A study of social exclusion： Vietnamese and mainland Chinese brides in Taiwan

This paper interviews Vietnamese and mainland Chinese brides in Taiwan to explore their experiences of social exclusion. It finds that both Vietnamese and mainland Chinese brides more or less experience social exclusion in one of the political, social relation and welfare dimensions. The dimension of social exclusion that neither of the groups has experienced is spatial exclusion. In comparison, the Vietnamese brides have been more afflicted by economic and cultural exclusion and use more government services. The government service item that has been used most frequently is ＂eugenic hygiene＂, and ＂life adaptation counseling＂ ranks the second. As to other government service items--＂upgrading of education and culture＂, ＂personal safety protection＂ and ＂guarantee of employment rights＂, Vietnamese brides with strong support from their husband＇s family are the main group who use them. In the future, while planning supportive foreign brides＇ policies, the government can focus more on combining the services with foreign brides＇ family and the communities they live in. Then, it can advocate more effectively usages of services and the goal of combating social exclusion.     

Spanish NGOs’ discourses and practices in migration and development: A critical discussion from a global perspective

ABSTRACT

The concept of migration and development (M&D) and practices in that area have lain on many countries’ political agendas for decades, with no clear focus or coherent strategy knitting together the various stakeholders working in the sphere. This article analyzes the main conceptions of M&D in the discourses and practices of Spanish NGOs and compares them with the focuses that have arisen in the academic sphere, for a look into primarily five issues: whether NGOs have their own focus on the migration-development nexus or are swayed by public institutions’ guidelines; whether NGOs steer their actions more toward preventing and restricting migration or toward promoting development; whether NGOs also consider potential effects on development in receiving countries; whether NGOs entertain the idea of participatory actions where immigrant persons hold centre stage; and whether NGOs fulfil their civic and political function as a propounding force to contribute to democratic governance in migration matters.     

Reality and historicity: economy and dialectics in Marxism ∗

On 1 July 1997, the Basil Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) will be enacted in accordance with the Constitution of the People's Republic of China. Articles 107 and 108 of the Basic Law, the so-called balanced budget and low tax policy articles, are the two most controversial articles of the Chapter on Economy. The manifest purpose of these two articles is to constrain the spending and taxing power of the HKSAR in order to prohibit elected members of the Legislative Council from turning Hong Kong into a welfare state, and they have been justified by some ostensibly using Buchanan's concept of fiscal constitution. This paper examines the justification and effects of incorporating elements of fiscal constitution in the Basic Law, focusing particularly on the income redistribution effect. The paper concludes that policy articles grounded on the philosophy of fiscal constitution should not have been included.     

Ambiguous revival: a study of some ‘new civic movements’ in Japan

Japanese democracy and the traditional systems and values of governing Japan are in crisis. Nevertheless, this article argues that this context has also witnessed the consolidation of new democratic practices and new civic movements which prove the vitality of the Japanese citizenry as a political actor. This article examines the reinvigoration of citizens' movements and the impact upon them of the images and concepts of 'alternative' groups and self-managed coops, and various problems associated with them. The third and fourth part shows how alternative ideology also permeates traditional movements in Osaka and Hokkaido, but also how these civic groups have been exploited for inner power struggles by elites in Fukuoka and Kobe. Finally, the last part of the article examines how alternative groups have found their way into the political platform of national political parties, and ponders the future of new civic movements in Japan.     

CIA's role in the study of UFOs, 1947–90: A die‐hard issue∗

This article is a reprint from a declassified issue of the CIA's in‐house journal. It testifies to the enormous impact of UFOs in North America and the involvement of the CIA and USAF from their very year of creation (1947). This year also featured the notorious Roswell incident in New Mexico. The phenomenon is examined decade by decade for the entire Cold War. The mere existence of official records and their release or non‐release has become a never‐ending bone of contention.     

