Disability,right to culture and copyright: which regulatory option?

Access to knowledge and participation in cultural life for persons with disabilities has always constituted a tough challenge. Recent studies show that only 5% of published works are available in accessible format, and the number plummets to 1% in developing countries. Coupled with the high costs of production and distribution, and the full reliance on public funds and intervention of public or non-profit organizations, copyright has traditionally represented an additional obstacle on the path for a broader availability of accessible works. Recently, the situation has worsened with the tilting in the balance between rights and exceptions caused by the legislative response to digital threats, when the unprecedented opportunities offered by new technologies to foster accessibility have been largely trumped by copyright law. Still, the last decades have witnessed the beginning of a paradigm shift, originating from the human rights arena, and moving towards a new definition of the interplay between authors’ rights and the right to take part in cultural life, both at a general level and with particular regards to persons with disabilities. This article offers a diachronic overview of the path that, from the rediscovery of Article 15 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights through its General Comments to Article 30 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, has led to the adoption of the Marrakesh Treaty. It then analyses, with a focus on the European Union and its Member States, the national and regional responses to the new human rights obligations, looking at the relations between legislative exceptions and model or collective license agreements. The assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of the two main regulatory options lays the groundwork for proposals of further areas of intervention, necessary to fully comply with the international human rights obligations and to achieve the fullest access to and participation in culture possible for persons with disabilities, by using the tools offered by international and national copyright law.     

Linking past and future: cross-border development and quality of life in the Badakhshans

The 1895 Pamir Convention divided the mountainous region of Badakhshan into separate entities under Russian and British/Afghan influence, leading to a remarkable divergence in the development fortunes of a people once united by kinship. For those in today's Gorno-Badakhshan in Tajikistan, incorporation into the Soviet Union brought investments in education, health, physical infrastructure, and the economy. People living in Afghanistan's Badakhshan Province retained more political freedom but lived remotely within a feudal state where development investment was limited. In recent decades, both regions have experienced conflict that has affected their development. In this article, we use findings from quality of life assessments carried out by the Aga Khan Development Network to illustrate the stark differences between the Badakhshans. We discuss ongoing efforts to implement cross-border development programmes to improve quality of life in both Badakhshans, while noting that their success depends on a stable security environment in the region.     

卓越管理的“黄金法则”——试论加强行政伦理建设

行政伦理,也就是关于“治国”的伦理。它是执政党、国家机构和全体公职人员在治理国家的过程中,以权、责、利的统一为基础,以协调个人、组织与社会的关系为核心的行政行为准则和规范系统。行政伦理在“以德治国”中具有关键性价值。行政伦理失范的问题目前较为普遍。主要原因之一是行政运作过程中缺乏最基本的行政伦理规范和法制秩序。从自律性特点分析,需要加强行政伦理的养成机制建设,就是要加强行政伦理的教育与修养;从他律性特点分析,需要加强行政伦理的监督机制建设,不但要完善现有的法律,加大执法力度,而且要加快对行政伦理立法。     

SELF‐CONTROL,SOCIAL BONDS,AND DESISTANCE: A TEST OF LIFE‐COURSE INTERDEPENDENCE

Theoretical debates and empirical tests on the explanation of stability and change in offending over time have been ongoing for over a decade pitting Gottfredson and Hirschi's (1990) criminal propensity model against Sampson and Laub's (1993) life‐course model of informal social control. In 2001, Wright and his colleagues found evidence of a moderating relationship between criminal propensity, operationalized as self‐control, and prosocial ties on crime, a relationship they term life‐course interdependence. The current study extends their research by focusing on this moderating relationship and the developmental process of desistance from crime among serious juvenile delinquents. Contrary to the life‐course interdependence hypothesis, the results indicate that whereas self‐control and social bonds are strongly related to desistance from crime, there is no evidence of a moderating relationship between these two factors on desistance among this sample. The implications of this research for life‐course theories of crime, future research, and policies regarding desistance are discussed.     

权力监督与诚信政府的建立——公法文化视野中的中国古代诚信

以儒家为主的传统诚信观有自身的规定性 ,其关注的是培养非经济因素的“修齐治平”型君子人格。早熟的人本主义、性善论以及帝国全力体制自身的缺陷及其他因素使得中国古代的诚信政府难以建立。     

寻找精神家园--沈从文对人性美的诠释和追求

对人性美的诠释和追求是沈从文生命结构的主要组成部分。以边城的秀丽风景、纯朴的民情风俗而构成的“湘西世界”,呼唤着美的人情人性,这正是他所寻找到的理想的精神家园。本文主要从人性美的角度切入,来探讨沈从文小说中透露出的人性美,以及人性美的具体表现方式。     

论公序良俗的判断标准

法官在判断公序良俗的过程中,应当尽量抛弃其主观好恶等个人因素。在判断标准的选择上,法官应考虑当事人所属的民族与地域,适当借鉴经验主义标准与唯心主义标准,顾及普通人的感受与专家的评判。在进行判断时,法官既要重视普通人中间的流行意见,又要防止多数人的暴政。     

善于学习、敢于胜利的党——对85年党史观察思考之一

85年的党史是极其丰富的宝藏,认真研究我们党善于学习,勇夺胜利这方面的经验教训,更自觉地在新世纪的实践中运用和发展,是纪念党的生日的很好的实际行动,特别要在现实的切入点上下功夫。     

享乐主义论析

享乐主义是以个人欲望的贪得无厌和行为的自由放纵为主要特征的人生观。享乐主义不仅同快乐主义、乐观主义、物质利益原则有着根本区别,也不同于正常的娱乐。享乐主义的产生和发展,有着深刻的社会根源和认识根源。充分认识享乐主义的危害,树立科学的人生观和幸福观,是个人自我发展和完善的需要,也是社会健康发展的客观要求。     

对低保人员做义工的法理学思考

在现代社会保障制度下,提供低保是政府无条件的责任,而享受低保是受助者无义务的权利.权利义务对等或权利义务相结合的观点并不能为低保人员应该参加公益劳动之规定提供法理依据.地方政府在实施最低生活保障制度时不能走偏,应充分贯彻中央"应保尽保"的低保政策.