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9641. Social Policy Programme “The Family 500+” – Assumptions, Results, and Costs of Functioning: Is It Worth?

Author:
Anna Owczarcyk
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The unfavorable demographic situation and the falling number of births resulted in an increased interest among Polish politicians in introducing tools to social policy that would reverse this negative trend. Implemented to social policy by Prawo i Sprawiedliwość Party in 2016, the “Family 500+” benefit has become such a tool. According to the government’s intention, this financial aid for families with children aims to reverse the decline in the number of births observed for many years and reduce the scale of poverty among families with the most complex financial situation. After several years of the “Family 500+” Program in force, it is difficult to clearly define whether the goals were achieved and whether the expenses for financing the program were adequate to the results. The aim of the article is an attempt at the assessment of the functioning of the Family 500+ Programme. Both the statutory assumptions of the programme, the costs of its functioning, and its results so far were analyzed. The central part of the analysis covered the period 2016–2019.
Topic:
Poverty, Children, Social Policy, and Welfare
Political Geography:
Europe and Poland

9642. Democratic Backsliding in Poland on Example Drafts Amendments in Electoral Code During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Author:
Maciej Skrzypek
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The COVID-19 pandemic occurred in Poland during the campaign before the presidential election scheduled for May 10. This non-military threat changed the election campaign’s dynamics, leading to an unprecedented failure to hold elections and postponing them. Around the changes in the election procedure, many constitutionalists and political scientists voiced their inconsistency with the law and the provisions of the Constitutional Tribunal. Both the proposed provisions and the manner of their organization raised objections. The article classifies these changes as manifestations of democratic backsliding, weakening democratic institutions and leading to a decline in the quality of democracy. The research goal is to analyze the records in the selected source material and relate them to the selected theoretical category (democratic backsliding). In the course of the research, the following hypothesis is verified: in the face of the COVID-19 epidemic in Poland, attempts by the ruling elite to change the provisions related to organizing the presidential elections scheduled for May 10 are an example of democratic backsliding, which, by weakening democratic institutions, has threatened the constitutional provisions and the essence of the democratic system.
Topic:
Elections, Democracy, Constitution, Public Health, Pandemic, and COVID-19
Political Geography:
Europe and Poland

9643. The Teacher and the Idea of Society 5.0 – Initial Diagnosis of the Problem

Author:
Beata Pitula
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The primary aim of this article is to present the results and research findings of a pilot study on teachers’ attitudes manifested toward the idea of society 5.0. The study is a part of one of the priority research areas of the Silesian University of Technology – Processes automation and Industry 4.0. in terms of the socio-cultural and methodological implications of Industry 4.0. Eighty-four teachers participated in the research and completed the questionnaire electronically. The research bores the characteristics of a preliminary diagnosis of the problem. Hence, the collected empirical material does not allow the formulation of methodologically valid conclusions. However, it may constitute a “voice in the discussion” on the preparation of teachers for the inevitable change of the role of the school and the teacher in the new society.
Topic:
Civil Society, Academia, Teaching, and Public Schools
Political Geography:
Global Focus

9644. The Boundaries of Jerusalem

Author:
Gideon Biger
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
Earlier this year, President Donald Trump presented his Peace Plan for Israel and the Palestinians. The plan also dealt with the future boundaries of Jerusalem. Jerusalem is the only city ruled by a sovereign regime, the State of Israel, which declared Jerusalem as its Capital city and draw its boundary lines. Except for the US, the status and boundaries of Jerusalem are not accepted by any other international or national entity. Only the United States, which accepts Jerusalem as the capital city of Israel, agreed to accept its Israeli declared boundaries. Jerusalem’s status and boundaries stand at the core of the dispute between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, which wishes to restore the pre-1967 line. The city of Jerusalem was divided during the years 1948-1967 between Israel and Jordan. The Palestinian Authority thus calls for a separation of Jerusalem between two independent states. Today, Jerusalem has an urban boundary that serves partly as a separating line between Israel and the Palestinian Autonomy, but most countries do not accept the present boundaries, and its future permanent line and status are far from establishing. Jerusalem is a unique city. This article presents a brief history that should help understanding its uniqueness.
Topic:
International Cooperation, Territorial Disputes, Conflict, and Urban
Political Geography:
Israel, Palestine, and Jerusalem

