摘要：THE QUOTE ABOVE EXPRESSES a sentiment that is increasingly
familiar: inmany places across the developing world, the
state simply does not exist. In these contexts, we speak of a
¡°failed state,¡± in the sense that the state fails its citizens by not
providing them with the most basic services. Among these¡ª
and perhaps the most fundamental¡ªis the provision of security.
Where there is no security, violence can have free rein.
Violence, then, is not a cause of fragility, but it is an important
indicator of a fragile situation. Indeed, as shown in Figure 1,
there is a positive, significant relationship between fragility
and homicide rates. This observation holds not only for countries
involved in formal conflict or recent post-conflict, but
also in countries that have made the transition to peace.
