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Over the past five years, the microcredit sector has experienced unprecedented growth. The number of borrowers served by microfinance institutions (MFIs) has increased threefold to reach 120 million clients, according to MIX estimates as of December 2009 and by other estimates the number may be as high 190 million (Microcredit Summit Campaign 2011). In large markets, such as Mexico and South Africa, commercial banks and consumer lending companies have expanded their activities to include microfinance for low-income households. Unfortunately, the growth of microcredit is not always sustainable. Some iconic markets, such as India and Bosnia Herzegovina, are experiencing large-scale credit crises, and they are not alone. The deterioration in the quality of MFI loan portfolios can be attributed to several factors. Some fast growing MFIs have outgrown their risk management systems and controls. These weaknesses have often been exacerbated by high staff turnover, leading to a further erosion of credit discipline. Rapid growth has also been focused in narrow geographies, which in turn affected borrower repayment incentives and behaviors. This report takes a fresh look at the state of credit reporting at the base of the pyramid. The data and analysis for this paper are drawn from International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Consultative Group to Assist the Poorest (CGAP) market intelligence on credit reporting systems. the lessons learned for effective credit reporting at the base of the pyramid and identifies key success factors as well as common challenges.

This is the second volume of the Advances in Global Services and Retail Management Book Series. This volume has the following parts: Part 1: Hospitality and Tourism Part 2: Marketing, E-marketing, and Consumer Behavior Part 3: Management Part 4: Human Resources Management Part 5: Retail Management Part 6: Economics Part 7: Accounting and Finance Part 8: Sustainability and Environmental Issues Part 9: Information Technology ISBN: 978-1-955833-03-5 Hospitality and Tourism Significance of VR in the spa: A spatial analysis Irini Lai Fun Tang, Schultz Zhi Bin Xu, and Eric Chan Social media marketing in rural hospitality and tourism destination research Samuel Adeyinka-Ojo and Shamsul Kamariah Abdullah All aboard! Is space tourism still a fantasy or a reality: An investigation on Turkish market Emrah Tasarer, Vahit Oguz Kiper, Orhan Batman, and Oguz Turkay Strategic consciousness and business performance relationship of open innovation strategies in food and beverage businesses Muhsin Halis, Kazim Ozan Ozer, Hasan Cinnioglu, and Zafer Camlibel The effects of COVID-19 epidemic on guided tours and alternative tour samples from Turkey Bayram Akay The effect of COVID-19 phobia on holiday intention Halil Akmese and Ali Ilgaz The effect of the usage of virtual reality in tourism education on learning motivation Sarp Tahsin Kumlu and Emrah Ozkul The impact of effective implementation of customer relationship management to the success of hotels in Afikpo North local government of Ebonyi State, Nigeria Ogboagha Callister and Managwu Lilian The influence of study travel on quality-oriented education: The case of Handan, China Wang Jingya and Alaa Nimer Abukhalifeh The impact of U.S. Cuba policies on Cuban tourism industry: Focus on the Obama and Trump Administration Jukka M. Laitamaki, Antonio Diaz Medina, and Lisandra Torres Hechavarria Determination of students' characteristics and perspectives about social entrepreneurship: A case of Anadolu University Muhammed Kavak, Ipek Itir Can, and Emre Ozan Aksoz The place of Kazakhstan tourism sector in the countries of the region in terms of transportation infrastructure Maiya Myrzabekova, Muhsin Halis, and Zafer Camlibel What are tour guides most praised for? A sharing economy perspective Derya Demirdelen-Alrawadieh and Ibrahim Cifci An examination of representations for USA in tourism brochures for Chinese market Yasong Wang An exploratory study on cognitive internship perception of tourism students Ozge Buyuk and Gulsah Akkus Are you afraid to travel during COVID-19? Gulsum Tabak, Sibel Canik, and Ebru Guneren Destination management during the health emergency: A bibliometric analysis Valentina Della Corte, Giovanna Del Gaudio, Giuliana Nevola, Enrico Di Taranto, and Simone Luongo Determination of food neophobia levels of International Mersin Citrus Festival participants Sevda Sahilli Birdir, Nurhayat Iflazoglu, and Kemal Birdir Analysis of effectiveness of industrial exposure training undertaken by students of hospitality management in star hotels G. Saravana Kumar Conceptualization of ecotourism service experiences framework from the dimensions of motivation and quality of experiences: Four realms of experience approach Jennifer Kim Lian Chan Does Coronavirus (COVID-19) transform travel and tourism to automation (robots)? M. Omar Parvez, Ali Ozturen, and Cihan Cobanoglu Efficiency of internal control systems and the effect of organizational structure and culture on internal control systems in accommodation industry Kadriye Alev Akmese and Ali Ilgaz Ethical perceptions of housekeeping department employees: A study in Izmir Province Tuba Turkmendag and Bayram Sahin Factors that prevent participation of tourists in online co-creation activities Resat Arica, Feridun Duman, and Abdulkadir Corbaci Health sector after COVID-19: Salt thermal facilities example Azize Serap Tuncer and Sinan Bulut PRISMA statement and thematic analysis framework in hospitality and tourism research Samuel Adeyinka-Ojo Evaluation of Turkish nights as a tourism product: The case of Cappadocia Meral Buyukkuru, Eda Ozgul Katlav, and Firdevs Yonet Eren Customer perceptions against COVID-19 precautionary measures of the restaurants: The case of Istanbul-Turkey Elif Kaymaz and Sevki Ulema Analysis of e-complaints regarding hotel restaurants during COVID-19 process: The case of Antalya Sevim Usta and Serkan Sengul Marketing, E-marketing, and Consumer Behavior Materialistic social consumption amidst COVID-19 pandemic: Terror management theory in the Malaysia context Seong-Yuen Toh and Siew-Wai Yuan A conceptual framework for the mediating role of the flow experience between destination brand experience and destination loyalty Ipek Kazancoglu and Taskin Dirsehan Investigating drivers influencing choice behaviour of Islamic investment products Hanudin Amin Local food festivals within the scope of destination branding Hatice Akturk and Atilla Akbaba Marketing a destination on social media: Case of three municipalities of Izmir Huseyin Ozan Altin and Ige Pirnar Perceived usefulness, ease of use, online trust and online purchase intention: Mediating role of attitude towards online purchase Muhammed Yazeed, Mohammed Aliyu Dantsoho, and Adamu Ado Abubakar Social media framework for businesses Nawel Amrouche Social media marketing the African door of return experience in Badagry-Nigeria Huseyin Arasli, Maryam Abdullahi, and Tugrul Gunay The effect of corporate social responsibility on consumer-based brand equity: A research on automobile brands Ali Koroglu and Ibrahim Avci The effect of superstitions on consumer luck, horoscope and evil eye-oriented purchasing behavior: A study in Turkey Ibrahim Avci and Salih Yildiz The evaluation of S-D orientation on service innovation and performance of airline Inci Polat and Ozlem Atalik Brand new leisure constraint: COVID-19 Guliz Coskun The impact of consumers price level perception on emotions towards supermarkets Abdulcelil Cakici and Sena Tekeli The impact of TikTok's plastic surgery content on adolescents' self-perception and purchase intention Markus Rach Accelerated modernity: What are the social media stories undergraduate students engage with? Pericles Asher Rospigliosi and Sebastian Raza-Mejia Virtual influencer as celebrity endorsers Fanny Cheung and Wing-Fai Leung Does millennial shopping orientation using augmented reality enabled mobile applications really impact product purchase intention? Anil Kumar Exposure to e-cigarette marketing and product use among highly educated adults Onur Sahin Extending the theory of planned behavior to explain intention to use online food delivery services in the context of COVID -19 pandemic Ahmed Chemseddine Bouarar, Smail Mouloudj, and Kamel Mouloudj Factors affecting investors' buying decision in real estate market in Northern Cyprus Gurkan Arslan and Karen Howells From home to the store: Combined effect of music and traffic on consumers shopping behaviour Luigi Piper, Lucrezia Maria de Cosmo, Maria Irene Prete, and Gianluigi Guido Market expansion and business growth from the perspective of resources and capabilities: The case of a micro-enterprise Jose G. Vargas-Hernandez and Omar C. Vargas-Gonzalez How learning style interacts with voice-assisted technology (VAT) in consumer task evaluation Bonnie Canziani and Sara MacSween Effect of brand credibility and innovation on customer based brand equity and overall brand equity in Turkey: An investigation of GSM operators Suphan Nasir and Ozge Guvendik Value chain for a B school in India Vimal Chandra Verma and Devashish Das Gupta Management AI as a boost for startups companies: Evidence from Italy Irene Di Bernardo, Marco Tregua, Greco Fabio, and Ruggiero Andrea The role of quality management applications for corporate reputations Ibrahim Sapaloglu and Isik Cicek Toxicity in organizations: A sample study on the perceived toxicity in Turkish academicians Mustafa Hakan Atasoy and Muhsin Halis Which resources are matter to healthcare performance? A case study on Bahrain Mahmood Asad Ali and Mohamed Sayed Abou Elseoud Case study: HereWay Inc. European expansion: A facility location problem Mikhail M. Sher, Michael T. Paz, and Donald R. (Bob) Smith In search of the effective mission statement: Structural support of the firm's culture to augment financial performance Seong-Yuen Toh Innovation labs to support tourism organization in transforming crisis into opportunities: Insight from a case study Francesco Santarsiero, Daniela Carlucci, and Giovanni Schiuma Novelty and success of healthcare service innovation: A comparison between China and the Netherlands Yu Mu, Rujun Wang and Ying Huang Public private partnership in selected countries: A comparative analysis Bekir Parlak and Abdullahi Suleiman Hashi Strategic orientation of service enterprises towards customers Korhan Arun and Saniye Yildirim Ozmutlu The effects of organizational culture on information sharing attitude Mohammadi Lanbaran Nasrin and Cicek Isik The impact of industry 4.0 strategy on the work-life balance of employees Ali Sukru Cetinkaya The mediating effect of psychological empowerment on inclusive leadership and innovative work behaviour: A research in hotels Emete Toros, Ahmet Maslakci, and Lutfi Surucu Assessment of industry 4.0 on manufacturing enterprises: Demographic perspective Ali Sukru Cetinkaya and M. Kemal Unsacar Human Resources Management Affective commitment in new hires' onboarding? The role of organizational socialization in the fashion retail industry Pui Sze Chan, Ho Ching Ching, Pui Yi Ng, and Annie Ko Do burnout perception levels of nurses working in the health sector differ according to demographic characteristics? Irfan Akkoc and Korhan Arun Examining a moderating effect of employee turnover between recruitment and selection practice and organizational performance in Maldives civil service sector Fathmath Muna, Azam S. M. Ferdous, and Ahmad Albattat Personnel relationships in the workplace Ali Sukru Cetinkaya, Shafiq Habibi, and Umut Yavuz The evolution of human resources empowerment theory: A literature review (1970–2020) Theodoros Stavrinoudis and Moschos Psimoulis Teamwork, satisfaction and mediating effect of affective, continuance and normative commitments on employee's loyalty Thalita Aparecida Costa Nicolleti, Eduardo Roque Mangini, Leonardo Aureliano-Silva, Cristiane Sales Pires, and Carolina Aparecida de Freitas Dias Perceptions of teachers in educational institutions regarding the principles of teaching professional ethics Gulsah Aki, Nejat Ira, and Hasan Arslan Influence of psychological empowerment on employee competence in Nigerian universal basic education system: The mediating role of work engagement Isah Sani, Rashidah Binti Mohammad Ibrahim, and Fazida Karim Retail Management Artificial intelligence in retailing Ibrahim Kircova, Munise Hayrun Saglam, and Sirin Gizem Kose Customer value in retailing (2000-2020): A narrative review and future research directions Rajat Gera and Ashish Pruthi Effect of social media marketing on online retail performance of Konga Nigeria LTD Abubakar Ado Adamu, Muhammed Yazeed, Mohammed Aliyu Dantsoho, Jamilu Abdulkadir, and Aliyu Audu Gemu Employment of blue-collar workers in organized retail sector: The case of Turkey Inci Kayhan-Kuzgun Saving grace: Digitization to stay or address crisis? Smitha Vasudevan Inclusion of disabled consumers in online retail landscape: Web accessibility conformance of Turkish organized food retailers' web sites Asiye Ayben Celik A customer segmentation model proposal for retailers: RFM-V Pinar Ozkan and Ipek Deveci Kocakoc Economics Nigeria's economic management: Reflections through monthly interest rate movement from 1996 to 2020 and beyond Job Nmadu, Halima Sallawu, and Yebosoko Nmadu A qualitative study of perceptions of the residents of Sidon, Lebanon regarding the economic effect on Sidon with reference to repatriation of the Palestinian refugees Raja El Majzoub and Karen Howells Three keys of development: Knowledge, efficiency and innovative entrepreneurship Irfan Kalayci, Ali Soylu, and Baris Aytekin Tourism and women empowerment: Empirical findings from past experience and predictions for the post-COVID era Burcu Turkcan COVID-19 effect on FDI motivation and their impact on service sector: Case of Georgia Vakhtang Charaia and Mariam Lashkhi Economic cooperation between Central Caucasus, China, and EU, under COVID-19 challenges Vakhtang Charaia and Mariam Lashkhi Effect of real exchange rate and income on international tourist arrivals for Turkey Erhan Aslanoglu, Oral Erdogan, and Yasin Enes Aksu Innovative entrepreneurship in Turkey: Micro and macro perspectives Irfan Kalayci, Baris Aytekin, and Ali Soylu Optimal fiscal and price stability in Germany: Autoregressive distributed lags (ARDL) cointegration relationship Ergin Akalpler and Dahiru Alhaji Birnintsabas Struggle with COVID-19 crisis within the scope of financial national security: The example of the Republic of Turkey Silacan Karakus The nexus between fiscal freedom and investment freedom: The case of E7 countries Mehmet Bolukbas To be or not to be a female entrepreneur in the Mexicali Valley Roberto Burgueno Romero and Jose David Ledezma Torrez Accounting and Finance Comparative measurement of working capital efficiency for Borsa Istanbul restaurants and hotels for the COVID-19 period and previous quarters Fatih Gunay and Gary Cokins Relationship between business confidence index and non-financial firms foreign exchange assets and liabilities: Evidence from ARDL bound approach Ilkut Elif Kandil-Goker The impact of RTGS on internal control - A comparative study between some Iraqi banks Salowan H. Al Taee and Noor A. Radhi The impact of working capital on cash management under IAS 7 framework: An examination of tourism listed companies in Indonesia and Turkey Tri Damayanti and Tuba Derya Baskan A nexus between mergers & acquisitions and financial performance of firms: A study of industrial sector of Pakistan Fiza Quareshi, Mukhtiar Ali, and Salar Hussain Decentralized approach to deep-learning based asset allocation Sarthak Sengupta, Priyanshu Priyam, and Anurika Vaish Sustainability and Environmental Issues Blockchain technology applied to the Consortium Etna DOC to avoid counterfeiting Matarazzo Agata, Edoardo Carmelo Spampinato, Sergio Arfo, Ugo Sinigaglia, Antonino Bajeli, and Salvino Benanti Eco-label certification, hotel performance and customer satisfaction: Analysis of a case study and future developments Michele Preziosi, Alessia Acampora, Roberto Merli, and Maria Claudia Lucchetti The integration of circular economy in the tourism industry: A framework for the implementation of circular hotels Martina Sgambati, Alessia Acampora, Olimpia Martucci, and Maria Claudia Lucchetti Using the theory of planned behavior to explore green food purchase intentions Katrina Anna Auza and Kamel Mouloudj Survey on purchasing methods of food products in Tarragona and Catania Matarazzo Agata, Vazzano Tommaso Alberto, and Squillaci Carmelo Information Technology Comparative analysis of tools for matching work-related skill profiles with CV data and other unstructured data Florian Beuttiker, Stefan Roth, Tobias Steinacher, and Thomas Hanne State-of-the-art next generation open innovation platforms Murielle De Roche, Monika Blaser, Patrick Hollinger, and Thomas Hanne The coverage of AIOT based functional service: Case study of Asian futuristic hotel Gege Wang, Irini Lai Fun Tang, Eric Chan, and Wai Hung Wilco Chan The effect of the blockchain technology on service companies and food retailers: An overview of the blockchain use cases and applications Gokhan Kirbac and Erkut Ergenc The regulation problem of cryptocurrencies Lamiha Ozturk and Ece Sulungur Understanding information technology acceptance by physicians: Testing technology acceptance model Anuruddha Indika Jagoda

