Suchergebnisse

В ноябре 1941 г. по решению ЦК ВКП(б) в машинно-тракторных станциях и совхозах страны были созданы чрезвычайные органы – политические отделы. По- литотделам надлежало усилить политическую работу в деревне, нейтрализовать возможные выступления против власти и колхозного строя, мобилизовать колхоз- ное крестьянство на выполнение повышенных заданий военного времени и лю- быми мерами обеспечить поставки сельскохозяйственной продукции государству. Действовали политотделы машинно-тракторных станций и совхозов до конца мая 1943 г. В статье раскрываются причины ликвидации чрезвычайных органов. ; According to the decision of Political Bureau (Politburo) of the Central Committee of the All-Russia Communist Party (bolsheviks) (TsK VKP(b)) politotdels – political departments – (extraordinary party organs) were created in November, 1941. Political Departments (politotdely) were supposed to take the situation in the countryside under control, counteract to the possible anti-soviet actions, mobilize kolkhoz peasants to carry out increased production targets and by any means provide the front and the home front with supplies. Politotdels were organized in a very critical moment for agriculture and the country itself and they helped to eliminate the most obvious defects of the agricultural production. With the assistance of politotdels, peasants were able to provide the country with the minimum amount of food and and agricultural commodities. These extraordinary organs existed till the end of May, 1943. Politotdels of machine and tractor stations (MTS) and soviet farms (sovkhozes) were party-state mobilization organs. The decision to form them was taken by highest organs of ARCP(b) and they were financed from state sources. Politotdels had political, administrative and economic functions, were the centers of the power in sovkhozes and MTS and therefore were the obvious case of how party and state organs were jointed in soviet political system. Their extraordinary status was underlined by the fact that their heads were appointed directly by CC ARCP(b) on a motion by the first secretary of an oblast (krai) party committee which made politotdels more or less independent from rural district party committees. Politotdels of MTS and sovkhozes were liquidated for a number of reasons. Party mobilization to the front decreased and the staff of rural organizations of ARCP became stable. Rural district party committees gained some experience of working under war conditions. Negative aspects of politotdels' activity caused by their extraordinary origin were becoming more obvious. Centralism increased, limited party democracy became even more restricted, politotdels replaced or doubled the functions of economic executives. Direct administrative and economic functions of politotdels were no longer a mean of efficient problem solving but became a wellestablished method of party management. Anxious expectations that party leaders, who took preventive means about peasants, were not met. In spite of the difficulties of collectivization and dispossession of the kulaks there were no open anti-government actions. Under these circumstances parallel functioning of regular and extraordinary party organs became inexpedient.

У статті висвітлено погляди європейських освітян щодо необхідності наслідування досвіду США у сфері загальної гуманітарної підготовки студентів-бакалаврів. Використання елементів американської моделі загальної гуманітарної освіти на теренах Євросоюзу орієнтовано на розвиток моральних та естетичних цінностей студентів, їхніх високих суспільних ідеалів, переконань і способів поведінки, відповідних соціокультурним умовам сьогодення. Автор ставить за мету розгляд тенденцій впровадження загальної гуманітарної підготовки європейських студентів. Перспективою подальших розвідок у цьому напрямі є вивчення особливостей побудови куррикулумів на основі американської моделі загальної гуманітарної освіти у вищих навчальних закладах різних країн Євросоюзу. ; The paper highlights the causes of reemergence of humanitarian education in up-to-date European higher school on the background of the Bologna Process and the need for enhancement of the international dimension of higher education. Despite its antiquity, humanitarian education is assumed to be unique to the USA but with the roots in European traditions. Nowadays it is something of an educational industry in the United States as nowhere else in the world. Humanitarian education is tightly correlated with the values of American democracy, with American ideas of citizenship, and with American view of a life well lived. This type of undergraduate study has worked out the ideal of humanitarian educated student of the twenty-first century who is a lifelong learner, open-minded, tolerant, intellectually curious, self-actualizing with striving for personal growth, physical and mental health and spiritual well-being. As a learner and global citizen, the humanitarian educated person is actively engaged with the world in all of its complexity, diversity and dynamism. The paper aims to analyze why humanitarian education appears to be a relevant response to the needs for higher education reform in the European Union. The analysis is based on the views of European academics as for an insufficient level of differentiation and too-early over-specialization. In particular the lack of differentiation in the massified higher educational systems of the European Union in the terms of broader approaches to bachelor education in order to overcome the disadvantages of too-early over-specialisation, by reestablishing the balance between breadth and depth of the curriculum is described. As an observation it can be stated that a problematic tendency in most countries of the European Union is that the arts are only seen as humanitarian culture and citizenship education until the secondary level of education. In the discussions about the humanitarians in the universities these issues are more or less disregarded in favour of direct labour market relevance. With the view to coping with the problems mentioned European educators are implementing the elements of US model of humanitarian education. Humanitarian education in Europe is taught in English. The perspective of further research lies in researching curricula of European version of the humanitarian model with an emphasis on its meaning in the globalized higher education context of the 21-st century.

