Regulating factory safety in the Bangladeshi garment industry

This paper examines how far the workplace inspection program established under the 2013 Accord on Fire and Building Safety has served to improve safety in Bangladesh garment factories, and the extent to which its operation has been influenced by factors that the literature suggests are important in shaping the outcomes of private regulatory initiatives. The findings suggest that such regulation can generate positive outcomes, even in the absence of strong public regulatory support. They also caution against discounting the role of compliance‐based enforcement strategies, while highlighting the importance of their adequate resourcing and transparency. Some support is also offered for the argument that such regulatory initiatives could directly influence the market dynamics that shape supplier working conditions.     

Driving Development? The Problems and Promises of the Car in Vietnam

The private car comes with promises of modernity and comfortable mobility for the growing middle class in Vietnam. Vietnam’s government has also targeted the domestic automobile industry as a “spearhead industry” in an attempt to achieve industrial upgrading. Paradoxically, the government is simultaneously restraining the market for this industry through imposing high taxes and fees on cars, making them available only to a limited number of people. This article discusses the promises and problems of the automobile in Vietnam. It analyses policies related to the development of the automobile industry, and discusses the reasons for the relative failure of the project. The article argues that the failure is linked to weaknesses in Vietnamese development strategies, but also to the potential problems an expansion in car ownership in Vietnam would lead to. The article contends that the car represents a development dilemma between industrialisation and urban mobility, and that environmental, energy and social concerns add to the rationale for limiting car ownership. Furthermore, although forces promoting car-driven industrialisation appear to be gaining ground, the requirements for regional economic integration may challenge the future of the infant automobile industry.     

中日在稀有金属领域的战略博弈——兼评中国稀土产业政策效果

日本本土稀有金属资源极度匮乏,但却是世界稀有金属消费大国和应用强国。随着稀有金属在战略性新兴产业应用日益广泛,中日两个稀有金属资源和应用大国在该领域展开了数轮博弈。为应对中国收紧稀有金属出口的一揽子政策措施,日本综合运用技术、经济、政治、外交手段,形成了以技术创新为核心、市场化为基本导向、官产学联动的稀有金属保障战略体系,有效缓解了其国内稀有金属供给趋紧的压力,进一步巩固了日本在稀有金属全球价值链上的竞争优势。长期以来,中国稀有金属的资源优势未能上升为产业优势。借鉴日本稀有金属保障体系,应加快构建稀有矿产资源国家战略,推动稀有金属产业链向高端环节延展,切实维护国家资源安全。     

澳门博彩业快速发展的法哲学思考

澳门回归后博彩业得到快速扩容，已发展成为世界第一赌城，而与此相关的社会问题也接踵而至。这一情况让特区政府始料不及，其原因除了受利益最大化市场规律的影响之外，还存在封澳门基本法相关规定解读不当的问题。需要在提高认识的基础上调整思路，强化管理，以实现精神文明与物质文明的同步发展。     

MTI翻译策略与翻译产业需求——以大连为区域背景的研究

近年来，随着大连市国际交流的不断拓展，大连市第三产业的发展不断加强，尤其是会展业和生产性服务业的巨大需求带动和促进了翻译产业的发展。带有市场定位性质的MTI翻译硕士培养策略应与翻译产业需求接轨，既重视目前大连产业结构发展的特点，也考虑大连目前翻译产业的特点，并针对翻译产业的发展趋向做出具有针对性的培养计划。     

应对低碳壁垒我国对外贸易的政策调整与法制完善

全球气候异常变暖和环境持续恶化使低碳和节能减排成为当前最热门的话题。低碳的兴起是世界人民对保护环境的清醒认识和实践,其对改善全球生态环境的积极影响是毋庸置疑的;但是,由此形成的低碳壁垒给国际贸易关系带来的巨变也是不容忽视的。针对单个国家来说,低碳热潮带来的机遇和危机并存,因此,如何预见危机而发现机遇,消除危机而创造机遇,是提升本国在国际贸易中地位的重要举措。     

我国低碳经济的发展路径与制度保障研究

低碳经济是世界经济发展的大趋势,号称第三次工业革命。如今世界各国都在积极探索低碳发展的道路。我国作为发展中国家在这次发展浪潮中既有优势也有劣势,只有扬长避短、积极改革才能激流勇进、顺流而上。本文简要论述了我国发展低碳经济的必要性与可行性,进而通过对低碳经济发展的有关要素进行分析阐述,根据我国国情,提出了对我国发展低碳经济的路径选择和制度保障的建议。     

WTO规则视野下我国矿产行政管理体制的完善

中国在加入WTO的过程中为履行入世承诺进行了大规模的修法以适应WTO规则,然而,由于缺乏系统性的修法,体制性的问题逐步显现并成为中国履行入世承诺的障碍。本文从我国矿业管理体制的条块格局出发,结合WTO机制中对成员方行政行为的体制性要求,分析了我国政府在对资源品进出口控制方面所面临的困境,在有限的范围内提出了相关的解决措施。     

论现代服务业营业税法的改革取向

现代服务业已经成为衡量一国现代化水平的重要标志。然而，我国现行营业税法律制度存在的诸多弊端，尤其是重复征税问题无疑成为现代服务业发展的重要障碍。因此，剖析现行营业税法律制度是改革之前提。在此基础上，借鉴国外促进现代服务业发展的先进税收立法经验，并结合我国的国情，进一步完善营业税法律制度。与此同时，应改变对现代服务业的征税方式，将其逐步纳入增值税的征收范围，以避免重复征税，从而减轻现代服务业的税收负担。目前，上海正进行增值税扩围的试点，以此为契机积累向全国推广的经验，可促进现代服务业快速有序发展和竞争能力的提升。     

Perceptions of the Regulated Community in Environmental Policy: The View from Below

Discussions in environmental policy often focus on the highest levels of decision making and action while paying scant attention to those individuals on the front lines. Among those frequently overlooked are the individuals at regulated facilities who interact with government regulators on a frequent basis. Interviews with nearly two dozen facility personnel in Virginia yield findings that challenge common perceptions of the relationships between facility personnel and inspectors. In particular, 86 percent of facility personnel, representing a range of regulated facilities from prisons to landfills to dry cleaners, said their interactions with inspectors were positive. Approximately 70 percent of them said that they trust inspectors and provided evidence of trust in their stories. The ramifications of these findings for environmental policy could be potentially significant because facility personnel are presumed to be adversarial, if not outright hostile, and this assumption impacts the design and implementation of environmental regulations.