Simon Caney
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- April 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780198293507
- eISBN:
- 9780191602337
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/019829350X.003.0003
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
Having argued, in Ch. 2, that there are universal moral values, the next logical step is to ask what these universal moral values are; this question is pursued in Chs 3 and 4, which consider ...
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Having argued, in Ch. 2, that there are universal moral values, the next logical step is to ask what these universal moral values are; this question is pursued in Chs 3 and 4, which consider arguments for two different types of universal value and link together to provide an analysis of what universal principles of justice should apply at the global level. This chapter examines claims that there are universal principles of civil and political justice, that is, those principles that specify what rights people have to what freedoms, and argues for universal human rights to certain civil and political liberties. It is arranged in 13 sections: Section I presents an analysis of human rights, since this term plays a central and important role in a plausible account of civil and political justice; Section II puts forward a general thesis about justifications for civil and political human rights; this is followed, in Sections III–VII, by an analysis of four cosmopolitan arguments for human rights that criticizes three of them but defends the fourth; Section VIII considers an alternative non-cosmopolitan approach to defending civil and political human rights, presented by John Rawls in The Law of Peoples (1999b); the next three sections (IX–XI) of the chapter explore misgivings about civil and political human rights, including the objections that such human rights are a species of imperialism and do not accord sufficient respect to cultural practices (IX), produce homogeneity/uniformity (X), and generate egoism/individualism and destroy community (XI); Section XII considers a further objection—the realist charges that foreign policy to protect civil and political human rights is in practice selective and partial and a cloak for the pursuit of the national interest. Section XIII summarizes the overall case made for civil and political justice.Less
Having argued, in Ch. 2, that there are universal moral values, the next logical step is to ask what these universal moral values are; this question is pursued in Chs 3 and 4, which consider arguments for two different types of universal value and link together to provide an analysis of what universal principles of justice should apply at the global level. This chapter examines claims that there are universal principles of civil and political justice, that is, those principles that specify what rights people have to what freedoms, and argues for universal human rights to certain civil and political liberties. It is arranged in 13 sections: Section I presents an analysis of human rights, since this term plays a central and important role in a plausible account of civil and political justice; Section II puts forward a general thesis about justifications for civil and political human rights; this is followed, in Sections III–VII, by an analysis of four cosmopolitan arguments for human rights that criticizes three of them but defends the fourth; Section VIII considers an alternative non-cosmopolitan approach to defending civil and political human rights, presented by John Rawls in The Law of Peoples (1999b); the next three sections (IX–XI) of the chapter explore misgivings about civil and political human rights, including the objections that such human rights are a species of imperialism and do not accord sufficient respect to cultural practices (IX), produce homogeneity/uniformity (X), and generate egoism/individualism and destroy community (XI); Section XII considers a further objection—the realist charges that foreign policy to protect civil and political human rights is in practice selective and partial and a cloak for the pursuit of the national interest. Section XIII summarizes the overall case made for civil and political justice.
Attracta Ingram
- Published in print:
- 1994
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198279631
- eISBN:
- 9780191599545
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198279639.003.0009
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
This chapter discusses the connection between liberal democratic thought and a political understanding of rights, and their impact on belief in universal rights, human rights, rights-scepticism and ...
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This chapter discusses the connection between liberal democratic thought and a political understanding of rights, and their impact on belief in universal rights, human rights, rights-scepticism and talent pooling. It argues that rights are political in the sense of being moral powers which are specified by the political principles of a voluntary politics. The assertion of human rights should not be discouraged by the parochialism of liberal theory. Bodily integrity need not be violated under the principle of strong social provision.Less
This chapter discusses the connection between liberal democratic thought and a political understanding of rights, and their impact on belief in universal rights, human rights, rights-scepticism and talent pooling. It argues that rights are political in the sense of being moral powers which are specified by the political principles of a voluntary politics. The assertion of human rights should not be discouraged by the parochialism of liberal theory. Bodily integrity need not be violated under the principle of strong social provision.
Andrew Reynolds
- Published in print:
- 1999
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198295105
- eISBN:
- 9780191600128
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198295103.003.0002
- Subject:
- Political Science, Democratization
This is the first of four chapters that discusses the theoretical underpinnings of the research on democratization in southern Africa that is described in the book. It qualitatively and ...
