This thesis discusses the initial mental health care response and subsequent development of postdisaster mental health policies after the 1995 Hanshin-Awaji earthquake and 2011 Great East Japan...Show moreThis thesis discusses the initial mental health care response and subsequent development of postdisaster mental health policies after the 1995 Hanshin-Awaji earthquake and 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. It seeks to discover which actors had which roles in the progress, and how responsibility and accountability have shifted. To accomplish this goal, a causal process tracing method was used which analyzes the causal mechanisms that shaped the development of post-disaster mental health policies after the 1995 and 2011 disasters. Afterwards, a comparative analysis was used to compare the policy shaping process from both periods. By doing this, we can ascertain if lessons regarding post-disaster mental health care response have been learned, and if so, in what way these lessons have had an effect on the post-disaster mental health care regulation. After the 1995 Hanshin-Awaji earthquake, the Japanese government was heavily criticized for their delayed action, while in contrast the local government, volunteers from the civil society and NPOs immediately came to action. At that time, there was not as much knowledge regarding post-traumatic stress disorder in Japan, and precautions were scarce. After the initial response and the first studies showing many victims battling mental health problems, the government developed post-disaster mental health policies. The 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake triple disaster was unprecedented in scope, and mental health care measures employed since the 1995 disaster were not sufficient. Local governments from across the country, volunteers and NPOs offered their immediate help, while the central government was struggling in Tokyo with inadequate leadership, political power games and inflexible regulations. In the wake of the destruction regulations were again implemented based on the lessons learned, but a real recognition of mental health care still seems far away. A large focus remains on reconstruction of houses, infrastructure and financial revitalization, while the mental health of the victims seems forgotten. The national government should take up more responsibilities to protect not only the physical, but also the mental health of its citizens, and finish large projects such as permanent housing and community building in the affected areas that will provide the victims with a relief of stress and uncertainty.Show less
It is well acknowledged, both in academia and media, that the United States is highly pessimistic of China’s increased presence in international affairs. Often, this Sino-pessimism is expressed...Show moreIt is well acknowledged, both in academia and media, that the United States is highly pessimistic of China’s increased presence in international affairs. Often, this Sino-pessimism is expressed through US political discourse on Sino-African relations. However, upon closer examination, the US, starting in the second Bush-era, began from a point of reserved optimism in regard to Sino-African relations. This reveals that the notion that the US has remained static in its negative portrayal of Sino-African relations is inaccurate. This study will examine how the US political discourse surrounding Sino-African relations has evolved through the Bush, Obama, and Trump administrations, and more importantly why this evolution has occurred. Using critical discourse analysis, this study examines US elite political discourse to reveal themes and unquestioned assumptions prevalent in the US portrayal of Sino-African relations. This study finds that the discourse used by each of these administrations reveals more about the US than it does about the Sino-African relationship. The Bush administration showed excessive optimism that manifested through coercive liberalism and believed that the Chinese would model their engagement with Africa on US engagement and become an ally in liberalising Africa. The Obama administration attempted to rehabilitate the international image of the US through grand rhetoric and international liberalism, while positioning China as the illiberal ‘other’ that was a threat to African freedom and dignity. The Trump administration represents a shift to realism, spouting Sinophobia in Africa while spouting anti-Africa rhetoric in the United States, with a stated aim of upsetting the liberal order to unclear ends. By tracking change over time, the US discourse reveals more about how the US was attempting to project its self-image at the time than it does about Sino-African relations.Show less
