Parliamentary Discussions Research Articles

‘Par mesure de prudence’. Flood prevention and river regulation in Demer-Dijle confluence area (NE Belgium), 1840s–1880s

Abstract This article analyses the views of experts and political discourse on river regulation, its objectives, and flood prevention in the rural Demer-Dijle catchment areas, the 1840s–1880s – a period marked by climatological extremes and agricultural transition. Via a close read of state archives and parliamentary discussions, we unravel different opinions and interests and find that not all flooding was unwanted. While the Ministry of Public Works, at first, aimed to better regulate water discharge and to improve watercourses for navigational purposes, it later prioritised agricultural interests. However, managing rivers coherently and efficiently was challenging because river powers were dispersed over ministerial departments, provinces, and municipalities that made coordinating upstream and downstream river works difficult. Floods often resulted in the drawing up of new plans, but their implementation often failed to materialise because the government had other worries and insufficient resources available while parliamentarians prioritised the interests of their constituencies.

Legalizing Bequests to Heirs in Egypt as a Legislative Application of Talfīq: towards a Purposive Interpretation of Article 37 of Law No. 71/1946

Abstract This paper tackles one example of interaction between state laws and social norms. It investigates the rationale behind the unprecedented legalization of bequeathing to heirs in Egypt that happened by the virtue of article 37 of law no. 71/1946. This article represents a legal rule that renegotiates a well settled matter in the Sunni jurisprudence based on an undefined common need that was alleged in the explanatory memorandum of this law. The paper investigates that common need through an originalist approach into the mentioned article then validates the output of that investigation by a review of relevant judicial rulings. As part of this originalist approach, the paper engages with the available data pertaining to the drafting process of law no. 71/1946, the key members in the drafting committee, and the parliamentary discussion on article 37 of the law. It also attempts a contextual reading for article 37 to understand its legal rationale and propose criteria for judicial enforcement that would maintain this rationale.

Sickly, Idle and Risky Minorities: Race and Diabetes under Singapore’s Emergent “Insurantial Imaginary”

This article highlights the role of the “insurantial imaginary”, defined as a social context in which profitable, useful and necessary uses can be found for insurance technology, as a condition that shaped the articulation of the sickly, idle and risky racial minorities within Singapore’s public health discourse on diabetes. Focusing on parliamentary speeches relating to diabetes between 1965 to 2020 as well as healthcare financing policy documents, I argue that the narrative of sickly, idle and risky minorities bodies tied to broader notions of racialized responsibility and accountability emerged sharply under a universal national health insurance system. Where parliamentary discussions on diabetes as a public health issue before the institution of universal health insurance circa 2014 utilized racial categories in the classificatory or administrative sense, these very categories became endowed with new meanings and moral imperatives, where Malays and Indians were urged to lead healthier lifestyles to reduce the national insurantial burden. This study builds on the literature on race in medicine by underlining the role of healthcare financing as a technology of racial biopolitics.

The Alliance in the Storm: Geopolitical Representation of the United States in the Turkish Parliament during Détente

This article analyzes how the geopolitical representation of the United States in Turkish political discourse changed during the 1960s and 1970s in the context of deep crises between the two countries, such as the Cyprus question, the opium issue, and the US arms embargo on Türkiye. Within the framework of critical geopolitical theory, it uses the concept of “geopolitical representation.” It examines the changes in the geopolitical representation of the United States in Turkish political life through practical geopolitics. To this end, it evaluates the debates, speeches, and correspondence made by the representatives of the ruling and opposition parties and members of the government in the Turkish Grand National Assembly between 1964 and 1979, within the context of the crises in Turkish-American relations, particularly within the foreign policy framework. It is argued that while the alliance between Türkiye and the United States and Türkiye’s membership in NATO were seen as important symbols of Türkiye’s sovereignty and enjoyed unwavering support in the 1950s, tensions with the US, Türkiye’s “strategic partner,” in the 1960s and 1970s led to notable shifts in the Turkish parliament’s narrative. As a pioneer of anti-NATO and anti-US rhetoric, the Workers’ Party of Türkiye (TİP) played a prominent role in shaping parliamentary discussions.

Breakdown and reform: the Chilean road to the creation of ministries of hygiene and social welfare 1892-1931.

