政治稳定视阈下腐败官员和资产外逃的惩防追缴机制建设

腐败的本质是公权私用,是权力与权利关系的异化。腐败官员与腐败资产外逃严重影响民众对于廉洁政治建设的信心,对我国的政治稳定造成严重的负面影响,鉴于此,惩防腐败对国家的政治稳定至关重要。目前,腐败行为的结构性转型使得我国对腐败官员跨境外逃和资产转移的惩防难度增大,因此,要认真对待社会转型带来的制度风险和利益冲突,正视权力结构存在的问题,健全权力运行制约和监督体系,改革政治体制,依靠民主政治和公民有序政治参与的扩大,促成对政府官员责任的落实和监督。将惩防跨境腐败上升到法治的高度,进一步完善并落实我国政府官员家庭财产申报制度,完善户籍管理、护照管理和出入境管理等制度。要在国际法和国际条约框架内,加强国际司法合作。     

PEOPLE & POINTS

正MILITARY LEADER ExPELLEDXu Caihou,former Vice Chairman of China’s Central Military Commission,was expelled from the Communist Party of China(CPC)following a three-and-a-half month investigation,the Party’s Central Committee announced on June 30,one day before the     

论政府官员隐私权的有限性

隐私权是一种宪法权利 ,公民隐私权受到法律的保护是现代文明的重要体现。但是法律保护隐私权的程度又因权利主体的差异而存在差异 ,政府官员作为公共权力的行使者和公共利益的代表 ,其所享受的隐私权边界相对来说小于普通公民。政府官员隐私权的有限性体现了现代民主政治的应有之义。     

SPENDING APPROPRIATELY

正Efforts are being made at both the central and locallevel to prevent the misuse of taxpayer money For years,government expenditure on vehicles,receptions and overseas trips for officials—also known as the"three public-funded consumption categories"—has been a topic of contention among the Chinese public due to the large sums of money coupled     

SECURING A NEW CONCEPT

正China presents a fresh vision of regional security at Asian cooperation summit Asia appears to be ushering in the first real security platform involving nearly the whole region.Although the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia(CICA)has been in existence for more than 20 years,its fourth summit recently held in Shanghai attracted extraordinary attention worldwide with the unprecedented participation of leaders and     

Danish Pragmatism

正2013 saw fruitful cooperation between China and Denmark in political,economic,social and cultural areas with more than 10 high-ranking Danish officials visiting China.Friis Arne Petersen,Danish Ambassador to China and Mongolia,recently sat down with Beijing Review reporter Chen Ran,to share his thoughts on deepening Sino-Danish relations.Excerpts:     

PEOPLE & POINTS

正E-CommErCE PIoNEEr GoES GlobAl Ma yun(better known as Jack Ma),Chairman of the Board and co-founder of Alibaba Group,has vowed to make his e-business company known to the world with its initial public offering on the New york Stock Exchange."Today,15 years have passed,and we’ve grown so significantly and have become a household name in China,"Ma said in a promotional     

Actions by Political Officials Have Weakened the Federal Government Workplace: Downsizing Has Cut Lower Level Workers the Most and Replacing Federal Employees with Private Corporations Costs Much More,Creating the Need for Immediate Reform

Abstract

The authors of this paper are four practitioners each of whom has many years of experience working in the Federal government and also has pursued doctoral studies in public or business administration. Three ideas developed in this paper are that: (1) the Federal civil service has been changed from being a model workplace to a much less desirable one; (2) although downsizing has been touted as an efficiency and economy measure, lower level employees experienced the most cuts and (3) the current practice of replacing Federal employees with private corporations costs much more. Over the past two decades private sector workplaces in the United States, and now the Federal government workplace, have experienced so much change that previous theories, concepts, models, and expectations no longer hold. Just as private industry workplaces have been changed by downsizing, reorganizations, mergers, elimination of middle management, and outsourcing, so, too, has the Federal government workplace been fundamentally altered. Reducing the number of government workers, replacing Federal employees with private firms, increasing the number of officials with political agendas, and using harsh personnel management practices have transfigured the Federal workplace. Examples of factors that have contributed to a changed workplace include: the Civil Service Reform Act which replaced the Civil Service Commission with the Office of Personnel Management; importing private sector approaches into the government, e.g., the Grace Commission; replacing the Civil Service Retirement System with the Federal Employees Retirement System; pressure to downsize and privatize; and many elements of the National Performance Review and Government Performance and Results Act. Now that the metamorphosis away from the traditional Civil Service borne of the Pendleton Act is nearly complete (although the new paradigm is not entirely clear), questions about the effects of a changed government workplace are being raised. Some people believe the metamorphosis is from a caterpillar to a butterfly, while others think the opposite. Whether the changed Federal government is a thing of beauty or a distasteful organism will be determined over time by observations and assessments of the effects of the change. These effects will be both internal to the government workplace, itself, and external to it, involving the products, services, outputs, and outcomes it produces. This paper begins by describing some of the politically mandated changes that have altered the very foundation of the Federal government workplace over the past 20 years and made it a much less desirable place to work. Next, some of the effects of two politically mandated changes are examined: (1) downsizing or reducing the number of Americans who can work for their government and (2) contracting out or replacing government workers with private corporations. Political officials have told the media and the American public that these changes were needed to improve the government's efficiency, effectiveness, and economy. It has been suggested that these initiatives will reduce costs. However, an examination of downsizing and contracting out shows the opposite effect. While overall the Federal government has fewer employees now than in 1961, the statistics indicate that lower level employees have been cut the most:

