The Great Power Balance, the United Nations and What the Framers Intended: In Partial Response to Hans Kochler

This article is partly a reply to Professor Hans Köchler,who argues that the total absence of a balance of power hasbecome the fundamental predicament of the United Nations Organizationin the 21st century. He locates that problem in the veto powerof the permanent five members, saying that it creates an irreconcilablenormative contradiction with the doctrine of sovereign equality.On the contrary, this article takes a historical view and arguesthat the Framers of the United Nations (UN) Charter clearlysaw the greater opportunity which greater power brings to oilthe wheels of the machinery which they built. Choosing betweena Security Council that could act unchecked and therefore decisivelyand one which evinces a separation of powers in its design,the Framers opted for the latter. The veto separates power.Finally, Professor Köchler argues that the UN has beenmarginalized in recent events. This article argues that hisunderlying assumption, that the shift in the global power balanceof 1945 to the current unipolar imbalance of power automaticallycontroverts the power balance envisioned in the Charter, isnot wholly borne out. The Charter was not simply meant to reflectthe actual patterns of global power outside the organizationbut was intended to foster an enduring understanding of theneed to maintain a specific power balance. By putting the vetoin several hands, the Framers have required the permanent fivemembers to continuously negotiate and seek agreement among themselves.It is this which, in large part, explains observable attemptsby even would-be transgressors today to bring their action withinthe framework of Charter legality.     

Messages from a rarely visited island: Duress and lack of consent in marriage

If we fear repetition in the signs that come to us from the world, it is because in that repetition we discover that the world's powers are always there, dozing perhaps, and surely somewhat removed, but still present and ready to swallow us as if we were a word in their language. If we feel strangely uneasy when we note that a word, automatically repeated, seems to lose all connection with its meaning, it is because at the very moment we sense the weakness, the precarious nature of the act on which all culture is based.I would like to thank the following for reading and commenting upon my work at various stages: Kate Green, Jeremy Roche and Qudsia Mirza.     

Governance criteria for effective transboundary biodiversity conservation

Intact ecosystems across jurisdictional boundaries are of growing importance as the world continues to experience the impacts of climate change. International boundaries have, however, been drawn for political rather than ecological reasons. Ecosystem components often occur in more than one nation and are consequently subject to conflicting management and land-use practices. This research integrates the legal, institutional and environmental management components of transboundary biodiversity conservation to propose a comprehensive framework for evaluating the potential effectiveness of transboundary conservation regimes. The paper presents twelve criteria for the effective transboundary conservation of terrestrial biodiversity. These criteria can assist in the evaluation of existing initiatives and the design of future ones. The criteria will be of increasing importance as decision-makers seek to adapt to climate change and conserve biodiversity at all scales of political organization.     

韩国学全球化的战略方法论——基于韩流经验的研究

本文旨在探讨韩国学研究在社会学领域构建普遍问题框架的方法和战略.为此,首先分析韩流的经验教训为构建韩国学的问题框架带来的启示;然后,着眼于韩国学的未来发展,从社会学的角度探讨普遍的知识体系应该关注的方法论策略.全球化带来了文化的广泛传播,强化了地方和世界之间的相互联系和沟通,所谓的全球本土化和本土全球化现象日益普遍.韩流作为一种创造性的杂糅文化,在跨文化交流中起到了重要作用.分析并借鉴韩流的经验及吸取其教训,有助于韩国学在国际学术界建立具有独创性的知识体系.为了在社会学领域实现韩国学的全球化,应该摒弃照搬西欧或美国学界框架的做法,开发出符合韩国社会历史现实的概念、理论和方法,根据韩国国情确立问题框架,对事实和价值做出判断,从韩国的角度分析和解释全球问题,实现韩国学的全球化,将韩国的特殊性与区域和世界的普遍性相结合,促进韩国学的发展.     

