Security is Indivisible Essay
Security is Indivisible Essay Security is a crucial factor in our daily lives. It has tremendous positive effects on a nation and society in general. The principle of indivisible security has been under debate for quite a long time. Some people may ask how the welfare of another person affects their welfare in terms of security. However, the effect is felt in many ways that can be viewed from different aspects. It is believed that the principle of indivisible security is important in today’s world of technology as it proves to be more advantageous than the lack of concern of other nations’ or peoples’ security. The paper discusses the indivisibility of security in the world and how the effects of insecurity on one individual affect other individuals, groups or organizations.
Harry Truman was a major perpetrator of the belief on indivisible security. During the Second World War, despite his concern for the welfare of the United States, he also cared about the effect his decisions would have on other nations. He explained to the United Nations representatives how his belief in international peace was possible through diplomacy, and this could lead to peace in other parts of the world (BBC News, 2006). He claimed that security was a collective responsibility whose effects were felt in the whole universe, with the example of the Second World War. Truman argued that no nation could possibly make itself more secure by seeking superiority over other nations. All nations share each other’s security, and long lasting peace and security can only be achieved through cooperation of nations.
Currently, civil wars affecting some nations in the world are bound to affect other nations either directly or indirectly. It raises the security concern in other nations due to fear of the same war outbreak in their nations (Bain, 2006). In addition, some nations would feel unsafe about the security state in other nations. For instance, the events of the world war did not actually take place in all the nations in the world. However, the resultant effect of the world war was felt entirely in every country of the world due to the decline in the economy as an effect of war (BBC News, 2006). The demise of many ex-servicemen reduced the number of potential workforce that could work towards restoration of peace in the future.
At a conference in Berlin, Russian Foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said that it was irrational for any nation or state to guarantee its security at the expense of that of other nations (The Voice of Russia, 2010). He argued that if such attitudes were upheld by other foreign nations, then the world would not make any substantial progress in terms of development and security. Such actions lead to an uncontrollable state in other nations, and the governments faced further effects of the war rather than solutions to the problem. “What is the need of having peace in our nation if our neighboring country is warring?” This question posed by a Russian citizen as published in a Russian journal was intended to support the minister’s claim in terms of collective security (The Voice of Russia, 2010).
Collective maintenance of peace and security in society is important as it upholds the moral and humanitarian values. In his book, The United Nations, Peace and Security, Ramesh Thakur clearly explains the importance of the principle of collective responsibility and the resultant effects of insecurity on involved and uninvolved parties (Biscop, 2013). In a state of instability in terms of security, a third party is bound to feel the adverse effects of the security instability (Biscop, 2013). Similarly, if there is peace in one part of society in the current world, then other parties also enjoy the security status both directly and indirectly. Peace and security lead to maximum performance of a nation due to the realization of its full potential. Moreover, maximum productivity is attained leading to development in the nation.
In any institution of the contemporary society, a school, for instance, the security of an individual is linked to the security of other individuals. In other terms, a threat posed to one individual or part of the organization is bound to affect a major part of the institution (Bain, 2006). If someone threats to attack a single student, it poses danger to other students as they may also be physically injured in the process. They will suffer the trauma of the harm that has come to their fellow student. In a study conducted by social analysts from the University of Yale, witnessing of physical harm to an individual is likely to trigger an immense feeling of fear and trauma (Biscop, 2013). It supports the argument that security affects everyone.
In the business industry, there are organizations that heavily rely on one another, which enhances the development of these enterprises raising the chances of maintenance of their financial stability. If one of the organizations in a chain is economically unstable, then the other organizations can chip in and try to help the organization in regaining stability (Bain, 2006). If more than one organization in the chain experiences instability flaws, the other organizations are likely to be affected by this instability negatively. The chances to will maintain their previously higher standards would be lower, and this can lead to their decline, as well. The security of a few entities in an organization affects all the entities in the organization (Biscop, 2013). With this, it is clear that in today’s world, the security of one unit is linked to the security of others.
Security concerns are indivisible. In upholding security, it is not only the responsibility of the speculated officials to maintain the standards of peace in the nation or part of an organization but also of every individual in both situations (BBC News, 2006). It would be impossible for the speculated officials to do their best in ensuring that high standards of security are met while the protected party is not involved in the process of secutity maintainance. The situation results in the whole system, comprising of the officials and those governed, revolving around the same point. No progress is made in such a situation, and it is clear that the security concerns are indivisible as they are a collective responsibility for everyone in the nation.
In a country comprised of subdivisions such as counties and states, the welfare and security of one state affect the welfare of the other states. If one of the states is not stable in terms of security, the effects stretch to other states and the whole nation in general. Usually, the country faced the following scenario. The unstable security in one state leads to economic instability in the whole nation as most of the finances from individuals, government and external sources are spent in the efforts of restoration of peace in the state since security is a collective responsibility (Bain, 2006). The previous contributions of that state will not be available in that time, and this results in the lack of essential requirements in the other states. This proves that security is indivisible and security concerns in one state are felt by the entire nation.
The security of one individual is likely to affect the performance of another individual. Take, for instance, business partners. They depend on each other in the delivery of quality services to their clients. If one of them experiences security issues, then the other is likely to be affected. He will be concerned about the welfare of his colleague in terms of his security.
