scholarly journals Prosecuting the Offence of Misappropriation of Public Funds: An Insight into Cameroon's Special Criminal Court

2017 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Avitus Agbor
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Court ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Will ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Public Funds ◽  
Transparency International ◽  
The Republic ◽  
International Conventions ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Do So

The fight against the misappropriation of public funds for private gain perpetrated by individuals, especially public servants, enjoys different degrees of commitment by different countries. The enactment of laws and establishment of institutional mechanisms towards this end are partly a reflection of the attainment of such mission and can also be the measure by which such a commitment can be assessed. Rated as one of the most corrupt countries in Africa by the global anti-corruption watchdog, Transparency International, the Republic of Cameroon recently enacted a law that created a Special Criminal Court. This comes as one of the most robust and significant legislative developments in the fight against misappropriation of public funds as its mandate is to bring to justice persons who cause loss of at least 50.000.000 CFA Francs [equivalent to about USD 100.000] relating to misappropriation of public funds and other related offences provided for in the Cameroon Penal Code and International Conventions ratified by Cameroon.’ This paper examines the offence of misappropriation of public funds, and looks at aspects of the Special Criminal Court as provided by the Law that established it as well as supplementary legislation enacted to address specific issues related to the Special Criminal Court as well as the offence for which individuals are prosecuted. As a bold step in fighting and defeating the ‘invisible enemy amongst us’ (that is, corruption), this paper argues that with such an institutional mechanism that has docked numerous top-notch politicians and former cabinet members for trial, it becomes an example to emulate and confirms that corruption can be fought if, and only when, the political will to do so is present. 

Pax and the Politics of Peace

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannah Cornwell
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
Political System ◽  
The Political ◽  
Power Dynamics ◽  
Roman Imperialism ◽  
Two Generations ◽  
Pax Romana ◽  
The Creation ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Insight Into

This book examines the two generations that spanned the collapse of the Republic and the Augustan period to understand how the concept of pax Romana, as a central ideology of Roman imperialism, evolved. The author argues for the integral nature of pax in understanding the changing dynamics of the Roman state through civil war to the creation of a new political system and world-rule. The period of the late Republic to the early Principate involved changes in the notion of imperialism. This is the story of how peace acquired a central role within imperial discourse over the course of the collapse of the Republican framework to become deployed in the legitimization of the Augustan regime. It is an examination of the movement from the debates over the content of the concept, in the dying Republic, to the creation of an authorized version controlled by the princeps, through an examination of a series of conceptions about peace, culminating with the pax augusta as the first crystallization of an imperial concept of peace. Just as there existed not one but a series of ideas concerning Roman imperialism, so too were there numerous different meanings, applications, and contexts within which Romans talked about ‘peace’. Examining these different nuances allows us insight into the ways they understood power dynamics, and how these were contingent on the political structures of the day. Roman discourses on peace were part of the wider discussion on the way in which Rome conceptualized her Empire and ideas of imperialism.

scholarly journals Nigeria's Quest to Recover Looted Assets: The Abacha Affair

2013 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 51-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
David U. Enweremadu
Keyword(s):  
Money Laundering ◽  
Foreign Banks ◽  
The West ◽  
Political Will ◽  
Public Funds ◽  
Transparency International ◽  
High Profile ◽  
Military Regimes ◽  
Democratic Rule ◽  
Domestic Level

After a successful transition to democratic rule in 1999, Nigeria launched a high-profile campaign aimed at securing the repatriation of looted public funds being held in foreign banks. This campaign was championed by President Olusegun Obasanjo, a long-standing critic of corrupt military regimes and co-founder of the global anti-corruption NGO Transparency International, throughout his eight-year tenure. By the time Obasanjo left office in May 2007, he had secured the recovery of approximately 2 billion USD in assets and triggered some vital international initiatives against money laundering. However, his efforts were hampered by a combination of local and external obstacles. Externally, the campaign was marked by the absence of sufficient international political will. While at the domestic level, it was undermined by a lack of transparency, the excessive fixation with the Abacha loot, inadequate legal and accounting skills, the uncooperative attitude of accused persons and limited domestic political will. This paper illustrates how these issues have combined to frustrate moves to recover Nigeria's stolen billions sitting in the West.

