Major Powers Cooperate in a Mild and Coordinated Way

Lu:If the tense situations in the Middle East and Northeast Asiabecome relaxed,it would certainly exert great influence on world politi-cal pattern.Can non-traditional security solve the contradictions in thetraditional security field?Will the major powers continue to cooperate inthe anti-terrorist campaign?All these issues will face challenges in     

Refugee Law and Protection in Brazil: a Model in South America?

Brazil has been committed to International Refugee Law sincethe 1950s. For much of this period, however, the country wasunder a dictatorship which made the implementation of refugeeprotection precarious, although refugees and asylum seekerscould count on the assistance of UNHCR and its implementingpartners—NGOs connected to the Catholic Church which remainpartners of UNHCR till today. Following re-democratization,Brazil has not only passed a specific law on refugees, but hasevolved to become a resettlement country. These changes haveled Brazil to be regarded as a model in refugee protection inSouth America. This paper aims to assess whether or not Brazilis fulfilling the said role by describing the evolution of refugeelaw and protection in the country.     

Nuclear proliferation and ‘realistic deterrence’ in a new century

Deterrence became an all‐purpose theory and policy solution during the Cold War. The end of the Cold War has caused theorists and policy‐makers to ask whether deterrence is still either practicable or theoretically compelling. The prospect of additional and angry state and non‐state actors armed with nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction (WMD), together with long‐range delivery systems, threatens to shake the foundations of deterrence stability. In this article we consider whether this is so. First, we examine some of the theoretical arguments for a benign world with nuclear proliferation and some reasons to be skeptical about those arguments. Second, we consider the current status of nuclear weapons spread and some of the particular challenges presented to deterrence and arms race stability by nuclear proliferation.     

Voluntary and involuntary resettlement in China: a false dichotomy?

The success of involuntary resettlement is contingent on recasting the involuntary as voluntary. To explore this proposition, this article presents two projects in China – one “voluntary” (Poverty Alleviation Resettlement or PAR) and relatively “successful” and one “involuntary” (Three Gorges Project Resettlement or TGPR) and less so. The research finds the voluntary–involuntary dichotomy a false one. It is not volition that leads to better outcomes, but people-centred practices that are embedded in policy, planning, and implementation of PAR. Perhaps the most important lesson drawn is that all resettlements should be based on a commitment to settlement and not just resettlement.     

East Asia in a unipolar international order and Europe’s role in the region

This article attempts to explore the post-Cold War international system in which regional orders intermingle their influence. It pays special attention to regional conflicts in East Asia in the new era and what roles global powers could play to maintain regional stability. I will first examine the characteristics of the new global order after the end of the bipolarity. I will then focus on American foreign policy in the new international system in the context of its dealing with major global events that have strategic implications for its relations with other major global powers. As to discussions of regional orders, this article focuses on East Asia, where conflicts between states have not evaporated despite the relaxation of the global Cold War confrontation. What makes this area special is the involvements of many great powers and less-powerful nations that could somehow easily manipulate the seniors into the conflicts to their favour. While the regional order in East Asia is being shaped by the post- Cold War international order, the regions peace and conflicts will in turn significantly influence global order. Finally, I will argue that dealing with problems in East Asia should acquire involvements of powers that would give necessary momentum to the existing participants to solve conflicts by the means of multilateralism. The European Union (EU) is often forgotten for its role in contributing to world order, and the EU should be taken seriously by the powers in East Asia as a possible player in maintaining the regional peace. I conclude that both global and regional security depend on continuing US unipolarity, strengthened by the co-operation of the EU in the form of multilateralism. By the same token, US unilateralism without a EU counter-balancing it, only invites potential challengers, such as China, to threaten the USs preponderant position, thereby destabilising world peace.This article was supported by a research project (NSC-P3-2414-H-004-018) of the National Science Council, Taiwan, which is gratefully acknowledged.     

Political Science in China： the Domestic Scene and a World Vision

Since the reforms of 1979, the subjects of China＇s political science studies have seen remarkable development. The article attempts a qualitative analysis of the progress made in the main fields of China＇s political science studies during the last decade. It deals with theories of international relations, research into strategy and security, international political economics, theories of comparative politics, China＇s local governance etc. There is still a wide gap between the subjects of China＇s political science studies and those in the rest of the world. China＇s academic circles should do more to air domestic issues and questions in the international academic arena.     

