The ‘science’ of superiority: Africa and scholarly colonial assumptions

ABSTRACT

The use of ‘neopatrimonialism’ as a category in mainstream scholarship on African polities and economies is ubiquitous. A critique by Thandika Mkandawire has shown that the ‘neopatrimonial school’ is devoid of conceptual coherence and analytical power – it is an expression of a prejudice, not a useful tool for research and analysis. The article endorses Mkandawire's view but points out that this is by no means the only example of its kind. On the contrary, the use of categories which assume the superiority of societies in the global North over those in Africa is widespread. The article illustrates this by discussing and criticising two others, the ‘democratic consolidation’ paradigm and the ‘failed state’ framework. It argues that all three shape assumptions by scholars in Africa as well as outside it which obstruct concrete analysis. A critique of these paradigms is thus essential to the development of scholarship on and about Africa.     

Electoral rules and manufacturing legislative supermajority: evidence from Singapore

Electoral authoritarian regimes usually preserve the dominance of the ruling party through electoral fraud, violence and intimidation. This paper focuses on the subtler forms of manipulation that undermine the electoral integrity and democratic outcomes. Specifically, we examine how an unusual electoral rule, involving multimember districts elected through plurality bloc voting for party slates, exaggerates the legislative seat shares of the People’s Action Party (PAP) in Singapore. This rule, used also by other electoral authoritarian regimes, facilitates the manipulation of district magnitude and gerrymandering, especially the ‘stacking’ form, to produce a large disproportionality which distorts the seats–votes linkage. It operates in an undemocratic fashion by precluding the opposition from gaining anything but token seats as long as the PAP remains the plurality-winning party. The importance of this electoral rule and its manipulation has been overlooked in current work that emphasises redistributive strategies or coercion to repress electoral competition.     

搜索引擎竞价排名的法律规范规制

目前对搜索引擎竞价排名进行规制的法律规范还比较混乱,既有直接针对性的,也有在适用上存在争论的,还有应该适用而实际上并不适用的。对搜索引擎竞价排名进行规制的法律规范规制的混乱和滞后,其深层原因在于我国对虚拟社会监管的种种不足,如:监管者对现实社会与虚拟社会之间的关系的认识不足;全能型监管模式下非重点监管领域的应急性监管成为必然;监管者专业知识优势的弱化等。完善对搜索引擎竞价排名的法律规范规制,应该进一步明确互联网信息搜索服务提供者的资质要求;确认搜索引擎竞价排名与网络商业广告之间的关系;细化信息搜索服务商在提供竞价排名服务时应当承担的义务;确定互联网信息搜索服务提供者能否构成滥用市场支配地位。     

场所搜查范围的判断基准——以宪法隐私权为视角

公民住宅不受侵犯是宪法所赋予我国公民的基本权利。该权利要求在对场所进行刑事搜查时应当根据一定的基准将其分为住宅和其他场所,并适用不同的搜查程序以体现出对公民住宅权利的保护。西方所普遍接受的隐私权理论为住宅和其他场所的界分提供了良好的理论基础,这一点在我国刑事立法存在空白的情况下具有尤为重要的借鉴价值。我国的司法实践应当采用宪法隐私权学说作为区分住宅和其他场所的理论基础,并在此基础上采用对公众的开放性原则作为判断基准。     

Regulation by litigation

We believe that careful application of the logic of economics and public choice shines important light on regulation through litigation and can explain at least partly why regulators choose the litigation route, when they choose it, and how the choice may or may not achieve broad goals of efficiency and fairness. We present three case studies: heavy‐duty diesel engines, silica and asbestos, and the tobacco industry's Master Settlement Agreement (MSA).     

加强政协理论实践研究把握政协工作特点规律

政协事业要发展一步，理论实践研究就必须深入一步。政协理论实践研究是政协工作改革创新的重要突破口，是凑索政协工作新特点新规律的有效途径，是提井政协工作成效的重要保证。搞好政协理论实践研究应在大兴调查研究之风土下功夫，要密切与政协委员的联系，在加强联系申了解委员情况；要加强与政协机关的接舷，在加强接触中了解机关情况；要密切与基层政协的往来，在密切往来中了解基层情况。应在大力加强对实际问题的理论思考上下功夫，要搞好理论武装，善于从全局上思考问题，加强系统研究。要在拿出管用的对策和办法上下功夫，进一步解放思想、更新观念，充分发挥主观能动性，积极吸收和借鉴一切有益的经验。     

关于完善竞价排名制度之研究

竞价排名是一种搜索引擎商业化产物。我国法律对其没有相应的定性与规范,这导致搜索引擎商在竞价排名活动中利用法律漏洞滥用技术优势地位,恣意侵害网络用户权利,严重扰乱网络信息秩序,直接或者间接成为民事侵权的始作俑者和帮凶,竞价排名所引发的民事侵权行为有点击欺诈、强迫消费、帮助侵权,对此必须明确竞价排名的性质,从技术及法律上杜绝由于不规范使用竞价排名规则所产生的侵权行为。     

公安机关侦查程序违法现状调研报告

侦查阶段程序性违法情况比起诉、审判阶段更为严重.公安机关对违反侦查程序行为的制裁,更多是将视角集中在严重侵犯他人实体权利的程序性违法行为,并以实体权利的损害作为追究法律责任的基础;而公安人员侵犯他人诉讼权利的程序性违法行为得不到应有的制裁.同时,由于侦查过程的封闭性,受侵害人在整个过程中都处于被动甚至失去人身自由的地位,很难收集到证明侦查人员程序违法的证据,也造成了实践中"违法多、举报多、查处少"的局面.     

DRIVING WHILE BLACK: BIAS PROCESSES AND RACIAL DISPARITY IN POLICE STOPS*

We estimate the degree of racial disparity in police vehicular stops separately for local and state police in North Carolina in the year 2000. We introduce four mechanisms that might produce racial disparities in police stops—racial profiling, race sensitive police deployment, cognitive bias and stereotyping, and prejudice. We then model the relative odds of police vehicle stops as a function of race, driving behavior, and other demographic statuses separately by police organization type, with controls for omitted variable bias at both the driver and spatial level. We find only weak evidence of racial disparity in stops by officers of the state highway patrol but stronger evidence in those made by local police officers.     

论“人肉搜索”在侦查中的运用

“人肉搜索”是网上侦查的有力工具，其在彰显公序良俗的同时，亦在挑战现行法律的道德底线。“人肉搜索”犹如一把双刃剑，既是侦查机关侦破案件的有力武器，同时也对公民的隐私权构成了巨大的成胁。笔者建议在法律的规制之下，才能将“人肉搜索”这种获取信息的方式运用于犯罪侦查实践；对于侵犯公民隐私权的违法“人肉搜索”行为应当禁止。