Crime prevention strategies by the United Nations: A global perspective

Most of the studies on crime show that no society is immune from crime and organized crime. Large or small, complex or simple, developed or underdeveloped, every society faces the task of controlling crime and organized crime. Furthermore, recent events reveal that the so‐called ‘'domestic crime'’ has become more globalized, or internationalized. Unless dramatic changes take place, collectively, e.g., by the United Nations, no single nation can expect to control or regulate illegal activities. In particular, crime prevention and criminal justice has been a long standing agenda item of the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council; the two principal legislative bodies governing the United Nations program of work in the criminal justice field. The Council is, after the Assembly itself, the major legislative and policy‐making organ of the United Nations. The field of criminal justice is an important component of social and economic affair, the Economic and Social Council determines policy and initiates activities. Within the United Nations system, the most direct responsibility for international efforts toward crime prevention and control is borne by the recently created Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (which has replaced the expert subsidiary body of the Economic and Social Council, namely, the Committee on Crime Prevention and Control) and the Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Branch. The establishment of the Commission, by the Economic and Social Council in February 1992, ushered in a new era in United Nations involvement in crime prevention and criminal justice. The commitment of the Member States to the prevention of crime and the promotion of justice through strengthened international cooperation has been clearly spelled out in numerous General Assembly and Economic and Social Council resolutions. Those resolutions are indicative of the Member States’ heightened awareness and concern that crime, in its internationalized form, has to be tackled by a multilateral approach including international cooperative measures, and that interdependent efforts are urgently required. The Commission provides a means by which Governments can be directly involved in the determination and supervision of the program of work of the United Nations in crime prevention and can clearly manifest their political will. Its establishment was the result of a long process of review of the functioning and program of work of the United Nations in crime prevention and criminal justice, and was seen as an indispensable condition of a structural reorganization of United Nations activities in this field. For further information on CRIME PREVENTION AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE, and THE UNITED NATIONS COMMISSION ON CRIME PREVENTION AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE, see UN Newsletter, Numbers 22/23, July, l993. Further information on Operational Activities of the Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Branch since the First Session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice in April 1992 (on Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe Western Europe and North America and Global aspects, see the same documents, pp. 22–26 for more detail.     

Political Meritocracy and Direct Democracy: A Hybrid Experiment

At the turn of the 20th Century when Western power was at its height, Sun Yat‐Sen sought to blend the Confucian tradition of meritocratic governance and Western‐style democracy in his vision for modern China. With the “rise of the rest” in the 21st Century—led by China—perhaps the political imagination is open once again, this time not only to Western ideas flowing East, but Eastern ideas flowing West as well. The political imagination has been pried open anew not only because of the sustained success of non‐Western modernity in places like Singapore and China, but because democracy itself has become so dysfunctional across the West, from its ancient birthplace in Greece to its most advanced outpost in California. That liberal democracy is the best form of governance ever achieved in the long arc of history is no longer self‐evident. Today, democracy, which has been captured by a short‐term, special‐interest political culture, has to prove and improve itself by incorporating elements of meritocracy and the long‐term perspective. If not, political decay beckons. In this section, we evaluate the tradeoeffs and ponder the possibilities of combining a more knowledegable democracy with a more accountable meritocracy.     

青少年保护立法要有新视角新载体

青少年成长过程必然触及社会关系的各个层次和方面,与社会方方面面发生联系,自然有愈来愈多的社会关系亟需法律来确认和调节,国家的法律在保护青少年健康成长中至关重要。我国立法机关面对经济和社会快速发展的形势,依据国家的有关方针、政策以及现实生活中的大量经验、做法,结合所签署的联合国文件精神,     

Think Local

Terrorism is the wrong term. War is the wrong metaphor. Iraq is the wrong war. That pretty much sums up how the fight against the Islamist jihadists who targeted America has gone awry in the five years since September 11, 2001 — a similar period of time in which the United States had mobilized from virtual scratch and defeated Germany and Japan in World War II.     

To our Readers

Contemporary International Relations, the English journal published by China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, is now 15 years old. Since its conception as the first Chinese journal in English covering the field of international relations, it has presented to our readers numerous articles written by the research fellows of our institutes on the subjects of international affairs, international relations, and international relations theories. We have received numerous letters of encouragement and positive comments. We have also gotten letters in which our readers have given their opinions on what they would like to see in this journal. Some readers pointed out to us the mistakes in the translation. Other readers noted the occasional delay in delivery or even missing issues. We are grateful to those who have always supported us. We also feel the need to improve for those who have not been totally satisfied with our journal.