Fatimid Royal Women and Royal Concubines in Politics: The Rise of the First Queens of Islam

Author(s):  
Taef El-Azhari

This chapter discusses the impact of Fatimid Shi‘i women on political and religious affairs, in collaboration with the other two genders; men and eunuchs. In Early 11th century, Sitt al-Mulk seized the rule in the Fatimid empire by assassinating her brother caliph and instated his young son. By 1036, Concubine Rasad became queen regent for her five years old boy, and dominated political affairs for decades, until she named herself as queen in state documents. One examine how the first sole queen came to power in Yemen in 1098 and remained for four decades. She not only was a ruler, but also became second religious authority after the caliph himself. Why and how she managed to do that? Why her model has not repeated under the Fatimid dynasty? Why 11th century Yemen and Arabia was much more progressive than 21th century? Ironically, Queen Arwa never attempted to use any of her gender in the state affairs, and continued to count on the other gender. The Egyptian chancery kept for us few official correspondents between the Queens of Fatimid Egypt and queen of Yemen in an extremely rare case.

2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vinay Chauhan ◽  
Sushma Kaushal

Environmental scanning yields greater anticipatory management that provides important inputs for aquitision and use of information for planning and designing organization strategies. Apart from this, effective environmental scanning activities are likely to deal with threats and grasp the opportunities to finally link with enhancing organizational effectiveness. In fact this relationship matrix has led the researchers to conduct an environmental scanning through an examination of the existing status the components of the macro-environment vis-a-vis their relationship with the organizational effectiveness. There are a number of approaches, which describe the macro-environment, of which PEST analysis is regarded as the most common approach for considering the external business environment. Thus, the present study applies PEST analysis to scan the existing business environment. Jammu and Kashmir due to its peculiar political, geographical, economic, and socio-cultural features, had led its cost mountain economy become a distinctive identity. Despite the fact that the state has rich endowments, international relations with its neighbours vis-a-vis its impact on political environment also pose developmental challenges for the business units operating in the state. This has provided valid rationale for conducting the present. The environmental scanning is done through the perception of the select entrepreneurs operating MSMEs in the state of J & K. An impact analysis of environmental factors (PEST) on the organizational effectiveness is also done in the study. The findings of the study show that the political environment of the state that is not favourable for entrepreneural development whereas the rest of the other drivers of PEST i.e. economic environment, socio-cultural environment, and technological environment show a favourable response of the entrepreneurs. In terms of cause and effect relationship, it is found that the first two drivers of the PEST i.e. political and economic dimension impacts OE positively whereas the other two dimensions namely socio-cultural and technological impacts OE negatively but it is pertinent to mention that the impact is very less and is insigninificant. The study also suggests some of strategic options for developing and creating an enabling environment for successful entrepreneurial development to achieve integrated development of the state.


Author(s):  
Svetlana Koryagina ◽  
Irina Kravchenko

The article describes the impact of the Mass Media on the formation of the worldview of the young. This impact may be positive or negative. On the one hand, the media educate young people and enhance their participation in public life. On the other hand, they may mislead or promote false values, and manipulate the young generation’s consciousness. What helps people not to get involved into the tried-and-true crowd manipulation scheme in the media landscape is critical thinking, whose lack results in inability to choose the right guidelines in the flow of false information provided by various Media. The authors emphasize the role of the state, which, regarding the needs of the society, should enculturate the young generation, as well as exercise tight control over communication in the global web and publications in the Internet Media and social networks. One of the directions of the state’s policy is expanding the geography of information and communication technologies, and the other is ensuring information security of the young in general and adolescents in particular. To provide this, the state develops organizational and legal mechanisms aimed at protecting children from harmful information in the web, and requirements for the content, its expert evidence and government control. The article demonstrates the results of a study carried out by the authors to assess the current youth Media and their influence on criminality. The key criterion for selecting participants of the focus group was young age, since the young are the most active and the least protected players in the media landscape. The sampling was made by random choice in order to ensure equal opportunities for participation in the study.


