Federation, Separatism and Union

2019 ◽  
pp. 175-208
Author(s):  
Iain Walker
Keyword(s):  
21St Century ◽  
National Economy ◽  
The Political ◽  
Military Government ◽  
Declaration Of Independence ◽  
Coup D'etat ◽  
Early 21St Century ◽  
Political Struggles ◽  
Armed Intervention ◽  
Union Of The Comoros

A further coup d’etat in 1995 did nothing to improve the national economy, mismanagement and the national Ngazidja-dominated government’s lack of sensitivity. It finally led to a declaration of independence instituted by the island of Ndzuani in 1997. An armed intervention to restore order was a disastrous failure, and following the death of president Taki a military government led by Azali Assoumani took over and negotiated an agreement between the islands that finally led to the establishment of a new structure – the Union of the Comoros – that was intended to guarantee the islands a degree of autonomy. A rotating presidency was largely symbolic and the political struggles of the early 21st century were personified by Ngazidja’s Azali and Ndzuani’s Sambi, the former, re-elected president, potentially for ten years, in 2019, becoming increasingly authoritarian. Meanwhile, Mayotte became a French department.

scholarly journals Beyond Westminster: thinking the Aotearoa/New Zealand way of governing

2006 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bill Ryan
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
21St Century ◽  
The Political ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Early 21St Century ◽  
Aotearoa New Zealand

Something intriguing is going on within the political executive. In response to emerging conditions of governing in the late 20th and early 21st century in countries like New Zealand, some public servants are acting in new ways that are quite different from certain key prescriptions of the traditional, Westminster-derived constitutional framework on which our polity is based. This paper identifies some of these changes and considers their implications.

scholarly journals The threat of surveillance capitalism

Teknokultura ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 265-276
Author(s):  
Chris H. Gray
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Political Economy ◽  
21St Century ◽  
The Political ◽  
Early 21St Century ◽  
Media Companies ◽  
Important Addition ◽  
The Early 21St Century

Using Shoshana Zuboff’s 2019 book, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, the essay explores this latest form of capitalism and Zuboff’s claims about its organization. Her arguments are compared and contrasted with David Eggers novel, and the movie that came out of it, called The Circle, as well as other perspectives on capitalism (Marx, Barry Unsworth’s Sacred Hunger) and the current dominance of social media companies (especially Alphabet/Google, Facebook, and Amazon) from Evgeny Morozov, Natasa Dow Schüll, Zeynep Tufekci, Steve Mann and Tim Wu. Zuboff’s description and critique of Surveillance Capitalism is a convincing and important addition to our understanding of the political economy of the early 21st Century and the role of giant monopolistic social media companies in shaping it.

China: Party–Army Relations Past and Present

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sofia K. Ledberg
Keyword(s):  
21St Century ◽  
Domestic Politics ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Early Years ◽  
The Political ◽  
Reform Process ◽  
Early 21St Century ◽  
Chinese State ◽  
The Military

The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is a key political actor in the Chinese state. Together with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Chinese state institutions, it makes up the political foundation of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). In the early years after the founding of the PRC in 1949, the military played an important role in state consolidation and the management of domestic state affairs, as is expected in a state founded on Leninist principles of organization. Since the reform process, which was initiated in the late 1970s, the political role of the PLA has changed considerably. It has become less involved in domestic politics and increased attention has been directed toward military modernization. Consequently, in the early 21st century, the Chinese military shares many characteristics with the armed forces in noncommunist states. At the same time, the organizational structures, such as the party committee system, the system of political leaders, and political organs, have remained in place. In other words, the politicized structures that were put in place to facilitate the role of the military as a domestic political tool of the CCP, across many sectors of society, are expected to also accommodate modernization, professionalization, and cooperation with foreign militaries on the international arena in postreform China. This points to an interesting discrepancy between form and purpose of the PLA. The role of the military in Chinese politics has thus shifted over the years, and its relationship with the CCP has generally been interpreted as having developed from one marked by symbiosis to one of greater institutional autonomy and independence. Yet these developments should not necessarily be seen as linear or irreversible. Indeed, China of the Xi Jinping era has shown an increased focus on ideology, centralization, and personalized leadership, which already has had consequences for the political control of the Chinese armed forces. Chances are that these trends will affect the role of the PLA in politics even further in the early decades of the 21st century.

