Bilateral Commitment Research Articles

Hallyu and FDI: the growth of South Korea’s investment in Indonesia’s cultural content industry

This article was published open access under a CC BY licence: https://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/ The popularity of Korean dramas and pop music, known as Hallyu or the Korean Wave, has positively impacted South Korea’s tourism and cultural exports. Nevertheless, studies about Korean foreign direct investment (FDI) associated with the Hallyu phenomenon are still scarce. Thus, this study attempts to investigate Korean FDI that flows to Indonesia under such a phenomenon. Data was collected through documents and relevant video reviews which was then followed by a key informant interview. The findings showed that the rising trend of Korean pop music in Indonesia has gradually stimulated Korean investors to invest in industries promoting the transmitted Hallyu culture, such as broadcasting, TV and video production, sound recording and music publishing. Despite the amount of investment remaining lower than in the heavy and manufacturing industries, the study indicates an increase in Korean FDI in Indonesia’s content industries due to the high demand for Korean cultural content and the country’s ongoing bilateral commitment to South Korea. This study adds to our understanding of how global familiarity with a cultural phenomenon may affect FDI inflows to the country from which that phenomenon originates.

Familial Adenomatous Polyposis Associated With Bilateral Adrenocortical Tumors and Agressive Desmoid Tumor

Background: Familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) is an autosomal dominant condition caused by germline mutation in the tumor suppressor gene APC. FAP occurs in 1 to 10.000 individuals, and is characterized by hundreds to thousands of colonic adenomatous polyps with a high risk of developing into colorectal cancer. Extracolonic manifestations can be malignant or benign. The major causes of morbidity and mortality in patients with FAP are abdominal desmoid tumors, with incidences ranging between 7% and 17%. Adrenal incidentaloma are frequently discovered in these patients, generally as benign lesions when they undergo abdominal CT-scan in the course of surveillance. Adrenal lesions in FAP ranged from 7.4% to 16%. We described an unusual patient with FAP, associated with autonomous cortisol production due to bilateral adrenal tumors and the development of aggressive desmoid tumor after unilateral adrenalectomy. Clinical Case: A 33-years-old female FAP-patient presented with abdominal pain, weight gain (10kgs), humor instability, paroxysmal of chest pain, dizziness and tremors. The abdominal MRI showed a heterogeneous, left adrenal mass (9.0 x 7.9 x 6.7cm), suspected for malignant tumor, and right adrenal mass with 3.6 x 1.8 cm suggestive of adenoma. Abdominal CT and PETCTFDG revealed on the left adrenal lesion with 33UH and maxSUV 3.9 and a right adrenal lesion 13UH and maxSUV 3.1. Serum hormone levels were as follows: cortisol after DST (1mg-dexamethasone) 4.8 ug/Dl, ACTH 8,8pg/Ml with no other abnormal hormone secretion detected. Patient underwent left adrenalectomy. Histological analysis revealed Weiss 1, modified Weiss 2 and Ki67 <1% compatible with adenoma. On follow-up, abdominal MRI revealed a 4.3cm-solid-homogeneous mass at the surgical incision, suspected of malignance. The mass progressively enlarged to 6.3 cm in diameter. Histological analysis of the biopsy identified a desmoid tumor. The contralateral adrenal tumor maintained stable during the follow-up; however, it began to produce cortisol autonomous secretion as observed on DST. The patient developed metabolic syndrome and did not present classical Cushing’ syndrome. Contralateral adrenalectomy was contraindicated because of concern of emergence of a new desmoid tumor. Discussion: FAP-associated with adrenal tumors can produce mineralocorticoids, corticosteroids, or both. Although adrenal cortical tumors have been reported frequently in FAP patients, the presence of bilateral commitment tumors on adrenal glands is extremely rare. Conclusion: We reported a woman with FAP and bilateral adrenal tumors with non-synchronic cortisol secretion associated with an aggressive desmoid tumor developing after the adrenalectomy. The patient is taking an adrenal inhibitor of steroidogenesis to control cortisol secretion and to provide clinical improvement.

