From ambiguity to contestation: discourse(s) of non-traditional security in the ASEAN community

‘Non-traditional security’ (NTS) is prominently featured in the agenda of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and other ASEAN-led institutions in the Asia-Pacific. ‘NTS’ brings together a series transnational and non-military security threats that are considered common among regional states, urgent for them to attend to, and non-sensitive all at the same time. This a priori makes it a self-evident focus of attempts to bring regional security cooperation ‘to a higher plane’. However, this paper reveals that the uncontroversial character of NTS is overestimated, by shedding light on the co-existence of divergent – and potentially contradictory – interpretations of its meaning and implications in ASEAN and the wider region. In a context where ASEAN's relevance to the pursuit of regional security is increasingly being measured against its (in)ability to provide a coherent approach to security challenges that affect the region, the contested nature of NTS has important implications for the grouping's resilience in the twenty-first century.     

Contested narratives of encounter from a bridge-building project in northern England

ABSTRACT

Recent years of community engagement under the war on terror in the UK have seen the co-option of bridge-building initiatives into wider narratives of securing communities. Through ethnographic insights into a peace building inter-faith initiative that made it onto the news as a ‘deradicalization’ workshop, I show how encounters in such projects are susceptible to being reframed into the very narrative in which encounters are sought after in the first place as a political settlement to growing inter-ethnic tension and conflict. This paper contributes to the growing geographies of encounter literature by making more explicit the narratives that shape how encounters function.     

Understanding the Regulatory Thicket: Interactions Among State Environmental Regulators and Regulatees

Research exploring state-level regulatory interactions in the U.S. often employs survey methodology to ask front-line actors about their experiences. While these efforts are noteworthy, we argue that it is important to investigate these interactions utilizing a different approach. In this exploratory study, we use randomized vignettes, to which a respondent can react without fear of revealing practices or succumbing to social desirability. Our results are in concert with a growing body of literature that suggests cooperation between the regulator and regulatees is essential for future interactions in order to achieve compliance, yet each party’s perceptions may not be completely congruent.     

Does Training and Coaching Matter? An 18-Month Evaluation of a Community Supervision Model

During the last decade, several formalized approaches have been developed to improve the effectiveness of probation and parole by implementing evidence-based research into community supervision practices. A key component of these new approaches are the use of officer coaching sessions, which are designed to improve officer fidelity in the core correctional skill areas. This study explores the impact of an initial training and monthly coaching sessions in the Effective Practices in Community Supervision (EPICS) model on probation and parole officer use of core correctional skills. The results examine the average quarterly officer use of skills over an 18-month follow-up period based on training status (i.e., trained versus untrained officers) in the EPICS model. This study adds to the understanding of the role training and coaching may play in improving officer use of core correctional skills. Policy implications and recommendations for future research are also discussed.     

“一带一路”倡议下的中非海上安全合作

随着中国"一带一路"倡议的提出与推进,其涉及范围逐步向非洲大陆扩展,特别是习近平主席最终确定将"21世纪海上丝绸之路"穿越非洲大陆。在此背景下,中国政府有必要借助"2l世纪海上丝绸之路"扩展到非洲的机遇,在现有中非经贸、政治及安全合作的基础上把中非关系扩展到海洋领域。鉴于非洲多国政局并不稳定、非传统安全威胁加重,其中来自海上的非传统安全问题日渐突出等局面,在依托"2l世纪海上丝绸之路"扩展中非合作关系的过程中,中国需要与非洲相关国家加强各领域特别是海上的安全合作,并争取其他域外大国的良性参与,避免恶性竞争,共同创建一个"中非海上安全共同体",为包括中国、其他域外国家在内的各国在非洲经贸领域的合作及发展保驾护航。这样既能巩固和加强中非传统合作关系,推动其发展到新的层次,更好地保护中国在非洲的海外利益,也能避免与其他域外大国在非洲走向"零和博弈"。     

东亚文化与出版交流的实践与思考——东亚出版人会议的意义解读

东亚出版人会议紧扣着东亚文化与出版两大主题,从人的交流、书的交流到企划出版的交流这3个层面,既务虚也务实。一方面通过相互间的文化与理念的交流,期望了解彼此邻近却隔膜的现代化的心路历程;另一方面则通过共同出版"东亚人文书100",进行跨越国界的文化事业的交流。不过,中、日、韩3国所推荐的书目依然代表着各自不同的文化诉求,因此,如何通过文化的交流来重构东亚的价值和理念,还需要出版人的进一步努力。     

La sociedad civil de adentro hacia afuera Comunidad,organización y desafío de la influencia política

Having developed conceptually and analytically civil society as a sociological category (based on a conceptual reflection stemming from a theoretical-epistemological dialogue between the collectivist and liberal perspectives), this article accounts for the implications that allow us to understand the potential of civil society in contributing to democratization. Throughout this work the dynamics that characterize the ambiguous relationship between civil society and community –ambiguous in as much communities with exceptionally strong ties between its members can provide both elements for the strengthening of civil society as well as obstacles to its growth– are analyzed. It is argued that the role of communities in relation to civil society in the social construction and civil strengthening of citizenship will depend on several factors, particularly the mechanisms available to build consensus within the community. The threat stemming from neopluralism as a novel discourse of interest intermediation, both for the community and civil society, is explored. In the final section, the implications of this discourse for democracy are discussed.     

全球和合共生系统理论与中国周边命运共同体

全球和合共生系统理论是共生理论与系统理论相互融合而形成的全新框架体系,可以作为构建人类命运共同体和中国周边命运共同体的理论分析范式和理论依据。全球和合共生系统理论认为,世界上的一切事物都是一个大系统中的共生体,必须从全球的角度来构建命运共同体。国际体系各组成部分之间的关系是辩证的,即对立的统一。全球体系内部与中国周边体系内部的互相依赖既有积极的一面,又有消极的一面。积极的相互依存是指相互依存的双方都从关系中受益,而消极的相互依存是指任何一方对相互依存关系的破坏都可能给另一方甚至双方带来损失。构建中国周边命运共同体是全球共生体系高级阶段的目标。全球和合共生系统理论的相互依存论决定了优化中国周边体系以实现中国周边命运共同体的必要性。以相互尊重为前提,以公平正义为核心,以合作共赢为目标,应成为构建中国周边命运共同体的三个关键要素。我们应以此来推进构建新型国际关系,进而建立中国周边命运共同体。     

我国城市社区直接选举探究

社区居委会直接选举作为扩大基层民主的有效形式,已经成为全面推进城市基层民主的突破口,受到社会各界越来越多的关注。本文选取社区居委会直接选举中的两个环节进行分析,梳理了社区选举过程中的程序规范及存在问题,以期进一步推进城市社区居委会直接选举的程序化、公平化。     

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。