scholarly journals Introduction: Public Archaeologies of Death and Memory

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Howard Williams

This Introduction to AP’s third special issue seeks to provide context and rationale to the study of ‘public mortuary archaeology’ before reviewing the development of the volume. Building on the presentations of the first Public Archaeology Twitter Conference of April 2017, these articles comprise a wide range of original analyses reflecting on the public archaeology of death, including evaluations of fieldwork contexts, churches and museums. These articles are joined by discussions of the digital dimensions to public mortuary archaeology, an appraisal of ancient and modern DNA research as public mortuary archaeology, and the relationship between mortuary archaeology and palliative care. Together, the articles constitute the state of current thinking on the public archaeology of death, burial and commemoration.

2013 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 325-340
Author(s):  
Ridwan Al-Sayyid

This paper tackles the relationship between Islam and the state in light of the ongoing revolutions. It focuses on two perspectives: the Islamists' claim that the Shari'a and not the umma (community) are the source of legitimacy in the evolving regimes; and that it is the duty of the state to protect religion and apply the Shari'a. The main disadvantage of these propositions is that they preclude the Umma both from political power and Shari'a, thus pitting it against these two assets which become manipulated to its disadvantage by those holding power. On the other hand, an open-minded and reformist Islamic perspective believes in people regaining the prerogative to rule themselves, guided by their intellect and the public good. The main call for the Arab uprisings is to quit political Islam, which seems to be the major threat to religion, and dangerously divisive for societies.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-37
Author(s):  
MANISHA SETHI

Abstract A bitter debate broke out in the Digambar Jain community in the middle of the twentieth century following the passage of the Bombay Harijan Temple Entry Act in 1947, which continued until well after the promulgation of the Untouchability (Offences) Act 1955. These laws included Jains in the definition of ‘Hindu’, and thus threw open the doors of Jain temples to formerly Untouchable castes. In the eyes of its Jain opponents, this was a frontal and terrible assault on the integrity and sanctity of the Jain dharma. Those who called themselves reformists, on the other hand, insisted on the closeness between Jainism and Hinduism. Temple entry laws and the public debates over caste became occasions for the Jains not only to examine their distance—or closeness—to Hinduism, but also the relationship between their community and the state, which came to be imagined as predominantly Hindu. This article, by focusing on the Jains and this forgotten episode, hopes to illuminate the civilizational categories underlying state practices and the fraught relationship between nationalism and minorities.


10.1068/c12m ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 289-310 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bill Edwards ◽  
Mark Goodwin ◽  
Simon Pemberton ◽  
Michael Woods

Partnerships have become established as a significant vehicle for the implementation of rural development policy in Britain. In promoting new working relationships between different state agencies and between the public, private, and voluntary sectors, partnerships have arguably contributed to a reconfiguration of the scalar hierarchy of the state. In this paper we draw on recent debates about the ‘politics of scale’ and on empirical examples from Mid Wales and Shropshire to explore the scalar implications of partnerships. We investigate how discursive constructs of partnership are translated into practice, how official discourses are mediated by local actors, the relationship between partnerships and existing scales of governance, and the particular ‘geometry of power’ being constructed through partnerships. We argue that the existing scalar hierarchy of the state has been influential in structuring the scales and territories of partnerships, and that, despite an apparent devolution of the public face of governance, the state remains crucial in governing the process of governance through partnerships.


