Problematic Sources

Traditional Russian worldviews explained healing from water sources in terms both Protestants and Catholics would have used elsewhere in Europe: as the grace of God or as the intervention of saints through associated relics or wonder-working icons. Holy wells were freely venerated within parishes until the eighteenth century when Peter the Great and the Holy Synod (the Russian Orthodox Church’s highest governing body) forbade pilgrimage to holy wells in a reformist drive to eradicate religious “superstitions.” This essay employs primary sources to consider how nineteenth-century developments at Russian holy wells and mineral springs related to social class, economics and those eighteenth-century reforms that merged the church with government structures. While liturgical activities at holy wells and the designation of new holy wells was criminalized, mineral springs gained appeal for “scientific” cures and as resort enterprises for the upper classes

Criminal implications of the legal status of members of the governing body and persons carrying out key functions in banks

In some cases, the operation of legislative additions and amendments to the Criminal Code may raise uncertainties regarding the interpretation and application of the criminal law. In this regard, the will of the legislator is to be expressed in a manner that meets the recognized criteria of quality of the law, namely: accessibility, predictability and clarity. In particular, the rule of criminal law must be worded with sufficient precision so as to enable the person to decide on his conduct and to reasonably foresee, in the light of the circumstances of the case, the consequences of such conduct. In this article, the authors set out to interpret the last sentence of art. 123 para. (2) of the Criminal Code, i.e. – to determine whether the members of the governing body and the persons holding key positions in the bank can be considered persons authorized or invested by the state to provide, on their behalf, public services or perform activities of interest public and implicitly, if they can be considered public persons, within the meaning of art. 123 paragraph (2) of the Criminal Code, since, before the exercise of responsibilities, the candidatures of such persons must be approved by the National Bank of Moldova, or either, are to be considered persons managing a commercial organization, within the meaning of article 124 of the Criminal Code.

Legal Recommendations on the Establishment of Worker Representative Organization in Enterprise in Accordance with International Standards

In addition to Trade Union, from 1st January 2021, employees in Vietnam are entitled to establish and join worker representative organizations in enterprises. This is one of the new legislative developments that lack clarifying regulations . In this context, the International Labor Organization (ILO) published a Digest of decisions and principles of the Freedom of Association Committee of the Governing Body of the ILO, based on about 200 cases presented to this organization. Therefore, the research on this vital document might provide Vietnam with the opinions of international experts and practical experiences from many countries worldwide on the concerned issue for further developing regulations on freedom of association. As this is a big topic, this article only focuses on international standards on establishing worker representative organization, then comparing them with Vietnamese regulations to find out the gaps to be supplemented.

Like a puppet on a string … exploring Headteachers’ perceived demise of Local Governing Bodies within an English Multi-Academy Trust

Multi-Academy Trusts (MAT) have developed organically in England since 2010. As a result, there appears to be a lack of consistency in the interpretation of delegated responsibilities of Local Governing Bodies (LGB). In a small-scale study of Headteacher (HT) accountability within one English MAT, governance was revealed as a major cause for concern. Accountability links between HT performance management, LGBs, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Trust Board were unclear. There was a perception of a lack of upward communication and an increase in local ‘rubber-stamping’ of MAT strategy. It is argued that, whilst LGBs are used as a form of ‘chain of command’ to monitor individual schools, their actual purpose may be operational; governed and limited by the Trust Board. LGBs appear to have lost their strategic influence in the conversion from maintained school to academy. I suggest that the term ‘Local Governing Body’ is potentially erroneous in its nomenclature, as some LGBs merely provide a middle level of ‘educational responsibility’ – puppets on a string.

Need for Autonomy and Guidelines for Autonomous Colleges by University Grant Commission

Colleges with academic and operative freedom are doing better and have more credibility. The financial support to such colleges boosts the concept of autonomy. The system has now become unwieldy and it is becoming increasingly difficult for a university to attend to the varied needs of individual colleges. One of the objectives of Autonomous Colleges is to determine and prescribe its own courses of study and syllabi, and restructure and redesign the courses to suit local needs. The autonomous college is to be governed by the statutory bodies, i.e. Governing Body, Academic Council, Board of Studies and Finance Committee. The parent university will award degrees to the students evaluated and recommended by autonomous colleges.