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This is the first of four chapters that discusses the theoretical underpinnings of the research on democratization in southern Africa that is described in the book. It qualitatively and quantitatively assesses the trajectory of the five case studies along the lines of their political stability, ethnic accommodation, and the long-term prospects for democratic accommodation. In attempting to find useful indicators of the trajectory of democratization in each of the five country case studies, six possible approaches are considered: political violence (the measurement of politically related deaths), economic indicators, political and societal indicators (political rights and civil liberties; media freedom and influence), electoral indicators (turnout; spoilt ballots), and ethnic accommodation (worsening ethnic and interregional relations, as exemplified by Zambia and Malawi; improving ethnic relations, as exemplified by Namibia and South Africa; and ethnic relations with an uncertain trajectory, as exemplified by Zimbabwe). Eight institutional indices of democratization are chosen from these: ethnic accommodation, political violence, economic performance, civil liberties, political rights, free media, electoral turnout, and spoilt ballots. The findings on these indicators for each case study are summarised in a table.Less
This is the first of four chapters that discusses the theoretical underpinnings of the research on democratization in southern Africa that is described in the book. It qualitatively and quantitatively assesses the trajectory of the five case studies along the lines of their political stability, ethnic accommodation, and the long-term prospects for democratic accommodation. In attempting to find useful indicators of the trajectory of democratization in each of the five country case studies, six possible approaches are considered: political violence (the measurement of politically related deaths), economic indicators, political and societal indicators (political rights and civil liberties; media freedom and influence), electoral indicators (turnout; spoilt ballots), and ethnic accommodation (worsening ethnic and interregional relations, as exemplified by Zambia and Malawi; improving ethnic relations, as exemplified by Namibia and South Africa; and ethnic relations with an uncertain trajectory, as exemplified by Zimbabwe). Eight institutional indices of democratization are chosen from these: ethnic accommodation, political violence, economic performance, civil liberties, political rights, free media, electoral turnout, and spoilt ballots. The findings on these indicators for each case study are summarised in a table.
Emilie M. Hafner-Burton
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691155357
- eISBN:
- 9781400846283
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691155357.003.0005
- Subject:
- Law, EU Law
This chapter reviews scholarly research on international human rights law, focusing on systematic studies that are based on historical statistics and carried out by social scientists. The systematic, ...
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This chapter reviews scholarly research on international human rights law, focusing on systematic studies that are based on historical statistics and carried out by social scientists. The systematic, scholarly study of international human rights law can be grouped into two main categories. First are studies on the process of international law, such as on how judges in human rights tribunals make decisions. Second are studies that look for relationships between the presence of law (and laws of different types) and actual changes in human behavior. The chapter concentrates on the second category of research and highlights its main weaknesses. It also discusses some of the findings of statistical research regarding civil and political rights as well as economic, social, and cultural rights. Finally, it examines the mechanisms of influence of the international human rights legal system.Less
This chapter reviews scholarly research on international human rights law, focusing on systematic studies that are based on historical statistics and carried out by social scientists. The systematic, scholarly study of international human rights law can be grouped into two main categories. First are studies on the process of international law, such as on how judges in human rights tribunals make decisions. Second are studies that look for relationships between the presence of law (and laws of different types) and actual changes in human behavior. The chapter concentrates on the second category of research and highlights its main weaknesses. It also discusses some of the findings of statistical research regarding civil and political rights as well as economic, social, and cultural rights. Finally, it examines the mechanisms of influence of the international human rights legal system.
Giandomenico Majone
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780199250158
- eISBN:
- 9780191599439
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199250154.003.0017
- Subject:
- Political Science, European Union
A distinctive feature of the modern regulatory state is the extensive delegation of powers to politically independent institutions (agencies, boards, commissions, tribunals), and this delegation of ...
