State Apparatus Research Articles

Russian Grain Procurement in a Revolutionary State

Abstract The Russian provisional government and Bolshevik regime, in their respective efforts to address and resolve the food-supply crisis of 1917–19, sought to modernize state-village relations and mobilize peasant-citizens to contribute to the task according to their ability. Grain registration, an accounting of peasant grain stocks to find “surpluses,” was a continuation of a reformist trend within the state bureaucracy to replace customary means of allotting state obligations with an effort to base them on an assessment of household productive capacity. Evidence from Penza Province suggests that grain registration, both data gathering and interpretation, played a complex role in the evolution of grain procurement policy. The implementation of registration was impacted by local conditions and was embraced when and where it served local interests. Registration contributed to significant tensions within the state apparatus; it exacerbated the growth of the localism that undermined the authority of the hierarchical procurement apparatus. Grain registration revealed the adaptability of peasants and local officials in the face of top-down reform and prompted efforts to enhance state effectiveness. Ultimately, the persistent challenges posed by grain registration forced the regime to abandon registration and to reorganize the provincial apparatus to enhance oversight of local officials.

Quality Management Models for Urban Drinking Water Provision: A Comparative Review

Purpose: The management of public resources represents one of the functions of the state apparatus, seeking to safeguard the well-being of the population, particularly in essential resources like potable water. Theoretical framework: The regulatory or normative framework, based on standards and the action of the public health department for potable water care and use, is too extensive and confusing for users, showing weaknesses in its formulation. Method: This review article aims to analyze the models of quality management in the provision of urban potable water, employing a qualitative approach and utilizing the PRISMA methodology. Results and Conclusion:The findings encompass a total of 50 included articles, subjected to eligibility criteria, comprising 76% from the Scopus database, 20% from Proquest, and 4% from Scielo. Consequently, it is concluded that in recent years, the role of the state apparatus in providing urban public potable water services, focusing on quality, has adhered to five management models: direct public management, corporate service enterprise, contracted private management, directly operated private management, and public enterprise. Research implications: The management models ultimately aim to provide quality in the provision of public services, seeking suitability, responsiveness, system assurance, and compensation for the supply and distribution of one of the fundamental resources for human life. Originality/value: This evolution demonstrates that the public role has allied significantly with the private sector, a relationship that has remained, and has yielded positive results in some cases.

Human Right Violation Through State Terrorism in Indonesia

Abstract Indonesia is essentially pluralistic and multicultural. As a diverse country, Indonesia has the largest number of Muslim adherents in the world. The country commits itself on religious tolerance, democratic transformation, and the promotion of human rights. However, many Indonesians face religious discrimination. Laws, policies, and practices contrary to international human rights continue, and the State has been failing to protect its citizens from religious intolerance and violence. Concentration of power, wealth in the hand of oligarchy has caused state terrorism and capital violence. People’s initiatives to solve their own daily lives can be easily crushed. This paper chooses the case of Gafatar to show how state apparatus executed Three Ministerial Decrees as the legal justification of violence to its citizens, besides The Indonesian Council of Religious Scholars banned the Millah Abraham’s teaching, and until today, The Government has not revised it. Indonesia’s commitment to human dignity and harmony is questioned.

Судебная власть в системе средств защиты прав и свобод человека и гражданина

The article is devoted to the study of a number of problems related to the role of the judiciary in the system of means of protecting the rights and freedoms of man and citizen. The author substantiates the point of view that justice differs favorably from other human rights means by being connected by law and law in the substantive and procedural senses, which guarantees the true dominance of legal forms over extra-legal ones. Even if extrajudicial state authorities or local governments exercise their powers in order to realize the legitimate interests of rights holders, such activities should be based on the concept of preventive justice. Any illegal action or inaction of authorized subjects of the state apparatus is under the protective influence of the constitutional institution of subsequent judicial protection, if the right holder considers it necessary to resort to this form when other means have been exhausted.

