The Globalization of Nationalism and the Future of the Nation?CState

The state is a specific form of government, distinguished from others by its impersonal character and the recognition on the part of the office holders that they represent the will of the people. This form of government is an implication of nationalism. Thus, every state is a nation?Cstate. Since nationalism is the cultural framework of modernity in all its expressions, every state is also a modern state. The future of the nation?Cstate depends on the future of nationalism. The recent globalization of nationalism into the formidable civilizations of South-East Asia has opened a new era for the latter. Therefore, the future of the nation?Cstate at present looks brighter than ever.     

Ethnic Identity and the Nation?CState in the Era of Globalization: the Case of Cyprus

This paper addresses the philosophical question whether the nation?Cstate will be entering a final phase of demise or whether it will continue to prosper within the framework of the era of regional blocs and globalization. In order to do so, we briefly put forward some theoretical premises in relation to the nation?Cstate and globalization and how they have affected each other. This discussion also draws from the recent experiences of the international economic crisis and how the EU reacted in relation to the serious economic crisis of Greece. We also assess the case of Cyprus within the framework of this discussion. The question raised in relation to Cyprus is whether there can be an integrated society that encourages a particular common value system and also respects the ethnic identity of citizens and communities. A major question is whether the EU can offer the framework for such an outcome.     

The twenty-first century Armed Forces of the Philippines: orphan of counter-insurgency or military geared for the long war of the century?

This article examines the factors that account for the Armed Forces of the Philippines's (AFP) never-ending involvement in many wars of the third kind. It discusses the essence of counter-insurgency warfare or low-intensity conflict in the Philippine setting. The article then notes that the disruption in the US military assistance after 1992, the AFP's inability to modernize, and its continuous campaign against communist and secessionist insurgents have adversely affected its structure and overall combat efficiency. It also analyzes the impact of the global war on terror on the Philippine military's counter-insurgency operations and the reforms undertaken by the Philippine defense establishment to address these issues. In conclusion, the article argues that reforms will not lead to a significant transformation of the AFP as it will continue to be an orphan of counter-insurgency in the near future. However, if wars of the third kind will persist, this situation will paradoxically make the AFP the only military in Southeast Asia aptly geared for the long war of this century.     

The Rise of Militant Islam and the Security State in the Era of the ‘Long War’

This paper distinguishes between political and militant Islam and analyses the latter's current ability to confront empire and to become a social force in Muslim-majority states. This analysis is within the dialectic of collaboration and resistance, starting with client postcolonial states' pivotal role in bringing to fruition the collaboration between political Islam and US imperialism during the cold war era. The post-cold war period signals the imperialist putsch to confront militant Islam in the ‘Long War’ by employing the cold war strategy of ‘permanent war’ and universalising the idea of the security state. Militant Islam's resistance to the Long War and the security state makes this two-pronged imperial strategy a losing proposition for the USA. Paradoxically this strategy has also become the prime mover for militant Islam's ascendancy. The paper addresses the paradox of the USA's continuation with its losing Long War strategy and securitisation agenda which, although providing succour to militant Islam, is also achieving its larger objectives to buttress capitalist globalism; fuel the military–industrial and security–industrial complexes; and support ‘big oil’.     

What helps and what hinders the process of surviving the suicide of somebody close?

This paper presents similar findings about the lack of support and understanding for people bereaved through suicide from four different countries and reports on each country's unique response to this challenge. This paper reports on presentations made at the conference workshop of the International Association for Suicide Prevention meeting in Chennai in 2001, and on participants' suggestions of how best to help the bereaved.     

The 1950s—the triumph of the Soviet economy

The frequent assertions in both Russian and Western economic literature and the broader press that the command economy is not viable are based on data showing the inefficient use of material and labour resources in the pre-war period and the continuous decline in the rate of economic growth and the efficiency of resource use in the 1960s–1980s. Yet it is a long way from observing these facts to confirming the failure of the command economy. Before the political system of the USSR began to collapse in 1990–91 there had been no prolonged absolute fall in GDP nor, in the post-war period, in the standard of living of the population, nor had technical progress come to a halt as it did, for example, in the 1990s after the rejection of the command economy. Compared with the latter period it is justifiable to talk of the indisputable advantages of the command over the market economy in Russian conditions, if of course we do not consider (for which there are some grounds) the enormous difficulties of the Russian economy in the 1990s to be consequences of a protracted transformation crisis. I would like to draw attention to the fact that these advantages are evident even in comparison with the degenerate mid-1980s version of the command economy, which was very different from the classical model.     

The founders of the association for the study of nationalities: the case of Stepan Horak (1920–1986) and the Shevchenko Scientific Society,USA

The present article critically evaluates the contribution of the Shevchenko Scientific Society, USA, and the founder of the Association for the Study of Nationalities (ASN), Stepan Horak, to the genesis and development of the ASN.     

Questioning the Hegemony of the Nation State in Belarus: Production of Intellectual Discourses as Production of Resources∗

The bulk of scholarly literature views nationalism as harmful to democratic transition. Yet Juan Linz and Alfred Stepan indirectly suggest that nationalism may benefit democratization. This study shows that under the right conditions nationalism can benefit democratic transition. Building on the typology of Linz and Stepan and the liberal nationalism tradition of Yael Tamir and David Miller, this study examines the transitions in Estonia and Ukraine. It introduces an important layer, the multinational federal state, into the typologies developed by Linz and Stepan to show that nationalism can prove a useful political tool of mobilization in a multiethnic setting.     

