Acquiescence Over Activism, how NGOs Manage Authoritarian Demands
Author | : Jordan Alexander Holsinger |
Publisher | : |
Total Pages | : 0 |
Release | : 2021 |
ISBN-10 | : OCLC:1336057057 |
ISBN-13 | : |
Rating | : 4/5 (57 Downloads) |
Book excerpt: How do non-governmental organizations handle authoritarian pressure? NGOs exist to complete their missions, but can only do so when allowed by a regime. Meanwhile, autocrats benefit from NGO resources if they are not outweighed by costs that NGOs present. Despite this tension, authoritarian and semi-authoritarian settings are replete with NGOs. I employ a formal model to understand this paradox. I find that when a regime becomes more politically sensitive to NGOs, groups accommodate the regime by reducing costs. The model also suggests that NGOs with greater commitments to their host regime tend to reduce their activity. I use the announcement of controversial canal construction in Nicaragua as a quasi-experiment. The construction raised costs that NGOs presented, revealing how NGOs navigate the problem of operating where they are not welcome. I use an original dataset of 13,000 NGO budgets and geo-coded project locations to interrogate how NGOs react to politically fragile regimes. I demonstrate that NGOs respond to political sensitivity by operating in areas that support regime stability. Likewise, I demonstrate that NGOs committed to their promises, such as religious NGOs, exit in the event of a political shock.