Public Satisfaction Index for Public Services at the Air Nipis Sub-District Office, South Bengkulu

One of the government agencies tasked with providing services to the community is Air Nipis Sub-District Office, South Bengkulu. Air Nipis Sub-District Office, South Bengkulu has the main task of carrying out services to the community and SubDistrict government affairs. The guidelines used to determine the quality of public services provided to the community by Air Nipis Sub-District Office, South Bengkulu refer to the preparation of the Community Satisfaction Index for public service delivery units which is guided by the Regulation of the Minister for Empowerment of State Apparatus and Bureaucratic Reform of the Republic of Indonesia Number 14 of 2017. The aim of this research is to determine the Community Satisfaction Index with Public Services at Air Nipis Sub-District Office, South Bengkulu. The analytical method used is the Community Satisfaction Index of public service delivery units based on the Regulation of the Minister for Empowerment of State Apparatus and Bureaucratic Reform of the Republic of Indonesia Number 14 of 2017 with 9 indicators in it, namely requirements, procedures, completion time, costs/tariffs, product specifications, types of services, implementing competence, implementing behavior, handling complaints, suggestions and input, facilities and infrastructure. From the analysis of Community Satisfaction Index on the quality of public services Air Nipis SubDistrict Office, South Bengkulu, a value of 76.05 was obtained B in service quality with good criteria because it was in the value interval, namely 62.51-81.25.

State autonomy, economic reform & business elite influence in the GCC

ABSTRACT This study challenges traditional rentier state theory and contributes to a new generation of scholarship focused on state-business relations by evaluating the relationship between different degrees of state policymaking autonomy and business elite influences in political and economic institutions. The findings of this study address central policy questions about economic reform in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. Using primary data from my case studies of Qatar and Kuwait, I posit two arguments. First, states with lesser business elite influence over political institutions have more autonomy to realise their economic reform goals; a less dominant and influential business elite circle will more likely submit to state-led economic reform initiatives. Greater business elite dominance, meanwhile, tends to create a powerful bloc undercutting economic change, such as labour reform or new regulatory frameworks, that would benefit the long-term stability of the state. Second, rentier states with higher degrees of state-led capitalism have more autonomy to conduct economic reforms; state-led capitalism produces more coherent and cohesive state apparatuses that can incentivize business elite cooperation.

The Legal Basis for the Use of Artificial Intelligence in Decision-Making by Public Authorities

This article centers on the legal regulation of artificial intelligence (AI) use in public administration. The main features of AI, the risks associated with its use in the public sector, and its key functions were outlined. The program and strategic plans for AI introduction in Russia were systematized. The prospects for creating a digital state were highlighted. Through careful analysis, the most viable areas of public administration were identified where AI can realize its full technical potential without entirely taking over the tasks of human officials (such as digital controllers, judges, and investigators). A clear distinction was revealed between “weak” AI, a technical assistant and decision-making tool for human officials, and “strong” AI, a fully-fledged subject of legal public relations with legal capacity. The connection between the development of new technologies and the evolution of the state apparatus was stressed. It was concluded that the integration of multiple algorithms in management activities is causing a shift from quantitative to qualitative changes: the ways state bodies exercise their public powers are being altered and revised.

ASSESSMENT OF SERVICE QUALITY OF PASURUAN E-SAMBAT APPLICATION WITH E-GOVQUAL DIMENSION APPROACH

Public services are government mediators in providing services to the needs of the community. The development of technology makes it easier for state and regional apparatuses to provide public services through an application called E-Government. Similarly, the Pasuruan City Communication and Information Agency has tried to organize the E-Sambat application. This study aims to provide an understanding of the quality of E-Sambat services based on the E-GovQual dimension approach, the gap between E-Sambat performance and public expectations for the E-Sambat application, and knowing which items will be prioritized to be immediately improved in the E-Sambat application. To analyze the feasibility of the application using GAP and the Important Performance Analysis (IPA) method is used to analyze items that are prioritized for improvement. Respondents in this study were 445 respondents. Based on the results of the analysis conducted, the quality of E-Sambat application services is very feasible with a feasibility percentage value of 100%, application performance GAP and public expectations for the Ease of Use variable of 0.08, Trust variable of -0.04, Functionality of the Interaction Environment variable of 0.02, Reliability variable of -0.03, Content and Information Display variable of 0.01, and the Community Support variable of 0.00. The overall average gap is 0.01 which means that people are satisfied with the E-Sambat application service. There are six items that are prioritized for improvement, namely TR 1 (security of personal data of E-Sambat users), TR 6 (access control of E-Sambat users), RLB 1 (speed in downloading E-Sambat forms), CAI 7 (use of colors in the E-Sambat application), CAI 8 (graphics in the E-Sambat application), and CS 5 (User questions answered quickly).

