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1242. Bribe Payers Index 2008
- Author:
- Juanita Riaño and Robin Hodess
- Publication Date:
- 12-2008
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Transparency International
- Abstract:
- Corruption and bribery are complex transactions that involve both someone who offers a benefit, often a bribe, and someone who accepts, as well as a variety of specialists or intermediaries to facilitate the transaction. By perpetuating the 'abuse of entrusted power for private gain' – Transparency International's (TI) definition of corruption – both the bribe payer and bribe taker cause damage in a number of ways. Ultimately, their corrupt dealings create extreme inequity – both in markets and in societies.
- Topic:
- Corruption, International Trade and Finance, International Affairs, and Governance
1243. Promoting Revenue Transparency: 2008 Report on Revenue Transparency of Oil and Gas Companies
- Publication Date:
- 04-2008
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Transparency International
- Abstract:
- In this report, Transparency International (TI) evaluates 42 leading oil and gas companies on their current policies, management systems and performance in areas relevant to revenue transparency in their upstream operations. Revenue transparency in this report includes three areas of corporate action where disclosure can contribute to improved accountability in the management of extractive revenues: payments to host governments, operations and corporate anti-corruption programmes. The companies are evaluated in a total of 21 countries of operation. This report is a featured product of TI's Promoting Revenue Transparency Project and attempts to characterise current levels of company revenue transparency, to point to best practices, and to suggest areas for improvement.
- Topic:
- Corruption, International Trade and Finance, International Affairs, Natural Resources, and Governance
1244. China's Economic Fluctuations: Implications for its Rural Economy
- Author:
- Albert Keidel
- Publication Date:
- 01-2008
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
- Abstract:
- Since market reforms began in 1978, China's economy has shown cyclical fluctuations. These cycles of change appear in obvious statistical patterns-faster growth and then slower growth, higher price inflation and then lower inflation, stronger investment flows and then weaker investment-and all are accompanied by other cyclical fluctuations in a range of variables and policy initiatives. Most of these fluctuations tend to move together. Their beauty is that they allow analysis of which fluctuations influence others and, by extension, which policies might make a difference in managing China's economy. In this regard, the cyclical interaction between China's formal urban economy and its rural economy is particularly relevant for the issues facing Chinese policy makers today.
- Topic:
- Economics, International Trade and Finance, and Governance
- Political Geography:
- China and Asia
1245. In Pursuit of Justice: Prosecuting Terrorism Cases in the Federal Courts
- Author:
- Richard B. Zabel and James J. Benjamin Jr.
- Publication Date:
- 05-2008
- Content Type:
- Course Pack
- Abstract:
- This White Paper examines the capability of the federal courts to handle criminal cases arising from international terrorism. In the Paper, we focus on terrorism that is associated— organizationally, financially, or ideologically—with self- described “jihadist” or Islamist extremist terrorist groups like al Qaeda. 1 Many observers have expressed views on this important subject. 2 Some have argued for prosecuting terrorist criminals outside of the civilian court system; others have called for the establishment of an entirely new “national security court.” 3 A premise of such arguments is that the traditional court system is not well-equipped to handle international terrorism cases. We aim to explore that premise.
- Topic:
- Security, Civil Society, Islam, Terrorism, and Governance
1246. Saudi Arabia’s “Soft” Counterterrorism Strategy: Prevention, Rehabilitation, and Aftercare
- Author:
- Christopher Boucek
- Publication Date:
- 09-2008
- Content Type:
- Course Pack
- Institution:
- Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
- Abstract:
- In the aftermath of a wave of deadly terrorist attacks that began in 2003, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia launched a wide-ranging counterterrorism campaign. Central to Saudi counterterrorism efforts has been the use of unconventional “soft” measures designed to combat the intellectual and ideological justifications for violent extremism. The primary objective of this strategy is to engage and combat an ideology that the Saudi government asserts is based on corrupted and deviant interpretations of Islam. The impetus for this soft approach came in large part from the recognition that violent extremism cannot be combated through tradition security measures alone. This Saudi strategy is composed of three interconnected programs aimed at prevention, rehabilitation, and post- release care (PRAC). Although only in operation for the past four years, the Saudi strategy—es- pecially the rehabilitation and counter-radicalization programs—has generated very positive and very intriguing results. To date, recidivist and rearrest rates are extremely low, at approximately 1 to 2 percent. Similar programs designed to demobilize violent extremists and their supporters are increasing in popularity, with a number of countries adopting comparable counter-radicalization pro- grams. Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Yemen, Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia have all established rehabilitation and engagement programs, as has the U.S. military through Task Force 134 in Iraq. As such, the importance of understanding the Saudi strategy, and counter-radicalization broadly, is increasing in relevance in the fight against violent radical Islamist extremism.