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A distinctive feature of the modern regulatory state is the extensive delegation of powers to politically independent institutions (agencies, boards, commissions, tribunals), and this delegation of legislative powers to unelected policy- makers has always been somewhat problematic from the viewpoint of democratic theory. The American regulatory state has grappled with this issue for more than a century, and regulatory legitimacy is becoming an increasingly important political problem also in Europe, both at national and Community levels. In the United States the ‘non–delegation doctrine’ was the first attempt to resolve the normative problems raised by the emergence of a modern system of administrative regulation, and found widespread acceptance, but the delegation problem is considerably more complicated in the European Community/European Union (EC/EU), where various initiatives have been enacted. In both the United States and in Europe, constitutional doctrines against delegation have unravelled because the practical case for allowing regulatory discretion is overwhelming, so it is impossible to study the politics of regulation without first understanding why political principals choose to delegate rule–making powers. This is the subject of the first section of this chapter, which then goes on to analyse the relation between delegation and agency independence using the concept of political property rights, and to discuss the future of European regulation, and the politics of institutional change.Less
A distinctive feature of the modern regulatory state is the extensive delegation of powers to politically independent institutions (agencies, boards, commissions, tribunals), and this delegation of legislative powers to unelected policy- makers has always been somewhat problematic from the viewpoint of democratic theory. The American regulatory state has grappled with this issue for more than a century, and regulatory legitimacy is becoming an increasingly important political problem also in Europe, both at national and Community levels. In the United States the ‘non–delegation doctrine’ was the first attempt to resolve the normative problems raised by the emergence of a modern system of administrative regulation, and found widespread acceptance, but the delegation problem is considerably more complicated in the European Community/European Union (EC/EU), where various initiatives have been enacted. In both the United States and in Europe, constitutional doctrines against delegation have unravelled because the practical case for allowing regulatory discretion is overwhelming, so it is impossible to study the politics of regulation without first understanding why political principals choose to delegate rule–making powers. This is the subject of the first section of this chapter, which then goes on to analyse the relation between delegation and agency independence using the concept of political property rights, and to discuss the future of European regulation, and the politics of institutional change.
Luiz Carlos Bresser-Pereira
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- November 2004
- ISBN:
- 9780199261185
- eISBN:
- 9780191601507
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199261180.003.0005
- Subject:
- Political Science, Democratization
Two related historical facts welcomed liberal democracy or the liberal-democratic state. On one hand, in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, social contract theory imposed a major setback to ...
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Two related historical facts welcomed liberal democracy or the liberal-democratic state. On one hand, in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, social contract theory imposed a major setback to the divine legitimacy of political rulers. On the other hand, the capitalist revolution–embracing the mercantile, the industrial, and the liberal revolutions–changed the basic way of appropriating the economic surplus. This no longer depended on the state’s control but increasingly depended on the realization of profits in the market. For the first time in history, authoritarian regimes ceased to be a necessary condition for the ruling classes’ survival. Democracy turned gradually into synonym of the good state. Eventually, with the acknowledgement of political rights–specifically of universal suffrage––liberal democracy emerged. This process took one century–the time for the bourgeois ruling class to stop fearing expropriation by the poor who democracy entitled to vote.Less
Two related historical facts welcomed liberal democracy or the liberal-democratic state. On one hand, in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, social contract theory imposed a major setback to the divine legitimacy of political rulers. On the other hand, the capitalist revolution–embracing the mercantile, the industrial, and the liberal revolutions–changed the basic way of appropriating the economic surplus. This no longer depended on the state’s control but increasingly depended on the realization of profits in the market. For the first time in history, authoritarian regimes ceased to be a necessary condition for the ruling classes’ survival. Democracy turned gradually into synonym of the good state. Eventually, with the acknowledgement of political rights–specifically of universal suffrage––liberal democracy emerged. This process took one century–the time for the bourgeois ruling class to stop fearing expropriation by the poor who democracy entitled to vote.
Margaret Jane Radin
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691155333
- eISBN:
- 9781400844838
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691155333.003.0009
- Subject:
- Law, Company and Commercial Law
This chapter proposes an analytical framework for improving the evaluation of boilerplate. It begins with a discussion of questions for evaluating boilerplate rights deletion schemes; for example, ...
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This chapter proposes an analytical framework for improving the evaluation of boilerplate. It begins with a discussion of questions for evaluating boilerplate rights deletion schemes; for example, whether all of the rights granted and/or maintained by the state are appropriately considered default rules. It then describes three elements of analysis that can help illuminate how boilerplate waivers should be evaluated: the nature of the right in question and whether that right is alienable; the quality of consent by a recipient; and the extent of social dissemination of the rights deletion. It also examines the effect of nonconsent or market-inalienability on any purported contract, as well as the kinds of rights that are or should be subject to market-inalienability or partial market-inalienability in the presence of problematic consent. Finally, it explores political rights and interests, along with basic human rights and interests.Less
This chapter proposes an analytical framework for improving the evaluation of boilerplate. It begins with a discussion of questions for evaluating boilerplate rights deletion schemes; for example, whether all of the rights granted and/or maintained by the state are appropriately considered default rules. It then describes three elements of analysis that can help illuminate how boilerplate waivers should be evaluated: the nature of the right in question and whether that right is alienable; the quality of consent by a recipient; and the extent of social dissemination of the rights deletion. It also examines the effect of nonconsent or market-inalienability on any purported contract, as well as the kinds of rights that are or should be subject to market-inalienability or partial market-inalienability in the presence of problematic consent. Finally, it explores political rights and interests, along with basic human rights and interests.
