Foreword

Abstract

As citizens, with different backgrounds and identities, and as members of anything from modern interest groups to historic communities, to what extent should we allow states, global networks, and international organisations to regulate, guide, and control our lives?

The question is classic, and without a fixed answer.

When some hitherto non-regulated aspects of life become regulated by some type of external forces it is often said that they become politicised – or securitised, monetised, or maybe more recently – medicalised.

Autonomous regions sometimes experience such a development due to the autonomy- based capacity to regulate life in more detail than state-level decision-making or legislation normally allows. Obviously, this can – or maybe should – be seen as a mechanism of protection, and not necessarily of regulation for its own sake.

Be that as it may, in this issue of Journal of Autonomy and Security Studies (JASS)  we will be acquainted with the politicisation of travel as an international activity, of the external and internal application of conditions for daily life in Ålandic communities, and of the application of different perspectives regarding autonomy within a national security policy. In all three cases the external imposes itself upon the individual and upon the local – i.e. the two levels of existence for which autonomy vs imposition is the most critical balancing act.

Besides the direct content of any one article, common links of the articles – such as those indicated above – give the JASS reading an extra dimension and add to our reflection of the global state of affairs. This seems of particular importance to note during 2020, which, in a sad way, has put the relation between the global and the local at the center of virtually any action and human initiative for a long time.

Autonomy and security will therefore also in the future be very relevant concepts for understanding global relations and local politics. JASS is one of only a few platforms dedicated to analysis and discussion centered around these concepts. You are most welcome to send your contributions – such as articles, comments, or research notes – to bring forward our common knowledge development process in these matters!