The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea: Activities in 2005

This paper gives an overview of the activities of the InternationalTribunal for the Law of the Sea in 2005, regarding the fifteenthMeeting of States Parties and the organizational developments,jurisdiction and judicial activities of the Tribunal.     

Collectivism or Isolation? Gender Relations in Urban La Paz,Bolivia

Latin American women's extensive collective action outside and inside the household has been paid much attention in the literature over the years. Only a handful of studies have challenged the arguments that Latin American women generally organise together and show solidarity with one another. This paper argues that women's collective action in contemporary urban Bolivia is relatively weak, both outside and within the household. The consequence is that women are isolated to a degree not hitherto recognised, an isolation women cope with in different ways.     

Parliamentary and judicial ambivalence toward executive prerogative powers in Canada

This article argues that ambivalence surrounds the prerogative powers of the Canadian Crown and the significant authority they afford the executive in Canada. In strictly legal terms, these residual Crown powers are vulnerable to parliamentary abolition, displacement and limitation, and their exercise is subject to judicial review and remedy, leading scholars to suggest that these powers are an increasingly marginal source of executive authority. In practice, however, they have proven more resilient to legislative infringement than their formal vulnerability to statutory interference implies. In addition, the judiciary's authority to review the exercise of these powers has been tempered by the courts' reluctance to impose robust remedies. The article maintains that the predominant understanding of these powers, which stresses their vestigial status, fails to capture the actual power and acquiescence they afford the executive.     

Books received

Male Bias in the Development Process. Edited by Diane Elson. Manchester and New York: Manchester University Press, 1991. Pp.215‐ + viii. £29.95. ISBN 07190 2555 9.

Beyond the Family: The Social Organization of Human Reproduction. By A.F. Robertson. Cambridge: Polity Press, 1991. Pp.231. £35 and £10.95. ISBN 07456 0885 X and 6 0886 8.

Gender and Population in the Adjustment of African Economies: Planning for Change. By Ingrid Palmer. Geneva: International Labour Office, 1991. Pp.xiv +187. 27.50 Swiss francs (paperback). ISBN 92 2 107739 X.

Economic Theories of Development: An Analysis of Competing Paradigms. By Diana Hunt. Harvester Wheatsheaf, 1989. Pp.363. £10.95 (paperback). ISBN 0 7450 0237 4.

Economic Development and Environmental Protection in Latin America. Edited by Joseph S. Tulchin with Andrew I. Rudman. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers (Woodrow Wilson Center Current Studies on Latin America). Pp.vii + 143. $9.95 (paperback). ISBN 1 55587 288 3.

Nicaragua: The Land of Sandino. By Thomas W. Walker. Third Edition, Revised and Updated. Boulder, CO: Oxford: Westview Press, 1991. Pp.xvi + 202. $44 and $17.95. ISBN 0 8133 1089 X.

Dependence and Autonomy. By Hilary Standing. London: Routledge, 1990. Pp.x + 198. £10.99 (paperback). ISBN 0 415 04839.

Turtle Bogue: Afro‐Caribbean Life and Culture in a Costa Rican Village. By Harry G. Lefever. London and Toronto: Associated University Presses, 1992. Pp. 249. £29.95. ISBN 0 945636 23 7.     

The CBD at ten: The long road to effectiveness

Abstract

This article reviews progress and challenges in the implementation of the Convention on biological diversity since its adoption in 1992. Progress has been significant in many ways, although difficult to measure beyond procedural improvements (creation of new institutions, guidelines, national processes) and the development of new tools. Many challenges remain, both at the level of the operation of the regime and of national implementation, in part due to the nature of the convention and the complexity of its relationships with other regimes. Since knowledge about the state of biodiversity is scant and indicators poor, the argument is advanced that we should assess CBD's success and effectiveness by its ability to promote several of the preconditions of regime effectiveness. Accordingly, this article considers the record of the CBD in terms of learning, capacity‐building, network building, transparency, and the elaboration and diffusion of new norms.     

Overestimating the Shift from Government to Governance: Evidence from Swiss Metropolitan Areas

There is an oft‐stated claim in political science research that public sector reforms in Western democracies are consistent with a shift from government to governance. This article challenges that claim. Based on a comparative analysis of governance reforms in Swiss metropolitan areas, the article reveals that what seems to be a shift to governance may turn out to be a path to government, however, including a change either from the local to the metropolitan level or from general‐purpose authorities to task‐specific jurisdictions. Further, the article analyzes the political dynamics behind governance reforms. It shows that exogenous pressures put existing governance schemes under strain. Its impact, however, is mediated by the initial institutional setting and the narratives responding to case‐specific political dilemmas.     

Usefulness of Systematic Histological Examination in Routine Forensic Autopsy*

Abstract: The forensic community does not agree on the need to perform histological examination at forensic autopsy. The aim of our study was to determine the usefulness of systematic standard histology in forensic autopsies. A prospective study was carried out on 428 autopsy cases for which standard histological examination was systematic. Mechanism of death not shown by gross anatomic findings was discovered by histology in about 40% of the cases. Cause of death was established by only histology in 8.4% of the cases. Microscopic findings affected the manner of death in 13% of the cases. Histology provided complementary information about prior medical condition of the deceased in about 49% of the cases. Traumatic lesions were better documented by histology in about 22% of the cases. According to the results of our study, systematic standard histology for the main organs should be used in routine forensic autopsies.