The Middle East is becoming a hotspot for thousands of Chinese businesses with hundreds of thousands of Chinese nationals working and living throughout the region, as well as several million Chinese tourists. Traditionally, China's policies towards the Middle East were based on the principle of non-interference. In face of the increasing number and frequency of acts of violence against Chinese nationals and assets in the region, this study examines whether China's strategy to maintain its non-interference policy can meet the challenge of protecting the safety and rights of Chinese tourists in the Middle East. The main argument is that China's approach to maintaining its non-interference policy is part of a carefully devised strategy that suits the country's doctrine. China's leadership favours a global proactive diplomatic approach which includes five diplomatic and military measures identified in this article: non-combatant evacuation operations and peacekeeping operations; construction of infrastructure and logistical capacities; legal framework and security cooperation; mediation and conflict management; and consular protection. This proactive diplomatic approach is also suitable to meet the challenge of the safety and rights of Chinese tourists in the region. (China/GIGA)
Ethical concerns associated with social science research are heightened in conflict-affected environments, due to increased insecurity and the vulnerability of many research participants. This article considers some of the main challenges faced by researchers in conflict-affected environments and how they can be addressed, focusing in particular on ethical and security challenges. It also considers other challenges, which are often overlooked, such as the epistemological and methodological challenges of acquiring knowledge in conflict-affected environments, where research participants may be from different cultures, may speak different languages, and may be deeply traumatized and distrustful of others. In such places, research participants may employ techniques to assuage or discourage the researcher, including projecting borrowed narratives or remaining silent. This article argues that navigating security and ethical challenges, attending to issues of power, and remaining genuinely self-reflective can help fulfill the optimal potential of research in conflict-affected environments, which is to challenge narratives that perpetuate conflict, harm, and insecurity and to contribute to a better understanding and, thus, response to the challenges of conflict and peacebuilding.
This research paper focused on the provision of students' accommodation in the Nigerian universities through public-private partnership, drawing lessons from the Universiti Utara Malaysia. Hostel accommodation is a form of providing the students with an enabling environment where they can stay as a place of residence, will feel secured and comfortable to learn in a peaceful environment. The objective of this paper is to learn from the Malaysian environment, with a focus on the Universiti Utara Malaysia. The research work made use of the qualitative method through the conduct of interviews and other sources such as journals and online publications. Findings from the research reveal that the Universiti Utara Malaysia provides hostel accommodation which is more than enough to serve the university's capacity of 30,000 students' population on campus through the public-private partnership scheme. The research also found that multinational companies like PETRONAS Oil Company, Proton automobile company, Malaysia Airline, and Maybank among other companies built hostel accommodation for the students. The Malaysian Government on the other hand through a public-private partnership provided infrastructural facilities such as constant electricity and water supply for the purpose of a conducive environment for learning. The work, therefore, recommends that the Nigerian Government can partner with the Malaysian Government through resolving the big problem of electricity supply in the country and on the Universities as well. The paper also recommends that the Nigerian Government should regulate the private companies in order to engage them in partnership development through the provision of adequate hostel accommodations for the students. This would enable peace and security sustainability on the campuses of the Nigerian universities with lessons from the Universiti Utara Malaysia.