The study of metabolite-to-parent drug ratios of methamphetamine and methylenedioxymethamphetamine in hair

The metabolite-to-parent drug ratios were determined in the hair of 2444 methamphetamine (MA) abusers who had produced MA-positive hair results from 2001 to May 2005 and in the hair of 53 ecstasy abusers who had produced positive methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) hair results from 2002 to May 2005. For the hair analyses, hair strands were washed, cut into small pieces and extracted for 20 h in 1 mL methanol containing 1% HCl. Drugs in the extract were determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) using selective ion monitoring after derivatization with trifluoroacetic anhydride. The six range groups were divided as follows on the basis of MA concentrations in hair (n = 2389): 0.5-5 ng/mg (n = 950), 5-10 ng/mg (n = 582), 10-20 ng/mg (n = 503), 20-30 ng/mg (n = 160), 30-40 ng/mg (n = 80), more than 40 ng/mg (n = 114) to assess the correlations between MA concentrations and metabolite-to-parent drug ratios. In groups of higher MA concentrations, lower ratios of AP/MA were found, and there was a statistically significant difference among six range groups. Comparisons of age groups (tens, twenties, thirties, forties, fifties, and sixties) and male and female subjects for the ratios of AP/MA showed a statistically significant difference. The detection of metabolites and the parent drug with reasonable ratios was found to be a useful indicator for distinguishing internal drug incorporation from external contamination. In our study, MA users can produce 0.4-116% (mean = 9%) of amphetamine (AP) concentrations in hair, and ecstasy users 1-110% (mean = 12%) of methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA) in appropriately washed hair samples.     

Freedom to hate: social media,algorithmic enclaves,and the rise of tribal nationalism in Indonesia

Empirically grounded in the 2017 Jakarta Gubernatorial Election (Pilkada DKI) case, this article discusses the relationship of social media and electoral politics in Indonesia. There is no doubt that sectarianism and racism played significant roles in the election and social media, which were heavily utilized during the campaign, contributed to the increasing polarization among Indonesians. However, it is misleading to frame the contestation among ordinary citizens on social media in an oppositional binary, such as democratic versus undemocratic forces, pluralism versus sectarianism, or rational versus racist voters. Marked by the utilization of volunteers, buzzers, and micro-celebrities, the Pilkada DKI exemplifies the practice of post-truth politics in marketing the brand. While encouraging freedom of expression, social media also emboldens freedom to hate, where individuals exercise their right to voice their opinions while actively silencing others. Unraveling the complexity of the relationship between social media and electoral politics, I suggest that the mutual shaping between users and algorithms results in the formation of “algorithmic enclaves” that, in turn, produce multiple forms of tribal nationalism. Within these multiple online enclaves, social media users claim and legitimize their own versions of nationalism by excluding equality and justice for others.     

How (Dis)Satisfied is China? A power transition theory perspective

The uninterrupted rise of China, concomitant with the progressive erosion of the US unipolar moment, has generated increased interest for the (Power Transition Theory) PTT in the last decade. Observers and scholars have, however, often focused on the possible overtaking of the United States by China, and overlooked the importance of the challenger's ‘satisfaction’ in the PTT. This article fills this gap by providing an assessment of China's satisfaction with the contemporary East Asian ‘status quo’. Contrary to recent assessments depicting China as a ‘status quo’ actor, the use of the main three indicators developed by the PTT suggests that China is a strongly dissatisfied power.     

Regionalism: A Singaporean Perspective

Multilateralism versus regionalism: the question is whether to adhere to the arrangements of an all encompassing international organization or to enter bilateral and regional agreements which could potentially upset the multilateral trade apple cart. The heated debate that rages over the merits of either system is dividing the various schools of thought on trade policy. Despite the WTO's increased importance and prominence in the last 50 years, the world has seen a great increase in regional trade agreements (RTAs) which seem to be contradictory to the spirit of trade liberalization. In this article, Lim Chin Beng, former ambassador to Japan and Singaporean chief negotiator for the Japan-Singapore Economic Partnership Agreement (JSEPA)currently under negotiation, discusses these issues and provides an account of Singapore's efforts to harness RTAs to further the multilateral trade agenda. He concludes that regionalism and multilateralism are not mutually exclusive.