Guillermo O'Donnell
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199587612
- eISBN:
- 9780191723384
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199587612.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics, Democratization
This book aims to contribute to a comparatively informed theory of democracy. The book begins by arguing that conceptions of ‘the state’ and ‘democracy’, and their respective defining features, ...
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This book aims to contribute to a comparatively informed theory of democracy. The book begins by arguing that conceptions of ‘the state’ and ‘democracy’, and their respective defining features, significantly influence each other. Using an approach that is both historical and analytical, it traces this relationship through the idea of legally sanctioned and backed agency which grounds democratic citizenship. From this standpoint the book explores several aspects of the democratic regime and of the state, distinguishing four constitutive dimensions (bureaucracy, legality, focus of collective identity, and filter). The book goes on to examine the role played by the idea of ‘the nation’ or ‘the people’, and the ways in which the state represents itself to different sections of society, especially in countries marred by deep inequality and pervasive poverty. Drawing on the examples of democratic and non-democratic regime, the book discusses the dialogical spaces congenial to democracy, as well as examining the options that may or may not enable agency, and the complex comparative and ethical issues raised by the intersection of agency with globalization and legal pluralism. Throughout these discussions several comparative vistas are opened, especially but not exclusively toward Latin America. The book concludes by offering a justification of democracy, even of the flawed democracies that nowadays abound.Less
This book aims to contribute to a comparatively informed theory of democracy. The book begins by arguing that conceptions of ‘the state’ and ‘democracy’, and their respective defining features, significantly influence each other. Using an approach that is both historical and analytical, it traces this relationship through the idea of legally sanctioned and backed agency which grounds democratic citizenship. From this standpoint the book explores several aspects of the democratic regime and of the state, distinguishing four constitutive dimensions (bureaucracy, legality, focus of collective identity, and filter). The book goes on to examine the role played by the idea of ‘the nation’ or ‘the people’, and the ways in which the state represents itself to different sections of society, especially in countries marred by deep inequality and pervasive poverty. Drawing on the examples of democratic and non-democratic regime, the book discusses the dialogical spaces congenial to democracy, as well as examining the options that may or may not enable agency, and the complex comparative and ethical issues raised by the intersection of agency with globalization and legal pluralism. Throughout these discussions several comparative vistas are opened, especially but not exclusively toward Latin America. The book concludes by offering a justification of democracy, even of the flawed democracies that nowadays abound.
Jeff Manza and Christopher Uggen
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780195149326
- eISBN:
- 9780199943975
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195149326.003.0011
- Subject:
- Sociology, Law, Crime and Deviance
This chapter begins by reviewing arguments that supporters of felon disenfranchisement have used to frame the public debate. But the contemporary arguments in support of felon disenfranchisement do ...
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This chapter begins by reviewing arguments that supporters of felon disenfranchisement have used to frame the public debate. But the contemporary arguments in support of felon disenfranchisement do not help us understand how these laws came into existence in the first place. We must instead look to the legal, political, and historical record to understand how we got to this point. The denial of political rights to criminal offenders can be found under very different types of democratic (and protodemocratic) regimes, and the practice has been a hot topic of philosophical debates since at least Aristotle. Understanding this history requires exploration of premodern political regimes and legal systems, classical philosophical writings, and their enduring traces in contemporary legal and political discourses. That is the goal of this chapter. But before exploring how and why societies disenfranchise, we must first ask why the right to vote became—and has remained—a bedrock of democratic governance.Less
This chapter begins by reviewing arguments that supporters of felon disenfranchisement have used to frame the public debate. But the contemporary arguments in support of felon disenfranchisement do not help us understand how these laws came into existence in the first place. We must instead look to the legal, political, and historical record to understand how we got to this point. The denial of political rights to criminal offenders can be found under very different types of democratic (and protodemocratic) regimes, and the practice has been a hot topic of philosophical debates since at least Aristotle. Understanding this history requires exploration of premodern political regimes and legal systems, classical philosophical writings, and their enduring traces in contemporary legal and political discourses. That is the goal of this chapter. But before exploring how and why societies disenfranchise, we must first ask why the right to vote became—and has remained—a bedrock of democratic governance.