Willy Brandt's Ostpolitik and its web of treaties represents in the global foreign policy context between 1969 and 1974 a rare moment of a proactive, courted, and sought out Federal Republic of Germany. The American government considered Bonn's Ostpolitik as a useful and complimentary element of its own policy vis-a-vis the Soviet Union. The Chinese leadership reinterpreted German Ostpolitik for itself from an anti-Soviet nuisance to an anti-Soviet advocacy for German reunification. The Soviet leaders felt threatened in East and West by both the United States and China. Therefore they recognized Brandt's policy as a welcome opportunity to achieve detente and appreciation in the West in order to focus more on a dangerous Eastern front. A global perspective on these years can attest to the Federal Republic of Germany a peaceful and attractive national policy of high international relevance that looked convincing for many in the world. ; Die Brandtsche Ostpolitik und ihr Vertragswerk waren im globalen außenpolitischen Kontext der Jahre 1969 bis 1974 ein seltenes Glücksmoment einer pro-aktiven, hofierten und gehörten Bundesrepublik Deutschland in den internationalen Beziehungen. Die amerikanische Regierung sah die Bonner Ostpolitik als nützlich und ergänzend für ihre eigene Politik gegenüber der Sowjetunion an. Die chinesische Führung interpretierte die deutsche Ostpolitik vom anti-sowjetischen Ärgernis zum anti-sowjetischen Bekenntnis zur deutschen Wiedervereinigung um. Die sowjetische Führung sah sich in Ost und West von China wie den USA bedroht und begriff die Brandtsche Politik als willkommene Gelegenheit, Entspannung und Aufwertung im Westen zu erreichen, um sich mehr einer bedrohlichen Ostfront widmen zu können. Eine globale Perspektive dieser Jahre kann der Bundesrepublik Deutschland eine friedliche, attraktive und viele in der Welt überzeugende nationale Politik von hoher internationaler Relevanz attestieren. ; На мировой политической арене в период с 1969 по 1974 год Восточная политика Брандта и связанный ...
Popular perceptions of 1914–18 focus on the trenches. Yet, much of soldiers' time was spent in rear areas and many men never reached the frontlines. By studying life behind the lines it is possible to offer new perspectives on the experience of the Great War. In August 1917 and 1918, the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) took over the usually quiet paths and lawns of Le Havre's Jardin St Roche, which the mayor of the town had agreed to loan to the base commandant. Rather than engaging in battle with the enemy, BEF servicemen and Belgian military personnel, alongside French civilians, were displaying the fruits (and vegetables) of their more peaceful labours. As part of a programme encouraging the cultivation of unused land around the surrounding camps, a vegetable competition was organized in which it was onions, beets, and kale rather than bullets, grenades, and shells that were the produce of war. This article explores the ways in which the organization of these events can throw light on the broader history of the British Army during the First World War. In doing so, it provides novel insights into the functioning of the BEF and the experiences of the men serving in it.
This paper argues that Western policy on sanctions should be part of a broader strategy for addressing the conflict in Syria. A key part of this should be transforming a conflict economy into a productive economy. It proposes that conditionality for lifting sanctions should be multi-level rather than top down, aimed at benefitting independent business, civil society, and ordinary people, who represent the main hope for a more peaceful Syria.
This ethnographic study is devoted to the reindeer herders and hunters of Arctic Yakutia who live in the mountainous taiga and tundra landscapes and engage in social relationships with other than humans beings, specifically wolves. This dissertation explores how these interspecific relationships, which are based on aggressive interaction and peaceful existence, intermingle and account for the complexity of the cohabitation of humans and predators in the shared landscapes. Furthermore, this thesis aims to demonstrate how human-predator cohabitation in Arctic Yakutia can be shaped by reciprocal interaction and interspecific communication through signs. To give a deeper understanding of contemporary interactions of wolves and the reindeer herders/hunters of Arctic Yakutia, this study also explores the animistic worldview of the herders/hunters and examines the interspecific relations from historical, socio-economic, political and spatial viewpoints.
