‘Communication’ in the era of ‘Empire’ and ‘multitude’

SUMMARY

Politics has been described as “an aggregate of persons in a power perspective of elaborated demands and expectations”. From this the collective nature of politics can be clearly seen. Without communication, however, no collective action is possible and consequently no political action. Based on this politics can be seen as the continuous defining of collective action in the context of mutual power relations in which there are differences (inter alia of objectives and methods) and consequently conflict over the allocation of scarce resources. Even though there has been an early interest in the relationship between politics and communication, e.g. Aristoteles and Julius Caesar with his Acta Diurna, systematic study of the relationship between communication and politics and the generation and regulation of conflict is of recent nature. A review of the literature on the theory and research in the field of political communication indicates it to be of original interest to researchers from fields such as journalism, mass communication, political science and speech communication. Recently, however, political communication emerged as a field on its own worthy of its recognition as a subdiscipline of communication science: it is recognized by professional bodies like the International Communication Association it is a separate area for research, teaching and for publication of journals devoted to it.     

EU’s Role in Power Relations

Power tradeoffs always change the pattern of relations between big powers. Because of the shrinking gap between powers and the relative decline of the U.S.’supreme strength, changes have emerged. Traditional alliances persist and there is no absolute hostility. Issue-focused cooperation has prevailed and governments     

The European ‘Other’ in Poland’s Conservative Identity Project

Since taking office in November 2015, Poland’s conservative government has pressed for a sweeping reinterpretation of the past, and a re-envisioning of the future, of the political community. This conservative identity project idealises the allegedly fully sovereign Poland of the interwar period and repudiates the normative commitments underpinning Poland’s accession to the European Union. The worldview of the conservative government’s liberal critics, by contrast, represents a fusion of the inclusive nationalism asserted in opposition to communist rule with the affirmation of a European identity. The reawakening of historically resonant debates about the nature of Poland’s European-ness, emphasizing the centrality of the (Western) European ‘other’ in Poland’s national idea, carries significant implications for its relations within the international environment.     

Contradictions in the TrumpAdministration’s Russia Policy

Since President Donald Trump took office,the United States’policy toward Russia has experienced upswings and downturns,oscillating between opposite sides and demonstrating starker contradictions.An in-depth study of the Trump administration’s Russia policy will assist in deepening our knowledge and understanding of the nature of USRussia relations,so that we can better grasp the development trend of the relationship and provide a useful reference for China to more proactively handle its own relations with other major powers.     

‘No‐party’ politics and local democracy in Africa: Rawlings’ Ghana in the 1990s and the ‘Ugandan model’

Ghana's decentralised form of administration run by elected District Assemblies was created in 1989 by Jerry Rawlings’ military government. As in Uganda under Museveni's National Resistance Council regime, it was inspired by populist theories of participatory, community‐led democracy which idealised the consensual character of ‘traditional’ village life and rejected the relevance of political parties. The Assemblies remain by law ‘no‐party’ institutions, notwithstanding Ghana's transition to multi‐party constitutional democracy in 1992. Their performance since 1989 is examined in the light of the question: to what extent can the Ugandan ‘no‐party’ model continue within a context of party competition, given that it assumes the all‐inclusive and non‐conflictual character of community politics? The conclusion is that the contradictions between the no‐party consensual model, de facto ruling party domination and the reality of local conflict have created significant difficulties for the Assembly system. Participation has declined and conflict‐resolution been made more difficult, whilst the legitimacy and transparency of resource decisions have been undermined.     

China’s NGOs in Building Beautiful China

<正>NGOs are voluntary,non-governmental,non-profit social organizations.In China,NGOs active in ecology and environment protection are generally known as environment NGOs.Tasked with protecting ecological environment,they are selfgoverning organizations with no administrative power which provide environmental public service.In the last 20 years,NGOs have changed profoundly     

Evaluating authorial ‘objectivity’ and ‘stancetaking’ in reporting the making of a new constitution in Zimbabwean newspapers