Nuestro estudio se centra en la obra dramática de Albert Boadella de los primeros años de la compañía Els Joglars. Esta investigación examina el vínculo entre la obra de Albert Boadella, la posición del artista y las determinaciones sociopolíticas. Durante más de tres décadas, de 1962 a 1997, el teatro de Albert Boadella ha estado influido por la historia y cultural de nuestro país. Los cambios estéticos en sus creaciones se deben, en parte, al contexto social y posición ideológica de los distintos gobiernos que se han sucedido en la Dictadura, Transición y Democracia. Planteamos primeramente la relación entre arte y política. Además tenemos en consideración que la obra artística de Albert Boadella supone no ya un reflejo del mundo, sino su descubrimiento. Profundizar en el conocimiento de su obra supone revelar su propia lectura de la realidad y los instrumentos empleados para tal fin. En la segunda parte de nuestro trabajo analizamos el contexto sociopolítico y la evolución estética de las obras. El análisis de la obra atiende a aspectos crítico-creativos, temáticos, históricos y económicos. La metodología empleada es la suma de dos tipos de análisis social: economicista más idealista. La conclusión a la que llegamos sobre este director de escena es que existe una correspondencia entre artista-sociedad-poder y estilo-tema-estética en su obra dramática. Our study is dealing with the dramatic works of Albert Boadella in the early years of Els Joglars company.The investigation is examining the link between Albert Boadella's works, the views of the artist and his sociopolitical believes. For more than three decades, from 1962 to 1997, Albert Boadella theater has been directly influenced by the history and culture of our country. The artistic changes in his creations have partly to do with the social context and ideological position of the different governments that have followed one another from the dictatorship and transition to democracy. Firstly, we must examine the relation between art and politics. Also we should take into account the fact that his works not only reflect what's happening in the world but the way he sees it. Studying his works in detail highlights his concept of reality and his way of conveying it. In the second part of the study, we analyze the sociopolitical context and the artistic development of his works. Analyzing his works delves into a variety of aspects including creative- criticism, themes, history and the economy of the time. The methodology he has used is the sum up of two kinds of analysis: from the perspective of an economist and an idealist of life. We come to the conclusion that there is a direct link between the artist-the society- politics and the style- theme- art when we look at Albert Boadella' s works.

The collapse of the Soviet Union led to the formation of a new geopolitical reality in the post-Soviet space with the emergence in 1991 of five new independent states in Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan) and a complete transformation of their political and economic systems. The purpose of this study is the institutional and socio-economic evolution of the Central Asian region (CAR) and its states after Chapter I defines geographically the different possible boundaries of the Central Asian region, which over the centuries were part of different empires, kingdoms, and states, and the population of which historically de jure and de facto never had their independent national statehood until 1991. The study also focuses on the consequences of the policy of the ethnic and territorial division adopted in the Soviet era in Central Asia on the current political instability in the region. The chapter analyzes the features and results of the transformation of the Soviet political system into a Western democratic system in the CAR. Why did Central Asian countries abandon communism for democracy, then turn to authoritarian rule? This paper proposes a theoretical framework, which discusses the durability and sustainability of the super-presidential regimes in the region, and the key factors that have largely determined the failure of a democratic transition in all five post-Soviet Central Asian states. Special attention is given to the issues of political legitimacy of the current authoritarian regimes and the prospects of further democratic modernization. Chapter II is devoted to an analysis of the main features and results of the socio-economic transformation of the Soviet planned economy to a market economy in Central Asian states. The research area includes an analysis of the structural changes in the five Central Asian economies. State capitalism and critical dependence on external factors have become today the main common features of all these economies. In particular, the second chapter describes the restrictions imposed on the Central Asian commodity and labor exported economies and the protectionist policies adopted by national governments. Protectionist policies are aimed at reducing the economies' vulnerability to external shocks, which are due to the high sectorial and geographical concentration of exports, significant migrants' remittances and consistent inflows of foreign direct investments. The chapter discusses the issues of regional cooperation and integration and the perspectives of sustainable economic development in the states of Central Asia. Finally, this study highlights the emerging challenges associated with the intersection of the competitive multidirectional interests of the major world powers, which consistently expand and strengthen their control over the natural resources of the CAR. Through different economic instruments, such as providing loans and investments, or the formation of alternative macro-regional integration projects in Eurasia, they seek to achieve their ambitious strategic objectives in Central Asia.