9645. Why Did Italian Democracy Become Vulnerable? Theorizing the Change from Neo- to Quasi-Militant Democracy

Author:
Joanna Rak
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
Embedded in scholarship on militant democracy, this research aims to explain how Italian legislation was positioned to militant democratic measures and how this changed over time. Drawing on the qualitative source analysis and the explanatory frameworks of democratic vulnerability tests two competing theory-grounded assumptions. While the first one assumes that Italian democracy became vulnerable when traditional militant democracy instruments were outmoded, the second considers the misuse or abandonment of those means with social consent as the source of vulnerability. The crisis-induced socioeconomic inequality and uncertainty weakened the Italian political nation. As a result, the latter supported populists in return for a promise of political change. The anti-democratic legal means employed to extend power competencies and prevent the exchange of ruling parties were the way to and the costs of the expected political change. At the same time, the political nation became unable to self-organize to strengthen democracy self-defense. As a result, Italians co-produced a quasi-militant democracy that turned vulnerable because militant democracy measures were misused or not used with the consent of Italians that relinquished their political subjectivity in favor of the Northern League and the Five Star Movement.
Topic:
Sovereignty, Democracy, Legislation, and Militant Democracy
Political Geography:
Europe and Italy

9646. Parliamentary Parties and the Anti-Abortion Laws in Poland (1991–2019)

Author:
Krzysztof Kowalczyk
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
This article aims to analyze the approach of Polish parliamentary parties to the anti-abortion legislation in 1991-2019 on the level of their ideological programmes. Classification of political parties concerning their ideological families has been proposed. Next, the article presents a typology based on the party’s attitude to the discussed problem, distinguishing the following categories of parties: the proponents of apportioning, the opponents of abortion, heterogeneous parties, and parties that do not express an opinion on this issue.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Governance, Legislation, Parliamentarism, and Abortion
Political Geography:
Europe and Poland

9647. The Role of Islam in Indonesian Foreign Policy: A Case of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono Introduction

Author:
Aisyah Mumary Songbatumis
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
As Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono won the 2004 presidential election, it marked the end of Indonesia’s democratic transition era and experienced a dynamic change in foreign policy. The new international identity that viewed Islam as an asset was introduced by SBY, emphasizing the importance of moderate Islam as opposing extremism. The phenomenon of Islamic influence was not only the result of democratic consolidation domestically but also external factors such as the aftermath of 9/11 that portrayed Muslims as potential terrorists. For this reason, Indonesian foreign policy attempted to diminish such misconceptions and tried to be a peacemaker or a mediator in Muslim-related issues globally. To contextualize the analysis, the study focuses on the influence of Islam in Indonesian foreign policy towards the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and Pakistan. The mutual aspirations on the Palestinian statehood shared by both the government and the Muslim elements in society could be found, while religious sentiments were noticeable, as shown by the Muslim groups. In contrast, the influence of Islam in Indonesia-Pakistan relations, especially regarding the Kashmir dispute, was absent due to the difference in views of the government and the Muslim groups and constraining factors, including Indonesia’s national interest priority.
Topic:
Diplomacy, International Cooperation, Religion, Democracy, and Strategic Interests
Political Geography:
Indonesia and Asia

9648. Latvia as the Area of Correlated Russian “Hard Power” and “Soft Power” Operations

Author:
Gabriel Nowacki
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
This work presents the methodology of the Russian impact on Latvia after 1991. It defines and specifies the scope of methods concerning both the hard and soft power in international relations in the 21st century, particularly the ones used to implement the Russian Federation’s foreign policy. The implemented strategies and impact models are described. The work is also focused on certain indicators used in global rankings by experts worldwide. In the 21st century, it is no longer enough to employ the hard power methods as it is advisable to use the soft power ones, which may bring about much better results than the hard ones.
Topic:
Diplomacy, International Cooperation, Hegemony, and Strategic Interests
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, and Latvia

