State-building or state-capture? Institutional exports, local reception and hybridity of reforms in post-war Kosovo

Abstract

Postwar Kosovo has been the subject of a highly intrusive international state-building project, including an unprecedented influx of international administrators, assistance and funds. However, it increasingly bears the hallmark of a weak and captured state. This special issue contributes theoretical and empirical insights that shed light on possible explanations, difficulties and prospects of the state-building project in Kosovo. Theoretically, we investigate how international and local explanations play out, interact and gain dominance over each other; highlight the local factors that shape the experience of state-building; and focus on the hybridity of institutionand state-building on the ground. Empirically, we take stock of two decades of international state-building activities and one decade of independent statehood by providing long-term and in-depth analysis of specific areas of reform-municipal governance, state bureaucracy, normalization of relations between Serbia and Kosovo, education, creation of armed forces, security sector reforms and reception of Salafi ideologies. Such time-sensitive, case-nuanced and empirically heavy analysis enables the authors to go back and forth between the role of international activities, domestic strategies of resistance and evidence of hybrid reforms in order to test the role of competing explanations.

The role of epistemic communities: local think tanks, international practitioners and security sector reform in Kosovo

“…The importance of local monitoring and public opinion research is best explained by noting evidence regarding the weaknesses of Kosovo's SSR. Local research is important in a context where local political elites and patronage networks have flourished under internationally designed statebuilding to co-opt and capture the governance of national institutions (Visoka 2012;Jackson 2018;Tadic and Elbasani 2018;Elbasani 2018;Jackson 2018). A study on SSR oversight for example, has highlighted the weaknesses of security sector accountability and transparency, disputing the effective performance of internal oversight and research mechanisms (Qehaja and Vrajolli 2012).…”

“…The challenges of investigative research are also directed towards international judicial practices, and have identified malpractice in the EULEX delivery of justice as much as they have questioned the suitability of international approaches to the Kosovo context (interview with KLI researcher, 17/08/17; interview with BIRN journalist, 18/08/17). This research challenge contributes to the persistent allegations of inefficiency local actors direct towards the EULEX mission (Elbasani 2018). In this regard, KLI and GLPS researchers have advocated for legal amendments on the issue of anti-corruption, aiming to contribute to the development of a sustainable accountability strategy.…”

“…This understanding of research agency fits into the study of international intervention, and particularly the focus on the ongoing negotiation, competition and engagement between local and international actors following international intervention (Mac Ginty and Richmond 2016, 220). This scholarship has provided a detailed analysis of international and local engagement, uncovering the challenges local and international actors pose to the normative procedures of international intervention (Autesserre 2014;Mac Ginty 2015;Richmond and Pogodda 2016a;Elbasani 2018). In Kosovo, the rules and intentions of international intervention have not translated easily into the local context, and have instead been met by local challenges and adaptation (Selenica 2018;Troncota 2018;Tadic and Elbasani 2018;Beysoylu 2018;Triantafyllou 2018;Jackson 2018;Kursani 2018).…”

EU foreign policy and ‘perceived coherence’: the case of Kosovo

“…Although research on that topic is now making an appearance, it remains miniscule compared to the more established literature adopting a top-down approach in analysing EU foreign policy actors (Rayroux and Wilén 2014;Ejdus and Juncos 2018;Müller and Zahda 2017;Dursun-Özkanca 2018;Gippert 2018;Mahr 2018). Elbasani (2018) argues that despite the increase in the number of scholarly works focusing on local actors, the existing literature still largely overlooks the perceptions of local actors, and more research should be conducted to depict 'local actors' rule reception and rule resistance activities. As Müller and Zahda (2017, 1) argue 'perception research can make a valuable contribution to the study of the local dimension in EU peacebuilding'.…”

Can the Balkans Join the West?

“…Partitocracy limits the EU's transformative power, enabling formal compliance while blocking serious reform and allowing corrupt practices to continue. 35 Not surprisingly, this is especially the case where domestic accountabilitythrough either autonomous government institutions or civil society-is lacking. 36 State capture is often blamed on foreigners, especially on the United States and the EU, who are said to prefer a promise of stability even if it means maintaining corrupt leaders in power.…”