Doctors have played an important role in the development of health institutions in Latin America. However, they are not the only profession that has had a voice in these matters. There are also other factors influencing the development of ministries of health. This issue has gone unnoticed in the literature. This article suggests that it is possible to identify two distinct trends in the creation of health ministries in Latin America. The first, of an early nature, was seen principally in Central America and the Caribbean in countries dependent on or under the influence of the United States which, from the 1880s, promoted health Pan-Americanism. The second trend, which became apparent from 1924, was characterised by the emergence of ministries in a context of institutional breakdown and the appearance of new actors (military or populist leaders). This second trend was first seen in Chile in 1924. This article analyses the creation of the Ministerio de Higiene, Asistencia y Previsión Social (Ministry of Hygiene, Assistance and Social Security) in Chile in 1924 and its subsequent development through to 1931. The analysis looks at the health measures adopted, the context in which this occurred and the debates triggered by the ministry's process of institutional development, based on parliamentary discussions, presidential speeches, official statistics, legislation, documents prepared by key actors and the press of the time.

European Union politicians debating European language education policy

The European Union’s (EU) high regard for multilingualism and linguistic diversity is expressed through its language education policy (LEP), a policy adopted by the European Parliament, which represents all EU member states. However, as education falls within the remit of the member states, EU LEP has an advisory function only. Support for the LEP at national level is thus crucial. By analysing a significant parliamentary discussion by Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), this article asks what evidence there is that MEPs support the EU’s goals of learning the mother tongue plus two foreign languages (1+2), and of learning a diversity of languages at school. Secondly, the article investigates current evidence of the success of EU LEP in terms of developing dual language capacities, and of maintaining diversity in language learning. Figures on the learning of two languages, on the learning of English, and on linguistic diversity are compared, covering the last decade. The results reveal that although the training of dual linguists has stagnated, no MEP expressed concerns that the EU goals of 1+2 are not being met. MEPs are, however, concerned with protecting ‘their’ national languages, and the smaller ‘their’ own language(s), the more so. Furthermore, only representatives of large EU languages express concern over English dominance in the EU’s education systems. Thus, parliamentary representatives of smaller languages unite in solidarity for greater status recognition of their language, while MEPs’ support for the EU LEP goal of 1+2 is at best patchy. The article concludes that, given the limited remit of EU LEP, discrepancies between European recommendations and national practices are somewhat inevitable, and that to improve on the 1+2 goal and counter English dominance across education systems in the EU, member states need to be better supported to appreciate and disseminate the rationales for dual language learning (1+2) and diversity in language learning.

Policy Note: Strengthening Tax Systems in Developing Countries: The Dutch Contribution

The Netherlands has long faced criticism for its role in facilitating tax avoidance through its network of double taxation treaties (DTTs), particularly regarding developing countries, e.g., recently in a report of the Tax Justice Network (TJN). A review of the general Dutch tax policy shows that the country has taken several steps to reform its DTTs, undertaken domestic reforms to address tax avoidance issues, and has been offering tax-related capacity development (CD) programmes to developing nations. The authors ascertain from the results of an analysis of the parliamentary debate in terms of the contents of DTTs with developing countries and changes in domestic law as well as interviews with several stakeholders in the Netherlands and in developing countries show that the Netherlands is still likely to play a prominent role in global tax avoidance. This applies despite the significant changes in policy and substantive and procedural law. Not all loopholes have been closed, and adopting anti-abuse clauses in DTTs with developing countries – a central part of the Dutch response – has been somewhat disappointing. Moreover, the process of providing tax-related CD is not optimal, and tensions remain regarding the goals that the Netherlands attempts to pursue in tandem, potentially leading to policy incoherence. Moreover, unilateral action is unlikely to result in a reduction of global tax avoidance as financial flows – and therewith tax avoidance – are likely to shift to other countries. The global minimum tax (GMT) and other parts of the two-pillar proposal are more likely to offer a breakthrough for certain types of tax avoidance.Hence, a continued international dialogue on tax matters is needed to address all types of tax avoidance. In the parliamentary discussion on this topic, the Dutch Secretary of State for Finance reconfirmed the policy to assist developing countries in strengthening their tax systems in respect of the GMT through being in favour of a broader scope of Amount B, providing technical assistance in the implementation process of Pillars 1 and 2, and through the OECD’s Tax Inspectors Without Borders (TIWB) project. The objective of this article is to add to the policy discussion on how to strengthen the tax systems of developing countries. Tax avoidance, double taxation treaties (DTTs), international tax policy, Tax avoidance, double taxation treaties (DTTs), international tax policy, capacity development (CD), anti-abuse clauses, policy coherence, developing countries, BEPS, Addis Tax Initiative (ATI), Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

Principle of explicability: regulatory challenges on artificial intelligence

This essay aims to examine topic related to artificial intelligence, explaining how it works and specially studying aspects of regulatory framework. The paper approaches the principle of explicability of AI decisions, performing an analysis on the braziilian parliamentary discussion and brazilian data protection act. The hermeneutic method was adopted as well as literature review.