9649. Integrated Space Situational Awareness Systems: SDA and SSA – Advantages and Limitations

Author:
Malgorzata Polkowska
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
SDA (Space Domain Awareness) and SSA (Space Situational Awareness – SSA) have been defined as comprehensive knowledge of space objects and the ability to track, understand, and predict their future location. The purpose of the article is to present SSA initiatives to protect space systems, which are now recognized as fundamental assets of the sustainable development of each country. The destruction of even a part of the space infrastructure can have severe consequences for the security of citizens and economic activity. These systems assume the combination of all data obtained by various entities operating in space and Earth to create a common database. The SSA system was created based on the US military programme SDA (Space Domain Awareness); SSA and SDA are almost similar, but SDA is a new term replacing SSA, which existed previously. SDA is a better and improved SSA. Increasingly, the SSA programme is part of national and EU space strategies, but it is not yet possible to include it in international space law.
Topic:
International Cooperation, International Law, European Union, and Space
Political Geography:
Europe

9650. Public Security and Public Order – Conceptual and Institutional Scope

Author:
Janusz Gierszewski and Andrzej Pieczywok
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The publication aims to analyze public security and public order in conceptual and institutional terms as an analytical category of security sciences. The legislator defines neither public security nor public order. So far, they have been treated mainly as categories of administrative law. It is therefore important to assign them analytical content in the new scientific discipline. The research results allowed for the presentation of the thesis that public security and public order are mainly connected with protection against pathological phenomena occurring in the public space, which are minimized by institutions established to ensure it. These categories should constitute the research field (subject) of the security sciences. The research problem formulated in the form of the question: How are public security and public order treated in definitional and institutional terms? The problem was solved based on a critical analysis of the literature. The paper uses theoretical research methods, including analysis of literature and phenomena occurring in society and inference – as a cognitive factor of the subject of analysis. A critical analysis of the literature on this issue played a large role in the cognitive process.
Topic:
Security, Political Theory, Public Policy, and Social Order
Political Geography:
Global Focus

9651. What Is Drawing Xi’s China and Lukashenko’s Belarus Closer?

Author:
Solomiya Kharchuk
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
What are the primary drivers of the relationship between Xi’s China and Lukashenko’s Belarus? The present research paper uses the historical process-tracing method to provide an answer to this question. Furthermore, it uses quantitative data analysis regarding the economic intercourse between Belarus and China. It examines whether China’s opposition regarding the unipolar American-led world order and Belarus’s security concerns are the primary drivers of the relationship between Minsk and Beijing. The present article concludes that the congruence of beliefs and Minsk’s desire to ensure survival are drawing the two countries closer together. China’s new strategy encompasses Beijing’s increasing participation in world affairs. China opposes the world order led by a single hegemon, the United States of America. In the interim, Belarus, a relatively weak state insignificant in the global balance of power, shares Beijing’s beliefs about the desired nature of the contemporary world order. However, the Belarusian economy’s condition, which relies heavily on external funding, does not allow the economic cooperation between Minsk and Beijing to thrive. China gradually increases its engagement with Belarus, yet it obscures its ambitions, for Minsk lies in Moscow’s sphere of influence.
Topic:
International Cooperation, International Trade and Finance, Infrastructure, Hegemony, and Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)
Political Geography:
China and Asia

9652. Persistent Conflict and Perceived Post-Conflict Peacebuilding in Southern Kaduna Region of Nigeria

Author:
Tunde Abioro
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The cycle of individual and communal lives from birth to death is supposedly preserved by the government through institutions. However, political, social, and economic activities are engaged to make ends meet wherein the government is to serve as an unbiased regulator. The activities that play out in Southern Kaduna reflected politics of being on one side with interplay on origin, identity, religion, and locality. On the other hand, it reflects politics of belonging that play on kin, reciprocity, and stranger status. It has thus resulted in violence, suspicion, and persistent conflict. The study examines citizen’s inclusiveness in peacebuilding initiatives and the people’s perception of the sincerity of the government. The research relies on secondary sources where governmental and non-governmental publications and documents from relevant and reliable sources enriched the socio-historical approach, particularly those relating to contestation in the region. The study found out that just like situations in the other northwest states of the country, the crisis exacerbates by the government’s inability to mediate fairly between warring parties to ensure fairness and justice as well as failure to apprehend and punish the culprits, even as recommendations from the various interventions were unimplemented. Thus, the spate of violence continues.
Topic:
Peacekeeping, Conflict, Violence, and Justice
Political Geography:
Africa and Nigeria