This thesis aims to add to the understanding of the relationship between the WHO and the Netherlands in the securitization of a PHEIC declaration. As the debate in global health governance centres...Show moreThis thesis aims to add to the understanding of the relationship between the WHO and the Netherlands in the securitization of a PHEIC declaration. As the debate in global health governance centres on the question whether the West and WHO align on their preferences to securitize infectious diseases, this thesis provides a country-level analysis of the securitization of the 2014 Ebola and 2016 Zika PHEIC declarations by the Dutch government. The findings of this research indicate that the Dutch government does not unconditionally follow the WHO’s preference in securitizing global health crises. The Dutch government’s decision-making process toward securitization was not guided by the WHO’s PHEIC declaration. It was primarily guided by national considerations, such as its own public health, and regional or national actors, such as its national health institute - the RIVM - and the European health institute - the ECDC. It opposed the WHO, because it lacks a policy or strategy toward global health and global health governance. The research showed the Dutch government is sceptical of the WHO because of its lack in transparency, causing the government to react in a self-serving manner when faced by a global health crisis.Show less
This thesis focusses on Chinese dairy company takeovers in Australia. In particular the Chinese company ‘Mengniu Dairy Company’ taking over the Australian companies ‘Lion Dairy & Drinks Pty Ltd...Show moreThis thesis focusses on Chinese dairy company takeovers in Australia. In particular the Chinese company ‘Mengniu Dairy Company’ taking over the Australian companies ‘Lion Dairy & Drinks Pty Ltd’ and ‘Bellamy’s Organic Ltd.’. The question this thesis answers is the following: Are Chinese dairy company takeovers in Australia beneficial to the Australian dairy industry? The two case studies will help to answer this question. By using case study analysis, process tracing, and preference attainment, this thesis will add a completely new debate to the academic literature. In the end, this thesis argues that Chinese dairy company takeovers in Australia are beneficial to the Australian dairy industry in the short term, because of the influx of foreign capital. However, they are not beneficial in the long term, because Australia will loose its food sovereignty and food security networks to China.Show less
Scholarly literature on entrepreneurship and policymaking is primarily focused on policy strategy proposals for entrepreneurial success, failing to include the actual impact of these policy...Show moreScholarly literature on entrepreneurship and policymaking is primarily focused on policy strategy proposals for entrepreneurial success, failing to include the actual impact of these policy initiatives on start-up ecosystems. In essence, research on the topic of policy implementation and entrepreneurship lacks insight into whether national governments are able to effectively intervene in the entrepreneurial ecosystem and foster the conditions for a sustainable start-up environment (Mason and Brown 2014, 27). Taking this under-explored research area into consideration, it is relevant to investigate the relation between government policies and the survival of entrepreneurial businesses. In the light of start-up economies, South Korea is presented as a forerunner in economic growth and innovation, as well as one of the main hubs for entrepreneurship in Asia (Millard 2014). However, only 39.9% of South Korean start-up companies manages to survive beyond five years (KOSIS 2018). This is in contrast to start-up survival rate in the Singapore where 52.7% of all start-ups manage to pass the crucial five-year mark (Kam, Ping, and Crystal 2017, 27). In order to provide an insight into the failure of the South Korean start-up ecosystem to secure entrepreneurial sustainability, this thesis will address the following research question: To what extent do the government policies promoted in the Creative Economy Action Plan target the conditions for entrepreneurial success, in order to effectively ensure a sustainable start-up economy in the Seoul Capital Area? With the aim of providing a comprehensible insight to this research question, this thesis conducts a three-part analysis on the Creative Economy Action Plan published by the Park administration in 2013, the opinions of 300 South Korean entrepreneurs regarding start-up survival in 2018, and the process of success or failure of three distinct technology start-ups in the Seoul Capital Area. This thesis argues that, although the government policies promoted in the Creative Economy Action Plan explicitly targeted three distinct factors for start-up success, the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the Seoul Capital Area remains problematic regarding the success factors of monetary funding, market accessibility, and conductive entrepreneurial culture.Show less
