Electoral reform and the British MEP

After many years in which the subject was of marginal concern, electoral reform has recently become of central importance to politics in the UK. In this paper we examine the consequences for political representation of the electoral reform introduced in Britain for the 1999 elections to the European Parliament. We find that the immediate consequences of reform for the partisan balance and ‘representativeness’ of the British contingent in the EP were very much as expected. However, both qualitative and quantitative evidence suggest that the impact of reform on the representative priorities of British MEPs has been more partial, as parliamentarians have sought to adapt to the challenge of representing multi-member regions.     

The Comprehensive Peace Agreement and the questions of identity,territory and political destiny of the indigenous Nuba of the Sudan

ABSTRACT

The Sudan Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) of 2005 was successful in ending the longest war in contemporary Africa. However, its implementation has been below the expectations of several communities, particularly in the war-torn regions of the Nuba Mountains, the Southern Blue Nile and the Abyei Area, widely referred to as ‘contested’, ‘marginalised’, ‘transitional’ areas or ‘border territories’. While many interwoven causes were behind the eruption of the protracted civil wars in the Sudan (Elnur 2009; Johnson 2006; Khalid 1987), the political question of sub-national identities and their intrinsic link with specific territories (Murphy 1991; William and Smith 1993) is hypothesised here as a prime factor in extending the civil war into these three areas. Taking the Nuba and their claimed territory of the Nuba Mountains as an example, this article will, first, trace the political striving of the Nuba people and their shift from peaceful political movement to armed struggle; second, it will examine their political status during the peace negotiation process; and third, it will analyse their political responses to the outcome of the CPA and its impact on their future political choices in view of the April 2010 election results, and the projected right to self-determination for the people of Southern Sudan, to be exercised through the referenda in 2011.     

Toward Evaluating the Effectiveness of Regional Partnerships for Economic Development in U.S. Metropolitan Areas

During the past few decades, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of regional partnerships in the United States to enhance economic development across local government jurisdictions. This trend has been mirrored by an increase in regional organizations in Europe, Asia and South America to enhance economic development, usually across national boundaries. While the literature has examined the formation, structure and activities of regional partnerships for economic development in the United States, this is the first study that attempts to measure their effectiveness across a large number of geographical areas using quantitative methods. The findings provide some evidence of their effectiveness in that there is a positive and significant relationship between regional partnerships and employment; the relationship between regional partnerships and income is positive but insignificant. This study may be informative in the further study of regional economic development organizations in other countries as well as regional partnerships and organizations in other policy arenas.     

日据时期台湾宜兰地方社会转型初论（1895-1936年）——以社会经济与教育文化为视域

日据时期台湾社会步入殖民地化进程,但各地社会变迁形态却有所不同。以宜兰的例子观察,日本殖民者对当地社会经济的殖民地化改造似乎并不如人们想象的那么深刻,而在教育文化方面的影响则要大得多。台湾全岛各个地方千差万别,在探讨殖民地社会转型时,不可将其视作铁板一块,应具体问题具体分析,方能符合历史事实。     

试论宁夏六盘山连片特困地区农村公益性文化事业的建设

近年来,宁夏六盘山连片特困地区农村公益性文化事业取得了一定的成就,政府加大农村文化基础设施投入,基本形成农村基本公共文化服务.但总体上看,宁夏六盘山连片特困地区仍然是文化基础最薄弱、发展最滞后的区域,仍然存在着一些亟须解决的问题,是我国文化惠民工程重点加快推进的地区之一.     

推进龙胜县民族文化与旅游融合发展探索

在当前国内外文化旅游市场竞争十分激烈的情况下,把民族文化旅游培育成为龙胜战略性的支柱产业,把龙胜建设成生态文化旅游强县,必须着力在民族文化与旅游产业融合发展上寻找突破口、寻求新对策,进一步探索两者互动发展、互融共赢的新模式。,     

新型现代农业区建设与城乡一体化

在中国的城乡一体化进程中,提出了缩小城乡差距,城市支持农村,让农民平等参与现代化进程共享现代化成果的目标。该文在分析了推进城乡一体化发展中面临的现代农业的发展空间、城市无地可种和农村腹地边缘化等问题的基础上,提出了基本农田驻城发展都市休闲农业区,发展国营农场壮大现代农业区,村办农场同家庭承包有机结合复兴传统农业区,营造城乡三元结构有序推进城乡一体化发展的政策建议。     

西部农村法治建设的障碍性因素分析

西部大开发不只是经济的开发,而是社会的全面互动和协调发展。西部开发之法治选择在于,法治是决定和保证经济长期稳定协调发展和社会稳定的基础性构建;实现西部跨越式发展必须营造良好的法治环境,以法治为先导,依法开发,使西部的经济、政治、文化和社会生活等各方面都受到法律的规范性调控与规范。西部大开发,重点之一是开发西部农村,然西部农村的法治建设因农村立法迟缓,农村经济滞后,宗族势力、非法宗教的复兴,基层官员腐败以及根深蒂固的人治传统而呈现出艰巨性。     

增量式基层民主：成都推进城乡一体化的恒久动力

深入推进城乡一体化是成都市近年来大力实施的一项重大战略。从大局和长远来看，推进城乡一体化的恒久动力问题值得认真思考，这种恒久动力来自增量式基层民主的发展。     

农村留守儿童的监管问题研究——以安徽某地为例

随着我国农村外出务工人群的不断扩大,农村留守儿童的监管问题也日益突出。监管人对儿童的角色期待模糊,监管人、孩子和学校三者之间缺乏交流、互动,隔代教育的负面影响,是造成当前农村留守儿童监管问题的主要原因。