A Regional System under Tight-Knit Elite Rule: The Last Attempt to Introduce Decentralization in Early Italy

Abstract This article discusses a regionalization project, known as Minghetti’s bill, that was presented to the Italian parliament just after the creation of the country in 1861, debated at length, and finally rejected. The bill was the most advanced point reached on the decentralization front in Italy before the Second World War. Minghetti's bill is the first example of a regional process ever brought to parliamentary discussion. It was also a precursor of other regionalization schemes, such as the creation of French regions in 1972.

An expenditure analysis revealing how Philip Morris advertisements coincide with tobacco policymaking in Switzerland.

Prior research has linked media tobacco promotion to increased tobacco use and favorable perceptions of tobacco products. Switzerland's tobacco lobby employs advertisements to sway policy decisions in its favor, yet no recent research has assessed this in detail. Our study aims to provide detailed estimates of tobacco industry (TI) advertisement costs, focusing on Philip Morris International (PMI) in Switzerland, and examine potential chronological links between TI advertisement campaigns and parliamentary discussions on tobacco bills. By spreading knowledge on this issue, we aim to support the development of future tobacco advertisement regulations. We conducted an expenditure analysis of tobacco-related press advertisements in Swiss print media published between August 2020 and August 2021, accessed through the media intelligence firm Argus Data Insights. Advertisement costs were estimated using publicly available data. We plotted expenditure sums of PMI against key parliamentary session dates featuring discussions on proposed tobacco control measures, such as tighter restrictions on advertising. Over 12 months, 501 advertisements with tobacco-specific headlines were published in Swiss press media. Of these, 437 advertisements (87.22%) were linked to PMI. PMI accounted for 88.21% (CHF 6486969) of total advertisement expenditure. Notably, PMI advertisements coincided with key political sessions discussing tobacco legislation in parliament, with a limited presence outside these periods. PMI advertisements were published parallel to key moments of parliamentary discussions, suggesting an attempt by TI to potentially influence discussions. Applying such an advertisement monitoring methodology helps understand the contextual conditions of public health in Switzerland. By analyzing TI advertisements in print media, we sought to highlight regulatory gaps and support the creation of stricter advertising regulations. We recommend continuing such research to strengthen tobacco control policymaking. Key public health efforts should include raising awareness of TI tactics, implementing a comprehensive ban on tobacco advertising, and strategically engaging with the media in tobacco control campaigns.

ПРАКТИКИ ОБРАЩЕНИЯ К ПРОШЛОМУ В ОТЕЧЕСТВЕННОМ ПАРЛАМЕНТСКОМ ДИСКУРСЕ (НАЧАЛО И КОНЕЦ ХХ ВЕКА)

The paper deals with the practices of appealing to the past in the parliamentary debates of the first sessions of the State Duma of late imperial Russia (1906) and the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation (1994), as well as the first few Congresses of People's Deputies of the USSR (1989) and the RSFSR (1990). These cases meet two criteria: first, these representative institutions were fundamentally new institutions in changing political systems, and second, the principles of forming their composition ensured competition in the process of discussing symbolic discourses. Cross-temporal research has made it possible to identify a universal set of techniques, at least for the Russian experience, for the instrumental use in parliamentary discussions of knowledge/ideas about the past when solving modern problems, including an appeal to the past as an argument in the discussion; interpretation/evaluation of the past as a marker of group identity; a call to consign to oblivion / to forget/ to forgive the past; articulation of historical grievances/traumas; criticism of historical government policies; discreditation of a political opponent: pointing out the ignorance of history / falsification of history.

