Conceptualizing The Schmittian ‘Exception’ in the European Union: from the ‘Opt-Out’ Procedure(S) to indirect forms of secessionism

Too often, legal and sociopolitical scholars concerned with European policies anddecision-making procedures focus their efforts only on the official essence ofconventional opt-out forms of nonparticipation in the European integration process,such as those established in the Treaty of Lisbon. Yet, far from being just an internalmatter, the independentist instances which informed the Scottish referendum had asignificant impact on delicate issues of EU law, biopolitics, political anthropology,political theology, and foreign policy which deserve to be properly addressed. Thenecessity of conducting such an analysis is self-evident, and mainly related to thepossibility that the Scottish experience may be soon replicated, with different results,in the Italian regions of Venetia, Sardinia, and Lombardy, and in the Spanishcommunity of Catalonia. Delving into this dimension through Schmitt’s politicaldecisionism and adopting a comparative and interdisciplinary approach thattranscends the limits of pure positivistic and analytical lines of inquiry, this paperpresents a country’s choice to leave the EU or stop cooperating with it through thedirect opt-out mechanisms officially regulated in its Treaties, or through indirectforms of secessionism, in terms of an ‘exceptional’ act of sovereign will.

Against fundamentalism: the silence of the Divine in the work of Karen Armstrong

Three and a half centuries after the treaty of Westphalia ended the bloody religious wars in Europe, religious zealots are again threatening to undo the progress of Western civilised society, the achievements of science, the Enlightenment and liberal democracy. Such is the charge of the 'new atheist' movements of which Michael Onfray is but one example. Onfray's self-confessed task is to rekindle the Enlightenment, to shine 'Atheology's dazzling light' on the tyranny and darkness of monotheism. And in just 219 pages, Onfray exposes 4,000 years of evil and darkness perpetrated by the three monotheistic religions-or so his Atheist Manifesto claims (2007: 219).It is the new atheists' rejection of the Enlightenment principle of toleration that prompted Karen Armstrong to write her book The Case for God. The Case for God is an argument and demonstration that all forms of fundamentalism represent a 'defiantly unorthodox form of faith that frequently misrepresents the tradition it is trying to defend' (2009: 7). As a modem twentieth century movement, fundamentalist movements are essentially pragmatic, 'modem, innovative, and modernizing' and have a symbiotic relationship 'with an aggressive liberalism or secularism' (Armstrong 2000: 178).

Is Hong Kong part of China for tax treaty purposes?

A commentry on Edwards v The Queen (Tax Court of Canada, 27 June 2002) and the implications for Australian tax law.

Taxation of branches of international banks : towards a multilateral tax treaty

Examines the taxation of branches of international banks under the OECD Model Tax Treaty. Argues that globalisation has made the current international tax system obsolete and suggests that a multilateral tax treaty system is a twenty-first century solution.

The status of child offenders under international criminal justice: lessons from Sierra Leone

This article analyses the status of child offenders under international criminal justice. International criminal proceedings, especially those in the African continent, have recently highlighted the significance of children and young people as perpetrators of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. It has been suggested by one commentator that there exist international prohibitions on the prosecution of children for international crimes. It will be argued here that this claim is not substantiated in respect either of customary or treaty-based international obligations.

The TRIPS agreement and developing countries: a discussion of the paragraph 6 of the Doha declaration on public health

The Paragraph 6 solution arrived on 30th August 2003 to facilitate export of drugs to the countries which were not able to manufacture said drugs shows the total marginalization of developing countries in international treaty negotiations. A simple proposal by developing counties to use Article 30 of the TRIPS Agreement for such manufacture and export to non-manufacturing countries in order to avoid expensive litigations with the pharmaceutical multinationals took an ugly turn where not only the said proposal was totally rejected but export was added as one of the patenting rights in the TRIPS Agreement with payment of remuneration to patent holders. This introduction of export as one of the patenting rights was surrounded by a thicket of rules on the plea that such products would be diverted to ensure that the needing countries never acquire the requisite drugs. This article analyses the events leading to the establishment of the TRIPS Agreement, the elimination of developing countries from such negotiations through the use of suitably placed officials in the negotiating forums, the role of CEOs of the multinationals and the business NGOs such as International Intellectual Property Alliance and IPC (Intellectual Property Committee), epistemic community consisting of individuals such as Jacques Gorlin and Eric Smith and the subsequent development leading to the finalization of Para 6 Solution, which was an exact replication of events during the TRIPS negotiations. The analysis suggests that developing countries do not have any say in international negotiations and their agreements to such negotiations are essentially to legitimize their colonized existence.

We're not nice little old ladies

Presents information on the multimedia performance 'We're Not Nice Little Old Ladies,' which explores the views of old women on aging. Overview of the research project Stories of Ageing; Lessons for lifelong learning.

All that is dark can become white: the rules of the game in Bend it Like Beckham

The “light” and uplifting film, Bend it Like Beckham (2002), is deconstructed to expose its passive ideologies that equate physical darkness with regressive cultural and social outlooks and practices. While Bend it Like Beckham constructs itself as a modern fairy tale of a girl achieving her dream of athletic opportunity and success (with a nice side-dish of romance), the film’s privileging of whiteness is both a cultural and a gendered norm that must be desired and achieved before that dream may come true.

Treaties as tools of foreign policy : a psychopolitical inquiry via Keatings's vision for Australia

Paul Keating will be remembered by some Australians as a visionary. As Prime Minister he outlined the structure of external and domestic reform that he believed would guarantee global security for all Australians. Driving these reforms, more often than not, were interstate agreements, often in the form of multilateral treaties, sometimes in the guise of bilateral compromise, rarely as unilateral declarations. In areas as diverse as collaborative scientific research or the protection of children in the workplace, the Keating Executive set out, through codification, to transform Australia’s political landscape. The fields of trade, military, environmental and human rights were all included in the attempts by Keating to forge a new image of and for Australia in the Asia Pacific region. Treaties were vital agents of change in this milieu in the bid to reformulate regional perceptions of Australia. The path of inquiry in this thesis stemmed from a quest to examine the origin, role, purpose and efficacy of treaties in the Keating Government’s foreign policy aimed at regional military security. In order to make this examination it develops a polyphonic1 analytical model whose purpose is to explore the psychopolitical underpinnings of these agreements. Thus the thesis has a two fold task. To develop an analytical model of how treaties work as tools of foreign policy and to outline and assess the Keating treaty strategy. Its principal contribution is on the theoretical side.