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2. Digital Sovereignty: For a Schuman Data Plan
- Author:
- Arno Pons
- Publication Date:
- 01-2023
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Robert Schuman Foundation (RSF)
- Abstract:
- On 9 January, the European Commission launched the first cooperation and monitoring cycle for the achievement of the European Union’s digital decade by 2030. If, in the digital field, Europe faces issues of sovereignty, it is because it has left the sector open for over twenty years to the American Tech giants, who have imposed a game whose rules that have never been understood here. Either because these rules were inaccessible to the European Union (Moore and Metcalfe laws), or because we accepted that there were no rules of the game (code is law).
- Topic:
- Markets, Science and Technology, Infrastructure, Law, European Union, Data, European Commission, and Digital Sovereignty
- Political Geography:
- Europe
3. Governing Outer Space – legal issues mounting at the final frontier
- Author:
- Hjalte Osborn Frandsen
- Publication Date:
- 02-2023
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
- Abstract:
- In 2022, the private space firm SpaceX successfully launched 61 rockets, adding hundreds of satellites to its burgeoning, globe-spanning mega-constellation. SpaceX´s Starlink-project now comprises more than 3,000 satellites. For comparison, the European Space Agency launched six rockets in 2022 and operates less than 50 satellites in total. In the span of a few years, private space companies have dethroned nation states as the dominant actors in outer space. Today the vast majority of satellites are owned and controlled by commercial companies. During the first months of the Russian assault on Ukraine, several commercial space companies stepped in to provide vital satellite images and space-based Internet in support of the Ukrainian defense. This exemplifies the three currently dominant trends of human space activities: expansion, securitization and privatization. The global space industry is undergoing the most fundamental and swift changes since the original space race ended when Neil Armstrong placed the first boot marks on the moon in 1969. The rapid changes raise a number of serious governance issues in areas such as national security, environmental protection and the rule of law in outer space. Denmark, Europe and the international community at large all have an acute interest in insisting on space being a global commons in which conduct can and should be regulated to benefit all of humanity – not just a few profit-seeking billionaire-owned space companies. Developments in the space industry are fast and accelerating. As with other global governance issues, like climate and cyber issues, achieving global accord on new regulations for space activities will be difficult and time-consuming, so prudent policymakers should get started right away.
- Topic:
- Security, Defense Policy, Governance, Law, and Space
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
4. Legal options for a green golden rule in the European Union’s fiscal framework
- Author:
- Zsolt Darvas
- Publication Date:
- 07-2022
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Bruegel
- Abstract:
- Achieving the European Union’s climate goals and decoupling from Russian energy will require a massive increase in green public spending, which will be difficult when EU fiscal rules requiring fiscal consolidation are reinstated. The two major proposals to address the conflicting goals of fiscal consolidation and increased green public investment needs are a possible new European climate investment fund and a green golden rule. The latter would exclude any increase in net green public investment from the fiscal indicators used to measure compliance with fiscal rules, for countries with sound public finances. An EU climate fund and a well-designed green golden rule would be equivalent in terms of project selection, implementation and control procedures. If the climate fund does not involve redistribution across member states, then the treatment of related spending and consequent borrowing in national fiscal indicators and in the EU’s fiscal framework would be the same. New regulations would be needed to set up both the climate fund and the green golden rule. Special legislation would be needed to exempt the subsequent climate expenditures from EU fiscal rules in both cases. A climate fund financed by EU borrowing with redistributive effects across countries would likely result in the exclusion of the fund’s activities from national fiscal indicators and EU fiscal rules without any legislative changes. There are question marks about the desirability and political feasibility of redistribution across the EU for climate purposes. An EU climate fund, irrespective of whether or not it involves redistribution, would mainly benefit southern and eastern EU countries. An instrument is needed to foster green public investment in western and northern EU countries as well. The green golden rule would be such an instrument. While there are some pragmatic options to mimic a green golden rule in the current EU fiscal framework, such as amending the so-called ‘investment clause’ and adjusting the medium-term objective for the structural balance, ultimately, elements of the 2011 Six-Pack legislation and the 2012 Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance should be revised to include a green golden rules.
- Topic:
- Climate Change, Law, European Union, Fiscal Policy, and Energy
- Political Geography:
- Europe
5. Legal Mobilisation for Minority Rights in Central and South-Eastern Europe: an agenda for action
- Author:
- Lilla Farkas and Zsolt Körtvélyesi
- Publication Date:
- 04-2022
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP)
- Abstract:
- On September 2–3, 2021, a workshop was held at ELIAMEP at which participants discussed their prospective contributions to a collective volume with the working title “Legal Mobilisation for Minority Rights in Central and South-eastern Europe (CSEE)”. The contributions tracked rights-claiming by three large groups of minorities in areas historically ruled by the multicultural Austro-Hungarian monarchy and the Ottoman empire: Hungarian minorities living around their kin-state, Roma across CSEE, and Muslims in the Balkans, including Turks, Muslims, Albanians, and Bosniaks. The edited volume will be the first systemic study of minority-rights activism in its political and geographic context, with a focus on how ethnic minorities use law in practice. Rather than focusing on high-visibility international litigation, which is dominant in the extant scholarship, the volume tracks legal action from the national and local level up, assessing the impact of legal mobilization in terms of social change, not simply legal success.
