The 2017 election in Kenya: reimagining the past or introducing the future?

The new 2010 Kenya Constitution introduced a devolved system of government that has radically transformed the Kenyan polity. The political elite which operated primarily at the national level now encounters a new competitive political arena with the introduction of county governments under devolution. In particular, a new post of County Governor has surpassed in power calculations both the traditional MP and the new position of senator. In the 2013 elections, the focus was on the national arena; in 2017, all this will change.     

Communication in family court: financial remedy proceedings from the perspective of litigants in person

The article presents a rationale for communicative, conceptual, cognitive and procedural challenges experienced by litigants in person in financial remedy proceedings. The article also explores oscillation between written and spoken legal genres and narrative development strategies which litigants in person have to use throughout different stages (from the early stages of starting proceedings, filling in court forms and providing documentation, through the negotiation process to interaction in court). While legal professionals express themselves in paradigmatic legal mode influenced by legal acts and legislation, litigants in person tend to express themselves in narrative mode similar to everyday storytelling. The objective is to investigate obstacles litigants in person experience during the process originally designed by legal professionals for legal professionals. The article evaluates different options for empowering lay people involved in legal proceedings and argues for the need to provide more specific support for different stages of family proceedings.     

The challenges of prisoner reentry faced by Native American returning offenders

This article examines the economic, social, and cultural challenges American Indian¹1. We recognize there are no universally accepted or accurate labels for the Indigenous Peoples of North America. Although individual tribal names are preferred, we have chosen to use the term American Indian or Native American to represent the collective population that is present within this study.View all notes inmates face as they reintegrate back into a rural reservation community. Utilizing surveys, focus groups, and in-depth interviews with a variety of stakeholder groups, including community corrections, law enforcement, treatment providers, and tribal leaders, this research explores the reentry challenges faced by Native American returning offenders. Findings indicated that although similarities exist with other reentry populations, especially other minority groups, several unique challenges appear. The possible policy implications of these findings for the reentry process are also discussed.     

Advising Ministers – The Special Problem of Defence

Successive Australian Defence Ministers have been frustrated and occasionally embarrassed by the quality of advice and information provided to them by the Defence organisation. Decades of reviews and reorganisations have failed to find solutions to the special difficulties that Defence faces in providing accurate, timely information and advice to ministers across the broad spectrum of their responsibilities. This article argues that there are multiple explanations for the concerns that are frequently expressed about its policy advisory capacity – most of which are inherent to Defence organisations around the world. While the Defence culture of secrecy is partly responsible, other factors such as the scale of Defence's operations, the multiple cultures that exist within it (military, civilian, and intelligence) that make coherence harder than in more homogenous departments, the long‐time horizons of defence planning as well as the high costs of procurement, must also be considered. The erosion of trust between the organisation and minister has been exacerbated by the intense scrutiny of the media that overburdens ministers and adds another layer of complexity to their role. As history shows, there are push and pull factors that continue to embroil ministers in the minutiae of defence difficulties, while the complexity and scale of operations will undoubtedly continue to impact on the timeliness of advice.     

政党适应性视角下的党内巡视制度

改革开放以来,面对不断变迁的社会结构和充满挑战的外部环境,我党一直在进行着适应性变革。党内巡视制度的建立符合政党适应性的要求,可以消解党适应性变革中社会基础扩大给党执政带来的影响,是提高党的建设科学化水平的重要一环。从政党适应性视角看,党内巡视制度面临一些挑战,包括存在陷入＂钱穆制度陷阱＂的可能,存在信息化时代的挑战,对巡视制度的理论研究尚显薄弱,等等。因此,应加强党内监督制度体系建设,坚持群众路线,通过改革的进一步深入完善党内巡视制度,从而提高政党适应性。     

Coercive Policy Diffusion in a Developing Country: The Case of Public-Private Partnerships in Sri Lanka

Over the last two decades, public-private partnership policy has been adopted in developing countries to a lesser degree than in industrialised countries. This paper argues that this policy has been diffused to developing countries like Sri Lanka with coercion from international aid-granting organisations through conditionalities attached to financial assistance. It details the country-specific challenges faced by Sri Lanka in responding to conditionalities as it has sought to implement this policy. Drawing on policy diffusion theory the paper develops a framework to be used in analysing the issues under investigation.     

法国庭前认罪答辩程序评析

为克服效率低下所导致的法庭堵塞,法国立法者于2004年3月9日引入了法式辩诉交易制度,即庭前认罪答辩程序。与美国及意大利的辩诉交易程序相比,法国庭前认罪答辩程序具有三大特征,即较狭窄的适用范围、较弱化的合意制度以及较完善的保障机制。从3年来的践行效果上考察,庭前认罪答辩程序虽然取得了一定的成效,但适用率并不太高,在程序规范性上仍有待加强。此外,庭前认罪答辩程序在价值认同及制度冲突层面还面临着五大挑战。     

加入WTO中国保险业面临的挑战和对策

中国是世界十大贸易国之一,在国际贸易的舞台上扮演着重要的角色。改革开放的中国需要世界,世界也离不开中国。加入世贸组织,参与经济全球化潮流是中国的必然选择。表面上"入世"不可避免地会给我国工业、农业、服务业诸产业带来冲击,更为深刻的是将发生在体制层面,尤其集中在经济贸易法律方面。着重阐述加入WTO以后中国保险业面临的挑战和对策。     

知识经济时代图书馆面临的机遇、挑战及发展战略

图书馆是伴随着社会对知识的需求产生和发展起来的,当社会经济进一步发展,人类社会进 入知识经济时代,知识对社会的进步将发挥前所未有的重要作用,也使图书馆面临全新的机遇和挑战。 图书馆应制定新的发展战略,以适应知识经济的挑战。