Magdalena Forowicz
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- January 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199592678
- eISBN:
- 9780191595646
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199592678.001.0001
- Subject:
- Law, Human Rights and Immigration
This book provides an overview of the reception of international law in the case law of the European Commission on Human Rights (ECommHR) and the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). It evaluates ...
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This book provides an overview of the reception of international law in the case law of the European Commission on Human Rights (ECommHR) and the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). It evaluates whether the Strasbourg bodies were able to create a coherent and comprehensive approach to the interpretation and evaluation of international law. The Strasbourg bodies' interactions with the international legal order and other special regimes reveal important lessons for the good functioning of the ECHR and international law alike. This book thus probes whether the Court has been able to contribute to international law and to the resolution of the fragmentation problem. It assesses fragmentation in specific areas of international human rights law and general international law at the level of the European public order. In this context, an important matter to consider is the extent to which the Court behaves autonomously and/or falls back on international law, either special or general. Further, the book discusses the question whether the Court or the Commission have sufficiently recognized that international law is a system and whether they have integrated the ECHR into this framework. The book covers six special regimes, namely international civil and political rights, international child rights, international refugee rights, international humanitarian law, the prohibition against torture, and State immunity. It also evaluates two areas of general international law, namely the law of treaties and the case law and Statute of the International Court of Justice.Less
This book provides an overview of the reception of international law in the case law of the European Commission on Human Rights (ECommHR) and the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). It evaluates whether the Strasbourg bodies were able to create a coherent and comprehensive approach to the interpretation and evaluation of international law. The Strasbourg bodies' interactions with the international legal order and other special regimes reveal important lessons for the good functioning of the ECHR and international law alike. This book thus probes whether the Court has been able to contribute to international law and to the resolution of the fragmentation problem. It assesses fragmentation in specific areas of international human rights law and general international law at the level of the European public order. In this context, an important matter to consider is the extent to which the Court behaves autonomously and/or falls back on international law, either special or general. Further, the book discusses the question whether the Court or the Commission have sufficiently recognized that international law is a system and whether they have integrated the ECHR into this framework. The book covers six special regimes, namely international civil and political rights, international child rights, international refugee rights, international humanitarian law, the prohibition against torture, and State immunity. It also evaluates two areas of general international law, namely the law of treaties and the case law and Statute of the International Court of Justice.
Shalini Venturelli
- Published in print:
- 1998
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198233794
- eISBN:
- 9780191678998
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198233794.003.0006
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
This chapter attempts to present a clear-cut examination and detailed analysis of the direction of the policies in the information society for content regulation, ownership, intellectual property ...
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This chapter attempts to present a clear-cut examination and detailed analysis of the direction of the policies in the information society for content regulation, ownership, intellectual property rights, and audiovisual policy. This chapter argues that the resolution of conflict between people's rights to content production and distribution and proprietary rights will determine the potential of the information age to impact economic growth and the political community. This chapter examines the political implications of the proliferation of the economic incentives intellectual property rights (IPR) concept. This chapter points out that the aforesaid IPR concept is an ordering principle which regulates ownership rights over content in the public sphere. It discusses the Treaty of the Commission of the European Communities which fails to govern the political rights of the citizens of the European Union. The goal of the treaty is merely to regulate the activities of both public and private legal corporate entities.Less
This chapter attempts to present a clear-cut examination and detailed analysis of the direction of the policies in the information society for content regulation, ownership, intellectual property rights, and audiovisual policy. This chapter argues that the resolution of conflict between people's rights to content production and distribution and proprietary rights will determine the potential of the information age to impact economic growth and the political community. This chapter examines the political implications of the proliferation of the economic incentives intellectual property rights (IPR) concept. This chapter points out that the aforesaid IPR concept is an ordering principle which regulates ownership rights over content in the public sphere. It discusses the Treaty of the Commission of the European Communities which fails to govern the political rights of the citizens of the European Union. The goal of the treaty is merely to regulate the activities of both public and private legal corporate entities.