ABSTRACT

Zimbabwe held ‘fresh’ elections on July 31, 2013 under a new constitution. This was in line with the provisions of the Global Political Agreement (GPA), a political power-sharing compromise signed between Zimbabwe's three main political parties, following the heavily disputed 2008 harmonised presidential and parliamentary elections. The GPA established in Zimbabwe a Government of National Unity (GNU). On the road to making a new constitution, political differences and party politicking always seemed to take precedence over national interest. This political polarity in Zimbabwe resulted in the heavy polarity of the media, especially along political ideological grounds. The new constitution-making process and all its problems received heavy coverage in almost all national newspapers. This article analyses the discourse-linguistic notion of ‘objectivity’ in ‘hard’ news reports on the new constitution-making process by comparing the textuality of ‘hard’ news reports from two Zimbabwean national daily newspapers: the government-owned and controlled Herald and the privately owned Newsday. Focusing on how language and linguistic resources are used evaluatively in ways that betray authorial attitudes and bias in news reporting, the article examines how the news reports uphold or flout the ‘objectivity’ ideal as explicated through the ‘reporter voice’ configuration, and within Appraisal Theory.     

China’s anti-terror strategy and China’s role in global anti-terror cooperation

Anti-terrorism has become an important part of Chinas domestic and diplomatic agenda. This has its historical roots and theoretical basis. Chinas anti-terrorism campaign started even before 9/11, but it was only after 9/11 that China participates fully in the international anti-terror cooperation and becomes a significant player in the efforts. This paper attempts to make an analysis from the Chinese perspective.     

The Baltic predicament in the shadow of Russia’s war in Ukraine

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has once again reinvigorated the debate about the likelihood of conflict spreading into NATO’s frontline states, namely the Baltic republics. This article argues that somewhat paradoxically, the Baltics currently find themselves in both the best of times and the worst of times. On the one hand, with each “turn of the screw”—Georgia in 2008, Ukraine in 2014 and 2022—Moscow has ensured a greater allied presence across the Baltics. Still, despite this and Russia’s substantial losses incurred in the war, the Baltic lawmakers will not write off Russia as a military threat any time soon.     

Land governance and women’s rights in large-scale land acquisitions in Cameroon

This article identifies and examines the role of actors involved in the process of large-scale land acquisitions in Cameroon. It is based on primary data from interviews conducted among principal actors. Findings reveal that government, chiefs, and to some extent elites, play key roles in formal and informal processes that grant land to investors. However, both processes neglect women and affected communities because there are no mechanisms to hold actors accountable to them, especially to women who depend on land for their livelihood. The article concludes that a legal framework that makes the process transparent and promotes accountability and gender inclusiveness is indispensable.     

China’s Participation in Groups of Developing Countries

Groups of developing countries are playing increasing important role in global economic governance. As China has now become a member of such groups like G20 and "BRICS", it should make good use of its new identity to explore new markets and promote more Sino-European and South-South cooperation, so as to gradually reduce its current over-dependence on the U.S.A.     

Role of business in India’s foreign policy

The paper examines if the business sector in India has had a tangible influence on India’s foreign policy. It suggests several factors for which private business failed to have any influence on India’s foreign policy during the first three decades after Independence. It suggests a conceptual typology of the principal drivers of India’s foreign policy, which, according to the author, provides an effective framework for understanding the role of the private sector since it began to wield some influence in the mid-1980s. The paper uses this threefold classification to argue that, in the period from the 1980s to today, contrary to the general perception, the role of the Indian business sector (and especially of industry associations) on India’s foreign policy has been marginal and restricted to some specific sectors.     

The role of journalists’ questions in campaign forums

This article examines the role of journalists’ questions in campaign agenda‐setting, through an analysis of questions and answers from the 1984 campaign forums. The intention is to identify more fully the conditions and techniques in operation as the agenda is being composed and to illuminate ways in which questioners and candidates vie for dominance.

While the audience may see panel members as uninhibited inquisitors, the setting and context of forums circumscribe panelists’ actions and exert a moderating effect. Panel members are screened and can be vetoed by candidates, and they are bound by demands of television, concerned about embarrassment, reluctant to antagonize candidates, and influenced by the existing campaign agenda. They have influence in introducing topics and guiding discussion, but their questions can be disarmed or neutralized by an array of devices. To the extent that the forums contribute to the public agenda, the power to shape the contribution rests primarily with candidates and secondarily with questioners.     

