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This research examines the complexity of challenges in developing responsive regional regulations in Malaka Regency, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. The study was motivated by the rejection of Malaka Regency’s draft regional regulations by the Ministry of Law and Human Rights. Using the theoretical framework of regional autonomy, the mechanisms of regulation formation, and Arnstein’s “Ladder of Community Participation” theory, the research explores the sociological, philosophical, and juridical foundations underlying the regulation development process. This descriptive qualitative study employed methods such as observation, interviews, focus group discussions (FGDs), triangulation, and snowball sampling. Data were analyzed using Creswell’s qualitative techniques. The findings reveal several key issues in the regulation development process, including insufficient adherence to sociological considerations, lack of academic manuscripts to guide regulatory content and significant political party interventions. These factors have resulted in unresponsive regulations that fail to address the community’s needs adequately. Moreover, the low level of community participation—due to limited power redistribution—has further hindered the process. The research highlights the need for more inclusive and collaborative mechanisms to ensure that regional regulations are representative, practical, and aligned with the socio-political context. This study contributes to the field of governance and policy-making by emphasizing the importance of responsive regulation as a tool for addressing local societal challenges. Future research should explore strategies for improving community involvement and addressing political barriers in the formation of regional regulations.

This research discusses the political intervention of the city government in the implementation of education in urban areas. Political intervention by city governments is often seen as an effort to improve the quality of education, but in practice, this intervention can give rise to various problems and challenges. This research uses qualitative methods with a case study approach in several cities in Indonesia to explore the impact and implications of political intervention on the education system. The research results show that political intervention can influence education policies, budget allocations, and decision-making processes in schools. Apart from that, this intervention also has an impact on the quality of education received by students and the professionalism of teaching staff. This research concludes that although the intention of political intervention is to improve the education system, its implementation needs to be carried out carefully, considering the possible long-term impacts.

The promotion government officials comes into new era, the new policy reversed from a very closed selection process and heavily seniority-based to open, clear criteria, transparent procedures on the competency-based series test. In fact, policy implementation is not fully in favour of an administration driven. The study has two main research problems “How open promotion for local government officers conducted?” and “How does political intervention work in the open promotion mechanism?”. This paper provides comprehensive mechanism-the hybrid administration-politics model on open promotion of local bureaucrats in Indonesia. The study used a qualitative approach and assited by Nvivo 12 to reveal the most frequent concept on open promotion practices based on interviews. The data obtained through interviews with informants which selected purposively, selection committee members, candidates, and local government officers. This paper affirms interesting features. The competency series tested by independent assessors reflects an administration mechanism through merit concept. However, the absolute political final decision-making process at the governor or Mayor’s hands reflects the individual-political interest. This system shows that the administration’s process at the local level links tightly to political deliberation. The key message is that open promotion in government agencies is neither a pure merit issue nor a spoils system for competence-heavy based, on the one hand, yet is always amenable to some political intervention. The merit principles are universal; however, the practices are contextual-specific. This study has an important value in describing how The politics play significant role on local administration system.

Copyright of Jurnal Wacana Politik is the property of Jurnal Wacana Politik (JWP) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In the UK, following the enactment of the Communications Act 2003, amending the Enterprise Act 2002, the assessment of mergers involving broadcaster and/or newspaper enterprises is subject to – alongside the regular competition standard under the 'substantial lessening of competition' (SLC) test – a public interest standard. Under this standard, certain media mergers need to be assessed pursuant to the following considerations: media plurality, broadcasting standard objectives and free expression of opinion grounds. While the statute defines these terms ambiguously, it does provide guidance to the Secretary of State, the competition authority and the courts to decide how the statute is intended to be applied consistently. The paper will analyse how the media plurality test has been applied, some of the considerations of the CMA and OFCOM, and in doing so it will touch on the discretion of the decision making stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Poligramas is the property of Universidad del Valle and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Heavy metal concentration with the increase in industrialization is posing a serious threat to humans due to their toxicity and ability to accumulate in the human body. Specifically, in Pakistan, there is a lack of data related to the heavy metal contamination in sausages and salami for human consumption. So, the current study was conducted to determine the concentration of heavy metals in meat products and associated human health risk assessments. All the samples were analyzed with an atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Samples were taken from supermarkets and local markets in the city of Lahore, Pakistan. The highest concentration of Cr, 0.364 ± 0.004 ppm, was detected in some samples of sausages and salami, 1.7837 ± 0.0203 ppm. Pb and Mn were not detected in any of the analyzed samples. The concentration of Cu was within the permissible limit of FAO/WHO. The highest concentration of Cd was detected in some samples of sausages. The EDI for all analyzed heavy metals was below the recommended values, except for Cr. Similarly, THQ calculated for Pb, Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn, and Ni was below 1 except for Cr and Cd. While the HI for all analyzed heavy metals was greater than unity, indicating adverse effects. Therefore, it is recommended to curtail anthropogenic activities that cause the contamination of meat products with heavy metals and the formation of national policy to reduce the health risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de la Biblioteca Nacional Jose Marti is the property of Biblioteca Nacional de Cuba Jose Marti and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