scholarly journals Konflik Tanah Bengkok di Pedesaan Jawa Kontemporer

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 35
Author(s):  
Heri Priyatmoko
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
The Political ◽  
Early 21St Century ◽  
Public Figures ◽  
The People ◽  
Communal Land ◽  
Village Government ◽  
The Village

Intisari:Tulisan ini membahas proses konflik tanah bengkok di Desa Telukan yang terjadi pada permulaan abad XXI. Masyarakat pedesaan dicitrakan komunitas yang tenang, jauh dari sikap kritis, dan hidup guyub rukun mendadak berubah dengan pecahnya konflik tanah bengkok. Tanah bengkok dipahami warga sebagai kekayaan desa yang harus dijaga dan umumnya berlokasi tidak jauh dari desa. Sengketa agraria ini dipicu oleh rasa ketidakpuasan masyarakat terhadap pamong desa dan tokoh masyarakat yang melakukan tukar guling tanah kas desa. Sebagian masyarakat merasa ditinggalkan oleh aparatur desa dalam mengambil keputusan penting itu. Akumulasi kekecewaan warga tersalurkan dengan membentuk organisasi Format dan melancarkan aksi demonstrasi yang digelar beberapa kali. Konflik tanah ini menyebabkan kehidupan desa sempat memanas dan masyarakat terbelah dalam beberapa kubu, yaitu mendukung ruislag, menolak, dan netral. Konflik atau ketegangan sosial merembet di ranah politik yang tercermin dalam pemilihan kepala desa dan Badan Permusyawaratan Desa (BPD). Kelompok yang bersengketa masing-masing mengajukan jagonya demi memenangkan kasus tukar guling. Kenyataan ini menunjukkan bahwa konflik tanah telah berimbas pada kehidupan sosial-politik masyarakat. Abstract: This paper discusses the conflict of tanah bengkok (communal land managed by the village government) in Telukan village in early 21st century. Villagers are depicted as calm and peaceful communities and lack of critical thinking. However, the hamonious life in Telukan village suddenly became a chaos due to the conflict related to tanah bengkok. The people recognize tanah bengkok as a property of the village that needs to be preserved. This land is usually located close to the village. Agrarian dispute was triggered by the lost of trust toward the village leaders and public figures who were supposed to conduct the ruislag of tanah bengkok. Some villagers felt that they were not involved in taking communal decisions by their leaders. The people’s disappoinment triggering them to established an organisation and several demonstrations. The community was divided into several groups: those who support the ruislag, those who refuse, and status quo. This conflict was spread to the political sphere, showed in the election of Kepala Desa (head of village) and Badan Permusyawaratan Desa (Village’s Representative Board). The disputing groups chose their own representatives in order to win the ruislag case. This signifies the evidences that the agrarian dispute impacted on the people’s socio-political lives.

scholarly journals The Evolution of Relations between Myanmar and China in the 1990s: Results and Assessments

2020 ◽  
pp. 145-155
Author(s):  
Wai Yan Phyo Naing ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Economic Sanctions ◽  
The Political ◽  
Military Government ◽  
Power Transition ◽  
Vulnerability Factor ◽  
Coup D'etat ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Us ◽  
Grass Root ◽  
Economic Ties

The article gives insights in relations between Myanmar and China after Myanmar’s generals seized power through a coup d'état in September 1988. As a result of repressions and the failed power transition to the opposition in 1990, the US and Europe imposed harsh economic sanctions on Myanmar’s military government. This forced the Yangon to establish closer political and economic ties with Beijing. The author outlines the specificity of cooperation between Myanmar and China along the political-military, the economic and the social tracks with the focus upon discrepancies between the official and the grass-root levels. In the author’s opinion, the growing imbalance between these dimensions accounted for the key vulnerability factor in the dialogue between the two countries.

