Domestic elites and external actors in post-conflict democratisation: mapping interactions and their impact

Abstract

Following the end of the Cold War, post-conflict democratisation has rarely occurred without a significant international involvement. This contribution argues that an explanation of the outcomes of post-conflict democratisation requires more than an examination of external actors, their mission mandates or their capabilities and deficiencies. In addition, there is a need to study domestic elites, their preferences and motivations, as well as their perceptions of and their reactions to external interference. Moreover, the patterns of external–internal interactions may explain the trajectory of state-building and democracy promotion efforts. These issues deserve more attention from both scholars and practitioners in the fields of peace- and state-building, democracy promotion, regime transition and elite research. Analyses of external actors and domestic elites in post-conflict democratisation should therefore address three principal issues: (1) the identification of relevant domestic elites in externally induced or monitored state-building and democratisation processes, (2) the dynamics of external–domestic interactions and (3) the impact of these interactions on the outcomes of post-conflict democratisation.     

Is Cyberbullying Worse than Traditional Bullying? Examining the Differential Roles of Medium, Publicity, and Anonymity for the Perceived Severity of Bullying

Cyberbullying, a modern form of bullying performed using electronic forms of contact (e.g., SMS, MMS, Facebook, YouTube), has been considered as being worse than traditional bullying in its consequences for the victim. This difference was mainly attributed to some specific aspect that are believed to distinguish cyberbullying from traditional bullying: an increased potential for a large audience, an increased potential for anonymous bullying, lower levels of direct feedback, decreased time and space limits, and lower levels of supervision. The present studies investigated the relative importance of medium (traditional vs. cyber), publicity (public vs. private), and bully’s anonymity (anonymous vs. not anonymous) for the perceived severity of hypothetical bullying scenarios among a sample of Swiss seventh- and eight-graders (study 1: 49 % female, mean age = 13.7; study 2: 49 % female, mean age = 14.2). Participants ranked a set of hypothetical bullying scenarios from the most severe one to the least severe one. The scenarios were experimentally manipulated based on the aspect of medium and publicity (study 1), and medium and anonymity (study 2). Results showed that public scenarios were perceived as worse than private ones, and that anonymous scenarios were perceived as worse than not anonymous ones. Cyber scenarios generally were perceived as worse than traditional ones, although effect sizes were found to be small. These results suggest that the role of medium is secondary to the role of publicity and anonymity when it comes to evaluating bullying severity. Therefore, cyberbullying is not a priori perceived as worse than traditional bullying. Implications of the results for cyberbullying prevention and intervention are discussed.     

Haftung bei Vereitelung der “ohne Gentechnik”-Kennzeichnung: ein legislatorischer Unfall

Zusammenfassung  Die Novellierung des Gentechnikrechts von April/Mai 2008 l?sst die zivilrechtliche Haftungsnorm des § 36a GenTG unberührt. Mittelbar wird die Haftungslage durch eine Modifizierung der ?ffentlichrechtlichen Vorschriften zur “ohne Gentechnik”-Kennzeichnung jedoch drastisch versch?rft. Dies weckt europa- und verfassungsrechtliche Bedenken und wirft die Frage auf, ob diese Konsequenz vom Gesetzgeber wirklich beabsichtigt war. Der Beitrag untersucht die neue “ohne Gentechnik”-Kennzeichnung, arbeitet ihre haftungsrechtlichen Folgen heraus und zeigt die europa- und verfassungsrechtlichen Bedenken des eklatant versch?rften Haftungsumfangs auf.     

Challenging statutory limitations on children's education rights: a re-examination of the Canadian Supreme Court Decision in Auton

The 2004 Supreme Court of Canada decision in Auton concerns the right of autistic children to access services held by their parents to be essential to their children's ability to participate as members of a democratic society. It is argued that the child's right to have his or her basic developmental needs met is a constitutionally protected one. Having those developmental needs met engages both education and health rights. In Auton the parents had sought funding for the service at issue from the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Children and Families (which dealt with mental health services and other particular support programs for the families of disabled children) as well as from the Ministry of Education. The case raises central questions regarding the very nature of education and the constitutionality of a discretionary power of government to set out statutory limitations upon fundamental human rights including education rights.     

A Reductionist Penal Policy and European Human Rights Standards

Official discourse in many European countries advocates the use of imprisonment as a measure of last resort. This principle is also at the core of several Recommendations of the Council of Europe and a Resolution of the European Parliament. In practice, detention rates in European countries vary greatly, and many countries have witnessed an increase in their prison population. This article argues that the application of deprivation of liberty raises in itself a human rights issue, and considers the support that European human rights instruments give to a reductionist penal policy. It concludes by defending a normative argument in favour of rethinking the principle of proportionality in its application to imprisonment.     

Self-expression and collaborative ‘pro-sumption’ in the digital brandscape

ABSTRACT

The evolution of the global economy has seen the emergence of a digital market space. The collaborative and expressive nature of interactive media and technology allows users to participate in the production and publication of branded content within digital communities of affinity. This presents increased possibilities for self-expression, as well as unlimited opportunities for participation in determining and influencing brand narratives. The digital brandscape has therefore become a collaborative space where surplus brand value is produced, but also where struggles in terms of power and counter power between brands and brand consumers evolve. Against this background, this conceptual article explores the brand challenges the notion of consumer brand self-expression poses in a collaborative open-source context where brand identity is constantly challenged, and brand narratives are continuously written and rewritten by multiple brand authors. The article concludes that it is important that brands do not navigate these risks by adopting defensive stances, but rather boldly seize the opportunities that these technologies offer for creating new market linkages and for developing customer insights that create innovative brand value and impact, by tapping into opportunities for creative self-expression.     

The right to minority language public school education as a function of the equality guarantee: a reanalysis of the Gosselin Supreme Court of Canada Charter case

This paper concerns a recent Supreme Court of Canada decision dealing ostensibly with the protection of language minority rights. The case, in fact, however, concerns the Court imposing statutory limits on constitutionally guaranteed equality and liberty rights. The Court in the instant case held as constitutional Quebec legislation permitting access to English language schools only to children who have received, or are receiving the majority of their instruction in English in Canada, or whose parents received the majority of their instruction in English in Canada at the primary school level. The appellants, members of the French majority in Quebec, could not meet those eligibility criteria. Therefore, they were held to have no right to access English language public schools for their children. The ruling, as discussed, is inconsistent with the equality and liberty guarantees as well as the minority language protection clause of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.