scholarly journals ‘The radicals in these Reform times’: Politics, Grand juries, and Ireland’s Unbuilt Assize Courthouses, 1800–50

2015 ◽  
Vol 58 ◽  
pp. 109-139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard J. Butler
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Urban Landscape ◽  
The Political ◽  
Early Nineteenth Century ◽  
Funding Sources ◽  
Architectural Development ◽  
Irish Case ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Do So

It is the aim, in this article, to identify the reasons why certain designs for courthouses in early-nineteenth-century Ireland remained unexecuted, and to do so by analysing surviving drawings and placing them in the political context at this time of Irish local government and of the efforts of Westminster politicians to institute reform. The funding and erection of courthouses were managed by grand juries, an archaic form of local government which gave few rights to smaller taxpayers and was widely perceived as an unaccountable institution associated with theancien régime. In addition to hosting court sittings, courthouses were used by these grand juries for their private meetings and functions. By exploring the agendas and pretensions of these bodies, and by looking at the fluctuating availability of funding sources that were needed to initiate building work, I will argue through a series of Irish case studies that a renewed focus on elite patronage and its associated politics allows a new insight into courthouse building, which places less emphasis than is often the case on, for example, the role played by the changing legal profession in the architectural development of the courthouse.In nineteenth-century Ireland, courthouses demarcated the visible and tangible presence in the urban landscape of the law and state-sanctioned justice. Laws passed by the Irish parliament and then, after its abolition in 1800, by the Westminster government, were enforced in assize courthouses by travelling judges on established ‘circuits’, visiting each city or county town twice a year (in the spring and summer). These judges travelled with great splendour through the countryside, and were welcomed by a high sheriff at the county border and escorted with military pageantry, ritual, and procession to their destination.

Ambiguity and Conversion in the Correspondence of Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc and Thomas D'Arcos, 1630-1637

2009 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane Tolbert
Keyword(s):  
North Africa ◽  
Country Of Origin ◽  
Specific Information ◽  
Republic Of Letters ◽  
Catholic Faith ◽  
Needed Information ◽  
The Republic ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Do So

AbstractIn the summer of 1630, Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc (1580-1637), a magistrate, cleric, and tireless correspondent in the South of France, offered to negotiate the release of Thomas D'Arcos (1573-1637?) from his Moorish captors in Tunis. Peiresc had a pragmatic reason for writing. As an intermediary in the Republic of Letters and collector of curiosities, he needed information from North Africa that D'Arcos could provide. But to Peiresc's dismay, D'Arcos converted following his release from captivity, perhaps the only Frenchman to do so. Many converts published captivity accounts after their return to their country of origin. D'Arcos's letters provide a unique insight into his dual existence both in Tunis, where he gained local prestige as a convert, and in France because of his ability to procure information from North Africa. An examination of 80 published letters exchanged between Peiresc (Aix-en-Provence and Belgentier), D'Arcos (Tunis), and a mutual friend Honoré Aycard (Toulon) in the period 1630-1637 reveals the way in which these correspondents framed the conversion at a time when such an action was considered an “apostasy.” D'Arcos presented a paradox by living in two worlds. He never justified his conversion but instead insisted that his inner convictions (faith) remained unchanged even though his dress, or “habit,” had changed. Peiresc avoided confronting the issue of the conversion and addressed D'Arcos as if nothing had changed, using strategies to lure him back to the Catholic faith. He dissimulated news of the conversion in the Republic of Letters but at the same time shared observations obtained by a source he identified as a “former captive.” The exchanges with the intermediary Aycard were more explicit, and correspondents disclosed their feelings concerning the impact of the conversion on their relations as well as on the broader community. Although D'Arcos expressed a fear that he had lost Peiresc's respect, he did little to comply with the Frenchman's need for specific information, blaming any shortcomings on Barbary and providing only the exotic rather than the noteworthy.