Media and Journalism Research in Small European Countries

Big and small states all function as comprehensive entities: they require state apparatuses, the ability to provide services for citizens, the capacity to protect themselves, and appropriate media systems to guarantee a deliberative communication space for democratic processes. Investigating media, in turn, is important since it informs us about risks and opportunities for media transformations. To examine the impact of smallness on monitoring and research capabilities in news media and journalism, we have compared four small European countries with contrasting historical backgrounds and different types of media systems: Austria, Croatia, Estonia, and Latvia. While earlier research has mainly focused on Western European countries, the current study broadens the perspective to Central and Eastern European countries. The analysis shows that smallness can influence research capabilities in different ways, with advantages and disadvantages for media and journalism research. Fewer national resources can foster internationalisation, with the side effect of less attention to country-specific problems. In the situation of growing specialisation in media and journalism research, small countries may be less capable of providing sufficient infrastructure for knowledge exchange. The article builds on research performed within the framework of the H2020 project Mediadelcom.

The insertion of social movements in the protection of the environment: bodies and learnings in the Recôncavo da Bahia

The article discusses the possibilities and actions of social movements and traditional communities in protecting the environment in the Recôncavo da Bahia through interventions of the Federal University of the Recôncavo da Bahia, UFRB. As a territory of identity, the Recôncavo is home to niches for social movements and diverse communities. With their bodies, educational actions, and cultures, they develop actions ranging from the preservation of heritage to the struggle for natural spaces for cultural survival, acting together with the state apparatus to preserve and protect the environment. Methodologically, a bibliographic review was carried out with a study of education, environment, and physical education; as a result, new reflections that may help society preserve the environment with sustainability are proposed. The main results point to strengthening institutional and community configurations, the visualization of collectives and minority groups, and the generation of democratic platforms for change based on the dialogue between different knowledge and world visions. We conclude with the possibility of disciplinary integration and the need for further studies.

Reinventing Government Pelayanan Mobil Siaga Desa

As a state apparatus, it is mandatory to provide quality public services to the community. Service innovation that continues to be carried out makes its own satisfaction value for the community as service recipients. Reinventing government is one of the principles of apparatus performance in New Public Management (NPM) which is a reference for bureaucrats to provide more modern and guaranteed public service innovations. Health services are the most important thing in life, especially in terms of health transportation. The standby car is an example of innovation in health service transportation from the government to be provided to the community to facilitate community facilities and infrastructure in obtaining services. This research on the standby car was conducted to examine the use of reinventing government principles in the village standby car service. This research uses descriptive methods with interviews and observations. Data sources were obtained from the Social Service and the person in charge of managing the village standby car. The findings of this study are that there are still several indicators that are not fulfilled if the standby car service system refers to the principles of reinventing government.

Analysis of the Community Satisfaction Index at the Talang Perapat Village Office, Seluma District, Bengkulu Province

The sample in this study consisted of 80 people from the Talang Perapat Village, Seluma District, who received services from Talang Perapat Village, Seluma District. Data collection uses a questionnaire. The data analysis technique used is to measure the value of the Community Satisfaction Index (IKM) based on the Minister of State Apparatus Empowerment and Bureaucratic Reform Regulation Number 14 of 2017. The Community Satisfaction Index (IKM) for the quality of service at the Talang Perapat Village Office, Seluma District, Bengkulu Province obtained an average value of 3.28, which is considered good. Next, the service unit IKM is multiplied by 25 so that the IKM at the Talang Perapat Village Office, Seluma District, Bengkulu Province is 82.03 with service quality B with good criteria because it is in the value interval of 76.61 – 88.30. The cost/tariff element received the highest assessment with an average value of 3.61 with very good assessment criteria. This illustrates that the community considers that the Talang Perapat Village Office, Seluma District, Bengkulu Province provides services free of charge.