This report is an overview of academic research into consumer attitudes towards, and choice of, alternatives with ethical, in the sense of socially aware, product labelling. Nearly all research within this field has been conducted on consumers in (northern) Europe and in the USA. In certain literature on the subject, a broader definition is used of ethical product alternatives; normally products are included in that case with different types of environmental labelling. Socially responsible product labelling focuses on issues linked to how the production of labelled goods influences both the people as well as the local communities where the production of the goods takes place. In order for the product to be socially labelled it is necessary that active work is undertaken in the field of employee rights. Child labour and all forms of discrimination shall be actively opposed while democracy and the right to organise in the workplace, including the right to form trade unions, shall be promoted. The purpose of social labelling is that consumers in the developed world shall be given the possibility of choosing product alternatives that have a more favourable effect on the communities where the goods are produced. The Fairtrade label is the dominant social labelling; the lion's share of the academic research into consumer attitudes to products with social labelling has been carried out with Fairtrade labelled product alternatives in focus. Research has shown that a large share of the Swedish population knows the Fairtrade label and their trust in the Fairtrade label is relatively high. Women generally have a more positive attitude towards Fairtrade than men. To place greater emphasis on self-transcending values, i.e. to strive to transcend personal and individual interests and instead to work for the good of others (and in that case also others with whom one is not in direct contact) has been shown to increase the likelihood of having a positive view of Fairtrade. To strive for "warm relations" (to have close colleagues and friends and deep ties of friendship) are also associated with a positive attitude to Fairtrade. Certain studies have investigated how much consumers are prepared to pay for a socially labelled product. The results vary quite sharply and the methodology in itself has also been criticised. Researchers in this field believe that the so-called "willingness-to-pay" studies function as a kind of attitude indicator, rather than a measure of how much one is actually prepared to pay. In studies where factors such as good working conditions are set against the products being produced in an eco-friendly manner, it has been found that the social, employee right aspects, and in particular the fact that no child labour has occurred, are shown to be more important than the fact that the products are produced in an eco-friendly way.

The article surveys questions related to the situation of the communist elites of allied Soviet republics during and after the collapse of the USSR. The author analizes the questions whether qualitative and quantitative changes happened in the highest layers of the power or the alterations were nominal. What actions had the major significance for the maintenance of the Soviet nomenclature power during the Soviet system's fundamental breakdown – the character and strength of the local nomenclature's social networks, their flexibility and adequacy when reacting to the sudden changes of the sociopolitical situation in the metropoly of the Soviet empire and in the national borderlands, the authority and personal charisma of local political leaders, the character of relationships between them and the political-administrative establishment of the centre, and with the emerging alternative local forces or more general geopolitical circumstances? The role of social groups involved into the processes of the perestroika, democratization in the change or maintenance of the communist elites are also discussed in the article. With reference to the biograms of the "last" first secretaries of the CP of allied republics, their generative, professional, and political experience is analyzed, and the given information allows to label them as "ideological" or "technocracy" wing of the party's high nomenclature. The article shows the number of the "lasts" first secretaries of the CP who managed not only to keep their positions and real influence in the post-Soviet transitional period, but also managed to become high officials, leaders and even presidents of new independent countries. On the basis of the Baltic countries transiting to the liberal democracy, the group of states ruled by so-called "competitive authoritarianism" and the authoritarian Central Asian republics, the article analyzes how and why national elites managed not only to adapt to the ongoing sociopolitical changes, but also had been able to control and direct them to the profitable direction. According to the latest studies of transitology and historiography of this topic, the author seeks to explain why the real scale of changes of the highest power elites of the former Soviet republics was relatively low. ; Straipsnyje analizuojamas SSRS sąjunginių respublikų komunistų partijos elito likimo klausimas Sovietų Sąjungos žlugimo metu ir po jo. Svarstoma, ar nepriklausomybę paskelbusių valstybių aukščiausiuose valdžios sluoksniuose išties įvyko kokybinis ir kiekybinis pokytis, o gal jis buvo tik nominalus? Analizuojama, kokie veiksniai turėjo didesnę įtaką sovietinės nomenklatūros galios išlaikymui fundamentalaus santvarkų lūžio metu: lokalinių nomenklatūrų socialinių tinklų pobūdis bei galia, lankstumas ir adekvatumas reaguojant į staigius sociopolitinius pokyčius sovietinės imperijos metropolijoje bei pačiose sąjunginėse respublikose, vietos lyderių visuomenėje turimas autoritetas ir asmeninė charizma, susiklostę ryšiai tarp jų ir centro politinių administracinių viršūnių ar geopolitinės aplinkybės. Aptariamas ir į perestroikinės demokratizacijos procesus įsitraukusių visuomenės grupių vaidmuo keičiantis ir išliekant elitui.

