War-Power Reform in Australia: (Re)considering the Options

The decision to go to war in Australia remains the prerogative of the Executive. The lack of parliamentary authorisation of perhaps the most significant decision a democracy can make has seen sustained, but unsuccessful, efforts to reform legislation. In the wake of the costly invasion and occupation of Iraq in 2003, repeated calls for legislative reform of Australia's war powers have failed to find traction amongst Coalition and Australian Labor Party (ALP) leadership. Lamenting the lack of transparency and accountability in the current system, those favouring legislative reform would see authorisation of combat missions placed in the hands of Parliament. However, given the lack of support from either of the major parties, any legislative reform remains unlikely. Given this impasse, this article argues that a compromise option, in the form of a new war-powers convention, may be a small step towards democratising the decision of going to war. While not legally binding, this constitutional convention would represent an agreement by the major parties that overseas combat operations will be properly debated in Parliament.     

‘Let's Win this Game Together’: Children's Rights Violations,Macro‐Securitisation and the Transformative Potential of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil

Sport's transformative potential is known to support marginalised children, to deal with traumatic experiences and instil positive values; yet hosting mega sporting events (MSEs) can have negative impacts. Drawing on participatory research with favela‐based children during the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, this article argues that MSEs bring a macro‐securitisation of urban life, which causes considerable harm. This paper also suggests that the inclusion of children's voices in advocacy debates can challenge top‐down securitisation and might allow MSEs to foster further positive social transformation. Therefore, juxtaposed with causing harm, macro‐securitisations can open opportunities for children to take action and have their voices heard.     

法医学尸体检验职业防护指南(建议稿)

法医工作者的职业暴露风险极大,案件现场及尸体上的有毒有害物质、高致病性微生物以及利器、骨折等因素均可能给法医带来身心伤害甚至生命危险。随着经济社会发展,法医的工作环境已经较过去显著改善,但是针对个人防护的重视程度仍需提高。近年来公共卫生事件频发,给法医职业防护带来新的挑战,迫切需要借鉴生物安全领域的先进技术和防护理念,以满足新形势下法医工作的需要。本指南立足当前法医职业防护的实际需求,从暴露风险、防护分级、应急处置等角度阐述,希望能为制定法医职业防护相关标准提供参考,以指导法医工作者开展个人防护工作,为提升法医职业化水平和身心健康提供帮助。     

Mobilising the Periphery: Brazil's My House My Life Programme and the Homeless Workers' Movement

Brazil's Movimento de Trabalhadores Sem Teto (MTST, Homeless Workers' Movement) has grown dramatically in recent years. This growth was partly provided for by the use of a large government housing programme, Minha Casa Minha Vida (MCMV, My House My Life), which allowed the MTST to construct housing for its members and swell its ranks with thousands of new members. Yet some have argued that the MCMV programme used by the MTST may compromise the autonomy of civil society organisations. This article, by contrast, argues that while the MCMV programme encouraged bureaucratic practices, it also helped to promote the cultural politics of the MTST.     

The politics of mortgage credit expansion in the small coordinated market economies

Abstract

Recent contributions to the comparative political economy literature claim that liberal market economies are vulnerable to asset booms and busts because of financial deregulation, shrinking welfare states and a political ideology emphasising financial self-sufficiency. This article examines the rapid expansion of mortgage lending in three coordinated market economies (CMEs): Denmark, Sweden and the Netherlands. This expansion is puzzling given that all three countries are CMEs with generous welfare states. Yet the pattern of mortgage lending resembles the Anglo-Saxon or liberal market economies (LMEs) more than other CMEs. The article argues that mortgage bubbles in the small CMEs emerged as the unintended outcome of pairing neoliberal programmes to expand home ownership with collectivist housing institutions. This resulted in supply restrictions and rising property values which saddled households with extraordinarily high mortgage debts. In short, mortgage credit bubbles are not unique to Anglo-liberal welfare states and may have different origins.     

中央环保督察:压力型环境治理模式的自我调适—一项基于内容分析法的案例研究

本文旨在利用内容分析法全面展示中央环保督察这一中国环境治理场域下的最新治理实践。中央环保督察的启动是中央政府对压力型环境治理实践中失衡的央地关系、府际关系和政社关系的主动调适,并试图消解因上述关系失衡可能引致的合法性风险。环保督察的实施一方面实现了环保压力的再传导,并通过引导地方政府的注意力来塑造其对环境治理的长期偏好,另一方面也通过建立督查信息链改善了央地间的信息不对称。但由于环保督察内生于压力型体制,因而其领导、组织和运行的微观机制还无法摆脱对运动式治理的路径依赖,这反映了转型期中国环境治理实践的特点:复杂繁重的环境治理任务呼唤进一步完善以法治化为核心的常规治理,但替代性治理机制的匮乏使中央在短期内仍需借助高规格的环保督察来倒逼地方政府完善常规治理。