This is the second volume of the Advances in Global Services and Retail Management Book Series. This volume has the following parts: Part 1: Hospitality and Tourism Part 2: Marketing, E-marketing, and Consumer Behavior Part 3: Management Part 4: Human Resources Management Part 5: Retail Management Part 6: Economics Part 7: Accounting and Finance Part 8: Sustainability and Environmental Issues Part 9: Information Technology ISBN: 978-1-955833-03-5 Hospitality and Tourism Significance of VR in the spa: A spatial analysis Irini Lai Fun Tang, Schultz Zhi Bin Xu, and Eric Chan Social media marketing in rural hospitality and tourism destination research Samuel Adeyinka-Ojo and Shamsul Kamariah Abdullah All aboard! Is space tourism still a fantasy or a reality: An investigation on Turkish market Emrah Tasarer, Vahit Oguz Kiper, Orhan Batman, and Oguz Turkay Strategic consciousness and business performance relationship of open innovation strategies in food and beverage businesses Muhsin Halis, Kazim Ozan Ozer, Hasan Cinnioglu, and Zafer Camlibel The effects of COVID-19 epidemic on guided tours and alternative tour samples from Turkey Bayram Akay The effect of COVID-19 phobia on holiday intention Halil Akmese and Ali Ilgaz The effect of the usage of virtual reality in tourism education on learning motivation Sarp Tahsin Kumlu and Emrah Ozkul The impact of effective implementation of customer relationship management to the success of hotels in Afikpo North local government of Ebonyi State, Nigeria Ogboagha Callister and Managwu Lilian The influence of study travel on quality-oriented education: The case of Handan, China Wang Jingya and Alaa Nimer Abukhalifeh The impact of U.S. Cuba policies on Cuban tourism industry: Focus on the Obama and Trump Administration Jukka M. Laitamaki, Antonio Diaz Medina, and Lisandra Torres Hechavarria Determination of students' characteristics and perspectives about social entrepreneurship: A case of Anadolu University Muhammed Kavak, Ipek Itir Can, and Emre Ozan Aksoz The place of Kazakhstan tourism sector in the countries of the region in terms of transportation infrastructure Maiya Myrzabekova, Muhsin Halis, and Zafer Camlibel What are tour guides most praised for? A sharing economy perspective Derya Demirdelen-Alrawadieh and Ibrahim Cifci An examination of representations for USA in tourism brochures for Chinese market Yasong Wang An exploratory study on cognitive internship perception of tourism students Ozge Buyuk and Gulsah Akkus Are you afraid to travel during COVID-19? Gulsum Tabak, Sibel Canik, and Ebru Guneren Destination management during the health emergency: A bibliometric analysis Valentina Della Corte, Giovanna Del Gaudio, Giuliana Nevola, Enrico Di Taranto, and Simone Luongo Determination of food neophobia levels of International Mersin Citrus Festival participants Sevda Sahilli Birdir, Nurhayat Iflazoglu, and Kemal Birdir Analysis of effectiveness of industrial exposure training undertaken by students of hospitality management in star hotels G. Saravana Kumar Conceptualization of ecotourism service experiences framework from the dimensions of motivation and quality of experiences: Four realms of experience approach Jennifer Kim Lian Chan Does Coronavirus (COVID-19) transform travel and tourism to automation (robots)? M. Omar Parvez, Ali Ozturen, and Cihan Cobanoglu Efficiency of internal control systems and the effect of organizational structure and culture on internal control systems in accommodation industry Kadriye Alev Akmese and Ali Ilgaz Ethical perceptions of housekeeping department employees: A study in Izmir Province Tuba Turkmendag and Bayram Sahin Factors that prevent participation of tourists in online co-creation activities Resat Arica, Feridun Duman, and Abdulkadir Corbaci Health sector after COVID-19: Salt thermal facilities example Azize Serap Tuncer and Sinan Bulut PRISMA statement and thematic analysis framework in hospitality and tourism research Samuel Adeyinka-Ojo Evaluation of Turkish nights as a tourism product: The case of Cappadocia Meral Buyukkuru, Eda Ozgul Katlav, and Firdevs Yonet Eren Customer perceptions against COVID-19 precautionary measures of the restaurants: The case of Istanbul-Turkey Elif Kaymaz and Sevki Ulema Analysis of e-complaints regarding hotel restaurants during COVID-19 process: The case of Antalya Sevim Usta and Serkan Sengul Marketing, E-marketing, and Consumer Behavior Materialistic social consumption amidst COVID-19 pandemic: Terror management theory in the Malaysia context Seong-Yuen Toh and Siew-Wai Yuan A conceptual framework for the mediating role of the flow experience between destination brand experience and destination loyalty Ipek Kazancoglu and Taskin Dirsehan Investigating drivers influencing choice behaviour of Islamic investment products Hanudin Amin Local food festivals within the scope of destination branding Hatice Akturk and Atilla Akbaba Marketing a destination on social media: Case of three municipalities of Izmir Huseyin Ozan Altin and Ige Pirnar Perceived usefulness, ease of use, online trust and online purchase intention: Mediating role of attitude towards online purchase Muhammed Yazeed, Mohammed Aliyu Dantsoho, and Adamu Ado Abubakar Social media framework for businesses Nawel Amrouche Social media marketing the African door of return experience in Badagry-Nigeria Huseyin Arasli, Maryam Abdullahi, and Tugrul Gunay The effect of corporate social responsibility on consumer-based brand equity: A research on automobile brands Ali Koroglu and Ibrahim Avci The effect of superstitions on consumer luck, horoscope and evil eye-oriented purchasing behavior: A study in Turkey Ibrahim Avci and Salih Yildiz The evaluation of S-D orientation on service innovation and performance of airline Inci Polat and Ozlem Atalik Brand new leisure constraint: COVID-19 Guliz Coskun The impact of consumers price level perception on emotions towards supermarkets Abdulcelil Cakici and Sena Tekeli The impact of TikTok's plastic surgery content on adolescents' self-perception and purchase intention Markus Rach Accelerated modernity: What are the social media stories undergraduate students engage with? Pericles Asher Rospigliosi and Sebastian Raza-Mejia Virtual influencer as celebrity endorsers Fanny Cheung and Wing-Fai Leung Does millennial shopping orientation using augmented reality enabled mobile applications really impact product purchase intention? Anil Kumar Exposure to e-cigarette marketing and product use among highly educated adults Onur Sahin Extending the theory of planned behavior to explain intention to use online food delivery services in the context of COVID -19 pandemic Ahmed Chemseddine Bouarar, Smail Mouloudj, and Kamel Mouloudj Factors affecting investors' buying decision in real estate market in Northern Cyprus Gurkan Arslan and Karen Howells From home to the store: Combined effect of music and traffic on consumers shopping behaviour Luigi Piper, Lucrezia Maria de Cosmo, Maria Irene Prete, and Gianluigi Guido Market expansion and business growth from the perspective of resources and capabilities: The case of a micro-enterprise Jose G. Vargas-Hernandez and Omar C. Vargas-Gonzalez How learning style interacts with voice-assisted technology (VAT) in consumer task evaluation Bonnie Canziani and Sara MacSween Effect of brand credibility and innovation on customer based brand equity and overall brand equity in Turkey: An investigation of GSM operators Suphan Nasir and Ozge Guvendik Value chain for a B school in India Vimal Chandra Verma and Devashish Das Gupta Management AI as a boost for startups companies: Evidence from Italy Irene Di Bernardo, Marco Tregua, Greco Fabio, and Ruggiero Andrea The role of quality management applications for corporate reputations Ibrahim Sapaloglu and Isik Cicek Toxicity in organizations: A sample study on the perceived toxicity in Turkish academicians Mustafa Hakan Atasoy and Muhsin Halis Which resources are matter to healthcare performance? A case study on Bahrain Mahmood Asad Ali and Mohamed Sayed Abou Elseoud Case study: HereWay Inc. European expansion: A facility location problem Mikhail M. Sher, Michael T. Paz, and Donald R. (Bob) Smith In search of the effective mission statement: Structural support of the firm's culture to augment financial performance Seong-Yuen Toh Innovation labs to support tourism organization in transforming crisis into opportunities: Insight from a case study Francesco Santarsiero, Daniela Carlucci, and Giovanni Schiuma Novelty and success of healthcare service innovation: A comparison between China and the Netherlands Yu Mu, Rujun Wang and Ying Huang Public private partnership in selected countries: A comparative analysis Bekir Parlak and Abdullahi Suleiman Hashi Strategic orientation of service enterprises towards customers Korhan Arun and Saniye Yildirim Ozmutlu The effects of organizational culture on information sharing attitude Mohammadi Lanbaran Nasrin and Cicek Isik The impact of industry 4.0 strategy on the work-life balance of employees Ali Sukru Cetinkaya The mediating effect of psychological empowerment on inclusive leadership and innovative work behaviour: A research in hotels Emete Toros, Ahmet Maslakci, and Lutfi Surucu Assessment of industry 4.0 on manufacturing enterprises: Demographic perspective Ali Sukru Cetinkaya and M. Kemal Unsacar Human Resources Management Affective commitment in new hires' onboarding? The role of organizational socialization in the fashion retail industry Pui Sze Chan, Ho Ching Ching, Pui Yi Ng, and Annie Ko Do burnout perception levels of nurses working in the health sector differ according to demographic characteristics? Irfan Akkoc and Korhan Arun Examining a moderating effect of employee turnover between recruitment and selection practice and organizational performance in Maldives civil service sector Fathmath Muna, Azam S. M. Ferdous, and Ahmad Albattat Personnel relationships in the workplace Ali Sukru Cetinkaya, Shafiq Habibi, and Umut Yavuz The evolution of human resources empowerment theory: A literature review (1970–2020) Theodoros Stavrinoudis and Moschos Psimoulis Teamwork, satisfaction and mediating effect of affective, continuance and normative commitments on employee's loyalty Thalita Aparecida Costa Nicolleti, Eduardo Roque Mangini, Leonardo Aureliano-Silva, Cristiane Sales Pires, and Carolina Aparecida de Freitas Dias Perceptions of teachers in educational institutions regarding the principles of teaching professional ethics Gulsah Aki, Nejat Ira, and Hasan Arslan Influence of psychological empowerment on employee competence in Nigerian universal basic education system: The mediating role of work engagement Isah Sani, Rashidah Binti Mohammad Ibrahim, and Fazida Karim Retail Management Artificial intelligence in retailing Ibrahim Kircova, Munise Hayrun Saglam, and Sirin Gizem Kose Customer value in retailing (2000-2020): A narrative review and future research directions Rajat Gera and Ashish Pruthi Effect of social media marketing on online retail performance of Konga Nigeria LTD Abubakar Ado Adamu, Muhammed Yazeed, Mohammed Aliyu Dantsoho, Jamilu Abdulkadir, and Aliyu Audu Gemu Employment of blue-collar workers in organized retail sector: The case of Turkey Inci Kayhan-Kuzgun Saving grace: Digitization to stay or address crisis? Smitha Vasudevan Inclusion of disabled consumers in online retail landscape: Web accessibility conformance of Turkish organized food retailers' web sites Asiye Ayben Celik A customer segmentation model proposal for retailers: RFM-V Pinar Ozkan and Ipek Deveci Kocakoc Economics Nigeria's economic management: Reflections through monthly interest rate movement from 1996 to 2020 and beyond Job Nmadu, Halima Sallawu, and Yebosoko Nmadu A qualitative study of perceptions of the residents of Sidon, Lebanon regarding the economic effect on Sidon with reference to repatriation of the Palestinian refugees Raja El Majzoub and Karen Howells Three keys of development: Knowledge, efficiency and innovative entrepreneurship Irfan Kalayci, Ali Soylu, and Baris Aytekin Tourism and women empowerment: Empirical findings from past experience and predictions for the post-COVID era Burcu Turkcan COVID-19 effect on FDI motivation and their impact on service sector: Case of Georgia Vakhtang Charaia and Mariam Lashkhi Economic cooperation between Central Caucasus, China, and EU, under COVID-19 challenges Vakhtang Charaia and Mariam Lashkhi Effect of real exchange rate and income on international tourist arrivals for Turkey Erhan Aslanoglu, Oral Erdogan, and Yasin Enes Aksu Innovative entrepreneurship in Turkey: Micro and macro perspectives Irfan Kalayci, Baris Aytekin, and Ali Soylu Optimal fiscal and price stability in Germany: Autoregressive distributed lags (ARDL) cointegration relationship Ergin Akalpler and Dahiru Alhaji Birnintsabas Struggle with COVID-19 crisis within the scope of financial national security: The example of the Republic of Turkey Silacan Karakus The nexus between fiscal freedom and investment freedom: The case of E7 countries Mehmet Bolukbas To be or not to be a female entrepreneur in the Mexicali Valley Roberto Burgueno Romero and Jose David Ledezma Torrez Accounting and Finance Comparative measurement of working capital efficiency for Borsa Istanbul restaurants and hotels for the COVID-19 period and previous quarters Fatih Gunay and Gary Cokins Relationship between business confidence index and non-financial firms foreign exchange assets and liabilities: Evidence from ARDL bound approach Ilkut Elif Kandil-Goker The impact of RTGS on internal control - A comparative study between some Iraqi banks Salowan H. Al Taee and Noor A. Radhi The impact of working capital on cash management under IAS 7 framework: An examination of tourism listed companies in Indonesia and Turkey Tri Damayanti and Tuba Derya Baskan A nexus between mergers & acquisitions and financial performance of firms: A study of industrial sector of Pakistan Fiza Quareshi, Mukhtiar Ali, and Salar Hussain Decentralized approach to deep-learning based asset allocation Sarthak Sengupta, Priyanshu Priyam, and Anurika Vaish Sustainability and Environmental Issues Blockchain technology applied to the Consortium Etna DOC to avoid counterfeiting Matarazzo Agata, Edoardo Carmelo Spampinato, Sergio Arfo, Ugo Sinigaglia, Antonino Bajeli, and Salvino Benanti Eco-label certification, hotel performance and customer satisfaction: Analysis of a case study and future developments Michele Preziosi, Alessia Acampora, Roberto Merli, and Maria Claudia Lucchetti The integration of circular economy in the tourism industry: A framework for the implementation of circular hotels Martina Sgambati, Alessia Acampora, Olimpia Martucci, and Maria Claudia Lucchetti Using the theory of planned behavior to explore green food purchase intentions Katrina Anna Auza and Kamel Mouloudj Survey on purchasing methods of food products in Tarragona and Catania Matarazzo Agata, Vazzano Tommaso Alberto, and Squillaci Carmelo Information Technology Comparative analysis of tools for matching work-related skill profiles with CV data and other unstructured data Florian Beuttiker, Stefan Roth, Tobias Steinacher, and Thomas Hanne State-of-the-art next generation open innovation platforms Murielle De Roche, Monika Blaser, Patrick Hollinger, and Thomas Hanne The coverage of AIOT based functional service: Case study of Asian futuristic hotel Gege Wang, Irini Lai Fun Tang, Eric Chan, and Wai Hung Wilco Chan The effect of the blockchain technology on service companies and food retailers: An overview of the blockchain use cases and applications Gokhan Kirbac and Erkut Ergenc The regulation problem of cryptocurrencies Lamiha Ozturk and Ece Sulungur Understanding information technology acceptance by physicians: Testing technology acceptance model Anuruddha Indika Jagoda

This note aims to build understanding of the existing disaster risk financing and insurance (DRFI) tools in use in Fiji and to identify gaps where potential engagement could further develop financial resilience. In addition the note aims to encourage peer exchange of regional knowledge, specifically by encouraging dialogue on past experiences, lessons learned, optimal use of these financial tools, and the effect they may have on the execution of post-disaster funds. In 2012 alone Fiji experienced three major events with estimated total damage of F$146 million (US$78 million). Fiji is expected to incur, on average over the long term, annual losses of F$158 million (US$85 million) due to earthquakes and tropical cyclones. In the next 50 years Fiji has a 50 percent chance of experiencing a loss exceeding F$1,500 million (US$806 million). The country has a taken a proactive approach to DRFI and developed a finance manual for post-disaster budget execution. The government now has F$3 million (US$1.6 million) available in DRFI instruments to facilitate disaster response and also implemented tax concessions to encourage donations in the wake of tropical cyclone Evan. A number of options to support ongoing DRFI improvements in Fiji are presented for consideration: (a) the finance manual developed by the Ministry of Finance for post-disaster procedures should be finalized, and cabinet approval should be sought; (b) an overarching disaster risk financing and insurance strategy should be developed that includes options for risk transfer; and (c) assets should be identified in order to develop an insurance program for critical public assets.

Based on preliminary estimates, the Lao People's Democratic Republic (PDR) economy grew by 7.5 percent in 2014, compared to an average of 8 percent over 2011-13. Looking forward, real gross domestic product (GDP) growth is projected to slow further in 2015 before accelerating in the medium term. Average annual inflation in 2014 decelerated to 4.2 percent from 6.4 percent a year earlier, driven primarily by slower growth in food prices and a decline in fuel prices. In response to a widened fiscal deficit in FY2012-13, the government embarked on much needed fiscal corrective measures in FY2013-14 and FY2014-15. Foreign exchange reserves coverage remains low as compared with prudential benchmarks. While the nominal exchange rate remained relatively stable within the band set by the Bank of Laos (BOL), the real exchange rate continued to appreciate. Indications in 2014 are that bank credit growth is slowing down sharply compared to its previous rapid pace over several years. In order to grasp new opportunities and enjoy the benefits of regional integration, it is necessary for Lao PDR to take steps to create a conducive business environment. In order to achieve broad-based, inclusive growth and poverty reduction in Lao PDR, channeling greater resources toward tackling key workforce skills and productivity challenges is of significant importance.

