Under the circumstances of a protracted war situation, failures to establish a political solution and no meaningful dialogue on the current security situation in Syria, refugee repatriation and...Show moreUnder the circumstances of a protracted war situation, failures to establish a political solution and no meaningful dialogue on the current security situation in Syria, refugee repatriation and reconstruction dilemmas have become the new subject of matter for Syrian refugee host countries, both European and neighboring, and Syrian government-supporting actors, including Russia and Lebanon’s Hezbollah. Since 2017, several actors in Lebanon actively facilitate and promote the repatriation of Syrians refugees. UNHCR stated that the requirements under international law for the United Nations to organise or encourage voluntary repatriation are not yet in place in Syria. However, UNHCR officers do meet with the returning refugees and are present at all current departure points of the returns facilitated by the Lebanese General Security based on the believe that people’s voluntary choice to return must be respected. This study examines the role of UNHCR in the Syrian repatriation process in Lebanon in order to understand how non-state actors operate vis-à-vis sovereign states and to give insight into the role of international organizations in world politics. The thesis is partly based on field research in Lebanon.Show less
Populism is a current political phenomenon in Europe. During the last ten years, the number of immigrants in Europe has intensified. Far-right populist political parties propose anti-immigration,...Show morePopulism is a current political phenomenon in Europe. During the last ten years, the number of immigrants in Europe has intensified. Far-right populist political parties propose anti-immigration, suggest xenophobic sentiments and take advantage of this significant European issue to gain popularity. By using a cultural and political perspective, this thesis has considered two case studies: Italy and Poland, which show to have high levels of xenophobia. The paper aimed at showing how Italian and Polish populists governing parties use a strategic reference to the constructed national identity and anti-EU rhetoric to instigate fear and xenophobia.Show less
This thesis analyses the ideas that shaped the new generation of Chinese diplomats that came to power in the early 20th century, and links this to the Shandong Question and the Treaty of Versailles...Show moreThis thesis analyses the ideas that shaped the new generation of Chinese diplomats that came to power in the early 20th century, and links this to the Shandong Question and the Treaty of Versailles. It argues that the emerging nationalist sentiments, combined with the idea of Social Darwinism played a crucial role in China's behaviour at the Paris Peace Talks, because the diplomats were heavily influenced by these ideas.Show less
The question of the negative Chinese impact in African countries needs to be discussed in wider terms than positive or negative. Indeed, Chinese investment and behavior in Africa have been...Show moreThe question of the negative Chinese impact in African countries needs to be discussed in wider terms than positive or negative. Indeed, Chinese investment and behavior in Africa have been questioned, as for instance about the trade imbalance in China’s favor, its impact on domestic markets and industrialization process and also the impact of its high competitiveness, which are seen as hurting African economies. Chinese goods dumped in African countries are highly price-competitive manufactured goods, and most of African economies have an underdeveloped industrial sector, therefore limiting their development and the possibility to compete on their domestic market. International trade should be based on the establishment of an order of equality and not the one of exploitation. A first superficial glance on Sino Algerian relations might give a negative, or pessimistic view of the relationship, yet a deeper analysis and the incorporation of an understanding of the Algerian officials’ behavior will allow for a more nuanced approach of the relationship.Show less
The thesis analyses the effect of the ‘balkanism’ discourse, and the associated representations, on the relationship between Western Europe and the Balkans in late modern and contemporary history....Show moreThe thesis analyses the effect of the ‘balkanism’ discourse, and the associated representations, on the relationship between Western Europe and the Balkans in late modern and contemporary history. The ‘balkanism’ discourse has been present for a long time and has strongly influenced Western European perceptions of the Balkan region in the 19th and 20th century. Due to the discourse, a certain distance had been created between the EU and the Balkans, in which the former named the latter the ‘other’ – mainly to indicate a cultural difference. The discourse and denigrating perceptions of the region, shaped over time, seem to be the main reason for the poor relationship between the EU and the Balkans in these two centuries. However, since the start of the 21st century, the EU has started to engage more with the region. In 2003, the first steps were taken to create stability and security in the EU and its neighbourhood by starting the integration process of the Western Balkans – that is, the remaining Balkan countries outside of the EU. The process includes several engagement and integration initiatives, compulsory accession criteria and (reform) programs in fields such as politics, economy and culture. Yet, the success of the integration process still remains to be seen. Apart from other issues related to the citizens’ opinions, the EU itself and the Balkan region, the historical perceptions still seem to influence this process as well. Hence, the effect of the ‘balkanism’ discourse and the associated representations seems to be significant, due to the fact that the discourse can be considered the key reason for the poor relationship of the past, and because it may still be affecting the relationship today.Show less
