Democratic Space Research Articles

Modern constitutionalism of Ukraine in the conditions of europeization of native law

The article states that Ukraine was and remains a component of the single European democratic space. Taking into account the sad lessons of the past, we will follow the path of broad public dialogue and legitimate decisions. The further constitutional transit of Ukraine will be connected only with strengthening of representative democracy and strengthening of local selfgovernment, guarantees of protection of human rights and freedoms. Thus, today, Ukraine is experiencing an era of global and rapid changes that are transforming the foundations of social life and the usual paradigms of constitutional thinking (we are not just talking about one or another change, but about such transformational processes that relate precisely to the level of the essential characteristics of the society that is passing through the stage constitutional transit).It is indicated that in the domestic science of constitutional law, the scientific-theoretical analysis of the paradigm of constitutionalism in the conditions of permanent constitutional transit, as a rule, extends only to elements of the contentof constitutionalism, individual institutional components of its system.Particular features of the constitutional transit in Ukraine and, as a consequence, the implementation of a new paradigm of constitutionalism in the conditions of the Europeanization of national law are highlighted. The author examines certain aspects of the terminological issues of constitutional transit as a condition for the Europeanization of domestic law. As a result of the research, the category «constitutional transit» as a condition of the Europeanization of modern Ukrainian law should be considered as a state of transition of the constitutionalism of the Ukrainian state, from one state to another, caused by theneed for convergence of national constitutional legislation with the law of the European Union. It is noted that such a state of transition, its passage is not a linear process, but can have a multi-vector nature of development. That is, constitutional transit can cover all types of transitional states of constitutionalism from the point of view of a significant change in their character: not only from authoritarianism to democracy, but, on the contrary, in accordance with national sociocultural and political features, values, of course, taking into account advanced scientific world achievements.

Reform, Transformation, Emancipation

This article outlines a theoretical framework for interpreting the meaning and function of political protest in modern democracies and develops normative criteria for assessing its democratic quality. To allow for a better understanding of how social structures, legal institutions, and political engagement interact in protest, I combine analytical perspectives from social theory and democratic theory. A useful first distinction, I argue, is between reformist and transformative forms of protest. While reformist protest does not challenge the given framework of the modern democratic order, transformative protest politicizes the basic principles of that order. Finally, I develop four criteria to identify emancipatory traits within protest movements: 1) expanding the circle of those who benefit from the fulfillment of democracy’s promises; 2) the establishment of discursive democratic spaces; 3) a balance between dramatization and exchange; and 4) a willingness to become someone else.

Regulation, control and digital transition of Ntv Online in Bangladesh television business

Audiences’ shifts to online and interactive engagement have posed numerous challenges to Bangladesh’s media ecology. This descriptive case study examines the current state of digital transition, complexities and competitions faced by the local television industry by putting Ntv Online, one of the first-generation television station’s online portals and convergence pioneers, at the centre of the discussion. It explains how Ntv Online is internalizing and responding to convergence practice from both media market dynamics and organizational perspectives. This study believes that issues other than those raised by media technology are equally important in comprehending the digital transition of Bangladesh’s television industry. The key findings indicate that the hybrid regime’s intervention in free media practices as well as complex market competition from massive tech platforms limit Bangladesh’s trajectory as a competitor in the global digital media arcade. This also implies that existing ownership and corporate structures may not support the required interoperability between management and journalists. However, the digital transitions of the private TV industry may pave the way for the creation of a democratic space for public deliberation, which is essentially demanded in the current hybrid regime’s intervention in actualizing this shift.

Neo-Biafra Separatist Agitations, State Repression and Insecurity in South-East, Nigeria.

