Legal empowerment of the poor: with a little help from their friends?

In 2005 the initiative to create a High Level Commission on the Legal Empowerment of the Poor, to be co-chaired by Peruvian economist Hernando de Soto and former US Foreign Affairs Secretary Madeleine Albright, was launched with strong support from the Norwegian government. This article first reviews some of the debate surrounding the initiative, giving special attention to the role of Norwegian civil society organisations that questioned central assumptions of the Commission as well as its composition and working procedures. Next, the article looks at the propositions made by the Commission on the Legal Empowerment of the Poor and argues that it was very much a top-down affair that called on those in power to behave in favour of the poor and relegated organisations of the poor and civil society to a supportive role. Issues of political power thus were downplayed. This also is reflected in the fact that the question of (re)distribution of assets is hardly addressed by the Commission. Questions of power or the distribution of assets were sidestepped by focusing primarily on the legal dimension and formalisation. And, although the Commission mentions macro-economic conditions it fails to critically analyse the conditions that account for poverty and informality, which basically are attributed to legal arrangements. Such an analysis would require a (critical) political economy perspective.     

Authorship,Authenticity, and Intellectual Property in Australian Aboriginal Art

This article analyzes research and legal cases about authorship, authenticity, and intellectual property in Aboriginal art. The concepts of Aboriginality, authenticity, and ownership are used to show the complexities of Aboriginal law, legal copyright, and the moral rights framework. The clan ownership of Dreaming makes Aboriginal artists' relationship different to other artists' individual ownership of their work. Research on this topic by members of the Faculty of Business and Law unit of the Centre for Leisure Management Research at Deakin University was undertaken for the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. This article provides significant contextual analyses of major issues leading to Commonwealth Government inquiries and legislation in Australia during 2006-8.     

消解与证成:“婚内强奸”犯罪化的理性思考

学界对"婚内强奸"能否犯罪化分歧甚大,至今仍无定论。各种意见围绕"婚内强奸"犯罪化是否存在观念障碍和技术障碍展开。具体而言,夫妻家庭地位的道德评价构成"婚内强奸"犯罪化的观念障碍,实际操作所内含的风险以及"婚内强奸"有罪判决的社会效果构成了"婚内强奸"犯罪化的技术障碍。事实上,对夫妻家庭平等地位的强调能够消解其中的观念障碍,否认实际操作中的风险与犯罪化证成之间的关联性、明确"婚内强奸"非犯罪化者论据之间的矛盾性,亦能消除其中的技术障碍。在"婚内强奸"犯罪化路径的选择上,将"婚内强奸"涵摄于"强奸罪"并不存在规范上的障碍。     

论侵权法保护之财产利益——《民法通则》第一百○六条第二款的解释适用

权利与利益的关系之争,涉及到对权利概念内涵的理解。关于我国《民法通则》第一百○六条第二款规定的＂财产＂,如果仅仅将之解释为财产权,那么只要行为人侵害的不是他人的财产权利,行为人就可以不受侵权法规制。因此,司法实践应与立法相一致,采取概括性规范模式,将财产权利与财产利益保护统一起来,且一并适用《民法通则》第一百○六条第二款之规定。     

所有制改革与走共同富裕的道路

党的十一届三中全会以来,为了实现共同富裕的目标,党和政府对社会主义的所有制进行了艰辛的探索。所有制改革,其出发点和落脚点都是为了调动劳动者和要素所有者的积极性和创造性,为创造更多的社会财富,保证最广大人民的根本利益和共同富裕目标的实现。但是所有制改革既增加了人们的收入也拉大了人们之间的收入差距,如果任其发展,将会严重影响到共同富裕的实现。     

邓小平论社会主义的根本优越性

在“一国两制”的世界格局中，改革开放的中国经济发展迅速，综合国力显著增强，成绩令世人瞩目。社会主义优越性得到一定的发挥。在探讨社会主义根本优越性问题时，邓小平将思考的重点放在社会主义怎样发展才能体现出社会主义优越性上。并从社会主义本质的角度来阐明社会主义优越性既是社会主义制度的体现，也是社会主义现代化发展的目的。     

试论国家对健康权与药品知识产权保护制度的平衡简

健康权在任何与健康熙护议题有关的政策上（包括药品知识产权制度）都不可忽略.然而, 《多哈宣言与2003年决议仍未触及药品知识产权保障与健康权冲突的核心问题,这就需要将健康权作为一项政策工具对药品知识产权的影响做补充性的解释.国家保障药物获得权利的义务应根据其实质内涵的多样性与复杂性掺入防卫权的特色；换言之,药品获得权应区分为国家仅有义务渐进实现的受益权与国家有义务立即实现的受益权.这种通过细化国家保障药品获得权的义务,在具有相同重要性的健康权及药品知识产权产生冲突时,便有足够的基础从权利本质审视两者在冲突时的平衡关系是否适当.     

Corporate raiding and the role of the state in Russia

To what extent are Russian state agencies involved in predatory behavior, and what are the determinants of their activities? Analyzing a novel data-set comprising 312 cases of illegal corporate raiding (reyderstvo) between 1999 and 2010, this article identifies a shift both in the regional and sectoral distribution of raids over time, as well as an increasing participation of state agencies in criminal raiding attacks. Using panel regression analysis to look at the determinants of increasing state involvement, this article shows that election results for the ruling president and his party, as well as the degree to which elections are manipulated throughout Russia's regions, are significantly and positively correlated with the number of raids in a given region, while regions with governors that have stronger local ties are characterized by a smaller number of attacks. A potential interpretation of these findings is that the federal center may tolerate a certain degree of predatory activities by regional elites, as long as these elites are able to deliver a sufficiently high level of electoral support for the center, with the effect being weaker in regions where the governor is interested in the long-term development of the regional economy.     

我国家族企业内部纠纷的起因与规范——以家族企业内部的产权关系为视角

随着家族企业对社会经济发展作用的日益增强,我国家族企业内部纠纷已经不再是婚姻、家庭内部的事情,它关涉企业的发展与壮大甚至存活.本文认为,家庭财产与企业资产的混同,家庭生活与企业生产的重叠,个人投资与家庭投入的模糊,体力付出与脑力贡献的混淆等是家族企业内部纠纷产生的根源.因此,资产归属的事先明确是避免家族企业内部纠纷的关键.     

产权制度改革与职工董事、监事制度

国有经济布局结构的调整和国有企业的战略性改组 ,必须依托已建立了现代企业制度的企业去完成。这不可避免地要涉及企业微观基础的再造。其核心内容是产权制度改革和劳动关系变化。工会作为劳动关系的产物 ,必将面临新的机遇和挑战 ,而推进和完善职工董事和监事制度 ,是新形势下工会工作必须加强的一项重要任务。作者重点分析了企业产权制度改革的内容和实质 ,提出 :工会 ,以及主要代表职工合法权益的职工董事、监事 ,要更好地发挥作用 ,必须转变观念 ,摆正位置 ,抓住重点 ,提高素质。