- Topic:
- Human Rights, Law, Minorities, Ethnicity, and Activism
- Political Geography:
- Eastern Europe, Balkans, Hungary, and Central Europe
6. Legal Aspect of The Concept of Climate Refugee: Evaluation of Existent Protection Tools and Suggested Solutions
- Author:
- Neva Övünç Öztürk
- Publication Date:
- 09-2022
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
- Abstract:
- Even though it can be accepted at the first glance that such kind of migrations can be considered within the scope of “forced migration” in sociological terms due to the compelling effect of environmental reasons on migration, tools offered by international law for forced migration fall short of protecting “climate refugees” in practice.
- Topic:
- Climate Change, Law, Refugees, Justice, and Protection
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
7. Promoting Evidence-Informed Immigrant Integration Policymaking
- Author:
- Jasmijn Slootjes
- Publication Date:
- 10-2022
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
- Abstract:
- Across Europe, immigrant integration policy has often been forged in the heat of crisis and driven by political priorities. This can be seen in the response to millions of people fleeing war in Ukraine and to the 2015–16 migration and refugee crisis. Resources and attention are much less frequently devoted to gleaning lessons from integration initiatives and using them to improve policymaking going forward. Yet, pressing labor shortages, strained government budgets, and social cohesion challenges all point to the importance of implementing integration policies that efficiently use limited resources—and that work. This policy brief explores why immigrant integration has fallen behind other policy areas in embracing an evidence culture and suggests ways to remedy this lag. It first examines recent progress and key gaps in this area, and then maps the obstacles that continue to hinder an evidence revolution in integration policy. The brief concludes with recommendations for creating an environment in which evidence-informed integration policymaking can thrive, including through the effective use of pilot projects, targeted funding, stakeholder engagement, and capacity-building initiatives.
- Topic:
- Migration, Law, European Union, Immigrants, Integration, and Immigration Policy
- Political Geography:
- Europe
8. The Rollback of Human Rights and the Rule of Law in Hong Kong
- Author:
- Michael C. Davis
- Publication Date:
- 02-2021
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Jamestown Foundation
- Abstract:
- After the Hong Kong protest movement exploded in 2019, the world looked on with both hope and trepidation. Protestors made five demands: that a proposed extradition law be withdrawn; that there be an independent investigation of police behavior; that the protests stop being characterized as riots; that any charges against arrested protesters be dropped and that promised universal suffrage be implemented (HKPF, December 25, 2019). After months of protest, Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam publicly withdrew the extradition bill, fulfilling the first of the protestors’ demands (SCMP, September 4, 2019). But this temporary victory was too little too late and overshadowed by the ongoing and often violent crackdown on the protesters, and then in 2020, with Beijing’s imposition of the new National Security Law (NSL) (China Brief, July 29, 2020).
- Topic:
- Human Rights, Law, Rule of Law, Protests, and Repression
- Political Geography:
- China, Asia, and Hong Kong
9. Filtering and Site Blocking: Necessary Reforms for the Digital Marketplace
- Author:
- Steven Tepp
- Publication Date:
- 09-2021
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Hudson Institute
- Abstract:
- Business models and technology have changed dramatically since the 1990s; nowhere more so than online. Those changes, alongside some key judicial decisions, have distorted the operation of the US copyright law provision specifically designed to address online copyright infringement. Today, even a platform that knows that 80 percent of what it hosts are unlicensed copyrighted works, it can be shielded from accountability by the safe harbors in the Copyright Act. Copyright owners are left to send millions of takedown requests with little actual effect on piracy. This, along with other factors, led the US Copyright Office to conclude that the cooperative environment the law was meant to create has not and will not be realized without amending the law. And while dozens of other countries have successfully adopted measures to address online infringement from beyond their borders, the United States has not acted to implement similar procedures.
- Topic:
- Intellectual Property/Copyright, Law, Reform, and Criminal Justice
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
10. The Value of Cellular Technology
- Author:
- Urška Petrovčič and Kirti Gupta
- Publication Date:
- 10-2021
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Hudson Institute
- Abstract:
- Cellular technologies, such as those embodied in the third generation (3G), fourth generation (4G), and fifth generation (5G) of cellular standards, have provided the foundation for a thriving mobile ecosystem that has benefited consumers and businesses all over the world. In the past 20 years, the number of mobile connections has grown almost 10-fold, reaching an ever-growing percentage of the global population. In 2017, the number of mobile connections surpassed the number of people on the planet. In 2019, mobile technologies and services added $4.8 trillion of economic value to the global economy, and the mobile ecosystem employed (directly and indirectly) 30 million people. Although cellular technology has already transformed all facets of our society, the deployment of 5G will bring even broader and more radical changes. By connecting everything and everywhere, 5G will help us realize the full potential of connectivity and usher in the era of smart transportation, smart cities, smart factories, and smart homes. The new products and services enabled by 5G will change all aspects of our daily life, such as health care, energy, agriculture, automotive, manufacturing, and retail, among others. This will not only benefit consumers and businesses, but society as a whole. Cellular technologies are central to this revolution. Without advances in the cellular space, none of the economic and societal benefits we see in the connected world would be possible. Therefore, it is important to understand how cellular technologies are developed and deployed, and what impact they have on the economy and on society more broadly. It is also important to understand why fairly compensating cellular innovators is essential to maintain a sustainable system where new technologies can be developed and brought to consumers.
