Intimate encounters: the ambiguities of belonging in the transnational migration of Indonesian domestic workers to Malaysia

In this article I explore ‘belonging’ both in terms of personal relatedness and national belonging in the context of Indonesian domestic worker migration to Malaysia. Riddled with metaphors of kinship both on the level of diplomatic ties between the two ‘kin states’ of Indonesia and Malaysia as well as on the level of intimate relations between employers and employees, the migration of Indonesian domestic workers to Malaysia allows for a critical analysis of the ways in which boundaries are drawn and redrawn on the political as well as on the intimate level of daily coexistence. The article argues that kinship provides a fruitful avenue from which to consider belonging in context of the specific relations between Indonesia and Malaysia and explores how belonging to the family and the nation is negotiated by Indonesian domestic workers, Malaysian employers and so-called ‘maid agents’.     

Juvenile Delinquency in Switzerland Over 50 Years: Assessing Trends beyond Statistics

The general public seems to be convinced that juvenile delinquency has massively increased over the last decades. However, this assumption is much less popular among academics and some media where doubts about the reality of this trend are often expressed. In the present paper, trends are followed using conviction statistics over 50 years, police and victimization data since the 1980s, and self-report data collected since 1992. All sources consistently point to a massive increase of offending among juveniles, particularly for violent offences during the 1990s. Given that trends were similar in most European countries, explanations should be sought at the European rather than the national level. The available evidence points to possible effects of increased opportunities for property offences since 1950, and although causality remains hard to prove, effects of increased exposure to extreme media violence since 1985Swiss conviction statistics are based on registration in the national register of convictions. After 1971, minors were registered only in exceptional cases (Balvig 1988, p. 30)     

Homicide-suicide and other violent deaths: an international comparison

Homicides followed by the suicide of the perpetrator constitute a serious form of interpersonal violence. Until now no study has directly compared homicide-suicides to other violent deaths from multiple countries, allowing for a better understanding of the nature of these violent acts. Using country-specific data, this study describes and compares the incidence and patterns of homicide-suicide as well as the relationship between homicide-suicide, homicide, suicide and domestic homicide in the Netherlands, Switzerland and the United States. The results indicate that cross-nationally, homicide-suicides are more likely than other types of lethal violence to involve a female victim, multiple victims, take place in a residential setting and to be committed by a firearm. Although homicide-suicides display many similarities across the different countries, differences exist regarding age and the use of firearms in the offence. This study indicates that homicides followed by suicides differ from both homicides and suicides in similar ways internationally. Cross-national differences in the availability of firearms may explain the international variation of homicide-suicide rates and patterns.     

The Emergence of a New Taboo: The Desexualisation of Youth in Western Societies since 1800

Sexual abuse of children and minors is, nowadays, regularly highlighted in the media. As such, it became an offence, however, only during the nineteenth century, along with the development of a particular, child-like social role of juveniles. Before 1800, adolescents were less excluded from adult life including marriage and procreation. Sexual activities were also generally criminalised outside marriage. Statutes concerning child abuse had their origins in these laws, as well as in statutes extending the scope of rape to the abuse of immature girls. Along with the increase of the age of consent from 10–12 to approximately 16 in most countries, abuse of boys and sexual contacts other than intercourse have been included in these statutes. This movement, sometimes supported by moral crusades against immorality, occurred in most Western countries along with the extension of the school system, and with the acceptance of the view that adolescence should, as a distinct period of life, be devoted to the preparation for adult life. In recent years, the focus has shifted from combating immorality to the protection of vulnerable parties. Sexual contacts between juveniles have been gradually decriminalised, whereas recent moral crusades call for more tougher prosecution policies, bringing to the courts a higher proportion of cases, including those involving acts committed abroad and/or in the remote past.