This research project maps out the development of Syrian civil society since the 2011 uprisings. To do so, it discusses president Bashar al-Assad's rule during the decade prior to the uprisings, to...Show moreThis research project maps out the development of Syrian civil society since the 2011 uprisings. To do so, it discusses president Bashar al-Assad's rule during the decade prior to the uprisings, to understand his contrasting policies towards and harsh repression of the independent civil society sector. Consequently, it describes the manner in which independent civil society has developed since 2011, linking it to rebel civil governance. Finally, the research project concludes with a case study of a CSO founded in 2011. The case study provides insight into the struggles and opportunities of the sector on a concrete level.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 purpose of this thesis is to answer the question ‘to what extent can the EU act geopolitically in the context of energy security and should it?’ through the case study of the Southern Gas...Show moreThe purpose of this thesis is to answer the question ‘to what extent can the EU act geopolitically in the context of energy security and should it?’ through the case study of the Southern Gas Corridor. The academic debate on the EU’s actorness in international politics has been ongoing and the unique structure of the EU seems to still puzzle scholars. This has especially been the case in the field of energy policy, as energy is a strategic and public good and thus subject to a geopolitical dimension. By analyzing previous research in the field of EU energy policy, four possible answers to the research question were found. These are that the EU can or cannot and that the EU should or should not act geopolitically in the context of energy security. The four answers make up the spine of this thesis and guides the research into finding that the EU can act geopolitically to a certain extent, but still lacks full-fletched policy tools due to the nature of the energy policy area, and should act geopolitically to advance its strategic energy security agenda. The EU is essentially no less geopolitical than other actors but attempts to hide this within its rule-based regulatory framework.Show less
In dit onderzoek wordt er gekeken naar de functie van de entiteit Enma, rechter van de doden, in de setsuwa bundels Konjaku Monogatarishū (c.1120) en Uji Shūi Monogatari (c.1210). Setsuwa zijn...Show moreIn dit onderzoek wordt er gekeken naar de functie van de entiteit Enma, rechter van de doden, in de setsuwa bundels Konjaku Monogatarishū (c.1120) en Uji Shūi Monogatari (c.1210). Setsuwa zijn oraal overgeleverde verhalen, die op een gegeven moment zijn opgeschreven. Binnen het kader van het populaire canon waarin setsuwa op basis van hun populariteit en consensus opgenomen werden in de bundels, onderzoek ik de verandering waarbij Enma als entiteit verschillende reddende functies kreeg waardoor hij mensen na hun dood uit de Hellen kon redden. De setsuwa in de Konjaku Monogatarishū en de Uji Shūi Monogatari tonen aan dat Enma, afhankelijk van wie er voor hem kwam, zich vertoonde of als de rechter van de doden of als een reddende entiteit. In het merendeel van de circa twintig behandelde verhalen van de Konjaku Monogatarishū komen de reddende functies van Enma terug. Dit past binnen de ontwikkeling van zijn functie als goddelijke entiteit met reddende krachten. De functie van Enma als rechter verdwijnt niet, maar valt op de achtergrond. Tot slot zijn er in de Uji Shūi Monogatari twee setsuwa waarin Enma voorkomt. Hierbij wordt hij enerzijds gezien als een entiteit met reddende krachten, omdat hij wordt vereenzelvigd met de boddhisattva Jizō, en anderzijds als een rechter van de doden.Show less
Amid the ongoing controversy over Affirmative Action in the admissions policies of elite colleges in the US, the term “model minority,” and its implicit racial link with the Asian American...Show moreAmid the ongoing controversy over Affirmative Action in the admissions policies of elite colleges in the US, the term “model minority,” and its implicit racial link with the Asian American community, has once again resurfaced in American national discourse. As such there is an increasing need to understand the Model Minority Myth in a wider, historical perspective. Drawing on Claire-Jean Kim’s racial triangulation theory, this thesis examines how Japanese American newspapers in California during the 1930s engaged in discursive self-essentialization, and dissociation from other non-white minorities as a means of survival in American society, and by doing so inadvertently contributed to the further perpetuation of a white-dominated racial hierarchy in the United States and a further solidification of the reputation of Asian Americans as an alleged Model Minority. It then critically analyzes the work of two contemporary Asian American authors known for their embrace of the Model Minority Identity, Amy Chua and Yukong Zhao, and demonstrates how the tactics they deploy in their works reiterate discursive strategies used by their Japanese American predecessors during the Depression Era. Rather than viewing model minority discourse as a strictly American phenomenon or a product of white American agency, this thesis argues for a wider, transnational lens with which we view patterns of discrimination across borders and time, taking into account conflict and compliance, action and reaction. In this way the thesis aims to contribute to an improved understanding of systems of discrimination and oppression and, more importantly, how to dismantle them.Show less
The focus of this thesis is on the categorization of handwritten Chinese characters. The main question is, ‘How can handwritten Chinese characters be categorized in order to make unknown characters...Show moreThe focus of this thesis is on the categorization of handwritten Chinese characters. The main question is, ‘How can handwritten Chinese characters be categorized in order to make unknown characters findable?’. Handwritten Chinese characters differ from regular or printed Chinese characters. Learning to read handwritten Chinese is not part of any university curriculum and it is usually not taught in language schools. There are only a few sources that can be used to find the corresponding regular form of an unknown handwritten character. Four sources are reviewed in order to explore and judge various methods. This research is based on the methods used in A Manual of Chinese Running-Hand Writing: Especially as it is Used in Japan written by Groeneveldt and De Saint Aulaire (1861), Dictionnaire des formes cursives des caractères chinois (1909) by Stanislas Millot, Sōsho Daijiten (1936) by Sukeyuki Endō and Chinese cursive script: An introduction to handwriting in Chinese (1958) by Fang-yü Wang. The product of this research will be a set of guidelines of what a user-friendly dictionary would look like.Show less
