(In)security, a feeling?
In terms of emotional images, some of the authors have expressly focused on the feeling of (in)security. Alix Dassargues (doctoral student at ULg) analyses, in an original and undoubtedly hitherto unseen way, the feeling of linguistic (in)security – i.e. the feeling of trust that a person feels towards their linguistic practices, by presenting the attitudes and representations of young French-speakers from Ghent. To explore this feeling, the author used a method that involved three phases: collecting quantitative data through a questionnaire, conducting informal interviews and group observation activities among French-speakers. In her paper, she shows that different factors affect the feeling of linguistic (in)security: level of education, written or oral practice of the language, age and interpersonal relations.
As for Gyöngyver Demeny (doctoral student in Sociology at the University of Rouen-Haute Normandie), and Michalis Lianos (professor at the same institution), they wondered how structural and institutional socioeconomic changes contribute to the intense insecurity in contemporary societies. How does this appear in the daily lives of individuals and in their biographical trajectories? What is the role played by the changes currently taking places in areas as varied as health, employment, the environment and interpersonal relations?
Their work falls under the scope the European research project ‘Uncertainty and insecurity in Europe’ and is based on the data collected on the subject in four EU countries: the United Kingdom, France, Greece and Hungary.
For the two researchers, the vulnerability and the increased sense of insecurity in post-industrial societies is linked to what they call the decline of ‘direct sociality’ and ‘the proliferation of institutional mediation’. With individualisation and the increasing lack of protection ensured by the state, individuals are finding themselves in competition for ever more efficient access to institutions. Within this context, the possibility of being excluded represents a deep and growing source of fear. The same observation as regards the increasing ‘flexibility’ of the employment market and the rise in insecure jobs.
For Demeny and Lianos, individualisation and the intensification of competition between individuals may lead to a weakening of interpersonal or family relations, for instance. On the other hand, new social identities are forming, with a focus on solidarity and altruism, within the framework of ‘new social movements’.
What is the result of the representative surveys conducted in the four abovementioned European countries? First of all, that the feeling of insecurity among individuals is developing everywhere. While the phenomenon of individualisation is more pronounced in advanced modern countries like France and the United Kingdom, it is also present in Hungary and Greece. But it would appear that people, regardless of their country, count first and foremost on social cohesion. The basis of a ‘secure future’ – sufficient income, for instance – lies in their family, their friends and within the framework of a society based on 'solidarity’, and that is where they believe they will find it.
Problem-solving
The historical political context influences the expression of feelings of (in)security. In this respect, the contribution of Audrey Weerts (Department of Political Science at ULg) and Jean-Claude Mputu (University of Mbandaka, DRC) focuses on the socioeconomic context and its effects on the relations that may appear between ‘peace, security and development’ in the fragile state that is the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). After having defined the three concepts of this triptych, the authors endeavour to analyse how they are conveyed in opinions and in the field, especially through the actions of MONUC and MONUSCO. Ultimately, they note the obvious, but necessary, prevalence of security issues (such as the neutralisation of armed groups) concerning problems linked to development. No development is possible without putting an end to the violence that is blighting the east of Congo and the impunity of the crimes committed, especially against women. We can argue about the role played by the UN, but we must recognise, they conclude, that its presence in DRC, as a legitimizing agency, exerts a favourable political influence in view of a more equal treatment of the triptych’s three concepts: peace, security, development.
From a similar problem-solving approach, André Dumoulin (Institut Royal Supérieur de Défense and the Department of Political Science at ULg) demonstrates that the mediatisation of security and defence is also a major political stake. With empirical results as support, the author considers the role of the media (through the influence it exercises over decision-makers) and that of public opinion (as a ‘political barometer’) as noteworthy but not decisive variables in decision-making processes. He cleverly highlights the main strengths and weaknesses of the communication strategy particular to the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP), in comparison with that of the Atlantic Alliance (NATO). The recommendations he provides, on the basis of this observation, reflect the weight of media representations in the process of constructing a visible, credible and effective collective European and Atlantic identity in terms of common (in)security and defence.
Finally, Céline Parotte and Grégory Lits analyse how the media dealt with the Waste Plan between 2009 and 2011, set up by ONDRAF (National Agency for Radioactive Waste and Enriched Fissile Materials), in Belgium, by focusing on the way in which this plan constitutes a public issue in itself in terms of security. For this purpose, they studied the interactions between this organisation, the media, the public, certain environmental associations and political decision-makers.
To conclude, the kaleidoscope offered by the work 'L'insécurité en question' allows us to envisage this subject through multiple definitions and stakes, while insisting on the prospects opened by the researchers on this highly topical subject. For Sophie Wintgens and Geoffrey Grandjean, this quest for perspectives leads researchers to open up their analyses to new dimensions and to integrate in their analyses the treatment of a fundamental aspect of the security process, i.e. the issue of the problematisation of security.