Observing political and societal changes in Finnish parliamentary speech data, 1980–2010, with topic modelling

ABSTRACT Parliamentary speech reflects many events, changes and developments in society, as well as shaping them by influencing legislation and public interest. Knowing what topics have been dominant in parliamentary discussions can reveal what has been considered important at the time the speech was given. This knowledge can be achieved computationally with topic modelling, which can identify latent topics in large numbers of texts. Currently, the method is still underused in parliamentary studies and has only previously been used once with Finnish parliamentary speeches. This article aims to create and validate a topic model offering a robust overview of Finnish parliamentary speeches from 1980 to 2010, and to demonstrate the validity of the model by examining peaks in topic occurrences and comparing them to the historical and societal context at the times. The topics ‘energy’, ‘employment’ and ‘democracy’ were selected for closer inspection.

A confiscated trajectory of secularism: revisiting the critical case of Turkey

ABSTRACT One mark of the rising research field of secularism and religion is that the field itself moved from area studies towards mainstream social science. This move can be traced through the increasing significance of Turkey. Turkey’s AKP was presented as a liberal and moderate challenge to radical Kemalist secularism in Turkish Studies, then analytical pillars of research in comparative politics and political theory relied on this presentation. After AKP’s authoritarian turn, how can we reflect on its past narration as liberal and moderate? As opposed to the thesis of rupture between the early and the late AKP, this article develops the thesis of confiscation. First, I resituate Kemalist secularism vis-à-vis French secularism with comparative history. I argue that institutionally it’s a limited, not a radical, secularism. Then, I examine gradual institutional changes during the AKP with statistics, court decisions, legislation and parliamentary discussions, and demonstrate that limited Kemalist secular institutions ease the way for AKP’s will to religionize society and the state. My analysis tackles a central thesis in the literature: secular institutions can make reasonable accommodations of religion without losing their own core. I show that in Turkey, accommodations of religion turn into confiscation of secular institutions.

Внешнеполитическая программа совре-менных левых Уругвая: региональное и глобальное измерения

Political developments 2020–2021 in Latin America allow us to talk about the beginning of a new left turn in the region. The rise of the in-fluence of left forces on the continent is having an impact on the left in Uruguay, where the traditional right parties are now in power. The pur-pose of this article is to determine the features of the foreign policy program of the modern left forces of Uruguay. Based on party pro-grams, speeches of party leaders, parliamentary discussions, the article shows how the Uruguayan left perceives global and regional processes, how they see the future of the country's foreign policy. Article presents the expert assessments of the effectiveness of modern Uruguayan di-plomacy, shows the scenarios for its changes if the left coalition returns to power. Particular attention is paid to Russian-Uruguayan relations in the context of the left movement.

Many Bodies, One Heart

Many Bodies, One Heart

India's Authoritarian Turn: Understanding the Emergency (1975–1977) and Its Afterlife

On June 25, 1975, Prime Minister (PM) Indira Gandhi imposed a national emergency (the Emergency) in India, suspending civil and political rights. Lasting for 21 months, the Emergency was the only dictatorial turn in India's democratic history. The authoritarian rule was in response to an assertive citizens' protest against Prime Minister Gandhi, which demanded her resignation on the grounds of the centralization of power, corruption, rising prices, and in the name of fair wages for workers and unemployment. The higher courts had also debarred her from contesting elections. Since then, the dominant accounts of this period have tried to ascertain answers to three questions: Why was the Emergency imposed? What did the Emergency entail? And finally, why was it lifted? The books in this review essay together comprise a tour de force on these three aspects, while also seeking to go beyond these questions. Christophe Ja relot and Pratinav Anil's India's First Dictatorship: The Emergency, 1975–77 shows how the Emergency has cast a long shadow and is also a window into understanding some of the present trends in Indian politics. Gyan Prakash's Emergency Chronicles: Indira Gandhi and Democracy's Turning Point claims that the Emergency had both a "before" and "afterlife"; the origins of excessive state power are inherent in the Constitution. Parsa Venkateshwar Rao Jr.'s The Emergency: An Unpopular History provides a revisionist account of the Emergency through the lenses of parliamentary discussions. While engaging with these important books, this review essay suggests an alternate "afterlife" of the Emergency that is untreated in the works discussed here.