What Drives Political Participation? Motivations and Mobilization in a Digital Age

This article provides insights into the driving forces that underpin new forms of political participation. Digital technologies offer opportunities for engaging in a wide range of civically oriented activities, each of which can contribute to deeper democratic engagement. Conventional acts of political participation are argued to be driven primarily by intrinsic motivations relating to self-efficacy and empowerment, with participants feeling they can have influence over decision makers. Little research explores whether similar motivations drive participation in less conventional acts, as well as whether mobilization attempts via social media by peers or political organizations mediate those motivations. Drawing on data from a survey among a representative sample of the U.K. electorate, we find the offline and online spheres of agency remain fairly distinct. Intrinsic and extrinsic motivations both matter but extrinsic motivations have the strongest explanatory power independent of the sphere of activity. The mediating effect of mobilization tactics has a minimal effect on extrinsic motivations, online or offline, but online intrinsic motivations lose their explanatory power. As intrinsic factors offer little explanatory power, some forms of online political participation may lack meaning to the individual. Rather, these non-conventional acts result from reward seeking and are more likely to be encouraged by nongovernmental campaigning organizations, suggesting social media users are most likely to perform simple acts in support of non-contentious causes.     

Dead letters on a page? Civic agency and inclusive governance in neopatrimonialism

Neopatrimonialism has explanatory power regarding the limitations of post-war democratization because it considers the combination of formally-democratic institutions together with power relations based on patronage. Neopatrimonialism does not however explain why marginalized groups make political claims in such inhospitable climates, nor have their experiences of governance processes been adequately explored. This paper addresses this gap based on empirical research in Bosnia-Herzegovina, applying a framework of civic agency to elaborate the goals and capacities of civil society actors. Under what conditions can civic agency foster inclusive governance outcomes? The research found that perceptions of limited and ambiguous outcomes from engagement in governance processes encourage civil society organizations to have incrementalist goals and limit self-perceptions of capacity. Inclusive outcomes were nonetheless more likely with persistent intentions and actions. Transactional capacities based on ties to political actors rather than participatory capacities based on political mobilization were more likely to lead to inclusive governance outcomes.     

Keeping Pace With the Times and Making In novation in a Pioneering Spirit

The9thCouncilMeetingofCAFIUwassuc-cessfullyheldinBeijingon30thJune.ZhuDacheng,Vice-PresidentofCAFIUgaveaninterviewtothereporterwithrespecttothesignificance,roleandimpactofthe9thCouncilMeeting.Reporter:AmbassadorZhu,whatisthespecialsignificanceofthe9thCouncilMeetingofCAFIU.Zhu:The9thCouncilMeetingofCAFIUisaveryimportantmeetingofinheritingthepastandusheringinthefuture,keepingpacewiththetimesandmakinginnovationinapioneeringspirit.Itssuccessfulconveningmetthedemandofthedevel-opmento…     

Rebel-to-political and back? Hamas as a security provider in Gaza between rebellion,politics and governance

ABSTRACT

After winning the 2006 Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) elections and subsequently taking control of the Gaza Strip in the summer of 2007, the Palestinian Hamas – a hybrid political, social and military actor – undertook a complex process to ascertain authority and control over Gaza. The article focuses on understanding Hamas’s performance as a political party and a “rebel government” as well as the impact of this newly acquired role on the group’s strategy. Relying on primary sources, field-work and interviews with members of the Hamas government and its security sector, the study looks at Hamas’s role as a security provider and analyses the complex relationship between the institutionalized security sector and the group’s insurgent armed wing. Examining Hamas’s logic as a security provider and exploring the inherent tensions between political and insurgent logics allows for a better understanding of both the rebel group’s role as a political actor and the broader challenges behind the successful rebel-to-political transformations of non-state armed organizations. In doing so it contributes to the emerging literature on non-state actors’ shifts between ballots and bullets and on their potential role as alternative governance providers.     

Religion and attitudes towards corruption in India: a collective action problem?

This paper argues that religion influences the ways that people think and speak about corruption, typically leading to condemnation. However, it is also argued that, in a systemically corrupt country, such condemnation is unlikely to influence actual corrupt behaviour. Based on fieldwork in India, the paper finds that existing anti-corruption policies based on a principal-agent understanding of corruption, even if they incorporate religious organisations and leaders, are unlikely to work, partly because people consider “religion” to be a discredited entity. Instead, the paper argues that if corruption were to be seen as a collective action problem, anti-corruption practice would need significant rethinking. Despite its current lack of influence, revised policies and practices may see a role for religion.     

