A Review of: “Alison Pargeter. The New Frontiers of Jihad: Radical Islam in Europe.”

Recent years have witnessed a significant increase in the amount of counterterrorism legislation worldwide. The commonly held assumption behind the adoption of counterterrorism legislation links it to the terrorist threat in a state. However, little research has focused on empirically testing reasons driving states to legislate. This article addresses this void by analyzing the puzzle of why states choose to adopt new terrorism-specific legislation. The article presents empirical analysis of the probability of states to legislate before and after September 11, 2001, and is based on a new database of counterterrorism legislation. The findings reveal that before September 11, state decisions to adopt new legislation correlated with the number of terrorist organizations operating in their territory. Since September 11, however, the most significant predictors for the adoption of new legislation have become the existence of previous counterterrorism legislation and the participation of a state in the War on Terror.     

A Review of: “Julia Sukys. Silence is Death: The Life and Work of Tahar Djaout.”

This article looks at Internet use by insurgent groups in the North Caucasus in the context of a regional diffusion of violence. Using a mixed methods research design that combines hyperlink network analysis and micro-discourse analysis, it examines the online characteristics of the Caucasus Emirate and the main frames conveyed by the websites affiliated with the Emirate. It demonstrates the existence of a network of cross-referencing websites that, collectively, articulate the Emirate's political agenda online and allow for the dissemination of frames across the Web. It also shows that while jihadism provides a cultural resource that fosters a global sense of community, the jihadization of discourse does not eradicate local references as the local dynamics of the conflict have a strong impact on online communicative strategies. Finally, although based on a specific case study, this article highlights the potential of a mixed methods research design as applied to an analysis of virtual insurgent networks.     

Engaging with the legal profession and the provision of legal aid/assistance

The state of defamation laws within the Commonwealth poses a significant threat to the right to freedom of speech, expression and information. Within the United Kingdom there is a growing movement for the reform of the procedural aspects of libel law following several high profile cases that have brought the public’s attention to a number of problems within existing libel law. ^{1 1} Significant concern surrounded the judgment in this case and the question of costs MGN Limited v the United Kingdom – 39401/04 [2011] ECHR 66 (18 January 2011). In Jamaica, criminal defamation laws are facing reform and the recommendations for change are continuing to make their way through the legislative process. The pernicious effects of libel actions are amplified within small jurisdictions and there is a serious danger that the crippling penalties on defendants as a result of such actions ‘chill’ free speech and stifle dissent. ^{2 2}Guardian editorial, ‘Press freedom: The Singapore grip’ The Guardian (17 November 2010) <http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/nov/17/press-freedom-singapore-grip> The Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) an independent NGO working for Human Rights in the Commonwealth, presented a paper to the 2010 Meeting of Law Ministers and Attorneys General of Small Commonwealth Jurisdictions (LMSCJ) on the human rights case for libel law reform in small jurisdictions. ^{3 3}Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative, ‘Overview of Media Freedom and Defamation: The Human Rights case for Libel Law Reforms in the Commonwealth’ (LMSCJ Paper, Commonwealth, Secretariat, Marlborough House, London). This paper was produced at the London officer of CHRI – written by Frederick Cowell with research assistance from Catherine Fischl, Alix Langrounat and Sirintiya Robberts. This is a summary of the research and the paper presented at the LMSCJ meeting. The basic findings were that the presence of criminal defamation laws on the statute books and procedural aspects of civil defamations laws posed a threat to the realisation of freedom of speech and CHRI put a series of recommendations to the delegates calling for reform in these areas.     

法律法規

中華人民共和國全國人民代表大會常務委員會頒佈的法律《全國人民代表大會常務委員會關於修改〈中華人民共和國商標法〉的決定》（2013年8月30日中華人民共和國第十二屆全國人民代表大會常務委員會第四次會議通過2013年8月30日中華人民共和國主席令第六號公佈自2014年5月1日起施行）《關於授權國務院在中國（上海）自由貿易試驗區暫時調整有關法律規定的行政審批的決定》.