Umschlagplatz

This chapter refers to SS Sturmbannführer Hermann Höfle, the head of Operation Reinhard in Warsaw, who read out the order for displacement of Jews from the ghetto on July 22, 1942. It discusses how the order contains the task for the Jewish Order Service to serve as the executive organ of the Judenrat responsible for carrying out the deportations. It also mentions the few hundred prisoners from Gesia Street who joined the group of deportees from Dzika Street and were led into custody in front of despairing family members. The chapter notes how the Jewish Order Service did not give any explanation as to why they included children in the deportation, but it was speculated that the roundup of beggar children was intended for taking them to the Jewish prison. From the day of the deportation, the Jewish Order Service was then tasked to bring six thousand people to the Umschlagplatz every day.

Critical Analysis on the Comparative Advantage of Presidentialism over Parliamentary System on Liberty and National Unity in Ethiopia

The Ethiopian Federal Democratic Republic (EFDR) Constitution is promulgated in 1994. Under Article (45) of the EFDR the country is restructured from presidential to parliamentary system of government. Since then, the country has been ravaged by the gross violation of the liberty of citizens and the crisis of national unity and consensus among the diversified ethnic groups. The impact of the parliamentary system in aggravating those critical challenges and the comparative advantage of presidantialism is the most ignored political research topic. In this Article, I investigated that the blurry separation of powers of the parliamentary structure of the country has created fusion of powers which has undermined the system of checks and balances. Thus, the executive organ of the government has enabled to concentrate unchecked and unaccountable power which has manifested in the gross violation of the liberty of citizens. Likewise, Article (73) of EFDR has declared that the prime minister and council of ministers of the country to be appointed by the legislators. This has deprived their boarder popular base and authenticity; and equivocally undermined their potency and decisiveness in addressing the existing crisis of national unity and consensus. Comparatively, the presidential structure of government is defined by the firm separation of powers and genuine system of checks and balances. The direct popular election of the president enables the president and council of ministers to secure broader popular base and authenticity. Thus, it is advantageous over parliamentarian structure in terms of protecting the liberty of citizens and addressing the crisis of national unity and consensus in Ethiopia.

Próby uporządkowania archiwów miejskich na prowincji galicyjskiej w 2 poł. XIX w.

Attempts at Ordering Municipal Archives of Galician Smaller Towns and Settlements in the Second Half of the 19th Century: An Introduction to the Problem The second half of the 19th century saw an increased interest in documents that were stored in various public offices, institutions, and archives throughout Galicia (Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria). However the condition of the documents themselves and of their storage were far from ideal. When modern archives were established in Krakow and Lvov, a regulation by National Department (the executive organ of the local parliament Landtag) of July 22, 1887 started the process of registering, ordering, gathering, and preserving of the documents. These efforts were vastly supported by an association of Galician conservators Grono Konserwatorów Galicyjskich.