The resurgence of Biafra separatism in Nigeria is largely a reaction to a perceived ethno-national superordinacy as well as the compromised state-building capacity of the Nigerian ruling groups. The tendency to attribute the upswing in ethnic nationalism, separatist agitations and the ascendancy of sectarian cleavages in Nigeria to the widening of the democratic space since 1999 is flawed. Whilst every part of Nigeria is bedevilled with one security challenge or another, the most visible existential threats to lives and livelihoods in Nigeria's South-East are coordinated attacks on state facilities by unknown gunmen and the brutal military response of the Nigerian state to the neo-Biafra separatist uprisings. Although the reinvention of Biafra separatism has received substantial scholarly attention, available studies have neglected how the persistence of state repression has lubricated the wheels of the neo-Biafra separatist movement in Nigeria. This study argues that the repressive disposition of the Nigerian state towards Biafra separatism is at the base of the current mutation of the Indigenous People of Biafra's strategy from the non-violent option to the armed movement. This article relies mainly on the analysis of secondary data on Biafra separatism and state repression in Nigeria. Drawing from the basic assumptions of the theory of state repression, this study concludes that the wanton deployment of the kinetic approach involving harassment, proscription, arrests, extraordinary rendition, torture and mass killing of pro-Biafra agitators tends to stimulate insecurity in the South-East.

"근대 국민국가에서 탈근대 민주적 공간으로: 근대 국가에 대한 논의 지형 변화의 역사와 사상"

이 글에서는 국가를 두 가지 층위에서 접근하고 있다. 하나는 근대에 형성된 정치공동체의 형태이자 시공간적 개념으로서 국민국가이며, 다른 하나는 그러한 정치공동체로서 국민국가 내에서 작동하는 권력의 집중체로서 국가(권력)의 문제이다. 이러한 국가를 둘러싼 논의는 근대 국가가 출현하고 이후 전환되는 과정에서 지속적으로 변화해 왔다. 17세기 홉스 이래 근대정치철학의 대상으로서 국가에 관한 논의는 국가의 정당성과 그를 둘러싼 기원을 중심으로 이루어졌다. 이후 프랑스혁명과 함께 근대 국가가 본격적으로 출현하고 자본주의의 발전과 궤를 같이 하면서 국가는 ‘사회적인 것’을 둘러싸고 그것을 해결할 것인가의 문제를 두고 다양한 사회과학들의 논의의 대상이 되었다. 20세기 들어서 복지국가의 발달과 국가의 역할 확대 속에서 다시 국가의 위상과 국가권력의 민주화 그리고 제3세계의 해방 이후 민주화 과제 등 민주주의의 문제를 둘러싸고 정치학적 논의가 주를 이루었다. 그리고 21세기에 들어서 국가에 대한 논의는 세계화 속에서 급속히 약화되었다. 그것은 국민국가 위기의 반영이기도 하고, 또한 민주주의에 대한 새로운 탐구가 필요하다는 것을 의미하기도 한다. 따라서 이 글은 근대 정치공동체로서 국가에 대한 논의가 그 출발의 시점에서부터 어떻게 진행되어 왔으며, 다양한 전환의 계기들을 통해 어떠한 쟁점을 가지면서 위상의 변화를 가져왔는가를 살펴보고자 한다. 그리고 현재의 시점에서 국가에 대한 논의를 둘러싼 쟁점, 특히 세계화와 그에 따른 국민국가의 위기 상황 속에서 민주주의가 새롭게 재구조화되기 위한 정치적 공간에 대한 사유의 지점들을 찾고자 한다.

Creating and sustaining democratic spaces in education

Abstract This article explores the context for the accompanying suite of papers on creating and sustaining democratic spaces in education. Prompted by the centenary of Summerhill, the internationally famous democratic school founded in Suffolk, England, in 1921, by A.S. Neill, this collection of papers explores and broadens out the central questions at the heart of experiments in democratic education. We suggest that, at a time of distrust in and questioning of the central institutions of democratic government, and in the wake of challenges to the mainstream system of state schooling, these questions are more relevant than ever. We argue that detailed attention to the everyday practice of creating democratic spaces in a variety of educational and social contexts can highlight the myriad ways in which educators, students, families and communities can keep democratic values and principles alive, thereby enriching our discussions about the meaning and value of democratic education.