Moreover, he will underperform in his job duties as his colleague is not able to fully work to the required expectations (Biscop, 2013). This impacts negatively on their job as the service delivery to their clients will be inefficient. He will also try to help his colleague in solving his problem, and this implies that security is an indivisible and collective responsibility.
Terrorism is a global security concern affecting more people than those who are actually involved in the actual act. A recent study conducted by an anti-terrorism organization reported that the increase in the number of terrorist attacks in the nation has resulted in the decline of the global economy (Biscop, 2013). In fact, some of those people who are directly affected by terrorist attacks lose their lives. There is also immeasurable destruction of property. As the contribution of those who lost their lives is impossible, the property destroyed has to be taken care of, and this leads to the use of the funds in the unallocated are, which, in turn, affectsother individuals. Therefore, one can claim that the security of everyone affects everyone.
In his final speech as the secretary general to the United Nations in Missouri, Koffi Annan spoke about the importance of collective security responsibility using Truman as a major reference. He emphasized on the issue of the linkage between everyone’s security (BBC News, 2006). According to Annan, Truman’s actions in the struggle for maintenance of global peace depict the true image of how security is a joint concern and people should work towards maintaining security (BBC News, 2006). The security of our neighbors can only be guaranteed if we maintain higher standards of peace and security. Citing relevant sources, he made the issue clear. Thus, it is evident that the security of one individual is linked to the security of other individuals.
Moreover, political unrests brought by military coups affect more people than those conducting the exercise. When coup attempts are made on a nation’s government, the government officials and the citizens are affected. In addition to that, the neighboring nations are affected (Bain, 2006). Non citizens who live in the affected nation also feel the impact of the coup. It leads to a state of political unrest and death among individuals (Biscop, 2013). Security organizations from all over the world are involved in this issue in an attempt to restore peace in the nation. Though the security organizations may be situated in a different geographical location and are not affected directly by the coup, they have to participate in resolving the situation as security is an indivisible global issue that affects everyone.
Interstate warfare, just like civil wars have adverse effects on more sides than the ones that actually take part in the warfare. If two nations are warring, then the citizens of those nations are directly affected. In addition, the neighboring nations are also affected. Death of innocent people and destruction of property are some of the immediate effects that are felt by the citizens of the nation (Global Research, 2007). Also, long term effects such as economic decline are felt by the nations and the world as a whole as the nations are also contributors to the global development. It is clear that security affects the people involved directly as well as those who are linked to them indirectly.
Robbery and related crimes affect more people than those who are directly affected in them. Most robbery crimes involve the use of weapons that are a threat to human security. These weapons are used by the criminals to cause harm to their victims and make their acts of thievery easier. This issue increases the fear among the uninvolved parties as they are afraid of being involved in the actual act of crime. This reduces their productivity as they will limit themselves to specific working hours and restrict their movements to certain places (Biscop, 2013). The aforementioned facts justify the indivisibility of security as it is not only restricted to those who are directly involved but also those linked to the affected parties.
Internal security issues in a nation affect the people within the nation and those outside the nation, as well. Those in the nation are affected in the following ways: demographic distribution, industrial production, agricultural distribution, among other ways (Bain, 2006). They will be forced to settle in other areas, and this affects the demographic distribution. Moreover, most people will be unable to perform their normal responsibilities in their work organizations. This leads to a lower industrial production. The agricultural yields also reduce as most farmers will not be able to do their work. Tourists and other foreign investors will not visit the country in fear of being involved in the conflict. This would lead to the economic decline of the nation. This clearly shows that security issues in a nation affect everyone in the nation and also those who are linked to the nation.
Insecurity that arises from differences between people of different religions affects those belonging to the religions and those who do not. The worship patterns of those involved will be affected. They will also be in fear of their welfare if it is seen that they belong to a certain religion. As a result, some of them will denounce their religion for their safety. Those who do not belong to the religion are uncertain of what might follow, and they live in fear. The fear will be global as most religions are widely spread in the world (BBC News, 2006). In this case, security not only affects those who are directly involved in the war but also those who are not. This affirms the argument that security is indivisible and it affects everyone.
The United Nations organization advocates for collective responsibility in the maintenance of the global security. It encourages nations to work closely with each other so as to uphold high standards of security between them and avoid the flaws that may arise from insecurity cases among them (BBC News, 2006). In case one of its member countries experiences a situation that endangers the security, the United Nations sends some of the officials to try and restore order in a diplomatic way. If diplomacy fails, military troops are sent to restore order in the country. The organization does not discriminate any member as it treats all the members fairly and equally (www.news.bbc.co.uk). Its participation in the struggle of the maintenance of global peace and security affirms that security is a global concern and it affects every individual in the world.
To conclude, the illustrations provided above prove that the maintenance of security is not assigned to a specific group of people but is rather a collective responsibility. Everyone in the society should participate in ensuring that the security concerns of other individuals are taken care of. It is indivisible in the sense that it cannot be assigned to only one particular region or a group of people. Citizens should take part in maintaining security by following the law. Moreover, the security concerns that affect one person are most likely to affect other people both directly and indirectly. It is important to take part in the struggle for maintaining peace and security in the world as the global issue affects everyone, ignoring our collective responsibility will lead to a state of insecurity.