Ticking all the boxes? A comparative study of social sorting and affective polarization

This study explores whether, in societies around the world, affective polarization – or animosity between citizens based on their political allegiance – is stronger if political divisions align with non-political ones. Such ‘social sorting’ has earlier been established to foster affective polarization in the United States. In this study, I argue that the underlying mechanism travels across the globe. I then present two complementary studies which confirm this hypothesis. First, I employ CSES data to predict the level of affective polarization by social sorting at 119 elections in 40 countries, showing that greater alignment of partisan divisions with non-political divisions in a society (along the lines of income, education, religion and region) is associated with stronger dislike towards political outgroups. Second, using Dutch panel data, I show that individuals who fit the socio-demographic ‘profile’ of their party better tend to be more affectively polarized. This has important implications for our understanding of affective polarization.     

Transnational advocacy networks in global supply chains: a study of civil society organizations’ sugar movements in Cambodia

As a contribution to the growing literature on transnational advocacy networks (TANs) in the global production networks, this article examines how civil society organizations (CSOs), which have adopted the TAN approach, influence the sugar industry in Cambodia. Due to ineffective domestic influencing strategies, the CSOs adopted the TAN approach and escalated to an international supply chain movement approach (ISCMA) aiming to influence international stakeholders at each stage of the sugar supply chain in order to leverage boomerang pressure on the sugar producing companies and the Government of Cambodia. Despite its resourceful networking strategies, the ISCMA failed to leverage significant influence on the sugar companies and the government to achieve its demands. The failure was not due to weak networks, but was in part due to the political nexus between the government and the sugar companies. This article suggests that to ensure the effectiveness of CSOs’ actions within the TAN framework in the global production networks, one should take into account the power of the government in relation to local politico-commercial elites.     

The conditions of production: A note∗

Herman E. Daly and John B. Cobb: For the Common Good: Redirecting the Economy Toward Community, the Environment, and a Sustainable Future. Boston: Beacon Press, 1989.

Bill Weinberg: War on the Land: Ecology and Politics in Central America. Zed Press, 1991.

Daniel Faber: Environment Under Fire: Imperialism and the Ecological Crisis in Central America. Monthly Review Press, 1993.

Malcom V. Brock: Biotechnology in Japan. Routledge, London/New York, 1989.     

The city and its ‘other’ in Islamic political ideas and movements

Historically, the city has been the natural habitat for innovations in political and religious ideas and the locus of politico-religious organization and associations. But the proximity to the centers of military power and of religious orthodoxy have rendered the social movements based on these ideas ineffective. The movements which led to political transformations come from marginal settlements and tribal organizations. Ideas and actions relating to location and habitat are examined briefly. Moving on to the modern period it isnoted that almost without exception Islamic political ideas related implicitly to an urban setting. In particular, we examine some of the political ideas of Sayyid Qutb which have been influential among more recent radical Islamic groups in Egypt. These relate to theformation of an Islamic vanguard, separating itself from the prevalent jahiliyya (state of error and ignorance) and, following the example of the early Muslims, fortified with faith, wage a jihad (holy war) to conquer this jahiliyya. Some implications of these ideas for urban social relations and for location and space are examined.     

Cultural resistance and religious legitimacy in colonial Algeria ∗

Starting from a specific historical example, that of colonial Algeria, the paper seeks to examine religious movements which play a political role. Too often such movements have been viewed either as being only political or as utilising religion simply as a mask. It is argued here that religious movements having apparent political functions benefit (to the extent that they are religious) from being studied in contrast to other non-religious movements having similar or comparable functions in the same society at the same time (or in other societies with which comparison would appear justified). It is only in this way that one can see how the relation between the political and religious fields function. It is also in this way alone that we are able to see at what price (that of the relative autonomy of the religious field) the objective domination and manipulation of the religious by the political comes about. In studying societies which claim to be Islamic, it is particularly important to break with orientalist notion of the indivisibility of the religious and political, which obscures the real relationship between the two spheres.