Energy security in this day and age is an increasingly complex concept for policymakers to deal with. In order to sustain future economic growth while keeping in account issues of territorial...Show moreEnergy security in this day and age is an increasingly complex concept for policymakers to deal with. In order to sustain future economic growth while keeping in account issues of territorial disputes and environmental pollution, many scholars have anticipated a great role for ASEAN, the regional organisation in Southeast Asia, in fostering regional cooperation on energy security. The dominant perspective within the literature analyses ASEAN in practical terms of material outcomes and claims that ASEAN should follow a similar path as the European Union, focussing on functional cooperation. However, the current research concurs with a marginalised and underdeveloped perspective in the literature and claims that norms and the establishment of a regional identity are crucial in understanding cooperation on energy security in Southeast Asia. The contribution of the research is twofold. First, its analyses of ASEAN’s regional energy security policies, the Laos-Thailand-Malaysia-Singapore power interconnection project and nuclear energy developments finds that ASEAN’s normative approach is crucial in understanding development of and the rationale behind cooperation on energy projects in the region. Secondly, it finds that contrary to the assumption of many scholars in the existing literature on energy security in ASEAN, ASEAN’s norms are not static but undergo change through a process of norm localisation, in which external norms and practices are adopted and localised within pre-existing institutional norms and practices. The thesis concludes that norms play a crucial role in ASEAN’s approach to fostering regional cooperation on energy security, dictating both form and function of cooperation. A normative approach is therefore key in gaining a better understanding of the development of energy security cooperation amongst Southeast Asian states.Show less
In 2001, an American EP-3 surveillance plane collided with a Chinese F-8 fighter jet over the South China Sea. In 2009, five Chinese vessels harassed an American reconnaissance boat called the...Show moreIn 2001, an American EP-3 surveillance plane collided with a Chinese F-8 fighter jet over the South China Sea. In 2009, five Chinese vessels harassed an American reconnaissance boat called the Impeccable. Both incidents greatly affected the bilateral relations between China and the United States. This thesis analyzes the statements made by Chinese citizen leadership and PLA commanders to find out whether China has been getting more assertive in the South China Sea in the first decade of this century. This thesis argues in the end that this is not the case. China has, looking at their statements, not adopted a new assertive strategy concerning the South China Sea between 2000-2010.Show less
This thesis focuses on the 2018 local elections in Taiwan; although the elections were aimed at electing officials at a local level, the relation between Taiwan and China has been heavily discussed...Show moreThis thesis focuses on the 2018 local elections in Taiwan; although the elections were aimed at electing officials at a local level, the relation between Taiwan and China has been heavily discussed. This thesis analyses the way in which the Liberty Times and the United Daily News, as mouthpieces of respectively the DPP and the KMT, have created a discourse on cross-strait relations. In doing so, an analysis is made of Fake News, a topic discussed mostly by the DPP, and the 1992 consensus, a topic mostly discussed by the KMT. This thesis argues that the discourse as created by the DPP-side is less stable compared to the KMT-side, as a result of the traditional viewpoints that both parties adhere to. The image of the DPP as protector of Taiwanese freedom and democracy forces the DPP to a position where they have to paint China as an aggressor, using the issue of Chinese Fake News as one of its tools. In doing so, the DPP itself uses assumptions and exaggerations, thereby becoming a producer of fake news as well. Although the KMT also makes use of assumptions and exaggerations, the fact that the KMT portrays itself as a party aimed at economic progress makes it possible to take a more neutral stance.Show less
1959 heralded an exodus of approximately one hundred thousand Tibetans who followed their leader, the Dalai Lama, into exile in India, following a failed uprising against the Chinese rule. Until...Show more1959 heralded an exodus of approximately one hundred thousand Tibetans who followed their leader, the Dalai Lama, into exile in India, following a failed uprising against the Chinese rule. Until 1978, there was no contact between the exile Tibetans and the Chinese government. During the 1980s, four rounds of talks were held between China and Tibet, which were eventually unfruitful. This thesis will explore the long term effects of these talks on the Tibetan diaspora, and analyse how the lack of agreement between the Tibetan and Chinese negotiating teams has led to the formation of two main political factions - one claiming Tibet’s right of independence and complete separation from the People’s Republic of China (PRC), and another group advocating for greater power and more rights for Tibetans within the framework of the Chinese political system. This study contributes to the existing literature by delving into the archives and by providing insights from prominent Tibetans on the negotiations. It reveals that China’s main demand during the negotiations was the return of the Dalai Lama to the PRC, while the Tibetan side urged for the formation of a unified region of all the occupied Tibetan regions and increased freedom and rights for autonomy. It explores how the two parties were on different directions and had different leverages for the negotiations. The study concludes that there had never been any real attempts from the Chinese side to negotiate with the Tibetans. The Tibetan delegations, however, raised false hope among the Tibetan people, both inside and outside of Tibet.Show less
