The challenge of assessing governance in Asian states: Hong Kong in the Worldwide Governance Indicators ranking

As countries in Asia work towards achieving development, the state of governance emerged as a benchmark for them. Assessing governance is an important exercise because a country’s image is influenced by its position in world rankings which plays a role in decisions by the international community regarding aid and trade. The methodology adopted in preparing the Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI) rankings underlines the preference for some values that are dominant in Western liberal democratic systems. This places Asian states at a disadvantage as other traditional values are ignored in assessing the state of governance. This article examines the methods and criteria of the WGI with reference to the case of Hong Kong. An overview of the critiques of WGI and analysis of the scores awarded to Hong Kong reveal the challenge of assessing governance across countries with the same instrument without taking into consideration the context of the units. The article argues that there is a need for developing alternative criteria for accommodating indigenous institutional structures, processes, and practices to ensure that Asian countries can benefit from the desired values of governance and help overcome the partial picture of governance that emerges in the WGI.     

Hybrid Politics and New Competitiveness: Hong Kong’s 2007 Chief Executive Election

In recounting Hong Kong's chief executive election in 2007, this paper charts the unexpected appearance of an “unauthorized” candidate and the occurrence of vibrant campaigning. Further, as electoral competitiveness increased, the liberal form of authoritarian rule that has characterized politics in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) began to change in ways that parallel the electoral authoritarianism practiced in Singapore. This paper argues that such change, if regularized and enhanced, may bring greater stability to the HKSAR’s politics, yielding greater legitimacy, popular compliance, and hence, new efficiencies in control. Even so, analysis of the chief executive election shows that this competitiveness was strongly resisted by the central government in Beijing.

朝鲜北学派的新华夷观解析

中国传统的"华夷观"长期影响着朝鲜半岛,朝鲜各朝代的封建统治者也以"小中华"自居。"尊华攘夷"、"慕华贱夷"是朝鲜人传统的文化观念,这一文化观念严重影响了民族意识和民族文化的健康发展。自进入清代以来,朝鲜人自以为所谓华夷秩序大乱,华夏文明之真传移到了朝鲜,并因此而深感自豪;同时,自感传续华夏文明之真传的责任重大,虔诚地维护传统文化,唯恐有丝毫的亵渎。尽管当时由于地理大发现、西势东渐,人类文明格局发生了巨大变化,但朝鲜卫道士们一直将中华以外的文明视为"夷狄"之货,采取不屑一顾的态度。在如此僵化愚腐的意识氛围中,北学派的先驱洪大容率先提出了"华夷一也"的新观念,实现从"慕华贱夷"、"尊华攘夷"到"华夷一也"思想的飞跃。在东亚率先打破传统的"华夷观"是朝鲜北学派的一大特点,在朝鲜唤起了民族主体意识,为朝鲜学习世界先进文化,吸收新的世界文明做了理论准备。     

香港个人资料隐私保护之经验——兼论我国个人资料保护法之制定

个人信息作为信息的一种,具有与信息相同的特征。个人资料属于现代隐私的外延,指的是可以识别出个人的所有资料。我国香港特别行政区已于1996年12月实施了《个人资料(私隐)条例》。在实施的十年间,法院与香港个人资料私隐专员公署分别做出了一些司法原则和执行决定,很值得我国在制定《个人资料保护法》时加以参考与借鉴。     

日本的香港研究综述

日本的香港研究历史悠久,近年来发展迅速。与中国内地、香港特区自身以及英美等西方国家的香港研究相比,日本的香港研究自有其特色。为便于学界对此有更多的了解,就研究主题与发表时序,逐一介绍近年日本对港研究的著作。由于日本香港研究触及香港社会的诸多议题,题材相对丰富,所以更适合就政治发展、社会经济、法律法规、文化艺术等视角逐一进行考察及综述。与此同时,也不可讳言,日本的香港研究存在种种不足,包括其对于内地与香港关系的偏见、研究取材的狭隘以及研究方法的滞后等等。从这个角度看,日本香港研究的成果值得国内学界关注,其局限也需要我们引以为戒。     

明防暗退——从香港保卫战前的部署看英国如何操作放弃香港

1941年12月日本进攻港英当局殖民统治下的香港,香港保卫战爆发前英国政府为了保全其帝国整体利益,对香港进行了战略性放弃,"明线"上表现出坚决保卫香港的姿态,"暗线"上却将主要军力撤至战略位置更重要的新加坡。英国在军事上放弃防御香港的同时,又拒绝通过不设防城市的方式避免香港受战火摧残,最终导致香港军民承受了重大伤亡,香港陷入日本的残酷占领和统治。     

A Cross-National Examination of School Violence and Nonattendance Due to School Violence in Taiwan,Hong Kong,and Mainland China: A Rasch Model Approach

ABSTRACT

This study examined the similarities and differences between three distinct Chinese societies (Taiwan, Hong Kong, and China) regarding the contribution of gender and grade level to school violence, the ranking orders of perpetration and victimization behavior, and the correlates of school nonattendance due to violence. A cross-national random sample of 2,582 junior high school students was obtained. The results of Rasch analyzes revealed that verbal violence is most frequent. Male students are most likely to be aggressive and victimized. Grade-level differences in school violence were shown to be weak or insignificant. School nonattendance is generally associated with being kicked, punched, socially excluded, blackmailed, threatened, or sexually kissed without consent. The results were similar across societies. The findings imply that the contextual differences between Chinese societies may not account for different effects of gender and grade level on school violence, behavioral patterns of school violence, and correlates of school nonattendance.     

香港社会工作行政体制的构建及其启示

在探索社会工作行政体制概念的基础上,从政府机构设置、社会组织的协调管理、专业化人才培养和发挥义工作用等方面学习借鉴香港社会工作行政体制构建的经验,通过党委、政府、社会组织、公众等社会工作行政主体的共同努力,构建出有中国特色的社会工作行政体制的道路,对于进一步明晰各社会工作行政主体在体制建设中的职责、完善社会工作行政体制具有一定的意义。     

香港警察枪械使用法律制度述评简

我国香港《警察通例》及《警察程序手册》对警察使用枪械的原则、条件、程序等内容作了具体、全面、细致的规定。其特点是：立足自身实际进行制度设计，对警察使用枪械予以全程规制，程序严格，注重警察用枪安全。香港警察枪械使用法律制度的优点值得内地在完善相关立法时加以借鉴。     

《香港特别行政区基本法》第18条的形成过程及其规范含义

基本法是“一国两制”基本方针的具体化、法律化,为特别行政区制度的运行提供了坚实的法律基础。作为法律文本体系,基本法由不同规范组合,构成不同的功能体系。当基本法的规范与现实出现冲突时,我们要回归基本法本身,寻求规范依据,并通过对规范的合理解释,建构文本与实践互动的运行机制。《香港特别行政区基本法》第18条是富有特色的条款,其规范具有综合性、开放性与动态性,勾接不同的价值,在文本体系内设置合理平衡国家主权、安全与特别行政区高度自治权的规范依据。基于基本法的特殊地位,基本法具体条文的形成具有特定的背景与规范内含,需要以宪法解释学的方法加以诠释,为其实施提供规范依据。