Queena Long | Royal Holloway, University of London (original) (raw)

Papers by Queena Long

This essay will agree that ‘closing our borders to most people who want to immigrate to our own s... more This essay will agree that ‘closing our borders to most people who want to immigrate to our own state cannot be morally justified to them.’ The statement makes us ask questions such as: ‘is it morally right to exclude people?’ Moreover we can ask: ‘do states have a right to exclude people in the first place?’ These questions are important because at the end of the day immigration controls affect people’s life chances and autonomy to pursue their desired goals. The former questions can be argued ‘no’ on moral and human rights justifications, whilst the latter can be argued ‘yes’ by taking in considerations of pragmatism and political expediency, since states can justify prioritising the stability within their borders over strangers wanting to immigrate. This essay will focus on arguments supporting the former rather than the latter because the essay statement above refers to ‘moral justifications’. Although the essay will argue that communitarian arguments to open borders are limited because they focus on considerations of pragmatism and political expediency, they will be assessed when discussing how open border theory cannot be practically applied.

This dissertation looks at a puzzling question in British politics: why does Britain, which sees ... more This dissertation looks at a puzzling question in British politics: why does Britain, which sees itself as a champion of human rights abroad, seem to violate the rights of those who seek asylum within its borders? The purpose of this dissertation is to examine the apparent contradictions in British government policy towards human rights, in particular the inconsistency between foreign policy rhetoric on human rights and domestic practice towards asylum seekers. More specifically it examines these inconsistencies between the Home and Foreign Office between 1997-2014. It also examines the implications of them, finding that Britain exerts psychological harm and mental suffering on those detained or are left destitute whilst seeking asylum, a “second torture” if you like (Girma et al, 2014: p6). Remembering that many refugees “are desperate and traumatized, having survived war, detention without charge or trial, torture, or rape in their own country” (Medical Justice, 2013), it is important to answer why the apparent contradictions in British government policy towards human rights are inconsistent. Through testing each of Graham Allison’s three models of analysis in their (in)abilities to explain the inconsistencies, by accepting Model III it finds that these contradictions are a product of both inconsistent departmental interests and the centre’s failure to co-ordinate human rights policy. Having done so the dissertation will provide possible solutions to combat these inconsistencies.

There has been much debate about whether globalization is undermining state sovereignty in the st... more There has been much debate about whether globalization is undermining state sovereignty in the study of world politics today. This is due to the fact that the term ‘globalization’ itself is rather subjective and broad. There are two rather distinct arguments used in this debate. Hyperglobalists, such as Ohmae and Scholte , hold a pessimistic view and argues that globalization brings about the demise of the sovereign nation state: global forces undermine the ability of governments to control their own economics and societies. In contrast, ‘the sceptics reject the idea of globalization as so much “globaloney”’ : by emphasizing the continuing importance of states in world politics, academics such as Krasner and Gilpin argue that states and geopolitics remain the principal agents and forces shaping world order today. In this essay, we will firstly define the terms ‘globalization’ and ‘state sovereignty’. Looking at the impact of globalisation domestically and internationally of a state, we will pin point which aspects of state sovereignty are being undermined before looking at the arguments proposed by the “sceptics”. Then we will conclude whether or not, or to what extent is globalization undermining state sovereignty.

When answering this question, we will be looking closely at the Cold War period and the relations... more When answering this question, we will be looking closely at the Cold War period and the relationship between the two superpowers who had emerged out of the Second World War: the United States and Soviet Union. By war, I imply a nuclear war and by peace, a nuclear peace. I will be arguing how, initially, nuclear weapons did bring the world to the edge of war. However, it also helped ensure the peace during the Cold War period. I say initially because I believe that this climax (caused by the issue of nuclear weapons in the first place) in world politics lead the political actors President John F. Kennedy and Khrushchev to take on a more cooperative approach to one another. Thus I will be examining the consequences of the Cuban Missile Crisis 1962 as well President John F. Kennedy’s change in perception to how the Cold War should be fought after 1962. I will then focus on the predicted outcomes of a nuclear war, which will underline why it was necessary to prevent the Cold War from turning into a hot one. Finally, I will be pulling out examples of near-accidental nuclear wars from the post-Cold War period to highlight the ongoing threats of a nuclear warfare in our modern age to stress how nuclear weapons may not be able to establish peace themselves.