The Competence in the Digital Era in Improving Public Service Performance

This study will explain the competence of human resources in the digital era to influence better performance. The human resources needed by the industry today are those who have competence in using digital technology. This competency is to realize intelligent factories, such as the Internet of Things (IoT). The era of the industrial revolution 4.0 opens opportunities for human resources (HR) to have skills following the latest technological developments. For this reason, civil servants who are state apparatus must be able to answer the challenges and master competencies in the digitalization era, including complex problem solving, critical thinking, creativity, human resource management, coordination with others, emotional intelligence, judgment and decision making, orientation service, Negotiation, and cognitive flexibility. This study uses quantitative research methods through the distribution of questionnaires or questionnaires to respondents who have been determined using sampling. The analytical technique used is structural equation modeling analysis. The results show that the appropriate competencies in the digitalization have a significant influence on the performance of public services.

Divided attention?: the Greek state and the education of the Gastarbeiter children in the Federal Republic of Germany (1960s–70s)

ABSTRACT As the title of the article shows, the Greek state’s attention to the education of its Gastarbeiters’ children appeared divided. The pupils’ attention was shared between the German and the Greek schools and their exigencies. Equally the Greek state’s care was divided between pleasing the different subnational and transnational actors and maintaining cohesive policymaking regarding education. Using the correspondence of the ministries, excerpts from the printed and audiovisual media, and social scientists’ contributions, the author explores how the Greek state apparatus – both authoritarian and democratic – expressed its transnational affect towards its citizens abroad, and most importantly their children, the future of the nation.

Criticism of Multilateral Development Banks Operating Reflections During Covid-19 Pandemic - From the Perspective of the Sovereign Debt

The problem of sovereign debt crises has a long history at the international level, especially in the face of global crises such as the global financial crisis of '08 and the recent COVID-19 pandemic. In the face of the negative social impacts of these emergencies, the state apparatus of each country needs help with relying on domestic channels such as tax revenues and investment returns to maintain efficient operations. It would, therefore, finance other countries in non-domestic currencies, and such a solution would exacerbate countries' sovereign debt crises. Countries have done well in restructuring their sovereign debt in response to sovereign debt crises, especially in Europe and Africa. The International Development Association provided some debt relief to those countries with fragile economies, but the crisis is still present today. In order to expand sustainable financing and maintain economic stability, new multilateral development banks have been established in some regions. These MDBs have been restructuring since the Great Depression, and their lending policies have indeed eased countries' sovereign debt crises to some extent. However, their financing rules have also influenced other countries' policies, making them widely criticised internationally. In the context of COVID-19, both the strengths and weaknesses of MDBs are exposed, so they still have a long way to go before they can become international institutions that can pay attention to disadvantaged countries and help them develop.

From Symbol to Reality: Societal Decoding of Power Relations and Cultural Appropriation

This study aims to examine the influence of the state agenda on the transformation of cultural symbols, specifically focusing on the comedic skits and sketches of the Spring Festival and other similar cases. By analyzing these cultural phenomena, the research seeks to uncover the intricate and strategic ways in which the state agenda shapes and impacts societal dynamics, leading to significant and far-reaching consequences. Based on the empirical evidence presented, this article argues that the state not only participates in a basic process of selecting and modifying culture but also strategically appropriates it through its powerful apparatus, thereby establishing profound connections with the thoughts and emotions of the broader population. The presented analysis demonstrates that the interconnections between cultural symbols, cultural appropriation, and the state apparatus are indicative of more extensive sociological patterns, namely the intricate and multifaceted dynamics of power, culture, and society. The complex interaction described not only influences the production and evolution of cultural symbols but also has an indirect effect on the stability and modification of social structures, as well as the identities and conflicts among both people and groups. The investigation of this intricate interconnection and its significant impact on society will be a subject meriting additional examination in future scholarly inquiries.