• Cross-regional SASAC holdings improve investment efficiency in local SOEs by reducing political pressure and enhancing governance. • Geographic separation diminishes local political interference, allowing market-oriented decision-making. • Third-party oversight from cross-regional holdings strengthens corporate governance, reducing over- and under-investment. • Improved governance under cross-regional holdings increases R&D intensity, patent applications, and firm value. • It provides policymakers with insights on promoting cross-regional SASAC shareholdings to enhance SOE performance and support economic reforms. The simultaneous existence of government intervention and support for state-owned enterprises makes it difficult to study the relationship between government involvement and business efficiency. Drawing on China's emerging and widely developed cross-regional state-owned holding patterns, this study examines the impact of reduced political intervention on the investment efficiency of local state-owned enterprises (SOEs) when resource support is constant. We demonstrate that the geographic separation of SASAC and SOEs contributes to corporate investment efficiency and that this effect works mainly through the reduction of political pressure and the optimisation of corporate governance. This confirms the existence of the government's grabbing effect on businesses from an opposite perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China and the United States (US) have established respective cultural institutions in each other, namely the Confucius Institute and the American Cultural Centre. While they differ in the establishment background and management model, in their counterpart countries' view, both Confucius Institutes and American Cultural Centres serve the function of public diplomacy as a 'quasi-diplomatic agency', attracting extensive political attention. When comparing the history of their developments in the US and China, a similar trend of 'rise-to-fall' and 'positivity-to-negativity' can be observed. The stagnation of American Cultural Centres in China and the crisis of Confucius Institutes in the US both originate from the same source — political pressure. The development paths of both institutions are closely related to the development and transformation of Sino–US political relations. In this process, China's attitude is relatively moderate in an attempt to maintain the continuous development of a friendly bilateral relation, while the US is anxious about China's rising status as its economic and strategic competitor, thereby adjusting its China policy and imposing rigid political controls over Confucius Institutes. Affected by the Sino–US trade dispute and the COVID-19 pandemic, Sino–US relations deteriorate further; accordingly, the future outlook of Confucius Institutes in the US is worrying. However, with abundant uncertainties, the future of the Confucius Institute remains to be further studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Lebanese banking sector has become risky due to political and economic crises. At such times, corporate governance mechanisms ensure objectivity of assessment and rationality in decision making. We examine the impact of internal corporate governance mechanisms on the performance of Lebanese banks, with political involvement in the administration and ownership of the banks. We used linear regression on a sample of 194 bank-year observations from 2016 to 2021. The presence of independent members on boards of directors, and ownership concentration due to family ownership, had positive effects on bank return on assets, return on equity, liquidity levels, and loans issued. Efficient control, along with the presence of audit, and compliance committees reduced risk by increasing capital adequacy and reducing non-performing loans. Both administrative political connections and ownership political connections increased return on assets, increased return on equity, increased liquidity levels, and increased loans to deposits, while increasing non-performing loans. Agency conflicts suggest that granting loans due to political pressure increased non-performing loans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article seeks to analyse the political intervention of Friar Timóteo Pimentel in the period of the Restoration War, through the work Exhortação militar ou lança de Aquiles aos soldados portugueses pela defensão de seu Rei, reino e pátria em o presente apresto de guerra, dated from 1650. We wish to reflect on the role of this cleric as a supporter of the government of restored Portugal and the relationship he sought to have with the Portuguese populations amid the conflict of the Portuguese kingdom against Castile. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The success of the transition of languages from the dialectical to the standard situation is closely related to the efficacy of the «academic» measure, that is, the investigation of the scientific approach in the specific phases of the standardization process; Then the «political» factor intervened in issuing the necessary legislation to establish linguistic standards and anchor the outputs of academic Research in public life. As for the Amazigh language, it has been living in Morocco for nearly two decades, a major phase of transformation in which the political and scientific contents interacted to create a cultural and social movement based on a gradual transition from the oral situation to the written one, as the establishment and demarcation of the Royal Institute for Amazigh Culture in the year 2001, as well as the movement of literary production in the standard language, and the growth of elite and popular awareness of the Amazigh project, are the most prominent manifestations of this transformation. However, the sociolinguistic situation raises many questions related to the pace and forms of managing this broad dynamic, politically and academically, especially since the most important channels of spending this project still suffer from deep structural problems, and it is related to teaching the Amazigh language. That is why, twenty years after the beginning of this great workshop, we have the right to question and evaluate what has been presented, to come up with conclusions capable of drawing a clear picture about the reality of the Amazigh language and its future in Morocco. What is meant by standard language ? Is there a difference between languages in their exposure to the initialization and standardization processes ? What is the consequence of setting the basic foundations for a standardization project for any language ? Returning to the Amazigh language, how did you «suddenly» move from being by force to being really, according to the Aristotelian expression ? What are the circumstances in which the issue of standardization was adopted and we sought unification ? What is the location of the Amazigh diversities, especially the Atlantic Amazigh, in this dynamic ? Is effective scientific and theoretical management alone sufficient to achieve its transition to a unified and unified language ? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Haunting in literary fiction is often interpreted psychologically as a sign of suppressed psychic content or as nostalgia or mourning for the loss. Yet, it may also be used allegorically as a manifestation of hidden social conflicts, and hence mark a political agenda of thus constructed works. In the novels by Sarah Waters spectres, poltergeists and haunting appear not as a sign of or a contact with an outer reality; to the contrary, they may be seen as perfectly human—though eccentric—expressions of class and economic inferiority. In Affinity spectres and spiritual séances are presented as a means of earning money by lower classes and the latter’s cunning use of the upper classes’ credulity. In The Little Stranger the poltergeist may be interpreted as an accumulated anger and desire of the servants long ignored by the masters of the emblematic country house. In both, haunting and ghosts manifest vengeance of the underprivileged taken on the socially superior. The essay shows how fictional haunting and spectrality, far from marking a supernatural reality or introducing extrasensory concepts, may function as an allegorical method to discuss political and social problems such as class inequality or social justice.