2006 ◽  
Vol 55 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Giuseppe Dalla Torre

Dopo essersi rilevato il fenomeno della rinascita del fatto religioso nell’odierna società secolarizzata, grazie anche al massiccio fenomeno immigratorio, si descrive l’impatto del pluralismo etnico-religioso sulle tradizionali realtà degli ordinamenti giuridici statali; impatto reso ancora più problematico per l’ascesa di nuovi poteri, in particolare quello tecnico-scientifico, insofferenti ad una eteroregolamentazione non solo sul piano etico, ma anche sul piano giuridico. Si mette quindi in evidenza una crescente ambiguità che investe la biogiuridica: da un lato la nuova esigenza di riconoscere il rivendicato “diritto alla diversità” da parte delle diverse formazioni etnico-religiose; dall’altro l’esigenza di una regolamentazione giuridica uniforme a garanzia dell’ordinata convivenza attorno ad una scala valoriale che abbia nella “vita” il bene centrale ed ultimo da salvaguardare. Tra le conclusioni cui si giunge è innanzitutto quella per cui la pacifica convivenza in una società multietnica e multireligiosa può essere assicurata, nel rispetto delle diverse tradizioni e culture, attraverso il ricorso a moderati e saggi riconoscimenti di spazio al diritto personale all’interno degli ordinamenti statali, ma nei limiti rigorosi posti dalle esigenze di tutela della dignità umana. Ciò tocca anche la questione dei “nuovi poteri” che, nel contesto di una società globalizzata, impongono una rielaborazione dell’idea di diritto che, partendo dal quadro di un sistema di fonti che tende sempre più ad essere organizzato non secondo gerarchia ma secondo competenza, si ispiri al principio del riconoscimento dell’essere umano nella sua dignità, indipendentemente dall’appartenenza etnico-religiosa. Infine si mette in evidenza l’inaccettabilità di un “diritto debole”, solo procedimentale, perché sostanziale negazione della funzione stessa del diritto, che è quella di prevenire e/o dirimere i conflitti tra interessi in gioco e, quindi, i contrasti tra le parti della società, difendendo nel rapporto i soggetti più deboli; così come si mette in evidenza che il prezioso bene della laicità dello Stato non è – come invece spesso si ritiene – salvaguardato da un “diritto debole”, ma solo da un diritto giusto. ---------- After being noticed the phenomenon of the rebirth of the religious fact in today’s secularized society, it is described also the impact of the ethnic-religious pluralism on the traditional realities of the government juridical arrangements; impact made even more problematic for the ascent of new powers, particularly that technical-scientific, impatient to an heteroregulation not only on the ethical plan, but also on the juridical plan. It is put therefore in evidence an increasing ambiguity that invests the biojuridical: from one side the new demand to recognize the vindicated “law to difference” from different ethnic-religious formations; from the other the demand of a uniform juridical regulation to guarantee of the orderly cohabitation around to a scale of value that has in “life” central and ultimate good to safeguard. Between the conclusions which the author comes it is, first of all, that for which the peaceful cohabitation in a multiethnic and multireligious society can be assured, in the respect of the different traditions and cultures, through the recourse to moderate and wise recognition of space to the personal law into the government arrangements, but in the rigorous limits set by the demands of guardianship of human dignity. This also touches the matter of new powers that, in the contest of globalization, impose a new elaboration of the idea of law that, departing from the picture of a system of sources that extends more and more to not be organized according to hierarchy but according to competence, inspire to the principle of the recognition of the human being in its dignity, independently from the ethnic-religious affiliation. Finally it is put in evidence the unacceptability of a “weak law”, just procedural, as substantial negation of the law function itself, which is that to prevent and/or to settle the conflicts between affairs at stake and, therefore, contrasts between the parts of the society, defending in the relationship the weakest subjects; as it is evidenced that the precious good of laity of the State is not - like instead it is often considered - safeguarded by a weak law, but only by a correct law.


