Commentary

Abstract

Women prisoners make up a small percentage of the prison population, yet they are the fastest growing population in prison, especially among women of color. Many of these women are typically young, poor, and uneducated mothers, and they often encounter an assortment of social and health problems while incarcerated. This commentary examines some of the issues that predispose women of color to commit crimes and the challenges they face in the New York State prison system.     

Seeing War as Criminal: Peace Activist Views and Critical Criminology

A hallmark of critical criminology is its critique of the traditional definition of crime. For decades, critical scholars have proposed humanistic definitions of crime that bring state violence into the purview of academic criminology—although outside of critical criminology this is a matter of great contentiousness. This study investigates the views of those involved in peace activism, but not in any way associated with academic criminology, about the application of the term ‘crime’ to war, specifically the recent US war on Iraq. Given that there is no existing research on this subject, the article also examines how peace activists define crime generally and whether they believe those responsible for the war should be regarded as war criminals. Not surprisingly, semi‐structured interviews with 13 anti‐war activists reveal significant support for elements of critical criminological definitions of crime but an unexpected concern on the part of some that the application of the term ‘crime’ to war could be counterproductive in efforts to stop state violence. The rationales for this concern, as well as those for other issues addressed in the study, are largely presented in the interviewees’ own words.     

劳动权的防御权功能与国家的尊重义务

防御权功能是劳动权的首要功能,以防止国家权力的干预、为公民创设"自由空间"为旨趣。公民劳动权的起始之处,即国家权力的终止之所。防御权功能属于"主观权利"范畴,公民享有"不作为请求权"、"停止侵害请求权"。尽管我国《宪法》未规定劳动自由,然而,从"事实"与"规范"二维度看,防御权功能亦是我国劳动权的题中之义。劳动权的防御权功能之实现仰赖国家履行"消极不作为"的"尊重义务"。尊重义务是劳动权保障的根本义务,立法机关和司法机关是尊重义务的主体,行政机关在一定程度上具有尊重义务的主体资格。     

论政府信息公开排除范围的界定

在政府信息公开实践中,排除公开的范围应如何界定,成为整个信息公开法制的关键。为防止排除范围被行政主体滥用,国家秘密、商业秘密、个人隐私以及其它排除公开的范围应得到妥善界定。分析以上排除公开的范围,对国家秘密、商业秘密等概念的内涵进行适度收缩,同时要建立价值衡量的原则、明确排除范围的具体子类型、采用梯次化的概念内涵构造以及保证必要的监督空间等,为实现信息公开的价值而策略性地调整信息公开的排除范围。     

论私分国有资产罪的犯罪对象

现实生活中国有资产的存在状态呈现多样性，导致在国有资产属性的界定方面存在不同看法，也给司法实践中如何认定私分国有资产罪带来歧义。正确界定私分国有资产罪的犯罪对象，明确国有资产的范围，对私分国有资产罪的正确认定具有重大意义。     

前苏联违宪审查的制度基础及其实践运行

最高国家权力机关审查制是前苏联时期施行的违宪审查制度。由于奉行"代表机关至上"的权力构建理念,使得前苏联只能把违宪审查权交由最高国家权力机关行使。最高国家权力机关审查制的运行状况并不理想,流于形式。究其原因,主要是因为最高国家权力机关权力旁落、宪法权威被漠视。     

国家与社会的协同发展——中国地方治理发展的新趋势

综合考察当今中国各地的地方治理，我们会发现一种新的趋势正在出现：一方面，国家权力在向基层社会延伸，并在地方治理中产生了较好的效果；另一方面，基层社会自主性逐步加强，基层社会力量对国家权力的制约和监督逐步加强并规范。这一新的趋势表明，基层国家权力和社会力量协同发展的关系正在形成，良好的中国地方治理，既需要有力高效的政府，也需要一个较强自主性的社会力量。     

The Quest for Community Development in Nigeria: Interrogating the Utility of Fourth-Tier System of Government in Imo State

The recent establishment of fourth-tier system as a distinct, but coordinating level of government in Imo State came with the expectation that it would facilitate community development. However, the underdevelopment situation of most communities dashed this expectation. Thus, this recent study adopted theory of postcolonial state as our analytical framework to interrogate the development utility of the fourth-tier system using mixed research methods for evidence gathering and analysis. The analysis revealed that the system grossly underperformed its development functions resulting from lack of stakeholders’ supports, which should be the basis for determination and implementation of fourth-tier system in Imo State.     

Institutional Arrangements and State and Local Financial Forecasting

Abstract

The articles in this symposium present various consequences that effectively result in changes from adopted budgets during the implementation phase, which derive from institutional structure. The institutional structures referred to include such attributes as internal policy, procedural methodology, longevity in office, and reward and incentive systems related to performance outcomes

For local governments, structural influences studied include changes in leadership in the executive and legislative branches, longevity in office of budget administrators, and differences related to mayor-council vs. council-manager forms of government. Internal policies reported on cover methodology used to forecast revenues such as quantitative methods versus informed judgment, budgetary controls and spending policy related to mandated spending beyond local government control, and procedures for benchmarking within the agency as well as with peer groups and professional standards.

Consortia of governments are referenced regarding performance evaluation as is the process for gaining consensus between the executive and legislative branches, including expert outside opinion. Other influences on performance outcomes reported on are those tied to the risk-reward system built in to the institutional structure, which includes risk tolerance of the individuals who make pension fund investments.     

Terrorism,violence against the public,and the media: The Australian approach

This paper examines the balance between the apparently competing objectives of government and the media in the general area of violence against the public and details the Australian model for handling issues associated with terrorism and the media. Australia's counterterrorism strategy may be considered holistic, going beyond the idea of a comprehensive capability for response to an actual public incident to include preventive measures and enhancement of the national security environment, suggesting that all elements of the society, including the media, regard security as a cooperative endeavor. These elements have been developed in the “National Anti‐Terrorist Plan” (NATP), developed by Australia's Standing Advisory Committee on Commonwealth/State Cooperation for Prevention against Violence (SAC‐PAV). For the past several years, the SAC‐PAV has been developing a basic strategic guide to provide structure for its many activities, and the committee has agreed that the NATP requires a fourfold strategy for dealing with the media: (1) public communication policies and guidelines, (2) incorporating media response and incident management strategies, (3) media training, and (4) physical controls. In addition, the SAC‐PAV has formulated a set of guidelines for the media to apply when covering terrorist incidents, indicating clearly what crisis managers and counterterrorism response organizations expect of media handling of public crises.