Promoting public libraries as democratic spaces through governmental and municipal library strategies: Norwegian library strategies post 2014 law changes

This study aims to clarify what kinds of specific strategies have been planned for public libraries in Norway and how they have changed over time following the Norwegian Public Library Act, amended in 2014. We have analysed government strategies and municipality plans and strategies for Oslo. Document study of the Public Library Act, national strategies concerning public libraries, and library management plans. We review 11 policy documents carefully and organise what specific plans are being made for public libraries to function as public places, according to the mission in the Public Library Act of 2014. Regarding dissemination of information and independent meeting place, the government and Oslo municipality made specific plans such as developing the national digital library and building a new central library in Oslo. Concerning dissemination of education and cultural activities, and an arena for public discussions and debates, there were partial strategies in both the government and the municipality. Various projects, financial support, building maintenance, and events have been conducted to accomplish libraries’ missions as places, as stated in the Act. Public libraries should facilitate a cultural offering that meets the needs of a diverse citizenry.

Discrimination, Marginalisation and Violence Against Minorities in Post-War Sri Lanka

Abstract Sri Lanka’s past is stained by human rights violations. The end of the thirty-year old civil war created opportunities and expectations that the post-war period would usher in peace and reconciliation, but this has not materialised. Recently there have been significant and worrying challenges that has altered the environment for reconciliation and accountability leading to a new wave of violence and discrimination against minorities. Some of these broader challenges include excessive militarisation, the reversal of Constitutional safeguards though court rulings, political apathy towards accountability for war-time abuses, exclusionary rhetoric through the intensification of Sinhalization and a shrinking democratic space. These challenges are warning indicators of future conflict and increased human rights violations. The purpose of this paper is to therefore highlight the various abuses, including those legislative frameworks that discriminate against Sri Lanka’s minorities and it advocates for actions in accordance with the country’s obligations under international human rights law.

Security in the Lake Chad Basin and Sahel region after Idris Déby

ABSTRACT Idris Déby’s counterinsurgency in the Lake Chad Basin (LCB) and the Sahel crafted imaginaries of Déby as a bulwark against terrorism in the region. Existing scholarship argues that Deby's death has accentuated insecurity in the region. The study adopts critical analysis and is anchored in the theory of security regionalism; it argues that the politics of Déby as a regional strongman constricted democratic spaces, invited violent opposition, and sustained rebellion in parts of the region. Although Déby provided occasional pushback when the terrorists inflicted harm on Chadian interests, he would not have won the war against terror unilaterally without regional cooperation.

“Breaking Taboos”: Bond Notes, Humour, and Civil Resistance in Zimbabwean Cyber-Communities

Humour can function as a protest against bad governance, and citizens often appropriate digital humour to speak back to power. The article analyses 20 satirical memes and texts shared on Facebook and WhatsApp after the government of Zimbabwe introduced bond notes in 2016. The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe indicated that the bond notes would be pegged equally against the US dollar. However, the Zimbabwean populace did not embrace the idea of the bond notes. The article uses the theory of voice and the thesis of the weapons of the weak to interrogate how humour speaks truth to power on online public platforms. Zimbabwean netizens do not enjoy such an opportunity in the actual public sphere, given the inhibiting political environment in Zimbabwe. Civil resistance is a form of protest by civilians against those in authority. Cyberspaces offer alternative platforms for registering dissatisfaction with state policies in contexts where the state has orchestrated a substantial shrinkage of the democratic space.

ANALISIS KESALAHAN BERBAHASA PADA BERITA DI MEDIA ONLINE “FACEBOOK DAN INSTAGRAM”