- Topic:
- Science and Technology, Intellectual Property/Copyright, Law, Criminal Justice, and 5G
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
11. How IP Rights Keep Markets Free
- Author:
- Jonathan M. Barnett
- Publication Date:
- 06-2021
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Hudson Institute
- Abstract:
- It is elementary that secure protection of property rights is a necessary precondition for efficient markets that drive economic growth. Yet this principle is not always recognized in the case of markets for intangible goods. Rather, intellectual property rights are often characterized as a monopoly franchise that stands at odds with free-market competition. Following this view, IP rights at best provide a justifiable means to incentivize innovation but are prone to abuse by incumbents seeking to block entrants. This standard narrative overlooks an inconvenient fact. As I show in a new book, Innovators, Firms, and Markets: The Organizational Logic of Intellectual Property, incumbents and other large firms in US technology markets have regularly advocated against stronger forms of patent protection and, in certain industries, have resisted patent protection entirely. This lobbying strategy poses a puzzle: Why would dominant firms resist the opportunity to operate under the umbrella of a legal monopoly? This policy memo analyzes the counterintuitive IP policy preferences of large technology firms and, in resolving this apparent anomaly, shows that patents tend to enhance competitive intensity by enabling idea-rich but capital-poor innovators to challenge idea-poor but capital-rich incumbents. Contrary to widespread assumptions, IP rights are far closer to the familiar property rights that support tangible goods markets rather than the monopoly grant to which they are often (and misleadingly) analogized. These insights, which are based on over a century’s worth of US innovation history, raise significant concerns about the IP-skeptical trajectory that policymakers have pursued since the mid-2000s.
- Topic:
- Markets, Intellectual Property/Copyright, Law, and Criminal Justice
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
12. Participating in European sovereignty through law
- Author:
- Hugo Pascal
- Publication Date:
- 06-2021
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Robert Schuman Foundation (RSF)
- Abstract:
- In the late 1980s, as the debate about the decline of American hegemony intensified[1], economist and political scientist Susan Strange emphasised the 'structural power' of the United States, understood as “the power to determine the frameworks of the global economy that has allowed it to choose and shape the structures within which other countries, their political institutions, businesses and professionals must operate”[2]. In Europe, the reputedly "extraterritorial" scope of certain US laws, illustrated by the heavy fines imposed by the American authorities on continental companies, could be considered as one of the most immediate manifestations of this power. It also appears to be a response to the new gap created by globalisation between a now deterritorialized market and regulatory States that are no longer homogeneous and superimposed[3], and this at a time when the institutions of international economic regulation often seem to be in deadlock. The growing interdependence between economies, enabled by globalisation and encouraged by free trade, has gradually eroded the markets established by borders to such an extent that the nation-State, conceived as the protector of a narrowly defined territory, could be considered a historically dated model[4], without a new body with a general scope having been able, to date, to replace it in its tasks, such as the fight against financial crime. In this new complex system, «new geopolitics of norms» has been created.[5] Europe must find its rightful place within it so that it can assert its sovereignty.
- Topic:
- Sovereignty, Law, Geopolitics, and Norms
- Political Geography:
- Europe
13. The UN Support: The implications of postponing Libya’s legislative elections to January 2022
- Author:
- FARAS
- Publication Date:
- 10-2021
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Future for Advanced Research and Studies (FARAS)
- Abstract:
- On October 2021, Libyan House of Representatives announced that the election dates would be rescheduled, so that presidential elections would be held on December 24, while the legislative elections would take place thirty days later. Originally, the legislative elections were supposed to be held on the same day as the presidential elections. This can be considered a new step taken by the Parliament with the aim of showing commitment to the roadmap by approving the parliamentary election law.
- Topic:
- Law, Elections, Domestic Politics, and Parliament
- Political Geography:
- Libya and North Africa
14. Lithuania, China and EU lawfare to counter economic coercion
- Author:
- Steven Blockmans
- Publication Date:
- 12-2021
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS)
- Abstract:
- Without any formal notification, China recently declined customs clearances for shipments from Lithuanian firms in the pharmaceutical, electronics, and food sectors, and warned multinationals of secondary sanctions if they did not sever their ties with Lithuania. These covert actions were taken in response to Lithuania’s invitation to Taiwan, which the People’s Republic of China (PRC) claims as its own territory, to open a ‘representative office’ in Vilnius. No other country has ever found itself at the receiving end of such intense and politically motivated Chinese economic pressure. These actions on the part of the PRC are politically explosive because it raises serious questions about the international conduct of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). If it can simply wipe a country off its trade book, a state belonging to the EU’s customs territory no less, then what does it mean to be a member of the WTO, or a signatory to any other number of international agreements? And, given the lamentable state the WTO is in: could the European Commission’s newly proposed anti-coercion instrument bring any solace to Lithuania and the EU?
