Do multiparty elections improve human development in autocracies?

Improvements in human development under democratic institutions are often attributed to electoral contestation. We evaluate the effect of multiparty contestation on infant mortality in the authoritarian context. Contrary to what extant scholarship argues, we find no evidence that multiparty elections in authoritarian regimes reduce infant mortality. Specifically, we show that electoral autocracies do not produce better infant mortality outcomes compared to closed autocracies holding no multiparty elections. We also demonstrate a non-monotonic effect of electoral competition on infant mortality: Infant mortality increases in levels of electoral contestation common in electoral authoritarian regimes and decreases only at levels of contestation that are nearly exclusive to democracies. Finally, we show that increases in infant mortality in electoral authoritarian regimes operate partially through increased political violence and reduced state capacity.     

Institutional stepping stones for democracy: how and why multipartyism enhances democratic change

Scholars of electoral authoritarianism and comparative institutions have emphasized how authoritarian regimes implement multiparty elections to stabilize authoritarian rule and diffuse political opposition. Consequently, the literature has advised against the notion that multiparty elections constitute a general lever for democratization. This article presents evidence in support of a more positive understanding of multipartyism and democracy. We argue that multiparty elections create an institutional space for oppositional parties, instrumentally motivated to promote further positive democratic change. We hypothesize that multiparty regimes are (1) generally more likely to experience positive democratic change, and (2) more importantly, more likely to do so when faced by internal or external regime threats. We test these hypotheses using cross-section time-series data on 166 countries in the period 1973–2010. Our results show a general positive effect of multipartyism for democratic change, and that multiparty regimes are more likely to improve their levels of democracy when faced with demonstrations and economic crisis.     

Fighting your friends? A study of intra-party violence in sub-Saharan Africa

ABSTRACT

This article focuses on a less visible and less studied type of political violence, namely violence that occurs within political parties. We use new, district-level data to compare the temporal and spatial dynamics of intra-party violence to those of general election violence across selected sub-Saharan African countries, including both democracies and autocracies, from 1998 to 2016. Relying on cross-national and sub-national analyses, we show that intra-party violence follows a unique pattern. First, unlike general election violence, intra-party violence peaks prior to election day as it is often sparked by individual parties’ candidate nomination processes. Second, low levels of competitiveness – typically theorized to reduce the risk of election violence – increase the risk of intra-party violence on the sub-national level. Thus, dominant party elections do not necessarily see less election-related violence than hotly contested elections. Rather, violence may be pushed from election day to intra-party competitions. If we neglect the study of violence within political parties, we thus risk underestimating the threat of election violence and misdiagnosing its causes.     

The role of personal parliamentary assistants in the European Parliament

The article scrutinises the behaviour of the personal staff of MEPs, using newly collected survey data. The personal staff known as accredited parliamentary assistants (APAs) have long been in the shadow of staff in parliamentary groups and staff in the European Parliament’s (EP) central Secretariat. In the 2010s, MEPs’ allowance for personal staff increased and a statute for APAs was adopted. Against the background of these reforms, this article hypothesises that APAs are a frequent source of assistance for MEPs in comparison to the other EP staff. It assumes that the significance of APAs’ involvement depends on their characteristics as direct employees of MEPs. Results show that APAs frequently assist MEPs in activities relevant for the internal life of the EP, but that they are less frequently involved in inter-institutional relations. The article shows that MEPs seek support which is political, but also that is tailored towards them personally.     

Red Europe versus no Europe? The impact of attitudes towards the EU and the economic crisis on radical-left voting

The 2014 European Parliament election saw a relatively large increase in the size of radical-left parties (RLPs), particularly in Western Europe. This article aims to provide new ways of thinking about the dynamics of radical-left voting by analysing the changing role of attitudes towards the European Union in explaining support for RLPs at European Parliament elections during the Great Recession. It is argued that the Europeanisation of economic issues during the financial crisis, together with the particular kind of Euroscepticism advocated by these parties, have enabled them to successfully attract a heterogeneous pool of voters. Using the 2009 and 2014 European Election Studies, it is shown that the effect of negative opinions about the EU on support for RLPs increased significantly during the crisis. In addition, support for RLPs also increased among voters with positive views of the EU who were nevertheless highly dissatisfied with the economic situation.     

将判决承认与执行事项纳入WTO体系之思考--对美国学者Perez观点之分析与回应

美国学者Perez主张,应将判决承认与执行事项纳入WTO体系之中,并提出纳入WTO体系的司法改革途径和立法改革途径.然而通过分析可以发现,帕氏的此种观点和方法如果付诸实施存在诸多困难.与此相对,通过海牙国际私法会议拟定判决承认与执行公约应比将判决承认与执行事项纳入WTO体系更具可行性,效果更好.我国不适合贸然支持美国学者帕氏的观点.     

加强与完善党领导立法工作制度的若干思考

坚持党对立法工作的领导是国家立法活动中最具根本性的原则,加强与完善党领导立法工作制度,必须坚持正确的政治方向,认真贯彻落实党内法规和国家立法相关程序中的各项组织要求和程序规范。党领导立法工作制度可具体分解为党的立法主张形成程序、党的组织与立法机关互动程序和国家法律形成程序三个部分。党的立法主张形成程序,宜重点落实党的立法主张形成过程中党内法规的相关组织程序规定,提高立法主张的民主性和科学性;党的组织与立法机关互动程序,要重点理顺党领导立法与人大主导立法之间的关系,明晰党的组织与国家立法机构的职权界限;国家法律形成程序,应重点理清党员人大代表的双重身份,坚持党员代表的义务优先性原则,并确保其有效行使代表权利和职责。     

传统知识的法律保护模式选择及立法建议

传统知识的知识产权保护是目前发展中国家和国际社会非常关注的一个问题,并成为若干国际论坛讨论的焦点。对传统知识法律保护的研究,我国也非常重视,目前已列入国家知识产权战略。重点讨论我国传统知识的知识产权保护的重要性,我国保护传统知识的立法状况,传统知识的法律保护模式以及对我国传统知识保护的立法建议。     

论网络虚拟财产民事法律保护制度的完善

总结目前我国网络虚拟财产民事法律体系存在的不足,并针对这些不足,建议在网络民事法律中以意思自治原则、平等原则等为基本原则,修改、补充现有民事法律规范,明确过错原则和过错推定原则（为例外）为虚拟财产民事法律侵权归责原则;对于一些复杂的虚拟财产问题,考虑单独立法,规定虚拟财产的性质、权利等。     

和谐社会背景下的立法公正研究

和谐社会是追求民主法治、公平正义的社会,在这样一种价值诉求下,立法公正得到越来越多的关注,同时也被赋予了更丰富的时代精神,即立法公正要求所立之法具有科学性、民主性、本土性和全球性。如果说,和谐社会的构建赋予了立法公正上述时代精神,那么,立法公正对和谐社会中的制度设计也起着积极作用,即立法公正可以使制度的构建更加科学,使制度的实质更加理性,使制度的形式更加民主,使制度的变迁更能与时俱进。