Keywords: Centre for Advanced Study; CAS; CAS-Sofia; Newsletter; CAS Newsletter; CAS Newsletter 2009
Articles, pictures and interviews can be reprinted only with the consent of Centre for Advanced Study Sofia (CAS - Sofia). Any citations should be duly acknowledged.
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Keywords: Centre for Advanced Study; CAS; CAS-Sofia; Newsletter; CAS Newsletter; CAS Newsletter 2007
Articles, pictures and interviews can be reprinted only with the consent of Centre for Advanced Study Sofia (CAS - Sofia). Any citations should be duly acknowledged.
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Keywords: Centre for Advanced Study; CAS; CAS-Sofia; Newsletter; CAS Newsletter; CAS Newsletter 2005
Articles, pictures and interviews can be reprinted only with the consent of Centre for Advanced Study Sofia (CAS - Sofia). Any citations should be duly acknowledged.
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Keywords: Domestic Violence; Gender-Based Violence; DGBV; Victims Support Model; VSM:
Although throughout the last decade the Bulgarian authorities have adopted a number of acts and subsidiary legislation, as well as improved the existing ones, related to domestic and gender-based violence (DGBV), the country still has a long way to go to bring its legislation and practices in full compliance with EU and Council of Europe standards. The present analysis will attempt to show that Bulgaria has a fairly comprehensive legal framework for counteracting violence, affecting disproportionately women and girls. It includes, inter alia, the Law on Protection against Domestic Violence and the Regulation for its implementation, stipulating a civil law procedure for protecting those harmed; relevant provisions in the Criminal Code, criminalising bodily injury and other forms of violence against the person, plus a provision on punishing non-compliance with a domestic violence protection order; a body of legislation for protection and (financial) assistance of victims of crime, including a dedicated law, relevant provisions in the Criminal Procedure Code. In addition, a number of policy documents guide the work of institutions in co-ordinating their efforts to combat violence and protect groups of persons harmed, especially those with multiple vulnerabilities, such as Roma women and girls.
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The country reports on vulnerable groups of inmates consider the situation of selected groups of prisoners qualified by UN as vulnerable due to their special position in the prisons of Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Lithuania and Spain. Each paper researches the availability of legal provisions in the respective country which possibly neutralise these groups’ vulnerabilities as well as practices which authorities and NGOs implement towards these groups. The reports are a part of the Re-socialization of offenders in the EU: enhancing the role of the civil society (RE-SOC) initiative, coordinated by the Center for the Study of Democracy.
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This working paper is an output of the European Commission’s FP7 "Marie Curie Industry-Academia Partnerships and Pathways" (IAPP) project entitled "GREY - Out of the shadows: developing capacities and capabilities for tackling undeclared work in Bulgaria, Croatia and FYR Macedonia". The aim of the paper is to provide a conceptual framework for understanding the policy approaches for tackling undeclared work. In doing so, the intention is to provide the structure for a future comprehensive review of the policy measures available for tackling undeclared work.
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The country background papers present information about the penitentiary system in Bulgaria, Belgium, Germany, Lithuania and Spain. The information includes: (1) legislation and other applicable regulations governing the penitentiary system; (2) structure of the system (types and number of facilities, location, management, etc.); (3) statistical data (prison population, capacity of penitentiary facilities, categories of inmates, budget, etc.); (4) studies and reports by domestic and international institutions and organizations dealing with prison-related issues; (5) additional information on the penitentiary system. The country background papers are based on the developed Methodology for data collection and analysis on the penitentiary system within the Re-socialization of offenders in the EU: enhancing the role of the civil society (RE-SOC) initiative.
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The first year of Bulgaria’s EU membership, 2007 continued to be a period of intense public and political debate on the issues at the core of the agenda of the Center for the Study of Democracy (CSD) – justice and home affairs (JHA) reform. Thus, CSD’s watchdog and policy work was of utmost relevance to the initial adjustment of the country to the requirements of membership.
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Keywords: Flat Tax;
These however do not necessarily call for the flat rate tax of the design experimented in several of the new market economies. The study argues as well that vertical flattening in itself tends to redistribute the tax burden towards the mid-income groups. Furthermore it cautions that the expectations that the flat income tax will limit tax evasion might be overly optimistic. The paper suggests alternative supply side tax incentives.
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At the beginning of 1991 the Bulgarian economy had almost reached the point of collapse. This was due to the economic policy of 1990, combined with the negative effects of the Persian Gulf crisis. On this background a project for one-year "stand-by" credit for Bulgaria from the IMF was prepared. The agreement was signed in February 1991 and confirmed by IMF on March 15. Under these circumstances the use of the IMF resources was the only possibility for partial recovery of the country's hard currency reserves, and this possibility could certainly be used only under the specific conditions required by IMF.