- Topic:
- Law, European Union, Economy, Trade, and Coercion
- Political Geography:
- China, Europe, Asia, and Lithuania
15. Doing business the right way: Pushing for green and social corporate governance
- Author:
- Sofia López Piqueres
- Publication Date:
- 05-2020
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- European Policy Centre (EPC)
- Abstract:
- Reforms to corporate governance and EU company law could support the Union’s recovery efforts and promote a sustainable economy at the same time. This Policy Brief assesses two instruments in the EU corporate governance toolbox: the Non-Financial Reporting Directive (NFRD), which requires large companies to disclose information about how they are run and how their activities impact the environment and human rights, and the Shareholder Rights Directive II (SRDII), which aims to strengthen the position of shareholders and reduce short-termism and excessive risk-taking by companies. It also covers the principle of shareholder primacy – the idea that shareholder interests should take precedence over all else – and executive remuneration.
- Topic:
- Governance, Law, Reform, European Union, Business, and Sustainability
- Political Geography:
- Europe
16. Discrimination, Exclusion and Environmental Harm: Why EU Lawmakers Need to Ban Freight Transport Restrictions to Save the Single Market
- Author:
- Matthias Bauer
- Publication Date:
- 06-2020
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- European Centre for International Political Economy (ECIPE)
- Abstract:
- The EU’s Mobility Package 1 legislative proposal was once intended to improve the working conditions of truck and small-van drivers in the EU. Initially, the European Commission also aimed at securing a smooth and non-discriminatory functioning of the Single Market. Some provisions of the current package may indeed have a positive impact on drivers’ working conditions, e.g. limits on working time and obligatory rest periods. However, over the past three years, the legislative procedure towards the current draft of the Mobility Package 1 was hijacked by the protectionist agenda of Western Europe’s haulage and logistics businesses. Spearheaded by the French government, some national governments and Members of the European Parliament called for tighter freight cabotage and return-to-home provisions to shield Western European transport markets against competition from other EU Member States. The proposed restrictions to cross-border trade in the European Single Market are up for a vote in the European Parliament in mid-2020. Learnings from the Covid-19 situation in the Single Market: In its response to Covid-19 border measures, the European Commission called on EU governments “to act immediately to temporarily suspend all types of road access restrictions in place in their territory (weekend bans, night bans, sectoral bans, etc.) for road freight transport and for the necessary free movement of transport workers.” These actions are step in the right direction and should continue even once the Covid-19 crisis is over, yet they are the exception not the rule in the EU. The rise of protectionist measures to Member States’ national transport markets vividly demonstrates the need to abolish freight cabotage restrictions in defence of the Single Market. For the sake of a greener, more inclusive and better functioning of the European Single Market, lawmakers need to abandon all existing restrictions on freight cabotage services in the EU27 and vote against new restrictions such as cooling-off periods and return-to-home policies. Maintaining legal restrictions on the freedom to provide transport services in the EU’s Single Market would increase tensions between economically less-developed countries in Central and Eastern Europe and more developed Western European countries – economically, mentally and politically. Discrimination on the basis of EU passport: Cabotage restrictions infringe upon the fundamental values stipulated in the Lisbon Treaty. Furthermore, data on transport flows and employment demonstrate that cabotage regulations disproportionately discriminate against Eastern European companies and citizens. Available data shows that Polish (4,574 enterprises), Romanian (1,864), Lithuanian (519), Hungarian (398), Slovakian (347), and Dutch (309) haulage companies are disproportionately affected by current EU-imposed cabotage restrictions. By contrast, only a very small number of French freight transport companies (an estimated number of 70 enterprises) directly depend on intra-EU cabotage services. In France, only about 800 workers employed in road freight transport services are directly affected by the restrictions. The numbers are substantially higher for other, particularly Central and Eastern European, countries: 20,100 persons in Poland, 9,800 in Romania, 6,300 in Lithuania, 3,400 in the Netherlands, 2,300 in Portugal, 2,200 in Hungary, and 2,100 in Germany. Exclusion from economic opportunity: Freight cabotage restrictions increase the administrative burden for internationally operating haulage companies across the EU. Industry assessments indicate that additional limitations on international freight transport services within Europe’s Single Market would raise the prices of transporting goods in Western Europe. Negative impacts are estimated for employment, wage growth and the process of economic convergence in Central and Eastern Europe. In addition to the EU’s existing freight cabotage restrictions, new limits on cross-border freight transport in the EU – such as EU law-imposed return-to-home trips and EU-mandated cooling-off periods – would deprive many Eastern European households of economic opportunities and impede the process of economic convergence and converging standards of living in the EU. Environmental harm: The return-to-home policies proposed in the latest Mobility Package 1 would require companies to send drivers back to operational centres or the driver’s place of residence. Return-to-home provisions would substantially increase the number of empty trailers on European roads. Accordingly, and adding to the adverse environmental impacts caused by existing freight cabotage restrictions, new EU-imposed return-to-home obligations would deteriorate Member States’ carbon emission footprints. The highest increases would take place in the EU’s major transit countries such as Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and France. While this is recognised by the European Commission, the majority of the European Parliament’s Transport Committee is still pushing for such policies to be implemented as the EU law. How to save the EU’s fundamental values and the freedoms of the Single Market – lessons from aviation: In 1993, the EU completed the EU’s internal aviation market for passenger cabotage. Guided by the European Commission, EU lawmakers should follow the same rationale for freight cabotage services to render the Single Market more single and less discriminatory. In the process towards a real, more inclusive Single Market, EU lawmakers must abstain from catering Western European companies’ vested commercial interests, which stifle economic opportunity across the EU and stand in opposition to the EU’s fundamental principles for international trade and a competitive and social market economy.