Wheatley, Phillis

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
David L. Dudley
Keyword(s):  
African American ◽  
20Th Century ◽  
American Revolution ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Literary Tradition ◽  
The Political ◽  
Financial Security ◽  
Late 20Th Century ◽  
Early 21St Century ◽  
Phillis Wheatley

In September 1773, Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral appeared in London. Its author, Phillis Wheatley, slave to John Wheatley of Boston, thus became the first African American to publish a book. Brought to America in 1761, Wheatley had soon proved herself astonishingly precocious; she mastered English and, as Hannah Mather Crocker later recalled, “made some progress in the latin [sic].” Wheatley read the classics in translation and began writing poetry. Her book made her internationally famous and won her freedom. Nevertheless, events beyond her control—including the death of many friends and patrons, and the chaos caused by the American Revolution—plunged the young (and now free) poet into poverty. Marriage to John Peters did not provide long-lasting financial security. According to 19th-century sources, Wheatley bore, and lost, three infant children, but no records exist of any births, baptisms, or deaths. In 1784, Wheatley died alone (Peters may have been in prison for debt), and an unmarked grave received her. The poet’s surviving canon consists of about sixty-five poems and about two dozen letters. Many other poems are now lost, yet Wheatley’s importance is enormous. Praised by some as a writer of genius, a worthy Mother of the African American literary tradition, Wheatley has also been excoriated for not demonstrating sufficient racial pride or fighting hard enough for abolition. In the late 20th century, critics began to re-evaluate her work, and in the early 21st century, Wheatley is regarded as worthy of her place in American letters—a woman who detested tyranny; a writer keenly attuned to the political, racial, and spiritual movements of her times; and an influence on the Romantic poets who followed her.

Women and Political Power in Brazil

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pedro A. G. Dos Santos ◽  
Debora Thomé
Keyword(s):  
21St Century ◽  
Political Process ◽  
Women's Movements ◽  
The Political ◽  
Early 21St Century ◽  
Democratic Development ◽  
Abortion Law ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Gender Quota

Women have been historically excluded from positions of power in Brazil. Since the dawn of republicanism in the late 19th century, the political system has been dominated by men, and two long periods of authoritarianism stunted both the development of a strong women’s movement and the entrance of women into formal politics. Nevertheless, women have always been involved in the political process, and women’s groups have fought for women’s rights since the dawn of the republic. Successful examples include the suffrage movement, women’s movements that helped the return to democracy in the 1980s, and small victories such as domestic violence laws and maintenance of the status quo in the abortion law and reproductive rights. The end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century marked the slow increased presence of women in elected positions. The implementation of a gender quota law in 1996 and continued pressure by women politicians, those in the state apparatus, and women’s movements brought the issue of women’s representation to the forefront of debates about democratic development in Brazil. Although women still face strong barriers to enter the electoral arena, developments in the early 21st century such as the strengthening of the quota law show that the political space is slowly opening its doors to women.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF KWAME NKRUMAH'S POLITICAL THOUGHT IN EXILE, 1966–1972

2009 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-100
Author(s):  
AMA BINEY
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Political Thought ◽  
The Political ◽  
Armed Struggle ◽  
Coup D'etat ◽  
Political Struggles ◽  
Political Background

ABSTRACTThe focus of this article is an examination of the evolution of Nkrumah's political thought during the last years of his life. There is a discernible radicalization as Nkrumah's intellectual thought developed between 1966 and 1972. He had clearly abandoned the constitutional path to independence and begun to adopt revolutionary armed struggle as the only solution to Africa's myriad problems of capitalism, neo-colonialism and imperialism. The unfolding social and political struggles in Vietnam and Latin America and the unrest in America's black cities impacted profoundly on his thinking. The coup d'état which deposed Nkrumah on 24 February 1966 forced him into exile in neighbouring Guinea-Conakry. It therefore provides the political background against which Nkrumah's intellectual thinking unfolded.

scholarly journals Konflik Tanah Bengkok di Pedesaan Jawa Kontemporer

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 35
Author(s):  
Heri Priyatmoko
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
The Political ◽  
Early 21St Century ◽  
Public Figures ◽  
The People ◽  
Communal Land ◽  
Village Government ◽  
The Village