Financial service provision has expanded since the 2004 financial sector assessment program (FSAP) update, but access to financial services can expand greatly through mobile banking. An estimated 47 percent of adults in El Salvador have deposit accounts at a regulated financial institution, similar to the Latin American average. Although a range of range of bank and non-bank institutions serve the micro and Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) finance market, significant financial services provision is occurring outside of the regulatory perimeter. Improvements in credit information systems, simplification of credit documentation processes, and a strengthened legal framework for factoring can help facilitate SMEs access to credit. Issues of financial transparency and consumer protection are of increasing importance to the Salvadoran authorities, although resources for enforcement are limited. Both public and private entities are engaging in educational activities to promote financial literacy have the potential to play an important role in curbing over indebtedness. However, the consumer defense agency (Defensoria al Consumidor) lacks sufficient resources for enforcement of consumer protection laws. This paper is divided into following six parts: first part gives overview of financial access and usage patterns; the second part gives information on funding and savings products commercialized; the third part gives market participants; fourth part is legal and regulatory impediments to credit; fifth part deals with supervisory and regulatory perimeter issues; and sixth part is transparency, consumer protection, and financial literacy.

This paper attempts to use network theory, drawn from recent work in sociology, engineering, and biological systems, to suggest that the current crisis should be viewed as a network crisis. The author surveys the concepts of networks, their defining characteristics, applications to financial markets, and the need for supervision and implications for national and global governance. Then, author briefly examines the current financial crisis in the light of the network analysis and surveys the recent reforms in financial regulation and architecture. The paper concludes with an analysis of the policy implications of network analysis.

This assessment forms part of the joint International Monetary Fund (IMF) World Bank Indonesia Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP) which is being undertaken during 2009-2010. The assessment, which covers the private sector equity and corporate bonds securities system's observance of the Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems / International Organization of Securities Commissions (CPSS/IOSCO) recommendations for securities settlement systems, was conducted during an ad hoc mission. The assessment focuses on two types of trades. First the clearing and settlement process is assessed as regards equity transactions traded on the stock exchange Indonesian Stock Exchange (IDX), cleared through the Clearing and Guarantee Corporation (KPEI) clearing system (e-CLEARS) and settled through the Central Securities Depository for the Stock Exchange securities (KSEI) settlement system (C-BEST). In addition, the assessment focuses on corporate bond transactions, which are traded outside the exchange and settled through the KSEI settlement system (C-BEST).

The Indonesian economic quarterly reports on and synthesizes the past three months' key developments in Indonesia's economy. Its coverage ranges from the macro economy to financial markets to indicators of human welfare and development. It is intended for a wide audience, including policy makers, business leaders, and financial market participants, and the community of analysts and professionals engaged in Indonesia's evolving economy. The challenge for Indonesia is to maximize the opportunities that this brings, in terms of enhancing future growth and making investments that can improve the welfare of the entire population, while managing the associated risks. Strong capital inflows, particularly portfolio, have been seen across emerging markets, including Indonesia. These inflows are driven by yield differentials and the stronger growth prospects, and improved creditworthiness, of emerging economies relative to heavily indebted, higher-income economies. Further quantitative easing in the US has provided an additional, cyclical boost to this trend. Global commodity prices also picked up in recent months. In November, the US dollar price of non-energy commodities rose by 3.4 percent over the month with food and raw material prices up by 4.9 percent and 7.6 percent, respectively. The underlying drivers were strong growth in demand from emerging economies, particularly China, and also supply disruptions in the agriculture sector.

The improvement in public finances since last year, coupled with buoyant revenue due to the commodity price recovery, has led to growing pressures for increased government spending. Recently approved budget amendments envisage a 4.5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) increase in spending on the originally approved 2010 budget, while the Mid-Term Budget Framework (MTBF) for 2011-2013 projects another 12.1 percent of GDP increase in spending in 2011. The main driver for the increases is the execution of promises made by both coalition parties to distribute monthly percentage rate, or MNT 1.5million (around US$1000) to each citizen in the form of cash and non-cash handouts and large public sector wage increases planned for October of this year. If these public spending plans materialize, they will set the stage for a renewed bout of high inflation and a possible return to the macroeconomic vulnerability characteristic of the boom-and-bust cycle of the recent past. In the real sector, the impact of increasing inflation is evidenced through a decline in real wages. The latest informal wage survey indicates that on average, workers' nominal wages have increased by about 10 percent from January 2010 to June 2010; this is because of an increase in job opportunities in the construction sector. Real wages, however, have declined on average due to the significant increase in the consumer price index.

After stagnating for much of its postcolonial history, economic performance in Sub?Saharan Africa has markedly improved. Since 1995, average economic growth has been close to 5 percent per year. Has Africa finally turned the corner? This paper analyzes growth accelerations and decelerations-that is, country level deviations from long?run trend growth. Seen from this perspective, Africa's record of slow and volatile growth reflects a pattern of offsetting accelerations and declines, and much of the improvement in economic performance in Africa post 1995 turns out to be due to a substantial reduction in the frequency and severity of growth decelerations. The fall in economic declines since 1995 is largely due to better macroeconomic policies, but changes in such 'growth determinants' as investment, export diversification, and productivity have not accompanied the growth boom. Lack of change in these variables and the significant role played by natural resources in sparking growth accelerations suggest that Africa's growth recovery was fragile, even before the recent global economic crisis. The paper concludes by setting out four elements of a strategy that can help move Africa from fewer mistakes to sustained growth: managing natural resources better, pushing nontraditional exports, building the African private sector, and creating new skills.

After stagnating for much of its postcolonial history, economic performance in Sub?Saharan Africa has markedly improved. Since 1995, average economic growth has been close to 5 percent per year. Has Africa finally turned the corner? This paper analyzes growth accelerations and decelerations-that is, country level deviations from long?run trend growth. Seen from this perspective, Africa's record of slow and volatile growth reflects a pattern of offsetting accelerations and declines, and much of the improvement in economic performance in Africa post 1995 turns out to be due to a substantial reduction in the frequency and severity of growth decelerations. The fall in economic declines since 1995 is largely due to better macroeconomic policies, but changes in such 'growth determinants' as investment, export diversification, and productivity have not accompanied the growth boom. Lack of change in these variables and the significant role played by natural resources in sparking growth accelerations suggest that Africa's growth recovery was fragile, even before the recent global economic crisis. The paper concludes by setting out four elements of a strategy that can help move Africa from fewer mistakes to sustained growth: managing natural resources better, pushing nontraditional exports, building the African private sector, and creating new skills.

IN CROATIAN: Okrugli stol Mreža naselja u umreženom društvu: društvene i prostorne promjene u nekim tranzicijskim zemljama održan je 2. lipnja 2006. godine u Institutu za društvena istraživanja u Zagrebu. Organizirala ga je grupa za istraživanje prostora, sela i grada iz IDIZ-a vezujući ga uz znanstvenoistraživački projekt Sociološki aspekti mreže naselja u kontekstu tranzicije (2002.-2005.). Navedeni projekt i okrugli stol realizirani su uz novčanu potporu Ministarstva obrazovanja, znanosti i športa RH. Okrugli stol bio je podijeljen na dva tematska dijela. U prvom dijelu, pod nazivom Mreža naselja u umreženom društvu, raspravljalo se o tematskom broju Sociologije sela (169/2005.) s radovima na temu Sociologijski aspekti mreže naselja, proizišlim iz spomenutoga projekta. U drugom dijelu otvorena je diskusija na temu Akteri društvenih promjena u prostoru i to kako u Hrvatskoj tako i u nama susjednim tranzicijskim zemljama, Sloveniji i Srbiji. Iz Slovenije su sudjelovali i izlagali prof dr. Zdravko Mlinar i dr. sc. Marjan Hoćevar (obojica iz Ljubljane), a iz Srbije dr. sc. Ksenija Petovar, dr. sc. Sreten Vujović, dr. sc. Miodrag Vujošević (svi iz Beograda) i dr. sc. Ljubinko Pušić (iz Novog Sada). Iz Hrvatske su, uz sudionike iz Instituta za društvena istraživanja u Zagrebu, bili pozvani izlagači iz nekoliko institucija - Filozofskog fakulteta Sveučilišta u Zagrebu, Instituta društvenih znanosti "Ivo Pilar" iz Zagreba, Studijskog centra za socijalni rad Pravnoga fakulteta Sveučilišta u Zagrebu, Ministarstva zaštite okoliša, graditeljstva i prostornog uređenja, te nekih drugih institucija. U spomenutom tematskom broju Sociologije sela objavljena su dva podskupa radova koji se odnose na fenomen umreženoga društva (networked society) i mrežu naselja (settlements network). Prvi podskup čine radovi proizišli iz znanstvenoistraživačkog projekta Sociološki aspekti mreže naselja u kontekstu tranzicije u kojem je objavljeno pet izvornih znanstvenih radova troje istraživača - Alije Hodžića, Dušice Seferagić i Milana Župančića. Drugi podskup sadrži pet predmetno srodnih tekstova šestoro inozemnih autora - Marjana Hočevara i Zdravka Mlinara iz Slovenije, Ksenije Petovar i Ljubinka Pušića iz Srbije, te Zorana Roce i Marije de Nazare Oliveira Roca iz Portugala. Skup je otvorila dr. sc. Dušica Seferagić i njime koordinirala u suradnji s mr. sc. Alijom Hodžicern. U uvodnim izlaganjima sudjelovali su i mr. sc. Alija Hodžić i Antun Petak (obojica iz Zagreba - IDIZ), koji su iznijeli iscrpna izvješća o rezultatima projekta. Zatim je slijedilo izlaganje dr. sc. Ljubinka Pušića (Novi Sad) o teorijskom diskursu i o stanju u Srbiji i Vojvodini u vrijeme tranzicije te promjenama u urbanim i ruralnim prostorima u njima. Milan Župančić (Zagreb - IDIZ) iznio je stanje u ruralnim sredinama Hrvatske u proteklom vremenu. Na temu umreženosti prostora govorili su i mr. sc. Anđelina Svirčić Gotovac (Zagreb - lDIZ) (ukratko je izložila problematiku svoga magistarskog rada o kvaliteti života u zagrebačkoj mreži naselja), te dr. sc. Marjan Hoćevar (Ljubljana) (o globalizacijskim uvjetima unutar postojećih mreža naselja u Sloveniji). Nakon izlaganja u prvom tematskom dijelu nastavljena je plodna diskusija u kojoj su sudjelovali brojni sudionici - Ivan Cifrić, Sreten Vujović, Zdravko Mlinar, Jasenka Kodrnja, Dušica Seferagić, Miodrag Vujošević, Ksenija Petovar, Ljubinko Pušić, Alija Hodžić . Najzanimljivija su bila teoretska izlaganja i diskusije o prostorno-socijalnom diskursu (Pušić, Vujović, Vujošević, Cifrić, Hodžić .) u kojima se dovode u pitanje dosadašnji pristupi prostoru "zapadno-centričnog tipa" te zastarjelo poimanje podjele na ruralno i urbano, s obzirom da su stvarne promjene u prostoru pokazale prožimanje tih dvaju prostora, pa onda i kategorija kojima se više ne mogu objasniti nova zbivanja u prostoru. VI Drugi dio okruglog stola na temu Akteri društvenih promjena u prostoru potaknut je prijedlogom istraživačkog projekta što ga je grupa za prostor, selo i grad IDIZ-a podnijela Ministarstvu znanosti, obrazovanja i športa Republike Hrvatske, ali i prethodnim istraživanjima koja pokazuju da je društveni prostor poprište sučeljavanja i kompeticija različitih aktera za postizanjem određenih ciljeva. U novom kontekstu akteri su svi subjekti koji svojim djelovanjem i interaktivnošću utječu na društvene promjene i razvoj određenog prostora, od lokalne i regionalne sredine do nacionalne i globalne razine. Oni utječu na upotrebu prostora, društveno strukturiranje, prostornu i socijalnu pokretljivost, na naseljenost i naseljsku morfologiju. U svome djelovanju različiti akteri koriste i različite resurse, izvore moći i kompetencije. Hrvatska je (kao i ostale tranzicijske zemlje) nagl koji, pod utjecajem neoliberalizma podliježu deregulaciji, otvorenosti, te društvenoj i prosto moj fleksibilnosti. Na djelu je troces u kojemu raste utjecaj globalnih aktera, a smanjuje se utjecaj državnoga rguliranja na različitim razinama prostorne organizacije društva. To se na lokalnoj razini najviše manifestira kroz sučeljavanje tradicionalnoga i modernoga što je Jjedno izazov i za domaće aktere da se uključe u globalizacijske trendove. Pritom nužno dolazi i do novoga restrukturiranja u prostoru pri čemu će brže napredovatilgradovi i regije koje se svojim intelektualnim kapitalom i informatičkom osposobljenošću mogu efikasnije uključivati u globalno i hijerarhijski umreženo društvo (Castelis, Soja, Sassen), U prostoru postoji snažna koncentracija financijske moći, infprmacija i kulturnog kapitala, pogotovo u megagradovima i svjetskim metropolarna, što ne isključuje i djelovanje prodornijih lokalnih aktera u urbanoj i ruralnoj ~Iredini (Mendras), Stoga bi ciljevi budućih istraživanja trebali biti prepoznavanje r zličitih tipova aktera koji svojim djelovanjem i interaktivnošću formiraju nove obli e društvene strukture, te promjene u prostoru, funkcioniranju grada, sela i lokalne zajednice. Prvo izlaganje na ovu temu iznio je prof. dr. sc. IZdravko Mlinar o brojnim teoretskim pristupima koji se bave akterima i strukturama u fizičkom i virtualnom prostoru. Naveo je niz primjera, oslanjajući se najviše na slučaj Kopra. Zatim je slijedilo izlaganje dr. sc. Sretena Vujovića o podjeli i utjecaju različitih aktera u urbanim prostorima Srbije danas. Dr. sc. Ksenija Petovar govorila je o brojnim uzurpacijama i malverzacijama u prostoru te negativnostima što ih sa sobom donose, također na primjeru Srbije. Dr. sc. Anka Mišetić iznijela je specifičan primjer iz hrvatske ruralne mreže naselja, kroz istraživanje o stanju u selima Lonjskog polja kao dijela europske i svjetske mreže naselja. I drugi dio okruglog stola izazvao je burnu diskusiju brojnih sudionika - Miodrag Vujošević, Ljubinko Pušić, Sreten Vujović, Dušica Seferagič, Anđelina Svirčic Gotovac, Zdravko Mlinar, Alija Hodžić, Marjan Hočevar, Antun Petak . Referati i diskusije o analiziranim fenomenima pokazali su sličnosti i različitosti u trima zemljama - Sloveniji, Hrvatskoj i Srbiji, u europskom i u globalnom kontekstu. Slovenija je visokourbanizirana zemlja, s najvišim standardom života stanovništva. Teza M. Hočevara o sklonosti Slovenaca ruralnom načinu života može se propitati ali i objasniti urbaniziranošču cijelog njezina prostora, fizičkom dostupnošcu svih urbanih dobara te izvrsnim prometnim vezama među naseljima. Hrvatska ima piramidainu mrežu naselja, sa Zagrebom kao metropolom na vrhu, ima tri makroregionalna centra (Split, Rijeka i Osijek), s većim brojem srednjih gradova te mnogo manjih gradova i sela; potonji ne pokazuju razvojne potencijale, što zbog politike centralizacije što zbog inertnosti lokalnih aktera. Srbija je u cjelini oslonjena na glavni grad, Beograd, koji još uvijek privlači najviše stanovnika Srbije te Bosne i Hercegovine, dok provincija propada. Uz Beograd, ističe se još samo Novi Sad, kao glavni grad Vojvodine, premda je Vojvodina više urbanizirana od uže Srbije. Kvaliteta života, posebno u Beogradu, pokazuje velike nejednakosti potencirane neregularnim neoliberalnim ponašanjem aktera u prostoru. Slična, ali blaža konstatacija odnosi se i na Zagreb. Pitanje mreže naselja u trima navedenim tranzicijskim zemljama ovisi o stupnju njihove opće društvene razvijenosti ali i o različitim koncepcijama razvoja prostora: policentričnosti u Sloveniji, piramidalnosti u Hrvatskoj, te monocefalnosti u Srbiji. Cilj ovoga skupa bio je potaknuti daljnju suradnju medu istraživačima iz zemalja koje su, kako se ovdje i pokazalo, dijelile slične probleme i sličnu tranzicijsku sudbinu, a potom ušle u grube neoliberalne sustave. Svaka od prisutnih zemalja specifična je na svoj način, te je namjera sudionika okruglog stola bila osvijetliti postojeću situaciju u njima, aktualizirajuči pri tom problematiku umreženosti prostora odnosno društva u cjelini. --- IN ENGLISH: The round table Settlements network in a networked society: Social changes and changes in regional space in some transitional countries took place on the 2nd of June 2006 at the Institute for Social Research in Zagreb. The round table was organized by the Group for research of the regional space, village and town from the Institute that associated it with their own research project: Sociological aspects of the settlements network in the context of transition (2002 - 2005). The said project and the round table were subsidized by the Ministry of Science, Education and Sports. The round table was divided into two parts. The first part The Settlements Network in the Networked Society included the discussion on the speciai theme edition (169/2005) Sociology of Viliage Sociological Aspects of the Settlements Network resulting out of this project, while the second consisted of the discussion on Protagonists of Social Changes in Regional Space in Croatia and in our neighboring transitional countries such as Slovenia and Serbia, as well. The participants from Slovenia were professor Zdravko Mlinar (Ljubljana), Ph.D. and Marjan Hoćevar, Ph.D. (Ljubljana) and from Serbia Ksenija Petovar, Ph.D. (Belgrade), Sreten Vujović, Ph.D. (Belgrade), Miodrag Vujošević, Ph.D (Belgrade) and Ljubinko Pušić, Ph.D. (Novi Sad). Besides the participants from the Institute for Social Research in Zagreb, the participants from some other institutions were also invited - from the Faculty of Philosophy, Institute of Social Sciences "Ivo Pilar" from Zagreb, University Study Center for Social Work at the Law Faculry in Zagreb and Ministry of Environmental Protection, Physical Planning and Construction and also some individuals. OI Two groups of papers related to the phenomenon of networked society and the settlements network were published in the special theme edition Sociology of Village =Sociological Aspects of Village Network. The first group consists of the papers resulted from the said research project Sociological aspects of the settlements network in the context of transition where were published five original papers made by three authors - Alija Hodžić, Dušica Seferagić and Milan Župančić. Another group consists of five topically related papers by six foreign authors - Marjan Hočevar and Zdravko Mlinar from Slovenia, Ksenija Petovar and Ljubinko Pušić from Serbia and Zoran Roca and Maria de Nazare Oliveira Roca from Portugal. The conference was opened and coordinated by Dušica Sefaragič, Ph.D. and Alija Hodžić, MD. Alija Hodžić, MD (Zagreb, Institute