Myth of the Democratic Peacekeeper
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A01=Arturo C. Sotomayor
Author_Arturo C. Sotomayor
blue helmets
Category=JPB
Category=JPHV
Category=JWK
Civil-military relations
democratization
eq_bestseller
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
eq_society-politics
Latin America military
military operations other than war
MOTW
peace soldiers
peacekeeping
United Nations
Product details
- ISBN 9781421412139
- Weight: 386g
- Dimensions: 152 x 229mm
- Publication Date: 12 Mar 2014
- Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Paperback
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The Myth of the Democratic Peacekeeper reevaluates how United Nations peacekeeping missions reform (or fail to reform) their participating members. It investigates how such missions affect military organizations and civil-military relations as countries transition to a more democratic system. Two-thirds of the UN's peacekeepers come from developing nations, many of which are transitioning to democracy as well. The assumption is that these "blue helmet" peacekeepers learn not only to appreciate democratic principles through their mission work but also to develop an international outlook and new ideas about conflict prevention. Arturo C. Sotomayor debunks this myth, arguing that democratic practices don't just "rub off" on UN peacekeepers. So what, if any, benefit accrues to these troops from emerging democracies? In this richly detailed study of a decade's worth of research (2001-2010) on Argentine, Brazilian, and Uruguayan peacekeeping participation, Sotomayor draws upon international socialization theory and civil-military relations to understand how peacekeeping efforts impact participating armed forces. He asks three questions: Does peacekeeping reform military organizations?
Can peacekeeping socialize soldiers to become more liberalized and civilianized? Does peacekeeping improve defense and foreign policy integration? His evaluation of the three countries' involvement in the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti reinforces his final analysis - that successful democratic transitions must include a military organization open to change and a civilian leadership that exercises its oversight responsibilities. The Myth of the Democratic Peacekeeper contributes to international relations theory and to substantive issues in civil-military relations and comparative politics. It provides a novel argument about how peacekeeping works and further insight into how international factors affect domestic politics as well as how international institutions affect democratizing efforts.
Arturo C. Sotomayor is an assistant professor in the Department of National Security Affairs at the Naval Postgraduate School. He is coeditor of Mexico's Security Failure: Collapse into Criminal Violence and El mundo desde Mexico: ensayos de politica internacional.
