MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD IN EUROPE: BETWEEN RELIGION AND POLITICS.

The article examines the reasons that prompted the governments and expert circles of many EU countries to pay increased attention in the past two years to the activities of the Muslim Brotherhood (BM) religious and political association within the EU. According to the author, this is due not only to the terrorist attacks of Islamists in France and Austria in 2020, but also to the manifestations of the growing influence of this category of Muslim organizations and groups on the social and political life of the countries of the Old World. The article focuses on the analysis of the means, methods and mechanisms characteristic of the groupings associated with the structures of the Muslim Brotherhood in Europe, on their differences from similar organizations in the Middle East. The author turns to the history of the emergence and growth of the influence of the «brothers» in Europe in order to more thoroughly examine the phenomenon of today: while the authority and influence of the BM are noticeably falling in the Arab countries, in the Old World the situation is different for the «brothers» – in many cases they manage to hide their Islamist essence under the cover of left, «progressive» rhetoric, which allows them to fit into the current political and ideological discourse in the host countries. However, with the aggravation of intercivilizational relations in Europe, BM groups are increasingly forced to leave their traditional «hiding places», publicly claiming the status of «defenders of discredited Muslims», but in fact trying to legalize their radical views and positions. The resulting scale of their presence and influence in European societies noticeably frightens the establishment and the population of these countries. The author comes to the conclusion that at the current stage, an aggravation of the confrontation between the political elites in the EU countries and the BM structures is inevitable

Does laïcité translate to the American classroom?

This essay reflects on the relevance of French laïcité for the American college classroom. It begins with a discussion of philosopher Catherine Kintzler’s radical interpretation of laïcité as a theory of political association that takes the classroom as its model. According to this view, the autonomous learning contingent on doubt and self-correction that ideally occurs there is the basis for an egalitarian and collaborative production of knowledge, a model of a res publica. The essay then turns to legal scholar and philosopher Anthony Kronman’s analysis of classroom conversation and the “ethics of depersonalization.” It considers the extent to which these notions can be viewed as American translations of Kintzler’s laïcité. The essay concludes with a reading of American essayist Ta-Nehisi Coates’s bestselling 2015 memoir as an endorsement of the autonomous abstract individual, the linchpin of republican universalism, laïcité, and liberal education.

Doctrinal Ritual, Identification, and Social Complexity

The doctrinal mode appears to have first emerged in world history with the advent of farming, helping to establish the first truly large-scale societies, in which identification with group categories became increasingly important, paving the way for new forms of political association. Many of the first states dominated by new doctrinal religions appear to have fostered extreme forms of inequality, epitomized by the deification of rulers and cruel practices, such as human sacrifice. But once societies exceeded a certain threshold in scale and complexity, the empires that seemed best able to flourish were those that adopted more ethical forms of doctrinal religion, mobilizing strong norms enforced as much by peer-to-peer policing as by top-down coercion.

Effects of boards of directors' external ties on firms' IT success

PurposeGiven the huge investment and complexity of information technology, it is imperative that boards of directors fully play their important role in promoting firms' IT success. This study aims to investigate the effects of boards of directors' external ties on firms' IT success from the perspective of resource dependence theory.Design/methodology/approachAccording to the method of the matched sample comparison group, a total of 576 samples of listed enterprises in three periods were obtained.FindingsResults show that both boards' political ties and boards' business ties have a positive impact on firms' IT success. Environmental uncertainty and the institutional environment play different roles in the relationships between two types of external ties and firms' IT success. Specifically, the results show that the institutional environment can regulate the influence of the political association of directors on firms' IT success negatively. In addition, environmental uncertainty regulates the influence of directors' political association on firms' IT success negatively, as well as the influence of directors' commercial association with firms' IT success.Research limitations/implicationsThe external ties were measured by cross-sectional data. And the current study focused on two fundamental types of external ties.Originality/valueBoards' external ties are studied from both political and business perspectives, and the effects of these two types of external ties on firms' IT success are compared. Additionally, the moderating effects of the institutional environment (macro level) and environmental uncertainty (micro level) in these relationships are investigated.

Do Truth Commissions Really Improve Democracy?