for Social Research) and Antun Petak (Zagreb, Institute for Social Research) o also made the keynote speeches with detailed reports on the project and its results, After that followed the reports by Ljubinko Pušić, Ph.D. (Novi Sad) on the situation in Serbia and Voivodina in the period of transition and changes in urban and rural spaces there. Milan Župančić (Zagreb, Institute for Social Research) presented the situation in the past years in Croatia from the aspects of the rural milieu. After that Andelina Svirćić Gotovac, MD (Zagreb, Institute for Social Research) made ashort presentation of her MD thesis on the quality of life in the Zagreb settlements network and Marjan Hočevar, Ph.D. (Ljubljana) spoke about globalization conditions within the existing settlements network in Slovenia and in the world context. The first topically related part was followed by a creative discussion in which many speakers and participants took part (Cifrić, Vujović, Mlinar, Kodrnja, Seferagić, Vujošević, Petovar, Pušić, Hodžić and others), The most interesting presentations and discussions were those on the socio - regional space discourse (Pušić, Vujović, Vujošević, Cifrić, Hodžić and others) that question the past approach es to the regional space "of Western- centric type" and an obsolete concept of division between rural and urban, having in mind that the real changes in the regional space have shown the interpenetration of these spaces and of categories as well which can not explain the new occurrences in the regional space any more. The second part of the round table with the ma in topic Protagonists of Social Changes in the Regional Space was incited by a research proposal of the Group for the regional space, village and town of the Institute for Social Research in Zagreb to the Ministry of Science, Education and Sports, and it was also based on previous researches that have shown that social space is the arena of confrontations and competitions of various protagonists aiming at achieving certain goa ls. In the new context the protagonists are all those entities that by their acting and interacting affect social changes and development in a certain space, from the local and regional rnilieu to the national and global level. They influence using the space, social structuring, spatial and social mobility, population density and morpbology of the settlements. Different protagonists use different resources, sources of power and competences. Croatia has been (as well as other countries in transition) suddenly affected by globalization processes, which, under the influence of neoliberalism, set forth the requirements of deregulation, openness, and social and spatial flexibility. The presumption is that we are facing right now a process of an increasing influence of global protagonists and a diminishing impact of govemmental regulation at various levels of spatial organization of society. At the local level it is manifested the most through the confrontation of the traditional and modem and this is a challenge for different local protagonists to join the trends of globalization. This inevitably leads to the new restructuring in the regional space. The towns and regions that, with the ir intellectual capital and IT competence, can integrate into a global and hierarchically networked society (Castells, Soja, Sassen), will advance quicker. There is a strong concentration of financial power, information, culturai capital in the megapolises and world metropolises, but this does not necessary exclude the activities of some more penetrating 10- cal protagonists in the urban and rural area (Mendras). This is the reason why the objective of future researches should be the recognition of the different types of the protagonists that by their acting and interacting create new forms of social structure, changes in the space, functioning of town, village and local community. The subject matter of the first presentation by professor Zdravko Milinar, Ph.D. (Ljubljana) comprised the various theoretic approaches dealing with the protagonnists and structures in the physical and virtual space. He quoted many examples, with a stress on the city of Koper. After that Sreten Vujović, Ph.D. (Belgrade) spoke about a division and influence of different protagonists in urban areas today on the case of Serbia. Ksenija Petovar, Pb.D. spoke about many so-called usurpations and malversations in the space and the negativities that they bring, also on the case of Serbia. Anka Mišetić, Ph.D. (Zagreb, Ivo Pilar Institute) presented a specific exarnple from the Croatian rural settlements network on the research of the present situation in the villages of Lonjsko polje as a part of the European and world settlements network. The second part of the round table also set off an ardent discussion of many participants - Miodrag Vujoševič, Ljubinko Pušić, Sreten Vujović, Dušica Seferagić, Andelina Svirčić Gotovac, Zdravko Mlinar, Alija Hodžić, Marjan Hočevar, Antun Petak etc. The presentation and discussions showed the similarities and differences of the three countries: Slovenia, Croatia and Serbia (which have also existed before) in a European and global context. Slovenia is a highly urbanized country with the highest standard of living. The thesis of M. Hočevar of an inclination of the Slovenians to a rural way of life can be questioned but also explained by the urbanization of the whole territory, physical availability of all urban goods and excellent traffic connections. Croatia has a pyramidal settlements network with Zagreb as the metropolis on top, three macro-regional centers, a number of medium-size towns and many small towns and numerous smail villages. The latter don't show the developmental potentials due to the centralization policy and the inertness of local protagonists as well. Serbia is by and large leaned on its capital Belgrade that stiil attracts the most of the inhabitants from Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, while the provinces are decaying. Besides Belgrade, only Novi Sad stands out as the capital of Voivodina, although Voivodina is more urbanized than Serbia proper ("narrower" Serbia). The quality of life, especiaily in Belgrade, shows huge disparities intensified by irregular and neoliberal doings of the protagonists in the regional space. The similar but less emphasized statement can be applied to Zagreb as well. The question of the settlements network in the three above mentioned transitional countries depends on the degree of the ir general social development but also on various concepts of development of the regional space: policentricity in Slovenia, pyramidality in Croatia and monocephality in Serbia. We hope that this conferenee will help the future cooperation of the scholars from the countries that, as it was seen here, shared the similar problems and similar transitional destiny and after that entered the rough neoliberal systems. Each of the present countries is specific in its own way, so the intention is to explain the present situation in them and make the problems of the networked space, respectively, current society as a whole, actual.

From the introduction: 'The more you know about the Olympics, the less it is about sport'. (Bob Perry, Design director of Olympic Projects at Scott Carver Pty. Ltd, http://www.infolink.com.au). The Olympic Games as a mega sports event attracts millions of people from all over the world. New records, fascinating performances, scandals or gigantic celebrations are just some of the attractions provided by this event. One attraction for urban planners is the fact that the Games imply opportunities to promote urban development. From an urban planning perspective, the Olympic Summer Games in Barcelona 1992 set a new standard in defining success of an event of this scale. The city used the Games to promote urban development and planning strategies, profiting from the event in a long-term perspective. Furthermore, the city took another opportunity to find again a place on the 'global map" through the Olympic Games. The case of Barcelona is one of the mostly cited successful urban development initiatives connected with a mega sports event. Olympic Cities have taken the opportunity to promote urban development with the event very differently in the history of the Olympics. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) as the event-owner sets some requirements giving only a few cities the right to stage the event. These requirements are checked in the bidding process ending with the decision which city succeeds in getting the right of staging the event. Integrating the success of an Olympic City in terms of urban development and in terms of the bidding process, the main question from an urban planning perspective is: What is the relevance of Urban Development in the Bidding Process for Olympic Games? To answer the definition of the city's success in terms of urban development and the Olympic Games bidding process, it is helpful to investigate the role of Olympic Infrastructure with a view towards urban sustainability. As such, it is believed that respecting specific planning principles in the bidding process can help to (1) ensure sustainable urban development and (2) enhance the quality of the bid. - The first aspect is relevant for the success of the city in terms of urban development to benefit from the Games in a long time perspective. - The second aspect is relevant for the city's success in the bidding process to acquire the right for staging the Games. The aim of this thesis is to examine how the quality of the bid may respond to principles of sustainable urban development. Two main objectives are identified to reach the aim: 1. Identifying opportunities and threats connected to Olympic Infrastructure in the history of the Olympics in order to formulate six main principles of sustainable urban development for the Olympic Games. 2. Analyzing official bidding documents of the IOC connected with these principles in order to understand how sustainable urban development can be considered in the bidding process. The thesis will conclude with recommendations which can be realized in the bidding process striving to ensure the defined success for the city. Abstract: This thesis is structured in four major parts. Part I consists of chapter 2 and 3 and includes the theoretical framework and methodology of the thesis. Chapter 2 describes the character of mega-events and mega sports events in specific. Based on a concept of sustainable urban development, it will place mega sports events in the context of such a development, forming a theoretical approach for the thesis. Chapter 3 presents the methodology used. Part II consists of chapter 4 and 5 and provides an overall understanding of the Olympic Games in the context of urban development. Chapter 4 gives an overview of the characteristics of the Olympic Games in order to understand the event and its background. Chapter 5 examines the relationship between urban development and the Olympic Games. A model will be presented in order to define 'Olympic Urban Development" for the following sections of the chapter. The chapter will then continue with an historical overview of Olympic Urban Development and present the decisions determining the scale of development. Finally, chapter 5 concludes with the summary of opportunities and threats identified in a literature review of the Olympic Games. The research questions of Part II can be defined as follows: - What are the significant characteristics of the Olympics in terms of mega-event factors? - How can Olympic Urban Development be defined and modelled? - Which are the opportunities and threats for the built, natural, economic and social environment related to Olympic Urban Infrastructure? An intermediate result re-structures the identified opportunities and threats putting them in connection with the concepts presented in the theoretical part. Chapter 6 will conclude with a definition of six principles of sustainable urban development for planning the Olympic Games. The research question leading to the intermediate result can be defined as follows: - Which kind of principles may respond to a sustainable Olympic Urban Development? The second part ends with Chapter 7 in which relevant IOC documents about sustainable urban development will be presented. Part III sets the bidding process in connection with sustainable urban development. Chapter 8 provides relevant information to understand the bidding process, its different phases and the selection procedure. Chapter 9 finally analyses the official bidding documents of the IOC for the defined principles of sustainable urban development. Summaries and recommendations will introduce the main findings for each principle and respond to three main research questions: - Which parts in the bidding documents deal with the principle? - How relevant is the principle in the evaluation of the bid? - Which strategies support the quality of the bid and contribute to meet the objectives of the principle? Part IV includes the conclusion of the thesis and summarizes the main findings of the analysis.Inhaltsverzeichnis:Table of Contents: Preface0 Index1 List of Figures and Tables4 1.INTRODUCTION5 1.1Aim and purpose of the thesis5 1.2Structure of the thesis6 PART I: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK AND METHODOLOGY 2.THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK9 2.1Mega Events9 2.2Factors of mega-events11 2.3Mega Sports Events12 2.3.1Phases of Mega Sports Events13 2.3.2Bidding14 2.3.3Impacts of Mega Sports Events14 2.4Physical Impact: Mega sports event Infrastructure18 2.5Sustainable Urban Development20 2.6Sustainable Urban Development in the context of a mega sports event22 2.7Definitions and Limitations23 3.METHODOLOGY25 PART II: UNDERSTANDING THE OLYMPIC GAMES IN THE CONTEXT OF URBAN DEVELOPMENT 4.Olympic Games Characteristics29 4.1History of the Olympic Games29 4.2The Olympic Movement30 4.3Olympic Games Factors31 4.4Olympic Games Phases35 5.Olympic Urban Development37 5.1Definition37 5.1.1Olympic Infrastructure38 5.1.2Urban Infrastructure38 5.1.3Modelling an Olympic City40 5.2History of Olympic Urban Development42 5.3Decisions determining Olympic Urban Development47 5.3.1Local distribution of Olympic Infrastructure48 5.3.2Funding Model50 5.3.3Expenditure on Olympic Infrastructure51 5.3.4Use of existing Olympic Infrastructure53 5.4Opportunities and Threats54 5.4.1Built environment54 5.4.2Natural Environment57 5.4.3Economic Environment60 5.4.4Social Environment61 5.4.5Summary64 6.Intermediate Result: Defining Principles of Sustainable Urban Development for Planning Olympic Infrastructure66 6.1Principles66 6.2Objectives68 7.Relevant IOC Documents on Sustainable Urban Development70 7.1Olympic Charter70 7.2Olympic Agenda 2170 7.3IOC Manual on Sports and the Environment72 7.4Olympic Games Study Commission73 PART III: THE BIDDING PROCESS IN THE CONTEXT OF SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEVELOPMENT 8.Olympic Games Bidding Process74 8.1History of the Olympic Games Bidding Process74 8.2The process78 8.2.1Phase 1: Candidature Acceptance Procedure (CAP)78 8.2.2Evaluation of the Working Group Report79 8.2.3Phase 2: Candidature Procedure83 8.3Selection of the Host City85 8.3.1Election Procedure85 8.3.2Decision Making in the Electing Procedure for a host city86 8.4Summary88 9.Analysing Principles of Sustainable Urban Development in the Bidding Process90 9.1Principle 1: Integrate Olympic Infrastructure in urban development plans92 9.1.1Phase 1: Candidature Acceptance Procedure92 9.1.2Evaluation in the Working Group Report92 9.1.3Phase 2: Candidature Procedure94 9.1.4Summary95 9.1.5Recommendations96 9.2Principle 2: Ensure Post-Event Use for Olympic Infrastructure97 9.2.1Phase 1: Candidature Acceptance Procedure97 9.2.2Evaluation in the Working Group Report98 9.2.3Phase 2: Candidature Procedure99 9.2.4Summary100 9.2.5Recommendations101 9.3Principle 3: Maximise the use of existing infrastructure by respecting the city's budget104 9.3.1Phase 1: Candidature Acceptance Procedure104 9.3.2Evaluation in the Working Group Report105 9.3.3Phase 2: Candidature Procedure107 9.3.4Summary107 9.3.5Recommendations108 9.4Principle 4: Ensure environmental standards for Olympic Infrastructure and accessibility to environmental goods109 9.4.1Phase 1: Candidature Acceptance Procedure109 9.4.2Evaluation in the Working Group Report109 9.4.3Phase 2: Candidature Procedure111 9.4.4Summary112 9.4.5Recommendations113 9.5Principle 5: Integration of citizens in the planning process of Olympic Infrastructure114 9.5.1Phase 1: Candidature Acceptance Procedure114 9.5.2Evaluation in the Working Group Report114 9.5.3Phase 2: Candidature Procedure115 9.5.4Summary116 9.5.5Recommendations117 9.6Principle 6: Stimulate improvement of Urban Infrastructure through Olympic Infrastructure118 9.6.1Phase 1: Candidature Acceptance Procedure118 9.6.2Evaluation in the Working Group Report119 9.6.3Phase 2: Candidature Procedure120 9.6.4Summary121 9.6.5Recommendations122 PART IV: CONCLUSION126 10.Conclusion126 10.1Conclusion of the analysis126 10.1.1Relevance of Sustainable Urban Development in the Bidding Process126 10.1.2How to respond to principles of sustainable urban development in the bid127 10.2General Conclusions130 10.2.1The interest of the IOC in Sustainable Urban Development130 10.2.2The real winner of a bidding process130 10.2.3Outlook on the future of the Games131 11.Appendix133 11.1References133 11.2Abbreviations137 11.3Extracts from Bidding Documents138 11.3.1Phase 1: Candidature Acceptance Procedure (CAP)138 11.3.2Evaluation: Working Group Report140 11.3.3Phase 2: Candidature Procedure142Textprobe:Text Sample: Chapter 5.4, Opportunities and Threats: This section study provides a discussion on opportunities and threats related to Olympic Infrastructure. Potential effects are presented and ordered according to the different environments of a city (section 2.4). The IOC officially uses the term 'Legacy' for potential post-event effects preferably underlining positive ones. The sources used in this literature review (Cashman, 2002; Essex Chalkley, 2003; Furrer, 2002; Matos, 2006; Liao Pitts, 2006; Preuss, 2006; Centre On Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE), 2007; Ward, 2007; WWF, 2004) reflect the potential effects of the Olympics critically from different perspectives (researchers, NGOs, IOC related person). If applicable, the opportunities and threats are illustrated with examples. A summary is given in the end of this section as a basis for developing principles of sustainable urban development. As the potential effects have a multidimensional character, two selection criteria limit their number: - Time: The potential effect might occur at any period of the event but must have a relevance for the city in a long-time perspective. - Space: The potential effect might occur at a micro (e.g. dislocation) or macro (e.g. polycentric development) level but is relevant mainly for a city (not a region or nation). 