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Community-Based Armed Groups: Towards a Conceptualization of Militias, Gangs, and Vigilantes
Schuberth, Moritz
Schuberth, Moritz
Publication Date
2015-07
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© 2015 Taylor & Francis. This is an Author's Original Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Contemporary Security Policy in 2015 available online at http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13523260.2015.1061756
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Abstract
The proliferation of irregular armed actors which defy simplistic definition has
caught public and academic attention alike, not least in the pages of this journal. To move
the debate on non-state armed groups (NSAGs) forward, this article seeks to enhance our conceptual
understanding of parochial armed groups which are not primarily driven by ideological
or religious objectives. Thus, this article clarifies similarities as well as differences between
subtypes of community-based armed groups (CBAGs) on the one hand, and between
CBAGs and other NSAGs, on the other hand. By doing so, a typology is developed that classifies militias, gangs and vigilantes on the basis of their political, economic and security-related dimensions. The resulting ideal types are discussed through the lenses of different explanatory frameworks and policy debates in the field of contemporary security studies. A major typological issue is the tendency for CBAGs to ‘turn bad’ and become threats to the stability they were expected to transform, becoming a serious problem in countries where they operate. It is concluded that the challenge of CBAGs ultimately needs to be addressed by putting in place a functioning state that can tackle the underlying woes that led to their proliferation in the first place.
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Accepted Manuscript
Citation
Schuberth M (2015) The Challenge of Community-Based Armed Groups: Towards a conceptualization of Militias, Gangs, and Vigilantes. Contemporary Security Policy. 36 (2): 1–25.
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