Grandes expectativas: la democracia mexicana y sus descontentos

There is no doubt that democracy in México has fallen short of expectations: it has not increased social and economic equality. Few people deem their participation in politics is now more effective than before, the elected government often fails to meet citizens' demands, and some regions of the country are seemingly under the control of violent drug cartels. These faults certainly fuel the voters' discontent with the democratic regime. The aim of this paper though is to focus on other less apparent sources of the existing intense political dissatisfaction. Mexicans are unsatisfied with their democratic government not only because it has not provided them with the social goods they are realistically or not expecting from democracy. They are also unhappy due to the perceived gap between an idealized notion of democracy and the way the existing democratic institutions actually work, as an odd ahistorical image of democracy has been constructed. The major claim of this work is that the critical standard of democracy assumed by Mexicans is inaccurate. It will be argued that this ideological misconception has had pernicious effects, as it has nurtured unreasonable expectations and has inhibited Mexicans from considering feasible reforms. It will be also examined in particular the role played by the pursuit of equity.     

The fractured state in the governance of private game farming: the case of KwaZulu-Natal Province,South Africa

Conversion from livestock and/or crop farming to game farming has been a notable trend on privately owned land in South Africa over the last decades. The rapid growth of wildlife ranching is associated with an annual increase in the areas enclosed by game fences and high demand for wildlife which is being traded privately and at wildlife auctions. Key environmental, agricultural and land reform legislation has been passed since 1994 that impacts this sector, but this legislation does not provide a clear regulatory framework for the game farming industry. This article seeks to understand why game farming is thriving in a regulatory environment plagued with uncertainty. The focus is on one province, KwaZulu-Natal. It is clear that the state is not a homogeneous and monolithic entity applying itself to the regulation of the sector. There is no clear direction on the position of private game farming at the interface of environmental and agricultural regulations. The argument put forward is that the fractured state, in fact, provides space within which the game farmers are able to effectively manoeuvre and to maximise their advantages as private landowners. While game farmers may complain about strict wildlife regulation in the province, the benefits they gain from the combination of a divided state and the presence in this province of a strong, autonomous conservation body are considerable.     

The Africa-China relationship: challenges and opportunities

The dramatic growth in the relationship between Africa and China is one of the great stories of the twenty-first century, part of the profound transformations taking place in the global political economy. It has been greeted with excitement, consternation, and confusion. To its cheerleaders, it represents the enduring partnership between Africa and China, spawned by the historical affinities of struggles against Western imperialism and humanistic aspirations for development. To its critics, it is reminiscent of European colonisation a century earlier, in which Africa serves as a cheap source of raw materials, a lucrative export market for Chinese manufactured goods, and an outlet for its surplus capital. Rather than a development partner, some see China as Africa's biggest development competitor, whose explosive growth and insatiable quest for global markets threatens Africa's industrialisation and competitiveness. This paper examines the factors behind the development of Africa-China relations, especially its economic magnitude, and the challenges and opportunities it offers both regions.     

War-torn countries,natural resources,emerging-power investors and the UN development system

The unsustainable aid dependency of war-torn countries – most of which are rich in natural resources – makes it imperative to start gradually replacing aid with foreign direct investment (fdi) and exports. This article identifies ways in which stakeholders – governments, the international community, including the UN development system, foreign investors, and local communities – could work together in a ‘win-win’ situation. Most crucial is avoiding conflict-insensitive policies that fuel discord by putting governments and foreign companies, often from emerging markets, in direct confrontation with local communities. The control of natural resources is often a root cause of conflict, and the latter’s exploitation can become a major challenge as wars end. The peculiarities of war-torn countries are discussed along with the specific impediments to attracting fdi into the exploitation of natural resources. An effective and fair legal framework is necessary to ensure that investors do not operate as ‘enclaves’, creating new conflicts.     

秘密侦查与侦查不公开之辨

侦查不公开与秘密侦查是有本质区别的。侦查不公开即为侦查过程中所知悉的情况不得向外泄露,其法理基础在于保证诉讼活动的顺利进行、贯彻无罪推定、保障公正审判和保护相关当事人的法益,域外各国都严格控制侦查不公开性。秘密侦查与侦查不公开在性质、要求保密的主体和客体上都是不同的。侦查应坚持适度公开,着重考虑是否会影响实体真实发现诉讼目的的实现、是否会对犯罪嫌疑人的名誉造成不应有的损害、是否会影响公正审判。     

政策性银行法律地位探析

本文探讨了政策性银行的法律地位问题。政策性银行是我国新出现的一种新型法人 ,具有独立的法人地位 ;我国民法对法人的分类并不能囊括政策性银行这类新出现的法人 ;当前强调公私法的区分和公法人私法人的划分 ,具有重大的理论意义和实践意义 ;我国政策性银行应是公法人 ,具有充分的根据     

论建立和完善我国有关船舶油污损害赔偿责任限制程序的必要性

《海事诉讼特别程序法》第 9章仅对于海事赔偿责任限制基金设立程序做出规定 ,并没有明确规定油污损害赔偿责任限制程序问题 ,基于此 ,本文通过比较油污损害赔偿责任限制与海事赔偿责任限制的异同 ,初步提出建立和完善我国油污损害赔偿责任限制程序的立法建议。     

气候变化背景下外国投资者与政府争端的解决——以我国双边投资协定为例

我国签订的双边投资协定中一般都规定了投资者与东道国政府间投资争端的解决方式,尤其是晚近我国所签订的双边投资协定多数允许投资者将争端提交国际仲裁。但是,在目前全球应对气候变化背景下,作为温室气体排放大国,我国有义务控制和减少温室气体的排放,采取相应的环境规制措施,这些环境规制措施可能会损害或影响到外国投资者在我国的利益。根据双边投资协定,外国投资者可能会将这些争端提交国际仲裁,我国有可能被国际仲裁庭裁定为此对外国投资者承担相应的赔偿责任。面对新形势,我国必须重新审视双边投资协定中投资者与东道国投资争端解决方式的相关规定。     

论遗产分割中的归扣制度

本文认为,中国传统税法研究过于强调税收的“权力性、强制性与无偿性”,因而使税法异化为侵犯(私人)财产权的“侵权法”,与作为“维权法”的私法形成对立。然而,从依法治国之宪法意旨和市场经济的内在要求来看,税法与私法本质上应为统一,并具有内在、广泛的联系,其本源就在于“对(私人)财产权的确认和保障”。     

刍论ICSID仲裁庭对“投资”的界定

《解决国家与他国国民间投资争端公约》的缔结历史表明,长期的协商和谈判并未促成缔约国间就投资一词的含义达成统一意见。同时,由于ICSID仲裁庭的组成依个案而不同,对于投资的界定每个仲裁庭的方法也并不完全相同。根据ICSID仲裁庭过去的判例,仲裁庭主要依据两种方法对投资进行界定。ICSID仲裁庭应当在充分地尊重缔约国因接受ICSID仲裁体制所让渡的主权权利的基础上,严格地解释《解决国家与他国国民间投资争端公约》及双边投资保护条约中投资的含义。因此,笔者认为确有必要改进仲裁庭根据《维也纳条约法公约》界定投资的方法。