(Негативне) перспективе учлањења Косова и Метохије у Савет Европе – осврт на српско и међународно искуство

Author(s): Ratomir Milikic / Language(s): Serbian / Issue: 1/2016

From a historical perspective the paper encapsulates the experience of Serbia (the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Serbia and Montenegro) in the process of accession to the Council of Europe (CoE), analyzing the qualifications required for membership of the pan-European organization. A comparative method has been used to explore the experiences and requirements set for Serbia, providing an explanation as to why a possible move by Kosovo and Metohija to join the CoE would be unfeasible. Having listed the points of cooperation between Pristina and Strasbourg, the paper is also offering a breakdown of relevant views on Kosovo and Metohija by the organization. The number of CoE member states that haven’t recognized the self-proclaimed independence of Kosovo and Metohija is not small, which only adds to the complexity of a request for membership, hardly in accord with the consensual decisions the CoE has reached thus far.

A Comparative Analysis of Democratisation Process in Mexico and Poland

Author(s): Zoran Krstic / Language(s): English / Issue: 3/2013

The object analysis of this paper is comparison of democratisation process that occurred in two countries- Mexico and Poland. Beside common political past and authoritarian nature- character of previous regime, those countries are different in almost every aspect: geographical position, history, culture and politics. The aim of this paper it to discover the similarities and differences of democratisation process as well as to find to which degree democratisation is a universal process. During the twenty century many countries with previously nondemocratic regimes transformed itself into democracies. That process simultaneously occurred on distant continents and concerned countries with totally different political and economical regimes. The main reason of studying transition is to uncover the conditions and paths that had led to political democracy. The main purpose of the paper it to analyse and compare democratisation process in Mexico and Poland in the context of wider democratisation theories. The period of reforms between the authoritarian regime and fully democratic state is called in literature democratisation or transformation and should be analysed on two levels. The first one, the institutional, concerns changes in political and economical system. The second one, the societal, relates to modifications inside society, the impact of institutional changes on political culture of both, ruling elite and opposition.

A comparative analysis of the most popular models of local goverment

Author(s): Dragan Bataveljic,Dusan Jerotijevic,Dejan Logarusic / Language(s): English / Issue: 4/2016

The authors point to the fact that the local government in Europe has a long tradition, so that in each of the European countries meet certain specifics regarding the structure, functioning and other characteristics, by which these countries differ from each other. It is quite natural, because such differences are a result of numerous factors that are, more or less, exerted influence on the formation of local self-government (its organization, jurisdiction code, position in society, the relationship between the state and the like). The authors pay special attention and give an analysis of the four major (the best known) model of local self-government - Britain, France, Germany and the United States. England and the United States can be considered the cradle of direct and independent forms of local government, while France was a prime example of the dependent (child) and indirect local government. In modern constitutional systems of much greater application has a two-stage local government, and its chief representative of the Federal Republic of Germany. Finally, there are some systems that do not distinguish between the state and local government, ie. between their bodies, because in such systems the organization of state power is unique and that, from the top all the way to the to the bottom (for example, the former Soviet Union, today’s People’s Republic of China and others).

A Comparative Study of Child Welfare in Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina

Author(s): Ana M. Gavrilovic,Aleksandar L. Jugovic / Language(s): English / Issue: 1/2012

The aim of this paper is to analyze, through comparative perspective, current systems of child welfare in transitional societies of the Southeast Europe: Croatia, Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. In this paper we used historical, comparative and statistic method. Socio- political characteristics of these states are: mutual history of child welfare systems, transitional metamorphosis of society and social policy, European perspectives and the need for upgraded child welfare. Gavrilovics point out the common past of child welfare systems of these states. In the main part of this work comparative methods are used to analyze current characteristics of child welfare in Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia- Herzegovina. Family and child support measures are taken into account, with special emphasis on child maintenance, maternity and parental leave and services of specialized children’s institutions. Child welfare is analyzed in the context of transitional changes that the South- east European states are undergoing. Analysis of the three basic forms of financial support of families with children showed that transitional changes substantially reduced the number of children benefiting from child maintenance and even more reduced its amount. Maternity leave is recognized as an important measure in family and population policy in all three states, but there are lack of means, compensation amount is under constant pressure to be lowered.

A Conceptual History of Political Regimes: Democracy, Dictatorship, and Authoritarianism

Author(s): Adam Przeworski / Language(s): English / Issue: 2/2017

The labels we attach today to distinguish political regimes have histories. Applying them without understanding these histories is sometimes anachronistic and ethnocentric. I have little new to say about “democracy” and “dictatorship”, so that the discussion of these concepts is just a reminder. “Authoritarianism”, however, is a dubious neologism. I advance two claims: (1) In all regimes the power to command and be obeyed entails some dose of reason-giving, (2) What distinguishes regimes is the form and the extent to which the authority of rulers is monopolised by physical force. I conclude that the concept of “authoritarianism” adds little to the distinction between democracy and dictatorship.

A FAILED STATE’S LONG WAY BACK

Author(s): Dragos Calcan / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 0

This paper will analyze the causes that led Somalia to become a failed state and the slow pace of recovery discovered by Mogadishu in the recent years. The study is based on qualitative research, analyzing documents which depict the particular history of Somalia and the causes that led to the civil war, as well as quantitative data, when analyzing the number of casualties and refugees that resulted following the unfolding of the Somali conflict. Examining also the rise of the terrorist group Al-Shabaab and the ways in which such organizations manage to replace the role of the state, the paper concludes that the task of rebuilding a failed state is a long and arduous process, in which the international community should adapt its measures to the local specificity of the concerned area. However,as the recent developments show, there is room for hope for the Somali state and people.

A Framework for Perpetrator Behavior: Role Theory, Foreign Policy, and the Case of the Khmer Rouge

Author(s): Joann DiGeorgio-Lutz / Language(s): English / Issue: 1/2018

The research proposes a conceptual framework for understanding perpetrator behavior utilizing role theory through the lens of a foreign policy approach. Frameworks that examine elite genocidal perpetrator behavior rarely give enough consideration to the influence of foreign policy as a source of state-sponsored genocidal policies. This research proposes a model for examining elite perpetrator behavior marrying role theory and foreign policy as a source of genocidal perpetrator behavior. Using Cambodia as a case study, this research proposes a model for further examination both in the Cambodian context and across a number of other cases.

A Quintessential Lesson from European Union Integration to African Union

Author(s): Endris Mekonnen Faris,Hasan Korkut / Language(s): English / Issue: 1/2016

The African Union -a multipurpose cooperation platform which most believe inspired by the European Union- came to exist to transform the continents fate into a prosperous one. European Union unprecedentedly becomes the crucial factor to speed up the Europe’s integration. European Union is an economic community and was not meant, first, a political one. Hence European Union can be a quintessential lesson for the African Union if the later understands the formers achievement came because of the exclusive emphasis given to the economic approach. The paper empirically argues that economic integration leads to an outright continental political unity. Accordingly the continent’s integration can only be achieved when economic approach is given prior emphasis. The political approach is a default which by nature follows the achievements gained from economic approach.The African Union -a multipurpose cooperation platform which most believe inspired by the European Union- came to exist to transform the continents fate into a prosperous one. European Union unprecedentedly becomes the crucial factor to speed up the Europe’s integration. European Union is an economic community and was not meant, first, a political one. Hence European Union can be a quintessential lesson for the African Union if the later understands the formers achievement came because of the exclusive emphasis given to the economic approach. The paper empirically argues that economic integration leads to an outright continental political unity. Accordingly the continent’s integration can only be achieved when economic approach is given prior emphasis. The political approach is a default which by nature follows the achievements gained from economic approach.

A Review of the 2015 and 1999-2011 General Elections in Nigeria Using Pippa Norris’ Electoral Integrity Framework (EIF)

Author(s): Mohammed Bello UMAR,Kamal Olaniyi LAMIDI / Language(s): English / Issue: 1/2018

In a democratic setting, elections remain a universally acceptable means of choosing leaders. They are regarded as the heart of a democracy because they confer political legitimacy to governments in a democratic setting. The electoral history of Nigeria shows that it has been devoid of free and fair elections, ever since the country transitioned to democracy in 1999. In light of this, the present study finds it useful to examine whether we can perceive an improvement in the 2015 general elections when compared with previous electoral cycles beginning with 1999. In this sense, we will apply the Electoral Integrity Framework (EIF) developed by Pippa Norris. The result of this comparative analysis shows that the conditions of the 2015 general elections were made better due to the introduction of biometric technology. The results, as such, mirrored the failure of the ruling party (People’s Democratic Party – PDP) in the area of governance. The study further shows that the Electoral Commission has yet to improve the voter’s registration system and the voter’s card distribution method. The paper concludes that for Nigeria to experience free and fair elections, all actors involved must be ready to respect the electoral rules, to accept the rulings of the court and to put into effect the judicial decisions.

ADDRESSING THE EVALUATION OF CONTEMPORARY SOCIETAL SECURITY BASED ON COMPLEXITY CONCEPTS

Author(s): Ioan Craciun,Octavian Victor Mihail Dima / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 0

Societal security, as developed by the Copenhagen Security School, is an extremely important area of the broader concept of a contemporary security approach that, in addition to military issues, also addresses a host of other threats from areas such as political,economic, societal or environmental ones. In the study of contemporary social security, a series of concepts specific to the theory of complex systems, such as complexity, self organization,chaos, etc., have been borrowed, which have substantially enriched the hermeneutics of the security discourse on the basis of non-traditional interpretations of social systems. This paper aims to present the basic concepts of complexity and their relevance to the theory and practice of contemporary societal security. At the same time, the paper presents some conclusions regarding the analysis methodology specific to the complexity science applicable to the field of societal security.

Almondov koncept političkog sistema

Author(s): Štefica Deren-Antoljak / Language(s): Croatian / Issue: 02/1986

In spite of the fact that American political science is comparatively well developed, before the 1950s there have been no comprehensive analyses nor any comparative research into the problems of contemporary political systems. During the last twenty years new analytical instruments, procedures and techniques for the study of political processes have been worked out, and an enormous amount of empirical material concerning political systems both in developed and in developing countries has been collected. All this has made it possible that a method of comparative analysis should be established, that can also be applied to contemporary political systems. In American political science Gabriel Almond has particular merits for the elaboration of a comparative method in that field. This paper deals with the efforts of G. Almond, J. Coleman, and B. Powell to work out a theoretical approach convenient for the comparison of contemporary political systems.

Alternative predstavničkoj demokratiji: paralelizacija sustavne paradigme skroz heterotopije

Author(s): Cirila Toplak / Language(s): Serbian / Publication Year: 0

Liberal representative democracy is considered the least bad and therefore the only acceptable political system in contemporary global social conditions. However, any discourse that denies alternatives is essentially a conservative discourse, while extraordinary demographic, economic and technological developments of modernity require innovations and progress in the field of political where institutions and systemic solutions of 200 years ago still prevail. As it appears rather obvious that the concepts and practices of representative democracy have been largely hollowed out and compromised in the context of transformed and rapidly transforming social conditions, alternatives to representative democracy also need be considered although this system is a rather recent systemic experiment for the Western Balkan societies. Numerous contemporary representative systems and especially those recently introduced, are actually more or less authoritative oligarchies representing a stage of transition to a „true“ democratic society. On the other hand, consolidated representative democracies also tend to turn into oligarchies, deemed the most suitable political framework to the (global) rule of capital. In other words, some societies have not yet developed a functional representative democratic system and are oligarchies for now, while other societies have gone past the peak of optimal functioning of the representative system and are being perverted into oligarchies according to Michels’s „iron law of oligarchy“. Since the dilemma around more or less or better or worse representative democracy would keep the academic discussion inside narrow ideological confines, and since it appears idealistic to work toward systemic reforms or wait for a (violent) revolution, this paper will seek for a path to a harmonious so ciety of optimal prosperity through analysis of heterotopias or „other (political) spaces“ where, according to Michel Foucault, alternative institutions and social relations are being formed and life is conceived under non-hegemonic conditions.

AMERICAN AND ARABIC POLITICAL APOLOGIES: CONTRASTIVE APPROACH FROM A CULTURAL POINT OF VIEW

Author(s): Ahmad Kareem Salem Al-Wuhaili / Language(s): English / Issue: 13/2018

In everyday world, apologies help to establish social balance and harmony between people. Apologies are speech act within politeness theory and the theory of politeness doesn't appear equally in all societies (Lyons, 1981, p. 188). Politeness principles also vary from culture to culture, for example it is interpreted differently in Chinese than American societies (Leech, 1983, p.10). The present study aims to identify the different uses of apologies within two different cultures, Arabic and American, in the field of politics, and to depict and examine to what extent the cultural factor influences the strategies that both Arab and American politicians use in their speech act of apology. For this study we have chosen some excerpts selected from Arabic and American discourses held by presidents, ministers, prime ministers, and, politicians.