This article presents and tests an original theory that truth commissions (TCs) inspire democratic behaviors, but have little discernible impact on democratic institutions. Using quantitative analyses of countries undergoing transitions between 1970 and 2015, and accounting for endogeneity of TCs, we find that these temporary bodies are associated with greater democratic participation and state agent observance of physical integrity rights. However, they have no measurable effect on institutions like fair elections, rules regulating political association, liberal checks on the executive, or judicial independence. This contradicts a key argument in the transitional justice literature that TCs catalyze institutional reform through investigation and extensive recommendations. This article’s findings might encourage those who intend to use these bodies as a tool to promote citizen activism or police restraint. However, the findings might discourage those who hope TCs could jump-start judicial reforms or create a firewall against executive overreach.

Political Theory of Societal Association: Case of the Failed State Of Syria—Part 5 Brexit

In this fifth paper of a series on failing states, we analyze the impact that the large numbers of Syrian refugees from the Syrian civil war (2010-2019) had on political association in Britain – triggering a major change British policy and possibly threatening national unity. The theoretical model of political association is composed of three dimensions in the political dichotomies of: (1) ‘kinship or reciprocal-altruism’, (2) ‘centralization or decentralization-of-power’, and (3) ‘idealism or realism;. This is a cross-disciplinary political theory which can apply to different societies and to different times in a society.

Reforms in the field of law, judicial proceedings and justice as a factor in the formation of a political association between Ukraine and the EU

Problem setting. The processes of globalization and international European integration in the modern world set a priority task for Ukraine to implement the provisions of the association agreement between Ukraine and the EU. The formation of a political association and a deep and comprehensive free trade area between Ukraine and the EU depends on the successful reform in the field of Law, judicial proceedings and Justice of Ukraine in the context of European integration. Recent research and publications analysis. The specific operation of the legal system and the justice sector as part of the state administrative complex were studied by N. Zheleznyak, A. Ivanenko, I. Mikultsya, L. Tatsiy, O. Fedkovich and others. Certain aspects of judicial reform were studied by V. Bryntsev, V. Boyko, V. Kryvenko O. Korotun, M. Kozyubra, R. Kuibida, V. Malyarenko O. Merza V. Opryshko, V. Onopenko, D. Prytyka, V. Stefaniuk, A. Stryzhak. The functioning of justice bodies in different European countries was the subject of research by R. Budetsky, M. Gorbacheva, G. Kulikov, I. Mikultsya, O. Fedkovich, Chumak O. O. and others. However, in the scientific literature, the specifics of reform in the field of Law, judicial proceedings and justice as a factor in the formation of political association between Ukraine and the EU remain an unexplored issue. Highlighting previously unsettled parts of the general problem. Comprehensive analysis and generalization of the reform process in the field of Law, judicial proceedings and justice as an important factor in the formation of political association between Ukraine and the EU. The purpose of the article is to analyze the content and features of implementing reforms in the field of Law, judicial proceedings and justice in Ukraine after the signing of the association agreement with the EU. Paper main body. In order to implement the Association Agreement and the Action Plan “Ukraine-EU in the field of law, freedom and security” in Ukraine, the Strategy for Reform of the Judicial system, judicial proceedings and Related Legal Institutions for 2015 – 2020 and the Concept of Judicial Reform. The reform of the judicial system was designed to cover all state institutions and help increase the level of confidence in the Ukrainian courts among its citizens and European partners.In Ukraine, the laws were adopted: “On Ensuring the Right to a Fair Trial”, which provided for the introduction of the institute of qualification assessment of the professional level of judges, verification of judges’ integrity, introduction of a judge’s career record and improvement of the institute of disciplinary responsibility of judges; “On the Judiciary and the Status of Judges” in order to implement the new provisions of the Constitution of Ukraine on justice and continue the planned stages of judicial reform, which provided for the partial abolition of judicial immunity, the creation of the Supreme Anti-Corruption Court, the Supreme Intellectual Property Court and local district courts; “On Amendments to the Commercial Procedural Code of Ukraine, the Civil Procedure Code of Ukraine, the Code of Administrative Procedure of Ukraine”, which provide for the creation of a Unified Judicial Information and Telecommunication System; “On the prosecutor’s office”. “On Amendments to the Constitution of Ukraine (concerning Justice)” and “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine concerning the Activities of the General Prosecutor’s Office” which abolished prosecutorial supervision over observance and application of laws , the powers of the prosecutor’s office were clearly defined, provided for more thorough and high-quality pre-trial investigation, ensured the independence of prosecutor’s activity through self-government bodies and strengthened the responsibility of prosecutors; “On enforcement proceedings” and “On bodies and persons who enforce court decisions and decisions of other bodies” in order to establish European standards for the enforcement of court decisions. Legal support bureaus were opened as separate structural units of local centers for free secondary legal aid. The reform of the judicial system was designed to cover all state institutions and help increase the level of confidence in the Ukrainian courts among its citizens and European partners. However, due to the lack of political will and corruption of all branches of government, Ukraine has not been able to overcome the main problems that hinder the implementation of progressive changes in it. Conclusions of the research and prospects for further studies. Reforms in the field of Law, judicial proceedings and justice are an important factor in the formation of a political association between Ukraine and the EU. The EU, in cooperation with international partners, actively supports the implementation of reforms and optimistically assesses Ukraine’s progress. However, in order to achieve full results, it is necessary to implement them more actively in key areas, especially in the field of judicial proceedings and Justice. It is important to move from the adoption of laws and the creation of institutions to the full implementation of these reforms, so that Ukrainian citizens can take advantage of the benefits of the reforms. At the same time, when implementing reforms in the sphere of Law, judicial proceedings and Justice, Ukraine has not been able to overcome the main problems that hinder the implementation of progressive changes in it, which should primarily include the corruption of all branches of government. Therefore, the strategic goals of the reform require countering and preventing corruption in the bodies of Law, judicial proceedings and justice, promoting the development of legal state and civil society and so on.

