The British Labour Party in the 1980s: The Battle Over the Palestinian/Israeli Conflict

Labour Party policy developments in the 1980s have been well-documented. However, the focus has tended to be on intra-party organisation and aspects of domestic and defence policy, with Labour's policy on international issues receiving comparatively little attention. Yet, some of the most interesting debates occurred in this area. One such concern was that over the party's policy towards the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, a set of nationalist rivalries that has long been a source of dilemma for the left. This paper examines how the party's previous pro-Israeli consensus broke down during the 1980s and the processes behind the eventual policy outcome, shedding light on the wider issue of policy change.     

Sino‐Japanese Relations

China's relations with Japan over the past several decades have been cyclical, with periods of relative cordiality interspersed with episodes of contention. Since 1995, however, the Beijing leadership has perceived a hardening of attitudes on the Japanese side in ways that are inimical to long-term amicable relations with the People's Republic of China. This has been mirrored in Tokyo, which sees Chinese behavior as increasingly provocative. The policy directions of the two states appear more divergent as well. Periodic slight thaws in relations and numerous joint projects notwithstanding, the problems between the two defy easy solution, and may be intractable. Weak leadership in both countries may encourage extremists in each to become more assertive.     

Remembering Emily Wilding Davison (1872–1913)

This editorial reflects on the life of Emily Wilding Davison (1872–1913), a suffragette in Edwardian Britain, who died on 8 June 1913 after running on to the race course at the Derby, four days earlier, and trying to grab the reins of the King's horse, Anmer. Rather than seeing her as a suicidal fanatic, it is suggested that she was a sensible, level-headed, religious woman, a risk-taker who probably did not intend to die.     

The International Federation for Research in Women’s History: some introductory comments

These introductory remarks about the International Federation for Research in Women’s History, founded in 1987, look at its aim and mention the range and diversity of countries which are affiliated to it. Reference is also made to the current global financial crisis and to the impact this may have on women’s history.     

Caring Letters Project: a military suicide-prevention pilot program

Background: The Caring Letters Project (CLP) is a suicide prevention program that involves sending brief caring letters to discharged inpatients following psychiatric hospitalization. Several studies suggest that repeatedly sending caring messages may reduce suicides and suicide attempts in high-risk populations. Aims: The aims of this study were to (1) evaluate feasibility of use in the military setting, (2) explore trends toward reduction of psychiatric rehospitalizations, (3) assess preference for and test e-mail correspondence, and (4) identify best practices and gather data to inform a randomized controlled study. Methods: A total of 110 psychiatric inpatients at a military treatment facility consented, were interviewed, and then received personalized handwritten letters or e-mails at regular intervals following discharge. Data collected included demographics, clinical characteristics, preference for e-mail versus postal mail, rates of undeliverable and return correspondence, rehospitalizations, and adverse events requiring safety procedures. Results: A total of 436 letters and e-mails have been sent to date. Most participants indicated preference for e-mail versus postal mail. Fifteen participants were readmitted for treatment compared to 20 patients in usual care. Twenty participants sent responses and all were positive statements about the program. There were no adverse events. Conclusions: This program is feasible for use at a military treatment facility. A randomized controlled trial is needed to determine whether the intervention can reduce suicide rates among military and veteran populations.     

The women’s suffrage movement in Britain and Ireland: new perspectives

ABSTRACT

The articles in this Special Issue were first presented at a conference held in Portsmouth, UK, 31st August–1st September 2018, to mark the centenary of the 1918 Representation of the People Act which, for the first time, granted to certain categories of women aged 30 and over the parliamentary vote. They expand our knowledge about the women’s suffrage campaign in Britain and in Ireland in a number of ways, offering biographical essays on neglected activists, as well as telling new stories about participants in national and local contexts. The contribution of the fragmentary autobiography of suffragette Jessie Kenney to existing historiography is discussed, while a study of the women’s movement in Ireland draws upon the contribution of new social movement theory. Finally, the international influence of the militant suffragette leader Emmeline Pankhurst is examined through the case study of France.     

The ‘Tianxia Trope’: will China change the international system?

The tianxia trope has been advanced as an organizing principle for post-Cold War international relations encompassing the rise of the People's Republic of China. The tianxia system is defined as a Sino-centric hierarchical relationship among unequals, governed according to Confucian principles of benevolence. As traditionally practiced, it incorporated an important role for the observance of ritual, including the presentation of tribute to the emperor as Son of Heaven, purportedly resulting in a Pax Sinica. Its supporters believe that, if adopted in today's world, tianxia would constitute a great improvement over the anarchic Westphalian system of theoretically equal states who possess sovereignty, i.e. inviolability within their own borders. Because they answer to no superior authority, the Westphalian system is by its very nature conducive to discord and war. This article will argue that both the tianxia and Westphalian systems have serious flaws and were rarely practiced as either their proponents or detractors argue. However, even states whose domestic autonomy is compromised by internal dissent and whose weaknesses prevent their playing an influential role internationally have vested interests in maintaining adherence to the Westphalian system, if only as a bargaining position. The PRC government itself has accepted the principles inherent therein through such actions as joining the United Nations and becoming a signatory of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence. It zealously defends its sovereign prerogatives when useful, even as it makes efforts to educate the world on the virtues of a Confucian Great Harmony, and its supporters advocate following a somewhat nebulously defined Chinese model. In the absence of compelling incentives for major players in the current international system to adopt the tianxia system, Westphalian sovereignty appears likely to remain the organizing principle of international relations for the foreseeable future, its serious deficiencies notwithstanding. To paraphrase Winston Churchill's remarks on democracy, it may be the worst form of government except for all the others.     

Is Fertility the Unspoken Issue in the Debate Between Liberal and Conservative Family Values?

In two recent books, Linda McClain, The Place of Families: Fostering Capacity, Equality, and Responsibility (2006), and James Q. Wilson, The Marriage Problem: How Our Culture Has Weakened Families (2002), lay out the respective positions in the opposing family values that divide the United States. Wilson maintains that family well-being rests on the foundation of a strong cultural commitment to marriage, while McClain articulates liberal feminist values that require equality within and among families. This article maintains that delayed childbearing, not marriage or equality, holds the key to the new middle-class morality and discusses the prospects for family law pragmatism in an era of values polarization.