Dangerous or Goodly Passions: The Role of Emotion in Parliament and Politics

Dangerous or Goodly Passions: The Role of Emotion in Parliament and Politics

Природно-социальная цивилизационная грань (в парламентском обсуждении Адыгеи)

In the article by F. N. Khuako, against the background of the indicated relevance of issues of the future for world civilizations, the current presence of a civilizational-cultural approach is determined. The objects of article consideration in modern civilizational conditions of a technogenic type are both social and natural components against the backdrop of a number of issues that are today the subject of discussion for parliamentarians of the Republic of Adygea. As is known, all sorts of descriptive variations of today’s post-industrialism, as well as hypothetical models of its development in Russian statehood, are frequent in science. At the same time, ethno-character and the accompanying national thought are developed through a longterm forging of connections within the boundaries of a particular society, with the involvement of its economic, political and historical environments (with mention of the mass expulsions of the humanitarian intelligentsia from the Soviet country that took place at the beginning of the last century. Occupying the author today in the new century, core relationships accompany some personal predetermination. But in modern technocratic world orders, the individual’s aspirations to defeat nature often prevail, which the author illustrates through an analysis of the natural and social topics of the 38th Conference of the South Russian Parliamentary Conference held in May 2023 in Maykop Association (URPA). At the same time, the global human tomorrow is within both the natural and social spheres, due to which there is a global multipolar civilization. At the same time, the global human tomorrow is within both the natural and social spheres, which is clearly evident in example of parliamentary discussion in Adygea.

In-Between Black and White: Defining Racial Boundaries in Colonial Natal at the Turn of the Twentieth Century — Part Two

Mahmood Mamdani has argued that a system of “define and rule” lay at the heart of a revamped system of British colonial rule – indirect as opposed to direct rule – which developed from the middle of the nineteenth century onwards. In analysing parliamentary discussions and case law concerning definitions of “race” dating from the turn of the twentieth century in the colony of Natal, as well as examining concerns amongst the colonists at that time about the matter of racially mixed marriages, this contribution supports Mamdani’s general thesis and provides examples of the practical and ideological difficulties that arose in the process of attempting to define people according to “race” and “tribe”. It is the contention of this contribution that Mamdani is correct in his assessment that “define and rule” lay at the heart of the British colonial project, particularly in Africa. This contribution asserts, however, that the process of definition was messy, ambiguous, contradictory and never fully resolved on the ground. Certain individuals and groups tended to fall between broad definitions of “race” and “tribe”, both of which illustrated the ideological fault lines inherent in a system based upon racial categorisation, giving rise to practical problems of law and governance. The contribution looks at a number of different themes that all relate to the above general issue. First, it discusses a number of judgments of the Supreme Court of Natal during that period that concerned various individuals and groups who did not neatly fit into any of the formal definitions of race in use at the time. Secondly, it examines a fairly extensive debate that took place in the Legislative Assembly of the colony of Natal in 1905 regarding the Native Definition Bill. Thirdly, it examines the related theme of mixed marriages, of which a number were reported in the colony’s newspapers around that time. Even though there may have been relatively few individuals who fell “in-between” the generally accepted racial and tribal divisions, the fact that there was uncertainty about where such persons fitted within the system was profoundly unsettling to the colonial authorities, since it suggested that the entire structure of colonial society was not based on a secure ideological footing.

The Intermediate Education (Ireland) Bill 1878: “a very imperfect attempt to aid Irish intermediate education”?1

ABSTRACT Discussions bearing upon the provision of intermediate (post-primary) schooling in Ireland in the nineteenth century were inextricably interwoven with debates regarding Catholic autonomy there. The establishment, in 1878, of the intermediate system, cannot be understood outside the context of Irish Catholic grievances, imagined or otherwise. This article excavates that theme within the context of the parliamentary debate that resulted in the passing of the Intermediate Education (Ireland) Bill 1878. The study does not range beyond this remit, rather, it seeks to demonstrates how hostility to the Bill, as a form of discreet funding of denominationally owned schools in Ireland, was implicit within objections to the absence of inspection, the form that payment for results might take and, on occasion, explicit in terms of antagonism to state funded Catholic intermediate-type schooling there. Intermediate schools were similar to present-day secondary schools in that they were intended for pupils who had completed primary school and entered pupils for terminal examinations. However, even in the period we are dealing with, definitions were vague. However, for the purposes of convenience, “intermediate”, rather than “secondary” is employed throughout. Intermediate education should not, however, be understood in the contemporary sense of a system underpinned by public money, designed, with a compulsory attendance element, to cater for all and staffed by trained graduates. We are not concerned with individual schools, their daily operation or the development of schools by denominational communities; rather, the article excavates the parliamentary discussion with a view to better understanding the denominational and practical challenges the Intermediate Education (Ireland) Act faced before becoming legislation.