In 1969, President Richard Nixon inherited a much different Cold War than that which existed in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Writ large, the project of 'containing' communism appeared to be falling apart. The Soviet Union was ascendant in Eurasia, the Vietnam War was continuing to grind down American power projection, and the People's Republic of China (PRC) was emerging as a potential partner on the world stage. Despite the uncertainty of the situation, both President Nixon and National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger saw these circumstances as an opportunity to reshape the global balance of power. Key to this plan was a diplomatic 'opening' to the PRC, which would engender a tripolar balance of power to counter the Soviet Union's grip on Asia. Yet, the major obstacle in the way of this plan was the ongoing American recognition of the Nationalist Republic of China (ROC) on Taiwan and the existing defense treaty Washington and Taipei. For decades, Peking was adamant that Washington needed to forswear all support for Taipei as a precondition for full diplomatic ties between the United States and PRC. Unfortunately, such a formula appeared to give Communist China a path to reunify Taiwan with the Mainland through military action. To maintain peace in East Asia and to protect American credibility, the United States could not afford to allow the PRC to use force to settle its dispute with Taiwan. This thesis argues that the Nixon Administration sought to use diplomacy with the PRC and its security ties with the ROC to ensure a peaceful resolution of the Taiwan Strait crisis during the US opening of Communist China. In doing so, the US side aimed to find a balance between a diplomatic partnership with Peking and a defense relationship with Taipei. This challenges conventional views about the Nixon Administration's willingness to unilaterally abandon its commitments to Taiwan in order to open the People's Republic of China. This thesis further contends that the roots of the modern American approach of 'strategic ambiguity' towards the ROC has its roots in the policies which the Administration perused from 1969-1974.
With high-tempo work, frequent separation and operational commitments, military personnel are at greater risk than most of developing a broad range of mental health concerns. Whether at war or in peacetime, soldiers are trained to be ready for combat. Such conditioning is responsible for teaching soldiers how to override their flight or fight response; to run towards danger when human instinct seeks to run away. So, whether soldiers are engaged in combat or training for readiness, the destabilising impact of overriding innate biological functions can impact on how a soldier recognises and manages stress. Stress is known to contribute to a number of physical and psychological functions that impact on sexual desire and performance, offering sexual functioning as a potential marker for resilience injury and wider mental health concerns. Aims & Objectives Psychological support for intimate relationships is particularly vital for soldiers and their partners and may influence recovery rates from the unique mental demands of the military. This study sought to understand if declining sexual functioning could be an early predictor of problematic stress and maladaptive behaviours. It aimed to define clear at-risk groups for increased stress to help clinicians target assessment for those most susceptible to resilience overwhelm and mental health concerns. Research questions The study focused on 6 main research questions related to stress, sexual functioning, online sexual activity (OSA) and compulsive sexual behaviour (CSB). Results hoped to demonstrate the correlation between stress and sexual function and to define areas of additive stress that may impact on wellbeing. Clinical aims sought to highlight at-risk groups and protective factors to support psychoeducation, assessment protocols and treatment pathways. Method A mixed-methods approach allowed for the collection of quantitative statistical data via a scored and validated survey providing correlation information on the four main variables: stress, sexual functioning, online sexual activity and compulsive sexual behaviours. A qualitative component collected personal statements, observations and remarks to provide context for the statistical results. With equal priority, this created a snapshot of soldier experience in relation to stress and sex which could help the identification of those soldiers at greater risk of psychological distress. The study was primarily underpinned by the theoretical framework of Bancroft and Janssen's Dual Control Model. This model centres on the balance between an individual's inhibitory and excitatory processes in the central nervous system. With particular relevance to this study and soldier behaviour, the Dual Control Model considers how excitation and inhibition are impacted by stress and how individual response may impact on sexual behaviour. Where inhibition is elevated, some may experience difficulties with sexual interaction related to performance anxiety for example and where excitation is increased, individuals may feel less restricted and may be willing to take more sexual risks. Results Results demonstrated a clear link between increased stress and declining sexual function offering psychosexual assessment