Diversidade do perfil dos gestores como uma alavanca estratégica para criação de valor: um enfoque no conservadorismo contábil de empresas brasileiras e francesas

Purpose – The research aimed to analyze the relationship between the diversity of the managers' profile as a lever for value creation and the accounting conservatism of Brazilian and French companies.Design/methodology/approach – The sample consisted of 71 Brazilian companies and 67 French companies, listed in the B3 Index IBrX-100 and the SBF 120 Index of Euronext Paris, respectively. Multiple Regression was used to analyze the data (2011 to 2015).Findings – The results revealed that the characteristics of the diversity of the profile of Brazilian managers that are related to accounting conservatism are: age, place of formation and position occupied in the directive body. In France, the characteristics are: degree of schooling, link with the company and function performed.Research limitations/implications – The limitation of the impossibility of generalizing the results is highlighted. As theoretical contributions, this research analyzes an element that can be considered for analysis in the face of accounting conservatism: the profile of managers.Practical implications – The diversity of the managers' profile should be considered in companies, since it has repercussions on accounting conservatism, that is, on how managers conduct accounting to maximize company value.Social implications – The findings have social implications for professionals who aim to enter the Brazilian and French labor market.Originality/value – The study advances in the accounting area, as it analyzes the governing body of organizations, an important differential in the analysis of the demographic, professional and performance characteristics of managers and their relationship with accounting conservatism.

Does the Voice of the Learners Matter Under the Democratic Dispensation? The Trivialisation of the Learners’ Voice in School Governance in the Rural Schools of Stutterheim, Eastern Cape

The ushering in of a democratic dispensation in South Africa in 1994 brought about significant changes within the education landscape. The South African Schools (SASA) Act of 1996 gave recognition and a voice to learners through formal representation in school governance. The article investigates whether learners’ voice finds expression in school governance. The researcher adopted a qualitative research method where a phenomenological research was used. The phenomenological research was used in order to study experiences of stakeholders within the school environment in order to gain an insight on the participation of learners in school governance. Data was collected through conducting semi-structured research interviews. The sampled participants of the research were members of the school governing body, teachers and learners at the school and parents in the immediate vicinity of the school. The sample of the study involved ten parents, six teachers and ten learners and eleven members of the governing body. Data was analysed using coding where themes were developed and analysed to make meaning of the data. The study found that even though the Representative Council of Learners (RCL) was elected, it was never taken seriously by school management. The study also found that even though there were learners elected to the school governing body, their participation was of no significance. The study recommends empowerment of the learners so that they understand their role in governance.

10. Devolution and Parliamentary Supremacy

Titles in the Complete series combine extracts from a wide range of primary materials with clear explanatory text to provide readers with a complete introductory resource. Devolution can be defined as the conferral of powers by a central governing institution on a regional or national governing body, without the central institution having to concede legislative supremacy. Such devolved powers can be administrative, executive, or legislative in nature. The process of devolving such powers to three of the UK’s four nations—England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland—was initiated by the passing of the Devolution Acts of 1998. This chapter begins by tracing the history of devolution and then discusses the ways that power can be devolved and the roles and powers of the Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly, and the Northern Ireland Assembly. It addresses the question of whether there should there be an English Parliament and, finally, examines the effects of devolution on parliamentary supremacy, as well as the effects the UK’s exit from the EU has had on the devolution settlement.

An Amenable Arrangement: The Unification of the Nichiren Sect in Sixteenth-Century Kyoto

In this article, I argue that the Nichiren sect in Kyoto was able to recover from its near destruction in 1536 and maintain its position in the capital through the violent sixteenth century by unifying its disparate and contentious lineages under a new governing body, the Council of Head Temples. Unknown until the discovery of its documents in 1982, the council allowed the sect, as a unit, to negotiate with warrior power. The council was the culmination of pro-unity forces in the sect, especially those who succeeded in convincing the two sides to stop fighting each other over the sect’s greatest doctrinal dispute. Previous scholarship has treated the Nichiren sect in the late sixteenth century as being at the mercy of powerful warriors. This article shows that the monks of the Nichiren sect were able to muster considerable resources and not only negoti-ate better treatment from the warriors but even drive warrior policy.

BLOCKCHAIN SYSTEM CONSENSUS ALGORITHMS

This article describes the main consensus algorithms, their positive and negative aspects. Consensus in the general sense means a way to come to an agreement. In the blockchain, which is a decentralized system that does not have a single governing body, various algorithms have been developed to achieve consensus. In a blockchain network, it does not matter whether the system participants trust each other or not. They must agree on certain principles of work that will apply to everyone. And this is a direct function of the consensus mechanism. Algorithms are described and an example of solving this problem is given, namely the problem of choosing a consensus for future systems. An example of using multiple consensuses in blockchain networks is given. Such consensuses as Proof of Work (PoW), proof of Capacity (PoC), proof of Authority (PoA), proof of activity (PoAA), proof of Importance (PoI), proof of Burn (PoB), proof of Stake (PoS) are described, as well as its subspecies: Leased Proof-of-Stake (LPoS), Delegated Proof-of-Stake (DPoS). Many different nuances about the mixed type of consensus are described and examples of such cryptocurrencies and systems are given. The subtleties of mining for each consensus are described. Examples of hash functions, masternodes, nodes, algorithms, as well as key features of certain cryptocurrencies with mixed consensus are given. It is concluded that the choice of consensus for building systems based on blockchain.