This essay will argue that norms do have a significant influence on international politics. We ca... more This essay will argue that norms do have a significant influence on international politics. We can explore the essay title in a way that asks whether norms have changed the way we approach international politics, and how it makes us to continue to do so. For example, the following simple question can be asked: if norms were taken out of the list of variables which act as influences in ‘international politics’, do we sill live in an international system that was present, say, during the Cold War? The answer is no. Thus we are going to structure the essay to highlight how norms influence the way we construct our society, which consequently influences international politics. The ‘Cycle of Norms’ will be mentioned, as well as Wendt’s approach on how we view anarchy. In addition, the structure and agency relationship will be featured in this essay, and will play a significant role in justifying the answer to the essay title; it stresses how norms have helped to shape not only how we approach international politics as adaptable agents, but also to shape the international structure in a way which they have encouraged us to do. By the end of this essay, the conclusion will come to agreeing that norms have a significant influence on international politics.

State punishment is an exercise of state power. Punishment is an act said to be morally wrong so ... more State punishment is an exercise of state power. Punishment is an act said to be morally wrong so how are we to jus;fy their given right to impose inten;onal suffering on law-breakers? It follows that the need to refine which type of state we are talking about is significant in order to help us jus;fy why the state is permiCed to punish, let alone why they do so. We also need to define what concept of punishment we will be using throughout the essay. Before then can we can delve into the essay ;tle by cri;cally analysing retribu;on and the other reasons for the state to punish law-breakers. These reasons are explained under the umbrella term of ‘consequen;alism’, which includes: deterrence, expressionism and rehabilita;on. Finally I will conclude the essay by disagreeing with the essay ;tle and will formulate an answer that incorporates all reasons for punishment, as well as highligh;ng how isola;ng retribu;on as the ul;mate reason for the state to punish law breakers is rather unwise.

Although there are aspects of Clausewitzean thinking that is still applicable today, this essay w... more Although there are aspects of Clausewitzean thinking that is still applicable today, this essay will argue that Sun Tzu is more relevant in understanding contemporary conflict. The term ‘contemporary conflict’ can also be connoted with ‘ideas expressed in the ‘New Wars’ debate in security discourse. These two concepts are viewed identical for the purpose of the essay. In regards to ‘understanding contemporary conflict’ we will view this as how to ‘explain’ or ‘approach it’. When comparing the two thinkers, one must bear in mind that ‘those who can master the complexities of war are almost as a rule the winners. The complexities of war have always been a central issue in war and strategy.’ Once we establish who can do this successfully, we can then come to the conclusion who is more relevant to understanding contemporary conflict. The structure of the essay will commence by giving a brief overview of the two thoughts before highlighting certain aspects of these ‘new wars’ and applying the ethos of the two thinkers on them, in order to discuss who is more relevant to understanding contemporary conflict. The essay will then arrive to the conclusion that Sun Tzu is more relevant in understanding contemporary conflict in regards to approaching new warfare technology, asymmetric conflicts and battlefields.

In order to answer this essay question, we will need to define what Grotius’s understanding of an... more In order to answer this essay question, we will need to define what Grotius’s understanding of an international society is. As described by Bull , the Grotian tradition ‘views international politics as taking place within an international society’ in which states ‘are bound not only by the rules of prudence or expediency but also by imperatives of morality and law.’ Keene had pointed out that the Grotian position on international society is normally juxtaposed against two alternative political theories: Machiavellian or Hobbesian realism, and the Kantian cosmopolitanism. This leads to the popular view that the most important distinguishing feature of Grotianism is its commitment to the idea of a society of states, in contradiction to the Hobbesian denial of such a society and the Kantian insistence on a world community of humankind. Thus a “society of states” is how Grotius views the international society. It is the peaceful interaction between states, drawn from his conception of natural law, where international relations and war are all subject to the rule of law. This natural law is overarching in the sense that it applies to all nations, whilst there is a positive international law (of agreement) that applies between nations. The key bases, or foundations, in which Grotius rests his understanding of international society are: morality in human nature, natural law, and universalism. Grotius portrays these as vital since there is no overarching authority in the international society. We will be arguing whether or not they are convincing.