Die politische und wirtschaftlich-soziale Situation in der sich die Gesellschaft seit Beginn des 21. Jahrhund. wiederfindet, ist schwierig und teilweise auch schwer zu verstehen. Die Antworten auf zahlreiche offensteh. Fragen aus dem vorherigen Jahrhundert können uns auch nicht weiterhelfen. Der Schwerpunkt dieser Arbeit liegt auf dem Gebiet der Kommunikation in der Politik ? dem Segment der Gesellschaft deren Qualität Einfluss auf die Qualität unseres Lebens nimmt. Das Ziel dieser Arbeit ist es zu erforschen, wie Politiker erfolgreich bzw. erfolglos kommunizieren. Ob dies nun auf verbaler Ebene durch die Analyse ihres Diskurses erfolgt, oder eben nonverbal anhand verschied. Aspekte nonverb. Kommunikation: die Gestik, Körpersprache, Bilder und Marketing mit einschließt. Untersucht wird auch, welche Strategien von Politikern im Zuge der Vorwahl-Kampagnen genutzt werden, um die Gunst der potenz. Wähler zu gewinnen - ungeachtet dessen ob es sich dabei um ?style over content? Methoden handelt. Natürlich unterscheidet sich die Situation bei den Politikern in verschied. Kulturen und Gesellschaften, sodass man beobachten kann, dass jene Situation weitaus gegliederter aber auch kompliz. im südosteuropäischen Raum ist, wo Politiker die Seriosität ihres Verhaltens aber auch ihrer Kommunikation betreffend verfehlen. Der Hauptteil der Arbeit setzt den Fokus folgende Aspekte zu belichten: Das Verhältnis von wirtschaft. und politischer Kommunikation; wie Politiker in der Öffentlichkeit wahrgenommen werden und wie man das Interesse der Öffentlichkeit auf Politik lenken könnte. Und auch unter anderem ob 'soft power' Politik und sogenannte Hasstiraden in den Schwellenländern SOE zu den ausschlaggebenden Faktoren für unstabile Zustände in den entsprechenden Regionen zählen. In dieser Arbeit wird für eine Modifikation oder Innovation in den gegenwärtigen politischen Systemen der Welt argumentiert wobei direkte bzw. deliberative Demokratie als Alternative in Betracht gezogen wird. ; The political and socio-economic situation, in which society finds itself since the beginning of the 21st century, is a difficult one and sometimes even hard to understand. The answers to numerous outstanding issues from the previous century might not help us either. The focus of this thesis lies in the field of communication in politics ? a segment of society whose quality has an impact on the quality of our lives. The aim of this study is to explore how politicians communicate successfully or unsuccessfully. Whether this is done on a verbal level through the analysis of their discourse, or non-verbally by means of various aspects of non-verbal communication, including: gestures, body language, images as well as marketing. Also strategies will be examined, which are used by politicians during the pre-election campaigns in order to win the favour of potential voters ? regardless of whether it is a matter of ?style over content? methods. Obviously, the situation differs with politicians in various cultures and societies, so that it can be observed that the respective situation is much more structured but also more complex in Southeastern Europe, where politicians seem to miss the seriousness concerning their behavior as well as their communication. The main part of the work places the focus on exposing the following aspects: the relationship between economic and political communication; how politicians are perceived by the public eye and how the public interest in politics could be drawn. The work will also explore, whether 'soft-power'-politics and the so-called torrent of hatred in the developing or newly industrialised countries of Southeastern Europe are among the decisive factors for unstable conditions in the respective regions. This thesis argues in favor of a modification or innovation with regards to the current political systems in the world, whereby direct or deliberative democracy is considered as an alternative. ; vorgelegt von Dinko Sulejmanovic ; Abweichender Titel laut Übersetzung der Verfasserin/des Verfassers ; Graz, Univ., Dipl.-Arb., 2012 ; (VLID)224410

In the history of South Africa, with prospects of a democratic system that would meet all the expectations of the people of the country, the year 1994 also required mind shifts with regard to land reform. As a discipline, History broke its long silence. Past studies on land reform and land claims are visible, but for years, historians have not necessarily contributed to research on the topic. Government, as part of its promise to voters and within the limits of democracy, started investigating the status of land distribution countrywide. Shortly after 1994, processes commenced to provide communities and individuals the opportunity, until the end of 1998, to submit motivations as to why a certain area(s)/region(s) belong to them. This article's open discussion is not intended to cover all the events and processes of the past almost 20 years conscientiously. Rather, the intention is to put in writing what the role of History as a discipline can or should be in ultimate decisions on claims in respect of land. However, extensive research on this is still required. In this paper, then, the use of history within the discipline of History in the managing of land claims in South Africa is the core issue. History, as a discipline that can provide multiple sources of a diverse nature, will be discussed briefly with the unsettled land claim on the farm Deelkraal IQ142 as an example. A summary will direct the reader towards the value of History in land claims research, but it should not necessarily be deemed as the final decision about land claims. Therefore, it appears that perceptions of the past (sometimes interwoven with power and conflict), may have a tendency to overshadow any possibility of truth or reality. This in itself creates facets of power and politics that simply repeat similar previous cycles ; Hierdie oop gesprek oor die hantering en verstaan van grondeise in die grondhervormingsgeskiedenis van Suid-Afrika het nie ten doel om al hierdie gebeure en prosesse van die afgelope byna 20 jaar nougeset neer te pen nie. Teen die kontekstuele agtergrond daarvan word wel besin oor die mate waartoe Geskiedenis as 'n dissipline betekenisvol kan wees of behoort te wees in die uiteindelike besluitneming oor eise ten opsigte van grond. Omvattende navorsing hieroor is egter nog nodig. In hierdie bespreking is die benutting van die geskiedenis binne die dissipline Geskiedenis in die onderneming van grondeisenavorsing die kernsaak. Geskiedenis as 'n bewysmateriaalverskaffer met vele perspektiewe word toegelig deur kortliks na die onafgehandelde grondeis op die plaas Deelkraal IQ142 as 'n voorbeeld te verwys. Opsommenderwys sal ook aangetoon word dat die waarde van Geskiedenis in grondeisenavorsing nie noodwendig in finale besluitnemings oor grondeise geag word nie. Dit wil dus voorkom asof persepsies oor die verlede (soms verweef in mag en konflik), 'n geneigdheid kan hê om enige moontlikheid van waarheid of realiteit te oorskadu. Op sigself dui dit weer op fasette van mag en politiek, wat vorige soortgelyke siklusse bloot herhaal