Martin Loughlin
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199256853
- eISBN:
- 9780191594267
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199256853.003.0005
- Subject:
- Law, Public International Law
This chapter examines the work of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who has done more than any other thinker to bring out both the principles and practices of political right. Rousseau's thought offers a way of ...
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This chapter examines the work of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who has done more than any other thinker to bring out both the principles and practices of political right. Rousseau's thought offers a way of highlighting the tensions and ambiguities between right and power — between potestas and potentia — and it sets a frame for an inquiry into the fundamentals of the subject. The key to this investigation lies in the observation that Rousseau offers not one but two accounts of political right, and these are based on contrasting accounts of the nature of the political pact. The chapter first examines the subject of The Social Contract and then considers its influence on Kant's legal theory. It argues that Kant provides a formal science of political right which is unable to explain the complexity of modern public law.Less
This chapter examines the work of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who has done more than any other thinker to bring out both the principles and practices of political right. Rousseau's thought offers a way of highlighting the tensions and ambiguities between right and power — between potestas and potentia — and it sets a frame for an inquiry into the fundamentals of the subject. The key to this investigation lies in the observation that Rousseau offers not one but two accounts of political right, and these are based on contrasting accounts of the nature of the political pact. The chapter first examines the subject of The Social Contract and then considers its influence on Kant's legal theory. It argues that Kant provides a formal science of political right which is unable to explain the complexity of modern public law.
Kathryn Gleadle
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780197264492
- eISBN:
- 9780191734274
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197264492.003.0006
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History
The Reform Act of 1832 stands as one of the defining moments in the political history of Britain, yet its implications for women and their involvement in its passage remain underexplored. The reform ...
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The Reform Act of 1832 stands as one of the defining moments in the political history of Britain, yet its implications for women and their involvement in its passage remain underexplored. The reform bill pertaining to Scotland did not specify that the parliamentary voter should be male. It presumably did not occur to those drafting the Scottish legislation that such clarification was necessary; whereas the gender-specific wording of the statutes covering England, Wales, and Ireland suggests an awareness that there was a theoretical possibility that it might be otherwise open to challenge. These differences are indicative of the subtle fissures in seemingly dominant assumptions concerning female citizenship. This chapter examines how, within the interstices of parliamentary legislation, there were many such moments of telling indeterminacy in the collective understanding of women as political subjects. It also explores the notion of women as ‘borderline citizens’, women in parliament and their political rights from 1830 to 1832, women's involvement in the campaign for reform, and the impact of the reform crisis on female subjectivities.Less
The Reform Act of 1832 stands as one of the defining moments in the political history of Britain, yet its implications for women and their involvement in its passage remain underexplored. The reform bill pertaining to Scotland did not specify that the parliamentary voter should be male. It presumably did not occur to those drafting the Scottish legislation that such clarification was necessary; whereas the gender-specific wording of the statutes covering England, Wales, and Ireland suggests an awareness that there was a theoretical possibility that it might be otherwise open to challenge. These differences are indicative of the subtle fissures in seemingly dominant assumptions concerning female citizenship. This chapter examines how, within the interstices of parliamentary legislation, there were many such moments of telling indeterminacy in the collective understanding of women as political subjects. It also explores the notion of women as ‘borderline citizens’, women in parliament and their political rights from 1830 to 1832, women's involvement in the campaign for reform, and the impact of the reform crisis on female subjectivities.
Giandomenico Majone
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- February 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199274307
- eISBN:
- 9780191603310
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199274304.003.0004
- Subject:
- Political Science, European Union
Broad delegation of powers to supranational institutions is a distinctive feature of the Community method. Broad delegation presupposes a fiduciary relation, hence, the progressive erosion of the ...
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Broad delegation of powers to supranational institutions is a distinctive feature of the Community method. Broad delegation presupposes a fiduciary relation, hence, the progressive erosion of the Community method indicates a loss of confidence in the capacity for self-restraint of the supranational institutions. Since the Single European Act, member states have been willing to follow the politically riskier procedure of formal treaty amendment, rather than delegating to the Commission and Court of Justice the task of deciding which Community action in a given area is needed, and in which form. The frequency of formal treaty amendment in recent years is a measure of the loss of confidence in the supranational institutions.Less
Broad delegation of powers to supranational institutions is a distinctive feature of the Community method. Broad delegation presupposes a fiduciary relation, hence, the progressive erosion of the Community method indicates a loss of confidence in the capacity for self-restraint of the supranational institutions. Since the Single European Act, member states have been willing to follow the politically riskier procedure of formal treaty amendment, rather than delegating to the Commission and Court of Justice the task of deciding which Community action in a given area is needed, and in which form. The frequency of formal treaty amendment in recent years is a measure of the loss of confidence in the supranational institutions.
