Contends that the variation in ideology & types & degrees of prejudice, supremacy, & oppression are important distinctions to make when examining right-wing movements. Systems of race/gender/class oppression in the hard Right are explored in terms of a dynamic process comprising ideas, acts, & a hierarchical position of dominance that is structural. The Right is divided into the conservative, dissident, & extreme sectors, which all interact. After articulating their commonalities, differences are explored, focusing on the extreme Right, the patriot movement, & the Christian Right. It is concluded that understanding the political Right requires a more sophisticated level of analysis that identifies boundaries, categories, & terminology that delineate differences of degrees; further, systems of oppression based on gender, race, class, & more exist throughout society. 2 Figures. J. Zendejas
Contends that the variation in ideology & types & degrees of prejudice, supremacy, & oppression are important distinctions to make when examining right-wing movements. Systems of race/gender/class oppression in the hard Right are explored in terms of a dynamic process comprising ideas, acts, & a hierarchical position of dominance that is structural. The Right is divided into the conservative, dissident, & extreme sectors, which all interact. After articulating their commonalities, differences are explored, focusing on the extreme Right, the patriot movement, & the Christian Right. It is concluded that understanding the political Right requires a more sophisticated level of analysis that identifies boundaries, categories, & terminology that delineate differences of degrees; further, systems of oppression based on gender, race, class, & more exist throughout society. 2 Figures. J. Zendejas
Legal scholarship concerning "rights" published in four leading US law journals, 1900-1996, is examined to determine factors responsible for alterations to political understandings of rights. Content analysis of US rights scholarship revealed three findings: the notion of rights is used interchangeably with the concepts of liberty & privilege; whereas early-20th-century scholarship principally addressed negative rights, mid- & late-20th-century literature has demonstrated a growing concern with legal entitlements; & the popular perception that government has both a right to act & an obligation to establish standards & regulations has expedited discourse regarding positive rights. The extent to which such developments in contemporary rights discourse have affected relations between citizens & the state is also contemplated. Recommendations for future research are also offered, eg, investigating the American public's reasons for continuing to support the rule of law. J. W. Parker
Article 8b of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) extends municipal & European electoral rights to all Union citizens residing in each member state. This is clearly one of the most controversial provisions of the TEU, since municipal political rights have traditionally been extended only to the citizens of a particular state. In discussing the potential consequences of this principle of equal treatment, it is argued that Article 8b will necessarily have some effect on the overall regulation of the political participation of nonnationals in various member states & that it will ultimately require a full guarantee of the political freedoms of expression, assembly, & association. M. Maguire
Der Beitrag behandelt die Frage der Menschenrechte. Der Verfasser diskutiert die Entwicklung eines Menschenrechtsregimes in der EU im Kontext der Frage der Menschenrechtserziehung, ohne die die Menschenrechte juristisch-abstrakt bleiben. Die ethische Existenz der Menschenrechte in Europa beginnt im Klassenzimmer, sobald sie die nationale Perspektive überschreiten und zunächst eine europäische, dann eine globale Sicht entfalten. In Europa müssen aber die unterschiedlichen Perspektiven des gesamten Spektrums globaler und nationaler Kulturen vermittelt werden, und nur diese Vermittlung kann abstrakte Menschenrechte in konkrete Lebenspläne transformieren. (ICE).
Describes the development of nongovernmental organizations in Papua New Guinea (PNG) aimed at improving the citizenry's general lack of awareness of their civil, social, & political rights. Focus is on the Individual & Community Rights & Advocacy Forum (ICRAF), created in 1992, & its work in protecting & promoting the human rights of women. The ICRAF's efforts to achieve gender parity & social justice in a wide variety of domains are chronicled, including politics, legal services, economic assistance, employment, & protection from domestic violence. Links between the ICRAF & other organizations, eg, the PNG National Council of Women & PNG Women in Politics, in these pursuits are described, citing advocacy, networking, & grassroots activist activities. 9 References. K. Hyatt Stewart
Describes the development of nongovernmental organizations in Papua New Guinea (PNG) aimed at improving the citizenry's general lack of awareness of their civil, social, & political rights. Focus is on the Individual & Community Rights & Advocacy Forum (ICRAF), created in 1992, & its work in protecting & promoting the human rights of women. The ICRAF's efforts to achieve gender parity & social justice in a wide variety of domains are chronicled, including politics, legal services, economic assistance, employment, & protection from domestic violence. Links between the ICRAF & other organizations, eg, the PNG National Council of Women & PNG Women in Politics, in these pursuits are described, citing advocacy, networking, & grassroots activist activities. 9 References. K. Hyatt Stewart