- Topic:
- Security, Islam, Terrorism, and Governance
- Political Geography:
- Saudi Arabia
1247. The Iraqi Accord Front's Return to Government
- Author:
- Farook Ahmed
- Publication Date:
- 05-2008
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Institute for the Study of War
- Abstract:
- Iraqi Prime Minister Nourial-Maliki's recent offensives against Shi'a extremist groups in Baghdad and Southern Iraq have been credited with bringing ancillary benefits to Iraq, as they have been credited by Iraq's main Sunni Arab parliamentary bloc, the Iraqi Accordance Front (IAF, or "Tawafuq") to return to Prime Minister Maliki's government. This appears to strengthen the Iraqi government while serving as a milestone for Iraqi sectarian reconciliation.
- Topic:
- Terrorism, Armed Struggle, Governance, Sectarianism, and Sectarian violence
- Political Geography:
- Middle East
1248. Afghanistán: Political Situation and Evolution
- Author:
- Amparo Tortosa
- Publication Date:
- 07-2007
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Athena Intelligence Journal
- Institution:
- Athena Intelligence
- Abstract:
- El 19 de septiembre del 2005, como continuación de los acuerdos de Bonn 2001 para la reconstrucción de Afganistán y su transición al sistema político democrático, tuvieron lugar las primeras elecciones democráticas al Parlamento y Consejos provinciales. Todo ello, partiendo de una situación post-conflicto.
- Topic:
- Politics, Governance, and Political Power Sharing
- Political Geography:
- Afghanistan
1249. Allegories of Reading Tulis
- Author:
- Diane Rubenstein
- Publication Date:
- 01-2007
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Critical Review
- Institution:
- Critical Review Foundation
- Abstract:
- Jeffrey Tulis's The Rhetorical Presidency is deceptively titled. It is not about rhetoric or political symbolism or even about the American presidency as such, as were many postmodern studies produced in the Reagan era. Rather, Tulis re-situates rhetoric: a minor theme in a story about the presidency becomes an important avenue into profound questions of political order and republican governance. Like Tulis, I approach my thesis obliquely; I distinguish his from other, seemingly similar, works (and realign him with other rhetorical readers, such as Paul de Man and Jacques Derrida) to underscore what I see as the book's lasting legacy: its explication of the double binds and central paradoxes of republican governance (seen, for example, in presidential prerogative), and its articulation of the role of rhetoric in institutional transformation.
- Topic:
- Government and Governance
- Political Geography:
- America
1250. New Trends in China's Foreign Investment Strategy
- Author:
- Lorenzo Sasso
- Publication Date:
- 09-2007
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- The International Spectator
- Institution:
- Istituto Affari Internazionali
- Abstract:
- China now holds the world's largest foreign exchange reserves mainly thanks to dynamic export activities. In order to invest and manage these foreign exchange reserves, the Chinese government recently announced the constitution of a new State Foreign Exchange Investment Company (SFEIC) aimed at improving the yield on them. This new investment vehicle will face multiple challenges ranging from showing solid financial gains to establishing effective rules for corporate governance that guarantee transparency in company management. In addition to the legal aspects, numerous economic and political implications will arise from this new government-controlled tool.
- Topic:
- Government and Governance
- Political Geography:
- China