- Topic:
- International Political Economy, International Trade and Finance, Law, European Union, Global Markets, Legislation, Shipping, and Protectionism
- Political Geography:
- Europe
17. Tailor-made laws in the Western Balkans
- Author:
- Gjergji Vurmo
- Publication Date:
- 05-2020
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS)
- Abstract:
- This CEPS Policy Insight takes a lively rhetorical approach to showing how state capture in the Western Balkans has been ignored since the launch of the region’s EU accession process, despite the many examples highlighted by civil society and independent media. It argues that while the EU first acknowledged the clear signs of state capture in an official document in 2016, Western Balkan political elites had already built powerful networks of corrupt interests around them. Not only that, they had already reached the highest point of state capture – tailor-made laws.
- Topic:
- Corruption, Law, European Union, and State Capture
- Political Geography:
- Europe and Balkans
18. Representation of Women in the Judiciary in Turkey
- Author:
- Bertil Emrah Oder
- Publication Date:
- 09-2019
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
- Abstract:
- The recently announced Judicial Reform Strategy was subject to public debate with a series of promises ranging from issuing green passports to lawyers as a privileged of visa exemptions to the introduction of an appeal process in criminal cases concerning the freedom of expression.1 The fundamental shortcoming of this new strategy and other reform efforts is the lack of a specific agenda on the representation of women professionals in the judiciary, especially in the leading positions including the apex courts. Policies on women’s representation in the judiciary remained “invisible” in recent reform efforts on judicial policies.
- Topic:
- Gender Issues, Law, Women, Inequality, Courts, Criminal Justice, and Representation
- Political Geography:
- Turkey and Middle East
19. 5 Years Of The Law On Foreigners And International Protection: Problems Of Implementation And Suggested Solutions
- Author:
- Hakkı Onur Arıner
- Publication Date:
- 09-2019
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
- Abstract:
- Turkey’s Law on Foreigners and International Protection (LFIP) was adopted on 4 April 2013 by the Turkish Grand National Assembly. In the five years that has passed since the coming into force of the LFIP in its entirety, it appears that the LFIP has been made to adapt to the conditions of Turkey, rather than the other way around, due to the sheer unexpected size of the phenomenon of immigration into Turkey, and the challenges encountered in establishing the institutional capacity and the inter- institutional cooperation necessary to deal with the inflows as required by the Law.
- Topic:
- Government, Human Rights, Migration, Refugee Issues, and Law
- Political Geography:
- Turkey and Middle East
20. Policy Note: Dialogues On Sanitation: Legal Perspectives on Sanitation in Urban India
- Author:
- Scaling City Institutions for India: Sanitation
- Publication Date:
- 03-2019
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Centre for Policy Research, India
- Abstract:
- The event was organised as a part of ‘Dialogues on Sanitation’ series and specifically focused on the legal and regulatory regime pertaining to urban sanitation. The event brought together senior policymakers, city and state level implementers, technocrats, members of the civil society and legal experts to brainstorm towards bettering the regulatory regime on urban sanitation. Several aspects such as the role of law and regulation in Faecal Sludge Management, rights of sanitary workers, and public-private participation in Urban Sanitation were discussed during the course of the workshop.
- Topic:
- Government, Law, Regulation, Urban, and Sanitation
- Political Geography:
- South Asia, India, and Asia
21. Election Law and Political Economy
- Author:
- Ethan Kaplan
- Publication Date:
- 01-2019
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Economics for Inclusive Prosperity (EfIP)
- Abstract:
- In sum, political institutions in the United States favor higher income individuals over lower income individuals and ethnic majorities over ethnic minorities. This is accomplished through a myriad of policies which impact who votes, allow for differential influence and access by the wealthy, structure voting districts to dilute the impacts of under-represented voters, and allow for oversized influence of pro-business owner ideas through media and membership organizations.
- Topic:
- Economics, Law, Elections, Democracy, Economic Policy, and Voting
- Political Geography:
- United States
22. The Way Forward for Legal Education Reform in Ghana
- Author:
- S. Kwaku Asare
- Publication Date:
- 10-2019
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Ghana Center for Democratic Development
- Abstract:
- Abstract
- Topic:
- Education, Law, and Legal Theory
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Ghana
23. The WTO's Existential Crisis: How to Salvage Its Ability to Settle Trade Disputes
- Author:
- Jeffrey J. Schott and Euijin Jung
- Publication Date:
- 12-2019
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Peterson Institute for International Economics
- Abstract:
- US refusal to allow the appointment of new judges (or members) to the World Trade Organization’s Appellate Body—a key component of its renowned dispute settlement system—has pushed the organization into an existential crisis. The Appellate Body no longer has the requisite number of members to hear new cases on appeal. The terms of two of the three remaining members have expired, leaving the WTO without an appeal function. US officials charge that certain Appellate Body decisions on WTO dispute panel rulings have expanded WTO obligations and constrained WTO rights—what trade lawyers call “judicial overreach”—and so they have blocked the appointment of new Appellate Body members until other WTO countries address US complaints. Schott and Jung analyze the WTO cases brought against the United States and find that the problem of judicial overreach seems to surface primarily in a subset of US losses in antidumping and countervailing duty (AD/CVD) cases that target specific methods of calculating dumping margins. They warn that disabling the whole appellate system is a disproportionate response to the specific problem. It will weaken enforcement of WTO obligations and undermine prospects for negotiations to update the WTO rulebook, thus corroding the rules-based trading system, one that has been modeled on US law and practice. A better approach would be to exempt AD/CVD cases from appellate review (while still subjecting them to dispute panel rulings). This targeted change in the WTO Appellate Body process, coupled with procedural reforms already advanced in proposals that have been widely supported by WTO members, could mitigate US concerns and allow the Appellate Body to be repopulated.
