Suchergebnisse

Last Friday, effective March 10 at exactly 11:21 a.m., the sitting President Park Geun-hye was removed from her office by a unanimous decision of the South Korean Constitutional Court. With public life coming to a standstill as eyes focused on TV and internet live broadcasting, the acting Chief Justice delivered the court decision. The conclusion of the constitutional impeachment procedure marked the climax of a transformative ongoing constitutional moment in South Korea.

Securitization is arguably the most successful theoretical framework to analyse security beyond the military confines with the nation state as the dominant actor within the international system. Amongst the critical voices, securitization has become the gold standard for analysing emerging challenges, such as migration, terrorism, human security, intra-state and cross-border issues, as well as environmental challenges. Yet, despite its broadening agenda, the framework has also been accused of a Western bias with a Western political context and democratic governance structure at its heart. This article aims to re-conceptualize the framework in a way that suits a non-Western context better, notably by re-conceptualizing the securitization–neopatrimonialism nexus in Africa, which gives us significant new insights into non-Western political contexts. It analyses the securitization processes among the political elites in a neo-patrimonial statehood. It further stretches the conceptualization of securitization into African statehood, characterized by a blurred line between the leader and the state.

This paper describes briefly the background, family composition, and some of the problems of South‐East Asian refugee women who meet the requirements for resettlement, and goes on to comment on the kinds of resettlement preparation in the countries of first asylum. Finally, additional forms of assistance that might be offered, both before and after resettlement, are discussed.

The North-South divide has been central to the explanation of world poverty; however, recently, the North-South analytical framework has been upset by the emergence of two competing approaches: the "Bretton Woods paradigm" & the "UN paradigm." Both approaches emphasize the impact of globalization, but they differ considerably in their worldviews, interpretations of determinants of poverty, & political platforms. According to the Bretton Woods paradigm, the gap between the haves & the have-nots is in the process of being narrowed, whereas, the UN paradigm view the rich-poor gap as widening. In spite of the greater degree of political support currently enjoyed by the Bretton Woods paradigm, the UN paradigm offers the most coherent alternate narrative on world poverty, thus fostering fruitful examination when considered together. 1 Table, 108 References. Adapted from the source document.

The historical relations between Africa and Cuba run deep. Cuba significantly contributed to the African national liberation struggle and Africa contributed towards the development of Cuban identity and culture. This article is concerned with the latter aspect. African elements in the development of Cuban culture have historically been manifested in the development of Cuban religions, in particular the Congolese and Bantu derived Regla Conga (Palo Monte), the Yoruba derived Regla Ocha (Santeria), the Benin derived Regla Arara and Vodoo, and the Sociedad Secreta Abakua whose origins are Old Calabar and southwestern Cameroon. These religions were syncretised with Christian symbols to produce Cuban national identity. I will dwell on the Sociedad Secreta Abakua which has historically consisted of male only mutual associations. The society is the only one of its kind in the Americas and is located in the cities of Havana, Matanzas, and Cardenas.
I will examine the historiography on the origins of the society and offer a political economy approach which dwells on the development of the social formation of the societies of Old Calabar and the emergence of the male only Ekpe and Ngbe or Leopard Societies whose functions were those of a state apparatus which provided religious and ideological legitimacy for an emerging merchant class in the eighteenth and the second half of the nineteenth centuries. Membership of the Ekpe and Ngbe was not only restricted to the dominant lineages but also included freemen and slaves. Most of the historiography consider the two secret societies as the origin of the Sociedad Secreta Abakua. It will be suggested that its origins may also lie in the Nka lyip (Association of Blood Men) whose membership was mainly slaves in Old Calabar. The origins of the Blood Men may have been much earlier, possibly in the eighteenth century. The Abakua Secret Society may also have emerged much earlier than 1836 and possibly in the late eighteenth century.
The next level will dwell on its development as a contested Cuban institution based in the port cities of Havana, Matanzas and Cardenas. Based in poor neighbourhoods, its members became a source of labour on the wharves, in warehouses for over 100 years. Its membership underwent transformation from black only to mixed white and black and later Chinese ex‐indentured labour. It became transculturised, drawing its religious pantheons and rituals from Old Calabar, Yoruba and Bantu elements, as well as Roman Catholic symbols. In the colonial and neo‐colonial periods the Abakua were demonised and persecuted. Through the contract system of labour, its members were manipulated and exploited by unscrupulous intermediaries. Some of these intermediaries held leadership positions or plazas in its ranks. But its secret character was politically positive as its fearless, valiant male members actively participated in the struggles against slavery, against Spanish colonialism, labour unions, and the defeat of United States aggression against the young Cuban revolution in 1961.

Historically, African political institutions such as constitutions, legislatures and judiciaries have been seen as weak and vulnerable to manipulation, leading some to claim that the continent is 'institutionless'. However, recent developments including the consolidation of presidential term limits in a number of countries demonstrate that this depiction is no longer tenable. By drawing attention to how institutions can shape the practice of politics, this book demonstrates that electoral commissions, economic regulations and systems of land tenure are vital to our understanding of contemporary Africa. A series of cutting-edge contributions from leading scholars explain how the rules of the game shape political developments across the continent, from Kenya to Nigeria and from Benin to South Africa. In chapters that cover bureaucracies, constitutions, elections, political parties, the police and more, the authors argue that a new research agenda is required if we are to better understand the process of democratisation

"In broad terms 'accountability refers to a chain of relationships in which actors are accountable upwards (to donors and other actors...), downwards (to target groups and beneficiaries...) and inwards (to organizational missions, visions and values)' (Cornwall/ Lucas/ Pasteur 2000). Accountability manages the power relations between actors, which interact or affect each other directly or indirectly. It can be understood as 'giving an account' to another party who has a stake in what has been done. The core dimensions of accountability are: transparency; participation; evaluation, ; and complaints and redress (ODI 2005). This paper distinguishes between two types of accountability, namely, external and internal (domestic) accountability. External accountability in this context refers to accountability of aid-receiving governments to international donor community, including international financial institutions, creditors and foundations." (text abstract)