EU-Algeria (non)cooperation on migration: A tale of two fortresses

ABSTRACT Despite the bilateral commitment to engage in ‘regular dialogue on issues related to mobility, migration and asylum’, EU incentives have failed in leveraging Algeria to secure cooperation notwithstanding seemingly converging interests. What explains the Algerian endless resistance to the EU’s pressure and incentives? This paper claims that a focus on the historical development of the Algerian security regime improves the understanding of its non-cooperative approach vis-à-vis the EU.

Algorithms for cautious reasoning in games

We provide comparable algorithms for the Dekel–Fudenberg procedure, iterated admissibility, proper rationalizability and full permissibility by means of the notions of likelihood orderings and preference restrictions. The algorithms model reasoning processes whereby each player’s preferences over his own strategies are completed by eliminating likelihood orderings. We apply the algorithms for comparing iterated admissibility, proper rationalizability and full permissibility, and provide a sufficient condition under which iterated admissibility does not rule out properly rationalizable strategies. We also use the algorithms to examine an economically relevant strategic situation, namely a bilateral commitment bargaining game. Finally, we discuss the relevance of our algorithms for epistemic analysis.

Bargaining matters: an analysis of bilateral aid to developing countries

Conceptualising development assistance as the outcome of aid-for-policy transactions between donors and recipients brings the effect of bargaining power on aid allocation immediately to light. This study provides a two-tiered stochastic frontier analysis that is able to integrate the enquiry into bargaining power with the more traditional literature on aid determinants. By examining the bilateral aid commitment of 23 Development Assistance Committee members of the OECD during the period from 1992 to 2011, I find that donor countries have more bargaining power in surplus division than recipient countries. More specifically, donors have, on average, extracted policy concessions from recipients for about 14 per cent less than their baseline value. Rich variations in the distribution of bargaining power across countries and within individual aid determinants are also analysed and discussed.

MICROBIOLOGICAL CONFIRMATION OF A FOCUS OF ACTIVE TRACHOMA IN AMERINDIANS OF COLOMBIA, SOUTH AMERICA

Objective. To confirm the microbiological presence of C. trachomatis in indigenous communities of Colombia found to have cases of active trachoma. Method: An ophthalmic evaluation was performed in order to identify the active forms of the disease. Ocular swabs were taken from the conjunctiva and analyzed by real time PCR “in house” for the detection of C. trachomatis . Positive samples, were confirmed by a commercial real time PCR and DNA sequencing. Design: Descriptive study Subjects: Children with active trachoma from different indigenous communities in Vaupes , Colombia. Main outcome measures: Presence of C. trachomatis in conjunctival swab samples Results. Fifteen clinical cases of active trachoma were identified in children between one and 12 years old. A major proportion of TI was observed, compared with TF and greater bilateral commitment of the disease. Patients were from the indigenous communities of Santa Catalina (73.3%), Pacuativa (20%) and Piramiri (6.7%). The presence of C. trachomatis was confirmed in 3 (20%) patients, by real time PCR technique “in house” and confirmatory, and validated with sequencing. Conclusion. This study confirms the presence of C. trachomatis in cases of active trachoma in indigenous communities of the department of Vaupes, Colombia.

Towards a Framework for Cooperation: Spatial Public Diplomacy on the Island of Ireland

European spatial planning arguments advocate a blend of strategic thinking, coordination and related initiatives to promote and secure territorial cohesion. These ambitions embrace a set of normative agendas around economic, social and environmental convergence, competitiveness, policy coordination and efficient infrastructure provision across space. In practice, territorial management then involves devising interventions across inter-connecting scales of governance which comprise complex agency relations, differentiated places and defined communities. In transnational contexts, attempts to foster appropriate spatial governance arrangements and relations across sovereign borders necessitate re-crafting planning and development cultures and service delivery practices to advance territorial cohesion. Transnational working necessarily involves cooperation across an extended range of institutions, interests, influences and potential actors. This paper examines attempts to secure bi-lateral commitment to a joint planning framework for the two distinct territories on the island of Ireland. Specifically, it traces the formal and informal activities involved in the development of the 2013 Framework for Cooperation between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. Informed by ideas of cross-border regionalism, it discusses the necessary spatial public diplomacy involved in the social reconstruction of strategic spatial planning to improve policy coordination and cross-border working.