ABSTRACTThis study aims to describe (1) phonological, morphological, syntactic, and semantic errors found in the Indonesian discourse on the Humanitarian Crisis and the Death of the Democratic Space under President Joko Widodo's leadership which was published by the Papuan Student Alliance-AMP on March 14, 2022 through the media. Facebook online, (2) phonological, morphological, syntactic, and semantic errors contained in the discourse "Equity and structuring the Mardika market" published by Aldis Loilatu on June 3, 2021 through Facebook online media, (3) phonological, morphological, syntax, and semantics contained in the discourse "Makassar has the potential for PSBB to return, the decision will be determined in the next two days" which was published by Makassar Info on January 29, 2021 through the online media Instagram, and (4) provided corrections and follow-up to language errors from in terms of phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics contained in the Facebook post ok and instagram. The results of the analysis of language errors on Facebook and Instagram online media can be concluded that there are types of language errors in the fields of phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics. The results of this study are first, the types of phonological, morphological, syntactic, and semantic errors found in the Indonesian discourse on the Humanitarian Crisis and the Death of the Democratic Space under President Joko Widodo's leadership published by the Papuan Student Alliance-AMP on March 14, 2022. , (2) the types of phonological, morphological, syntactic, and semantic errors contained in the discourse of "even distribution and arrangement of the Mardika market" published by Aldis Loilatu on June 3, 2021, and (3) types of phonological, morphological errors , syntax, and semantics on the discourse "Makassar has the potential for PSBB to return, the decision will be determined in the next two days" published by Makassar Info on January 29, 2021. Keywords: language errors, online media, facebook, instagram

Contending Weltanschauungen and the Shrinking of Democratic Spaces An Appraisals of Nigeria Democratic Practices-2015-2022

Ivan Krastev said “we are all living in Vladimir Putin’s world now”, where sheer force tramples over democratic rights. However, the travails of the liberal order is not only Putin’s Russia, China waits on the wings….Even the bastions of democracy like United States of America (USA) and United Kingdom (UK) are not left out. In them have arisen Rightwings populist in the guise of ‘America First’, which cumulated to the January 6, 2021 ‘insurrection’ in Washington and the Brexit brouhaha in UK. Nigeria being a member of the comity of nations is not antipathetic to this trend. Of the twelve largest democratic decline in the world, seven are in Sub-Saharan Africa and Nigeria is number five. It had been noted that Democratic practise in Nigeria is a hybrid: civil rule, militarism, and ethnic jingoism. In a recent poll by Statista, 77.2% of Nigerians agree that Nigeria democracy is flawed. This paper interrogates the democratic reversal in Nigeria using the Realist Balance of Power (BoP) Framework in the midst of contending Weltanschauungen. The paper argues that Russia and China’s contrary worldview to democratic norms has given countries democratic trade-offs, which have engendered democratic reversal worldwide, Nigeria inclusive. The paper recommends continuous vigilance by Nigerian’s civil societies and others, to insist that democratic tenets are upheld always, as exemplified by their insistence for the signing of the 2022 Electoral Law. Data were collated through documentary methods; these qualitative data were transcribed, interpreted, and analysed through systematic logical deductions.

Care-full pedagogy: Conceptualizing feminist care ethics as an overarching critical framework to interrupt the dominance of developmentalism within post-secondary early childhood education programs

This article offers a theoretical provocation through conceptualizing a pedagogy of care as a means of caring with students and each other to interrupt the dominance of developmentalism in Canadian post-secondary early childhood education programs. The authors’ conceptualization of care -full as pedagogy is rooted in the premises that education is always ethical and political, and caring about, for and with others is necessary to establish equitable, democratic spaces at the post-secondary level. In contrast to the developmental framework embraced in many Canadian post-secondary early childhood education programs, the authors describe how a critical, care -full overarching pedagogical framework provides room for educators and students to deeply and meaningfully explore developmentalism and other theoretical frameworks. They argue that a pedagogy of care rooted in feminist care ethics and Freire's critical theory can contribute to establishing a safe learning climate where developmentalism can be critiqued and alternative ways to think about children's development can be contested, explored and debated. As the authors are conceptualizing it, a care-full pedagogical framework intentionally supports the intellectual, ethical and political risk-taking necessary for critique and alternative thinking. They follow this provocation through by imagining what a care -full pedagogy might look and feel like in a post-secondary early childhood education course on child development.

