When anti-corruption agencies delegitimize the state: the cases of Nepal and Guatemala

State-led anti-corruption agencies are often posited for their state-legitimizing effects. This article argues that anti-corruption agencies (ACAs) can have adverse legitimacy effects on the state and its institutions. Based on an extensive review of the literature, this article first defines twelve ACA ideal types that reflect their corruption-reduction potential. It then illustrates the negative effects of ACAs on state legitimacy through two case studies, Nepal and Guatemala. The findings show that ACAs can have a negative impact on state legitimacy if they increase public awareness and condemnation of corruption in state institutions or if governments interfere with effective investigations from the ACA. Taken together, these findings highlight that anti-corruption policies and reforms need to account for and adapt to potentially delegitimating effects on state institutions.

On some theoretical issues of classification of payment systems

Problem setting. The author’s vision of ways to solve the problem of classification of payment systems in the new political and socio-economic conditions is presented in the article. The need to rethink the concept of “payment system” in connection with changes in current legislation of Ukraine, which in this context makes the category of “payment transactions” instead of “transfer of funds”, as before. It is emphasized that such an innovation expands the concept of “payment system” in a broader sense, which requires additional scientific research. Analysis of recent researches and publications. The question of the classification of payment systems has been repeatedly addressed by both domestic and foreign scientists and practical workers. For domestic science and practice, there is a need for critical understanding of existing views on the classification of payment systems, which is caused by the processes of adaptation of national legislation to the EU acquis in accordance with the provisions of the Association Agreement between Ukraine, on the one hand, and the European Union, the European Atomic Energy Community and their member states, on the other hand [9], in particular, in connection with the adoption of the Law of Ukraine “On Payment Services” dated June 30, 2021 № 1591-IX [10]. Such changes in the current legislation of Ukraine have not yet been properly reflected in publications on financial and legal topics and lead to further scientific searches in this area. Target of research is to update existing approaches to the classification of payment systems to improve the legal regulation of financial relations in new economic and socio-political conditions. Article’s main body. The understanding of the term “classification” is clarified, because in the practice of research in general theory of law and branch of legal sciences, it is often used without indicating its clear meaningful understanding or such a view may have significant differences. It is noted that although for legal science classification is a traditional and widely used method of scientific research, at the same time, there is a need for a clearer idea of such a means of scientific knowledge and overcoming terminological inconsistencies. Attention is drawn to the need to compare the concept of “classification” with such related categories as typology, systematization, modeling, clustering, cataloging, periodization, etc. Conclusions and prospects for the development. The view is maintained that to classify means to divide objects, phenomena or concepts into classes, groups, etc. according to common features, properties, criteria. It is emphasized that most of the criteria for the classification of payment systems are conditionally legal and reflect their respective organizational, functional or technical and technological features. In this context, the opinion is expressed that the legal criteria for classification should be considered only those that directly have the appropriate legal significance, determine the content in the areas of legal regulation of the organization and functioning of payment systems. It is proposed to distinguish between regulated and unregulated payment systems on such a legal basis as state legitimacy.

Popular Legitimacy

The American and French Revolutions derived from—and promoted—a concept of legitimacy based on popular consent and the public will. This concept displaced the practice of relying on dynasticism, the prescriptive rights of hereditary monarchs. As a result, plebiscites have taken the place of dynastic marriages as mechanisms for the legitimization of transfers of sovereignty. Noteworthy examples include decisions in the unification of Italy and in the European settlement of 1919–1920. Plebiscites have not, however, been conducted when Great Powers have ruled them out—for instance, France’s rejection of a plebiscite concerning Alsace-Lorraine after the First World War. Popular legitimacy raises questions about the defining characteristics of a self-governing nation—its size and capacity for self-defence, its language and history, and the allegiance choices of its citizens. Disputes over minority rights may raise questions about national identity and cohesion, including the possible founding of new states seceding from established countries. In some cases, such as Israel, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia, religion is a fundamental source of identity and state legitimacy.

‘An Epic Tale of England’: Atmospheric authentication of nationalist narratives

Kynren is an outdoor spectacular pageantry performance which tells a tale of England, drawing on myth and history, to make several claims about Englishness and Britishness. It does so in the political wake, first, of constitutional crises in the UK centred around Brexit; and second, of debates around heritage, empire, race and nation which have been driven by responses to the Black Lives Matter movement. These themselves are manifestations of broader, global trends in which populist movements have attempted to reassert state-legitimacy through nationalism, heritage and culture. This paper explores, how Kynren affectively presents and discursively performs a narrative which puts place and landscape, and specifically the place and landscape of the peripheral region of County Durham in which it is located, at the heart of nation. We argue that the ways in which this narrative is authenticated performatively through the spectacular affective atmosphere of Kynren show how and which nationalist narratives resonate most readily in popular culture.

Service Delivery, State Legitimacy and Conflict in Arab Countries: Exploring the Key Linkages Using a Social Policy Perspective

This paper addresses the question of how service delivery (SD) affects state legitimacy (SL) and conflict (C) in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, drawing particularly on frameworks that move beyond a state-centric approach. Focusing on the majority-Arab countries of MENA, the paper aims to: (1) offer a preliminary explanation of the distinctiveness of this region in light of some of the main findings of the introductory paper by the lead guest editor Timo Kivimäki and (2) explore the potential of a social policy perspective in explaining the relationship between SD, SL and C. This is achieved by combining research insights acquired through extensive qualitative social policy research in the MENA region with a re-reading of the existing literature on SD, SL and C. To support a comprehensive re-examination of the issues at hand, the paper also draws on the 5th Wave of the Arab Barometer micro-level survey (ABS) on Arab citizen perceptions of socio-economic conditions in their countries and macro-level social welfare expenditure data from the World Bank World Development Indicators (WDI). By bringing insights from the social policy literature on the MENA region into conversation with broader research on the relationship between SD, SL and C, we identify several distinctive features of service delivery in the MENA context and examine their implications for state legitimacy and conflict.

A theory of social programs, legitimacy, and citizen cooperation with the state

Aid and social programs are commonly used to fight insurgencies. However, sometimes they fail to achieve their goal of increasing citizen cooperation with the state. I propose a series of game-theoretic models that focus on the strategic interaction between a state and a citizen in the face of a challenge to the state’s monopoly of power by an insurgency. I argue that even if the provision of aid or social programs increases citizens’ intrinsic motivation to cooperate with the state, it does not necessarily translate into more cooperation. I show that citizen cooperation depends on whether the increase in the provision of aid is accompanied by an increase in the use of violent or hard tools by the state, the citizens’ expectation of future rewards, and the insurgency’s response. The models thus provide a rationale for why even if social programs increase state legitimacy, they may fail to increase citizen cooperation.

Examining Chinese Charitable Giving Under State Intervention: A Political Participation Perspective

While it is prominent for governments across the globe to promote charitable giving, few governments directly intervene in charitable fundraising due to ethical and political risks. An exception is the Chinese government that has actively sought private donations. Using a national dataset of Chinese giving, this study explores from a general political participation perspective how individuals responded to different levels of state intervention in private charity. It finds that people made (a) voluntary donations (little state intervention) in relation to their social involvement and civic engagement, (b) suggested donations (e.g., the state called for donations) in relation to their civic participation and formal political participation, and (c) coerced donations (e.g., the state demanded donations) in relation to their personal bonds with the state. Thus, while appropriate state intervention seems productive, undue intervention may damage both charity and state legitimacy. Implications and suggestions for future research are included.