5.4.1, Built environment: - Boost for urban development projects and urban renewal. Locational decision on Olympic Infrastructure opens the opportunity for a city to boost its urban development projects in favour of the city. There is a chance to connect a city's urban development strategy with Olympic Infrastructure projects. History of the Olympics shows that cities have dealt very differently with this opportunity (see section 4.1). Some have used the Olympics to reinvent the city while others have concentrated solely on the successful organization of the event itself. In many cases, Olympic Infrastructure is also used to trigger massive urban regeneration projects and the idea to create new centralities within the city. Development corridors can be focused through Olympic Infrastructure and stimulate urban development nearby. Strategic positioning of Olympic Infrastructure in specific urban areas may contribute to a polycentric development. This is especially true for the positioning of key Olympic Infrastructure represented by the Olympic Main Stadium, the main indoor halls and the aquatic centre. Barcelona 1992 is probably the most successful Olympics regarded to large-scale urban development. Urban planners of the city saw the Olympic Games as an useful instrument to achieve the objectives of development plans which had been the improvement of transport system, creation of new facilities, definition of central space and balancing the city. The initial authorized to make the first draft of the Olympic from an urban perspective was part of the Olympic Bidding Team and later entered into the Organizing Committee. The changes of the entire urban fabric connected to Olympic Infrastructure based on what was already existing in Barcelona became a best practice in terms of mega-event related urban development. - Changes of Urban Development plans in favour of the event/bid. Potential changes of existing urban development plans can occur in the preparation phase of the event due to tight time constraints. To speed up land acquisition for Olympic Infrastructure some cities approve special legislative acts and give power to Organizing Committees. Special building permits are created in the area where Olympic Infrastructure has to be built and can contribute to long-lasting procedural changes in the city. A special law for the Athens 2004 Games recognized the strategic significance of the Olympic Games to the evolution of the metropolitan area. The location of Olympic Infrastructure was determined as to be in accordance with the regional, environmental and urban development guidelines of the master plan of Athens. Through this legislation and the installation of special agencies it was possible to accelerate permits of Olympic Works. - Modernization and Upgrading of existing facilities. In terms of existing infrastructure, the Olympics bring the opportunity to upgrade and modernize sports facilities. This may also decrease financial risk. The main Olympic Stadium as the centrepiece of Olympic Infrastructure relies traditionally on public funding. Some Olympic Cities have strived to use existing facilities or refurbished ones for this major infrastructure project. Naturally, development of sports facilities had to be faced by almost all Olympic cities. Moscow 1980 and Barcelona 1992 used mainly existing sports facilities and refurbished existing Stadiums to Main Olympic Stadiums. Los Angeles 1984 used existing facilities to a large extent. - Unused large-scale facilities. The history of the Olympic Games shows that many Olympic sports facilities received poor post-Games usage. International Olympic Sports Federations have often pushed host cities to provide over-ambitious state-of-the-art facilities which are not in line with the local popularity of the sport. Furthermore, local agendas have often pushed for grandiose landmark legacies to be built in order to showcase the local economy and engineering ability. These objects might be designed over-sized and turn in a post-event period to 'White elephants'. They may neither integrate a long-term urban planning policy nor relate to the population's need for leisure and culture facilities. It is sometimes difficult to convince leading teams in specific sports to move their home ground to new Olympic Infrastructures. Another problem in this respect is the difficulty to attract large crowds to newly developed parts of the city away from trying to opportunity the citizens habits. The Olympic stadium of Sydney 2000 generated continuing losses at A$38 million/year six years after the event. The competition for sports events with other stadia in Sydney caused limited booking and shows the lack of post-use planning. 'Sydney Jurassic Park' is a symbolic expression used by criticizers of the post-use of Sydney Olympic Park. - Increase of Housing stock through Olympic Village. The Olympic Village is often located close to the sports facilities and represents the accommodation for the Olympic Family. It is an essential part of Olympic Infrastructure and has to be addressed by every hosting city. In many cases, Olympic Villages become residential areas for local people or halls of residences for a local university or college after the Games. Thus, an Olympic Village is a chance to increase the city's housing stock and provide facilities for alternative uses in a post-event period. 'In Barcelona and Sydney the former Olympic Villages now provide a mixture of housing that contributes to the cities' housing stock and adds a valuable source of revenue to cover Games-related expenditure'. - Improvement of transport infrastructure. As we have seen in the previous chapter, Olympic Infrastructure induces also the upgrade of the city's transport infrastructure. For an effective transport of athletes, spectators and officials during the event many host cities tend to expand their transport system Investment of previous Olympic Cities is often focused especially on underground or light rail system. Recent Olympic Cities (Athens and Beijing) invest in tram and overhead urban rail system due to high costs and implementation difficulties of underground transport. This may contribute to a better infrastructure for citizens and decreases traffic pressure in inner city and congestion. Asian Olympic Cities have strongly linked the Games to transport infrastructure. Between 1957 and 1964 Tokyo established 73 km underground, 13.2 km monorail and 500 km Shinkansen connecting Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka. Seoul added 157.1 km to the length of its underground network from 1978 to 1993 for the preparation of the Games. Finally, Beijing extended its light rail length by 87.1 km before 2008. A strong reliance to public transport can be observed in Seoul and Tokyo through this investment related to Olympic Infrastructure. - Development of other Infrastructure. Furthermore, development of Olympic Infrastructure can be a driver for additional infrastructural improvements in the city, affecting the entire urban fabric. A basic infrastructure is needed serving Olympic facilities. Many cities have used the event as a catalyst to induce such investment and bring other infrastructure to a higher level appropriate for international visitors. Such investments can enhance the Quality of life for citizens, tourists and attract inward investment. Tokyo included the improvement of water supply system, higher public health standards for refuse collection, street cleaning, public toilets and three sewage disposal plants. Barcelona, Atlanta and Sydney invested in telecommunication systems through the staging of the event. Cultural and research facilities (Olympic Studies Centre, Olympic Museum) close to Olympic Infrastructure supporting the Olympic Cultural Programme were realized in many Olympic Cities. - Destruction of cultural heritage. There is a potential risk that Olympic Infrastructure may affect the cultural heritage of a city negatively. The potential risk seems to be higher for Olympic Cities approaching development in the inner city. Consequently, disregarding the laws may lead to the destruction of culturally built environment and displacement of residents. Infrastructure development for the Games of Beijing 2008 negatively affected the cultural heritage of the city. Demolition in Beijing was an ongoing process in the whole city, especially threatening the old 'hutong' and 'siheyuan' areas. According to reports of COHRE the violation of Cultural Heritage Protection laws and regulations effected both irreparably damaged cultural heritage and also violated residents' rights to adequate housing.

La presente tesi non è solo l'esito di una ricerca su un precetto giuridico controverso, ma è anche la narrazione di un processo personale di scoperta, che a partire dallo studio di una specifica norma ha fatto emergere la complessità delle interazioni nell'ambito delle politiche in materia penale, economica, e finanziaria. Partendo da un approccio microsociologico focalizzato sull'analisi di una determinata norma penale, il reato di riciclaggio,1 la ricerca ha dovuto confrontarsi con temi di interesse macrosociologico, al fine di inserire l'analisi della legge all'interno di un contesto più ampio di politiche nazionali, europee e internazionali, di attori e di governance transnazionale. Per mantenere la scientificità dell'elaborato ho omesso di esprimere opinioni personali sui temi, talvolta di carattere fortemente politico, e ho cercato, invece, di presentare aspetti critici e discussioni aperte fornendo una visione completa e imparziale delle contrastanti argomentazioni in modo da lasciare il lettore libero di trarre le proprie conclusioni. Il riciclaggio di denaro sporco è il processo tramite cui a proventi di reati viene data un'apparenza di essere stati guadagnati in modo illecito. È un reato tipico della cosiddetta 'zona grigia', poiché avviene al confine tra la sfera della legalità e quella dell'illegalità. Nel momento in cui profitti realizzati illecitamente si mescolano ai flussi di denaro lecito è molto difficile discernere ciò che ha un'origine legale da ciò che è stato guadagnato illegalmente. Il reato di riciclaggio di denaro sporco è stato introdotto proprio per affrontare questa difficoltà ed impedire che le strutture legittime dell'economia e della finanza globale venissero abusate da trasgressori al fine di ripulire i proventi di reato. Infatti i flussi di denaro sporco utilizzano spesso gli stessi canali usati per le transazioni lecite; la loro riuscita dipende dalla cooperazione di professionisti quali avvocati commerciali, agenti finanziari, commercialisti, la cui reputazione è raramente sospetta. Data questa promiscuità spesso la gravità del fenomeno è sottovalutata dal pubblico che non ha gli strumenti per riconoscerne la pericolosità, anche a causa dell'assenza di vittime dirette. Dall'altra parte le stime sulla quantità di proventi di reato riciclati a livello mondiale (che oscillano tra il 2,5 % e il 5,5 % del PIL globale) richiamano l'attenzione su quella che Dalla Chiesa definisce la mitologia del volume dell'economia criminale,2 e una parte della letteratura descrive il riciclaggio come il lato oscuro della globalizzazione,3 e come uno dei maggiori problemi dell'era moderna.4 Con questa ricerca ho voluto mettere in discussione l'efficacia del reato di riciclaggio nel far fronte al fenomeno dell'infiltrazione dei flussi di denaro sporco nell'economia lecita. Sebbene la pratica di nascondere i proventi di reato in modo da evitare la persecuzione giudiziaria risalga probabilmente a molto tempo addietro, il concetto giuridico di riciclaggio è relativamente recente ed è stato introdotto nei codici penali nella maggior parte del mondo a partire dalla fine degli anni 80.5 Nel frattempo un gran numero di autori si è scagliato contro la scarsa efficacia delle legislazione anti-riciclaggio6, nonostante le innumerevoli novità introdotte e i cospicui ammendamenti che hanno in larga parte espanso il campo di applicazione della normativa. La decisione di scegliere il contesto tedesco come caso di studio deriva dal fatto che il paese è considerato avere un rischio particolarmente alto di riciclaggio di denaro sporco. Secondo il rapporto emesso dal 2010 dal GAFI (Groupe d'Action Financière), dal FMI (Fondo Monetario Internazionale) e dall'OCSE (Organizzazione per la Cooperazione e lo Sviluppo economico)7 ci sono alcuni fattori che rendono la Germania propensa ad essere usata al fine di riciclaggio di denaro sporco: il volume del sistema economico-finanziario, la locazione strategica al centro dell'Unione Europea con forti legami internazionali, l'uso diffuso di denaro contante,8 l'apertura delle frontiere, la vastità del settore informale, l'importante ruolo a livello di economia globale, e il coinvolgimento nei flussi di denaro transfrontalieri. Anche i media, a partire soprattutto dalla pubblicazione del citato rapporto, hanno attirato l'attenzione del pubblico sul fenomeno, descrivendo la Germania come "paradiso" o "Eldorado" per i riciclatori. Alcuni recenti scandali hanno visto coinvolte prominenti banche tedesche, come la Deutsche Bank, la Commerybank e l'Hyopovereinsbank, contro cui procure straniere hanno sollevato l'accusa di riciclaggio di denaro sporco.9 La legislazione in atto, ed in particolare l'articolo 261 del codice penale tedesco, non sembra essere sufficientemente efficace per contrastare il fenomeno, nonostante gli abbondanti emendamenti e il continuo processo di aggiornamento e di espansione del campo di applicazione della norma. Al fine di spiegare questa per lo meno apparente incapacità della norma di fare fronte al fenomeno del riciclaggio, ho costruito l'ipotesi di ricerca sulla base delle teorie sociologico-giuridiche relative all'efficacia del diritto, alle funzioni manifeste e latenti delle norme e quindi alle intenzioni espresse e non dal legislatore, all'efficacia simbolica del diritto e di singole legislazioni e all'impatto, inteso come comprensivo degli effetti indesiderati o collaterali. L'ipotesi di ricerca è che la norma esplichi una funzione simbolica di allineamento dell'ordinamento nazionale a quello europeo e transnazionale, di compromesso tra gli interessi politici in gioco, e di creazione di consenso pubblico verso il legislatore per essersi occupato della questione. Si ipotizza che il legislatore abbia quindi consapevolmente accettato o addirittura scelto di formulare una norma strumentalmente poco efficace, ma simbolicamente capace di raggiungere i suoi obiettivi latenti. Si solleva inoltre l'ipotesi che la norma sia stata appositamente approvata con lo scopo di non modificare lo status quo delle relazioni e strutture economiche, e di permettere quindi l'ingresso di capitali sporchi nel paese, sulla base del motto pecunia non olet. La suddetta ipotesi viene parzialmente smentita dai risultati della ricerca empirica. La ricostruzione del processo di produzione legislativa mette in risalto l'esistenza di svariati e contrastanti interessi e della forte pressione esercitata dagli organismi internazionali per l'introduzione e lo sviluppo del reato di riciclaggio, e conferma, quindi, l'argomentazione che la norma sia stata approvata in un contesto di pressione politica esterna e di necessità di trovare un compromesso tra diverse parti politiche. Anche l'analisi degli aspetti problematici dell'articolo 261 del codice penale tedesco messi in risalto dalla dottrina supporta l'ipotesi della simbolicità della norma. Il fatto che il legislatore abbia formulato un reato così complesso crea evidenti problemi di integrazione dello stesso all'interno del sistema penale tedesco, e quindi di accettazione da parte degli studiosi e potenzialmente da parte degli operatori del diritto. Inoltre, la scelta di costruire un reato così complesso riflette la necessità di venire a compromesso con opposti interessi, ma potrebbe essere anche essere interpretata come un disinteresse al raggiungimento di un'efficacia materiale. La ricerca empirica sull'implementazione dell'articolo 261, invece, smentisce l'idea che la norma abbia un'efficacia puramente simbolica. Infatti il numero di condanne, di investigazioni, ed in generale l'uso ricorrente della legge riscontrato nelle statistiche criminali provano che essa conduca ad effetti strumentali, oltre che simbolici. Inoltre, nella prospettiva di alcuni degli operatori del diritto e degli esperti intervistati, l'articolo 261 è percepito come una norma particolarmente efficiente, sia in relazione alle quote di chiarimento, che come strumento di demarcazione tra comportamenti leciti e illeciti, in un contesto di deregolamentazione del settore finanziario. Da un'analisi piè ravvicinata delle statistiche e di altri rapporti emessi da enti internazionali e nazionali emerge però un quadro non così univoco: La norma sembra colpire più le vittime dei network criminali che operano a livello transnazionale che gli autori, perché spesso i colpevoli sono coinvolti in transazioni sospette in cambio di guadagni monetari. Le cospicue indagini finanziarie non riescono a raggiungere coloro che operano dietro gli esecutori dei reati minori, ed infatti la maggior parte di esse si concludono senza una condanna per riciclaggio. Questo a fronte di un volume di denaro sporco circolante nel paese che rimane allarmante, secondo alcuni degli studi analizzati. Se da una parte i risultati dell'applicazione della norma, sebbene strumentali, non possono considerarsi soddisfacenti, perché non sono riusciti ad evitare l'ingresso di capitali illeciti nell'economia nazionale, dall'altra parte sembra che l'esistenza di interessi profondamente contrastanti in gioco renda quasi impossibile la formulazione di un reato piè efficace. La tesi è composta da cinque capitoli, un'introduzione e una conclusione. Nel primo capitolo espongo le teorie sociologiche adottate per la valutazione di efficacia della norma e il metodo della ricerca. Inizialmente richiamo concetti di efficacia forniti da discipline affini alla sociologia del diritto - tra cui per esempio il concetto di efficienza e di efficienza indipendente rispetto allo scopo (zielunhabhängige Effizienz) riferito agli apparati amministrativi - che torneranno utili per l'interpretazione dei risultati delle interviste. Successivamente procedo con una panoramica sulle definizioni di efficacia del diritto fornite in sociologia del diritto, sulla ci base adotto una nozione "elastica" -riprendendola da Ferrari- di efficacia di una norma che guarda alle funzioni della norma e alle intenzioni del legislatore, in una prospettiva "intenzionalistica": "la corrispondenza fra un disegno politico di utilizzo di uno strumento normativo e i suoi effetti". Tale nozione, oltre a prestarsi ad un'analisi critica del diritto, fornisce indicazioni utili per l'analisi empirica dell'efficacia della legge in questione. In particolare ritengo utile considerare le seguenti variabili: le intenzioni latenti e manifeste del legislatore, gli scopi diretti e ed indiretti, l'eventuale efficacia simbolica del diritto, l'implementazione, la ricezione della norma nel senso di accettazione nel sistema giuridico e di interpretazione e percezione da parte degli operatori giuridici. Nella seconda parte si evidenzia il rilievo di tali variabili con riferimento specifico al diritto penale. In conclusione, sulla base delle riflessioni teoriche, formulo l'ipotesi sull'efficacia simbolica del reato di riciclaggio nell'ordinamento tedesco, che verrà poi verificata nei capitoli successivi. Nello specifico, presumendo che il reato di riciclaggio, introdotto come strumento fondamentale della lotta alla criminalità organizzata, così com'è formulato non adempie agli scopi dichiarati, nonostante gli innumerevoli emendamenti finalizzati proprio ad aumentarne l'efficacia, ipotizzo un'efficacia simbolica della norma, introdotta per offrire un'immagine di efficienza al pubblico (elettori). Inoltre sollevo l'ipotesi che la norma sia stata emanata appositamente inefficace per neutralizzarne le aspirazioni di punizione delle condotte illecite tipiche dei colletti bianchi, in una lettura moderna del conflitto sociale che avviene tramite l'emanazione di norme, con la volontà di decriminalizzare secondariamente comportamenti tipici delle classi forti. Nel secondo capitolo analizzo il processo legislativo a livello internazionale, europeo e nazionale. Il processo che ha portato alla creazione del reato di riciclaggio a livello internazionale viene ricostruito tramite dichiarazioni di intenti degli attori partecipanti, opinioni pubblicate, trascrizioni dei dibattiti parlamentari. Una particolare attenzione è posta sulle diverse intenzioni degli attori che hanno partecipato alla formulazione del reato. Il processo legislativo che ha portato alla formulazione dell'attuale legislazione anti-riciclaggio è un processo complesso, in cui diversi attori partecipanti hanno contribuito con differenti aspettative e dunque attribuendo diverse funzioni alla criminalizzazione del riciclaggio. Al fine di permettere svariate interpretazioni del dettato normativo in modo da soddisfare i differenti bisogni, e con lo scopo di trovare un compromesso tra gli interessi divergenti, il reato di riciclaggio è stato formulato in modo vago. Mentre alcuni Stati (ad esempio la Francia) inizialmente sostenevano l'introduzione del reato con lo scopo di combattere i paradisi fiscali e rafforzare la lotta all'evasione fiscale, altri Stati, come la Svizzera, hanno accettato di firmare l'accordo internazionale sulla criminalizzazione del riciclaggio solo a condizione che l'evasione fiscale non fosse inserito