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Projekat Centra za evroatlantske studije iz Beograda (CEAS) „Usvajanje Zakona o bezbednosnim proverama - U susret većoj usklađenosti sa Ustavom“, koji je podržala Misija Organizacije za evropsku bezbednost i saradnju (OEBS) u Srbiji, ima za cilj otvaranje šire javne rasprave o oblasti bezbednosnih provera, uređenju ove oblasti u drugim zemljama, normativnom uređenju i stanju u praksi iste u Srbiji, kao i davanje konkretnih preporuka za unapređenje trenutnog stanja.
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Keywords: Family; family policy; policy reforms; changes in family policy; governance; childcare; parenting; human resources; parental leave; maternity leave; legislative changes; stimulating birth rate; preschool care;
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Keywords: Czech Republic; Czech labor market; career; family; equal opportunities; early childcare; parents and their employer; human resources managers; part-time work; flexible work-time;
Dear reader, The following pages provide the results of various studies concerning the position of women and men in the Czech labour market. The analyses were carried out as a part of the EU Equal project “Fifty - fifty: Equal Opportunities for Women and Men” coordinated by Gender Studies, o.p.s, and co-financed by the EU European Social Fund and the Czech Republic state budget. Each study focuses on a topic that had received very modest coverage in earlier research or had not been explored at all. The first paper is a summary of qualitative and quantitative studies carried out by the Research Institute for Labour and Social Affairs team headed by Věra Kuchařová. The team’s objective was to find out the possibilities parents have in juggling childcare and work responsibilities and the potential constraints or sources of discrimination that can make the parents’ situation difficult. They looked at the issue from both the mothers’ perspective and that of the employers. The main focus was on finding out to what extent the parents draw their sick child leave and claim their maternity/parental leave entitlement, which are the basic measures enabling parents to balance their personal and professional lives. One of the main findings is the fact that the facilities allowing people to balance their personal and professional lives are used much less in the Czech Republic than in the vast majority of western countries. In the Czech Republic, the range of the flexible work arrangement possibilities used is narrower and can usually be summed up in three options: reduced working hours, part-time work and flexible working hours. However, they are usually not offered systematically, they do not fall within internal company guidelines and are used solely on an individual agreement basis. In the Czech Republic, it is still mostly women who take parental leave to provide care for children and ensure other forms of full-time childcare. It is rather exceptional to see a father on parental leave, with men representing about 1% of all persons drawing the parental benefit. The reason can be financial (as men have statistically higher salaries), but it can also lie in the unsupportive attitude on the part of the employers who expect that the working hours arrangement facilities should be primarily used by women. [...]
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Keywords: Work-life balance; international perspectives; Czech Republic; family policy; employment policy; gender roles; professional babysitting; childcare; paternity leave; parental allowance;
Dear readers, This publication will present you with examples of work-life balance provisions in several European countries: the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany and Poland. International perspectives from countries which are geographically, culturally and historically related to the Czech Republic can lend direction and inspiration to the policy makers who shape the family, social and employment policies in the Czech Republic now and in the future. Although we culturally share many notions on gender roles and the position of women and men with our neighbors, the texts in this publication show there are great differences among the specific policies in each country and their impact on the real lives of women and men. Julia Kubisa from Poland, for example, describes the development of family policy in Poland in the last decade and its effects, including the legal aspects regarding professional babysitting, the abolishment of the parental allowance, and the policy of paternity leave. Good practices in these areas are discussed by Oľga Pietruchová and Mária Jacková, who describe work-life balance provisions and flexible parental allowance mechanisms in Slovakia. In addition, examples from Germany illustrate a well-conceived and stable approach to family policy. A series of interviews with Czech women living abroad gives a comparative perspective on work-life balance policies in different countries and the ways these policies affect families’ choices and living conditions. [...]