The Development Trend in China’ s Surrounding Areas

China’s surrounding areas are in a special transition period necessitated by China’s peaceful rise and the adjustment of its Asian strategy.In2014,these neighboring areas inherited the development trend of the previous three years,coaxing out changes that we are beginning to see.Changes in world economic growth,America’s rebalancing strategy,and alterations in Sino-Japanese relations are direct results of China’s rise,and other development trends are in the offing.The high-speed growth stage for Asian emerging economies has come to an end.Moderate growth in parallel with reform is the new norm in Asian economy.Due to the collective slowing of emerging economies,     

Japan’s reluctance in East Asian economic integration

Until 1997, the only preferential trading arrangement, which existed in East Asia, was the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA). Former Prime Minister of Malaysia Tun Dr. Mahathir had realized earlier the deficiency of AFTA in terms of stimulating economic development. In 1990, he proposed to ASEAN members to form the East Asian Economic Group. Due to regional political factors, his proposal was turned down and replaced with the East Asian Economic Caucus in 1992. In 1997, again, he proposed that ASEAN needed to establish large economic cooperation with other countries in East Asia. His suggestion had been warmly responded by the members of East Asian countries. At the ASEAN summit in Manila 1999, ASEAN Plus 3 (APT) was created. ASEAN, China, Japan, and South Korea had agreed and reached a joint statement to form a free-trade area by the year 2020. The establishment of APT was timely since most countries in the world are moving toward establishing wider or larger economic blocs due to the failure of multilateralism of the WTO in creating a new trade agreement. However, there is a shortcoming in the process of building APT, in the minimal and uncertain role of Japan in integrating economies in East Asia. This behavior has disappointed members of the group. The intention of this paper is to discuss the behavior of Japan in the economic integration process in East Asia.

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Referendums in the EU’s constitution building process

In ten member states of the European Union (EU) the new constitutional treaty was supposed to be ratified by referendum. A growing number of theoretical models predicts that such additional ratification hurdles result in an advantage for negotiators in the bargaining game. The impact such a referendum constraint can exert, however, depends on the timing of its announcement, the remaining ratification rules as well as the preference constellations. If parliament and voters are actually in favor of the new treaty, ratification constraints may cease to affect the bargaining outcome. After presenting the theoretical foundation of these arguments, we present empirical evidence much in line with the theoretical implications. More specifically, especially for the issues changed during the intergovernmental conference, those governments gained that had scheduled a referendum and voters had a stronger preference for the status quo.

‘Great power’ intervention in African armed conflicts

This paper asks why the United States (US), China and the European Union (EU) have intervened in a number of armed conflicts in Africa in the twenty-first century. Scrutiny and comparison of the motivations and interests of the three non-African actors in intervening in African crises are assumed to contribute to understanding the changing geopolitical environment and the current conditions for conflict management in Africa. The focus is not on trade and aid. The paper launches the hypothesis that the explanations why the US, China and the EU have intervened are basically identical. In spite of different evaluations of the specific crisis situations, the interventions have been about taking care of the ‘national interest’ of each of the three non-African actors. National interest is defined as either ‘hard core’ (security) or ‘core’ concerns (security and economic wealth).     

Promoting inclusive development in Ghana: disabled people’s and other stakeholders’ perspectives

This article highlights barriers to inclusive development from the perspective of disabled people, as well as staff of NGOs and government agencies. A qualitative study was conducted between August 2011 and September 2012, and in September 2013, in rural and urban areas in Greater Accra and Eastern regions in Ghana. The research shows that inaccessible public infrastructure and services, negative attitudes of service providers, little political will, limited capacity of development agencies, and lack of multi-agency coordination in the disability development sector were barriers to disabled people’s inclusion and participation in development processes.     

Highlights of CAFIU’s International Exchanges in 2013

正January January 4,Secretary-General Ni Jian met with Teruo Tsuneda,Executive Director of the Mainichi Shimbun of Japan and Katsuyoshi Seimiya,Director of Global Business Division of the Mainichi Shimbun.The two sides exchanged views on China’s political and economic situation after the 18thNational Congress of CPC and Japan’s political situation after the general election.