UN Security Council Reform—The Council Must Lead by Example

The point of departure in the present article is that the UN Security Council must be reformed. But this reform should not focus on extending the membership of the Council, which seems to be the main issue in the discussion at present. It is imperative that the Council is maintained as an executive organ since this is a precondition for its effective functioning. Too many members would destroy this requirement completely, in particular if additional members are granted veto power. Already 15 members may be past the limit for an executive organ. Additional members will endanger the Council’s ability to fulfil its obligations under Art. 24 of the UN Charter: the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. Instead, the reform should focus on resolving the real problem with the Council, namely the manner in which the permanent members sometimes behave. The exercise of the veto power must be in conformity with the UN Charter, which now must be viewed against the background of the development of international law since the UN was established more than 70 years ago. The manner in which some permanent members exercise their veto power is simply not in conformity with the Charter. Against this background it is absolutely necessary that the five permanent members engage in a profound discussion about their performance and the manner in which the veto power is exercised. Here, there is need for statesmanship. The members of the Security Council, and in particular the permanent members, must lead by example. What the Council must focus on is conflict prevention. This requires determination and consequence. The focus must be on the challenges that humankind is facing and will face ever more in the future and the threats to international peace and security that these challenges are causing. The need for the rule of law and protection of human rights are obvious elements in this analysis. Furthermore, the growth of the world population in combination with climate change simply must be addressed in an effective manner. The Council must focus attentively on these ‘conflict multipliers’. The discussion must also focus on peacekeeping and responsibility to protect. With respect to responsibility to protect there is great need for improvement. We cannot accept in the 21st century that fundamental human rights are violated and that crimes against international humanitarian law are being committed on a large scale without consequences. Another important element in this context is empowerment of women. In addressing these questions there is need for close cooperation with regional organizations. This cooperation already exists, but the question is how it can be developed and what lessons can be learnt from the past. Since the five permanent members are also recognized as nuclear-weapon States under the 1968 Non-Proliferation Treaty, they must confirm their obligations under this treaty and make serious their obligation to work for a nuclear-weapon free world. A reform along the lines discussed in the present article can be made without amending the UN Charter.

Frekwencja wyborcza w elekcjach samorządowych w Polsce

The focal point of this paper is voter turnout in the self-government elections in Poland. Particular attention is given to the turnout in the city with district rights, Łódź. This city provides an interesting place of research, both on account of its peculiar location in the center of Poland, and its recent cultural, economic and political transformation. A local referendum on the dismissal of the city mayor, held on January 10, 2010, is worth mentioning. Łódź was the first large Polish city (with a population of over 500,000) where a one-man executive organ was dismissed before the end of his term. In the paper, the results of parliamentary election turnouts are juxtaposed with self-government election turnouts. Voter turnout is analyzed for each term of the self-government in Łódź, and the types and reasons for absence are indicated. The author uses these data to emphasize that over the twenty years of self-government’s existence, voting procedures in Poland have not changed and are the most conservative in Europe.

Estonia

Estonia became an independent country in 1918 following centuries of domination—at different times—by Sweden, German-speaking Teutonic Knights, and Russia. After annexation by the Soviet Union, then occupation by Germany, Estonia was again occupied by the Soviet Union from 1944. Independence was restored by proclamation on 20 August 1991 by the Estonian Supreme Soviet, acting in agreement with the Estonian Committee (the executive organ of the Estonian Congress). That proclamation was rapidly followed by the restoration of diplomatic relations and recognition of the Republic of Estonia by many countries.

PALESTINE, INTERNATIONAL LAW AND MUSLIM UNITY

The Palestine issue is a heart breaking politico-legal issue that has remained unresolved for so long. The issue started immediately after the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire and following the occupation of Palestine by Great Britain. Britain disregarded the will of the majority of population, facilitated, directly or indirectly, Jewish settlements and supported foreign- led Zionist movement by making an unjust and illegal promise to them to create a state for Jews in Palestine which it eventually did and in doing so it further complicated the Palestine issue – an issue which the League of Nations was unable to solve due to its lack of commitment and its weak organizational structure. The issue has continued till today and is termed as “the most serious and prolonged unresolved political and human rights issue on the agenda of the United Nations (UN) since its inception.” The inability of the UN to resolve the Palestine issue is not due to the fault of international law but due to the lack of commitment of some of the powerful members of its executive organ, that is the Security Council. These powers disgracefully have shown passivity and apparent indifference about the long and cruel Israeli occupation of Palestine. As this paper explains, the indifference on the part of the UN Security Council has enabled the Zionist state of Israel to pursue with impunity its aggressive wars, its ethnic cleaning strategy, its settlements policy, its blockades of the Palestinian cities and towns and its denial of the Palestinians’ inalienable right of self determination. If the powerful nations of the world failed Palestine and its people, we the Muslims must not follow suit. We must stop our infighting and unite our strength and do everything that is peacefully possible to help Palestinians to find a just solution to their problem and if possible to restore Palestine to its historical status.