The Senate, the courts, and theSC de Cn. Pisone patre

1997 ◽  
Vol 47 (2) ◽  
pp. 510-518 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. S. Richardson
Keyword(s):  
Political History ◽  
The Political ◽  
Satisfactory Explanation ◽  
History Of ◽  
New Material ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Judicial Role

The origins and nature of the judicial role of the senate in cases which under the republic were the business of the permanentquaestioneshave been the subject of long debate, and a satisfactory explanation has yet to be found for the change that had undoubtedly taken place by the reign of Tiberius. The discovery and publication of the senatorial decree which concluded the investigation into the charge brought in A.D. 20 against Cn. Piso following the murder of Germanicus,2 in addition to the wealth of new material it provides for the political history of the period and the understanding of the methods of the historian Tacitus, allows an insight into the relation of the senate to thequaestio maiestatiswhich may prove useful in unravelling some of the puzzles which have troubled scholars hitherto.

scholarly journals Disputed Past: The Friendship and Competing Memories of Anna Lesznai and Emma Ritoók

2012 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 77-93
Author(s):  
Judith Szapor
Keyword(s):  
The Political ◽  
Intellectual Life ◽  
Research Project ◽  
Literary Works ◽  
Women Intellectuals ◽  
The Past ◽  
Shared History ◽  
Official Ideology ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Insight Into

This paper is part of a larger research project that explores the contributions of women intellectuals to the nationalistic, anti-liberal rhetoric of the early 1920s and the gendered aspect of the official ideology of the Horthy-era. The paper probes the connection of the personal and the political by exploring the shared history and competing memories of two woman writers, Anna Lesznai (1885-1966) and Emma Ritoók (1868-1945). The writers were friends and founding members of the Sunday Circle in 1915 but ended up in opposite camps during the 1918-19 revolutions. Ritoók, with Cécile Tormay, became a champion of the counter-revolution, contributing to its anti-Semitic ideology and rhetoric. Lesznai, the wife of Oszkár Jászi and a supporter of the Republic of Councils, was forced to flee and she spent the rest of her life in exile. Their diaries and autobiographical novels reflect the two writers’ diagonally opposing perspectives on their past and their shared intellectual and spiritual home, the Sunday Circle. The juxtaposition of their respective biographies and literary works offers insight into the process of re-interpreting and re-writing the past, whether for personal or political ends. It also illustrates the broader contours and irreparable breach between the Left and the nationalistic Right in Hungarian political and intellectual life after 1919.

scholarly journals Interaction of constitutional guarantees of human rights with power, economy and capital

2021 ◽  
pp. 46-55
Author(s):  
Alexandr Ternovschi ◽  
◽  
◽  
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Will ◽  
Republic Of Moldova ◽  
Real Issue ◽  
The People ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Subsequent Onset

The article contains a study in the field of interaction and dependence of constitutional guarantees of human rights in the Republic of Moldova on power, economy and capital. An example is given of the set of meanings and forms of this democracy, the measure, level and values of the citizens who make up a collective or make up the crowd, from the point of view of organizing the means by leading the people over the state. The causal relationship is analyzed between the interaction and the direct dependence of the implementation of the constitutional norms on the political will, the level of the economy, including the interest and purpose of the capital dictatorship. This prism studies the real issue of democracy in the Western sample regarding the completeness of citizens' expectations. The article provides an assessment of democratic values in their presence, ie form. The most frequent and richest opinions, ideas and doctrines are evaluated, for the general ideological purpose, in order to effectively achieve objectives, including the subsequent onset of certain consequences. A comparative analysis is made regarding the opinions of other authoritarian specialists in this field.