Intisari:Tulisan ini membahas proses konflik tanah bengkok di Desa Telukan yang terjadi pada permulaan abad XXI. Masyarakat pedesaan dicitrakan komunitas yang tenang, jauh dari sikap kritis, dan hidup guyub rukun mendadak berubah dengan pecahnya konflik tanah bengkok. Tanah bengkok dipahami warga sebagai kekayaan desa yang harus dijaga dan umumnya berlokasi tidak jauh dari desa. Sengketa agraria ini dipicu oleh rasa ketidakpuasan masyarakat terhadap pamong desa dan tokoh masyarakat yang melakukan tukar guling tanah kas desa. Sebagian masyarakat merasa ditinggalkan oleh aparatur desa dalam mengambil keputusan penting itu. Akumulasi kekecewaan warga tersalurkan dengan membentuk organisasi Format dan melancarkan aksi demonstrasi yang digelar beberapa kali. Konflik tanah ini menyebabkan kehidupan desa sempat memanas dan masyarakat terbelah dalam beberapa kubu, yaitu mendukung ruislag, menolak, dan netral. Konflik atau ketegangan sosial merembet di ranah politik yang tercermin dalam pemilihan kepala desa dan Badan Permusyawaratan Desa (BPD). Kelompok yang bersengketa masing-masing mengajukan jagonya demi memenangkan kasus tukar guling. Kenyataan ini menunjukkan bahwa konflik tanah telah berimbas pada kehidupan sosial-politik masyarakat.    Abstract: This paper discusses the conflict of tanah bengkok (communal land managed by the village government) in Telukan village in early 21st century. Villagers are depicted as calm and peaceful communities and lack of critical thinking. However, the hamonious life in Telukan village suddenly became a chaos due to the conflict related to tanah bengkok. The people recognize tanah bengkok as a property of the village that needs to be preserved. This land is usually located close to the village. Agrarian dispute was triggered by the lost of trust toward the village leaders and public figures who were supposed to conduct the ruislag of tanah bengkok. Some villagers felt that they were not involved in taking communal decisions by their leaders. The people’s disappoinment triggering them to established an organisation and several demonstrations. The community was divided into several groups: those who support the ruislag, those who refuse, and status quo. This conflict was spread to the political sphere, showed in the election of Kepala Desa (head of village) and Badan Permusyawaratan Desa (Village’s Representative Board). The disputing groups chose their own representatives in order to win the ruislag case. This signifies the evidences that the agrarian dispute impacted on the people’s socio-political lives.  

Formally Human (Jewish Responses to Kant I)

Other Others ◽  
2018 ◽  
pp. 141-169
Author(s):  
Sergey Dolgopolski
Keyword(s):  
21St Century ◽  
The Political ◽  
Jewish Law ◽  
Human Being ◽  
Early 21St Century ◽  
Positive Law ◽  
The Law ◽  
Rabbinic Law ◽  
Definition Of

The chapter shows how among tradition-oriented scholars of the 20th and early 21st century, the interpersonal in the Talmud became effaced in the notion of a universal subject of reason, ultimately conceived of as pure thought and denying any intrinsic necessity of the intersubjective, let alone the interpersonal. At the center of the discussion is post-Kantian formal transcendental definition of what it means to be human as opposed to any phenomenal description of humanity in external phenomenal terms of a physical, biological, or other objectifying terms. The chapter follows the Jewish thinkers who, in response to Kant’s critique of Jewish law as positive law, argue that Rabbinic law – the Talmud and its interpretation – entail a transcendental rather than positive notion of the law, and a transcendental rather than empirical notion of universal humanity in each human being. The chapter further shows, how for the sake of that argument, modern Jewish thinkers reinvent Jewish law. The chapter displays how that process entails both construction and denial of the Talmud as an allegedly empty form of merely rhetorical arguments to be translated into, and according to the principles of a universal humanity, build, as it is for these Jewish thinkers after Kant, on the principles of intersubjective transcendentalism, and on the resulting understanding of the political in their work.

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