Tekst nudi alternativnu interpretaciju geneze literarnog zaokreta u antropologiji, kao 'prelaznog rešenja' u kontekstu ideološke nekorektnosti radikalnih anti-kolonijalnih teorija u liberalnoj demokratiji. Značajnu inspiraciju kritička antropologija 1960-ih i 1970-ih godina crpla je iz reformatorskih struja u neomarksističkoj sociologiji i socijalnoj filozofiji što je među brojnim učesnicima metodoloških polemika u disciplini izazvalo ideološke otpore, ispostaviće se, ključne za njihov dalji oskudan razvoj. Ovaj aktivistički, dnevnopolitički ideološki balast zapravo je usporio razvoj potentnih eksternalističkih analiza društvene determinisanosti antropologije i nauke uopšte, stvorivši time prostor proučavanjima etnografskog pisanja. Tematski i trendovski anticipirajući 'nemetodološka' rešenja metodoloških problema, direktno je uticao na zamenu metodološke regulacije poetikom i kontekstualnom refleksijom. Tako su, paradoksalno, ekstremno eksternalistički orijentisane analize, kao pokušaj objedinjavanja etičkih političkih i metodoloških debata, redukovale metodološki fokus disciplinarne zajednice sa problema objektivnosti istraživanja i pouzdanosti etnografske evidencije na probleme stila odn. pisanja antropologije. U tom kontekstu debate o relativizmu, realizmu, reprezentaciji, autoritetu i refleksivnost tipične za postmodernu antropologiju 1980-ih, postaju društveno prihvatljiva alternativa kritičkoj i neo-marksističkoj antropologiji Afro-Amerikanaca feminista ili na drugi način potlačenih/proučavanih kada i sami postaju nativni antropolozi. 'Literarni zaokret' postmoderne antropologije inače se tumači kao eksternalistička kritika tradicionalnog etnografskog realizma nudeći etičku i političku interpretaciju refleksivnosti kao 'po sebi' korektnije od tradicionalne pozitivističke etnografije. ; The paper offers an alternative interpretation of the genesis of the literary turn in anthropology, as an 'interim solution' in the context of the ideological incorrectness of radical anti-colonial theories in a liberal democracy. Critical anthropology in the 1960s and 1970s drew considerable inspiration from refor-mational currents in neo-Marxist sociology and social philosophy, arousing ideological opposition among the numerous participants of methodological debates. This opposition would prove crucial for their subsequent modest development. This activistic ideological ballast actually slowed down the development of potent externalist analyses of the social determination of anthropology and academe in general, leaving room for studies of ethnographic writing. Anticipating, in terms of themes and trends, 'nonmethodological' solutions to methodological problems, it had a direct effect on the substitution of poetics and contextual reflection for methodological regulation. Thus, paradoxically, extremely externalistically oriented analyses, which attempted to merge ethical, political and methodological debates, reduced the methodological focus of the disciplinary community from issues of research objectivity and the reliability of ethnographic records to issues concerning style and the writing of anthropology. In this context, debates on relativism, realism representation, authority and reflexivity, typical of 1980s postmodern anthropology, have become a socially acceptable alternative to the critical and neo-Marxist anthropology of Afro-Americans, feminists or of the otherwise oppressed/studied when they in turn become nativistic anthropologists. The 'literary turn' in postmodern anthropology is generally interpreted as an externalist critique of traditional ethnographic realism offering an ethical and political interpretation of reflexivity as per se more correct than traditional positivist ethnography.

