On the Regulation of the Discretion of Environmental Administrative Punishment: Based on the Framework of the Modernized Environment Governance System

With the increasing environmental risks, the limitations of legislative regulation, negative judicial regulation and weak administrative regulation make it difficult to regulate the exercise of the discretion of environmental administrative punishment, which also increases the difficulty of the implementation of environmental administrative penalty decisions. The government, enterprises and the public three-dimensional main body structure constructed by the modern environmental governance system provides a new framework for the discretionary regulation of environmental administrative punishment. Based on the traditional theories of administrative Law, three regulation mechanisms can be formed,which include administrative self-control, negotiation regulation, and the social regulation. These three regulatory mechanisms working together in the whole process of environmental administration would regulate and restrict the exerting of discretion of environmental administrative punishment.     

Citizens’ Perceptions of Governance in Rural and Urban China

This article presents three main findings from a purposive stratified survey of urban and rural residents. First, Chinese citizens “disaggregate” the state with high levels of satisfaction for Central government that fall dramatically as government gets closer to the people. Satisfaction levels are noticeably lower for those in rural China. Second, attitudes about the way policy is implemented by local governments raise concerns. Irrespective of place of residence, respondents feel that when implementing policy local officials and governments are mainly concerned with their own interests, are more receptive to the views of their superiors rather than those of ordinary people, favor those with money, and are formalistic in implementing policy rather than dealing with actual problems. Third, the areas of work that citizens would really like government to concentrate on are job creation and providing basic guarantees to protect against the shocks of the transition to a market economy. Tony Saich is the Daewoo Professor of International Affairs, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University and Director of the Harvard University Asia Center. His recent research focuses on the development of social policy in China, particularly on the provision of public goods by local governments. His publications include Governance and Politics of China by Palgrave and edited volumes on Financial Sector Reform in China (with Yasheng Huang and Edward Steinfeld) and AIDS and Social Policy in China (with Joan Kaufman and Arthur Kleinman both by Harvard University Asia Center. He would like to thank Edward Cunningham for his great help in preparing this article. He also wants to thank Victor Yuan (Horizon Market Research Company) for his tremendous help in designing the survey and implementing it. In addition, I would like to thank Anita Chan, Martin King Whyte and two anonymous reviewers for their extremely helpful comments on an earlier draft.     

Sustainable governance of natural resources and institutional change–an analytical framework

This article presents a conceptual framework for analysing the governance of natural resource use, as governance is often the primary issue when natural resources are overexploited and degraded. It addresses both spontaneous and active governance, including institutional change induced by development co‐operation. Drawing on existing frameworks of institutional analysis, fundamental modifications are presented to adapt the concept to the context of international co‐operation, and to include dynamic aspects of institutional change as well as multiple actor interactions. Tested in several case studies, the framework was found suitable and relevant for use in project planning and evaluation, as well as for comparing governance issues across cases in a conceptually rigorous way. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Seychelles: Democratising in the shadows of the past

This article is an assessment of the country's governance and the likelihood that the country can break free from the shadow of former President René and his one-party state. The paper examines eight key areas of democratic governance: the constitution and rule of law; the judiciary; the National Assembly; elections; civil society; the internal security forces; economic life; and the executive. Although it finds some changes for the better over the last few years, old habits remain of a politicised judiciary, a blurring of the boundaries between party and state, regime policing, partisan distribution of state benefits and a constrained National Assembly. It concludes with a discussion of the likely role of the former incumbent, given that he still retains the chair of the ruling party and shows little sign of allowing the new President to be his own man. The likelihood of further governance progress for Seychelles depends on the political courage of President Michel.     

从公共行政人员角色变迁看行政伦理

在转型期 ,公共行政人员的道德缺失显得不可避免 ,尽管有各种解决方案 ,但行政伦理仍然不可或缺。但对“公仆”的传统定位无助于形成合理的对行政伦理的理解。引入当前政府治道变革中的“顾客导向”使得公仆的定位回归到应有的位置 ,在这个维度行政伦理同样重要 ,且有助于实现公众期望与公共行政人员行为的契合。在此基础上 ,行政伦理制度化刻不容缓     

董事责任的追究和经营判断的原则

如何公正、合理地追究公司董事在经营中的责任这一问题 ,是公司治理结构中的一项重要内容。本文从美国《示范公司法》、特拉华州的判例以及法学研究所提出《公司治理的诸原理———分析和劝告》三个方面 ,考察和分析美国在董事责任追究中的一个重要判例法理———经营判断原则。从经营判断原则的概念、适用条件以及它的机能等方面加以探讨和研究。     

The Uniform Civil Code: The Politics of the Universal in Postcolonial India

This article speaks of a debate in contemporary India: that surrounding the validity of enacting a civil code that applies uniformly to all communities and religions in the state. In certain feminist arguments, such a code is seen as possibly providing a sphere of rights to Indian women that is alternative to the rights – or wrongs – given to them by the plural religious laws, which form the basis of the civil law in India. India, however, is a heterogeneous polity, encompassing a diversity of cultures and religions, some dominant and others forming minorities. Given these differences, some critics see the feminist call for a Uniform Civil Code as an essentialist move that prioritises gender over other agendas and politics. They argue that the site of the ‚universal’ in this feminist move is a liberal site that inherently excludes marginalised Others and benefits the dominant subjects in India. In my article, I contest this critique and question whether the site of the universal and its authorial subject in postcolonial India is, in fact, an exclusionary liberal ruse of power. I draw insights from the history of the formation of the postcolonial nation-state in India to posit an experience of the state and the universal within it, which is alternative to the Western liberal model. The aim of this article is, therefore, not so much to debate the in/validity of a Uniform Civil Code, as to address certain contemporary post-structuralist critiques of the site of the universal in postcolonial India and posit a departure from them, based on perspectives drawn from history.     

欧盟与中国的软实力对地区和全球治理的影响

本文讨论了欧洲和中国软实力政治对于东亚地区治理过程以及全球治理的影响。文中笔者重点讨论了欧盟及美国对东亚地区特别是对中国政策的特点;指出了二者的区别所在,及其对东亚地区化进程以及东亚地区发展带来的不同影响。通过比较,说明软实力对于地区治理及全球治理将产生深远影响。     

社区自治：我国社区治理的发展目标

改革开放以来,我国的社区治理主要经历了行政型、合作型两种模式。实现社区自治是我国社区治理的发展目标,但目前条件尚未成熟。要实现社区自治的目标,必须从加强社区治理的法律建设、积极促进第三部门发展、大力发展社会中介组织、积极培育公民的参与意识和社区理念等方面努力。