Author(s):  
Ian Cummins ◽  
Emilio José Gómez-Ciriano

AbstractThis paper presents a comparative analysis of two reports by the UN Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights, one for Spain and one for the UK. In both countries, austerity policies were introduced following the banking crisis of 2008. The UN Rapporteur reports highlight the damage that was done by welfare retrenchment. In particular, the reports document the impact of austerity on the most vulnerable individuals and communities. The paper uses Somers' (2008) conceptual model of citizenship as the basis for a comparative analysis of two reports. Somers' (2008) model of citizenship is a triadic one which sees the state, market and civil society as competing elements. Each one can serve to regulate and limit the influence or excesses of the other two. Somers argues that neoliberalism has seen the dominance of the market at the expense of the role of the state and the institutions of civil society. Austerity policies saw the market dominating. Having examined the context of the two reports and their conclusions, the paper discussed the implications for individual social workers’ practice and the role of social work as a profession in tackling poverty and marginalisation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (12) ◽  
pp. 238-246
Author(s):  
Loc Thi Thuy

From the beginning of the year 2020 until now, the Covid-19 pandemic has heavily, deeply and comprehensively impacted the state of international politics and security in both positive and negative directions. On one hand, the pandemic has encouraged nations to strengthen cooperation in order to effectively deal with the risks that it brought; on the other hand, it has contributed to a rise in competition as well as opposition between countries and global powers alike, especially between the U.S. and China, in multiple politics and security-related issues. In the coming times, the state of international politics and security is predicted to witness many changes, especially in the context where the U.S. is highly expected to adjust its policies. For this text, the writer will place an emphasis on providing in-depth analysis on the negative impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on the state of international politics and security, and therefore provide commentary on the trends of the state of international politics and security in the coming times.


Asian Survey ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 61 (2) ◽  
pp. 324-355
Author(s):  
Yongrong Cao ◽  
Hsin-Che Wu ◽  
Min-Hua Huang

In recent years, the economic development of China and India and their border confrontations have intensified bilateral strategic competition. This study used the State of Democracy in South Asia survey to identify dual mindsets of competition and contingency that drive how Indians perceive China’s influence in Asia. These two mindsets are based on a cognitive schema characterized by a political predisposition against China. However, this negative orientation is moderated as more information is acquired regarding the impact of China on India. The competition mindset does not always manifest itself, and is only cognitively activated when a change is perceived in India’s power status. On the other hand, the contingent principle appears whenever competition seems to have abated, or disadvantage seems unavoidable. The mindsets of competition and contingency are not only relevant to the evolution of Sino–Indian relations, but also explain how Indian policymakers behave and respond in international society.


2011 ◽  
Vol 37 (5) ◽  
pp. 2311-2336 ◽  
Author(s):  
AYŞE ZARAKOL

AbstractThis article aims to understand the phenomenon of international terrorism by wedding a constructivist understanding of terrorism with an overview of the historical evolution of the state. The Westphalian state has replaced three types of authority: religious, personal and local. Political challenges to the modern international system inevitably derive their claim to legitimacy from one of these other forms of authority. I argue that there is a correlation between the kind of legitimacy claim a ‘terrorist’ cause is based on and how threatening we find the activities based on that claim. The less the distance between the unrecognised legitimacy claim on the one hand and the principles conferring legitimacy in the modern states system on the other, the less ontologically threatening we find the claimants to be. All historical variants of modern ‘terrorism’ fall into one of two categories of disruptive activity. They are either based in claims to local authority and target only particular states, or in claims to personal and/or religious authority and reject the modern states system altogether. Groups labelled as terrorist can therefore be classified as system-affirming or system-threatening. The former is a contained problem, but the latter has followed geographically broadening spread pattern throughout the international system.