The Effect of Human Resource Competency and Organizational Culture on Employee Performance through Work Motivation as an Intervening Variable (Study on State Apparatus in the Attorney General's Office)

The aims of the study were: 1) To determine the effect of competence and organizational culture on employee motivation in the state apparatus within the Attorney General's Office. 2) To analyze the influence of competence, organizational culture, and motivation on state civil servant performance within the Attorney General's office of the Republic of Indonesia. 3) To analyze the effect of competence on employee performance through work motivation as a mediator for state civil apparatus employees in the Attorney General's Office. 4) To analyze the influence of organizational culture on employee performance through work motivation as a mediator for employees of the state civil apparatus in the Attorney General's Office. This study uses a quantitative research method with data collection techniques from 60 respondents who are state civil servants at the Bureau of Planning and Equipment Bureau within the Office of the Attorney General's Office. The analytical method used in this study uses descriptive analysis and path analysis. The results of this study state that: 1) competence and organizational culture positively influence the motivation of ASN work in the Attorney General's Office. 2) There is a positive influence of competence, organizational culture, and motivation on the performance of civil servants in the Attorney General's Office. 3) There is a positive influence of competence on the performance of civil servants in the Attorney General's Office through motivation as an intervening variable. 4) Organizational culture positively influences the performance of civil servants in the Attorney General's Office through motivation as an intervening variable.

Local water bodies and the threat of Slow Violence in Subhash Vyam’s Water

ABSTRACT The developmental projects like dams and other capitalist structures in India, allocate the natural water reserves to elite industrialists and state apparatuses, leaving the local ecosystems impoverished and in the hands of capitalism driven policies, which milk the indigenous population to mollify the materialistic needs of the affluent. This predicament is vividly illustrated in Subhash Vyam’s graphic narrative Water that employs the traditional Gond Art to anchor the consequences of the ‘Slow Violence’ rendered to the local ecosystems owing to the development policies. As the revered natural sources of water in Vyam’s village are regulated through a dam, the rural Indigenous community is deprived of its basic rights to survive, vandalising the pious ‘human-water’ relationship, resulting in ‘a serious ecological crisis’. Drawing theoretical insights from Rob Nixon, Ramachandra Guha and Vandana Shiva, the proposed paper attempts to emphasize that the graphic narrative Water, through its remarkable graphic visuals, conjoined with local customs and folklores, is a reflection of the agony of the indigenous communities. Further, the paper analyses the grim reality that privatisation not only leads to exploitation and consequent depletion of the natural resources, but also robs the local communities of their ways of survival and resource sharing practices.

Mqhayi’s UDon Jadu as a contribution to the ‘Native Republic Policy’ discourse

The central argument of this article is that Mqhayi’s utopian prose, UDon Jadu, reveals that the ‘independent native republic’ discourse that was dominant in the African National Congress and South African Communist Party alliance (1927–1934) had a profound influence on the conceptualisation of Mqhayi’s narrative. The fundamental tenet of his utopia, non-racialism, echoes the basic principle of the envisaged ‘Native Republic Policy’ which, during this period, was the policy of the South African Communist Party (SACP). The argument of this study is that the book is Mqhayi’s creation and his contribution to the model of society envisioned in the native republic debate, specifically by introducing a social and cultural dimension. Because of the segregation ideology (1910–1948), Mqhayi had to find a way of making an encoded political comment through his utopia. However, because of the Cold War (1947–1991) and the apartheid ideology (1948–1990), his inspiration could not be fully exposed by literary critics who feared reprisals from the repressive state apparatus of the time.

ENHANCING THE PROFESSIONALISM OF CIVIL SERVANTS: THE EXPERIENCE OF THE OECD COUNTRIES

Professionalization of official activities is an important link in the process of strengthening the public service and increasing customer focus in relations between the public and private sectors. Time dictates higher demands on the professional and personal qualities of managers and ordinary employees of gov-ernment agencies. Communication skills, flexibility in decision making, and analytical skills come to the fore. The aim of this article is to study the experience of OECD countries in this area, the main trends in the training and retraining of officials, with the development of recommendations for improving ap-proaches to the professionalization of the state apparatus in Kazakhstan. The study examines and sum-marizes cases from countries such as the UK, USA, Canada, Japan, France, Lithuania, and Australia. In addition to the educational component, the policy of civil servants professionalization within the OECD countries is based on the meritocracy principles, gender equality, and continuous improvement of skills. Overall, the core principles for improving public service in OECD countries are professional, strategic and innovative. The paper concludes with recommendations aimed at advancing the professionalization of Kazakhstan’s state apparatus, drawing on current practices and lessons learned from international best practices.