Over the past 40 years, military expenditure data have been used in a variety of political contexts. There have been two fundamental shifts in the use of such data. First, there has been a shift of focus from military expenditure in the countries belonging to the cold war military blocs in the North to that of the developing countries in the South in the post-cold war period. Second, in the UN there has been a shift in the aims of the use of military expenditure data away from disarmament and development towards transparency. This reflects broader changes in the international peace and security community, where the idea of disarmament as a direct path to development has lost ground, while the idea of promoting security through, for example, confidence building, conflict prevention and peacekeeping has gained ground. Increased awareness of the interdependence of security and development is resulting in new ideas on how to promote both. This will hopefully lead to increased use of non-military resources for security provision in the future. However, the picture is mixed since the first half-decade of the 21st century was dominated by the opposite practice: the application of huge military resources in the name of defending and promoting democracy. In general, it appears that data availability and accessibility have tended to improve over time, especially in terms of access to primary sources for developing countries. This is in part because of the general tendency for improved transparency and is possibly also promoted by the efforts of the UN, the international donor community and data-gathering organizations. However, in spite of the improved access to data, the quality of the data remains unsatisfactory. Tracking states' conflict-related expenditure is also a major challenge. The industrialized countries' new modes of financing procurement through private finance require further understanding in order to assess their implications for data quality. The relevance of military expenditure data for the analysis of peace and security issues has been a perpetual issue throughout the 40-year period. The use of military expenditure data to assess military strength, in spite of the fact that such data by their nature are an input measure, tends to lead to misconceptions, as the cold war experience demonstrates. The relevance of military expenditure data is further challenged in the current security environment, with fundamental questions posed by the increased focus on internal security and the changing concept of security. Human security, with its focus on the individual rather than the state, and the blurring of the dividing line between internal security and external defence mean that military expenditure data are of less relevance. This does not mean that data on military expenditure are of no utility, but rather that they need to be complemented by other types of data series in order to capture the dimensions of internal security and human security. Adapted from the source document.

Objective: This paper examines the elements that have caused the precarious state of mental health in Peru, where almost 90 % of patients with symptoms associated with mental disorders do not receive treatment. Development: The article analyzes the neoliberal health program implemented during the government of Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000). Subsequently, it studies how this public policy affected the mental health program and the health status of the population. Finally, it examines several diagnoses on mental health after the return of democracy in the year 2000 from a human rights perspective. This research ended in 2006 when the government presented a new National Mental Health Plan. Conclusions: The lack of access to adequate treatment at the national level has been a direct consequence of the reduced state expenditure on health, especially towards non-transmissible diseases and mental health. The neoliberal health policies implemented during the government of Alberto Fujimori reduced the role of the State as guarantor of universal access to health services and placed mental health in a marginal place within public health. The return to democracy in 2000, the final report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (2003), and the call of international organizations, Catholic and Evangelical Churches, together with NGOS, pressed to the government to situate mental health as a relevant part of public health agenda. ; Introducción: el presente artículo examina los factores que han ocasionado el precario estado de la salud mental en el Perú, donde casi el 90 % de pacientes con síntomas asociados con problemas mentales no reciben tratamiento. Desarrollo: se analiza el programa neoliberal de salud implementado durante el gobierno de Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000). Posteriormente, se estudia cómo esta política pública afectó al programa de salud mental y al estado de la salud de la población. Finalmente, se examinan diversos diagnósticos sobre la salud mental posterior al retorno a la democracia en el año 2000, desde una perspectiva de los derechos humanos. Esta investigación finaliza el año 2006, momento en que el gobierno presentó un nuevo Plan Nacional de Salud Mental. Conclusiones: la falta de acceso a un tratamiento adecuado a nivel nacional ha sido consecuencia directa del reducido gasto del Estado en materia de salud, en especial hacia las enfermedades no transmisibles y de salud mental. Las políticas neoliberales de salud implementadas durante el gobierno de Alberto Fujimori redujeron el rol del Estado como garante del acceso universal a los servicios de salud, y situaron a la salud mental en un lugar marginal dentro de la salud pública. El retorno a la democracia en el año 2000, el informe final de la Comisión de la Verdad y Reconciliación (2003) y el llamado de organismos internacionales, Iglesias Católicas y Evangélicas, junto con ong, presionaron al gobierno para situar a la salud mental como parte importante de la agenda de pública de salud. ; Objetivo: o presente artigo examina os fatores que têm ocasionado o precário estado da saúde mental no Peru, onde quase o 90 % de pacientes com sintomas associados com problemas mentais não recebem tratamento. Desenvolvimento: se analisa o programa neoliberal de saúde implementado durante o governo de Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000). Posteriormente estuda-se como esta política pública afetou ao programa de saúde mental e ao estado de saúde da população. Finalmente se examinam diversos diagnósticos sobre a saúde mental posterior ao retorno da democracia no ano 2000 desde uma perspectiva dos direitos humanos. Esta pesquisa finaliza no ano 2006, momento em que o governo apresentou um novo Plano Nacional de Saúde Mental. Conclusões: a falta de acesso a um tratamento adequado no nível nacional tem sido consequência direta do reduzido gasto do Estado em matéria de saúde, em especial para as doenças não transmissíveis e de saúde mental. As políticas neoliberais de saúde implementadas durante o governo de Alberto Fujimori reduziram o rol do Estado como garante do acesso universal aos serviços de saúde, e situaram à saúde mental em um lugar marginal dentro da saúde pública. O retorno à democracia no ano 2000, o informe final da Comissão da Verdade e Reconciliação (2003), e o chamado de organismos internacionais, Igrejas Católicas e Evangélicas, junto com ONGs pressionaram ao governo para situar à saúde mental como parte importante da agenda pública de saúde.