nella lista dei reati antecedenti. Con la nascita del GAFI la policy viene usata allo scopo di difendere l'integrità del sistema finanziario dall'infiltrazione di capitale illecito e dal 2001 si aggiunge la funzione di lotta al finanziamento del terrorismo. Tramite la soft law emanata dal GAFI per la prevenzione del riciclaggio, si trasferiscono compiti solitamente pubblici al settore privato: banche e istituti finanziari devono segnalare alla polizia ogni transazione sospetta, devono raccogliere e mantenere informazioni sui clienti e verificare le identità dei clienti. L'Unione Europea finora ha emanato quattro direttive nell'ambito del riciclaggio, l'ultima risale al 20 maggio 2015. Inizialmente la CE non aveva competenza in ambito penale, perciò la materia riciclaggio fu assorbita nella sfera economica (DG Economia e industria). La funzione dichiarata dal legislatore è la protezione del mercato interno, con particolare riguardo al fatto che i criminali possano sfruttare la libera circolazione dei capitali e l'eliminazione delle frontiere. Le direttive esprimono anche la volontà di impedire agli stati membri di emanare regolamentazioni che possano bloccare il libero mercato al fine di difendere le proprie economie dall'infiltrazione di capitale illecito. Emerge dunque un ulteriore conflitto di interessi. Nella seconda parte ricostruisco il processo legislativo e le evoluzioni interne alla Germania fino al momento della scrittura e fornisco il quadro del sistema repressivo e di prevenzione anti-riciclaggio. L'articolo 261 StGB è stato introdotto con legge Gesetz zur Bekämpfung des illegalen Rauschgifthandels und anderer Erscheinungsformen der Organisierten Kriminalität, quindi nell'ambito della lotta alla criminalità organizzata. Il dibattito parlamentare rileva che la norma è il frutto di un compromesso sotto diversi aspetti, non ultimo il fatto che è stata emanata del 1992, a pochi anni dalla riunificazione, e che quindi è parte del processo di negoziazione per la formazione di un diritto penale adattabile alle due culture giuridiche. Il legislatore tedesco evidenzia alcune funzioni della norma: la lotta al consumo di eroina e al traffico di stupefacenti, la diffusione e la pericolosità della mafia alla luce dei fatti recenti italiani, la volontà di proteggere l'amministrazione della giustizia e di isolare i criminali puntando alla criminalizzazione dei cosiddetti gate-keepers. Nel terzo capitolo individuo alcuni dei problemi sollevati dalla dottrina tedesca sul piano teorico con riferimento alla criminalizzazione del reato di riciclaggio nel contesto del sistema penale tedesco. Uno dei temi più discussi è relativo al bene giuridico protetto. La dottrina non ha ancora trovato un accordo su quale interesse sia protetto dall'articolo 261 StGB, le ipotesi sono: gli interessi dei reati antecedenti, l'amministrazione della giustizia, il sistema finanziario e la sicurezza. La vaghezza del dettato normativo non aiuta a trovare un interpretazione dottrinale univoca. La questione del bene giuridico protetto, lungi dall'essere una mera questione teorica, risente delle diverse funzioni attribuite alla norma dagli attori partecipanti al processo legislativo. Finora la giurisprudenza, che pur è intervenuta a chiarire altre questioni relative alla norma, non è intervenuta sul tema. Un altro tema su cui il dibattito è ancora aperto è il fatto di aver previsto al comma 5 l'ipotesi di colpa lieve, in controtendenza rispetto al legislatore europeo. Questo, secondo alcuni studiosi porta all'assurdo per cui anche il panettiere Tizio che vende del pane ad un evasore fiscale Caio potendo aver riconosciuto che Caio fosse un evasore, si rende colpevole di riciclaggio. La questione del livello di mens rea richiesto per una condanna per riciclaggio era sorta anche durante il dibattito parlamentare e l'introduzione del comma 5 è stato sostenuto da un emendamento della SPD che avrebbe voluto criminalizzare anche l'ipotesi di colpa lievissima. Questo, secondo la CDU avrebbe messo un freno al mercato e alle transazioni, poiché avrebbe costituito una minaccia per chiunque avesse intrapreso operazioni economiche. Essendo la funzione della norma incerta, la dottrina si divide tra chi sostiene che questa vasta criminalizzazione faccia perdere il senso del reato che sarebbe invece colpire i criminali che agiscono con intento, e chi invece sostiene che la norma abbia lo scopo di impedire qualsiasi infiltrazione di denaro illecito e quindi richieda una responsabilizzazione di tutti colori i quali prendano parte in operazioni finanziarie o economiche. Ancora una volta l'indeterminatezza del precetto legislativo è di ostacolo ad un'interpretazione univoca. Il quarto capitolo offre un'analisi qualitativa delle statistiche officiali sull'implementazione della legge dal 1992 ad oggi da parte delle istanze repressive e di prevenzione. Tra i dati analizzati i più rilevanti sono per esempio il numero di segnalazioni di transazioni sospette ricevuto dalle procure, il numero delle investigazioni condotte, il numero di condanne effettivamente inflitte ed eseguite e per quale delle ipotesi di riciclaggio, il volume di denaro confiscato. Essendo tali numeri indici del funzionamento del sistema penale e non del fenomeno del riciclaggio per sé, in conclusione si confrontano tali statistiche con le stime sul volume di flussi illeciti in Germania. Tale analisi, non potendo dare conto del numero dei reati evitati, sulla base dell'efficacia deterrente della norma, non intende esaurire il giudizio di efficacia della legislazione. Tra i risultati più rilevanti vi sono il fatto che il 60% delle persone condannate vengono condannate per l'ipotesi di colpa lieve, che solitamente consiste in casi in cui una persona poco abbiente ha accettato di far usare il proprio conto a terzi per operazioni sospette in cambio di un guadagno. Nel 5% dei casi le condanne sono inflitte per le ipotesi aggravate di commissione da membro di un'associazione criminale o in forma commerciale. Nel 90% dei casi le transazioni sospette segnalate alle procure portano a una chiusura dei procedimenti per mancanza di indizi che possano sostenere un rinvio a giudizio. La norma sembra colpire delinquenti minori e non grandi gruppi criminali, né altri delinquenti più potenti. Si ipotizza inoltre che l'incapacità di sostenere un rinvio a giudizio nonostante le informazioni acquisite e le indagini preliminari riduce la capacità deterrente della norma e permette, invece, ai criminali di conoscere le modalità di funzionamento del sistema repressivo e agire di conseguenza. Inoltre, le transazioni sospette sono segnalate nel circa 90% dei casi sa parte di istituti di credito, mentre gli altri enti obbligati dalla legislazione non sembrano partecipare attivamente al processo preventivo, in particolare il settore forense e immobiliare e del gioco d'azzardo. Sulla base di questi dati si ipotizza un effetto spill-over, ossia un trasferimento di illegalità dai settori più controllati a quelli meno controllati. I rapporti pubblicati dalla polizia, invece, considerano l'articolo 261 StGB come una norma con una delle più alte quote di chiarimento (ca 90%), quota calcolata sul numero di casi chiariti dal sistema penale, a prescindere dalle modalità di chiarimento. Per quanto riguardo il volume di denaro riciclato, il capitolo richiama alcune delle stime pubblicate da diversi enti, tra cui il Fondo Monetario Internazionale, il GAFI e la polizia criminale federale. Essendo il fenomeno del riciclaggio un campo in cui la cifra oscura è stimata essere molto alta, tali dati non possono essere presi come misura obiettiva del fenomeno. Infine il capitolo si conclude richiamando alcune analisi del tipo costi-benefici per misurare l'efficacia delle politiche anti-riciclaggio o alcune delle sue norme, condotte da enti terzi. Tali analisi sembrano concordare nel considerare i costi di implementazione della politica più alti rispetto ai benefici conseguenti. Nel quinto capitolo, infine, vengono discussi i risultati della ricerca empirica con gli operatori giuridici e con alcuni osservatori privilegiati, in modo da fornire una prospettiva interna sul funzionamento della norma. Tramite le interviste condotte si mettono in luce aspetti della prassi giuridica non fotografati dalle statistiche, allo scopo di offrire un'immagine dell'impatto della legge quanto più vicina possibile alla realtà. La ricerca empirica si avvale di interviste con operatori del diritto e con osservatori privilegiati che siedono in posizioni ministeriali rilevanti nella lotta al riciclaggio. La metodologia adottata è di tipo qualitativo, è stato fatto uso di interviste semi-strutturate a operatori del diritto e a osservatori privilegiati. Il capitolo presenta le percezioni degli intervistati su quattro temi principalmente: la dimensione del fenomeno del riciclaggio, l'adeguatezza tecnica della legislazione, i conflitti di interesse intrinseci alla legge e sorti dall'applicazione della norma e l'efficacia delle legge. A fronte di un rapporto emesso da quattro ONG nel novembre 2013, sulla base di statistiche prodotte dall'UNODC e dal Fondo Monetario Internazionale, e immediatamente riprese dai media, che descrive il paese come "Eldorado" per i riciclatori,10 le interviste sono dirette a cogliere l'opinione dei rispondenti sulle dimensioni del fenomeno del riciclaggio in Germania. Un intervistato ritiene inaccettabile desumere dal PIL tedesco il volume di affari del crimine organizzato nel paese, e obietta che non si possa, sulla base del giro d'affari del centro finanziario di Francoforte, definire lo stesso come centro di riciclaggio di denaro sporco. Un altro intervistato, dichiara, al contrario, che sicuramente il fatto che la Germania abbia un'economia stabile ed un settore bancario affidabile attiri coloro che vogliano investire proventi illeciti, neppure quest'ultimo possiede, però, dati affidabili sulla quantità di denaro riciclato. Il riciclaggio, come altri fenomeni legati alla criminalità organizzata, è una fattispecie che per definizione sfugge alle autorità e ai confini nazionali. Lo scopo dello stesso è nascondere proventi di reato e sottrarli in questo modo al sistema repressivo, questo è sicuramente un elemento che rende complessa, se non impossibile, la sua quantificazione. D'altra parte, osservano i soggetti intervistati autori del Rapporto del 2013, l'incapacità di fornire statistiche rilevanti dopo più di 20 anni di lotta al riciclaggio, sembra essere un sintomo di una carente volontà politica nel contrastare efficacemente il fenomeno. Secondo gli osservatori privilegiati se la Germania fosse davvero un paradiso per i riciclatori, ciò non sarebbe collegabile ad un deficit legislativo, dato l'impegno del governo nella lotta al riciclaggio, negando, quindi, l'accusa rivolta dai media per cui i criminali sceglierebbero il paese tedesco ai fini di riciclaggio di denaro sporco sulla base delle lacune normative. Agli intervistati è stato chiesto di evidenziare aspetti positivi e problematici della legislazione. Tra i più rilevanti vi sono: la necessità di bilanciare il bisogno di punire la condotta di riciclaggio e rispettare i principi fondamentali del sistema giuridico, il disinteresse da parte degli istituti finanziari nell'indagare l'origine del capitale investito dai clienti, anche in caso di sospetto di provenienza criminale, a causa della possibile conseguente perdita di reputazione nell'ipotesi di apertura di investigazioni da parte delle autorità sul cliente sospetto. Vi è poi una difficoltà materiale nel condurre indagini finanziarie, che spesso, conducono a condotte illecite commesse all'estero; sul punto si osserva che le condotte di riciclaggio, intese come operazioni atte ad ostacolare la provenienza delittuosa, non avvengono su territorio tedesco, bensì all'estero, il denaro che entra in Germania, è, quindi, già "pulito". Inoltre, l'articolo 261 è stato introdotto nel sistema tedesco come trasposizione di una direttiva Europea e non rifletteva una necessità interna dello Stato; la formulazione così vaga, infatti, si presta più per il sistema giuridico degli Stati Uniti, in cui non vige l'obbligo dell'azione penale, mentre in Germania, dove i pubblici ministeri hanno l'obbligo di azione penale, tale norma porta ad iniziare numerose indagini senza avere la capacità di proseguirle. In generale, gli intervistati rappresentanti dei Ministeri rilevano la forte pressione subita da parte del GAFI e dell'Unione Europea per l'emanazione della legge anti-riciclaggio e concordano nel dire che se la norma fosse stata creata sulla base di una necessità e di un dibattito nazionale sarebbe stata scritta diversamente. C'è chi individua nel sistema penale le cause di inefficacia dell'articolo 261, nello specifico, la limitata possibilità di effettuare intercettazioni telefoniche, le restrizioni in materia di inversione dell'onere probatorio, e lo scarso utilizzo della confisca dei proventi di reato a causa del disinteresse da parte delle procure (gestite a livello di Bundesländer) nell'investire risorse in tal senso dato che i beni confiscati non resterebbero in mano al Bundesland ma verrebbero raccolti in un fondo federale e poi spartiti. Si osserva una generale mancanza di risorse pubbliche che porta ad una carenza di personale coinvolto nelle investigazioni e, quindi, ad una incapacità di far fronte ai processi in corso in modo efficace. Per questo motivo, i pm non hanno la capacità di indagare più a fondo casi di riciclaggio all'apparenza semplici, ma che potrebbero portare alla luce organizzazioni criminali operanti nell'ombra. Alla totalità degli intervistati è stata chiesta un'opinione sull'efficacia della legge. L'articolo 261 del codice penale tedesco è stato definito da un soggetto "una legge scritta in modo indecente, che produce risultati banali sul piano delle statistiche criminali, soprattutto con riferimento alle condanne per riciclaggio in grossi casi di criminalità economica". Il reato è così difficile da provare in giudizio, che risulta facile, per la difesa, sfruttare le lacune legislative per evitare una condanna per riciclaggio. I rappresentanti dei Ministeri confermano che la lettera dell'articolo 261 crea confusioni e che quindi l'accusa, pur trovandosi di fronte ad un caso di riciclaggio spesso preferisca perseguire i delitti presupposto. Questo non è, però, un sintomo di inefficacia, dato che l'effettività a cui mira il Ministero dell'interno non è data dal numero di condanne per riciclaggio, ma dal numero di casi risolti, e quindi dal numero di condanne in generale, a prescindere dall'imputazione. D'opinione opposta un altro intervistato che ritiene che l'articolo 261 non abbia alcuna capacità deterrente nei confronti della criminalità organizzata, "la norma ricorre così raramente nella prassi giudiziaria che di fatto non rappresenta una "minaccia" per i potenziali criminali". I soggetti intervistati esprimono più soddisfazione a riguardo della legislazione di prevenzione (GWG); in particolare, con riferimento alle piccole e medie imprese, per le quali è difficile riconoscere tra i partner commerciali coloro i quali investono denaro di provenienza illecita, la possibilità di affidarsi alle autorità investigative, in caso di sospetto è fondamentale. Un avvocato specializzato in compliance per società, descrive la norma preventiva come molto efficace e severa, tanto che è impossibile per le aziende, specialmente per quelle di medie o piccole dimensioni, adempiere a tutti gli obblighi prescritti dalla norma, ma, egli osserva, l'efficacia del sistema sta proprio nel fatto che le autorità di controllo, consapevoli dell'elevata rigorosità della legge, chiudono un occhio di fronte a lievi inadempienze. Una legge meno severa e un controllo più fiscale non otterrebbero la stessa efficacia, perché la norma non avrebbe lo stesso potenziale deterrente. L'efficacia all'interno delle amministrazioni responsabili per la lotta al riciclaggio è interpretata come efficienza dell'apparato, per questo motivo, non ci sono verifiche sull'efficacia degli strumenti giuridici sulla base degli scopi dichiarati, quanto piuttosto sulla correttezza del funzionamento dell'amministrazione e sulle possibilità di migliorarlo; il punto è capire come migliorare, non se il sistema sia efficace o no. Agli intervistati è stata chiesta un'opinione sull'eventuale efficacia simbolica della legislazione. La maggioranza delle risposte è stata negativa, gli sforzi compiuti da parte dello Stato -e quindi delle procure, della autorità competenti e della polizia- nel contrastare il riciclaggio e la criminalità economica non possono essere considerati simbolici. Alcuni intervistati ritengono assolutamente necessaria e strumentale – e quindi non simbolica- l'esistenza del reato nel codice penale come demarcazione di illegalità di tali condotte e come strumento atto a contrastare la criminalità economica perché mette in chiaro entro quali limiti le società possano perseguire profitti in modo legittimo. Di opinione diversa, invece, gli avvocati penalisti i quali si sono detti favorevoli a tale definizione sulla base dello scarso numero di condanne e soprattutto sulla mancata previsione da parte del Governo di mezzi adeguati per l'implementazione della legislazione. Lo stesso è osservato dal terzo settore, il quale sostiene che, a fronte di una legge complessa, oggetto di svariati emendamenti nel corso degli anni, non c'è stato un sufficiente impegno sul versante dell'implementazione; il coinvolgimento del GAFI e dell'OECD nella lotta al riciclaggio è percepito come un modo per creare posti di lavoro e nuove figure professionali, più che un'arena dove discutere efficaci strumenti di lotta ai reati economici. Altri elementi interessanti riscontrabili nelle interviste sono i conflitti di interessi che emergono dall'applicazione delle leggi anti-riciclaggio. Tra essi, vi è il dibattito tra il Ministero dell'Interno e quello di Giustizia in riferimento all'adeguatezza dello strumento penalistico nel contrastare la criminalità economica, dibattito già affrontato dalla dottrina, a cui, però finora, non è stata data una risposta univoca. Da una parte il Ministero dell'Interno auspica un intervento giuridico più deciso, che, per esempio, ricomprenda il reato di riciclaggio nella responsabilità penale degli enti (non ancora esistente in Germania) e sollecita una svolta politica generale in tema di criminalità economica dalla deregolazione del mercato finanziario all'intervento dello Stato in ambito economico ai fini di chiarire i comportamenti leciti e quelli illeciti. Dall'altra parte, il Ministero della Giustizia considera erroneo il ricorso al diritto penale ai fini di risolvere problemi di tipo economico o finanziario e cerca di frenare la tendenza moderna alla proliferazione penale, a favore di un intervento di tipo preventivo-sociale. A tal proposito, si osserva che agli incontri del GAFI a cui partecipano i rappresentanti dei Ministeri di Giustizia, coloro che provino a richiamare l'attenzione sulla necessità di rispettare i principi fondamentali costituzionali e di limitare l'intervento penale a tutela dei cittadini, vengano tacciati di non voler combattere la criminalità organizzata in modo efficace. In conclusione riapro la prospettiva a livello globale ed inserisco il reato di riciclaggio in una riflessione più ampia sulla governace finanziaria. In una prospettiva storica di analisi delle politiche economiche recenti si osserva come vi sia stata una tendenza a deregolare il mercato per mano delle istanze tradizionali pubbliche, e al contempo un aumento di strumenti transnazionali di cosiddetta soft-law che si sono fatti portatori di interessi particolari. Finché questa conflittualità non verrà risolta sarà impossibile impedire il riciclaggio di denaro sporco. Con particolare riferimento al contesto europeo, si prende atto che è stato molto più facile chiudere le frontiere per le persone fisiche e non a quelle giuridiche o ai capitali. ; This paper aims to question the sociolegal1 effectiveness of the money laundering offence.2 The literature that assesses the effectiveness of the anti-money laundering system is abundant. While most of it does not question the regime's goals this paper takes a step back and critically looks at the law-making process. In addition, while most studies have assessed the