Author(s):  
A. Lipentsev ◽  
O. Voytyk ◽  
N. Maziy

Problem setting. The system of public administration is a complex set of related elements and entities that interact with each other, so the manifestation of negative corruption minimizes the possibility of achieving positive results in the process of these communications. Special attention should be paid to the functioning of the customs system, which is an important part of the national economy of Ukraine. In this area, corruption abuses are extremely pronounced, given the peculiarities of the customs industry. This problem is acute and urgent, as its existence causes the progression of those negative phenomena that are currently present in the customs system of Ukraine and reduce the effectiveness of public administration in general.Recent research and publications analysis. The issue of corruption in the context of public administration is the subject of research by many scientists: V. Averyanov, O. Antonova, V. Bashtannyk, Y. Bytyak, I. Borodin, A. Vasyliev, I. Golosnichenko, E. Dodin, L. Koval, V. Kolpakov, A. Komzyuk, N. Lypovska, V. Olefir, O. Ostapenko, I. Pakhomov, O. Petrenko, S. Seryogin, I. Khozhylo, V. Shamray, H. Yarmaki etc. Given the wide range of researchers who study the specifics of corruption in the context of public administration, it is worth noting the significant gaps in the assessment of this issue from a sectoral perspective. In particular, it should be noted the great need to study corruption in customs and find ways to minimize this shameful phenomenon in modern conditions.Highlighting previously unsettled parts of the general problem. The need to analyze corruption processes in the customs authorities and substantiate offers for anti-corruption actions in the field of public administration led to the choice of the topic of the article.Paper main body. Corruption in the general sense can be defined as the illegal activity of persons called to perform the functions of the state, in the form of misuse of their powers in order to obtain benefits by increasing their material wealth, obtaining illegal services or benefits.Global trends indicate the presence of corruption in all countries, so this issue is a priority in solving all spheres of life, both developed and developing countries. In particular, public administration of European countries in the political, informational, institutional and legal context is aimed at combating corruption. To this end, there are such institutions common to EU countries as Greco, the Venice Commission, Olaf, Eurojust, Europol and others. At the interstate level, they coordinate and provide information and analytical support for anti-corruption measures, develop common legal standards in the form of community regulations.In the field of public administration, there is a sufficient legal resource on the basis of which it is possible to ensure anti-corruption policy in the state and, in particular, in the customs sphere. However, the customs system is characterized by a wide range of unresolved issues related to corruption abuses. Accordingly, there is a need to develop offers for overcoming and preventing corruption: development and implementation in the practice of customs authorities of methodological recommendations relating to their employees and aimed at resolving conflicts related to corruption; observance by customs officers of relevant ethical norms, which must harmonize with anti-corruption activities; effective application of responsibility to those guilty of corruption and comprehensive implementation of measures aimed at combating corruption; clear identification of those responsible for corruption in areas where there is a high risk of such abuses; regulation of procedures aimed at preventing corruption of customs officers in the performance of their official duties.Anti-corruption in customs authorities in the context of ensuring the effectiveness of public administration should include the implementation of the following measures: development of conceptual foundations of anti-corruption policy in the customs sphere; adopt a Code of Ethics for Customs Officers in accordance with the needs of anti-corruption policy; effective implementation of the principle of equality before the law in the context of reducing corruption; ensuring equal responsibility for corrupt actions not only for individuals but also for legal entities; ensure the absence of immunity from corrupt practices for officials, including senior executives; delimit the powers of bodies engaged in anti-corruption activities; to intensify the public to combat corruption; wide informing of the public about cases of corruption in customs bodies.Conclusions of the research and prospects for further studies. The problem of corruption in public authorities is a long-standing and painful issue in Ukraine. This problem is especially acute in the activities of customs authorities, as their activities are directly related to foreign economic activity, significant flows of goods and flows of financial resources across the customs border of the state. In turn, this is a direct threat to the country’s national security. Given the fact that Ukraine ranks relatively low in global rankings on the existence of corruption abuses, it is necessary to take decisive measures to reduce the manifestations of this phenomenon, in particular, in the customs authorities.


Author(s):  
Jonathan Preminger

Chapter 15 summarizes the chapters which addressed the third sphere, the relationship of labor to the political community. It reiterates that since Israel was established, the labor market’s borders have become ever more porous, while the borders of the national (Jewish) political community have remained firm: the Jewish nationalism which guides government policy is as strong as ever. NGOs, drawing on a discourse of human rights, are able to assist some non-citizens but this discourse also resonates with the idea of individual responsibility: the State is no longer willing to support “non-productive” populations, who are now being shoehorned into a labor market which offers few opportunities for meaningful employment, and is saturated by cheaper labor intentionally imported by the State in response to powerful employer lobbies. These trends suggest a partial reorientation of organized labor’s “battlefront”, from a face-off with capital to an appeal to the public and state.


Author(s):  
Lynne Goldstein

Growing up in my family, we were taught that education was the solution (or one of the most important solutions) to many problems. So, it is not so surprising that I once believed something that many still believe—that education about archaeology will result in better public understanding of what we do, and some level of agreement vis-à-vis the value of archaeology. After experiencing that this long-held belief (or perhaps more accurately, hope) was not always true, I realized the obvious fact that someone can be educated on a topic and still disagree with you. Education does not guarantee agreement with the educator (see Goldstein and Kintigh 1990 for another discussion of this point regarding human remains and mortuary sites). In other words, there is not a single truth, especially on this topic. This is certainly not to argue against education, it is just a reminder about realities. For this volume, Giles and Williams invited eighteen papers from archaeologists who have struggled with a wide range of topics associated with the intersection of mortuary archaeology, public archaeology, and contemporary society. This intersection provides the space and the opportunity for examination of problems and issues that are often not raised in discussions of archaeology or public archaeology or contemporary society alone. The breadth, depth, and diversity of perspectives presented in this volume are both fascinating and enlightening. The chapters are often self-reflexive and attempt to be fair, looking at multiple sides of very complex issues. Museums, governments, news media, and other archaeologists would be wise to carefully read these papers. As an American archaeologist who conducts archaeology in the USA, I find the case studies especially important and relevant since most of the examples are not constrained by the kinds of post-colonial circumstances that exist in the USA and countries like Australia (this is not to say that there are not other constraints in the case studies). At a minimum, these papers represent a different set of perspectives on problems with which all archaeologists and museum professionals have struggled. The volume is unusual because the authors do not simply state their opinions and present certain facts; they use a variety of tools to try to determine what happened, how public opinion may be measured, and how decisions are made.


