The Global Legitimacy Game Civil Society, Globalization and Protest

by Van Rooy, Alison

• ISBN13: 9781403934918
• ISBN10: 1403934916
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-08-21
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Summary

There is a heated debate underway on the legitimacy of global activists, a war of words (and sometimes stones and teargas) that is rarely examined from top to bottom. This latest book by Canadian commentator Van Rooy scrutinizes the new legitimacy rules, arguing that they have real impact on how our world is governed.In dissecting representation, rights, experience, expertise, moral authority and other evolving rules of legitimation, Van Rooy points to her own proposals for global supplementary democracy.

Author Biography

ALISON VAN ROOY'S research on civil society includes Nongovernmental Voices in Multilateral Organizations (an ongoing series at The North-South Institute), the Canadian Development Report 1999: Civil Society and Global Change (1999); and Civil Society and the Aid Industry (1998). She is currently on leave from the Canadian International Development Agency.

Table of Contents

List of Acronyms	ix
Acknowledgements	xi
About the Author	xii
Introduction: Gorillas, Ants, Elephants, Canaries	1	(4)
1 The Civil Society Thing: Who, What, Why, Where, How?	5	(28)
1.1 Defining civil society	5	(7)
1.1.1 What counts?	6	(3)
1.1.2 Why do they count?	9	(3)
1.2 Scoping the phenomenon	12	(3)
1.2.1 How many?	12	(2)
1.2.2 From whence?	14	(1)
1.3 Identifying four characteristics	15	(16)
1.3.1 Horizontal	15	(3)
1.3.2 Global	18	(4)
1.3.3 High-profile	22	(4)
1.3.4 Ideological	26	(5)
1.4 Conclusion	31	(2)
2 Activism's Bumper Decade	33	(29)
2.1 The environmental campaigns	34	(3)
2.1.1 Greenpeace and ecological sensibility	34	(1)
2.1.2 The Earth Summit landmark	35	(1)
2.1.3 The shelving of genetically modified organisms	36	(1)
2.2 The corporate campaigns	37	(5)
2.2.1 Infant formula and the Nestle boycott	37	(1)
2.2.2 Nike's labour standards	38	(1)
2.2.3 Shell shock and Nigerian oil	39	(1)
2.2.4 Child labour and Rugmark	40	(1)
2.2.5 Ending blood diamonds	41	(1)
2.3 The peace campaigns	42	(3)
2.3.1 Disarmament and mass mobilization	43	(1)
2.3.2 The landmines convention and the Internet	44	(1)
2.4 The human rights campaigns	45	(2)
2.4.1 Women's rights as human rights	46	(1)
2.5 The North-South campaigns	47	(3)
2.5.1 The New International Economic Order	47	(1)
2.5.2 Development NGOs' new advocacy	48	(2)
2.6 The global finance campaigns	50	(6)
2.6.1 The World Bank: adjustment of structural adjustment	50	(2)
2.6.2 Protesting the IMF: the Asian financial crisis	52	(3)
2.6.3 The Jubilee 2000 debt campaign	55	(1)
2.7 The globalization campaigns	56	(4)
2.7.1 The OECD and the Multilateral Agreement on Investment	56	(1)
2.7.2 The Battle of Seattle and the WTO	57	(3)
2.8 Conclusion	60	(2)
3 The Legitimacy Game: The Representation Rules	62	(15)
3.1 Nature of membership	63	(7)
3.1.1 Volume: size of membership	63	(1)
3.1.2 Breadth: comprehensiveness of membership	64	(4)
3.1.3 Depth: commitment of membership to the cause	68	(2)
3.2 Internal democracy	70	(6)
3.2.1 Election: membership's choice of leadership	70	(1)
3.2.2 Control: membership's democratic control over leadership	71	(1)
3.2.3 Accountability: leadership's responsibilities to members and beyond	72	(2)
3.2.4 Transparency: public access to information	74	(2)
3.3 Conclusion	76	(1)
4 The Legitimacy Game: The Other Rules	77	(26)
4.1 Rights-based claims	77	(4)
4.1.1 The person	77	(1)
4.1.2 The victim	78	(1)
4.1.3 The global citizen	79	(2)
4.2 Experts rule	81	(11)
4.2.1 Rarity	81	(2)
4.2.2 Validity	83	(2)
4.2.3 Disciplinary might	85	(3)
4.2.4 Comparative credibility	88	(2)
4.2.5 Balance	90	(2)
4.3 Experiential evidence	92	(2)
4.3.1 Grassrootedness	92	(1)
4.3.2 History, longevity, and precedent	93	(1)
4.4 Moral authority	94	(7)
4.4.1 Public interest	95	(2)
4.4.2 Common standard	97	(1)
4.4.3 United front	98	(3)
4.5 Conclusion	101	(2)
5 The Legitimacy Game: The Hidden Rules	103	(24)
5.1 Walking the talk	103	(6)
5.1.1 Amateur professionalism	104	(2)
5.1.2 Austerity	106	(1)
5.1.3 Effectiveness	107	(2)
5.2 Qualifications of leadership	109	(2)
5.2.1 Elite skill	109	(2)
5.2.2 Charisma	111	(1)
5.3 The marketplace of appeals	111	(4)
5.3.1 The business of fundraising	112	(1)
5.3.2 Media and market share	113	(2)
5.4 Purity and independence	115	(4)
5.4.1 Political independence	115	(1)
5.4.2 Financial independence	116	(3)
5.5 The primacy of public security	119	(6)
5.5.1 Violence	120	(3)
5.5.2 War on terrorism	123	(2)
5.6 Conclusion	125	(2)
6 The Crisis of Global Governance and a Compromise Solution	127	(34)
6.1 The crisis of global governance	128	(2)
6.2 Alternative theories and proposals	130	(7)
6.2.1 The theories	130	(3)
6.2.2 The proposals	133	(1)
6.2.3 Objections and hope	134	(3)
6.3 The compromise of supplementary democracy	137	(9)
6.3.1 The rationale	137	(3)
6.3.2 The promise	140	(2)
6.3.3 The objections	142	(4)
6.4 Making supplementary democracy work	146	(12)
6.4.1 Existing norms and mechanisms	146	(8)
6.4.2 Building on precedent	154	(4)
6.5 Conclusion	158	(3)
Bibliography	161	(23)
Index	184