Interviewee UK No. 3: civil society debt informant, interviewed by telephone, 7 December 2011.
Interviewee Zambia: civil society debt informant, interviewed by telephone, 30 August 2012.
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Somers, J. Transnational Debt Movements: Challenging States and International Decision-Makers, or Intermeshed with These?. Voluntas 28, 1054–1077 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-015-9619-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-015-9619-6