Doubts dog prospects for Mexico corruption crackdown

2015 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Federal State ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Will ◽  
Public Funds ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
General Law ◽  
Lower House ◽  
State And Local ◽  
The Public Sphere

Subject The outlook for progress on combating corruption. Significance Accusations of corruption hound President Enrique Pena Nieto's government. To temper both national and international concerns, Mexico's Lower House has been working to pass a raft of anti-corruption measures. In February, it passed the National Anticorruption System, an attempt to coordinate federal, state, and local anti-corruption efforts, while in March the Senate ratified the General Law of Transparency, aimed at clarifying how public funds are spent. Impacts Mexico's (and particularly the PRI's) poor record on limiting corruption does not generate optimism over the measures' efficacy. Sitting politicians still appear to be lacking the political will to stop corruption. The administration's increasing control of the public sphere will constrain the exposure of corruption.

The Judgment on the Katanga Admissibility Appeal: Judicial Restraint at the ICC

2010 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 343-362 ◽  
Author(s):  
BEN BATROS
Keyword(s):  
International Criminal ◽  
Trial Chamber ◽  
Criminal Court ◽  
Plain Language ◽  
Basic Principles ◽  
Policy Debates ◽  
Republic Of The Congo ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Do So

AbstractThis article examines the judgment on Kantaga's appeal against the decision of Trial Chamber II of the International Criminal Court that the case against him was admissible. The Appeals Chamber rejected Katanga's appeal, and affirmed the admissibility of the case. However, it did not do so on the same basis as the Trial Chamber (that the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) was unwilling). Rather, it looked at the plain language of Article 17, and found that at the time of the challenge the DRC was not investigating or prosecuting Katanga. This judgment can be seen as an example of judicial restraint. The Appeals Chamber dealt only with those questions which were necessary to dispose of the appeal. It did not engage in policy debates or seek to create new facts, but rather applied the Statute as drafted to the facts of the case before it. In doing this, the Appeals Chamber confirmed certain basic principles of the admissibility regime. The case also provides an insight into the relationship between admissibility and ‘positive complementarity’.

scholarly journals Lietuvos Respublikos generalinis konsulatas Vilniuje (1939 m. rugsėjis–spalis): veikla, darbuotojai ir jų likimai

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020/1 ◽  
pp. 119-140
Author(s):  
Vitalija Stravinskienė
Keyword(s):  
Forced Migration ◽  
Personal Characteristics ◽  
The Political ◽  
Academic Institutions ◽  
The West ◽  
Second Stage ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Insight Into

Based on archival and historiographic material, the article offers an insight into the activities of the diplomatic institution of Lithuania in Vilnius in September-October of 1939 and the reactions of the citizens towards the establishment of such institution. The author also dwells on the candidates to become the Consul General and fates of the employees of the institution. The Consulate General in Vilnius was opened in line with the bilateral Lithuanian-Polish agreements with regard to the opening of consulates. Due to changes in the political circumstances (loss of Klaipėda region), the establishment of the Consulate in Vilnius was delayed. The first steps in this direction were made already in the summer of 1939. On 22 August 1939, by the decree of the President of the Republic of Lithuania, Dr Antanas Trimakas was appointed the Consul General and in six days received the exequatur of the President of the Republic of Poland. The Head of the Consulate in Vilnius was a seasoned diplomat. The choice served the purpose as his term in office was politically difficult. Dr Trimakas’ diplomatic experience and personal characteristics helped him in representing Lithuania’s interests. In the first stage of its activities (11/09/1939–18/09/1939) the Consulate was mostly preoccupied with consular functions (visa issuance), whereas in the second stage (19/09/1939–01/11/1939) it was for the most part involved in the advocacy for the rights of Lithuania and its citizens (property protection, interventions with regard to Vilnius citizens, provision of information). The Consulate General of the Republic of Lithuania was a rather small institution which at first employed two and later three people. All of them later became victims of forced migration – the Consul General emigrated to the West, whereas his secretary V. Čečeta was imprisoned by the Soviet authorities and later deported to Kazakhstan. He returned to Lithuania 38 years later. Former employee of the Consulate B. Verkelytė-Federavičienė moved to Kaunas in 1940, started a family there and later worked in cultural and academic institutions.

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