Parliamentary engagement in fighting corruption: a discourse on the Parliament of Tanzania

PurposeThis study aims to examine the participation of the Parliament of Tanzania in the fight against corruption in the country.Design/methodology/approachA desk-based research approach based on the review of documents and legal instruments was used.FindingsThe results of this study show that the Parliament of Tanzania has a chequered performance in fighting corruption. While it has passed several anti-corruption-related laws and in some respects succeeded to hold a few government officials accountable for the abuse of public office, there is little evidence to demonstrate its contribution at fighting this conundrum. Factors contributing to this deficiency include irresponsiveness to corruption allegations involving Members of Parliament, parliament’s remote oversight of the anti-corruption agency and shrinking democratic space in the parliament.Practical implicationsTanzania has relatively high corruption levels. The country’s Development Vision 2025 envisages a nation free of corruption. Hence, efforts are needed from public and private sectors to overcome this conundrum. The parliament holds a special place in that fight. Through its representation, legislative and oversight roles and powers, parliament has a wider opportunity to strengthen anti-corruption in the country. This study shows that the Parliament of Tanzania has not been very effective in that regard. It offers suggestions to strengthen the parliament’s position and engagement to fight corruption.Originality/valueThere is scanty literature on the role of the Parliament of Tanzania in fighting corruption. This study is seminal, as it investigates the Tanzanian anti-corruption arsenal from a crucial organ that is vested with constitutional powers to make laws and oversee the executive and its agencies.

Agonistic Terms of Peace in Kashmir: Kashmiriyat, Distributive Politics and Islam

Kashmiriyat as a peculiar secular formation posits Rishi tradition as central to Islam in Kashmir. However, the dialectical process of Islamic acculturation also led the Muslim identity in Kashmir to disentangle itself from any essential association with it. The article, thus, argues that Kashmiriyat alone cannot underpin any inclusive notion of democracy in Kashmir. In so far as Kashmiriyat is concerned with the religious orthodoxy implicated in subversion and violence, it is argued that religious orthodoxy, irrespective of its sociopolitical implications, being the only mode of social representation of religion cannot be eliminated in any ultimate sense. Nevertheless, it is the social antagonism that makes any religious orthodoxy to emerge, transform and ultimately face its own contingency. Thus, more than any narrative of harmony and co-existence surrounding Kashmiriyat, it is the democratic space reflective of the underlying sociopolitical antagonisms that can channelise orthodoxy in a socially productive manner. The article also highlights that the process of socio-economic development in Kashmir (referred to here as ‘distributive politics’) straddles different discourses and mainly enhances the discursive depth of the narrative in power.

Pre-service teachers’ negotiation of meaning in their Physical Education Teacher Education programme: a two-year follow-up ethnography

ABSTRACT Background: Research demonstrates the benefits of communities of practice (CoP) for teachers’ professional learning in Physical Education (PE). However, much less is known about how CoPs can be used to understand pre-service teachers’ (PSTs) professional learning in their Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE) programmes. Negotiation of meaning (NofM) is a crucial concept regarding learning inside of a CoP. Hence, understand how meaning is negotiated in initial teacher professional development might allow the enhancement of the social learning strategies in PETE programmes. Purpose: This article draws on the CoP theoretical framework, and specifically the concept of NofM to understand how PSTs negotiated meaning during a two-year PETE programme. In particular, the focus is on the challenges faced by PSTs throughout the PETE social interactive process. Participants and settings: The setting was a PETE programme in Portugal. In year one, the participants were three university teacher educators (TE) and 25 PSTs. In year two, the participants were three PSTs from year one who were in their school placement, a university supervisor (US) and one cooperating teacher (CT). Data collection and analysis: This study was an ethnography with a two-year longitudinal design. Data were collected through the ethnographer’s participant-observations (first author), meetings of the PSTs with the mentoring team (TEs, US, CT), and the ethnographer’s field diary, reflexive log, and audio-recordings. Data analysis involved the constant-comparative grounded theory method. Findings: Analysis resulted in the identification of three key challenges during the course units, for PSTs in the first year of their PETE programme: (a) the diversity and disconnections within the course units; (b) (the lack of) membership; and (c) the absence of democratic spaces in PETE class discussions. In the year two of PETE during the school placement, three challenges were identified for the negotiation of meaning (NofM): (a) the lack of dialogue with and focus on pedagogical practice by the cooperating teacher; (b) working together and the pressure to individualise PSTs’ education process; and (c) unreachable support and supervision from the university. Implications: We suggest that PETE programmes should emphasise pedagogical strategies that create spaces for the cultivation of CoPs. For instance, we suggest PST engagement in continuous and planned group work across curricular years (e.g. peer-teaching and micro-teaching experiences) to increase work group membership. We recommend the emphasis on discussion sessions mediated by a facilitator (e.g. TEs, CTs, or US) where the different working groups could share their repertoire of learning experiences as a CoP. Moreover, we suggest optimisation of a base of pedagogical knowledge regarding course units’ integration between the TEs of the PETE to systematise the process and also, an increased connection between the university and the host school. Additionally, we propose continuous professional development by the CTs to facilitate the requirements of the PETE programme.