Author(s):  
Joan-Pau Rubiés

How we think of the relationship between the Jesuits and the Enlightenment largely depends on how we conceptualize the latter. This chapter addresses it as a series of debates conducted in the context of a cosmopolitan Republic of Letters, and a number of specific cultural practices that made that very Republic possible. The Jesuits were, therefore, participants in, rather than enemies of, the Enlightenment. Because they combined theological conservatism with cultural modernity, the Jesuits were feared and resented with particular vehemence. Placed between two different modernities, one characterized by global structures of communication and learning, as well as by the practices of cultural accommodation, the other by the attack on superstition and religious authority, the Jesuits helped create the conditions for the Enlightenment, making important but paradoxical contributions to some of its central debates. Nowhere was this more obvious than in the impact of missionary ethnographies concerning the “Gentile” pagan peoples of the world.


2009 ◽  
pp. 168-178
Author(s):  
Yaroslav V. Stockiy

In recent years, the study of this problem has received considerable attention in both Ukrainian and Polish historiography, which is connected, on the one hand, with the deportation of Ukrainians from Poland and Poles from Ukraine, and, on the other, with the loss of confessional presence, including property. , these two denominations in Western Ukraine in 1944-1946. Both the first and the second are related to the policy of the State power of the Stalin regime. The echo of these events reminded itself in the late 1980s - in the first half of the 1990s - of the apogee years of interfaith confrontation in Ukraine and still echoes today, activating these 60-year-old events. Therefore, given the Ukrainian and Polish historiography of the study, it is appropriate to cover this issue in more detail. This is the relevance of our article. In this context, the author used sources already available in our time in the archives of Lviv, Ternopil, and Ivano-Frankivsk regions, which have not yet been fully explored by researchers. This made it possible to reproduce the confessional transformations of the Roman Catholic Church and the Armenian Catholic Church in a broader and more detailed way and to show the impact on this process of state power, which was the purpose of the study.


2021 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 94-130
Author(s):  
Aziz Ismatov

Until recently, unofficial interpretations of the situation with human rights had remained as an unspoken taboo in Uzbekistan, whereas foreign observers harshly criticized the country, pointing out systematic violations and restrictions of rights by the state. Indeed, not many could predict that the new President Shavkat Mirziyoev, who was elected in 2016, would initiate steps towards improving the human rights situation and, simultaneously, face specific challenges. The 1992 Constitution was developed within the complex transition process from socialism to market economy. This Constitution devotes an entire chapter to human and citizens’ rights. Initially, some authors expected that the Constitution would integrate rights in the context of natural-legal ideas. However, Uzbekistan has largely preserved and strengthened the positivist approach towards constitutional rights, designating the state to grant and limit those rights. The paradox of this situation is that Uzbekistan’s tendencies conflict with the general trends of the post-socialist constitutionalism since the country practically did not change constitutional provisions’ evolutionary development. On the other hand, in the post-socialist Eastern European countries and some former USSR republics, the collapse of socialism led to a constitutional revolution. The author applies historical analysis and cognitive constitutionalism methods to explain a paradox of impossibility to root natural-legal ideas within the (1) deeply-rooted Soviet positivism and (2) revived pre-Soviet traditionalism. On the other hand, the historical 1992 Constitution preparatory process, guided by the special Working group and headed by Islam Karimov, and the theory of human rights in Uzbekistan inherited a strong influence from the doctrine of the Soviet constitutionalism; its positivism, dogmatism and normativism. On the one hand, the author focuses on the impact of traditionalism revived after 1991 in national customs, behavioural attitudes, or social values; and paternalism that had transformed into a “super-presidentialism”, which widely continued a principle of the state’s priority above the individual. In conclusion, the author points to the existing legal imperfections of the constitutional text, and offers approaches to shorten the gap between the supporters of positivism in the 1992 Constitution and the natural right theory’s followers.


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