Simultaneous in Growth and Different in Problems

Lu: On many occasions, politics and economy are in the same strain. Economic life is the only process that runs through history and undergoes environmental changes. World economy is the only world system. In today's world, the closer ties among various countries in e- conomy cause the complexity of political and foreign affairs. Last year's world economy took on a new feature. According to past experiences, when the economy in a region turns better, problems will usually arise in another regi…     

EU–Korea relations in a changing world project: main results and recommendations

The paper provides an overview of the most important results of a project on EU–Korea economic and regulatory relations funded by the European Commission. The paper first outlines the emergence and development of EU–Korea relations. In the second part, the paper presents the main findings clustered in three thematic areas. A first thematic area focuses on a discussion of the EU–Korea Free Trade Agreement. The second cluster analyzes EU–Korea cooperation on regulatory policies with a main focus on cooperation in the policy areas of security (arms trade and control), chemical regulation, environmental regulation, education, development cooperation and industrial policy. The third part focuses on EU–Korea cooperation concerning regional and international issues. In the third part, the paper presents the main recommendations which were formulated on the basis of the project.     

Science and the media in South Africa: Reflecting a ‘dirty mirror’

Abstract

The public understanding of science is vital in any society, to counter pseudoscientific claims and quackery. The relationship between scientists and the media (the latter often the only channel through which scientific findings reach the public) was studied within a South African framework. An empirical survey was conducted by means of a comprehensive questionnaire sent to 740 South African scientists and researchers and 360 journalists. Because the media are important in the public understanding of science, the survey tried to establish the depth of and possible reasons for distrust between the two professions and what structures could be put in place to overcome this. This study found some significant differences in the views of scientists and journalists about the role of science in society, how it could be communicated to the public, and the reasons for this dichotomy. Finally, proposals to bridge the gap between scientists and the media are made: the media should give serious attention to raise the standards of science reporting by establishing science desks headed by properly trained science editors and well-trained science reporters. On the other hand, scientists should be trained to communicate better with the media and, therefore, the public.     

Fragmentation of presidential elections and governability crises in Latin America: a curvilinear relationship?

Part of the literature views high numbers of presidential candidates as a threat to political stability in presidential democracies. A contradictory model proposes that an overconcentration of the presidential party system is problematic. Both models are hard to reconcile. We approach this puzzle by arguing that the relationship between the level of presidential election fragmentation and governability crises is curvilinear: both very low and very high effective numbers of presidential candidates increase the risk of governability crisis. We test this theoretical claim with ordered logit models drawing on a sample of 108 presidencies in Latin America between 1978 and 2013 and using an ordinal index of the intensity of crisis as the dependent variable. We explore the operation of the theorized causal mechanisms through case studies and argue that they are different at both extremes, high and low levels of fragmentation. Finally, we formulate implications for the design of presidential electoral rules drawing on the debate contrasting runoff and plurality rules.     

Elucidating linkages between women’s empowerment in livestock and nutrition: a qualitative study

This article investigates knowledge and perceptions of women’s empowerment from the perspective of female livestock keepers and elucidates linkages between women’s empowerment and household nutrition in relation to livestock. Eight focus groups with 62 female livestock keepers were conducted in Tanzania. Women’s empowerment in livestock was associated with improved household nutrition. Other opportunities for empowerment were identified that could contribute to women’s decision-making power. The article recommends that all development interventions in the livestock sector be gender sensitive and engage local men in conversations about gender inequities. It also discusses other pathways to increase women’s empowerment and household nutrition.     

Exploring USAID's democracy promotion in Bosnia and Afghanistan: a ‘cookie-cutter approach’?

US democracy promotion is integral to the pursuit of the grand project of the American Mission. By promoting democracy America makes its role one of international engagement as opposed to one of isolation. The first part of this paper examines the political and cultural aspects of US democracy promotion in the post-Cold War era through the bi-polar framework of the case-specific versus one-size-fits-all. To better understand USAID's democracy promotion policy, the second part takes this framework and applies it to its political reform strategy in Bosnia under the Clinton administration from 1995 to 2000 and Afghanistan under the Bush administration from 2001 to 2008. This paper confirms that America's democracy promotion simultaneously employed both the case-specific and one-size-fits-all approaches. USAID programmes and projects did at times respond to local conditions but nevertheless appear to employ a blueprint design.     

Microcredit and development: a multi-level examination of women’s participation in microfinance institutions

International organisations promote microcredit as a tool for socio-economic development by targeting women’s entrepreneurial capabilities. There is limited research, however, on the variation in women’s participation in microcredit in developing nations. To understand this variation, this article examines the relationship between a country’s gender equality levels and women’s microcredit participation. The results indicate that participation is higher when loans are small; however, with increases in gender equality levels, participation decreases. Women in countries with higher gender inequality are limited to very small loans and questionable economic improvements, suggesting that microcredit needs to be utilised contextually to be an effective developmental tool.     

Continuing with the Past and Opening up a New Chapter——CAFIU in 2014

正The work for the year is best begun in spring.In this dynamic season,I’d like to extend sincere greetings and wishes to the readers of the International Understanding both home and abroad and people of all walks of life for your long-time care and support for the work and development of the Chinese Association for International Understanding(CAFIU).     

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.