- Topic:
- Government, World Trade Organization, Law, Judiciary, and Trade
- Political Geography:
- North America and United States of America
24. Free Willy! Japan Resumes Commercial Whale Hunting
- Author:
- Veronika Bílková
- Publication Date:
- 11-2019
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Institute of International Relations Prague
- Abstract:
- In late 2018, Japan announced that it would withdraw from the International Convention on the Regulation of Whaling and leave the International Whaling Commission. It did so due to its disapproval of the ban on commercial whaling, which has been in force for the Parties of the Convention since 1986, and to its decision to resume whalle hunt since the summer of 2019. This reflection first gives an overview of the evolution and the structure of the international legal regime related to whaling and of the history of Japan’s relationship with this regime. It then shows that the Japan’s attempt to justify the resumption of commercial whaling by the principle of sustainable use of living marine resources cannot be successful for both practical and normative reasons.
- Topic:
- Environment, Treaties and Agreements, Law, Hunting, and Whaling
- Political Geography:
- Japan and Asia
25. Third UN Conference on Law of the Sea (1973–1982): Promoting Peace, Security, Law, and Order in the Oceans
- Author:
- Monika Chansoria
- Publication Date:
- 04-2019
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Japan Institute Of International Affairs (JIIA)
- Abstract:
- The Third UN Conference on the Law of the Sea spanning between 1973 and 1982 remains engraved as an exceptional event in the pages of history of international relations, being one of the most ambitious projects of the United Nations, represented with nearly all of the international community. The Conference was viewed as a test of constructive international cooperation in an increasingly interdependent system where such cooperation was extremely vital.1 By means of Resolution 2750C(XXV), the UN General Assembly on December 17, 1970, decided to convene the Third Conference on the Law of the Sea in 1973, and instructed the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of the Sea-Bed and the Ocean Floor beyond the Limits of National Jurisdiction to act as a preparatory body for this conference. The Committee held six sessions and a number of additional meetings in New York and Geneva between 1971 and 1973 following which the UN General Assembly requested the UN SecretaryGeneral to convene the first session of the Third UN Conference on the Law of the Sea in 1973 in New York to deal with organizational matters, and a second session in 1974, as well as subsequent sessions if necessary, to deal with substantive work (as per Resolution 3029 (XXVII).
- Topic:
- Security, United Nations, Law, Law of the Sea, and Peace
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
26. Refugee Sponsorship Programs: A Global State of Play and Opportunities for Investment
- Author:
- Susan Fratzke, Lena Kainz, Hanne Beirens, Emma Dorst, and Jessica Bolter
- Publication Date:
- 12-2019
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
- Abstract:
- A pair of contradictory trends is challenging humanitarian protection systems around the world: the number of refugees in need of protection has climbed to an all-time high, while at the same time, many countries have reduced their commitments to refugee resettlement. With protection needs high and generosity low, it has become more important to find new ways for refugees to reach safety and to rebuild public consensus around the value of offering protection to those in need. To meet these challenges, governments and civil-society groups in a growing number of countries have begun to explore refugee sponsorship (also called community or private sponsorship), either as a complement or alternative to traditional protection pathways. This MPI Europe policy brief takes stock of sponsorship programs worldwide—from the well-established Canadian private sponsorship program, to much newer and smaller-scale initiatives in countries such as Argentina, Germany, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. Although government investment and support for such programs are essential, this study also lays out a variety of ways private philanthropic actors can support these programs. Among them: funding the development of informational materials and hotlines for sponsors; investing in program infrastrucrture, such as staff positions within civil-society organizations; and monitoring and evaluation by civil society and/or government. Crucially, the authors note that while much effort in recent years has gone into developing and launching new initiatives, existing programs also face important capacity and funding gaps. “To ensure the capacity of refugee protection systems at a global level,” they write, “strengthening these programs should be viewed as a priority equal in importance to setting up new schemes.”
