The Incomprehensible Post-Communist Privatisation

2014 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 137-185
Author(s):  
Liviu Damsa

One of the most important claims of the neoliberal policy prescriptions for Central and East European states in the early 1990s was that ‘communist’ property should be ‘privatised’. I contend that this policy prescription was based on a number of false assumptions about what ‘communist’ property was and about communist law. As a result, the post-communist process of privatisation was plagued by many unintended and negative effects. The consequence was the great enrichment of the former communist managers who were able to benefit from ‘privatisation’ at the expense of the public, in a process which was not ‘rights based’ or ‘democratic’. I argue that the reality of ‘communist property’ was totally different from that assumed by neoliberal agents and policies. The distinctiveness of communist property arrangements resided not in the absence of private property, which was tolerated under communism, but in the organisation of property as an administrative matter.

2012 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Paletto ◽  
Isabella De Meo ◽  
Fabrizio Ferretti

Abstract The property rights and the type of ownership (private owners, public domain and commons) are two fundamental concepts in relationship to the local development and to the social and environmental sustainability. Common forests were established in Europe since the Middle Ages, but over the centuries the importance of commons changed in parallel with economic and social changes. In recent decades, the scientific debate focused on the forest management efficiency and sustainability of this type of ownership in comparison to the public and private property. In Italy common forests have a long tradition with substantial differences in the result of historical evolution in various regions. In Sardinia region the private forests are 377.297 ha, the public forests are 201.324 ha, while around 120.000 ha are commons. The respect of the common rights changed in the different historical periods. Today, the common lands are managed directly by municipalities or indirectly through third parties, in both cases the involvement of members of community is very low. The main objective of the paper is to analyse forest management differences in public institutions with and without common property rights. To achieve the objective of the research the forest management preferences of community members and managers were evaluated and compared. The analysis was realized through the use of the principal-agent model and it has been tested in a case study in Sardinia region (Arci-Grighine district). The analysis of the results showed that the categories of actors considered (members of community, municipalities and managers) have a marked productive profile, but municipalities manage forests perceiving a moderate multifunctionality. Moreover, the representatives of the municipalities pay more attention to the interests of the collectivity in comparison to the external managers. They also attribute high importance to environmental and social forest functions.


2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (16) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rohayu Ab Majid ◽  
Rosli Said ◽  
Jamalunlaili Abdullah ◽  
Rohana Ngah ◽  
Qi Jie Kwong

Light Rail Transit (LRT) is one of the public transports that provides a lot of benefits to the Malaysian. Yet this consumption depends on the diverse tastes of potential ridership which are influenced by various factors. However, it is very challenging to predict significant factors influencing ridership preferences. As such, the identification of these factors is very important in ensuring this transportation service really attract ridership attention. Thus, this paper intends to identify the main factors that influence ridership preference in taking LRT transportation. 28 attributes have been identified in this research which expands from four (4) main components. Data were collected from ridership’s survey, site observations and ridership statistical data. Pearson Chi-square has been employed to justify the significant status and the influence level of each LRT attribute and component factors toward ridership preference. The results show that 23 attributes recorded a significant status (<0.00) in two (2) different directions of correlation. Overall, three (3) component factors namely i) Comfortable Service, ii) Economics and iii) Indoor Environment Conditions, have influenced and contributed to the same effect on ridership considerations, as compared to the negative effects displayed by the Site Design Attributes.


2021 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 109
Author(s):  
Svetlana Neretina

The article rejects the reading of Thomas More&apos;s Utopia as, first, a statement of More&apos;s own views on the ideal state and, accordingly, his definition not only as a humanist, but as a communist, and, secondly, an attempt is made to present the humanistic foundations of his ideas and ways of expressing them. These ways of expression are connected with the tropological way of his thinking, expressed through satire and irony, with an eye to ancient examples, which was characteristic of the philosophy, poetics and politics of humanism, one of the tasks of which was to try to build a new society (especially relevant in the period of geographical discoveries), architecture, an unprecedented ratio of natural objects (archimboldeski). The models for &quot;Utopia&quot; were the works of Plato, Lucian, and Cicero. It is written in the spirit of the times, with criticism of state structures, private property, the distinction between the private and the public, and openness to all ideas. Intellectual disorientation of readers is a specific creative task of More writer, his test of their ability to quickly change the optics, to consider history as an alternative world, radically different from our own, but connected with it. Thanks to an extremely pronounced intellectual tension, it goes beyond the limits of time, like the works of Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, Marx... Utopia can be represented as a dystopia, if we take into account the performative nature of the latter, which contributes to the instantaneous translation of words into action, realizing the world of utopia. Dystopia is the answer to utopia with a change of sign: about the same thing, changing the optics, you can say &quot;yes&quot; and &quot;no&quot;. This means that in the modern world, indeed, and for a long time, virtual consciousness becomes little different from the real one, and imagination replaces the theoretical position, acquiring its form, turning theory into fiction. A hypothesis is put forward about the presence of many utopian countries in&quot; Utopia&quot;: Achorians, Polylerites, Macarians, Anemolians.


