The
map of the world is dotted with growing “grey areas”—places where might is right
and poverty is extreme. In these areas the state imposes its will, fleeces its subjects
or simply ceases to exist. A lack of political will and dire economic hardship help
explain its absence. In many cases, the state is such a recent phenomenon that its
construction is unfinished. Fierce conflict in Colombia over what the state should
do, for instance, has stunted its growth (pp.18-20).
This power failure gives free rein to organized crime (pp. 36-37).
But these grey areas are not always disaster-stricken. By tapping their sole remaining
assets—their know-how, traditions, age-old power structures and above all their determination—these
neglected peoples have learnt to pull together. They have brought basic order to
their surroundings and created simple services. Over time they have seized authority
from distant governments. If these two players could pool their strengths, a strong
and law-governed state might rapidly emerge (p. 18).
We turn the spotlight on these self-governing organizations, placing them in their
historical and social contexts. The journey takes us to Somalia, where a cornucopia
of such groups could bode a national renaissance (pp. 21-23),
to Congo (ex-Zaire), where the breakdown of the state is coupled with civil war (pp.
24-26),
to the slums of Port-au-Prince (Haiti) and Guatemala City (pp. 27-29 and
pp.
30-32),
and finally, to the valleys of Afghanistan. |
