The visual politics of corruption

Despite the fact that corruption is essentially invisible, communication campaigns by the global anti-corruption industry regularly feature photographic images. So far, however, we do not know much about the narratives that are encoded in these images. Through the theoretical lens of postcolonialism, this paper takes a first step towards developing an understanding of the visual representation of corruption. Specifically, the paper applies semiotic and iconographic methods to two photography competitions run by Transparency International – the major non-governmental player in the anti-corruption industry. The analysis shows, first, that the anti-corruption industry reinforces colonial stereotypes, suggesting that the ‘sinful’ and ‘irrational’ Global South is waiting to be civilised by the North. Second, through its visual imagery, the anti-corruption industry also emphasises ideas of a ‘humanitarian family’, which serves to cover up the North’s role in transnational webs of corruption. These findings are triangulated with semiotic/iconographic analyses of the Transparency International logo and the Corruption Perceptions Index map.     

论斯瓦尔巴群岛的法律地位

斯瓦尔巴群岛又称斯匹次卑尔根群岛,是北极地区的重要岛屿。1920年的《斯匹次卑尔根群岛条约》改变了斯瓦尔巴群岛无主地的法律地位,将该岛主权赋予挪威,在群岛上确立了“主权确定,共同开发”的原则,但挪威对斯瓦尔巴群岛享有的“完全和绝对的”主权是在《斯匹次卑尔根群岛条约》规定限制下的有限主权,与传统国际法意义上主权的概念不尽相同。挪威以这种“有限”主权依据《联合国海洋法公约》规定享有专属经济区和大陆架,必将损害《斯匹次卑尔根群岛条约》设立的公平原则,未来对斯瓦尔巴群岛法律地位的争议还将长期存在。     

Sharing the benefits of biodiversity the Kani TBGRI deal in Kerala,India

Abstract

The United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) concluded at the Earth Summit in 1992, mandates that where utilisation of the knowledge, innovations and practices of local and indigenous communities leads to benefits, such benefits shall be equitably shared with the holders of such knowledge, innovations and practices. The study analyses some of the issues that have emerged in the context of a ‘benefit sharing exercise’ attempted by the Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute (TBGRI), a research institute based in Kerala, with the Kani tribals of Kerala, pursuant to the development of a pharmaceutical drug, based on the knowledge, information and natural resources that the Kanis have nurtured over many years.

As the case study illustrates, the debate on benefit sharing in the absence of other fundamental rights such as the rights to land, access to the resource and adequate governance structures becomes a limited and myopic exercise. A ‘fair and equitable benefit sharing mechanism’ would therefore call for certain basic pre‐conditions that will be discussed in the course of the study.     

Fisheries management in Jamaica,international perspectives

Abstract

This paper examines Jamaica's efforts to implement of the conservation and management provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), bearing in mind that prior to 1982 there was an existing legal framework that sought to address issues relating to fisheries management. More specifically, the paper looks at the issues related to the conservation and management of straddling and highly migratory fish stocks under UNCLOS and subsequent agreements negotiated under the auspices of UNCLOS. It also addresses the problems Jamaica faces with the conservation and management of Queen Conch (Strombus Gigas), in particular, the UNCLOS provisions regarding access to such resource, taking into account the limitations to such access as regulated by the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).     

The convention on biological diversity: Ten years on and the strategic plan

Abstract

The Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (Convention) has taken 114 decisions and launched programmes of work to address five biome‐based themes and thirteen cross‐cutting issues. The challenge for the Convention now is to demonstrate, through action and deed, that it is an effective vehicle for implementing this policy. In response to this challenge, the Conference of the Parties at its fifth meeting, in May 2000, decided to initiate a process to develop a Strategic Plan for the Convention that would provide an important mechanism for the implementation of this policy. This Note, which is an abridged version of document UNEP/CBD/MSP/2, has been prepared to assist participants in this Conference to provide more focused suggestions for the development of the Strategic Plan for the Convention.     

A Review of “Setting the Standard: Certification,Governance, and the Forest Stewardship Council”

Abstract

As the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) establishes itself as one of the premier regimes in international law, member states are increasingly availing themselves of the significant dispute settlement provisions found in Part XV. The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) is beginning to take its place in the pantheon of major international tribunals. Although its jurisprudence thus far has largely consisted of applications for prompt release of vessels, these cases have arisen from disagreements over fishery practices and the enforcement of fishery laws by coastal states. The ITLOS is developing into a transparent, consistent and speedy forum to adjudicate marine disputes arising from UNCLOS. While the overall scope and reach of Part XV may be uncertain at the present time, especially vis‐à‐vis other dispute settlement institutions, the early activity under Part XV is promising. Those concerned with marine wildlife issues should be encouraged by the potential of Part XV, the ITLOS in particular, to serve as an effective regime in the realm of marine wildlife dispute settlement.     

Costa Rica's biodiversity law: Sharing the process 1

Abstract

This article assesses the prospects for Costa Rica's new Biodiversity Law. We believe that this analysis could also provide a valuable case study of national implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). The article is not intended to be a primer on the CBD, nor will it defend its precepts. The authors believe that each nation must formulate a legal framework to regulate biodiversity that reflects their unique national circumstances.     

Politics-as-usual on trial: regional anti-corruption campaigns in Indonesia

Abstract

This article explores to what extent to local pro-reform actors matter in Indonesia through the prism of anti-corruption campaigns in the country's regions. I argue that the rash of anti-corruption campaigns and related trials involving legislative members, especially from mid-2004 onward, can be attributed neither to the resources lavished on anti-corruption organizations based in Jakarta, nor to the popularity of President Yudhoyono's anti-corruption rhetoric. Instead, it can be traced to a particular anti-corruption campaign that began in earnest in 2002 in Padang, West Sumatra. Using a multi-dimensional approach, a small group of activists relentlessly pursued their newly elected provincial legislators to be accountable to their democratic mandates and as important, to respect the rule of law pursuant to new national anti-corruption legislation. The guilty verdicts of May 2004 galvanized similar groups across the country to investigate their respective legislative bodies. This exemplary case of societal accountability also demonstrated the leverage activists can gain over local politicians when they forge coalitions with other elite actors, especially those in Jakarta. I further explore two anti-corruption cases in the province of West Kalimantan to place post-Padang developments in their proper perspective. If hopes were raised that regional anti-corruption movements–based on the Padang model–might accomplish more than sensational trials but help consolidate democracy at the regional level by holding elected officials accountable, these two examples show how fleeting these expectations might be. The trials that took place but which produced no convictions resulted from the fallout of local political tussles, and not from local civil society organizations galvanized by the ideals of transparency and good governance.     

Semiotics of corruption: ideological complexes in Mexican politics

ABSTRACT

This article analyses a complex text and event to examine the role of ramifying contradictions in strategic social semiotics analysis. The focus was a paradoxical intervention into corruption by then-Mexican President Peña, who responded to an unprecedented wave of popular criticisms of corruption by simultaneously launching an Anticorruption System and apologizing for his own corruption. We asked: how did this contradiction work, in this conjuncture, with what effects, and how analyse them? We combined the concepts of the Ideological Complex and Wittgenstein’s “duck-rabbit” to explain unstable contradictions in a multiscalar, multimodal analysis of a diachronic corpus, to expose discursive strategies and identify points of vulnerability.