Pan-European General Principles of Good Administration in Finland

In this chapter the meaning and effect in the Finnish legal system of the Council of Europe (CoE) conventions and recommendations are discussed. Particular emphasis is placed on the adoption of the European Convention on Human Rights and CoE law pertinent to good administration, administrative law and administrative law principles. The main finding is that, so far, the CoE provisions on good administration have found little room for application due to refined domestic legislation on these matters. Instead of being a follower Finland has been setting the pace in making good administration a central concept and normative requirement in constitutional and administrative law. Thus, although a two-way interconnection between the CoE and Finland can be detected, it could be argued that Finland represents a benchmark case. This development coincides with—and is partially affected by—the general ‘pandemic’ of good governance talk and enthusiasm over the last couple of decades.

Procedimiento administrativo en vía de regreso: consideraciones sobre su (in)aplicación práctica en el ámbito de la enseñanza pública

El presente artículo analiza la exigencia normativa referida al procedimiento administrativo en vía de regreso sobre los docentes cuando estos incurren en dolo, culpa o negligencia graves en el ejercicio de su labor y como consecuencia de ello se produce un daño antijurídico a un tercero, del que se deriva una responsabilidad patrimonial de la Administración Pública. Se analizan los requisitos para el ejercicio de la acción de repetición de la Administración sobre el personal a su servicio y se reflexiona sobre los motivos que pudieran motivar lo que en la actualidad se ha convertido en una manifiesta inaplicación práctica de una norma administrativa en general, y en el ámbito de la enseñanza pública en particular.This article analyzes the normative requirement referred to the administrative procedure in way of return on the tea chers when they commit serious fraud, fault or negligence in the exercise of their work and as a consequence there is an unlawful damage to a third party, of which a patrimonial responsibility of the Public Administration is derived. The requirements for the exercise of the action of repetition of the Administration on the staff at its service are analyzed and the reasons that might motivate what at present has become a manifest practical non-application of an administrative rule in general are analyzed and in the field of public education in particular.

Duty

To have a duty is, above all, to be subject to a binding, normative requirement. This means that unless there are exculpating reasons someone who has a duty is required to satisfy it, and can be justifiably criticized for not doing so. Having a duty to do something is like having been given a command by someone who has a right to be obeyed: it must be done. Sometimes we speak as if we have duties to individuals (such as persons and institutions). So, for example, if Jones makes a promise to Smith, then Jones has a duty to Smith to keep the promise. We also talk as if we have duties to perform, or to refrain from performing, types of actions, for instance, a duty to help those in need. Even if the performance of such a duty involves treating an individual in a certain way, the duty may not be to that individual. For example, a duty to be charitable might not be a duty to anyone, not even the recipient of the charity. An important feature of duties is that they provide some justifying reason for action. If we explain why we did something by saying that it was our duty, we are offering a justification for the action. Such a justifying reason does not depend on the entire nature of the action. For example, if we make a promise, we have some justifying reason for keeping it, regardless of what was promised, or to whom the promise was made. Again it is like a command. If we are given a command by someone with a right to be obeyed, we have some justification for obeying it, no matter what we are commanded to do. On some views, however, the justifying reason we have for doing something because it is required by duty may not be decisive: we may have an even better reason for doing something else. None the less, that something is required by duty provides some justifying reason for doing it. Talk about duties is found in many areas; we speak, for example, of legal duties, moral duties, professional duties, the duties of a scholar and, even, matrimonial duties. This discussion will focus on moral duty, but may have wider application.

Hearing the Other Side? – Debiasing Political Opinions in the Case of the Scottish Independence Referendum

This study reports the effects of two debiasing strategies on the complexity of people’s thinking on a controversial policy issue – the question of Scottish independence. I start from the well-researched assumptions of motivated reasoning theory that individuals tend to protect their beliefs, are often not willing to hear the other side and fail to integrate contrasting arguments and different perspectives in their political considerations – although considering different viewpoints is a fundamental normative requirement for democratic decision-making. Two different debiasing techniques, which are meant to counteract this tendency and to evoke more integrative and complex thinking, were tested experimentally: a cognitive and a motivational strategy. The experiment was situated in the context of the Scottish independence referendum. The expectation of accountability – having to justify one’s opinion in front of unknown others – significantly enhanced integrative complexity of thinking about the issue, while inducing subjects to consider the opposite had no significant effect. Opinion strength and political knowledge did not affect the treatment effects significantly.

Democracy Establishment on Regional Head Election Observed from the Constitutional Law Perspective in Indonesia

The amendment of the 1945 Constitution had opened space for democratic realization process at local level. In Article 18 paragraph (4) mentioned that governors, regents and mayors respectively as the heads of provincial, regency and municipal elected democratically. The local elections were carried out simultaneously by the people show democratic electoral system embodiment. To analyze the phenomena, this study uses a qualitative method, which the data source derived from primary and secondary data. Primary data is data obtained from observations in field, while secondary data obtained from literature or news about the regional head elections. The results showed that in a democratic election, a guarantee of freedom is an absolute and normative requirement. However the normative requirements sometimes ignored either by contestants or supporters. Therefore, the presence of the Constitutional Court is very important for democracy and constitutionality of local elections. In the local elections, the Constitutional Court has the authority to resolve the election results dispute. Although the existence of the Constitutional Court is important, but to resolve the dispute over local elections, researchers assume about the necessary establishment judicial elections at any stage or process level.