effectiveness of anti-money laundering law by looking at statistical outcomes, this paper takes a step forward and tries to explain those statistics by looking at legal praxis and at indirect effects. The significance of the research derives from the insertion of the analysis on money laundering offence in a broader political, economic and historical context. The methodology adopted is qualitative, with the intended purpose of underlining the complexity of the issue tackled, rather than reducing it through a quantitative approach. While most of the existing literature has quantitatively assessed the effectiveness of the anti-money laundering regimes on the basis of statistical data and other quantitative indexes and has tried to reduce the complexity of the issue by measuring it numerically, this research adopts a qualitative methodology, which instead highlights the entanglement and the different perspectives on the question. Money laundering is the process of giving profits originated illegally an appearance of having been made lawfully.3 Due to the tightening of economic criminal policies that limit the possibility of integrating ill-gotten gains in the legitimate economy, offenders have developed more and more complex methods and subterfuges to launder proceeds of crime, so the rise of a proper 'money laundering industry' (industria del riciclaggio) is mentioned.4 The total volume of money laundered is estimated to amount to between 2,5 and 5, 5 % of the world GDP.5 Due to the borderline nature of money laundering, which happens between the so-called 'legitimate economy' and the 'dirty economy', and thus involves different actors such as banks, the financial sector, certain professions and businesses, offenders, victims and law enforcement agencies, the legal response needs to compromise with all the various economic, political, social and financial interests at play. Furthermore, where legitimate business intermingles with illegal business and legitimate funds with illicit funds, it is very difficult to distinguish what is legal from what is not. The criminalisation of money laundering was specifically supposed to tackle this fine line. The goal of this research is to assess whether the choice of criminalising money laundering has been effective to tackle this fine line. In order to assess the impact of the domestic implementation of the existing legal framework, the research uses a case study that specifically questions the effectiveness of the money laundering offence in the German national criminal legal system. The interest in the German case derives from the fact that, according to the IMF, the OECD and the FATF, Germany might have 'a higher risk profile for large scale money laundering than many other countries'.6 There are some factors identified as enablers of money laundering activities, such as the large economy and financial centre, the strategical location in the middle of Europe, with strong international links, the substantial proceeds of the crime environment involving organised crime operating in most profit generating criminal spheres, the open borders, the large informal sector and a high use of cash, the large and sophisticated economy and financial sector, the important role in world trade, and finally the involvement in large volumes of cross-border trade and financial flows. The media have kept on reporting the fact that Germany is an ideal country, or even a paradise for money launderers.7 According to most recent media reports, corruption is increasing in Germany along with money laundering and organised crime,8 and illicit financial flows are estimated to amount to 50 Billion Euros annually.9 Renowned banks such as Commerzbank, Deutsche Bank, and Hypovereinsbank have been the focus of recent scandals due to their involvement in large tax evasion and money laundering schemes, investigated mostly by US law enforcement agencies.10 The legal framework has been considered as not being sufficient to tackle the estimated volume of money laundering. In 2007 and 2010 the European Commission initiated two proceedings against the German government for having contravened the European treaty by not having effectively transposed into national law the European framework to tackle money laundering and terrorist financing.11 In response to this wave of criticism, some important changes have been made.12 With specific regards to penal law, the legislature has amplified the scope of the money laundering offence and the sphere of criminal liability in order to improve the effectiveness of the existing legislation.13 Yet the continual expansion process has raised legal challenges that could constitute an obstacle for the effective enforcement of the measure. With regards to international legislation, scholars have often criticized the ineffectiveness of the anti-money laundering regime to not be able to achieve its goals and thus to be only appearance of public action. 14 While there is theoretical support for the perception that policies have contributed to a decrease in the incidence of money laundering, there is no evidence that this goal has actually been achieved.15 The official discourse describes the regime as a crucial tool to prevent and combat money laundering, and lawmakers have been focusing on expanding the reach of anti-money laundering laws. This work however takes a critical approach towards the existing legal framework and presents the view that questioning the effectiveness of the money laundering offence is essential before expanding the scope of the existing legal framework.16 On the background of the reflections based on the sociolegal framework that sets the definition of legal effectiveness with specific respect to criminal law, and on the critical literature on the inadequateness of the international anti-money laundering system to eliminate the targeted activity recalled in the introduction, the hypothesis underlying the case study is the following: Article 261 Gcc may be an example of a symbolic legislation, whose latent functions prevail on its declared functions. In particular, it is hypothesised that the law is an example of a 'compromise-law' that satisfy all parties taking part in the law-making process, thanks to the vagueness of the wording that allows a broad range of possible interpretations, and also thanks to the actual ineffectiveness, which pleases those who were contrary to the introduction of the provision. It is here necessary to recall the considerations on the 'legislator' being an heterogeneous group of parties not only constituted of members of the Parliament but often also by external actors, who can influence more or less transparently the law making-process. While the manifested function of tackling money laundering has in fact remained in the background, the thesis hypothesises that other latent goals have been pursued. It is further hypothesised that the 'law inaction' is part of a process of decriminalisation that intentionally grants impunity to a certain group of actors, in this case those laundering money, while giving the appearance that the practice is not accepted by law by labelling it as criminal. By using the concept of function, the study focuses on eventual conflicting interests emerging throughout the policy-making process and/or being displayed through the implementation of the provisions. In order to verify these hypotheses the research proceeds with a case study that aims at empirically assessing the sociolegal effectiveness of Article 261 Gcc. In particular, by applying the 'elastic' definition of effectiveness, the following chapters analyse the law-making process, the level of acceptance by legal scholars, the implementation, and the opinions of legal experts and professionals. The methodology adopted is qualitative. The research consists of a case study that includes a documental research, a qualitative analysis of statistical data and the conduction of interviews with privileged observers and legal actors. The study is a macro-sociological assessment of the effectiveness of a criminal legislation through the analysis of the motives that have triggered lawmakers to enact the current legal framework and the practical effects of the 'law in action'17 and of the 'law inaction'.18 Thanks to the use of sociological conceptual tools, as the ones of function, symbolic effectiveness, power, labelling, and legal culture, the research critically approaches the legal framework. In addition, the sociolegal perspective allows us to take into account the multidisciplinary nature of the phenomenon of money laundering and of its countermeasures and the diverse conflicting interests at play. The work has been conducted by a single person and not by a team of researchers; this has imposed a limit on the interviewing sample and the impossibility of undertaking, along with the qualitative analysis of the provision, a qualitative analysis of the jurisprudence and a quantitative analysis of the case law. In addition, criminal provisions have a deterrent purpose, yet in certain cases it is almost impossible to quantify the deterrence effect of those provisions, as in the case of the money laundering offence, and this represents a shortcoming of the current research. Official numbers are highly problematic, this element, despite impeding an objective quantification of the phenomenon, can represent a partial result for the qualitative analysis, because it highlights the complexity of the matter. The anti-money laundering regime is constantly evolving, and this would require continuously updating the assessment, instead the research provides a picture of the current situation. Yet the work offers the reader an instrument to critically interpret also possible changes in the wording of the money laundering offence that may be made following the publication of this work. The outcomes of the critical study on the reasons and effects of the current legislation can be used as a starting point for further research; the methodology set for the empirical analysis can be applied to assess the effectiveness of following developments. The structure of the thesis is the following: The first chapter presents the theoretical sociolegal framework and provides an operational definition of the concept of effectiveness that directs the empirical research. At the end the chapter describes the methodology of the qualitative research. Chapter two traces the genesis of the money laundering offence, as well on an internal, European and domestic level. The chapter analyses legislative intents, parliamentarian debates and other external contributions as declarations of intents and opinions through a desktop-study. The third chapter is dedicated to the doctrinal debate about the money laundering offence regulated in the German penal code. In particular the chapter highlights the controversial issues that have emerged through the abundant legal scholarship production, which might affect the effectiveness of the money laundering offence. Chapters four and chapter five present the empirical research. The fourth chapter analyses the quantitative data of the implementation of the money laundering offence from a qualitative perspective. The last chapter presents the results of the interviews. The main outcomes of the research are that the interests expressed more or less manifestly from the actors taking part in the initial phase of the creation of the anti-money laundering regime were strongly conflicting with each other. One representative example is the question whether to use the policy also to tackle large scale tax evasion or to leave proceeds deriving from fiscal crimes outside of the regime. Very different justifications were given for the criminalisation of money laundering at different stages. Often the declared motives did not correspond to the real goals of the actors taking part in the law-making process. The rhetoric connected to the seriousness of the drug issue was the manifest function of the new criminalisation of money laundering. However, other latent goals, for instance, the desire of financial institutions to clean their reputation and gain customs confidentiality or the interest of some governments to curb tax evasion were already present during this initial phase. Another controversial issue concerns the fact national states have adopted anti-money laundering measures under the pressure of the FATF, which is led by most industrialised countries.19 Despite lacking democratic legitimation, the FATF has imposed worldwide a brand new regime of criminalisation, prevention and enforcement. The legal framework has been used to address ever-new challenges, and this expansion process has been coupled by a rhetoric that scholars have defined the securitisation rhetoric.20 The most recent function manifestly attributed to the anti-money laundering legal framework, that is, in short, the protection of the soundness of the financial system. Especially in times of financial insecurity, the tendency of hardening laws against economic crimes increases. Having previously deregulated the financial system to enhance economic liberties, legislatures resort to criminal law to control illegality in the economy. As a response to the European financial crisis of 2007-2011, legislatures, instead of rethinking the approach towards the protection of the global finance, called for a tightening of economic crimes regulations. The European discourse on money laundering has mostly been related to the destabilisation of the market, the abuse of capitals' movement liberty, the disintegration of the internal economy. But, why was the EU so keen on imposing a common standard for the criminalisation of money laundering, without even enjoying competence in penal matters? The introduction of a common anti-money laundering control policy served to a latent function, namely to the purposes of the creation of the 'Single Market', by way of avoiding that Member States would have adopted measures inconsistent with the completion of the Internal Market, while taking action to protect their own national economies from money laundering.21 This was done by avoiding that domestic regulations implemented for protecting national economies from the infiltration of ill-gotten capital could have hampered the freedom of movement of capital within the European borders. The tension emerges, also in the wording of the most recent EU money laundering Directives, due to lack of Community action against money laundering could lead Member States, for the purpose of protecting their financial systems, to adopt measures which could be inconsistent with completion of the single market.22 There are thus conflicting interests between the claim for regulation to avoid the infiltration of illicit capital, and the demand for deregulation to foster the free market. The European legislature, however, did not declare completely this intention and justified, instead, the imposition of anti-money laundering rules given the threats posed by money laundering to the financial system and thus to society. According to this critical approach, the criminalisation of money laundering turns out to be more of a political tool aimed at achieving governance within the EU, while being presented to the public as an essential intervention to guarantee security and well-being. Once again, thus, the declared goals of the lawmakers did not correspond with the real intentions. It is especially in the interest of a research on the law's effectiveness to unveil functions that were undeclared, in order to evaluate the outcomes in a more critical way. Also from the analysis of the national law-making process emerged divergent opinions and expectations relating to the criminalisation of money laundering. The Parliamentarians debate that took place with regard to the introduction of the money laundering offence and other instruments to tackle drug-trafficking shows that the discussion was deeply embedded in the political-historical context. Given that Germany was just reunified after a period of two dictatorial regimes, the hearing gives the impression that lawmakers felt the responsibility of creating a new legal system against such historical background. In order to balance the very different legal cultures, the divergent approaches had to be compromised. The introduction of a new crime was particularly delicate due to the discriminatory and arbitrary use of criminal labels by the previous dictatorial regimes. Therefore, delegates would not easily give up on fundamental rights for the cause of persecuting criminals. The legislation can be seen as an attempt to balance the need to adopt more effective measures to tackle crime and the necessity of respecting the rule of law and creating a 'militant democracy'. Yet, given the external pressure of the FATF, the EU and of the media, the text was less of a compromise and rather a ratification of 'internationally' accepted standards. The rule of law was not the only issue emerged in the initial phase of the political debate. Controversial opinions were raised also with regard to the questions of the mens rea and the interest protected by the new criminal provision: Certain political parties supported the broadest criminal liability to ensure an effective prosecution of money laundering, other parties were worried that a widespread liability would have been cumbersome for the economic system. Moreover, along with the expansion of the international criminal legal framework to fight against money laundering, also the scope of Article 261 Gcc was extended to include ever-new predicate offences. From the analysis of the doctrinal debate, it emerged that legal scholars have revealed technical hindrances that hinder the provision's legitimacy and thus hamper a positive integration of the act in the criminal legal system. In addition, given that most controversial issues are caused by the wording of the offence, the chapter seems to uphold the idea of an intentional potential decriminalisation of money launderers. The wording of Article 261 Gcc has the potential of frustrating some of the intentions expressed by the legislature in occasion of the adoption of the provision. While the vague formulation of the money laundering offence was thought to tackle ever-new emergencies and has been justified by legislatures as necessary to ensure a more effective fight against money laundering, it has also raised issues that, far from being purely dogmatic, have undermined the acceptance of such law. If law makers have designed the offence in a broad way to allow the criminalisation of conducts that could not have been prosecuted by the existing offences before, the large discretion left to prosecutors, has resulted in a cumbersome element for the prosecution of money laundering. In addition, criminalising the reckless conduct without envisaging a specific criminal liability for security positions has widened the scope of the offence to the point that the law has missed its function of isolating criminals by criminalising gate-keepers' activities. In addition it emerged that there are some open questions with regard to the wording of the offence, for example the question of the interests protected by Article 261 Gcc. On one side a state intervention is considered necessary to contain the impact of economic misbehaviours to protect citizens, on the other side it is important to limit the resort to criminal law only for safeguarding individual or collective situations and not for defending an existing economic structure. The economic system may, in fact, not be considered as a collective interest that needs protection. Also, safeguards provided by penal law need to be substantial and not symbolic, because they urge to change a given situation of inequality, where criminals can profit from illegal practices while legitimate economic actors undergo unfair competition. From the doctrinal analysis it has instead emerged that the legislator seemed to be more interested in drafting a symbolic legislation that can be hardly integrated in the legal system and that raise strong challenges. Lawmakers have been focusing on expanding the reach of anti-money laundering in order to improve its effectiveness, yet without providing legitimacy for such expansion. One of the most