The Implementation of European Anti‐Discrimination Directives: Converging towards a Common Model?

This article examines the impact on national law and policy of two Directives on combating discrimination adopted by the EU in 2000. It considers the extent to which their transposition has resulted in the 'Europeanisation' of anti-discrimination law and whether this implies convergence in the direction of a common model. Two themes are examined: the list of protected grounds of discrimination and the creation of equality institutions. All 27 states have introduced legal reforms in response to the Directives and a loose level of convergence can be identified. Nevertheless, specific national traditions have proved resilient, for example, shaping the meaning attached to terms such as 'disability' or the structure and powers of equality bodies.     

No (Parliamentary) Gender Gap Please, We're British

Although the number of women MPs has increased in recent years, there continues to be a pronounced gender gap in the British House of Commons. Most attempts to close this gap have involved political parties selecting candidates on the basis of some form of electoral gender quota, but quotas are problematic, and more radical steps need to be taken if we are serious about women being equally represented in the Mother of Parliaments. This article proposes a possible solution that accords as far as possible with Britain's governing and representative traditions: the modification of current electoral arrangements so that voters in each constituency vote for and are represented by both a male and a female MP.     

邓小平民族思想要旨四论

民族问题无小事。当今世界一些多民族国家因民族问题而导致民族纠纷、冲突不断,乃至国家解体,造成了深重灾难。邓小平把马克思主义民族理论与当代中国民族实际相结合,初步回答了在中国这样一个经济文化比较落后的统一的多民族国家里,如何巩固和发展平等、团结、互助的民族关系,加速发展我国少数民族地区的建设,实现全民族共同进步、发展和繁荣的问题,创立了独具中国特色的马克思主义民族理论。本文从民族平等论、民族团结论、民族区域自治论和民族发展论四个方面,把握和阐发邓小平民族理论的基本内涵及当代价值。     

庄子思想的现代价值

庄子哲学中有许多与现代文明观念相吻合的思想资源 ,主要表现在以下几个方面 :自由精神、平等意识、张扬个性、和谐精神、不为物役、生态智慧、返朴归真、宽容精神和批判精神等 ,在现代化进程中 ,我们应有意识地借鉴这些宝贵的思想资源     

Decision-Making in court: Observing the sentencing of men and women

Abstract

Using systematic observation together with an analysis of the relevant court and criminal records this research examined the processing and sentencing of a small number of male and female defendants in an English magistrates' court. The findings indicate that sentencing was indirectly affected by a defendant's sex and directly affected by at least one aspect of a defendant's demeanour. These results provide support for the view that combining systematic observation with an analysis of court records offers a more effective means of investigating the differential treatment of male and female defendants than either unsystematic observational studies or the analysis of court records alone.     

Towards a democracy-centred ethics

Abstract

The core idea of this paper is that we can use the differences between democratic and undemocratic governments to illuminate ethical problems. Democratic values, rights and institutions lie between the most abstract considerations of ethics and meta-ethics and the most particularised decisions, outcomes and contexts. Hence, this paper argues, we can use the differences between democratic and undemocratic governments, as we best understand them, to structure our theoretical investigations, to test and organise our intuitions and ideas, and to explain and justify our philosophical conclusions. Specifically, as we will see, a democracy-centred approach to ethics can help us to distinguish liberal and democratic approaches to political morality in ways that reflect the varieties of democratic theory, and the importance of distinguishing democratic from undemocratic forms of liberalism.     

‘Without Education You Can Never Become President’: Teenage Pregnancy and Pseudo-empowerment in Post-Ebola Sierra Leone

ABSTRACT

This article analyses the emergence of ‘teenage pregnancy’ as a new policy focus in post-Ebola Sierra Leone and explores how Sierra Leoneans interpret the problem of ‘teenage pregnancy’. I argue that the new policy focus is not indicative of changing or new problems. Rather, ‘teenage pregnancy’ has created opportunities for donors and the Government of Sierra Leone to continue cooperation in gender politics. At the same time, Sierra Leoneans are clearly concerned about ‘teenage pregnancy’, and many agree with sensitization campaigns that responsibilize young women and girls while downplaying structural factors that render them vulnerable to arrangements involving transactional sex.     

Majoritarian values and women’s rights: police and judicial behavior in Tajikistan and Azerbaijan

This paper analyzes judicial and police behavior in dealing with cases of family violence and divorce in Tajikistan and Azerbaijan. Police and judges deliberately violate existing legal provisions to prevent women from divorcing or filing charges against their husbands in cases of domestic violence. While the law does not recognize religious marriages in Tajikistan, judges often rule to protect women’s living space after the dissolution of such unions. Drawing on rich interview and archival data, this behavior is explained by showing that judicial and police behavior reflects their biases, which in turn are a reflection of majoritarian norms in these countries. Since current laws are derived from Soviet codes, which were never internalized by the population, police and judges bend them to fit their understanding of social justice.     

依靠法治满足人民对美好生活的要求研究

美好生活是人民对于高品质生活的理想追求,而法治则在满足人民美好生活方面发挥着至关重要的作用.要通过法治的平等原则确保人人拥有平等的人格、规定人人相同的地位以及赋予人人同样的法律机会,为人的尊严感的达致奠定基础.人民福祉是法治的根本目标,要通过法律制度来缩小收入分配差距、确保不同群体之间资源的公平分配以及地域发展上的互补...     

社会性别准入与优化法律诊所教师培训模式研究

研究认为社会性别视角是社会性别主流化在法学教育尤其是诊所教育中的重要手段与突破口.通过文献研究与实证调查,发现有关探讨未进入、未成为学术主流.研究认为立足于社会性别视角,对诊所教师培训方法、针对性及可操作模式方面有改进之必要.推进我国法律教育改革与发展,须强化培训教师社会性别意识、法律思想与思维模式,从而建立对诊所教师长期且可复制的培训模式.在充分肯定诊所教育对法学改革推动作用的同时,研究认为应以社会性别视角引导诊所教师培训模式整合.研究力求汲取国外相关成功经验,从社会性别视角入手对诊所教师培训模式作出客观评析.研究在指出我国诊所教师培训模式存在的缺失与不足时,提出将社会性别视角导入诊所教师培训模式设定与整合工程之具体设想.