Measuring the impact of law enforcement on organized crime

This article explores the possibility of measuring the impact of law enforcement on organized crime in a reliable and accountable manner, both in general terms and with a practical focus on the Canadian context. In considering measures to combat organized crime, a focus on process measurement has obscured the more substantial question of progress as regards the dependent variable itself: the bottom line of reducing the impact of organized criminal behaviour. While outcome measures are more challenging to identify than process measures, this fact alone does not minimize the need to demonstrate the connection between organized crime enforcement and its presumed outcomes to a greater degree of certainty. To date, this has not been realized to any significant degree, as revealed by a review of existing international approaches to measuring the impact of enforcement activity. The article argues that a multidisciplinary focus on community level indicators of crime, if initially less accessible than process measures of impact on organized crime groups, offers promise as a measurement of absolute and relative impact of state investment in enforcement.

Organized Crime in Asia: A Review of Problems and Progress

This paper provides a preliminary overview of research on organized crime in Asia drawing on selected papers from a symposium held at the National University of Singapore in June 2007. We draw on these contributions to emphasize the enterprise nature of organized crime and the common problems encountered by law enforcement in controlling and preventing the many harms inflicted by serious criminal activity. Recent attempts to address the changing character and forms of transnational organized crime, especially through the strengthening of mutual legal assistance by regional bodies such as ASEAN, are noted. These measures have yet to develop into the cross-border institutional frameworks now found in Europe, and the level of effective co-operation can only continue to improve. Countering organized crime in Asia also faces additional difficulties arising from the cultural diversity, relative weakness of law enforcement in some states and the lack of common strategies in respect to illicit markets.

A comparative analysis of regionalism in the Global South: The security and defence dimension of Unasur and the African Union

The aim of this article is to compare Unasur and the African Union with regard to their institutional structure, agenda and performance. Although some scholars have made comparative assessments of regional institutions in the same region or comparisons between regional projects worldwide and the European Union, there are still few academic contributions which develop a cross-regional comparison among regional initiatives from different regions of the Global South. By assessing the cases of Unasur and the African Union, and particularly Unasur’s Defence Council and the AU’s Peace and Security Council, taking into account their institutional structure, performance and limitations, and the role of regional leaders and exogenous actors in both cases, we have elaborated an analytical framework aiming to identify and explain the similarities and differences between two regional institutions outside Europe. Based on the contributions of comparative regionalism and the evaluation of Unasur and the AU, we conduct a comparative analysis of both regional organisations, giving specific attention to their security and defence agendas, moving forward the empirical and analytical agenda of comparative regionalism.     

The impact of EU multi-level regionalism strategy on Bulgarian local authorities: qualitative comparative analysis among nine border areas

This article suggests a new perspective on the analysis of the EU multi-level regionalism strategy (EUMRS) by emphasizing the important role of local authorities in border areas. The EU, indeed, has been pursuing a multi-level strategy formed by three action layers corresponding to three new regional trasnational spaces: (1) the European Union itself; (2) the strategic macro-regional actions – such as the EU Strategy for the Danube Region; (3) cross-border cooperation. Particularly, the article tries to explain why local officers working for different Bulgarian municipalities perceive the EUMRS in a different way. The perception of the EUMRS represents the internalization and impact of the EUMRS among the interviewed local officers of nine borderland Bulgarian municipalities. The research is grounded on a qualitative comparative analysis to identify and explain the different combinations of causally relevant conditions linked to the specific outcome.     

区域科技创新的财政支持政策工具研究——基于清晰集定性比较分析方法

以我国27个省2012-2016年科技创新能力与相关政策数据为例,通过定性比较分析方法(QCA)研究区域科技创新能力变化与科技创新政策中财政支持工具组合的逻辑关系,研究发现:新型财政补助方式是提高创新能力的必要条件,更多地采取创新券、后补助等新型补助方式有利于创新能力的提高;间接税收优惠是提高创新能力的充分条件,奖励与创新能力的提高有很强的关联性;现有的风险补偿和股权投资方式不利于提高创新能力;财政政策的效果更多地取决于不同的财政支持方式的匹配,合适的组合才能起到提高创新能力的作用。     

Securing security through prosperity: the San Francisco System in comparative perspective

The integrated system of political–economic relations that has prevailed in the Pacific since the September 1951 treaty of peace with Japan, known here as the San Francisco System, is distinctive in comparison with subregional systems elsewhere in the world. This paper outlines key defining features, such as (1) a dense network of bilateral alliances; (2) an absence of multilateral security structures; (3) strong asymmetry in alliance relations, both in security and economics; (4) special precedence to Japan; and (5) liberal trade access to American markets, coupled with relatively limited development assistance. After contrasting this system to analogous arrangements elsewhere, especially in the Atlantic, it explores both the origins and the prognosis of this remarkably durable political–economic entity. Complementary domestic political–economic interests on both sides of the Pacific, reinforcing a brilliant original Japan-centric design by John Foster Dulles, account for persistence, it is argued, while forces for change center on the dynamic emerging role of China.     

Historischer Institutionalismus und Vergleichende Föderalismusforschung: Fragestellungen und Analyseperspektiven

Abstract: Abgesehen von wenigen Ausnahmen sind neuere theoretische Entwicklungen im Historischen Institutionalismus bislang kaum von der vergleichenden Föderalismusforschung aufgenommen worden. Der Beitrag diskutiert deshalb die Möglichkeiten, die eine historisch‐institutionalistische Perspektive für die Bearbeitung von zwei zentralen Fragestellungen der vergleichenden Föderalismusforschung bietet: die Frage nach den Entstehungsbedingungen föderativer Systeme sowie die nach deren Entwicklungsdynamik. Für alle zwei Fragestellungen, so die Grundüberlegung des Artikels, hält der Historische Institutionalismus gewinnbringende Analyseinstrumente bereit, die dazu beitragen können, zwischen den weitgehend isolierten Theoriesträngen der Föderalismusforschung zu vermitteln.     

德国患者权益新立法的主要内容和启示

《德国患者权益改善法》是德国针对患者权益保障的最新立法成果，该法的主要内容是对德国传统判例法的归纳总结，将判例法确立的重要制度吸收到了《德国民法典》中，包括医疗合同的性质、医方的主要义务，尤其是明确了医疗纠纷案件中的举证责任分配制度。     

从应对金融危机的视角看社会主义市场经济的优越性

上世纪九十年代以来，我国成功应对亚洲金融危机和源自美国的全球性金融危机带来的严峻挑战，国民经济一直保持持续快速健康发展的事实表明，社会主义市场经济具有巨大的优越性。社会主义市场经济的优越性主要体现在；坚持社会主义的基本经济制度，坚持公有制为主体，坚持强有力的宏观调控，坚持共同富裕的奋斗目标。     

甘肃政法学院警务实战训练基地方案设计

目前公安部在全国已经建立了六个警务实战训练基地,但在西北地区还没有建立警务实战训练基地。我校如果尽快建成警务实战训练基地,并争取被列为公安部第七个警务实战训练基地,不但有利于填补公安部目前在西北地区没有警务实战训练基地的空白,也有利于进一步扩大我校在全国同类院校中的影响力和知名度,同时,更有利于公安实战人才培养目标的实现。本文对我校建立警务实战训练基地的必要性、优势及构想进行了探讨。