The Malacca Strait is one of the most important sea lanes of communication which is crossed by one third of the international trade every year (Huang, 2008). Hence, the necessity to guarantee the...Show moreThe Malacca Strait is one of the most important sea lanes of communication which is crossed by one third of the international trade every year (Huang, 2008). Hence, the necessity to guarantee the safety of this region is crucial to the international community dependent on this trade. The Malacca Strait is composed by three major countries: Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, which have concomitant maritime arenas. The focus of the thesis falls upon Indonesia and Singapore, the countries have reported rates of piracy and terrorism which concern the international community. The mechanisms used to deal with these two same threats vary between the two countries that keep different positions towards the best ways to deal with pirates and terrorists in the region. Singapore used the securitization of the conflation of piracy and maritime terrorism to guarantee the allocation of resources to maritime crimes. While Indonesia kept both crimes under the international radar, adopting a more cautious and neutral position concerning its maritime outlaws. However, the two countries achieved the same failed results since the policies implemented reached short-term results, leading to the necessity to develop more appropriate tools to achieve long-term solutions.Show less
The thesis comprises the main motives for Shinzo Abe and Barack Obama to commit to apology events and speeches in 2016 at Hiroshima and Pearl Harbor respectively, as well as a more detailed look at...Show moreThe thesis comprises the main motives for Shinzo Abe and Barack Obama to commit to apology events and speeches in 2016 at Hiroshima and Pearl Harbor respectively, as well as a more detailed look at the circumstances that allowed for the to take place, as well as the role of public opinion and support for the two political leaders.Show less
In 2013 Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Russia’s President Vladimir Putin announced their readiness to renew the dialogue on the Kuril Islands – the disputed territory that kept the Japan...Show moreIn 2013 Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Russia’s President Vladimir Putin announced their readiness to renew the dialogue on the Kuril Islands – the disputed territory that kept the Japan-Russia bilateral relationship frozen for almost 70 years. Due to the territorial dispute, the Japan-Russia economic and diplomatic cooperation remained relatively underdeveloped, which provided a great opportunity for both to benefit from the improved bilateral cooperation. However, the breakthrough has never happened, since the Japan-Russia relationship deteriorated after Japan joined US sanctions against Russia due to Russian involvement in the Ukrainian Crisis. Conventional explanations cite that the United States pressured Japan into imposing sanctions against its national interest. In this paper I provide an analysis of Japanese sanctions against Russia to answer the question of whether US pressure on Japan resulted in reactive Japan’s foreign policy sanctions against Russia. Therefore this paper will put forward a case to answer the question of whether Japan’s foreign policy was influenced by it being a reactive state. For the purpose of this research, I analysed the three rounds of sanctions from March 2014 to July 2016 by using a process tracing method combined with attributed influence and preference attainment to identify and measure US pressure on Japan. Drawing the concept of a reactive state model I will demonstrate how the United States pressured Japan against Japanese national interest. By focusing on the extent of Japanese sanctions, I put forward the case that Japan was able to implement low-key yet independent policy in case of sanctions.Show less
On 2 May 2008, the South of Myanmar was struck by Cyclone Nargis, which crushed the area, killed around 140,000 people and displaced millions. To look into the political significance of this...Show moreOn 2 May 2008, the South of Myanmar was struck by Cyclone Nargis, which crushed the area, killed around 140,000 people and displaced millions. To look into the political significance of this disastrous event, this research tests the framework of Mark Pelling and Kathleen Dill, which analyses the impact of natural disasters on political systems. Is their theory applicable to the case of Cyclone Nargis and Myanmar? Especially the role of LNGOs and CSOs in this event is emphasized. This thesis draws conclusions on using theory to understand the effects of a natural disaster on a political system. Events like this always have to be studied with regards to the concerning context and it is complex to use a generalist framework as Pelling and Dill propose.Show less