9653. Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Relations Between Government and Parliamentary Opposition in Spain

Author:
Agata Rydzewska
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The COVID-19 strongly affected the states all over the world in several aspects, Spain, being an inglorious leader in terms of the number of infections in Europe, was highly afflicted by the coronavirus and further consequences. After problems with forming the government, which was caused by substantial political polarization, a new incumbent coalition needed to face new challenges, which was strictly connected with managing the coronavirus crisis. The article’s main aim is to present how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the political situation in Spain by analyzing the relations between the ruling government and the parliamentary opposition.
Topic:
Politics, Legislation, Public Health, Pandemic, COVID-19, and Parliamentarism
Political Geography:
Europe and Spain

9654. The Round Table in 1989 – Consequences and Evaluation

Author:
Wojciech Polak and Sylwia Galij-Skarbinska
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The agreement of the round table signed on April 5, 1989, resulted in the creation of the government of Tadeusz Mazowiecki (September 12, 1989) and the end of communist rule in Poland. However, it should be pointed out that the agreement of the round table is currently often criticized. It is claimed, among other things, that the agreement was a form of “unification of the elite” (the term Jack Kuroń) to obtain financial and political benefits. As a result, the mixed communist-solidarity elite has taken over power in the country, guided solely by their own interests. It is also stressed that the contract has enabled the Communists to retain enormous influence in the special services, state administration, various institutions, the economy, and finance. On the other hand, these irregularities have been attributed to the solidarity elites who consider the round table agreements to be persistent. Other parts of the solidarity elite treated the round table exclusively as tactical action to take power away from the Communists.
Topic:
Diplomacy, Governance, Elections, Democracy, and Constitution
Political Geography:
Europe and Poland

9655. Digitization in the Era of Coronavirus – A Review

Author:
Lukasz Pietraszek
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
In the modern world, the development of technology has a significant impact on various areas of human functioning. However, the appearance of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic and the need to implement numerous restrictions resulted in an even greater increase in the importance of new technologies, especially in such sectors as education, administration, or finance. In Poland, the introduction of the remote work system encountered many difficulties related to the unpreparedness of previous structures to implement such solutions. An example of a country where they operate efficiently, responding to the problems that Poland faces today, is Estonia, in which, beginning from 2004, the state administration sector has been gradually replaced by a digital system based on Blockchain technology. At present, in Poland, appropriate steps are already taken by the Ministry of Digitization to digitize public administration in the form of a plan of four streams. Given the protracted pandemic, the possibilities for immediate solutions and considering the advantages and disadvantages of digitizing the state seem worth attention.
Topic:
Digital Economy, Public Health, Pandemic, COVID-19, and Digitalization
Political Geography:
Global Focus

9656. Economic Sanctions as a Tool of China’s Hybrid Strategies

Author:
Rafal Wisniewski
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The article aims to analyze the role of economic sanctions in the People’s Republic of China’s overall approach to achieving its security objectives in the international arena. During the last two decades, Beijing used this instrument on numerous occasions to exert pressure on a varied group of actors. China’s current strategy toward a range of disputes and conflicts it is engaged in (the South China Sea territorial disputes most prominently stand out) is often described using the popular vocabulary of “hybrid warfare” or “grey zone conflicts”. Putting the conceptual complications aside, the author agrees that the PRC’s approach can be viewed as part of a growing trend for great powers to employ what can be called “hybrid strategies” toward its opponents. As part of a broader category of economic statecraft, economic sanctions form an important element of this approach. Considering current scholarship on both “hybrid” (or “grey area”) warfare and economic sanctions, the article answers the question of why the PRC increasingly resorts to hybrid strategies (including economic coercion) and identifies the main characteristics of Chinese economic sanctions. It also provides preliminary conclusions on their effectiveness.
Topic:
Diplomacy, Economics, Territorial Disputes, and Sanctions
Political Geography:
China, Asia, and South China Sea