2021 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 36-49
Author(s):  
Lu An ◽  
Junyang Hu ◽  
Manting Xu ◽  
Gang Li ◽  
Chuanming Yu

The highly influential users on social media platforms may lead the public opinion about public events and have positive or negative effects on the later evolution of events. Identifying highly influential users on social media is of great significance for the management of public opinion in the context of public events. In this study, the highly influential users of social media are divided into three types (i.e., topic initiator, opinion leader, and opinion reverser). A method of profiling highly influential users is proposed based on topic consistency and emotional support. The event of “Jiankui He Editing the Infants' Genes” was investigated. The three types of users were identified, and their opinion differences and dynamic evolution were revealed. The comprehensive profiles of highly influential users were constructed. The findings can help emergency management departments master the focus of attention and emotional attitudes of the key users and provide the method and data support for opinion management and decision-making of public events.


2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alicja Jagielska-Burduk

LEGAL STATUS OF CULTURAL PROPERTY AND WORKS OF ART IN THE PRL Summary The article deals with the legal status of works of art and cultural property in the Polish legislation during communism period. Classifying those objects as private property was considered as a very difficult task, because of their material value and the public interest in saving them for future generations. The strict limitations of individuals property were perceived as unusual and as a result a new sort of property – the private cultural property was distinguished. Moreover, the concepts of the common heritage and res extra commercium could be observed in the light of the PRL ideas. It should be emphasized that the above mentioned theories for improving cultural heritage regulations are the most popular in the nowadays’ international discussion.


Author(s):  
Maciej Hułas

The paper argues that the original normativity that provides the basis for Habermas’s model of the public sphere remains untouched at its core, despite having undergone some corrective alterations since the time of its first unveiling in the 1960s. This normative core is derived from two individual claims, historically articulated in the eighteenth-century’s “golden age” of reason and liberty as both sacred and self-evident: (1) the individual right to an unrestrained disposal of one’s private property; and (2) the individual right to formulate one’s opinion in the course of public debate. Habermas perceives the public sphere anchored to these two fundamental freedoms/rights as an arena of interactive opinion exchange with the capacity to solidly and reliably generate sound reason and public rationality. Despite its historical and cultural attachments to the bourgeois culture as its classical setting, Habermas’s model of the public sphere, due to its universal normativity, maintains its unique character, even if it has been thoroughly reformulated by social theories that run contrary to his original vision of the lifeworld, organized and ruled by autonomous rational individuals.     


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Franchi

Public Space is a photographic and video project examining the relationship between the public sphere and private corporations. The project explores various sites throughout Toronto and New York that are on private property but have been built with the intention of allowing the general public to have unrestricted access to these areas. These spaces are referred to as Privately Owned Public Space or “POPS”. The goal of the project is to question and document, through photographic and video practice, these spaces within the urban environment and to challenge others to consider whether these spaces are effective in achieving their intended use and if they are truly accessible to the general public. Loss of the public space is an ongoing issue that faces cities and developers often receive concessions to bylaw zoning requirements in exchange for incorporating POPS. This thesis project is a personal exploration of how these spaces are changing the urban environments of North American cities in the twenty first century.


2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-50
Author(s):  
Noraida Harun ◽  
Jady @ Zaidi Hassim

Corruption in the public and private sector has become a major problem to the government. Corruption is a serious problem that has become a topic of debate lately, especially in the mass media. Several negative effects will arise as a result of this corruption problem. The main objective of this paper is to analyse the prevailing corruption in land administration. Thus, the trend of corruption in land administration is deeply rooted and it could jeopardize public confidence in the institution of land office. This paper aims to identify the factors of the problem of corruption, recommendations and solutions to curb these crimes from occurring and to identify whether Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC Act 2009) is able to provide solutions to the problems of the crime. The library research and content analysis method are being used in this study. The finding of this research shows that there are several factors of corruption have been identified occurring in the land administration. The MACC Act 2009 appears to have a lot of loopholes in the effort to curb the problem of corruption. This study will highlight some of the proposed recommendations according to Islamic perspective to ensure the interests and rights of all parties involved.   Keywords: corruption, land administration, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009, recommendations and solutions according to Islamic law.   Rasuah dalam sektor awam dan swasta telah menjadi satu masalah utama bagi kerajaan. Rasuah merupakan gejala serius yang sering menjadi topik perbincangan sejak akhir-akhir ini terutamanya dalam media massa. Di samping itu juga, pelbagai kesan negatif yang akan timbul akibat daripada masalah rasuah ini. Objektif utama penulisan ini di buat adalah untuk melihat gejala rasuah yang berlaku dalam pentadbiran tanah. Justeru itu, trend jenayah rasuah dalam pentadbiran tanah yang semakin meningkat amatlah membimbangkan kerana ia boleh menggugat kepercayaan orang ramai terhadap institusi pejabat tanah. Kertas kerja ini bertujuan untuk mengenal pasti punca masalah rasuah, beberapa cadangan penambahbaikan dan jalan penyelesaian bagi mengekang jenayah ini dari terus berlaku. Perbincangan ini turut mengupas Akta Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia 2009 (ASPRM 2009) adakah mampu memberi penyelesaian kepada permasalahan jenayah ini. Kajian kepustakaan dan kaedah analisis kandungan digunakan dalam kajian ini. Hasil kajian mendapati terdapat beberapa punca masalah rasuah yang telah dikenal pasti berlaku dalam pentadbiran tanah dan ASPRM 2009 turut dilihat masih longgar dalam usaha untuk mengekang masalah rasuah ini. Penulisan ini akan mengutarakan beberapa cadangan penambahbaikan menurut perspektif Islam dalam menjamin kepentingan dan hak-hak semua pihak yang terlibat.   Kata kunci: rasuah, pentadbiran tanah, Akta Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia 2009, cadangan dan penyelesaian menurut undang-undang Islam.


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