The Sudan: Past, Present and Future

Sir Angus Gillan Served in the Sudan Administration between1909-1939. He is now Director of the Empire Section of the BritishCouncil. This article is an abridgment of a lecture he gave,under the chairmanship of Mr. A.R.I. Mellor, at a combined meetingof the Royal African Society and the Royal Empire Society onthe 26th April. Sir Angus first gave reasons for the world'scomparative ignorance of the Sudan, broken only by events leadingup to the three dates: Khartoum 1885, Omdurman 1898, and Abyssinia1940.     

Australian Judicial Biography: Past,Present and Future

This article posits that biographical writing on High Court judges generates insights that may otherwise be overlooked in explorations of national history and politics. Firstly, the article addresses the relative scarcity of such biographies in Australia. It then explores themes common to the existing works and the ways in which they are evoked. The article canvasses some possibilities inherent in judicial biography, expanding briefly on the themes of national and gender identity, before surveying some of the minor controversies of the genre, including the question of who is best qualified to write it. The discussion concludes with the suggestion that the development of this genre would provide nuanced material for legal scholars, historians and political scientists alike.     

The IT Revolution in Japan: Past,Present and Future

Despite phenomenal mobile telephone sales and a reputation for technological innovation, Japan lags behind many other countries in the application of IT technology. In part, this may be attributed to a telecommunications industry which lacks competition, with a conventional corporate culture; but this is insufficient to explain all the factors behind Japan'slackluster performance. In the following article, Shinji Fukukawa, CEO of the Dentsu Institute for Human Studies, describes the history of IT in Japan and makes an international comparison of the development of IT. He argues that unless Japan manages to catch-up quickly with those IT-proficient countries, it may be too late and she will be left behind. Nevertheless, the future is not bleak, and if vital policy measures are implemented; the markets deregulated; the corporate culture changed; and societal knowledge of IT improved; Japan may still succeed in the IT revolution.     

澳门与东南亚的关系:过去、现在与未来

在目前澳门的对外关系中,东南亚并不是最重要的。然而,从长远的和发展的眼光看,东南亚在澳门的对外关系中将发挥越来越重要的作用,澳门应该重视发展与东南亚的经济社会关系。与东南亚建立良好的密切的关系,将为今后澳门经济的继续繁荣和发展作出重要的贡献     

国会图书馆的俄罗斯馆藏以及服务:过去,现在,将来

美国国会图书馆第一次系统的俄罗斯馆藏开始于1906年的尤金馆藏.此后,通过各种渠道定期地收购俄罗斯或与俄罗斯相关的资料.国会图书馆秉承全面、普遍的馆藏原则,受政治变化影响较小.俄罗斯馆藏的丰富与发展,也与20世纪直到今天的历任馆长的推动密切相关.随着数字时代的到来,俄罗斯馆藏的形式和内容也日益丰富和多样.展望未来,国会图书馆将继续充满兴致地收藏来自俄罗斯和与俄罗斯相关的资料.     

Empire,State and the Bedouin of the Middle East,Past and Present: A Comparative Study of Land and Settlement Policies

The Bedouin of the Middle East have been one of the region's most marginalized groups in modern times. This study assesses the interplay between state policies and the Bedouin in the last 150 years, from a comparative standpoint. We examine the development of land laws in the Middle East as they have affected the Bedouin, from the enactment of the Ottoman land laws of 1858 up to the present. Moreover we explore whether the land laws and the fate of the Bedouin are associated with the characteristics of the regime in each country. We find that the imposition of land laws and policies directed at nomadic and sedentarizing Bedouins has depended on disparate factors such as the origins of the leadership of countries (i.e. Bedouin or non-Bedouin) and the social and economic models embraced. Regimes with origins in the tribal-Bedouin fabric of the Middle East have pursued land policies that were favorable to the Bedouin, whereas regimes drawing their strength from urban elites and with socialist outlooks encouraged very different policies. We also consider whether the case of the Bedouin in Israel is unique or reflects a larger regional context.     

东南亚华文教育的过去、现在与未来:国家间关系的视角

东南亚华文教育的发展有其自身的规律,但是,我们不能不承认,国家间关系是促进当前东南亚华文教育出现热潮的主要推手,日益提升的中国—东盟经济贸易关系为东南亚华文教育的发展提供了坚实的物质基础,不断深化的中外人文交流则为东南亚华文教育提供了源源不断的动力。展望未来,东南亚华文教育将会有一个更加美好灿烂的明天。     

Eastern Figures: Orient and Empire in British Writing

This article outlines the labour impacts and social consequences of the 1997–98 Asian financial crisis and 2008–09 global financial crisis on Southeast Asia. Both had adverse consequences on output, employment, income and poverty in the region, although the impact of the global financial crisis was much less severe compared to the Asian financial crisis. Economies recovered quickly from both crises. However, labour markets continue to be characterised by informal, vulnerable and precarious employment. The crises and the ensuing efforts of employers to resort to increased flexibility in labour hiring in both crisis and recovery periods fanned labour protests despite the diminutive size of the trade union movement and the underdeveloped system of industrial relations in most countries. In turn, these protests have triggered national and regional debates on rules for labour contracting, minimum wage adjustments and social protection. These debates have remained unresolved even as the region is gearing up for fuller economic integration in 2015 labelled as the ASEAN Economic Community.     

Understanding the Hermit Kingdom As It Is and As It Is Becoming: The Past,Present and Future of North Korea

North Korea, a Cold War remnant in East Asia, has long been treated as an impenetrable mystery and an excruciatingly difficult subject to comprehend given its closed system, under which it has maintained its isolation even from its closest allies and neighbours. The idiosyncrasies that revolve around North Korea do pose challenges for understanding the country through the “conventional wisdom.” Nonetheless, as acknowledged by the scholarly works reviewed in this article, the regime in Pyongyang must be dealt with as it is and as it is becoming so as to better understand both the challenges and opportunities for the country. The difficult task for the United States (US) and its allies in East Asia, however, is to be pragmatic in terms of dealing with the regime in Pyongyang and to project strength in a way that promotes long-term regional and global peace as well as the betterment of people in the country. The books reviewed are Charles Armstrong, Tyranny of the Weak: North Korea and the World, 1950?1992, Andrei Lankov, The Real North Korea: Life and Politics in the Failed Stalinist Utopia and the collection edited by Kyung-ae Park and Scott Snyder, North Korea in Transition: Politics, Economy, and Society.     

The Political Economy of Fiji: Past,Present, and Prospects

Abstract

The present in terms of the level of economic development in Fiji can be explained by the past, and particularly the distribution of political power and resources some 140 years ago. The prominent role of the traditional chiefs, the Methodist Church, and ethnicity in the political economy of Fiji dates back to the earliest days of colonisation with ramifications for the coups of the past, the politics of the present, and the prospects for economic development. A spike in emigration of Indo-Fijians since the first coup d’état of 1987 is rapidly changing the ethnic composition of the population and with it the political economy of Fiji. The fourth constitution (in four decades) promulgated in 2013 is an attempt to break free from divisive politics of the past. If successful, then the prospects for a peaceful and prosperous Fiji are healthy.