Activists beyond scrutiny

1
Activists beyond scrutiny?

• Challenges to transnational NGO mobilization
• Hans Peter Schmitz, Syracuse University
• Spring 2006

2
Overview

• The issue Accountability in transnational
  governance in the absence of a global
  society/democracy
• Are NGOs part of the solution or part of the
  problem?
• What is accountability?
• The effects of transnational activism shaping
  global and local change
• Forms of global accountability

3
The challenges

• Globalization increases the number of
  participating actors and undermines the
  separation of spheres of authority.
• In the absence of global elections, how do we
  hold those making/influencing decisions
  accountable to those affected?

4
Facing their own rhetoric

• Activists have long attacked IFIs for their
  alleged lack of accountability to affected
  populations.
• Is accountability politics now turning against
  unelected NGOs?
• What standards of accountability are suitable for
  NGOs?

5
Do NGOs need watching?

• Who is better to speak on behalf of the poor
  middle-class white people in the North or the
  elected representatives of the poor of Africa
  themselves
• (Clare Short, former British International
  Development Secretary, at the G8 summit, July
  2001)

6
Do NGOs need watching?

• NGOwatch.org
• The Economist on Oxfam Who elected them?
• May 2003, USAID Administrator Andrew Natsios
  NGOs are an arm of the US government
• Are NGOs becoming too powerful and do we need to
  worry about this? Are NGOs illegitimately
  usurping power belonging to others?

7
Possible responses

• Defiance Who elected The Economist?
• Acceptance Develop and strengthen non-electoral
  forms of
• legitimacy,
• representativeness, and
• accountability.

8
What is legitimacy?

• Authority The right to exercise (legitimate)
  power/control
• Legitimacy Non-coercive acceptance of
  decisions/policies
• NGOs tend to rely more on legitimacy, since they
  usually lack coercive power or means of material
  incentives.

9
What is representivity?

• What or whom should NGOs represent?
• Amnesty International membership organization
• Human Rights Watch no membership
• But do people join NGOs because they want to be
  represented? Not necessarily.
• Members are a resource for campaigns, not a
  source of legitimacy. NGOs are powerful when they
  have expertise and are capable of representing a
  problem/cause.

10
What is accountability?

• Relationship between rulers and ruled, whereby
  the latter have the right to investigate the
  actions of decision-makers and impose ex post
  sanctions.
• Accountability defined as (based on
  Grant/Keohane, Accountability and Abuses of Power
  in World Politics, 2005)
• Participation (focus on those affected by
  actions)
• Delegation (focus on those entrusting power)

11
Delegation and participation

• Both forms of accountability tend to co-exist in
  domestic democratic politics, but they can be
  quite distinct in global affairs.
• Participation input-oriented, direct control of
  leaders responsible to affected population
  voice accountability
• Delegation output-oriented, clear separation of
  rulers and ruled it is clear who to blame
  responsible to principals performance
  accountability

12
Accountability in global affairs

• The two core issues in defining accountability in
  global affairs
• What constitutes an abuse of power?
• Who has the right to hold decision-makers
  accountable?

13
Accountability for what?

• What constitutes an abuse of power?
• Gross human rights violations
• Violations of basic international law principles
• Gross economic inequalities
• ..

14
Accountability to whom?

• Donors - upward (supervisory accountability)
• Mission inward (reflective accountability)
• Beneficiaries - downward (performance
  accountability)
• Membership (voice accountability)
• Markets (financial accountability)
• Courts/Governments (legal accountability)
• Peers horizontal (reputational accountability)

15
Accountability how?

• Government regulation/Certification
• Voluntary codes of conduct
• Participation/feedback
• Leadership
• Ombuds-person (complaint and response)
• Transparency
• Evaluation
• Peer review

16
Transnational NGO activities

• Two targets
• 1. Shaping global governance (ICC, WTO, land
  mines, small arms)
• 2. Shaping local political and social change
  (human rights, environmental issues)
• Two primary activities
• a. Advocacy b. Service

17
Shaping global institutions

• The Anti-Torture convention, 1987
• The Children Rights convention, 1990
• The Landmines treaty, 1997
• The International Criminal Court, 1998
• MAI agreement and Seattle protests, 2001
• NGOs as agenda-setters, not decision-makers
• State representatives as targets and ultimate
  gate-keepers.

18
Shaping local change

• Development work/Service NGOs
• Human rights activism
• Environmental activism
• NGOs as monitors, implementing agencies, and
  enforcers
• Governments and local populations as targets
• More direct effects of activism.

19
Challenges of accountability

• Advocacy
• What is the meaning of universal principles in a
  given national or local context?
• How can transnational activists strengthen
  domestic modes of accountability?
• Service
• What is the proper balance between answering to
  donor demands and needs of target populations?
• How can NGOs hold governments accountable for
  providing services?

20
Creating accountability

• Define the nature of activism
• Providing expertise, lobbying, etc.
• Make moral and legal principles explicit
• Duties to defend human rights, UN Charter, etc.
• Seek to create informed consent
• Financial support, membership, etc.
• Increase reputation and trust
• Stakeholders and their interests, etc.
• Focus on performance and output
• Results, accounting, etc.

21
Conclusion

• Alleged lack of NGO accountability is frequently
  politically motivated.
• Who elected them? is the wrong question there
  are many other forms of accountability in a world
  without a coherent global democratic polity.
• If NGOs want to control this emerging debate,
  they need to take the lead and develop
  appropriate forms of self-regulation.

22
Conclusion

• Accountability should be based on a mix of
  delegation and participation.
• More accountable NGOs will increase pressures for
  greater transparency on IGOs, MNCs, and states.