Alone and far from home: Are separated refugee children adequately protected?

Among the thousands who arrive in Europe to seek asylum each year, a significant number are children traveling on their own. Like adults, they are fleeing from war and armed conflict situations, persecution, severe poverty, and deprivation. Some arrive because they have been trafficked and some are fleeing for reasons specifically related to their status as children. They need special attention, not only in terms of specialized care and assistance, but also in terms of the refugee status determination procedure. When they arrive in a country of asylum they risk further violations of their rights. This paper intends to outline the rignts of these children under international law; to highlight key protection concerns facing them, particularly in the European context; to summarize ways of how a UN/NGO program has attempted to address these problems; and to make some specific recommendations.     

Where Greens Support Conservatives: Lessons from the Rundle Minority Government in Tasmania 1996–98

This paper examines the Greens’ support of the conservative Liberal Rundle minority government in Tasmania (1996–98) in the context of Tasmania's political greening, and with an interest in the operation and experience of this government, and its policy impact in a number of key areas. Although Green support of a conservative government is a unique experience thus far in Australia's history, it is not unknown for Greens to support or even to serve in conservative governments elsewhere at the subnational and the national level. The paper begins by examining these circumstances, before turning to account for Tasmania's political greening, the Liberal‐Green minority government experience, its breakdown, policy impacts, and lessons relevant to the broader literature. It addresses the lack of attention to minority government and support parties in political scholarship, 1 and the experience of green parties participating in government at the subnational level.     

Do the Ladies Run This Mutha? The Relationship between Political Rap and Black Feminist Attitudes

Music has been thought of as an art form that expresses ideas and sentiments of the artist. This article examines the relationship between political and non-political rap and Black feminist attitudes. This study includes data from original experiments conducted at Benedict College; a historically Black college in Columbia, SC, where Black males and females were exposed to various genres of music and their support of Black feminist attitudes were measured. Blacks exposed to political rap display increased support of Black feminist attitudes compared to those exposed to non-political rap and the control group, subjects who were not exposed to any form of music. Our research finds that those exposed to non-political rap have less affinity for Black feminist attitudes than those in any other group. This research is important to political science because it furthers our knowledge about public opinion and political attitudes. Specifically, this article demonstrates that non-traditional media forms also have an impact on political attitudes. Specifically, exposure to political rap has a significantly positive impact on the agreement with Black feminist attitudes when compared to exposure to non-political rap. Therefore, not all subgenres of rap music are consistently harmful to Black feminist attitudes and attitudes toward women.     

Urbanization,Rural Mobility,and New Class Relations in Darjeeling,India

Throughout the developing world, rapid urbanization is leading to new social relations and new conflicts between urban and (formerly) rural populations. This paper examines this process of change through a detailed examination of changing rural–urban relations in the town of Darjeeling, in the Himalayan foothills in Eastern India. In Darjeeling, increased rural mobility, accelerated rural-to-urban migration and the increased participation of rural people in local politics have led to major changes in the town. We demonstrate that the upward trajectory of rural classes who were previously subordinate is leading the more established urban residents to feel threatened, resulting in a redrawing of local political issues along rural–urban lines and a reconfiguration of class consciousness and social relations. The urban middle class, whose opportunities in the town have stagnated or declined, see rural migrants as a source of competition for increasingly scarce resources and blame them for the overall decline in the quality of urban life. They mobilize their (predominantly cultural) capital to reinforce markers of cultural distinction between them and the rural migrants and to delegitimize the political gains they have made. We argue that rural–urban conflict is emerging as the chief source of tension in the town and that this tension is largely grounded in class issues.     

Safeguarding adults and mass marketing fraud – Perspectives from the police,trading standards and the voluntary sector

Despite the growing awareness of mass marketing fraud (MMF) in the financial abuse of vulnerable older people, little empirical research has been undertaken in this area. This paper is one of the first to consider the perspectives of a range of professionals who work with victims of mass marketing fraud and financial crime. MMF is a growing threat in the financial abuse of older people, and is increasingly recognised as a concern for professionals involved in supporting and safeguarding vulnerable older people. This paper considers the themes emerging from a small exploratory qualitative study into the perspectives of professionals working to safeguard those at risk of MMF and considers some of the complexities involved in tackling MMF. This involves consideration of the techniques used to groom and lure victims in plausible looking frauds, and the factors that serve to reinforce their sustained involvement in such activity.     

The impact of pre-treatment responsivity and treatment participation on violent recidivism in a violent offender sample

This study assessed whether pre-treatment responsivity (psychopathy, motivation to attend treatment, denial and minimisation of offending behaviour, and feelings of guilt or shame) predicted violent recidivism and/or moderated the effectiveness of a violence intervention programme. Participants were 114 male violent offenders who were referred to a structured violent offender group treatment programme; 84 offenders commenced the programme. Results showed that treatment completion did not have a significant main effect on recidivism but that psychopathy scores moderated the effects of treatment. Offenders with high scores on the Psychopathy Checklist: Screening Version (PCL:SV) who were rated as having good engagement with treatment, or who completed treatment, had similar violent recidivism rates compared to offenders with low PCL:SV scores. In contrast, offenders with high PCL:SV scores who dropped out of treatment or were poorly engaged had significantly higher rates of violent recidivism. These findings indicate that treatment effectiveness could be enhanced, and greater reductions in recidivism achieved, if programmes find ways to engage and maintain psychopathic offenders in treatment.     

Assessing effective participation in vulnerable juvenile defendants

Effective participation in trial is outlined under article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights and refers to the ability to understand and engage in trial. Juvenile defendants are often referred to psychologists or psychiatrists by their solicitors to establish ‘effective participation’ capacity. In the USA, key components to participate effectively are defined and standardised assessments available. In the UK, no formal measures exist. A consecutive series of 20 adolescents aged 12–20 years, referred by their solicitors to our service, were assessed using a standardised battery and a semi-structured interview designed to assess effective participation. Fifty-five per cent had at least one neurodevelopmental disorder. Low IQ was common and 50% had age-equivalent language scores below 10 years. Rates of depression, anxiety and PTSD were high. Knowledge about trial was poor. These findings have implications for Criminal Justice System professionals and to ensure fair trials for young defendants.     

Are ivory antiques actually antique?

Crime, Law and Social Change - Twenty-five samples of ivory artefacts were analysed using a radiocarbon dating method. These artefacts were part of a collection of 77 items seized during a wildlife...     

Truth and Method in Southern Criminology

Critical Criminology - What does it mean to “do” southern criminology? What does this entail and what demands should it place on us as criminologists ethically and methodologically?...