Author(s):  
Daniel J. Hemel

This chapter suggests a human rights–based justification for national basic income schemes, contrasting it with justifications based on welfarist principles or notions of entitlement to a share of the global commons. Starting from the premise that a state is a collective enterprise that generates a surplus, it contends that any human being who is an “obedient” member of that state has a right to some share of the surplus. That right—which arises from the relationship between the individual and the state, and is independent of need—could justify the entitlement to a basic income. Such income should be provided in cash, not in kind, because the latter risks depriving the individual of the enjoyment of his share of the surplus—in effect, forcing him to forfeit or transfer it to others if he does not use the public goods or services provided by the state.


Resources ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 15
Author(s):  
Juan Uribe-Toril ◽  
José Luis Ruiz-Real ◽  
Jaime de Pablo Valenciano

Sustainability, local development, and ecology are keywords that cover a wide range of research fields in both experimental and social sciences. The transversal nature of this knowledge area creates synergies but also divergences, making a continuous review of the existing literature necessary in order to facilitate research. There has been an increasing number of articles that have analyzed trends in the literature and the state-of-the-art in many subjects. In this Special Issue of Resources, the most prestigious researchers analyzed the past and future of Social Sciences in Resources from an economic, social, and environmental perspective.


First Monday ◽  
2005 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin McGee ◽  
Jörgen Skågeby

This paper is included in the First Monday Special Issue: Music and the Internet, published in July 2005. Special Issue editor David Beer asked authors to submit additional comments regarding their articles. When we were asked to specify the licensing terms for publishing our article, the issue of gifting suddenly seemed personal: as authors of a research paper on gifting, we had to ask ourselves and each other some hard questions about gifting our own work. In an earlier day, the issues were somewhat simpler. Copyright was not automatically bestowed on all published works, the term of copyright wasn't a moving target, and the results of publicly-funded research were typically assumed to belong to the public. Although we have decided to explicitly gift our paper into the public domain, we each initially had different responses to the licensing question -- and the ensuing discussions revealed a number of different assumptions, beliefs, hopes and expectations. In this sense, it probably parallels many of the current debates worldwide about the relationship between public interest and copyright, trademarks, and patents. Hopefully, the larger debates can occur with due public oversight, representation, and accountability. In this sense, the debates and their consequences are personal for all of us. File–sharing has become very popular in recent years, but for many this has become synonymous with file–getting. However, there is strong evidence to suggest that people have strong giving (or gifting) needs. This evidence suggests an opportunity for the development of gifting technologies — and it also suggests an important research question and challenge: what needs and concerns do gifters have and what technologies can be developed to help them? In this paper, we discuss the existing literature on gifting, report on an initial study of gifting in an online sharing community, and suggest some ways the study results can inform future research into gifting desires — as well as the design of specific gifting technologies.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (XX) ◽  
pp. 223-233
Author(s):  
Przemysław Niemczuk

The article aims to explore the concept of territorial autonomy. The research assumption is that public interest is one of the fundamental determinants of territorial autonomy. Territorial autonomy has not been defined by law. It is a general and relative term, and thus difficult to define (if such an enterprise is possible at all). However, one thing is certain - the idea behind this term determines the law regulating the organizational and territorial form of the state, i.e. the distribution of power between the centre and the territory. Further attempts to specify territorial autonomy are met with serious difficulties. Therefore, it is crucial to look at it through the prism of public interest. The term public interest has a relative meaning, because it depends on the constantly changing social conditions. This variability is, among others, a result of the territorial context. The national interest and the territorial interest will be defined in different ways. It seems, therefore, that in order to explicate the notion territorial autonomy, one should refer to the concept of public interest and then take into account the relationship between the interest of a territory and the interest of the whole state. This will make it possible to outline territorial autonomy through the prism of its determinant – the public interest.


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