This thesis places Indonesia’s strategic regional policy for dealing with power competition within Asia in the context of its relationship with ASEAN, China and the US. The main question this...Show moreThis thesis places Indonesia’s strategic regional policy for dealing with power competition within Asia in the context of its relationship with ASEAN, China and the US. The main question this thesis addresses is whether Indonesia, as a secondary state in the Southeast Asian region, is more likely to deal with the politics of the regional order through power balancing or institutional enmeshment. It will compare the arguments of Robert R. Ross, who argues that the balance of power in Asia-Pacific politics is affected by military power, and Evelyn Goh, who argues that the regional order is more complex and that regional frameworks such as ASEAN will also help influence larger regional counterweights such as China. In focusing on the power balancing actions that secondary states take, Ross argues that Indonesia uses military power, with the US by its side, to balance against China. Goh does not believe Indonesia can simply power balance against China, but that it will also try to enmesh China in regional entities. Both Ross’s and Goh’s arguments will be tested through a case study on Indonesia’s behaviour in the regional dispute in the South China Sea to determine which of the two arguments is more relevant to Indonesia’s strategic regional policy. This study is relevant because it provides a more detailed analysis of Indonesia’s capabilities to deal with power competition in the region. This thesis concludes that Indonesia is more likely to deal with power competition in the Asia-Pacific through the enmeshment theory of Evelyn Goh.Show less
When questioned about the European Union’s (EU) austerity policy in Europe’s ongoing debt crisis, German Chancellor Angela Merkel responded that the term ‘austerity’ "makes it sound like something...Show moreWhen questioned about the European Union’s (EU) austerity policy in Europe’s ongoing debt crisis, German Chancellor Angela Merkel responded that the term ‘austerity’ "makes it sound like something truly evil. […] I call it balancing the budget”. This quote highlights the paradox that is the central thematic concern of this thesis: how economic issues and policies are represented as objectively-determined technical concerns, abstracted from and unrelated to political and ideological disputes. This thesis aims to relate the critical study of political discourse in economic crisis to a critique of the dominant social perception of economics as a scientific study: ‘scientific’ in the positivist sense as being founded upon empirical analysis, exclusive of ideational or normative dimensions. Influenced by the Gramscian concept of ‘cultural hegemony’ and related critical theories of discourse, I argue that the hegemonic scientific representation of economics - in political, media and academic discourses - constitutes an important subject for critical analysis because of its correlation with the de-politicisation of economics.Show less
There is a strong tendency in mainstream literature to discuss cross-strait relations in terms of security threats or growing economic interdependence. On the other hand, cultural exchanges have...Show moreThere is a strong tendency in mainstream literature to discuss cross-strait relations in terms of security threats or growing economic interdependence. On the other hand, cultural exchanges have received considerably less attention. Nonetheless, scholars that do elaborate on culture conceptualise culture as a fixed set of norms and values that fosters mutual understanding. Similarly, cultural exchanges between the National Palace Museum (NPM) in Taipei and the Palace Museum (PM) in Beijing are lauded as signs of warming cross-strait ties. Michelle Jana Chan (2010) remarked that the museum directors have risen above politics to organise their first joint exhibition in 2009. Yet, this thesis argues that politics is firmly rooted in cultural exchanges across the Strait. Taiwanese and Chinese governments have purposefully (re)constructed culture to determine what “true” culture entails, what goal it serves and what it says about the relationship between people on both sides of the Strait. From a poststructuralist outlook, multiple truths need to be elucidated as “the truth” does not exist. Presidential statements and documentaries about the NPM are analysed from a spatial perspective to explain how culture and the NPM are constructed through the ‘One China’ discourses and the ‘Taiwan-centric’ discourse, struggling to define communities, boundaries and realities rooted in the broader background of the collaborations between the NPM and the PM. This study contends that competing and changing meanings and purposes of culture embedded in these cultural exchanges are the result of power struggles and should be acknowledged as sources of conflict in cross-strait relations.Show less