- Topic:
- Immigration, Law, Refugees, Investment, and Asylum
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
27. Latvian Banking: Recent Reforms, Sustainable Solutions
- Author:
- Joshua Kirschenbaum
- Publication Date:
- 05-2018
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMFUS)
- Abstract:
- Latvia’s non-resident banking sector, which caters to clients from Russia and other countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), has finally become politically untenable. After years of scandals and massive illicit flows through Latvia, the government has concluded that the non-resident banking sector as currently constituted poses a threat to Latvian national security. The precipitating event was the targeting in February 2018 of Latvia’s third-largest bank, ABLV, by the U.S. Treasury Department, which found that ABLV had “institutionalized money laundering as a pillar of the bank’s business practices.” Days later, Latvia’s central bank governor was detained on corruption charges. Led by Prime Minister Maris Kucinskis and Finance Minister Dana Reizniece-Ozola, both of the ruling Union of Greens and Farmers party, Latvia has committed to reduce non-resident banking drastically. To that end, on April 26 Latvia’s parliament, the Saeima, took the dramatic step of amending the anti-money laundering (AML) law to prohibit Latvian banks from maintaining accounts for shell companies. The law, shepherded through the Saeima by Member of Parliament Veiko Spolitis of the center-right Unity Party, passed easily, 57-17, with the pro-Russian Harmony Party opposed. Reformers took advantage of the narrow window prior to the Saeima’s summer recess and the fall elections to take a bold step, one that communicates unequivocally to illicit financial facilitators and their accomplices that they are no longer welcome. Now comes the hard part. The United States and the European Union should continue to support those in Latvia who are prepared to bring the non-resident banking business under control once and for all. To get reform right, though, Latvia must proceed in a methodical, thorough manner. There is a real risk that, in a moment of panic followed by a moment of relief, Latvian reformers will unintentionally squander this political opportunity. A lasting solution will require deeply rooted institutional changes, increased enforcement resources, and sustained political commitment to ensure that the dominance of the non-resident banks is eliminated and never renewed.
- Topic:
- National Security, Law, Reform, and Banking
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Eurasia, and Latvia
28. Policy Report: Rule of Law and Peace and Order in the South China Sea and the West Philippine Sea
- Author:
- Catherine S. Panaguiton
- Publication Date:
- 03-2017
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Council on International Policy (CIP)
- Abstract:
- The judgment award rendered in the Republic of the Philippines vs. The People’s Republic of China was a significant development to the disputes in the South China Sea and the West Philippine Sea. Conflicting opinions from littoral and affected states on the legal issues abound the institution of the case and the conduct in these areas as a whole have been raised and a decision has been rendered on these issues. Provisions in the UNCLOS that were made to be deliberately vague because States at the UN Conference negotiating UNCLOS could not agree on more precise language have been clarified. The judgment not only has implications in the lawyering and judicial sphere. It also carries practical implications that are to be considered in lawmaking and formulation of government policies. All these implications will be discussed in this paper.
- Topic:
- Peace Studies and Law
- Political Geography:
- South China and West Philippines
29. License to Be Yourself: Responding to National Security and Identity Fraud Arguments
- Publication Date:
- 04-2017
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- In much of the world, trans and intersex people struggle to obtain official identity documents that acknowledge their appropriate names and sex or gender markers. When people are forced to rely on documents that do not match their gender identity, they risk being subjected to harassment and discrimination. In addition, they may be suspected of identity fraud and trigger security alerts because of the discrepancy between their documents and their gender identity or appearance. The lack of appropriate documentation is particularly dangerous in situations where a trans or intersex person is crossing a border and being unable to prove their identity can result in being detained or deported. This brief counters concerns that progressive gender recognition laws and policies will undermine national security and increase the risk of identity fraud. It is the fourth of four resources for activists that accompany Open Society’s 2014 report on legal gender recognition across the world, License to Be Yourself.
- Topic:
- Gender Issues, Law, Discrimination, LGBT+, Sexuality, Identity, and Transgender
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
30. Back to Basics: Re-affirming the Rule of Law in the Western Balkans
- Author:
- Bojan Elek, Milena Milosevic, and Stevo Muk
- Publication Date:
- 12-2016
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Belgrade Centre for Security Policy
- Abstract:
- Evidence shows that progress in democracy and rule of law reforms in the region, albeit different across countries, is slow. Even when it has been achieved, progress has generally been more technical rather than directly focusing on politically sensitive issues.
- Topic:
- Political Theory, Law, and Democracy
- Political Geography:
- Balkans
31. North Korea and the Sony Hack: Exporting Instability Through Cyberspace
- Author:
- Stephen Haggard and Jon R. Lindsay
- Publication Date:
- 05-2015
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- East-West Center
- Abstract:
- The North Korean cyber attack against Sony Pictures Entertainment in connection with the planned release of The Interview raised important questions about the feasibility of deterrence in cyberspace, the protection of First Amendment values, and the responsibility of the US government to safeguard private networks. It also resulted in the unprecedented attribution of responsibility for a cyber attack to a nation state by a US president, despite public controversy over the evidence. North Korea has long engaged in provocative behavior on the Korean peninsula, recently including cyber attacks, but the probability of general war with South Korea remains quite low. Strategists describe this problem as the stability-instability paradox. North Korean coercion targeting a corporation on US soil in effect extends this dynamic into global cyberspace. It is impossible to deter all forms of cyber harassment, but policymakers can manipulate the threshold of ambiguity that makes limited aggression more or less attractive.
- Topic:
- Science and Technology, Law, and Cybersecurity
- Political Geography:
- North Korea
32. The Case for Intellectual Property Rights: Should Patents Be Strengthened, Weakened or Abolished Altogether?
- Author:
- Joël Blit
- Publication Date:
- 11-2015
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Centre for International Governance Innovation
- Abstract:
- This policy brief recommends that to diminish the potential for holdup, uncertainty around patent rights should be reduced. Patents should be easily searchable and more easily understood by non-legal experts. In addition, patents should be narrower and more clearly demarcated. To the extent that the welfare costs of patents appear to outweigh their benefits, the requirements for obtaining a patent should be tightened. Further, patents should be made less broad and, concomitant with the reduction in the length of the product cycle, the length of patents should also be reduced.
