Defending coase against false charges: A comment on block

This note suggests that Coase's The Problem of Social Cost has been read and interpreted too broadly to apply to all aspects of law. Drawing from Coase's own work, I show that Coase was narrowly focused on the economic analysis of negative externalities. This understanding of the paper precludes it from being used as a justification for the broad redistribution of property rights for the purpose of wealth maximization. This understanding of Coase's paper also defends his work against charges from those who object to making the determination of property rights secondary to the maximization of wealth.     

Coercive capacity,land reform and political order in Afghanistan

This article compares four historical periods in Afghanistan to better understand whether land reform in the post-2001 context will improve prospects for political order. Its central finding is that political order can be established without land reform provided that the state is able to establish and maintain coercive capacity. However, the cost of establishing political order mainly through coercion is very low levels of economic development. We also find that when land reform was implemented in periods of weak or declining coercive capacity, political disorder resulted from grievances unrelated to land issues. In addition, land reforms implemented in the context of highly centralized political institutions increased property insecurity. This suggests the importance of investing in coercive capacity alongside land reform in the current context but also that establishing inclusive political institutions prior to land reform will increase its chances of success.     

Peace agreements in a near-permanent civil war: Learning from Sudan and South Sudan

The conflicts in the formerly united Sudan have led to millions of deaths since the country's independence. The Naivasha Agreement was meant to end these wars. The January 2005 agreement foresaw a future where the Sudan People's Liberation Army/Movement and the Sudanese government would coexist within the framework of a united country. Subsequently, in 2011, however, the country was partitioned and the conflicts in Sudan and South Sudan have continued unabated. Interrogating the treaty texts and employing a case study approach and analysis of the economic and power dynamics within the region, this paper addresses the reason behind the failure of the comprehensive peace agreement and subsequent agreements intended to bring peace after partition. It becomes evident that the same dynamics that fed the partition of the country have helped bring conflict within its two successor states. In short, agreements are not sufficient to build peace.     

State-backed discrimination against Shia Muslims in Malaysia

This article traces the origins of legalized discrimination, religious hatred, and systematic marginalization of a community of Malaysian Muslims – the Shias – perpetuated in the name of Islam. It demonstrates how a central government-derived fatwa (religious legal opinion) banning Shi’ism and the propagation of Shia teachings in the country since 1996 has been used to justify a range of human rights violations, not limited to the religious freedom of this minority group. Apart from Syariah legislation, the state has utilized this fatwa alongside other tools, including the religious bureaucracy and the media, to persecute Shia in Malaysia. Anti-Shia efforts are also supported and propagated by non-state Islamists who often work hand-in-hand with state actors.     

Black is Beautiful: cuerpos negros en Triunfo

Spaniards and African-Americans share significant cultural memories forged by the profound impact that various artistic and historical events had on each other during the twentieth century. To contribute to an exploration and understanding of these shared memories – which have received relatively little scholarly attention – this essay focuses on the presence of Black America in the 1960s, that is, the period of Late Francoist Spain. More specifically, it intends to initiate the study of the impact of the Black Civil Rights and Black Power movements on Spain’s progressive press. Focusing on a selection of articles published in the iconic leftist magazine Triunfo, it examines how the traditional European fascination with blackness manifests itself during the 1960s. In Triunfo’s articles we encounter suffering, violent, and degraded bodies, as well as revolutionary, political, and eroticized bodies. This combination reveals the problematic coexistence of solidarity and inspiration with an ethnographic and voyeuristic gaze that perpetuates the spectacularity of black bodies for global consumption. While foregrounding the challenges posed by writing and representing the Other, this study is also an attempt to reconstruct more fully the 1960s cultural and intellectual history of Spain and to approach the black liberation struggle from a transnational perspective.     

澳大利亚对城市弱势群体权利贫困的治理及对我国的启示

澳大利亚政府对城市弱势群依权利贫困的治理可以概括为两个方面：把提供社会保障看作政府的重要职能,用完善的社会福利网保护弱势群体权利免于贫困;用健全的法律法规保障公民各种权利。澳大利亚治理城市弱势群体权利贫困的经验对我国有着重要的启示。     

论刑事被害人补偿——以刑法人权保障机能为视角

刑事被害人补偿问题在当前是一个热点问题。刑法人权保障机能指刑法规范具有的限制国家刑罚权的发动,保障个人自由的机能。将被害人纳入刑法保护的范围,对于保障刑事被害人的权益有重要意义。     

罪犯权利保护现状及其发展趋势

罪犯权利是罪犯法律地位的重要内容,切实保障罪犯权利的实现,是国际人权保护与国家社会稳定发展的需要。转变观念,完善立法和执法,唤起全社会的广泛重视,是实现罪犯权利的重要途径。     

落实《老年法》之政策支持探究简

新的《老年人权益保障法》是一部关系数以亿计的社会老年成员在保证晚年阶段生活质量的重要法律,但如果没有各级政府制定和完善的政策支持,该法律的相关条款则势必难以落到实处。因此,“精神赡养”、“就近居住”等条款,需要政府配套劳动、就业政策的支持;建立“长期护理保障”制度,政府需拿出符合中国国情的方案;构建新的养老服务体系,重点应完善养老机构的布局与建设;老年人宜居环境应不止于公共设施,还包括住宅设计、社区服务环境建设等;鼓励老年人“参与社会发展”,需要改革退休政策、防止就业歧视。     

推进党内基层民主建设的三个着力点

加强党内基层民主建设有利于把基层党组织建设成为具有较强内聚力和执政力的集体,有利于巩固党的执政根基。推进党内基层民主建设,必须以保障党员的基本权利为关键点,以提升党员的民主素养为侧重点,以少数服从多数原则为支撑点,切实提高党内基层民主建设的质量和水平。