Ballistic missile defence: An Australian perspective

The University of Queensland's School of Political Science and International Studies organised a round table in Canberra on 27 June 2001 that brought together a select group of government policy-makers and academic specialists to discuss the issue of ballistic missile defence (BMD). The round table provided useful insights into Australian thinking on the issue. This report seeks to summarise the essence of those discussions in order to contribute to the broader national debate.(1)

Deciding who has the right to vote: A comparative analysis of election laws

The paper analyses seven potential restrictions to the right to vote in 63 democracies. Only two of these restrictions have given rise to a near consensus. An overwhelming majority of democracies have decided that the minimum voting age should be 18 and that the right to vote of mentally deficient people should be restricted. There is little consensus about whether the right to vote should be restrcited to citizens, about whether there should be country or electoral district residence requirements, about which electors residing abroad (if any) should retain their right to vote and about which prison inmates (if any) should have the right to vote. The paper also examines two factors that affect right to vote laws: British colonialism and level of political rights. The pattern found with respect to electoral systems, whereby former British colonies emulate their former ruler, is less systematic in the case of right to vote legislation. Finally, “strong” democracies are slightly more inclusive than “weak” ones when deciding who has the right to vote.

Bringing people back in: Grassroots approach to peace in Bosnia-Nerzegovina

Peacemaking in Bosnia-Herzegovina is a controversial subject that engaged the political energies of the international community for several years without resolution. While international efforts at peacemaking warrant a critique in their own right, the assumptions that lie behind popular perceptions of peacemaking must also be examined. This article explores the proposition that the promotion of multi-ethnic contact between Bosnian people is at least as important as elections or the reconstruction of political institutions. Indeed, the restoration and development of inter-ethnic relationships, especially at grassroots level, is essential for the establishment of sustainable peace. This article thus focuses on the roles of NGOs (Non-governmental organisations) active at the grassroots level in Bosnia, such as the Centre for Drama Education in Mostar, Project Firefly in Brcko, and the CARE Welcome Project in Sarajevo, which represent a grassroots form of peacemaking that incorporates local knowledge and understandings of the conflict within peace projects.

Portaria n?? 61, de 4 de abril de 2014: torna p??blicos o Plano Diretor de Tecnologia da Informa????o - PDTI e o Plano Estrat??gico de Tecnologia da Informa????o - PETI, do per??odo 2014/2015

Tornar p??blicos o Plano Diretor de Tecnologia da Informa????o - PDTI e o Plano Estrat??gico de Tecnologia da Informa????o - PETI, do per??odo 2014/2015, validados e aprovados pelo Comit?? de Tecnologia da Informa????o - CTI em reuni??o extraordin??ria de 02 de abril de 2014.

O aperfei??oamento dos servidores do Estado

A preocupa????o com a qualifica????o do servidor p??blico n??o ?? um tema recente. A primeira experi??ncia de profissionaliza????o do servi??o p??blico remonta ?? cria????o do Departamento Administrativo do Servi??o P??blico (Dasp), em 1938. A exist??ncia do ??rg??o permitiu que fosse iniciada reflex??o sobre a burocracia de Estado: seu dimensionamento e necessidade de forma????o e capacita????o, entre outras quest??es. O texto a seguir foi produzido por um dos quadros t??cnicos do Dasp, em 1942 ??? h?? cerca de 70 anos. Naquele per??odo j?? existia preocupa????o com o aperfei??oamento constante do servidor. O autor argumenta n??o somente em favor desse aprendizado constante, mas tamb??m pela necessidade de um bom curso de forma????o inicial para as carreiras, o que ??? segundo ele ??? n??o era comum naquela ??poca. Conforme o autor, ???de nada adianta ensinar processos novos a quem ainda n??o conhece os m??todos velhos???. Algu??m discordaria? Entretanto, a busca pela novidade, pelo guru da moda (aquele que tem a resposta para os problemas) ?? uma constante no cen??rio dos dirigentes. N??o seria isso resultado de um problema de forma????o de base? Afinal, a administra????o tem alguns conjuntos de t??cnicas que fazem dela uma ci??ncia. Ser?? que nossos gestores as conhecem de verdade? E se as conhecem, sabem aplic??-las? Entre o conhecimento te??rico e pr??tico existe uma grande dist??ncia. Diante de um problema grave que persiste h?? bastante tempo numa institui????o e que requer esfor??o de aprendizado por parte do gestor ??? para apreender, processar e propor uma solu????o ???, muitas vezes se escolhe um atalho: a solu????o miraculosa que maquia, mas n??o resolve. Mas essa j?? ?? outra hist??ria.

Divulgação de informação sobre os ativos intangíveis: evidência empírica nos bancos em Portugal no período 2001-2009.

The main objectives of this investigation is to analyze the disclosure of information about intangible assets during a period of nine years, namely the extension or level, as well as their evolution and possible alterations verified upon them, that derived from the adoption in 2005, of the international norm in order to elaborate the consolidated accounts of banks. Through the verification of the disclosure of intangible assets. Taking into account items from International Accounting Standard (IAS) 38 from the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), the consolidated financial statements from seventeen banks, presenting consolidated accounts in Portugal uninterruptable between 2001 and 2009 were analyzed. The results obtained through the construction of an index, elaborated from this effected, reveled an average of disclosure of information on intangibles of 0.24 during the period. The level of general disclosure evolved from an average of 0.1940 in 2001 to 0.2778 in the year 2009. The intangibles generated internally had an average of disclosure of 0.1592 and the intangibles acquired had an average value of 0.2927. A growth in the extension of disclosure of intangibles upon the consolidated financial statement of banks during period analyzed, being this growth more accentuated in 2005 and 2006, which correspond to the first years of adoption in Portugal of international norm endorsed by the European Union through the Regalement 1606/2002, of July 19, the designed IASB-UE norms.