Food Security Status of Assam: A Districts Level Analysis

Food security is the foremost important issue of a state or a country. The development of a country or a state is highly dependent on it.Food unsecured population cannot think for other issues of their life. In the state of Assam, just after independence the state had enough food for the population, which gradually decreased until 1981-83. But, after 1981-83, the per capita availability of food grains had increased gradually due to use of modern practices of cultivation viz., high yielding varieties, fertilizers, etc. which led to increase in production. Nevertheless, this increase could not surpass the normative requirement of total food grains. Thus, although per capita availability of total cereals was marginally higher than the normative requirement, the state remains food deficit state since 1961-63 to 2000-02. Almost similar trend of change in per capita availability of food grains was observed in all the districts of the state with a few exceptions. Per capita availability of pulses as well as oilseeds was found to be very low, which was far below the normative requirement and in most of the cases revealed a declining trend.

6 Pluralism, Autonomy and Public Deliberation

In a pluralistic world, the exercise of private autonomy by different individuals and groups can lead to clashes of interest. If a peaceful solution for these clashes of interest is sought, especially by means of public discussion, the focus turns to the questions: What kinds of reasons count? How should ambiguous concepts like “public order” or “good morals” be handled? In regard to content, moral-philosophical, socio-theoretical and political-philosophical interpretations enable different interpretations of “good morals” as a form of “public order”. But, the contribution argues, the starting point for all the interpretations must be the pluralization of practical subjects and thus the co-existence of law and ethics as different normative orders. Thereby, it is essential to pursue different justification strands for “good morals” without deferring the central normative requirement for respect and recognition of private autonomy.

La calidad formal de la cooperación vertical

LABURPENA: Estatu konposatuetan, gobernuen arteko harremanak ezin saihestuzkoak dira; adibidez, estatu federaletan eta gure autonomien estatuan. Eskumenak banatzeko ezein prozedura ez da behar bezain zehatza, eta ez ditu aurreratzen jardun publikoaren beharrak edo eragile politikoen lehentasunak. Estatuaren eta autonomiaerkidegoen arteko elkarlana lankidetza-hitzarmenen bidez adierazten da. Lan honek 2008ko maiatzaren 15etik 2012ko maiatzaren 15era bitarte argitaratutako hitzarmen horietako 3.208 aztertzen ditu, eta eskumen-titulua zehazteko betebeharra bete dela egiaztatzen ahalegintzen da. Hori Zuzenbide Estatuaren arauzko eskakizuna da 1978ko Konstituzioaren ildotik, eta gure gobernuarteko harremanen kalitate demokratikoaren adierazgarria ere izan daiteke. RESUMEN: En los Estados compuestos, como los Estados federales y nuestro Estado de las autonomías, las relaciones intergubernamentales son inevitables. Ninguna fórmula de distribución de competencias es lo suficientemente precisa, ni anticipa las necesidades de la acción pública o las preferencias de los actores políticos. La cooperación entre el Estado y las comunidades autónomas se manifiesta a través de los convenios de colaboración. Este trabajo analiza 3208 de estos convenios, publicados en el Boletín Oficial del estado entre el 15 de mayo de 2008 y el 15 de mayo de 2012, y trata de verificar el cumplimiento de la obligación de explicitar el título competencial. Ello es una exigencia normativa del Estado de Derecho en los términos de la Constitución de 1978, y puede ser también un indicador de la calidad democrática de nuestras relaciones intergubernamentales. ABSTRACT: In non unitarian States, like federal States or our Autonomous State, intergovernmental relationships are unavoidable. No formula for the allocation of powers seem to be sufficiently precise, and no one foresees the needs for public action or the political actors’ preferences. The cooperation between the State and the Autonomous Communities appears by means of the agreements for collaboration. This work analyzes 3208 agreements which were published in the Official Journal from May 15th 2008 to May 15th 2012 and it tries to verify the fulfilment of the duty to state the legal basis for the exercise of competences. This is a normative requirement of the rule of law as stated by the Constitution of 1978 and it can also be an indicator of the democratic quality of our intergovernmental relationships.

Social Objectivity and the Problem of Local Epistemologies

The value-freedom of scientific knowledge is commonly hold to be a necessary condition for objectivity. Helen Longino’s contextual empiricism aims to overcome this connection. She questions the suitability of the normative ideal of value-freedom and develops an alternative conception of objectivity, which integrates social and epistemic aspects of scientific enquiry. The function of this notion of ‘social objectivity’ is to make value-laden assumptions assessable through a process of criticism, even if there cannot be any guarantee of their elimination. This assessability requires common standards of evaluation, which are threatened by Longino’s rejection of the distinction between cognitive and non-cognitive values guiding theory choice. I will argue that in order to resolve this inherent tension, social objectivity has to be understood as based on a procedural epistemology and, differing from Longino’s own approach, must include the normative requirement to strive for consensus instead of allowing for epistemological pluralism.