Development Discourse of the Globalists and Dependency Theorists: do the globalisation theorists rephrase and reword the central concepts of the dependency school?

This paper discusses the discourses of the globalisation theorists and dependency scholars in respect of their views on development and underdevelopment. The paper argues that there are underlying similarities between the central concepts of the dependency approach and globalisation theories. Some of the globalisation theorists come remarkably close to the central concepts of the dependency theories by rewording and rephrasing the same concepts but colouring them with different ideological hues. Neither classic development theory nor dependency theories have full explanatory power with respect to the current order of global economic relations. The branch of globalisation theories which has historical roots in classical development theory has shown resilience, while dependency theories have not totally lost their significance.     

Does the Increase in Competition between Schools Improve the Quality of the Service? The Role of Educational Reform in Chile

We analyse the effect of geographic competition between schools on academic performance in Chile. The analysis controls for prior pupil performance, and a range of school and municipality characteristics. We allow for the endogeneity of voucher school location, using the number of local Catholic churches as an instrument. We find that a larger number of public schools positively affects the quality of education of other schools located in the same area, particularly amongst middle-class families and in middle-ranking schools. However, the number of voucher schools is associated with lower performance in neighbouring schools, which we attribute to pupil sorting.     

Representative Bureaucracy in the Public Service? A Critical Analysis of the Challenges Confronting Women in the Civil Service of Ghana

In the public administration literature, the debate concerning the representation of minorities in the public bureaucracy continues to attract attention. The idea is that passive representation may lead to active representation with the later helping to develop policies and programs that will benefit minorities. Consequently, a number of governments have been implementing policies to enhance the involvement of minorities in public services. The Ghana government has not been left out in this endeavor. Since 1957, it has continued to institute measures to ensure a fair gender representation in the bureaucracy. This notwithstanding, the upper echelons of the bureaucracy continue to be dominated by males despite the over representation of women at the lower levels. What are the challenges confronting women in the public sector that make it difficult to achieve active representation? In this article, we examine the challenges confronting women to achieve active representation from a representative bureaucracy perspective.     

The impact of the Owen falls hydro‐electric project on the economy of Uganda 1

Inflation induced by an increase in the money supply may be conducive to economic growth, because it can be positively related to the savings ratio. This relationship is, however, limited by a certain rate of money supply which is associated with the maximum overall savings ratio. Treating money as a consumers’ good based upon Levhari‐Patinkin [1968], this study estimates a quadratic‐form savings function using international cross‐section data. It shows that the optimal rates of money supply are 11–12 per cent and 6–8 per cent in underdeveloped and developed countries respectively.     

The Evolution of the Market of the Hungarian Printing Industry after 1989: The End of a Success Story?

This article examines a case study of one industry in order to explore the factors influencing changing performance levels in the industries of post-socialist economies. It explores the influence on industrial performance of a number of once-only non-repetitive factors of market development that were typical of the transition period and compares them with longer term aspects of the market economy. The case that we discuss here is the development of the market for products of the Hungarian printing industry since the late 1980s. During the transition phase, privatisation, deregulation, the abolition of administrative distribution, and radical cuts in subsidies were all among the factors affecting this industry. Its supply chains also changed radically. However, these lost their importance after the transition had been completed and the long term processes of technical development and consumer behaviour became the main determinants of the behaviour of the printing companies.     

Perceptions of the “Arab Spring” Within the Salafi-Jihadi Movement

This article provides a detailed examination of how the Salafi-jihadi movement perceives the “Arab Spring” revolutionary events. Although Western scholars almost unanimously agree that these events will have an enormous impact on Al Qaeda and other groups that share its ideology, the voice of the jihadis has not been examined in detail. This article addresses this critical gap in the literature through an analysis of 101 significant documents produced by jihadi thinkers within a year following the movement's very first statement on the uprising in Tunisia. These include statements released by jihadi spokesmen, interviews with the movement's intellectual leaders, and discussions on jihadi Web forums. The article concludes that Al Qaeda and the jihadi movement largely believe that the uprisings provide them a great deal of new opportunities, and outlines the movement's developing strategy to capitalize on rapidly changing events on the ground.     

How Much Is Really Known About the Meaning of the Term “Conflict of Interest”?

Often codes of ethics require dealing with conflict of interest (CoI) without defining the boundaries of the phenomenon. In this case, CoI recognition is left to the discretion of the individual. The aim of this work is to answer to the following research questions: How much is really known about the meaning of the term CoI? Do individuals share the same CoI definition? In order to address these questions, we use the results of a questionnaire administered to 86 Italian public sector employees during some training courses on conflict of interest and corruption. The choice of this sample is particularly significant in that the Italian regulation provides for all public employees a code of conduct that requests avoiding, or at least disclosing, the CoI without prior definition of the meaning of the term. The results of our analysis show that public employees are uncertain about or come to different considerations of what CoI is and is not; consequently they deal with it in different ways. Thus, codes of conduct and ethics trainers should direct more attention on CoI definition, providing examples to facilitate its identification and resolution.