as a useful diagnostic tool for psychological distress. Through statistical analysis, 7 groups were identified as most at risk of resilience overwhelm and poor stress appraisal with declining sexual functioning. These groups included soldiers who lived alone, those who lived overseas with their partners, Other Ranks aged 26-30 years old, Non-Commissioned Officers aged 26-30 years old, Commissioned Officers aged over 40 years, soldiers that had served between 1-5 years and those personnel who had served over 20 years. Soldiers in more than one of these 7 groups were likely to experience the highest levels of stress and declining sexual functioning, with up to 83% of sexual function variance attributed to stress. Within this study, predictive factors were categorised from personal narratives. At-risk soldiers were identified as either being exposed to greater disconnection or isolation, currently experiencing a life stage transition or within a period of increased occupational demand. Soldiers currently at relationship pressure points such as starting or ending an intimate relationship did not demonstrate a significance correlation between elevated stress and declining sexual function. Over 85% of soldiers admit to using the internet for sexual activity; however, the majority were at levels that were considered to be low risk. Personnel reported preferring to seek out human connection. Increased OSA was not correlated with loss of desire but it was strongly associated with a decline in sexual satisfaction. Compulsive sexual behaviour was not generally problematic. Results demonstrated that soldiers in this study were more likely to have increased sexual inhibition resulting in sexual difficulties rather than elevated excitation leading to risk taking behaviour. There were marked differences between male and female soldiers including the experience of stress, sexual function and online sexual activity, suggesting that psychoeducation and healthcare assessment should be appropriately targeted with the consideration of sex-specific interventions. More research on the psychological and physiological differences between male and female soldiers is urged. Implications for practice Whilst poor sexual functioning can be influenced by many factors, this study has concluded that sexual difficulties are positively correlated with increased stress within the British Army. Therefore, questions on sexual functioning could offer an important measure of physical, cognitive and emotional health. Psychosexual training would enable those clinicians that support at-risk soldiers presenting with stress symptoms to explore sexual functioning and behaviour as part of their patient wellbeing assessment. Soldiers could benefit from greater awareness of how personal agency and control can diminish the harmful effects of stress, whilst leaders should continue to be mindful of their direct impact on soldier wellbeing. Relationships form part of systemic resilience and contribute to soldier wellbeing, happiness and key life decisions. Army policy makers should be aware of the implications of soldier overwhelm and relationship strain in relation to financial, operational and retention decisions
The command and control system of NATO's joint operations requires large scale command posts, large numbers of stuff, and spacious, big sized infrastructure that even to operate are cumbersome, but also are an extremely attractive target for the adversary due to its extensive infrastructure and large supporting staff. The Alliance will face unpredictable challenges in the future, extending beyond traditional operational domains such asspace and cyberspace. On top of that, the operations will extent to the full spectrum of operations, that is from low-intensity peacetime military engagement to high-intensity war conflict. These trends will further increase the size of the command posts. This paper presents the requirements for future operational staffs and command posts, while trying to find answers to emerging challenges.
The intention of this Article is to review the various statements of Catholic Social Teaching that are fundamental in describing economic justice and that are most pertinent to any consideration of consumer financial protection as essential to the common good. This review will begin with Pope Leo XIII's 1891 encyclical Rerum Novarum and other encyclicals that followed Rerum Novarum as a continuum of Church teaching regarding social and economic justice; the pastoral letter from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops entitled Economic Justice for All (1986); and the Pontifical Council of Justice and Peace's handbook on the Vocation of the Business Leader (March 2012). The next Part of this Article will include a description of the original goals and mission of the Act and the CFPB, and an assessment of how the intended goals and objectives of the Act and the structure and activities of the CFPB reflect the values and goals of social and economic justice from the perspective of Catholic Social Teaching. That is, to what extent do these legislative and regulatory initiatives bring us closer to providing for and ensuring that consumer financial products and services are accessible, fair, and helpful in meeting the needs of all potential users and the interests and rights of providers in the spirit of economic justice informed by Catholic Social Teaching?