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Keywords: Bosnia and Herzegovina; federalism; ethnic federalism; post-conflict period; constitutional framework;
This paper is aimed as responding to the dilemma as to whether the non-functionality of the federalism in Bosnia and Herzegovina is a consequence exclusively of inadequate constitutional framework or should causes be sought in factors outside the institutional ones. With that intent, the first part of the paper analyzes the extent to which the Dayton Agreement avails ideal-typical or at least favourable traits that enable the effectuation of all those functions expected of a fundamental law in a modern constitutional state. In the second part of the paper, the author aims to identify political factors that are impeding the effective functioning of the constitutional system. In accordance with the results of such studies, in the conclusion of the paper the author will discuss the extent to which constitutional reform can be expected and what kinds of strategy should be undertaken for the purpose of improving the functionality of the constitutional system of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
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Keywords: democratic deficit; autocratic power; illiberal state; culture; education; science; media; Autonomy; civil society, intellectuals; European values
This report has been prepared by independent Hungarian intellectuals who wish to inform the Hungarian and international public as well as European institutions about the severe harm that the Orbán regime governing Hungary since 2010 has caused in the fields of education, science, culture, and the media. The reason for preparing the present report is that the acts of the successive Orbán governments consistently run counter to and consciously violate the fundamental principles, values, and norms of the European Union, not only as regards the rule of law and political and social rights, but also in the case of the cultural areas discussed here. In Hungary, important European values are being jeopardised, including cultural diversity, scientific and artistic autonomy, the respect for human dignity, access to education and culture, conditions for social mobility, the integration of disadvantaged social groups, the protection of cultural heritage, and the right to balanced information, as well as democratic norms like ensuring social dialogue, transparency and subsidiarity. By presenting the activities of the Orbán regime in the fields of culture, education, research, and the media, we provide information about areas little known to the international public. With our report, we wish to draw attention to the fact that an autocratic system has been constructed and consolidated in Hungary with the money of EU taxpayers and with the financial and political support of EU institutions. This system creates a worrying democratic deficit and severe social problems, while it also causes irreparable harm in the fields of education, science, and culture. The authors of the report are leading researchers, lecturers, and acknowledged experts, including several academicians, professors, heads of departments, and a former Minister of Culture. The undertaking was initiated and coordinated by the Hungarian Network of Academics
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Keywords: CSD; undeclared work; EU; agriculture; aviation; tourism; hotel, restaurant and catering sector; European Platform
As part of the support team of the European Platform tackling undeclared work, CSD is developing a series of papers, analyses and toolkits, aimed at sharing good practices and experiences among the Member States. Since 2016, the European Platform tackling undeclared work provides an EU-level forum that allows different actors, including social partners and enforcement authorities, such as labour inspectorates, tax and social security authorities, to engage in closer cross-border cooperation and joint activities. The Platform’s 2-year work programme for 2019-2020 includes activities enabling Platform members to deal with undeclared work through a holistic approach. The new work programme is building on work to tackle bogus self-employment and fraudulent letterbox companies. Four sectors that are heavily affected by undeclared work have been identified for specific action: agriculture; aviation; tourism; and the hotel, restaurant and catering sector.
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Keywords: tax evasion; illegal tax evasion; legal tax evasion; anti-abuse rules; new instruments in the fight against tax evasion;
Despite the fact that tax evasion has always been an interesting and repeatedly relevant economic and financial phenomenon, it has been insufficiently studied and researched in our theory and practice. At the foundation of tax avoidance (tax evasion) lies the taxpayer’s resistance to tax compliance and his intention to avoid any form of reduction of his disposable income. This is due to the fact that the tax represents a derivative public revenue that the country “takes away” from people who are subjected to its fiscal sovereignty without direct counter-service. If we start from the fact that paying taxes reduces the economic strength of the person who bears its burden, the human tendency towards tax evasion is quite understandable, provided that the extent to which the resistance to paying taxes will be manifested and realized depends on several factors, such as economic trends in the state, frequent changes in tax regulations and mentality of the people who are liable to pay taxes. In any case, tax evasion represents a serious and complex social problem that significantly undermines the economic and legal basis of society. It is a complex phenomenon that occurs both on the national and international level and causes serious consequences for the fiscal policy of the state, and the key reason for the occurrence of this phenomenon is most often found in the poorly developed economic system of the country with a loose mechanism that doesn’t ensure the implementation and observance of legal (especially tax) regulations. Tax evasion reduces the possibility for the state to cover the costs of using public goods, and from the tax payers’s point of view, it leads to an unequal and unfair distribution of tax liabilities, to an increase in tax rates and the resistance of taxpayers who, through tax avoidance, reduce thevolume of taxation and thereby create a vicious circle that is difficult to terminate. In addition, tax evasion is one of the main causes of stratification in our society, and with the spread of this phenomenon the strength and importance of economic justice and equality is being questioned, as well as political and economic efficiency. However, it is important to point out that not all actions of taxpayers which lead to a lower tax burden, or complete avoidance of paying taxes are sanctioned by criminal and misdemeanor norms, which is why in this paper, among other things, we will explain both illegal and legal tax evasion. Also, we will explain the criminal law significance of anti-abuse rules as legal measures that aim to reveal the behavior of taxpayers who have intentions to achieve illegal tax savings, and we will get acquainted with new international and domestic instruments in the fight against tax evasion.
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Keywords: Walerian Borowczyk; Blanche; Juliusz Słowacki; Mazepa; adaptation
The author of this article discusses the problem of the film adaptation of Juliusz Słowacki’s dramatic composition, directed in France by Walerian Borowczyk, who was at that time banned from Poland. She reflects upon the play between eros and sacrum, which is very characteristic of the Polish director, but also very different than in Słowacki’s design. She also considers the following issues: change of name and title of the work; modification of historical and geographical background; ascetic scenery (one-dimensionality and lack of pageantry like in Giotto’s paintings); functioning of things (or rather – in Borowczyk’s case – almost lack of props) and animals – different in both works: literary and cinematic.
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