Joe Foweraker and Todd Landman
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199240463
- eISBN:
- 9780191696831
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199240463.003.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
This chapter looks at the complexities and contradictions of citizenship rights, as well as their relation to histories of social struggle, and explicates their normative content. It also defends the ...
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This chapter looks at the complexities and contradictions of citizenship rights, as well as their relation to histories of social struggle, and explicates their normative content. It also defends the exclusive focus of the book on the civil and political rights of citizenship.Less
This chapter looks at the complexities and contradictions of citizenship rights, as well as their relation to histories of social struggle, and explicates their normative content. It also defends the exclusive focus of the book on the civil and political rights of citizenship.
William L. Miller, Annis May Timpson, and Michael Lessnoff
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198279846
- eISBN:
- 9780191684302
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198279846.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, UK Politics
This book examines what the British people and their politicians really think about the fundamentals of politics. Based on new and revealing survey data, it presents an analysis of British attitudes ...
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This book examines what the British people and their politicians really think about the fundamentals of politics. Based on new and revealing survey data, it presents an analysis of British attitudes to civil, political, and social rights. The book uncovers two broad ‘macro-dimensions’ of political principle — liberty and equality — which underlie a large number of more specific principles and shape people’s responses to many practical issues. Controversially, it claims that commitments to liberty and equality tend to run together — only the least educated treat them as alternatives; left-wingers support both and right-wingers oppose both. It explores the influence of social background, personal experience, and the institutional setting on attitudes towards political principles, highlighting in particular age and the complex influences of education and religion. It also shows how arguments and propaganda combine with political principles and party loyalties to influence opinion on practical issues. The final chapter presents an overall model and quantifies the relative power of all these different influences.Less
This book examines what the British people and their politicians really think about the fundamentals of politics. Based on new and revealing survey data, it presents an analysis of British attitudes to civil, political, and social rights. The book uncovers two broad ‘macro-dimensions’ of political principle — liberty and equality — which underlie a large number of more specific principles and shape people’s responses to many practical issues. Controversially, it claims that commitments to liberty and equality tend to run together — only the least educated treat them as alternatives; left-wingers support both and right-wingers oppose both. It explores the influence of social background, personal experience, and the institutional setting on attitudes towards political principles, highlighting in particular age and the complex influences of education and religion. It also shows how arguments and propaganda combine with political principles and party loyalties to influence opinion on practical issues. The final chapter presents an overall model and quantifies the relative power of all these different influences.
William L. Miller, Annis May Timpson, and Michael Lessnoff
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198279846
- eISBN:
- 9780191684302
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198279846.003.0011
- Subject:
- Political Science, UK Politics
This chapter looks, both within Britain and beyond, for evidence that political culture reflects variations in the institutional and historical setting. In particular, it compares the political ...
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This chapter looks, both within Britain and beyond, for evidence that political culture reflects variations in the institutional and historical setting. In particular, it compares the political culture of Scotland with that of Britain as a whole; and compares the political culture of Britain with that of its former dominion, Canada. The aim is to consider whether, in fundamental respects, there is a common political culture that pervades these countries. The chapter tests the proposition that attitudes towards civil, political, and social rights reflect the limited — but not trivial — variations in the historical and institutional context between such closely connected, yet different, countries as Scotland, England, and Canada.Less
This chapter looks, both within Britain and beyond, for evidence that political culture reflects variations in the institutional and historical setting. In particular, it compares the political culture of Scotland with that of Britain as a whole; and compares the political culture of Britain with that of its former dominion, Canada. The aim is to consider whether, in fundamental respects, there is a common political culture that pervades these countries. The chapter tests the proposition that attitudes towards civil, political, and social rights reflect the limited — but not trivial — variations in the historical and institutional context between such closely connected, yet different, countries as Scotland, England, and Canada.
Sandra Fredman FBA
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780199272761
- eISBN:
- 9780191709814
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199272761.001.0001
- Subject:
- Law, Human Rights and Immigration
This book moves beyond the artificial boundary between socio-economic and civil and political rights and instead focuses on the positive duties to which all rights give rise. Human rights have ...