Out of several countries in the coup-stricken African Sahel slated to hold elections this year, Senegal looked like the only one that might escape the threat of voter suppression, rigging, or other corrupt practices.But this is no more the case as a sudden turn of events last week plunged the West African nation into an unprecedented constitutional crisis, which pundits argue could lead anywhere at this point, from an uneasy elite pact to a total state collapse. On February 3, the eve of the official presidential campaign, Senegal's President Macky Sall announced a postponement of the election, citing dispute over the candidate list. His decision to postpone came weeks after a controversy erupted over the exclusion of opposition candidates from the ballot. The opposition Senegalese Democratic Party (PDS), whose candidate Karim Wade was among those excluded by the Constitutional Council from running in the election for possessing a dual French-Senegalese citizenship, had earlier filed a formal request to postpone the vote. Also excluded is the opposition PASTEF's popular leader Ousmane Sonko, who opposed Sall in 2019 and has been behind bars since last year for immoral behavior and plotting an insurrection. His candidacy in the 2024 election was rejected last month by the Constitutional Council in a move critics say was targeted at eliminating the most potent obstacle to Sall's preferred candidate, Prime Minister Amadou Ba, running and winning the forthcoming elections. Bassirou Diomaye Faye, Sonko's substitute candidate, is also in jail on charges of contempt of court, defamation, and acts likely to compromise public peace.OutrageNever before has Senegal postponed a presidential election. Ordinary Senegalese are shocked by the strange turn of events in part due to the sense of security created by Sall's decision in July last year not to run for a third term."I feel sad for Senegal, a beautiful and peaceful country always considered as an example of democracy and for the Senegalese people who fought in 2011 in the name of democracy so that the current President Macky Sall could be elected," Awa Diouf, a Senegalese activist, told RS. Sall has repeated his stance not to run for a third term, but the opposition doesn't believe him, accusing Sall of premeditated plans to cling to power or to force his preferred candidate on the people. After the decision, protests resurfaced in the country's capital Dakar reminiscent of scenes of deadly clashes with police that were once a fixture of life from 2021 to 2023. One leading opposition politician was arrested in the renewed disturbance on Feb. 4, as police fired tear gas to disperse angry protesters amidst a growing crackdown which has seen a private television station, Walf TV, suspended for 'inciting violence' and internet cut. The crisis continued into last week at the country's parliament where a bill seeking to fix a new date for the elections and extend Sall's tenure led to a row with some opposition MPs forcibly removed by police clad in riot gear. At the end of proceedings, the parliament, which is dominated by the ruling coalition, Benno Bokk Yakaar (which includes President Sall's Alliance for the Republic party) voted for a 10-month extension of the election until December 15. Sall's term was originally meant to lapse in early April. In response, activists are once again mobilizing for new protests and many fear for more violent crackdowns.A diplomatic solutionThese developments, which occurred on the heels of U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken's tour of the region last month, have attracted widespread condemnation. The West African bloc, ECOWAS, whose credibility has taken a beating over its handling of a string of coups in the region, failed to condemn the postponement.In sharp contrast, a statement by the U.S. State Department was more decisive in describing the poll's postponement as a move that runs "contrary to Senegal's strong democratic tradition," while also calling the National Assembly's vote illegitimate, "given the conditions under which it took place." The U.S. also condemned the attacks on press freedom and the severing of internet communications in the country. "The U.S. is a strong all round partner with Senegal and is the leading provider of development assistance valued at $238 million per year," Dr. Joseph Siegle of the Africa Center for Strategic Studies noted to RS. Besides the significant economic ties and trade, it is in the area of regional security that Senegal is most important for the United States. As one of the most stable democracies in Africa and a model for religious and ethnic tolerance, Senegal has been a longtime partner of the U.S. in promoting peace and security in Africa. "[Senegal's] importance has become even more outsized in the wake of recent coups and military regimes in Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Guinea," Afolabi Adekaiyaoja, a research analyst with the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD-West Africa) explained. Although an outlier in the region's anti-democratic trends, this does not mean Senegal's democracy has been free of turmoil. For instance, out of four Presidents that have governed Senegal since it gained independence from France in 1960, only two have taken office in peaceful transfers of power — the first of which occurred in 2000. In 2012, Sall was only elected following a period of widespread protests against his predecessor Abdoulaye Wade's attempt to undemocratically cling to power. After 12 years at the helm of the country, critics now accuse Sall of the same crimes as Wade's, which include eroding the country's democratic credentials through a pattern of jailing political opponents under spurious charges and bending Senegal's justice system to his will. What is most significant, however, is that even in the midst of chaos "the struggle of the Senegalese people always takes place within the framework of institutions as much as peaceful and unarmed resistance," activist Louise M. Faye told RS. The hope is that today's disagreements won't be litigated in a coup like Senegal's Sahelian neighbors.By and large, experts believe what is likely is an uneasy pact within the elite, which has been brought about as a result of rising opposition to conventional politics. "The US [needs to start] talking directly to all of the relevant Senegalese actors as well as ECOWAS to navigate a stable, constitutionally-based, democratic outcome," Siegle explained. The Biden administration's playbook for the continent, U.S. Strategy Toward Sub-Saharan Africa, mandates Washington to "stem the recent tide of authoritarianism and military takeovers by working with allies and partners in the region to respond to democratic backsliding and human rights abuses."While doing this, however, Washington needs to be mindful that recent anti-French sentiment has played into Russia's plans to expand its influence in the region. "While that does not necessarily mean direct anti-American perceptions, it will also need to ensure it can retain backchannels to the different factions if it wants to diplomatically intervene. Washington's important role will be to maintain pressure on Dakar to ensure a fair and transparent review process, or national dialogue as President Sall has put it, ahead of the elections," Adekaiyaoja added.

