The Concept of Security Essay Example

There are various concepts of security provided in different articles. Security, which mainly involves human safety, is defined as the approach towards national and international security that provides primacy to all human beings, and their dynamic economic and social interactions. The entire human security concept represents a break-out from the usual security studies that focus on the security of the nation. Human security is a broad concept that is aimed at providing protection from both traditional threats such as the military and non-traditional threats like diseases and poverty. This means that the security agenda and concept have gone beyond national or state security. At the same time, this new concept does not aim at replacing the traditional concept but building on it to have a better and more dynamic security concept and system.

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Research indicates that studying and understanding human security reveals that security deprivations can hinder peace and stability between or within nations in which overemphasis on national security can cause human warfare. Although the state is the primary provider of security, state security is not enough for human welfare. The vision of protecting people's security is, in itself, subject to different interpretations that are shaped by the understandings of what makes up a security threat, how to measure the intensity of any threat, as well as to provide way and means to prevent these threats.

The concept of state security is also articulated by the Independent Commission on Disarmament and Security Issues. The Security Report provides in-depth criticism of security based on the military approach while indicating the need for a security approach that accounts for the well-being of individuals. This has then seen an improvement in the security concept which is modeled to accommodate social problems that arise as a result of globalization. This means that the concept of security and the protection of people's lives and well-being goes beyond military protection but goes ahead to address any social, economic, health and environmental concerns.

Security is, therefore, of great importance. In other cases, it is used to help raise awareness of the importance of a particular issue which is found in the public domain. The concept of security is broad and vague which makes it difficult to find common discussion grounds. This is a feature that is found in many definitions in which many forms of threats cherish value especially those that affect the survival and the well-being of individuals (Williams, 2008).

The security concept is not an independent one because it relies on social or individual value systems (Brauch, 2003). Many researchers provide different meanings to the security concept. Some suggest that security is intersubjective which means that it is constituted by the process of negotiation and interaction. Security is achieved by changing the perception of security and that of fear (Ulusory 2003). The general security concept suggests that it cannot be achieved at the expense of others and therefore, it needs to be achieved through combined efforts. This means that security involves trust between the key participants through which commitments can be shared.

There are other definitions that have been used to explain the concept of security. It is, sometimes, defined as the accumulation of power. Security is also referred to as a commodity, and the only way to achieve it is by use of power (Van Buuren, 2010). The definitions are then stretched depending on whether it is in reference to the state or an organization. At some point, the security concept is defined as survival plus because the threats that endanger the survival of human beings in the future are very important.

In other cases, survival and security are used together because survival is interpreted as an existential condition in which security involves the ability to pursue specific social and political ambitions which as consequently followed by making life choices (Booth 2007). The security concept is divided into human and national security. Human security focuses on human rights, sustainable development, and safety from violence. In most cases, the concept human security is founded on three other minor concepts.

Conclusion

The first is human development in which the need for further investigations into the development of national production and the impact it has on human development. The second concept involves sustainable development in which the need to protect the environment is emphasized. The concept argues that for there to be sustainable growth and development there is a need to device long-term development strategies that consider environmental protections. The final concept is based on the responsibility to protect. This concept involves respecting and observing the universal human rights and the responsibility the state has of protecting its citizens. In that connection, if the state is unable to provide its citizens with security the responsibility of protecting is transferred to the international community. Human security and development are interconnected, and that might explain why security is defined as a necessary condition but not sufficient precondition. Therefore, human security is divided into economic, health, environmental, personal and political security.

References

Booth, K., 2007. Theory of world security (Vol. 105). Cambridge University Press.

Brauch, H.G., 2003. Security and environment linkages on the Mediterranean space: Three phases of research on human and environmental security and peace. In Security and Environment in the Mediterranean (pp. 35-143). Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg.

Ulusoy, H., 2003. Revisiting security communities after the Cold War: the constructivist perspective. Perceptions: Journal of International Affairs VIII (3), pp.161-197.

Van Buuren, J., 2010. Security as a commodity: The ethical dilemmas of private security services. INEX Policy Brief No. 6, March 2010.

Williams, P.D., 2012. Security studies: an introduction. In Security Studies (pp. 23-34). Routledge.