Honour and expulsion: Terrorism in nineteenth‐century Japan

Case studies of terrorist groups from before 1900 are rare and only a handful have been fully detailed in the terrorism literature. This article describes one such group, the shishi, a radical samurai movement which waged a terrorist campaign in Japan just prior to the Meiji Restoration. Placed in context, the origin, structure and methods of this group are described. Also examined is the profound impact the movement had on Japanese society. It is argued that the study of older terrorist groups warrants greater interest and that a scientific understanding of terrorism depends on the incorporation of such early examples.     

Bilateral Graduation: The Impact of EPAs on LDC Trade Space

Abstract

As trade is prominently mainstreamed into development policies, the ongoing Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) negotiations between the EU and the African, Carribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries are a turning point in Least Developed Countries (LDC) engagement with the international trading system. The process covers most UN-designated LDCs and is the first time they feature in the first row of international trade talks. We explore how the space LDCs occupy in the trade regime will be affected by EPAs. The analysis suggests that they move LDCs towards effective graduation from special and differential treatment, while innovating on policy tools to address underdevelopment.     

Prevalence of mental disorders among sexual offenders in forensic psychiatry and prison

The objective of this study was to compare the prevalence of mental disorders among sexual offenders in forensic psychiatry (SF) with the prevalence of such disorders among sexual offenders in prison (SP) and violent offenders in prison (VP). In a cross-sectional study, 40 of 47 SF detained in forensic psychiatry in Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany, could be included. They were compared with 30 SP and 26 VP. All study participants were interviewed by means of SCID I and SCID II and assessments of functioning (GAF, BSS). There was a high prevalence of mental disorders (DSM-IV: Axis I) in all three groups (SF: 80%, SP: 63%, VP: 73%). Among SP and VP, this was attributed mainly to substance use disorders. The prevalence and comorbidity of personality disorders was significantly higher in the group of the SF (prevalence: SF: 85%, SP: 27%, VP: 39%). In a psychopathological view, SP were all together more similar to the imprisoned non-sexual delinquent VP than to the SF.     

Finger prints on human skin--results of a general applications-oriented series

Numerous methods have been described for making dactyloscopic traces visible on human skin, but these have never become routine--last but not least because they are too complicated and time-consuming to perform. The purpose of the present investigation was to find out to what extent fingerprints on the skin of deceased persons can be made visible with the help of conventional methods like iodine fuming or brushing with Magna-Brush and can be preserved with gelatine film or moulding material. Of the total number of 486 experimental fingerprints the dermal ridges could be made visible in 150 prints. The best findings were obtained when the trace had been applied several hours post mortem. On the skin of the extremities better results could be achieved than on the trunk or the neck. Dactyloscopic tracing on the skin of bodies in homicide cases should be taken into consideration especially if there is evidence that the perpetrator touched the victim after his/her death (e.g. if the body was transported).     

The Dual Discourse About Peruvian Domestic Workers in Santiago de Chile: Class, Race, and a Nationalist Project

This article examines the functions of the "dual discourse" about Peruvian migrant domestic workers in contemporary Santiago. A 2002 field study found that middle-class employers of Peruvian workers simultaneously praised them as superior workers and denigrated them as uneducated and uncivilized. While this response is not unique to Santiago, this study argues that it fulfilled particular ideological functions in this context. The praise served to discipline the Chilean working class, who middle-class employers claimed no longer knew their place. The epithets served as a foil for Chilean national identity. Stories about Peruvians serve as tools in ongoing ideological contestations over class, race, and nation in Chile and, at the same time, shape the working conditions and integration of the migrants themselves.     

The Effect of Inequality on the Relation Between Socioeconomic Stratification and Political Trust in Europe

Social Justice Research - While the relation between inequality and levels of political trust has been intensely investigated, there is no consensus yet on the mechanism behind this relation. In...     

Emerging powers at the UN: ducking for cover?

The economic rise of China, India, South Africa, and Brazil has turned these countries into important providers of development assistance. While they seem increasingly comfortable in their bilateral relations with other developing countries, they are struggling to adapt their position within global institutions such as the United Nations. Do they turn their increased weight into a greater influence at the UN, and if not, why not? This article analyses financial contributions and political positioning at the UN in the area of development. Despite small changes, the four countries mostly insist on keeping their traditional status as recipients and ‘ordinary’ developing countries. This reservation can be explained in two ways: first, a more explicit leadership creates political and material costs that outweigh the potential benefits. Second, their shared experiences as developing countries make it hard to break ranks at the UN.     

Beating the water: The terrorist search for power,control and authority

Starting from Mao's well‐known metaphor of ‘water and fish’, this article examines the nature of power as it applies to terrorist groups. Terrorists are under constant pressure actively to increase their influence and control over their constituent communities. Our understandings of how terrorist groups can do this has generally suffered from being too limited and overly simplistic. Focusing on Northern Ireland, this article explores how terrorist groups can first identify and then access various sources of power which can be used to strengthen the group's position and authority. The article argues that there are identifiable strategies which can be exploited by current and future terrorists in virtually any setting. It is in the interest of those combating terrorism to study these principles closely if they wish to limit the power and durability of terrorist opponents.     

Symbolische Grenzziehungen und nationale Herkunft. Eine explorative Studie über Distinktionsprozesse an einer multinationalen Schule in Brüssel

Despite processes of globalization and Europeanization, countries continue to differ not only in terms of their economic resources and political power, but also in terms of their reputation or “symbolic capital”. Drawing on the research literature on symbolic boundaries, the paper investigates to what extent the national origin of students at a multinational school shapes symbolic boundaries between them. The analysis is based on qualitative group interviews with students of a European School in Brussels, a uniquely Europeanized institution with the aim of educating the future citizens of Europe. It is shown that students draw symbolic boundaries in two steps. First, students classify their schoolmates in terms of categories specific to youth culture, including: (a) a specific youth lifestyle, (b) effortless academic achievement, (c) cosmopolitan values and (d) belonging to a dominant language group. In a second step, these primary categories are attributed to different national groups. As a consequence, a status hierarchy between countries emerges, primarily between Northwest-European and Eastern European countries. The results of this study point to the ongoing effects of national symbolic capital for processes of status differentiation, even within highly Europeanized contexts.