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This book moves beyond the artificial boundary between socio-economic and civil and political rights and instead focuses on the positive duties to which all rights give rise. Human rights have traditionally been understood as protecting individual freedom against intrusion by the State. This book argues that human rights are based on a far richer view of freedom, going beyond absence of coercion and focussing on the ability to exercise such freedom. This requires positive action to facilitate freedom, and substantive equality. It also recognizes the essentially social nature of human beings, and the crucial role of social interaction in advancing freedom. Drawing on political theory and social policy, as well as comparative experience from India, South Africa, the European Convention on Human Rights, the EU, US, Canada, and the UK, the book aims to create a theoretical and applied framework for understanding positive human rights duties. The first part focuses on creating an analytic framework for understanding positive duties. Chapter 1 aims to refashion the underlying values of liberty, equality and solidarity to yield the rich understanding of human rights argued for in this book. Chapter 2 focuses on the State, examining the role of positive human rights duties in furthering democracy, and in respect of globalization and privatization. Part II aims to fashion a democratic role for courts as well as examining alternative compliance methods, while Part III applies the analysis to specific rights, firstly equality, and then the traditional socio-economic rights to housing, education, and welfare.Less
This book moves beyond the artificial boundary between socio-economic and civil and political rights and instead focuses on the positive duties to which all rights give rise. Human rights have traditionally been understood as protecting individual freedom against intrusion by the State. This book argues that human rights are based on a far richer view of freedom, going beyond absence of coercion and focussing on the ability to exercise such freedom. This requires positive action to facilitate freedom, and substantive equality. It also recognizes the essentially social nature of human beings, and the crucial role of social interaction in advancing freedom. Drawing on political theory and social policy, as well as comparative experience from India, South Africa, the European Convention on Human Rights, the EU, US, Canada, and the UK, the book aims to create a theoretical and applied framework for understanding positive human rights duties. The first part focuses on creating an analytic framework for understanding positive duties. Chapter 1 aims to refashion the underlying values of liberty, equality and solidarity to yield the rich understanding of human rights argued for in this book. Chapter 2 focuses on the State, examining the role of positive human rights duties in furthering democracy, and in respect of globalization and privatization. Part II aims to fashion a democratic role for courts as well as examining alternative compliance methods, while Part III applies the analysis to specific rights, firstly equality, and then the traditional socio-economic rights to housing, education, and welfare.
James Griffin
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199238781
- eISBN:
- 9780191716478
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199238781.003.0012
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Moral Philosophy
This chapter works out the implications of the account for a selection of lower-level human rights. Topics discussed include the discrepancies between two lists of human rights — the one from the ...
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This chapter works out the implications of the account for a selection of lower-level human rights. Topics discussed include the discrepancies between two lists of human rights — the one from the best philosophical account and the other from the most authoritative declarations in international law; the list of human rights emerging from the personhood account; civil and political rights, aims and status of international law; economic, social, and cultural rights; and the future of international lists of human rights.Less
This chapter works out the implications of the account for a selection of lower-level human rights. Topics discussed include the discrepancies between two lists of human rights — the one from the best philosophical account and the other from the most authoritative declarations in international law; the list of human rights emerging from the personhood account; civil and political rights, aims and status of international law; economic, social, and cultural rights; and the future of international lists of human rights.
Martin Loughlin
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199256853
- eISBN:
- 9780191594267
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199256853.003.0007
- Subject:
- Law, Public International Law
The relationship between theory and practice, the elements of which were examined in the previous chapters, complicates the exercise of devising a general account of political right. This chapter ...
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The relationship between theory and practice, the elements of which were examined in the previous chapters, complicates the exercise of devising a general account of political right. This chapter argues that the resulting tensions, which are clearly expressed in the character of the modern state itself, cannot be overcome but can only be negotiated. This means that rather than being treated as an explication of the science of political right, public law should be recognized as an exercise in political jurisprudence. The consequences are explained and the grammar of the practice is outlined.Less
The relationship between theory and practice, the elements of which were examined in the previous chapters, complicates the exercise of devising a general account of political right. This chapter argues that the resulting tensions, which are clearly expressed in the character of the modern state itself, cannot be overcome but can only be negotiated. This means that rather than being treated as an explication of the science of political right, public law should be recognized as an exercise in political jurisprudence. The consequences are explained and the grammar of the practice is outlined.
