Shaking off the neoliberal shackles: “democratic emergence” and the negotiation of democratic knowledge in the Middle East North Africa context

ABSTRACT

There is a general assumption in democracy promotion that liberal democracy is the panacea that will solve all political and economic problems faced by developing countries. Using the concept of “good society” as analytical prism, the analysis shows that while there is a rhetorical agreement as to what the “good society” entails, democracy promotion practices fail to allow for recipients’ inclusion in the negotiation and delivery of the “good society”. Contrasting US and Tunisian discourses on the “good society”, the article argues that democracy promotion practices are underpinned by neoliberal parameters borne out from a reliance on the transition paradigm, which in turn leave little room to democracy promotion recipients to formulate knowledge claims supporting the emergence of alternative conceptions of the “good society”. In contrast, the article opens up a reflective pathway to a negotiated democratic knowledge, which would reside in a paradigmatic change that consists in the abandonment of the transition paradigm in favour of a “democratic emergence” paradigm.     

韩国首都圈建设中的政府作用及其对京津合作发展的启示

韩国政府在首都圈发展过程采取了制定规划、建立协调机构和产业指导等多种措施,促进首都圈内分工与合作的良性局面。在控制首都圈的过程中,政策也出现过失误,致使首都圈过度集中问题依然十分严峻,这些都对京津发展具有借鉴意义,即树立城市发展的区域观念,加强政府作用与市场作用的对接、中央政府与地方政府的沟通,发挥科学规划的指导作用,加快立法工作的步伐。     

韩国零售业态发展及政府规制

一国零售业态的发展与其经济发展阶段具有明显的相关性。韩国经济经历了高速增长和市场开放及资本自由化阶段后,便利店、廉价店等新业态大量进入,给韩国以大型百货店和商品交易市场为主导业态的传统零售业态带来了冲击。新型业态基本是模仿国外业态形式或随外资进入的,大型廉价店等新业态在本土化适应过程中不断调整,形成韩国特色。将韩国零售业态置于经济发展过程来考察,会发现与日本战后经济发展的阶段性以及现代零售业态的发展轨迹和政府政策规制的方向具有极大的相似性。我国也呈现出与韩国、日本的相似性。观察韩国零售业态演进过程及其特征,给中国零售业态发展研究提供了一个参照,对总结后发展国家零售业态发展规律具有重要意义。     

从NAFTA到USMCA:投资争端解决机制的变化、成因及启示

2020年7月生效的《美国—墨西哥—加拿大协定》在投资争端解决机制上一改《北美自由贸易协定》下偏重对投资者权利保护的“新自由主义”精神,回归对国家规制权能的重视。在适用对象、适用争议、适用程序上作出变化与革新。全球价值链收缩及“慢球化”、投资争端解决机制的内在合法性危机以及对东道国规制权力的削弱,是国际投资争端解决机制发生变化的深层次经济、法律与政治动因。《美国—墨西哥—加拿大协定》投资争端解决机制的变化与革新将进一步推动“卡尔沃主义”的回归以及加剧国际投资法体制内部的碎片化趋势。中国应积极支持及推进投资争端解决机制改革,使其发挥正面作用,同时辩证吸收“卡尔沃主义”的合理因素,积极探索诸如前置协商、投诉与帮助以及调解等解决投资者与东道国之间投资争议的多元渠道。     

关于韩国政府反腐败历程及问题的几点思考

腐败作为一种世界性的问题 ,在韩国同样值得关注。鉴于对社会和公众的严重危害 ,韩国政府一直在努力采取有力的反腐败政策和行动 ,但仍存在相当的问题。韩国的反腐败的策略 ,是以制度创新遏制腐败 ,充分发挥了政府反腐败的作用 ,并将反腐败作为一项社会系统工程     

新时期变革中的韩国高级文官制度

本文探讨的是韩国政府公共服务改革的热门话题之一:高级文官制度改革。这项新制度的实施将对政府官员的选任与委派、绩效管理、工资制度、培训方式等带来变化。     

NORTH KOREA’S PERSPECTIVES IN ITS ARGUMENT FOR A PEACE TREATY

In recent years, North Korea’s military provocations have been making the headlines. Beyond its harsh actions and remarks, North Korea persistently mentions ‘peace’ through a demand for a ‘peace treaty’. This may sound paradoxical. However, the origin of the North Korean argument for a peace treaty dates back to the Korean War (1950–53). Since then, North Korea has continued to raise the issue of a peace treaty in a consistent manner and the arguments have displayed similar logic and terminology throughout. It is this consistency and similarity that this article examines: through reviewing North Korea’s original texts, this article attempts to undercover North Korea's perspectives reflected in its argument for a peace treaty.     

韩国文化产业的发展及启示

在新经济时代背景下,整个人类社会环境发生了极为深刻的变化,文化在综合国力竞争中的地位和作用更加凸显,发展文化产业也是推进现代经济社会可持续发展的必然要求。当前,很多国家都把文化产业作为核心产业来发展,把文化贸易作为国家战略来推进。其中,韩国自亚洲金融危机以来,十分重视文化产业的发展,视之为支柱产业。韩国的文化产业管理与发展模式,是政府诱导、私人兴办。实践证明,这种模式取得了巨大的成功,为韩国创造了巨大的经济价值,赢得了国际声誉。因此,深入分析韩国文化产业的发展机制,并加以借鉴,对创新和发展我国文化产业具有重要的现实意义。     

RISE OF THE DISLOYAL: INCREASING RESENTMENT IN NORTH KOREA

Why has loyalty to the Kim Family Regime and the Worker’s Party diminished over the past twenty years despite a rise in the average standard of living, greater social mobility, and a regime policy of benign neglect towards marketization? Unthinkable in the Kim Il Sung era, the increase in expressions of resentment toward the North Korean authorities represents a shift in the ideology, behavior, and motivation of the population. Four critical factors have heightened tensions between state and society in North Korea, leading to a reduction in loyalty among the general population. The author considers the impact of labor mobilizations, the declining importance of party membership, the influence of foreign media, and the rise of rent seeking and extractive policies. While all play a role, it is important and possible to identify the primary cause. Extractive policies and rent-seeking position the regime and the people in a directly adversarial relationship. All tiers and agencies of the government have become complicit in efforts to siphon off profits, control market actors through crony capitalism, rent seek, over-regulate, and compete against private market actors, causing the residents to express frustration and resentment towards a government that does not have their interests at heart.     

POLICIES OF LAST RESORT FOR DEALING WITH NORTH KOREA’S NUCLEAR WEAPONS PROGRAMME

This paper analyzes the policy remedies for dealing with North Korea's nuclear weapons and missile programs. After six nuclear tests and three recent successful ICBM tests, North Korea is close to miniaturizing nuclear warheads and establishing a reliable delivery system, thus achieving a much-feared nuclear weapons capability. In defiance of the extraordinarily tough U.N. Security Council resolutions, Pyongyang persists in developing nuclear weapons. North Korea's nuclear weapons program already has exceeded the strategic patience, of the U.S.-ROK alliance. Harsher policy options to deal with the DPRK nuclear weapons are imperative. Several drastic options, including severe sanctions, preventive bombing, nuclear armament of South Korea, are evaluated in the final round of engagement policy on guaranteeing nonaggression and a peace agreement with Pyongyang.