TRIPS-PLUS PROVISIONS ON PATENT UNDER INDONESIA’S BILATERAL FREE TRADE AGREEMENT

The protection for Intellectual Property Rights (HKI) with higher standards than the one mentioned in the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs), known as TRIPs-Plus, has become a crucial legal issue in bilateralism era nowadays. This research is aimed at analyzing the stipulations in TRIPs-Plus in the case of Patent which is mentioned in several Bilateral Free Trade Agreement (BFTAs), analyzing the existence of TRIPs-Plus in BFTA between Indonesia and its business partner countries, and analyzing whether Indonesia needs to revise its Constitution regarding Patent to fulfill such commitment. This was a normative legal research which used constitutional, conceptual, and comparative approaches. The findings show that most of BFTA which are already agreed by developed and developing countries with their business partner countries , in the case of Patent, contain the standards of TRIPs-Plus. Such stipulation is also found in Indonesian Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (IJEPA). However, the revision of Constitution about Patent should be based on not only bilateral commitment, but also national interests.

La exégesis bíblica de Agustín en De Genesi ad litteram líber unus imperfectus

In this article the author first examines Augustine’s bilateral commitment to the explanation of a literal exegesis in his works. Next he explores Augustine’s way of exposition in Gn. litt. imp., finally arguing the significance of his first literal interpretation.

SPACES, ACTORS AND NEW RIVERINE ETHICS ON THE EMS

ABSTRACTThe Ems estuary extends from just upstream of the German port of Emden to the North Sea. It is a network of tidal channels through the sand banks of the Wadden Sea and includes a contested border between Germany and the Netherlands.The estuary is the seaway for Emden and the Dutch port of Delfzijl. It was and is the object of intensive nautical management which, despite the border tensions, generally ensured progress and mutual economic benefit. A 1960 treaty on nautical cooperation formalized this bilateral commitment to economic growth.This paper focuses on the shift from economic development to ecological cooperation in the Ems estuary starting in the 1970s. While in the 1960s, for example, the Dutch had no qualms about disposing vast quantities of untreated industrial effluents into the Dollart, by 1979 they were arguing that plans to expand the port of Emden would disrupt the Dollart's fragile economy. As part of the growing ‘ecological web’ of international and European treaties, and thanks to the hard work of local and national environmentalist groups, the Ems estuary became the object of its own bilateral ecological agreement in 1996. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

The experience of Chinese physicians in the national health diplomacy programme deployed to Sudan

Chinese Medical Teams have been working in developing countries since 1963 as a health diplomacy strategy. In 2010, 1252 Chinese medical personnel were assigned to 48 countries. We conducted a review of Chinese literature and governmental websites to describe the history and current distribution of Chinese Medical Teams around the world. In addition, we interviewed members of a 36-member Chinese Medical Team deployed to Sudan (primarily about their motivations to join the programme and the challenges and benefits they face), along with their Sudanese hosts. The most significant challenge health workers described was homesickness. Most members said they were able to maintain motivation through their curiosity and the doctor-friendly environment. All but two rated their own working performance as ‘good’ or ‘very good’, while their Sudanese colleagues consistently rated them even higher. Participants reported conflicting beliefs regarding the perceived responsibilities of the team and challenges around communication. Three pillars support the Chinese Medical Team programme in Sudan: bilateral government commitment, the professionalism of the Medical Teams, and the welcoming medical environment. Future success of this or similar Chinese programmes depend on the willingness of both governments to participate, the ongoing commitment of younger Chinese doctors, and the hospitality of physicians in the host country. There are also some threats to the programme, including a potentially diminishing need for Chinese doctors to support increasingly well-trained host country physicians.

Business as Usual?: Ethics in the Fast-Changing and Complex World of Organizations

The authors suggest that, since Eric Berne (1966) defined contract as “an explicit bilateral commitment to a well-defined course of action” (p. 362), bilateral relations seem to dominate thinking about ethics within the transactional analysis community. Ethics, however, deal with human relations in all their complexity, ambiguity, and uncertainty. The fast-changing nature of organizations requires that we take into account the complexity inherent in that world. If we do not, today's solutions will create tomorrow's problems. Using what may seem like a simple model in relation to three organizational dilemmas, the authors suggest questions that must be considered in order to deal with ethics within complex organizations. Today's unusual challenges will not be met, if the world—and we are the world!—continues doing business as usual.

