A Cartography of a Global Civil Society Advocacy Alliance: The Case of the Global Call to Action against Poverty

The last few decades have witnessed the emergence of global civil society advocacy networks as major players in global governance. The Global Call to Action against Poverty (GCAP) is one of the recent phenomena in this arena and epitomizes high-level involvement of a multiplicity of actors in GCAP, with various multilateral governance institutions, as well as states. This article analyses the origins of GCAP, motivations for its formation, evolution, and operations, with specific references to its structures and architecture. It argues that alliances are very different from ‘normal’ forms of organizations because they are made up of diverse forms of organizations, coming together voluntarily to achieve a specific purpose and therefore are by their very nature complex, unstable, and difficult to co-ordinate. The result of such, within GCAP, is an organization that is somewhat amorphous and exhibits both aspects of anti-systemic protest (in Polanyian terms) as well as a pacifying force (part of the hegemonic historic block in Gramcsian terms). I argue that the loose nature of global civil society alliances is a positive contributor to mass mobilization but causes frustrations in decision-making and actions. This, in effect, calls for a more bureaucratized and institutionalized architecture, albeit with a potential to alienate some constituencies. A key lesson from GCAP's evolution, structures, and strategies, I posit, is that it is not possible to push through individual positions without compromising so as to accommodate others.     

Donating and Volunteering as Social Capital in Bogotá

While the term social capital has been in existence since 1835, it only became popular at the end of the twentieth century, with the emergence of the associational revolution and the appearance of the third sector. Since then, non‐governmental organisations (NGOs), volunteering, philanthropic financing and solidarity organisations have all shaped a common discourse. From a social capital perspective, and on the basis of a social survey, this article investigates the determinants of solidarity and participation in NGOs in Bogotá, Colombia. We conclude that the expression of social capital in Bogotá is made manifest through donations and volunteering, factors which should be considered in fundraising activities.     

国家、社会与现代法治

当代中国政治国家与市民社会分离。然而 ,现代法治应当是法治国家与法治社会的协调统一 ,法治的真正基础与源泉是社会 ,法治应当得到社会的回应。法治以社会、还是以国家为重心 ,选择何种法治模式 ,必须从国家、民族和社会的实际情况出发 ,对当代中国来说 ,建立起以社会为本位的法治模式是最必要的选择。     

The Big Society: Power to the People?

The Prime Minister, David Cameron, recently set out his vision of a ‘big society’. Its core themes are empowering communities, redistributing power from the state to citizens and promoting a culture of volunteering. The idea is badly flawed. It overlooks the crucial role that needs to be played by the state in promoting social justice, which is vital to the development of active citizenship and vibrant communities. Moreover, Cameron views the active citizen as simply a philanthropist and volunteer rather than as a politically literate individual, knowledgeable about the major political issues of the day and actively involved in debates about how public or private services ought to be run. The initiative is particularly perverse in the context of the credit crunch, a vitally important cause of which was precisely not the development of an over‐mighty state but rather the inadequate state regulation of free market trading activities by banks.     

论依法治省与经济社会的协调发展

依法治国是党的十五大确定的治国方略,依法治省是依法治国方略在我省的具体实施和落实,科学的发展观要求我们必须注重经济社会的协调发展.本文论述了依法治省与经济社会协调发展的关系:依法治省与经济社会协调发展具有一致性;依法治省与经济社会协调发展都需要执政能力的提高;坚持依法治省,促进我省经济社会的协调发展.     

保持协调发展 构建和谐社会

构建和谐社会,既是崇高的社会理想,也是紧迫的现实任务。构建和谐社会的根本途径是坚持科学发展观指导下的社会经济全面协调发展。经济与社会协调发展、经济与环境协调发展、城市协调发展和区域协调发展对构建和谐社会具有重要的意义。     

论维护公平正义与构建和谐社会

社会公平正义缺失容易造成社会不同阶层和群体之间的利益矛盾加剧,进而酿成社会冲突和社会危机,影响经济发展、社会和谐和国家稳定。构建和谐社会,首先要为社会各个群体提供平等的机会和公正的起点,保持社会公平正义,使社会全体成员尤其是弱势群体共享经济社会发展成果。     

从公平正义的视角看和谐社会的构建

党的十六届六中全会提出"社会公平正义是社会和谐的基本条件",而我国目前"金字塔"型的社会阶层结构;不合理的社会流动模式;社会整合的乏力却制约着公平正义的实现。因此应以完善制度为根本,协调利益为关键,加强监督为保障来实现公平正义,构建良性运行的和谐社会。     

以人为本的法治化机制是构建社会主义和谐社会的根本保障

社会主义和谐社会是民主法治、公平正义、诚信友爱、充满活力、安定有序、人与自然和谐相处的社会。以人为本的法治化机制既是和谐社会的必备要素,也是和谐社会形成的必要条件,对社会主义和谐社会的构建发挥着十分重要的作用。     

我国外部行政法制监督制度存在的问题与完善--以中美外部行政法制监督制度比较研究为视角

当前，我国已经初步构建起了自己的外部行政法制监督制度，不过与美国等西方发达国家相对完善的外部行政法制监督制度相比。我国外部行政法制监督制度仍然存在导致监督不力的诸多漏洞。为了完善我国外部行政法制监督制度，进行比较研究，大胆借鉴吸收美国的经验教训，是十分必要的。