This paper tracks the process through which FIAS, the investment climate advisory service of the World Bank Group advised the government of Latvia from 1998 to 2004 on ways to improve the business environment, achieve higher rates of economic growth, and thereby alleviate poverty. This case study shows that it is reasonable to describe how assistance by FIAS led to an improved business environment. The role that FIAS advice played may be discerned at the level of benefits accruing to the target population (i.e., the amount of resources freed up by lower costs associated with administrative procedures). Whether these benefits accruing to the business community translated into higher rates of investment and productivity, and thus to higher economic growth and reduced poverty, is a function of the entire political, social, and economic structure in Latvia. It is evident that there are many links in the chain of causation, and that the direct attribution FIAS can claim diminishes at every step downstream from its activities. Credit for success must be shared with the Government of Latvia and its immediate stakeholders (i.e., the businesses and their associations), the European Union accession process, the input of many other complementary projects, market forces, and fortuitous timing.

This study assessed the Philippines' readiness for regional digital trade integration with the Asia-Pacific by using the Regional Digital Trade Integration Index (RDTII) framework to provide an analytical overview of the Philippines' digital trade policy and regulatory environment. Using the RDTII framework, the Philippines reported an overall RDTII score of 0.342 in 2020, which rates the country as having a relatively open digital trade environment. In the same year, the Philippines performed best in three pillars, particularly: pillar 1 (tariffs and trade defense measures); pillar 6 (cross-border data policies); and, pillar 8 (intermediary liability and content access). All of these three pillars scored less than 0.200, thus, indicating a non-restrictive policy and regulatory environment. In contrast, the Philippines performed worst in three pillars, namely: pillar 2 (public procurement); pillar 3 (foreign direct investment); and, pillar 5 (telecommunications infrastructure and competition). These three pillars reported a score of above 0.610, so these pillars were characterized with having a strongly restrictive policy and regulatory environment. Meanwhile, the Philippines was found to be slightly restrictive in intellectual property rights (pillar 4), domestic policies on the use of data (pillar 7), quantitative trade restrictions (pillar 9), standards (pillar 10), and online sales and transactions (pillar 11), which all received a score ranging from 0.210-0.400. This study finds that the Philippines generally has an open policy environment for digital trade, which suggests that it is ready for digital trade integration with the region. However, the proper implementation of some of these policies has not been fully achieved, and this could be a great obstacle or challenge to regional integration.

The literature on the economics of happiness in developed economies finds discrepancies between reported measures of well-being and income measures. One is the so-called Easterlin paradox: that average happiness levels do not increase as countries grow wealthier. This article explores how that paradox and survey research on reported wellbeing in general can provide insights into the gaps between standard measures of economic development and individual assessments of welfare. Analysis of research on reported wellbeing in Latin America and Russia finds notable discrepancies between respondent assessments of their own wellbeing and income or expenditure based measures. Accepting a wide margin for error in both types of measures, the article posits that taking such discrepancies into account may improve the understanding of development outcomes by providing a broader view on wellbeing than do income or expenditure based measures alone. It suggests particular areas where research on reported well-being has the most potential to contribute. Yet the article also notes that some interpretations of happiness research psychologist set point theory, in particular may be quite limited in their application to development questions and cautions against the direct translation of results of happiness surveys into policy recommendations.