This thesis aims to investigate whether there is a connection between improved US-Japan security relations and Okinawan base opposition in the period 2010-2014. Security relations between the...Show moreThis thesis aims to investigate whether there is a connection between improved US-Japan security relations and Okinawan base opposition in the period 2010-2014. Security relations between the United States and Japan are for a large extent shaped by the 1960 Treaty of Mutual Security and Cooperation, which permits the continuous presence of US military bases in Japan to maintain peace and safety in East Asia. Nowadays Japan still hosts approximately 50,000 US forces. About 50 percent of these forces are stationed in Okinawa, which consists of only 0.6% of Japan’s territory. Furthermore, 75 percent of the US military facilities in Japan are also located in Okinawa, demonstrating the unequal US military burden between Okinawa and mainland Japan (Okinawa Prefectural Government 2011). The United States, as well as Japan, agree on the importance of stationing a large amount of US military forces in Okinawa because of the strategic location of the island for maintaining Japan’s peace and safety in East Asia. However, large anti-base protests in Okinawa illustrate that a significant part of the local population opposes the security norm of the Japanese government to host US forces. Improved political ties, joint disaster relief operations and increasing external security threats have resulted in enhanced military cooperation between the United States and Japan in the period 2010-2014. Also, during this period Japanese favorable views on the United States were with an average of 71.6% also somewhat higher than between 2006 and 2009 (58.25%) (Pew Research Center 2015). Nevertheless, it is not clear whether US-Japan security collaboration also resulted in a better image of America among the people in Okinawa. Therefore, the main research question is: to what extent has enhanced military cooperation between the United States and Japan led to a decline of Okinawan base opposition?Show less
On the 31st of January 2015, a video was released which showed the brutal murder of the Japanese journalist Gotō Kenji at the hands of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. The killing sent...Show moreOn the 31st of January 2015, a video was released which showed the brutal murder of the Japanese journalist Gotō Kenji at the hands of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. The killing sent shockwaves throughout the world yet nowhere more so than in Gotō’s homeland. Japan has long maintained a policy of resource diplomacy with key trading partners in the Middle East who have supplied the Japanese economy with the oil that the country has required in order to maintain its regional and global position. However, with the death of Gotō along with his associate Yukawa Haruna, the first Japanese citizens to be executed as a result of the Japanese government’s policy in the Middle East since the end of Japanese involvement in Iraq in 2005, there is a rekindled debate amongst Japan’s leaders that the country must develop its hard power ability in order to be able to assert itself and protect its interests abroad. This thesis investigation will examine Japan’s foreign policy in the Middle East using the case studies of the murders of Gotō Kenji and Kōda Shosei and the backdrop of resource diplomacy. The investigation will be using a constructivist approach in order to provide a theoretical framework that will speculate that the Japanese government is, rather than responding to threats against it, attempting to create a an identity for itself in the region. The conclusion will then ascertain whether the changing situation in the Middle East will force Japan to re-evaluate its interests in the region or whether the instability in the region has, rather than putting Japan’s energy lifeline in jeopardy, been used by its leadership to re-ignite the debate about its need to adopt a more assertive security stance on the global stage and whether Japan, far from being attached to US foreign policy, has in fact been pursuing an entirely separate Middle Eastern policy of its own.Show less
The structural inequalities of the world-system and a neoliberal system of academic capitalism allow core states to attract students from peripheral states, thereby perpetuating their dominance...Show moreThe structural inequalities of the world-system and a neoliberal system of academic capitalism allow core states to attract students from peripheral states, thereby perpetuating their dominance over them through corresponding brain gain and drain. While international student mobility (ISM) within the global knowledge economy has remained largely on the fringes of academic debate, human capital movement from periphery to core has traditionally been viewed as a contributor to brain drain in peripheral states. Neoliberal scholars have recently countered the idea of brain drain with ‘brain circulation’ and claims of a mutually beneficial relationship between core student-receiving states and peripheral student-sending states (especially in terms of development). Guided by a world-systems theory approach, this paper tests such claims in the context of ISM to the United States (US), which hosts more international students than any other. It finds reasons to suggest that the idea of periphery brain circulation, while conveniently compatible with the motives of neoliberal ISM-promoters, does not reflect reality. Furthermore, it calls for the reconceptualization of the terms brain drain and brain circulation, concluding that the former refers to the effect of ISM in peripheral states, whereas the latter refers to that in core states.Show less