- Topic:
- Economics, Intellectual Property/Copyright, Governance, and Law
- Political Geography:
- North America
33. License to Be Yourself: Marriage and Forced Divorce
- Publication Date:
- 04-2015
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- The vast majority of trans people around the world cannot obtain legal recognition of—or official documents that match—their gender identity. Where laws do recognize trans people, they often exclude those who are married. This forces trans people to choose between legal recognition of their gender identity or their marriage. Forced divoce violates trans people’s right to privacy, marriage, and recognition under the law. This brief explains legal restrictions that affect the recognition of married trans and intersex people. It examines case law and addresses key arguments made by those who oppose such recognition. It is the first of four resources for activists that accompany Open Society’s 2014 report on legal gender recognition across the world, License to Be Yourself.
- Topic:
- Law, Discrimination, LGBT+, Family, Sexuality, Marriage, and Transgender
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
34. Institutionalisation of Sub-Saharan Africa's Land Reforms: The Way Forward
- Author:
- Rasmus Hundsbæk Pedersen
- Publication Date:
- 02-2014
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
- Abstract:
- Governments across Sub -Saharan Africa seek to address the increasing pressure on land by introducing land reforms. More than half — at least 32 countries — have introduced reforms since the end of the Cold War. Though the reforms are heterogeneous, most of them share a number of characteristics. Most reforms aim to streamline land legislation, land administration and land dispute settlement and to promote markets in land. These new wave land reforms typically do so by recognising existing rights to land (customary rights included), by decentralising responsibility over land administration and land dispute settlement and by promoting registration and issuing land title deeds. How are land reforms being implemented? What is their effect on institutions at the local level? Are the land administration and land court institutions becoming more accessible due to the reforms? This policy brief addresses some of these questions.
- Topic:
- Security, Poverty, Culture, Law, and Reform
- Political Geography:
- Africa
35. Regulating RoboCop: The Need for International Governance Innovation in Drone and AWS Development and Use
- Author:
- Melisa Foster and Virgil Haden-Pawlowski
- Publication Date:
- 10-2014
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Centre for International Governance Innovation
- Abstract:
- Drones and AWS are more than simply new technology; they are a new method of combat engagement, representing a revolution in military affairs (Arkin 2013, 1). The current deployment of certain forms of robotic weapons technology, and the direction of their continuing development and use, are inadequately influenced by international law. While this technology offers strategic advantages and may reduce the need to put military personnel in harm's way, it also creates enormous risks to the erosion or abuse of human rights, peace, national security, ethical conduct in war and international law.
- Topic:
- Science and Technology, International Security, Governance, and Law
36. Dual Citizenship: Reducing Governance and Protection Gaps
- Author:
- Busra Hacioglu, Alina Shams, Amy Wood, and Ruiqian Zhang
- Publication Date:
- 10-2014
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Centre for International Governance Innovation
- Abstract:
- On December 29, 2013, the journalists Mohamed Fahmy, Peter Greste and Baher Mohamed were arbitrarily arrested and detained in Cairo, Egypt. They were sentenced to seven years in prison after a five-month trial, a verdict US Secretary of State John Kerry called "chilling and draconian" (quoted in Holmes 2014). Although more contentious, the 2002 rendition of Canadian-Syrian citizen Mahar Arar also garnered international condemnation. 2 The subsequent apology by the Canadian government drew attention to the vulnerability of dual citizens, both abroad and at home. In 2006 and 2011, Canadian citizens from Lebanon and Egypt called upon the Canadian government for support during conflicts, with over 13,000 evacuated from Beirut alone by the end of July 2006. These cases all bring to light the complex web of obligations and transnational legalities, which come to the fore during times of conflict. Characterized by an absence of global governance, dual citizenship occupies a grey area in the international arena, as no international conventions directly apply to this citizenship status. In this absence, there are fragmented state responses based on geopolitical and geographical demand - dual citizenship can be permitted, avoided restricted or renounced - according to the whims of states. This has created a messy terrain around rights, state responsibilities, security and migration.
- Topic:
- Security, Human Rights, Migration, Governance, and Law
- Political Geography:
- Lebanon, Syria, and Egypt
37. Primer: Support Technologies for Human Rights Lawyers
- Publication Date:
- 02-2014
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- This study looks at the place that technologies may have in helping human rights lawyers work most effectively. It looks at three classes of technologies: 1. Case and practice management tools, for managing the daytoday flow of information around a case, such as the exchange of documents, task management and dates. 2. EDiscovery tools for digitizing, organizing and reviewing collections of documents, data or other material that could be evidence in a case. 3. Investigation and case building tools for organizing and analyzing the facts of a case or group of cases, providing visual overviews on maps, network charts and timelines. The goal is to provide an understanding of the problems that the available tools target, a framework for thinking about how these technologies may fit into to your work, and a good understanding of the costs involved.
- Topic:
- Human Rights, Science and Technology, Law, Digital Policy, and Legal Sector
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus