Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

La Congruencia De Los Partidos Y Los Sistemas De Partidos Multinivel En AméRica Latina: ConceptualizacióN Y EvaluacióN De Algunas Herramientas De MedicióN, Tomas Dosek, Flavia Freidenberg

Flavia Freidenberg

No abstract provided.

Evaluación Estudiantil. Sistemas Político Ii. Maestría De Ciencia Política, Daniel Chasquetti

Daniel Chasquetti

No abstract provided.

Turkey-Egypt: Turkish Model, Political Culture And Regional Power Struggle, Zenonas Tziarras

Zenonas Tziarras

This paper argues that although, during the governance of the Muslim Brotherhood, the promotion of the Turkish model through political and economic support was welcomed in Egypt, it is not compatible with the country and cannot be emulated, while there are also different perceptions about the matter on the elite and mass political culture levels. Moreover, based on the political culture(s) of the county, it is very likely that future governments in Egypt would want to assume a greater regional role. Ultimately this means that the Turkish model would have failed as a means of soft power and hegemony, while …

Legislative Turnover And Institutional Reforms: Evidence From The Bolivian Case, Miguel Centellas

Miguel Centellas

Despite increased attention to Latin American legislatures, we know little about legislative candidate selection—particularly in countries that underwent institutional reforms. This paper analyzes candidate selection in Bolivia’s lower legislative chamber using database of candidate & legislator biographical data. Bolivia is an interesting case because it significantly altered its electoral system (from list-PR to MMP). Using legislative candidate biographical data (winners and losers), the paper observes effects in changes in candidate recruitment across pre- and post-reform periods. In addition to common indicators (age, gender, professional association, etc.), the paper focuses on three key candidate dimensions: “localness” (connection to electoral district), “partisanship” …

Os Mecanismos Institucionais Da Ditadura De 1937: Uma Análise Das Contradições Do Regime De Interventorias Federais Nos Estados, Adriano Codato

Adriano Codato

The aim of this article is to analyze the political intervention regime in states through the study of Federal Interventorship mechanisms. We center our attention on the "Estado Novo" and do not take into account any particular Interventoria, nor any specific struggle between a political faction in a given state with new leaders of the National State. The focus, throughout the discussion of evidence from some singular states (São Paulo, Pernambuco, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Sul, Minas Gerais), collected both in historiography and at Getulio Vargas archive, is in the analysis of the main difficulties that the Vargas …

A Theory Without A Movement, A Hope Without A Name: The Future Of Marxism In A Post-Marxist World, Justin Schwartz

Justin Schwartz

Just as Marx's insights into capitalism have been most strikingly vindicated by the rise of neoliberalism and the near-collapse of the world economy, Marxism as social movement has become bereft of support. Is there any point in people who find Marx's analysis useful in clinging to the term "Marxism" - which Marx himself rejected -- at time when self-identified Marxist organizations and societies have collapsed or renounced the identification, and Marxism own working class constituency rejects the term? I set aside bad reasons to give on "Marxism," such as that the theory is purportedly refuted, that its adoption leads necessarily …

Explaining Prolonged Silences In Transitional Justice: The Disappeared In Cyprus And Spain, Iosif Kovras

Iosif Kovras

The article examines why some postconflict societies defer the recovery of those who forcibly disappeared as a result of political violence, even after a fully fledged democratic regime is consolidated. The prolonged silences in Cyprus and Spain contradict the experience of other countries such as Bosnia, Guatemala, and South Africa, where truth recovery for disappeared or missing persons was a central element of the transition to peace and democracy. Exhumations of mass graves containing the victims from the two periods of violence in Cyprus (1963–1974) and the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939) was delayed up until the early 2000s. Cyprus and …

Reforming The Judiciary By Election: Assessing The Role Of Candidate Demographics In Bolivia’S 2011 Judicial Elections, Miguel Centellas, Laura Suaznabar

Miguel Centellas

Since 2005 election of Evo Morales, Bolivia has been undergoing an unprecedented process of reforms aimed at increasing citizens’ direct access to political power. Among the reforms is the 2011 direct election of high court justices—a first among contemporary democracies. This paper analyzes the results of that unique election. Unlike partisan elections, candidates (who were pre-selected by the legislature) were not allowed to campaign and media coverage of candidates was highly restricted. Instead, the country’s electoral organ was charged with disseminating information about the candidates as part of its mission to educate voters about the judicial elections. Lower-than-average voter turnout …

The Democracy Cluster Classification Index, Mihaiela R. Gugiu, Miguel Centellas

Miguel Centellas

Using hierarchical cluster analysis, a new measure of democracy, the DCC index, is proposed and constructed from five popular indices of democracy (Freedom House, Polity IV, Vanhanen's index of democratization, Cheibub et al.'s index of democracy and dictatorship, and the Cingranelli-Richards index of electoral self-determination). The DCC was used to classify the regime types for twenty-four countries in the Americas and thirty-nine countries in Europe over a thirty-year period. The results indicated that democracy is a latent class variable. Sensitivity and specificity analyses were conducted for the five existing democracy indices as well as the newly proposed Unified Democracy Scores …

The Dangers Of Diversity: Ethnic Fractionalization And The Rule Of Law, Michael Touchton

Michael Touchton

Research linking ethnic cleavages to economic underdevelopment is a hallmark of recent efforts to explain economic growth. Similarly, the rule of law as a credible commitment to property rights and contract enforcement is also identified with economic development. Rather than treating these factors as rival explanations for economic development around the world, I propose the rule of law as the causal mechanism through which ethnic fractionalization (EF) influences growth in many countries. I argue ethnic diversity negatively impacts the rule of law due to the prevalence of ethnically-based patronage networks in developing countries. Public officials, I argue, face greater incentives …

The Re-Emerging Dragon, Dylan Kissane

Dylan Kissane

Remarks prepared for the CEFAM China Conference, 22 January 2013.

Check against delivery.

Rethinking Crises And The Accretion Of Executive Power: The "War On Terror" And Conditionality Evidence From Seven Political Systems, Riccardo Pelizzo, John E. Owens

riccardo pelizzo

External shocks to democratic systems are likely to threaten the stability of relations between the executive and the representative assembly. This article investigates the impact of the so-called “war on terror” on executive-assembly relations in comparative perspective. We analyze data from seven countries, which varied in terms of form of government, level of democracy, culture, social structure, and geographic location, to evaluate its effects. We find that whereas in some systems the “war on terror” altered the balance of power between the executive and the assembly, in other cases the extant balance of power was preserved. We postulate various conditions …

Organizational Continuity And Electoral Endurance: The Communist Party Of Cyprus, Antonis A. Ellinas, Yiannos Katsourides

Antonis A. Ellinas

This article makes a contribution to the understanding of party organization by examining one the most successful West European communist parties, the Communist Party of Cyprus (AKEL). Defying the downward trend of its counterparts and the external shock of Soviet collapse, the AKEL has managed to sustain the support of nearly a third of the electorate. Using original archival evidence and interview data, the article attributes the electoral endurance of the AKEL to organizational continuity. Since its founding, the party has built a robust mass party structure, with an extensive network of auxiliary organizations and strong centralizing mechanisms. During the …

Wage Regulation In The Private Sector In Europe, Maarten Keune, Kurt Vandaele

Kurt Vandaele

No abstract provided.

Annexe: Les Jours De Grèves En 2010 Et 2011, Kurt Vandaele

Kurt Vandaele

Le Groupe d’analyse des conflits sociaux (GRACOS) est un collectif interdisciplinaire ayant pour objectif l’étude des principaux mouvements de grève et autres éléments de la conflictualité sociale qui jalonnent l’actualité de chaque année civile. Il se compose actuellement de dix chercheurs : A. Bingen, M. Capron, V. Demertzis, F. Dorssemont, A. Dufresne, J. Faniel, C. Gobin, E. Martinez, K. Vandaele et J. Vandewattyne. Dans le second de ses deux volumes sur l’année 2012, le GRACOS se penche tout d’abord sur divers événements représentatifs de l’évolution de la conflictualité sociale dans le secteur public. Trois domaines sont abordés : les transports …

Union Responses To Young Workers Since The Great Recession In Ireland, The Netherlands And Sweden: Are Youth Structures Re-Orienting The Union Agenda?, Kurt Vandaele

Kurt Vandaele

This article analyses how youth structures at the confederal level of trade unions are influencing the union agenda in the face of the growing problem of youth unemployment in Europe. Five youth structures from union confederations in Ireland, the Netherlands and Sweden have been studied. Although youth structures were already able to influence the union agenda in certain confederations before the crisis, the evidence demonstrates that youth issues have gained prominence today. A particular pattern discernible across countries is coalition-building between youth structures and student organizations for guiding the transition of the next generation of young workers from school to …

Workers’ Rights, Worker Mobilisation And Workers’ Voice, Stefan Clauwaert, Aline Hoffmann, Romuald Jagodzinski, Isabelle Schömann, Michael Stollt, Kurt Vandaele

Kurt Vandaele

In his address to the European Parliament on 14 September 2011, ILO Director-General Juan Somovia declared that ‘respect for fundamental principles and rights at work is non-negotiable: not even in times of crisis when questions of fairness abound. This is particularly important in countries having to adopt austerity measures. We cannot use the crisis as an excuse to disregard internationally agreed labour standards.’ This warning is cleary not being heeded. As will be elaborated in the first section of this chapter, the labour reforms proposed or initiated by the EU and the Troika have indeed had detrimental effects on workers’ …

Elusive Agency: Africa's Persistently Peripheral Role In International Relations, Stefan Andreasson

Stefan Andreasson

No abstract provided.

Getting To Rights: Treaty Ratification, Constitutional Convergence, And Human Rights Practice, Tom Ginsburg, Zachary Elkins, Beth Simmons

Tom Ginsburg

This Article examines the adoption of rights in national constitutions in the post-World War II period in light of claims of global convergence. Using a comprehensive database on the contents of the world’s constitutions, we observe a qualified convergence on the content of rights. Nearly every single right has increased in prevalence since its introduction, but very few are close to universal. We show that international rights documents, starting with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, have shaped the rights menu of national constitutions in powerful ways. These covenants appear to coordinate the behavior of domestic drafters, whether or not …

“Somos Autonomistas De Siempre”: Public University Politics And The Negotiation Of Autonomy In Bolivia, Miguel Centellas, Katherine M. Centellas

Miguel Centellas

This paper analyzes the contentious April 2010 public university elections for Rector and Vice Rector at the Universidad Mayor de San Andrés (UMSA) in Bolivia. University elections are especially politically significant in countries like Bolivia, in which public universities have constitutionally protected autonomy and have often served as bastions of political opposition. Using quantitative and qualitative techniques, we describe and analyze how Bolivia’s university elections interact with national and subnational politics. Looking at the three most recent rectorate elections (2004, 2007, 2010), we measure electoral volatility, party system stability, and partisan alignments within university elections. We combine this with long-term …

La Calidad De Las Elecciones En América Latina, Flavia Freidenberg

Flavia Freidenberg

No abstract provided.

Selección De Candidatos En Organizaciones Partidistas: Una Propuesta Metodológica Para Medir El Nivel De Democracia Interna, Flavia Freidenberg, Tomas Dosek

Flavia Freidenberg

No abstract provided.

Los Cambios Del Sistema De Partidos Ecuatoriano En Treinta Años De Democracia (1978-2010), Flavia Freidenberg

Flavia Freidenberg

No abstract provided.

Smart Power For Hard Problems: The Role Of Special Operation Forces Strengthening The Rule Of Law And Human Rights In Africa, Kevin H. Govern

Kevin H. Govern

This article will assess the roles and responsibilities of Special Operations Forces (SOF) within the newly created U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) as an active proponent of a so-called “smart power” national security strategy. In particular, it will outline the economic, political, and military challenges faced in Africa; specifically, how and why SOCAFRICA is the U.S. force of choice for promoting human rights and rule of law in Africa. With the goals of the U.S. military in mind, questions will necessarily arise as to “what success looks like” for both the U.S. and African nations, and the roles of each in …

Singapore's Culture War Over Section 377a: Through The Lens Of Public Choice And Multi-Lingual Research, Jianlin Chen

Jianlin Chen

The 2007 debate over the retention of Singapore’s male sodomy law provision set off a vigorous and passionate public debate reminiscent of the U.S.’s culture war. However, the Singapore government’s final decision reflects an interesting compromise. The law was retained, but its moral content severely curtailed with the promise of non-proactive enforcement against private consensual adult activity, the proclamation of accommodating the gay community and the concession of the inborn nature of homosexuality. This article critically examines this episode of culture war in Singapore and explores the political dynamics driving the compromise. Enriching public choice theory on interest group capture, …

Book Review, Tom Ginsburg, Ed., Comparative Constitutional Design, Cameron C. Russell

Cameron C Russell

No abstract provided.

Radical Right And Partisan Competition, Diana B. Kontsevaia

Diana Kontsevaia

No abstract provided.

Effectiveness And Representativeness Of Justice System Institutions In Mexico´S Transition To Democracy, Julio Ríos-Figueroa

Julio Ríos-Figueroa

No abstract provided.

An Evaluation Of Cross-National Measures Of Judicial Independence, Julio Ríos-Figueroa, Jeffrey K. Staton

Julio Ríos-Figueroa

We provide a conceptual map of judicial independence and evaluate the con- tent, construct, and convergent validity of 13 cross-national measures. There is evidence suggesting the validity of extant de facto measures, though their proper use requires attention to correlated patterns of measurement error and missing data. The evidence for the validity of extant de jure measures is weaker. Among other findings, we do not observe a strong and direct link between the rules that allegedly promote judicial independence and independent behavior. The results suggest that while the measurement of both de jure and de facto judicial independence requires a …