Neumonías en pacientes con gripe

In March 2009, there was an outbreak of respiratory illness, later identified as caused by Influenza A (H1N1); the affected patients can develop severe lower respiratory infections. Objective: To describe the characteristics of 14 patients admitted to Hospital Córdoba diagnosed with H1N1 Influenza-associated pneumonia during July and August of 2009. Material and Methods: We analyzed patients admitted between 26/06/09 and 08/09/2009 with diagnosis of community-acquired pneumonia. All patients were conducted laboratory, chest X-ray, blood and nasal swab for viral isolation by polymerase chain reaction (real-time RT-PCR), beginning treatment with sulbactam ampicillin, clarithromycin, and oseltamivir. Results: The number of patients studied was 44 patients, in 14 patients was confirmed the diagnosis of influenza by RT-PCR, the median age was 44 years (range 18 to 81 years) and 9 (64%) were female. The average time between onset of symptoms and medical consultation was 5 days and the average hospital stay was 6 days. Clinical symptoms: fever over 38 C, 13 patients (92%), dry cough, 4 patients (28%), productive cough, 9 (64%), headache and myalgia: 6. Radiological presentation 10 (72%) patients had bilateral involvement, both bases, and two or more quadrants involved in the chest X-ray. Co morbilities: one patient had heart disease and one patient had COPD. Risk factors: 3 patients were alcoholic, 4 patients were smokers, and 2 postpartum. A single patient with H1N1 required mechanical ventilation and died. Conclusion: pneumonia influenza (H1N1) can cause bilateral commitment, affect healthy patients at a younger age.

Bilateral commitment

We consider non-cooperative environments in which two players have the power to gradually and unilaterally rule out some of their actions. Formally, we embed a strategic-form game into a multi-stage game, in which players can restrict their action spaces in all but the final stage, and select among the remaining actions in the last stage. We say that an action profile is implementable by commitment if this action profile is played in the last stage of a subgame-perfect equilibrium path. We provide a complete characterization of all implementable action profiles and a simple method to find them. It turns out that the set of implementable profiles does not depend on the length of the commitment process. We show, furthermore, that commitments can have social value in the sense that in some games there are implementable action profiles that dominate all Nash equilibria of the original game.

First-Degree Discrimination by a Duopoly: Pricing and Quality Choice

The paper examines under what conditions vertically differentiated duopolists engage in first-degree price discrimination. Each firm decides on a pricing regime at a first stage and sets prices at a second stage. The paper shows that when unit cost is an increasing and convex function of quality, the discriminatory regime is the unique subgame-perfect equilibrium of such two-stage game. In contrast to the case of horizontal differentiation, the discriminatory equilibrium is not necessarily Pareto-dominated by a bilateral commitment to uniform pricing. Also, the quality choices of perfectly discriminating duopolists are welfare maximizing. The paper explains why a threat of entry may elicit price discrimination by an incumbent monopolist.

Bilateral Commitment

Bilateral Commitment

Contracts as Bilateral Commitments: A New Perspective on Contract Modification

Contracts have traditionally been regarded as means of individual commitment. This article offers a broader vision, viewing contracts as potential means of bilateral commitment as well. Drawing on a burgeoning literature in economics, this article explains that commitment to stick with an original contract, even if both parties later want to modify that contract, may improve contractors' welfare. It provides examples from contracts cases of situations in which such bilateral commitment may be beneficial, and it suggests ways in which contract law might better facilitate such commitment. The primary suggestion for facilitating bilateral commitment is that parties—at least sophisticated ones—be permitted to enter into nonmodifiable contracts, which they cannot do under existing law. Permitting parties to write nonmodifiable contracts would enhance contractors' welfare in the settings examined in this article and would not interfere with other normative goals of contract law.

Have your lawyer call my lawyer: Bilateral delegation in bargaining situations

Many bargaining situations involve simultaneous attempts to commit by the parties involved. This paper studies the consequences of bilateral commitment by delegation, modelling the parties' non-cooperative choice of negotiators at stage one contingent on the bargaining outcome these negotiators achieve at stage two. In a leading case, there is a unique interior Nash equilibrium where, except when tastes are identical, both parties genuinely delegate. Although one party may gain at the expense of the other by this process, relative to self-representation, it is often the case that both parties lose by such strategic manoeuvering.