The current state of relations between the Canadian government & aboriginal peoples in Canada is examined, focusing on psychological motivations behind Canadian people's behaviors toward the Native peoples. An overview of the legal impediments to indigenous persons' rights & the slow resolution of land disputes between Native peoples & the Canadian state is presented. Two cases illustrating the contentious state of Canadian-Native relations -- the state's use of the Canadian Armed Forces to overcome a Native blockade in Quebec & the Native lobbies against creating hydroelectric dams around James Bay -- are provided & subsequently used to document the psychological foundations of policies against Native peoples. It is contended that state policies attempt to dehumanize Native peoples in order to justify their disreputable treatment. J. Platt's (1973) notion of the social fence is recalled to explain bureaucrats' unwillingness to intervene on behalf of Canada's indigenous peoples. Several recommendations for eliminating the imposition of structural violence on Native peoples are offered, eg, establishing a higher authority. 1 Table, 1 Figure, 116 References. J. W. Parker
Corruption is a complex activity. It is widely recognized as prevalent, despite the lack of empirical data. It goes beyond economic & political areas to affect people's lives & fundamental human rights. Governments that tolerate corruption are breaching human rights, so international human rights mechanisms have recently come into play to fight corruption & provide an alternative to domestic approaches. The human rights potentially affected by corruption are specifically those rights to affiliation, life, bodily health & integrity, political participation, nondiscrimination, & social & economic development. The Covenants supporting these rights, the International Covenant on Civil & Political Rights & the International Covenant on Economic, Social & Cultural Rights, are examined in relation to corruption. More solid empirical cases for the link between corruption & breaches of human rights are needed, & the human rights discourse needs to be integrated into international discussion on corruption & anticorruption activity. 1 Table. M. Pflum
The issue of whether groups possess moral, legal, & political rights to secede is addressed; in addition, the prospects of reconciliation between self-determining nations & the countries from which they seceded are considered. Whereas an analysis of positive law failed to provide support for a group's right to secession or independence, a review of moral arguments for self-determination provided ambiguous support for a moral right to secession. Questions regarding a seceding nation's capacity to produce justice & realize sustainability are cited to challenge the existence of a political right to secession. It is argued that reconciliation between self-determining nations & countries from which such nations seceded is generally difficult since countries in the latter group experience problems in dealing with losses of authority & property. Consequently, it is concluded that secession cannot create stability without exerting significant moral, legal, & political costs. J. W. Parker
A comparative approach for measuring political freedom in contemporary nations is presented. Historical research on the connection between freedom & development is reviewed. Potential problems in measuring political freedom are addressed (eg, the need to overcome cultural & subjective biases), with political freedom defined as individual existence in a collectivity in which individuals are guaranteed certain individual & collective freedoms. The five clusters of rights & freedoms that compose the proposed Political Freedom Index are personal security; the rule of law; political participation; freedom of expression; & nondiscrimination. Data from 101 countries indicate that those with meager human rights records & without democratic government possess the lowest composite measures of political freedom. 5 Tables, 25 References. J. W. Parker
Discusses the role of judicial review via two Canadian Supreme Court cases that focus on homosexual rights, Andrews v. Law Society of British Columbia & Vriend v. Alberta. The political philosophies of the Canadian Court are considered to conflict with the liberal concept of limited government based on Tocqueville, Madison, &, in particular, John Hart Ely. Instead, the court's post-liberal vision provides for the judiciary to act on behalf of interests that disagree with governmental actions & inactions. The philosophies of Ely & the logic of the court in the Andrews & Vriend decisions are analyzed. The Canadian Supreme Court is deemed an activist court with a blatant political agenda. L. Collins Leigh
Explores broad trends in political theory that encompass a shift to more serious engagement with the changing political landscape. A normative & institutional gaze is turned on the concepts of the nation-state, citizenship, & political membership in liberal democracies. This focus on citizenship studies pursues the question of what should be the normative principles of democratic membership in a world of increasingly deterritorialized politics; liberal democracies are seen to operate under a dual logic where they are trapped between human rights claims & self-determination. A look at citizenship theories touches on the notions of collective identity, membership privilege, & social rights & benefits. Although political membership is neglected in mainstream political theory, three strands of thought are identified: deterritorialized citizenship (eg, James Rosenau), cosmopolitical citizenship (eg, Martha Nussbaum), & civic republican skepticism (eg, Michael Walzer). It is contended that these pursuits of new modalities of political membership have ignored the paradox of democratic legitimacy. Attention turns to a disaggregation effect resulting from current citizenship & immigration practices, wherein one might have civil or property rights without political membership. It is maintained that as long as citizenship status is tied to membership in a territorially bound & sovereign state, such states will persist as sites for entry & access to membership; current deterritorializing circumstances then prompt the question as to the appropriate level at which one should seek entry: local, national, or regional. The debate surrounding the idea of "difference" is touched on, along with the theoretical dilemmas posed by US citizenship. The question left unanswered is what liberal democracies can & ought to legitimately do in terms of immigration, absorption, & naturalization policies in light of the aforementioned dual commitment of human rights & sovereignty. J. Zendejas