9657. Humanity–Organization–Technology in View of Industry 4.0 / Society 5.0

Author:
Andrzej Kiepas
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The article addresses selected problems related to the perspective on the development of Industry 4.0 and social and cultural changes that accompany this development and lead toward the so-called post-digital society. In the field of industry, the changes concern, among others, the functioning of various organizations, and in the perspective of post-digital society – human beings and their relations with the world of technology. These changes lead to an increase in the role of technological factors, hence the current revival of technological determinism, and this, in turn, has to do with questions regarding human subjectivity. In this context, questions regarding humans also revolve around the need to acknowledge their increasing capabilities and scope of freedom, and on the other hand, their loss of autonomy in relation to the world of technology.
Topic:
Science and Technology, Digital Economy, Industry, and Digitalization
Political Geography:
Global Focus

9658. Protocooperation as a Model for the Russia-UAE Partnership

Author:
Andrzej Jacuch
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
Russia’s intervention in Syria in 2015 marked the Russian Federation (RF) return as a key player in the Middle East and North Africa. In this context, the relations between Russia and the UAE are of utmost importance for both entities, for the region, and globally. This article seeks to fill a gap in scholarly knowledge by answering questions about the nature of the emerging cooperation between Russia and the UAE. How Russia seeks to use the UAE to expand its sphere of influence in the MENA region and how the UAE uses this cooperation to achieve its foreign policy goals. The article applies protocooperation (an analogy to the ecological relationship) as a model for the Russia-UAE partnership. The RF is strengthening its position in the MENA regarding the UAE as a key partner for regaining its political, economic, and military influence in the MENA region. Russia-UAE’s partnership aims at achieving conjunctural geopolitical interests benefiting from diminished Western, mainly the US, presence in the region.
Topic:
Security, Diplomacy, International Cooperation, Military Strategy, and Foreign Interference
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, Gulf Nations, and UAE

9659. Cybercrime on the Example of Selected Botnets

Author:
Przemysław Mazurczak
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The article presents threat analysis resulting from botnet activity on the Internet. Botnet networks are a very common tool among cybercriminals. They enable the acquisition of large amounts of data from computers infected with the virus that creates the given network entirely subordinated to its creator. Currently, many unidentified botnets are a threat to Internet users. Those identified and diagnosed answer the problem of how dangerous a botnet is in the hands of cybercriminals. The article presents statistics and analysis of selected botnets. Currently, there is a decline in the interest in botnets in cybercrime, although many new threats appear, suggesting that botnets will continue to be popular and are still a dangerous weapon in the hands of criminals.
Topic:
Security, Crime, Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Digitalization
Political Geography:
Global Focus

9660. Systemic Analysis of Politics in the Light of Reconstruction of Structural Functionalism of Jeffrey C. Alexander

Author:
Jaroslaw Nocon
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
Applying systems analysis in political science research is still one of the important dimensions of political science methodology. Reconstruction of the functional model of the social system seems to be an attractive proposition for policy researchers. Signed by the name of Jeffrey Charles Alexander, the American version of neofunctionalism is one of the responses to the crisis of traditional forms of structural functionalism. The main purpose of the reconstruction of T. Parsons’s theory was its revitalization consisting in restoring the possibility of its application in contemporary social research. The reinterpretation of the classical approach was to a large extent “forced” by harsh criticism of the current approach and focused especially on attempts to overcome the limitations contained therein, which manifested in the impossibility of correlation of functional theorems with newly developing research currents Jeffrey Alexander restored relevance and emphasizes suitability for interpreting and explaining political processes and phenomena. Understanding the concept of functions and functional relations in the political environment allows for effective application in the analysis of contemporary political systems. Therefore, changing the method of functional analysis is a useful methodological tool in developing a political theory.
Topic:
Politics, Political Theory, Institutionalism, and Structuralism
Political Geography:
Global Focus