When dealing with the question: ‘Why do liberals prefer a smaller state?’ we need to define the t... more When dealing with the question: ‘Why do liberals prefer a smaller state?’ we need to define the term ‘state’. We also need to establish which form of liberalism we are going to investigate. Until then can we look closely at their ideology, which will help us establish reasons to why they prefer a smaller state. In a political concept, by smaller state we mean minimal government intervention into the lives of the people in its society. There are two types of liberalisms within political theories: classical liberalism and modern liberalism. We shall be focusing on the ethos of classical liberalisms since ‘early liberals had wanted government to interfere as little as possible in the lives of its citizens’ whilst ‘modern liberals came to believe that government should be responsible for delivering welfare services and for managing the economy’. When investigating the whole subject of classical liberalism, it will be useful to put classical liberalism into context. Classical liberalism dominated the Victorian Era (1832-1901). During this time, Britain had installed a profound capitalist economic structure in which individualism played a massive role to its success. We will discuss this, as well as other key liberal themes such as freedom and reason, since they also play a vital role to why classical liberals prefer a smaller state. In addition, we will be looking closely at the interlocking links between individualism and utilitarianism, meritocracy Social Darwinism and laissez-faire.

This essay will seek to completely reject the idea that ‘just because they live far away does not... more This essay will seek to completely reject the idea that ‘just because they live far away does not mean that we owe poor people in developing countries any less than we owe poor people in our countries’. It will formulate a discussion on why we are doing so until we reach a conclusion to employ ‘soft’ cosmopolitanism thinking as a moral justification to global justice. Although there is an underlining consensus that we owe poor people in developing countries something, there is a lot of debate when it comes to the degree in which we do so, and for what reasons. It is important to even look at the problems surrounding the notion of global justice because although ‘global poverty may not be getting worse, in relation to world population as a whole, it is stubbornly failing to get much better.’ Global justice is the idea of alleviating global poverty. Therefore when we discuss about ‘owing poor people in developing countries’ they will be formulated around the topic of global justice. Within global justice there are two opposing perspectives; on the left hand side we have the egalitarianism or cosmopolitanism views whilst we have the statist or realist views on the right hand side. The essay title refers to the cosmopolitan argument for global justice. Therefore the essay structure will commence with justifying why we are even considering the notion of global justice, which will be going against realists and statist views before diving into discussing the degree in which we owe poor people in foreign countries the same treatment as we do to our fellow nationals. By the end of the essay I will have critically analysed and argued for the application of a ‘soft’ cosmopolitanism perspective when disagreeing with the idea that ‘just because they live far away does not mean that we owe poor people in developing countries any less than we owe poor people in our countries’. This will have been done through an analysis based on ‘practicality’ of implementing global justice rather than just the normative call for it.

After the Commonwealth Immigrants Act of 1962, the Commonwealth was effectively littered with sec... more After the Commonwealth Immigrants Act of 1962, the Commonwealth was effectively littered with second-class British citizens, who were seeds of political crises . This essay will argue that the responses of the Labour and Conservative parties to the two East African Asian crises were different from one another, thus it will show that not both of the parties were ready to sacrifice their principles in the light of unexpected events. Although one may ague that there are indeed differences between the two cases which would make it ‘politically less risky to accept the Ugandans than the Kenyans’ , it however did not alter the legal question of the Asians. The essay will hold a premise that political parties in Britain are not static; they adapt to situations by moving towards the left or right of the political spectrum. This is greatly a product of characters found within the Cabinets, which of course changes through time. Consequently, this often leads to contradictions in party ideology when studied from different time periods. Therefore it is essential to consider the personalities of those involved in the East Asian Crises.

Perkovich is not alone when he claims that ‘“WMD” mixes threats that should be distinguished’; R... more Perkovich is not alone when he claims that ‘“WMD” mixes threats that should be distinguished’; Reichart emphasizes how “WMD” ‘blurs the distinctive attributes of, and difference amongst nuclear, biological and chemical weapons.’ The work of Archer and Enemark are also in accordance with this view. Collectively they promote the need to assess the value of “WMD” by looking at the technology of the weapons found under this umbrella term, in order to understand the inherent problems of it. The aim of this essay is to argue in favour of Perkovich’s claim by analysing the weapon’s capability to cause ‘mass destruction’. Consequently, this will highlight how they are incomparable to one another and thus ‘mixes threats that should be distinguished’. Furthermore this essay will discuss other problems associated with “WMD”, such as it downplaying nuclear weapons by exaggerating the use of biological and chemical weapons, and the use of ‘WMD’ as a political tool to maximise the self-interest of policy makers. These problems will emphasize how “WMD” ‘mixes threats that should be distinguished’. Finally, the conclusion will suggest possible solutions to combat the use of “WMD” in security discourse.

In regards to this essay question, I would like to primarily clarify that I will be answering why... more In regards to this essay question, I would like to primarily clarify that I will be answering why British Muslims are ‘usually’ presented as an unwelcome minority ethnic community. This is to combat how some may perceive the word ‘often’ as ‘ frequently’ in relations to the essay title. Now that this is clear, the purpose of this essay is to isolate the variables that contribute to this presentation of British Muslims, separated in its relations to either the international or domestic realm. I use the word isolate because these variables, on the surface, interlink with one another in a mutual fashion and so certain variables need to be identified in order for us to distinguish the reasons why British Muslim often come to be presented as an unwelcome minority ethnic community. The starting point for analysis will be on the role of the media; other variables to be discussed will stem from it in one way or another. In the past, notably the 1960s and 1970s, Harmann and Husband expresses how studies showed that immigrants were discussed in relations to ‘numbers’ and the tensions of ‘race relations’. Now we have moved onto a religion based form of racism. Hall et al have noticed how biological notions on race shifted into cultural definitions, in particular towards the ideas of national belonging and national identity. This is summed up by Peach who emphasizes how British social political discourse have moved from ‘colour’ in the 1950s and 1960s, to ‘race’ in the 1960s 70s and 80s, to ‘ethnicity’ in the 90s and to ‘religion’ and ‘Islamophobia’ in the present time. This gives us an indication of what our variables will be. We will be discussing how they have contributed to portraying the British Muslims as an unwelcome minority ethnic community.
In my conclusion I summarise the identified variables and will suggest what could be done to combat this depiction if British Muslims.

Journalists are members of what Bruns call the ‘controllers’ of the content being allowed to eme... more Journalists are members of what Bruns call the ‘controllers’ of the content being allowed to emerge from the production processes in print and broadcast media; they control the gates through which content is released to their audiences. Other members include the editors and owners. The relationship between the members is based on a hierarchy of power . If the statement “journalists are no longer gatekeepers of political information” implies that journalists have only been the ones gatekeeping political information, then unfortunately this has never been the case. The ones that have been the most powerful gatekeepers of political information are their editors and the owners of the media company. However, for the purpose of this essay, and because one can argue that journalists are the ones who primarily extract and choose information to be published, this essay will look at how classical journalists find it difficult to gatekeep political information in our digital age.

This essay explores the ways in Feminists have contributed to our understanding of IR. Although ... more This essay explores the ways in Feminists have contributed to our understanding of IR. Although some may argue that their ‘methodology’ in understanding IR stems from existing approaches , one must not deny that a feminist’s focus on ‘gender’ does give us a significantly different understanding of IR. Before Feminism arrived onto the academic scene in around the 1980s, gender was not used as variable to approach IR. This essay will highlight the importance of its appearance in IR in changing our understanding of it. Having said that, we need to define what constitutes as ‘IR’ since the term itself is rather broad; what are the main things of analysis in IR? For the purpose of this essay, it will focus specifically on Sovereignty, the State, and Security, scrutinizing how these concepts are gendered, and why have they been gendered throughout history. After doing so, we will look at issues marginalised as a result from these gendered concepts. By looking at these two sections, the essay will have emphasised how IR feminists have critically re-examined some of the key concepts in the field of IR, which will eventually lead to the conclusion that a woman-centred approach give us a significantly different understanding of IR due to ‘gender lenses’.