The article is devoted to the study of certain issues of property detection in the institution of seizure of property. On the basis of comparative legal analysis, the possibility of ensuring the detection of property using search and seizure within the Criminal Procedure Code of the past and modern Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine and foreign countries was assessed. The rights of the victim under the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms are analyzed in terms of his/her right to a fair and public hearing within a reasonable time by an independent and impartial tribunal established by law to decide his/her civil rights and obligations. The application of the criminal procedural legislation of Ukraine is analyzed taking into account the practice of the European Court of Human Rights on the protection of human rights in relation to the rights of individuals or legal entities to peacefully own their property. Emphasis is placed on the fact that the previous provisions do not in any way restrict the right of the state to enact such laws as it deems necessary to exercise control over the use of property in accordance with the general interest. Scientific methods such as analysis, synthesis, formal-legal and comparative-legal method became the methodological basis of the research.
This study investigated the place of interpersonal conflict management on performance of government hospitals in Nigeria and specifically. The purpose is to ascertain how collaborative approach of interpersonal conflict management affect mortality rates reduction in government hospitals and investigate if avoidance technique in conflict management improves the working relationships in the government hospital within Nigeria. The study adopted survey research design and was conducted in National Hospital Abuja, and University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH) Ituku/Ozalla, Enugu State, Nigeria. The study population is 1629, which includes all health professionals employed in selected public- owned teaching hospitals. A sample size of 312 was drawn from the population. The study used descriptive statistics (frequency, charts, tables and simple percentage) to calculate, analyse, show or summarize responses to the research questions. The hypotheses were tested using ordinal logistic regression. Findings showed that collaborative approach has significantly contributed in reducing mortality rates in government hospitals in Nigeria, and avoidance as a means of interpersonal conflict management helped improve the working relations of selected government hospital staff in Nigeria. The study recommended that they should be improved communication, and collaboration between management, clerks, nurses, doctors and workers representatives in running the affairs of the hospitals. Again, conflicting tendencies should always be avoided by workers for more efficient, peaceful, coordinated and minimal conflicts in working environment within the healthcare industry.
This article will be concentrating on the marketing strategies and plans that a Malaysian fast-fashion company, Padini Holdings Bhd should consider when entering China. With its strong economy and huge population, China offers a large consumer base, hence making it a promising country for Padini to venture in. Supported by its strong financial background and experience in other overseas markets, it is very feasible for Padini to succeed in their expansion into China. Furthermore, this article has highlighted internal and external factors of Padini by using SWOT Analysis. Padini should also be aware of their potential direct and indirect competitors in the Chinese market, such as Peacebird and Uniqlo. Additionally, when venturing into new market, Padini should take into consideration the business environment there. Eight dimensions including economic, social and cultural, technology, political, infrastructure, ecological factors, regional market characteristics as well as the opportunities and threats analysis will be discussed below. Following, the appropriate segmenting, targeting and positioning strategy for Padini to pursue in China are proposed. Later on, key strategic campaign decisions will also be highlighted. The strategies for each P in the Marketing Mix Strategies will be elaborated in-depth as well.
Australia, along with nation-states internationally, has entered a new phase of environmentally focused activism, with globalised, coordinated and social media–enabled environmental social movements seeking to address human-induced climate change and related issues such as the mass extinction of species and land clearing. Some environmental protest groups such as Extinction Rebellion (XR) have attracted significant political, media and popular commentary for their sometimes theatrical and disruptive forms of nonviolent protest and civil disobedience. Drawing on green and cultural criminology, this article constitutes an autoethnographic account of environmental protest during the final stages of the initial COVID-19 lockdown in NSW, Australia. It takes as a case study a small protest by an XR subgroup called the Pedal Rebels. The article explores the policing of environmental protest from an activist standpoint, highlighting the extraordinary police resources and powers mobilised to regulate a small peaceful group of 'socially distanced' protesters operating within the existing public health orders. It places an autoethnographic description of this protest in the context of policing practice and green and cultural criminology. Additionally, it outlines the way in which such policing is emboldened by changes to laws affecting environmental protest, making activism an increasingly risky activity.