• The number of secretaries decreased by 39% between 1992 and 1998.

• The blue collar workforce is down 40% since 1982, e.g., Supply Clerical and Technician (?35%), Accounting Technician (?24%), and Electronics Mechanic (?41%).

• Between 1993 and 1998 the number of GS‐1 to GS‐10 employees fell from 767,000 to 594,000.

• In 1983 the number of GS‐1 to GS‐10 workers exceeded GS‐11 to GS‐15 by nearly 300,000, while in 1997 GS‐11 to GS‐15 outnumbered the lower level workers by 44,000.

Although authoritative cost comparison studies are difficult to conduct because top officials have made little provision to collect information on the cost of contracting with private firms or the number of contract employees, available information indicates that it is much more expensive than using government employees. The contracting out we are talking about is not the usual kind—building ships or planes, or acquiring computer systems or special expertise not available in the government. Rather, it is contracting with private firms to do jobs that are currently being performed by Federal employees. Not satisfied with the level at which firms are being substituted for Federal employees, actions by political officials have created an environment which now favors private corporations and where they can be given work at top management's discretion, often regardless of cost. In fact, today most contracting out is done without the use of Circular A‐76 Cost Comparison Studies. There is empirical and logical evidence that shows that replacing government employees with private corporations is more expensive. For example, a study by the Department of the Army documents what people close to contracting have always known—that it is far more expensive to contract with a private firm for work than to have Federal employees do it. Logically, the government incurs additional items of cost when replacing Federal employees with private corporations. First, there is the profit that goes to the firm. Second, there is the firm's overhead which pays for corporate offices, staffs, and CEOs. Third, there are the costs of the contracting and award process and of contract administration and management. Although the worker on a government contract may be paid a little less than a government worker, the cost of the worker is only a third to a half of what the government pays the firm. Thus, replacing government workers with private firms usually costs far more and it is not unusual for it to cost two to three times as much. This paper partly is based on the authors' long experience in the Federal government. It is not based on the organizations in which they are currently employed.     

The influence of EU officials in European Security and Defence

Abstract

European Union (EU) foreign policy has long been considered the domaine réservé of the member states. This article challenges such conventional state-centered wisdom by analyzing the influence of the Brussels-based EU officials in the Common Security and Defence Policy. Using four case studies and data from 105 semi-structured interviews, it shows that EU officials are most influential in the agenda-setting phase and more influential in civilian than in military operations. Their prominence in agenda-setting can be explained by their central position in the policy process. This allows them to get early involved in the operations. The absence of strong control mechanisms and doctrine in civilian crisis management gives them opportunities to affect civilian missions. Finally, EU officials direct civilian operations from Brussels, whereas the command of military operations is with the member states and NATO.     

Knowledge generation,political action and African development: A polycentric approach

ABSTRACT

Knowledge generated to meet societal needs is the bedrock of development. Africa's development crisis is marked by the persistent gap between the application of intellectual rigours and political action. Despite abundant development potential (human and natural resources, and scientific knowledge), coupled with reform declarations and commitments by African leaders over the past four decades, development remains illusory. This article examines the relationship between key development players (African public officials and African scholars), and how generated knowledge is applied to respond to the needs of African citizens. Using the Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) framework (otherwise known as new institutionalism) this article examines weaknesses in the interaction of knowledge, political action and development, while at a local level African citizens, through shared strategies and problem-solving interdependency, are effectively transforming indigenous knowledge inherited from their parents to confront daily challenges. The article suggests ways of bridging the gap between development players by proposing an African Development Institutional Mechanism (ADIM) aimed at enabling key development players to operate in synergy.