Conclusion

The conclusion sums up the main arguments of the book: the EU is not an association sui generis. Rather, it belongs to the political form of the federation: a discrete form of political association on a par with, though differentiated from, the other two forms of political modernity, namely, the state and the empire. The federation is a political union of states founded on a federal and constitutional compact that does not absorb the Member States into a new federal state. Federations come into existence because of the instability of the state as a political form. States decide to come together in a federation because they are incapable of maintaining their own political autonomy. Nevertheless, the federation is characterized by its own unique internal contradictions that always threaten its stability and survival. Federal emergency politics brings these contradictions to the fore by eroding the political autonomy of the Member States.

Introduction

The introduction presents an outline of the book together with a brief discussion of other ‘federal’ interpretations of the EU. The main argument of the book is that the EU is a federal union of states, or what this book calls a federation. The federation is a political union of states, founded on a federal and constitutional compact between the Member States, that does not constitute a new federal state. The federation transcends the flawed ‘statist’ distinction between ‘federal’ and ‘confederal’ that still dominates the scholarship on federalism and the EU. The federation is a discrete form of political association on a par with, though distinct from, the other political forms of modernity, that is, the empire and the state.

The Constitutional Theory of the Federation and the European Union

What type of political association is the European Union? From the start of the European integration process, this question has puzzled scholars. Many different answers have been offered, but in the absence of an agreed response, most scholars implicitly avoid the issue by suggesting that the European Union is sui generis. This book challenges the sui generis thesis by demonstrating that the European Union is not a unique form of association, but rather a federal union of states, or what this book calls a federation. This is a discrete form of political association on a par with, though differentiated from, the other two forms of political modernity, namely the state and the empire. Therefore, the federation cannot be understood on the basis of the theory of the state, hereunder the concept of sovereignty. The ‘statist’ worldview still dominates both the debates on federalism and the European Union, meaning that all federal polities are seen either as ‘confederal’ associations of sovereign states or as sovereign federal states. The book challenges the statist schism of ‘federal’ versus ‘confederal’ by demonstrating that the federation is a discrete political form with a discrete constitutional theory, characterized by its own strengths and weaknesses. The federation is a political union of states founded on an interstate agreement of a constitutional nature, a federal compact, that does not absorb the Member States into a new state. It is characterized by a double political existence and the internal absence, contestation, or repression of sovereignty.