What are the experiences in regional approaches to security sector governance in Africa, the Americas and Europe? What lessons can be drawn for promoting good and democratic governance of security sector institutions in these and other regions? This book by the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF) compares and assesses regional security sector governance approaches.
Since the end of the Cold War, the international security environment has changed to encompass a range of non-military and trans-national dimensions. These include consideration of political, environmental, social and economic threats to stability. This changed context has redefined the roles of armed forces in democratic societies within the OSCE area. It has also made good governance a prerequisite for aid to Africa and the Americas since the 1990s. The OSCE’s Code of Conduct on Politico-Military Aspects of Security 1994 (the Code) offer a model regime of politically binding norms for the democratic control of armed forces. Although the Code cannot be directly applied beyond the OSCE area it has inspired pan-African and pan-American approaches to security sector governance. Some key experiences across the three regions have been:
- Within the OSCE region democratic security sector governance has emerged as a precondition for membership to the European Union (EU) and NATO. This is a strong incentive for candidate and member states to make progress in this field.
- The post-Cold War withdrawal of superpower interest in Africa empowered Africans to devise their own regional approaches to democratic security. A number of landmark continental and regional instruments have been agreed that emphasise human security, democratic governance, and reject unconstitutional changes in government.
- Civil society has played a key role in forming regional and sub-regional instruments on security sector governance in Africa.
- The Framework Treaty on Democratic Security in Central America is a landmark instrument partly inspired by the OSCE Code. Provisions regarding democratic control and reform of the security sector have also been incorporated into some domestic peace regimes.
- Historical legacies of military political control in many American countries together with the incompatibility of the Inter-American Convention Against Terrorism 2002 with holistic sector approaches pose challenges to democratic control.
The democracy deficit and the limited scope of regional cooperation and integration raise major institutional obstacles to effectively implementing security sector governance. This is true for all three regions, including Europe. Progress depends on states’ capacities to reconcile democratic security sector objectives with the global counterterrorism agenda imposed by the United States after 9/11. Special emphasis must be put on:
- a comprehensive approach to SSR encompassing the democratic control of military, paramilitary and internal security forces as well as non-statutory forces and private security companies;
- popular participation in developing security policies. African and American experience highlights the important role of civil society in promoting good governance in sector institutions;
- developing sound public security strategies that include empowering local police structures, civilian intelligence services, and regional cooperation among non-military agents; and
- opening up debate on the principle of non-interference in internal affairs. Regional integration and the ability to build cross-border institutions remains on a weak footing if states do not share political values.