The National Institute of Statistics and Censuses of Argentina (INDEC) is ruled by a law passed in 1968 which created the National Statistical System. Throughout time, INDEC has been a prestigious institution with high level human resources and excellent statistical practices. At the beginning of 2007 the National Government began to interfere with the procedures and the results of the statistical operations, mainly those related to CPI calculations. Many technicians were transferred to different positions or simply dismissed. The distortions in the statistical operations extended to GDP estimates, labour market indicators, foreign trade, balance of payments and almost all other statistical series. Poverty calculations were suppressed. Since December 2015, the new government has been developing a policy based on a strong commitment to international best practices. A new staff of experienced and highly qualified professionals is in charge of the main areas of the Institute and a new set of data has been issued, although there are still a great number of improvements to be made. Institutional reform is also in prospect. The paper reviews this process and extracts some lessons about the need for a strong institutional framework as the basis for avoiding political interference in statistical institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite women’s increased labor force participation, household divisions of labor remain highly unequal. Properly implemented, gender egalitarian political interventions such as work time regulation, dependent care provisions, and family leave initiatives can induce families to share work more equally than they currently do. But do these interventions constitute legitimate uses of political power? In this article, I defend the political legitimacy of these interventions. Using the conception of citizenship at the heart of political liberalism, I argue that citizens would accept political interventions aimed at protecting the ‘genuinely available option’ to enact gender egalitarian lifestyles. More strongly still, I argue that under certain circumstances, citizens would insist on the enactment of political interventions to protect this option. According to political liberalism’s constraints on legitimacy, this insistence renders these interventions not only legitimate but positively mandatory. It is legitimate for a state to exercise power to preserve the genuinely available option to enact a gender egalitarian lifestyle, and under certain circumstances, it is illegitimate for a state to fail to do so. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Haunting in literary fiction is often interpreted psychologically as a sign of suppressed psychic content or as nostalgia or mourning for the loss. Yet, it may also be used allegorically as a manifestation of hidden social conflicts, and hence mark a political agenda of thus constructed works. In the novels by Sarah Waters spectres, poltergeists and haunting appear not as a sign of or a contact with an outer reality; to the contrary, they may be seen as perfectly human--though eccentric--expressions of class and economic inferiority. In Affinity spectres and spiritual séances are presented as a means of earning money by lower classes and the latter's cunning use of the upper classes' credulity. In The Little Stranger the poltergeist may be interpreted as an accumulated anger and desire of the servants long ignored by the masters of the emblematic country house. In both, haunting and ghosts manifest vengeance of the underprivileged taken on the socially superior. The essay shows how fictional haunting and spectrality, far from marking a supernatural reality or introducing extrasensory concepts, may function as an allegorical method to discuss political and social problems such as class inequality or social justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the effects of intervention by government and financial institutions on the degree of internationalization in Japan and Taiwan, with particular attention to the impact of the main bank system and the system of amakudari (the appointment of retired bureaucrats to the boards of public companies). The empirical results indicate that companies with a higher degree of internationalization have boards with stronger monitoring ability and therefore can fend off intervention by government. On the other hand, a negative relationship is established between the presence of retired bureaucrats on boards ( amakudari ) and the subsequent degree of internationalization. Similarly, intervention by financial institutions results in a lower subsequent degree of internationalization. Thus, although representatives of government and financial institutions may attempt to use their influence to prompt international expansion, the monitoring ability of the board may be jeopardized, to the detriment of internationalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this coupling of autoethnography and poetic inquiry, I offer a poem in three parts: the first, a rant; the second, a confession; and the third, a hope. Each part identifies a different way I am experiencing the current political scene, one that I find dangerous to our collective future. I call on the poetic as a method of political intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]