The Role of Creative Placemaking

The Role of Creative Placemaking

The Volunteers Phenomenon of Presidential Election in Indonesia

This study identifies the political influence of Jokowi Mania volunteers on the policies of President Joko Widodo Period II. Joko Widodo's election victories in 2014 and 2019 did not occur without the role of volunteers. This political volunteer movement emerged based on shared unrest and the people's sense of distrust of the democratic space, which is dominated by political parties and politicians who are problematic. This research uses qualitative research. The data collection technique was obtained by using the Ncapture feature on the Nvivo 12 plus, where the Ncapture feature is a web browser extension developed to capture web content in the form of website content, online media, and other document content such as scientific articles and collections of observers' opinions regarding the policies of President Joko Widodo. Based on the study results, four important points have been analyzed by researchers using crosstab on the Nvivo 12 Plus. The first is advocacy, with a percentage of 35.71%, the second is monitoring, with 21.43%, the third is the program, and the last is reconciliation, with 19.05%. The political policies carried out by Jokowi Volunteers also affect most of those who used to be policy volunteers are now part of the government and occupy strategic positions.

Approaching systems change at Fulfilling Lives South East in efforts to improve unsupported temporary accommodation: a qualitative case study

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to consider how a South East project approached systems change to improve unsupported temporary accommodation (UTA) and the changes made for people experiencing multiple disadvantage (“multiple and complex needs”). This paper also covers some matters that are hard to change or uncertain, such as housing shortages and financial constraints. The paper focuses on a case study of the East Sussex Temporary Accommodation Action Group (TAAG) – a multi-agency action group. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative case study involving a thematic analysis of seven semi-structured interviews, with a review of published literature and internal documentation. Findings This example of setting up a TAAG shows us the value of having a dedicated forum to look at a part of the system that requires changing and to identify what works well. Creating a collaborative and democratic space with a common purpose brings different stakeholders and perspectives together and opens discussions to new ways of working. Equalising partners creates an opportunity to create change from the bottom-up within a system traditionally governed by statutory bodies. This study found that the TAAG has facilitated learning around trauma-informed practice and nurtured more sustainable changes towards a Standards Charter and women-only safe UTA. Originality/value This is one of the first qualitative case studies of a local systems change approach to improving UTA for people experiencing multiple disadvantage in East Sussex.

JATARISHUN: indigenous peasant uprisings of Ecuador and Good Living

This article analyzes the Indigenous Peasant Movements (IPM) of Ecuador as a social force and political actor. By proposing an alternative to the Ecuadorian crisis based on the Sumak Kawsay (Good Living) values, the IPM expand democratic spaces and formulate an extended sense of citizenship. The text focuses on the events of the 2019 national strike in Ecuador, in retrospective dialogue with previous uprisings. It draws on the testimonies of the Kayambi people, collected before and after the strike, in semi-structured interviews, and ethnographic work. Results show that the memory of previous struggles was an essential motivation for the emergence of the uprisings. Besides, unity and solidarity among rural actors and other sectors of Ecuadorian society were the basis for the strike’s strength and power. Finally, in dialogue with the Emancipatory Rural Politics, the article contributes to critical approaches to the role of indigenous peasant peoples in struggles for life alternatives.