An audience with … the public, the representative, the sovereign

Author(s): Niccolò Milanese / Language(s): English / Issue: 1/2017

The right of audience, in common law, is the right of a lawyer to represent a client in a court. Royalty, the Pope and some Presidents grant audiences. What does the power to grant an audience consist in? And what does it mean to demand an audience (with)? Through a reading of the way in which the vocabulary of theatre, acting and audience is involved in the generation of a theory of state by Hobbes and Rousseau, this paper looks to reopen these questions as a political resource for us to re-imagine and refigure our ways of being together. Through readings of Hobbes and Rousseau, it looks at the ways in which the performance of politics creates the public, the representative and the sovereign and the ways these figures interact. It proposes an alternative role for theatre as places of affective learning and a civic ethics of playfulness, in which the auto-institution of the state as an imagined collectivity is fully assumed.

Analiza evoluţiei influenţei triadei SUA–UE–Rusia în Asia Centrală, în comparaţie cu Balcanii de Vest

Author(s): Angela Gramada / Language(s): Romanian / Issue: 3-4/2011

In an era of globalization we are witnessing the migration of foreign policy interests of international actors. Central Asia has become an area where great powers, which include Russian Federation, European Union, United States of America, and China, have common interests. Most times they overlap or intersect, leading to the emergence of dissent diplomatic or economic order. The area is important because of available energy resources, but also because of the trade routes that exist here and unite East and West. What makes the difference between the major interests of these actors is the ability to win the political and economic war in Central Asia being based on their historical presence in those territories. The ultimate objective of this paper is to highlight the objectives of foreign and security policies of great powers that have economic, political and geostrategic interests in Central Asia so that they can reveal the direction of national policies of those countries.

Analiza mogućnosti transfera politike iz austrijskog u hrvatski sustav razvoja vještina

Author(s): Nikola Bukovic / Language(s): Croatian / Issue: 9/2018

This paper puts forward an analysis of dominant features, differences and potential of policy-transfer from Austrian to Croatian skillformation system. Inquiry is based on the typology developed by Busemeyer and Trampusch following the body of work in developed industrial democracies. These authors distinguish between four types of systems in developed industrial democracies: i) state skill formation; ii) liberal skill formation; iii) segmentalist skill formation; iv) collective skill formation, attributed to Austria. Analytical process is divided in two main segments. Firstly, author examines structure of each skillformation system, placing particular emphasis on secondary vocational schooling, as it represents critical institutional determinant of each system, also examining key recent reforms. Secondly, author analyses similarities and differences between the two systems. Conclusions are also divided in two categories. The first group refers to causes of structural differences between Austria and Croatia. The second group is focused on potential of policy transfer.

Analiza wykorzystania form prawno-organizacyjnych współpracy międzysamorządowej w gminach – porównania międzyregionalne

Author(s): Aldona Podgórniak-Krzykacz / Language(s): Polish / Issue: 4.2/2016

This article presents some of the findings of a research project concerning intermunicipal co-operation in Poland. The aim of this paper is investigate the usage the organizational and legal frame of inter-municipality cooperation in the provision of public services. A comparative analysis shows that inter-municipal co-operation comes in all shapes and sizes. Research shows that the joint authority, communal associations, agreements between authorities, and limited companies are used in varying degrees, taking into account the various types of public services. These data on this topic are summarized in the form of comparisons between voivodeships.

Andrea Faggion, Nuria Sánchez Madrid, Alessandro Pinzani (Eds.) Kant and Social Policies, Palgrave Macmillan, London, New York, 2016

Author(s): Igor Cvejic / Language(s): English / Issue: 1/2017

Antun Vujić o moći i nemoći socijaldemokracije

Author(s): Tonci Kursar / Language(s): Croatian / Issue: 05+08/2016

Postalo je besmisleno naglašavati da je socijaldemokracija u krizi. Takvo stanje traje od osamdesetih godina i to je njena, kako se kaže, ‘normalnost’. Antun Vujić koji je zaštitni znak hrvatske socijaldemokracije u svojoj publicističkoj knjizi Hrvatska i ljevica kaže: »Prikrivanje ne pomaže. Socijaldemokracija kao politička organizacija je u krizi. Ono što nije u krizi je potreba za socijalnom demokracijom, usporediva i sa samom krizom« (2014: 342). Vujić se u knjizi posvetio rekonstrukciji ‘normalnosti’ koja razara današnju socijaldemokraciju, ali i društveno tkivo Hrvatske. Odbacio je ideološke i policy intervencije Giddensa, Blairea i Schrödera, tj. njihov Third Way, jer je to učenje samo formalno produljilo život socijaldemokraciji do početka globalne krize 2008.