meaningful fact observed in the qualitative analysis of statistical data is that organised crime and 'gross money laundering' are not persecuted through Article 261 Gcc. This fact can be inferred by the low number of convictions pursuant to Article 261 (4),23 by the low number of money laundering proceedings categorised as organised crime and by the low number of investigations in the field of money laundering, tax crimes and economic crimes recorded by public prosecutors offices in 2013, where more than one person was involved (18 %). Yet, this does not mean that the criminal justice system does not act against them, but rather that it uses other tools to achieve the goal. While the low conviction rate for serious money laundering cases could be also a symptom of a high degree of deterrence of the provision, it seems that law enforcement uses the money laundering charge as a fallback for authorities who are unable to acquire sufficient evidence in a preliminary phase for the predicate crime and necessitate further information otherwise not accessible. The charge of money laundering allows investigators to access the vast amount of information recorded pursuant to the GwG, which would not be otherwise accessible. Yet, after the investigative phase, prosecutors seem to prefer to modify the charge and opt for indictment for predicate offences instead. The law seems to be effective to the extent that it facilitates the initial investigations, while it does not serve directly the function of punishing money launderers. Besides having a substantial nature, the provisions seem to have a procedural function. It can be inferred that prosecutors find particularly difficult to bring evidence against organised money launderers also due to the fact that professional offenders do not leave traces. From the scarce use of Article 261 Gcc for tackling organised criminality, it can be inferred that the measure is not serving for one of the purposes declared by the legislature when introducing the offence. In addition, it can be hypothesised that other measures may be more suitable to tackle 'gross money laundering'. Given the high number of STRs filed and the low number of money laundering charges and of convictions deriving from the STRs since the introduction of the laws, it can be assumed that the system has been anyway maintained because it still provides some sort of benefits. It can be hypothesised that one benefit is the number of information provided to law enforcement agencies. This amount of recorded information is helpful not only to support further indictments, but also to increase the personnel awareness about the ever-changing money laundering techniques and schemes. Again the effect of the 'law in action' differs in respect to the declared legislative intentions, which justified the criminalisation of money laundering with the necessity of tackling organised crime's economic power. By spelling out this function, the assessment on the effectiveness of the law - as the possibility of collecting information - can be positive. Yet, this effect could be considered a social cost rather than a benefit. On a theoretical side, many scholars see the recording of personal information by private actors as an infringement of the right to privacy.24 On a more practical side such mechanism imposes significant costs on the designated businesses and professions that are in charge of collecting the data.25 When compared to the effective outcomes of the preventive regulations, in terms of law enforcement results, this aspect does not seem to win a cost-benefit analysis, as showed in the quoted researches. If one considers the advantages in terms of information collected, the policy may be considered worth the burden imposed, instead. However, the fact that the laws would have an effective impact on the long run on the fight against money laundering and organised crime may be seen as a diminished deterrence effect, because perpetrators would have the time to adapt to the new laws and find new ways of circumventing them. A collateral effect of the long-run effectiveness of the policy hypothesised on the basis of the outcomes of the research on the implementation is the fact that perpetrators could take advantage of the initiated but not completed cases, by acquiring knowledge about law enforcement strategies and thus develop subterfuges to elude them. On the contrary, it seems that the legislature is always running after to cope with the offenders' ever-new strategies. In fact, regulations about a new sector are updated when there is evidence that there is a risk of money laundering in that specific sector. Yet, offenders might have already moved their laundering activities to another sector. On the assumption that the inclusion of the reckless conduct would have potentially criminalised daily activities, a focus was posed on the number of convictions related to Article 261 (5) Gcc26 to verify the target of the criminal provision. Since 2005 a high number of convictions have been actually referring to reckless money laundering. This shows that the offence is used to punish primarily 'petty money laundering'. This fact can also be inferred from the relevant number of money laundering cases to the detriment of senior citizens, signalled by the FIU in the recent years. Also the fact that a significant number of STRs is filed in relation to the 'financial agents' phenomenon' is a symptom that the preventive mechanism targets more 'small fishes' rather than big perpetrators. Individuals convicted for the reckless conduct may be even victims of a fraud perpetrated by criminal networks. However, the criminal network acting behind the offender remains undetected. If on the one side it cannot be claimed that such offenders, given the lower degree of culpability should not be punished at all, on the other side this effect of the law involves a change of paradigm. The money laundering offence was initially introduced with the goal of tackling serious crimes. The observed effect, however, changes the function and the nature of the law, so that Article 261 Gcc could be considered rather a 'blue collar crime' more than a 'white collar crime'. From the analysis on the quality of STRs filed to the FIU, it can be inferred that certain designated professions and businesses are very reluctant in filing STRs, despite their notably exposure to money laundering risks. The list of designated professions and businesses has been amplified over the years exactly with the goal of facing this transfer of crime from one area to the other. Yet some professionals, such as legal advisors, do not report them, although they possess the capacity of recognising illicit transactions. The fact that some sectors do not actively participate in the effort of preventing money laundering, by allowing criminal proceedings to enter the legitimate economy, may lead to a general ineffectiveness of the system, because it can significantly hinder the capacity of the whole anti-money laundering system to respond to the ability of offenders to move their field of activity there where the law is lax. The provision does generate some instrumental effects by punishing offenders and by triggering a cooperation directed at signalling suspicious transactions between the obliged entities and law enforcement. However, some of the effects do not seem to completely fulfil the legislature's declared goals. For example the chapter seems to prove wrong the legislature's expectation of tackling the grey area by punishing gate-keepers or the attributed function of eliminating organised and serious crime. Given the high costs of implementation highlighted by the cost-benefits analyses, the rather low outcomes seem to be insufficient to fulfil the legislature's goals. Since it is sufficient that without latent functions it would be impossible to explain the adoption and maintenance of a legal act,27 it can be concluded that the intents declared by lawmakers do not satisfy the reasons why the provision was introduced. This opens up the hypothesis that Article 261 Gcc is an example of a symbolic legislation, which has been enacted with the purpose of compromising a complex parliamentarian debate. The analysis of the law-making process has revealed the existence of different expectations attributed to the introduction of Article 261 Gcc. Expectations that were conflicting with each other had to be negotiated and were compromised through the formulation of a vague offence that allowed different interpretations. Yet, the implementation of the law has led to the re-emersion of some of the conflicting situations. In addition, given that the policy regulates a complex and multifaceted issue new conflicts have emerged through its enforcement. The effects triggered by the norm can be indeed perceived positively or negatively by the different actors involved. In particular five principal conflicting situations have surfaced from the interviews. The first issue is the role played by external actors in the law-making process and the constant influence exercised by those actors in the process of updating the policy. The imposition of a US American approach to money laundering control through the role of the FATF has also been highlighted in the second chapter. Specifically, some scholars see the development of a global prohibition regime fostered by the US in the diffusion of anti-money laundering law. According to this literature, the powerful state creates an international regime focussed on achieving its own goals through global acceptance triggered by the securitisation rhetoric and compliance processes imposed through the menace of exclusion by international business relations. The second conflict that emanates from the words of the respondents is the one of the demand for criminal law to face financial misbehaviours and the necessity of limiting the tendency of expanding criminal law on the background of a situation of financial instability. Given the previous deregulation of the market, policy makers need to control and sanction economic abuse in order to protect fair competition and law-abiding individuals. On the other hand, the state needs to respect fundamental principles, such as the rule of law and the principle of ultima ratio that imposes a restriction of the use of criminal law in situations in which no other measures are suitable. This conflict has already been raised along the formulation of the money laundering offence with regards to the question of the interests protected by the law. Despite the legislator tying to limit the scope of the offence by attributing to Article 261 Gcc the protection of the administration of justice and of the interests protected by the predicate offences, this explanation was not considered suitable to the peculiarity of the offence. Indeed, shortly after the enactment, legal scholarship and the judiciary entered in a vivid debate in order to identify more suitable interests protected by the law, among them the financial and economic system under different perspectives. However, as chapter three shows, no solution could be found. In fact, the question concerning the suitability of criminal law to tackle illicit financial flows is perceived in the current research as still unsolved. The matter does not only concern money laundering control. On the contrary, it is a fairly widespread issue that has recently emerged due to the tendency of hardening economic crimes on the background of a situation of financial instability. The third conflict can be summarised as the following: on the one hand the policy being required to interfere with the personal sphere of suspected money launderers; on the other hand private institutions being interested in protecting their relations with loyal and trusted customers. Therefore, they are reluctant to give law enforcement the possibility to interfere too much in their business. The interest manifested by the private sector involved in the prevention of money laundering seems thus to collide with the legislative intent of preventing the infiltration of dirty money by way of preventing gate-keepers to help money launderers. The clash emerges at a micro-economic level and is triggered by the fact that the anti-money laundering policy demands an active participation by private sector in the detection of suspects. Private actors, are not appropriate to bear the burden of detecting offenders, moreover they need to protect the relationships with customers by avoiding unnecessary interferences. At the same time, the privatisation of crime control is questionable also from a governance point of view. It seems therefore that the public interest in persecuting crimes through having access to personal information from the private sector only marginally collides with the interest of protecting the right to privacy. Businesses and professions are predominantly interested in not interfering with their clients and in not bearing the burden of detecting offenders. The issue was also addressed during the national Parliamentarian debate, with regards to the degree of mens rea required for money laundering criminal liability. Making everybody taking part in economic or financial activities actively participating in the monitoring of the economic system under the threat of criminal liability for negligent money laundering was considered harmful for the business market. The same debate has been picked up by legal scholarship too. Yet, it seems that, despite the law being the result of negotiations, the question is still open. The fourth issue consists of discording opinions with regards to the opportunity of including tax evasion as predicate offence for money laundering. On one hand there is the interest of tackling tax evasion through the anti-money laundering regime, on the hand the concern of keeping the two phenomena distinct in order to avoid an overrating of money laundering. Since the genesis of the anti-money laundering policy, some actors taking part in the international law-making process, opposed the labelling of 'black money', naming money deriving from tax violations, as 'dirty money', indicating all proceeds of crime typically committed by organised crime. This distinction was based on the perception that tax-related offences were less serious and less harmful than capital flight and were advocated by financial centres in order to maintain a good reputation while still granting peculiar financial services, such as bank secrecy. This issue is a good example of the labelling theory, to the extent that it shows how a practice that was firstly not considered criminal enough to amount to a predicate offence for money laundering, has become part of the scope of the anti-money laundering regime on the basis of a political decision of labelling it as such. Respondents of the current research show to have different perceptions of the degree of the seriousness of tax laws violations and thus about the appropriateness and necessity of tackling them under the umbrella of the anti-money laundering policy. Again, the matter, which seemed to have been resolved through the negotiations on an international and European level, is still being debated at national level. The last two contrasting interests are the necessity of regulating the flows of money and the free movements of capitals in a neoliberal economy. The question is intrinsic in the nature of money laundering, which is a phenomenon that happens at the interface between legality and illegality. Regulations that facilitate the licit exchange of goods, capitals and services do also facilitate the flow of ill-gotten gains; there are thus conflicting interests between the public interest of persecuting crime and the claims for less regulation in a free market economy. From the interviews surfaced that not only opinions on the effectiveness of the law differ, but the very concept of effectiveness is perceived differently among the interview partners. Perceptions about how effective the anti- money laundering policy is appear to be similar among respondents belonging to the same experts' group. In particular, given the fact that the policy triggers many preliminary investigations, investigators work on a daily basis with the provision. This led to their opinion on the implementation of the legislation being rather positive. Positive opinions have common ground: they assert that the policy is not a simple one to implement, however, they believe that the legal practice has found its way through. On the contrary, defence attorneys specialised in economic crimes do not receive a significant amount of clients suspected for money laundering. For this reason they tend to have a rather negative opinion on the policy's effectiveness, also driven by the perception that the policy is not able to achieve the indirect goals. The diverse concepts of effectiveness provided by disciplines close to the sociology of law and the different definitions of effectiveness given by sociologists of law turn out to be useful here. Particularly the notions of 'efficiency' and of 'efficiency regardless of the goals' are proved very useful to interpret the respondents' opinions. Efficiency, is according to the administrative legal approach, the optimal relation between the goals achieved and the instruments used. A subcategory of this concept is the efficiency calculated through a cost-benefit analysis, of which some examples have been presented in the fourth chapter, which defines efficiency as the functioning of a legal order without assessing the goals achieved. This type of analysis focuses on the correctness of the operating system since the purpose of the system is its own existence. It refers to a whole legal order rather than to a specific single provision. Given that the anti-money laundering policy constitutes a legal order, due to the diverse regulations involved and the competent authorities created in order to achieve the goals of the policy, this notion can be applied. In the field of administrative legal theories, the first chapter has focussed on the approach that considers the (in)effectiveness of a law depending on its (failing) enforcement. A high degree of compliance of the anti-money laundering legislation might correspond to a high level of effectiveness of the policy with respect to its direct function, but at the same time to a rather low level of effectiveness with regards to its indirect purposes. The way to evaluate the degree of effectiveness is therefore also different. While compliance with legal provisions is calculated through a quantitative assessment of the processes in force and of the functioning of the system, the achievement of the indirect functions is measured on the impact of the policy. Interview partners have different perceptions about the indirect functions of the legislation too. This reflects, once again, the fact that the policy was a result of a compromise between different expectations and that the legislator was not able to limit the scope of its application to a particular goal. The different expectations and intents, which already emerged in the doctrinal debate about the legally protected interests, appears again in the different perceptions of the interviewees. The respondents were asked about the legislation's effectiveness with regards to one of the indirect functions, namely the capacity to deter organised crime. The legislator enacted the money laundering offence in the context of the fight against drug trafficking and other forms of organised crime, thus Article 261 Gcc's expressed rationale is the prevention and repression of organised crime. Finally, a relevant outcome regards the respondents' opinions on article 261 Gcc's latent symbolic function. Some of them agree with this. Others strongly oppose the hypothesis. They argue instead that the policy has instrumental effects on their daily practice, which cannot be defined as purely symbolic. According to most respondents, the law cannot be defined as symbolic, because it has led to instrumental effects. In the first place information gathered thanks to the GwG is used to start preliminary investigations under Article 261 Gcc. Secondly, the structure enacted to comply with the anti-money laundering policy is attainable and is visible and cannot be denied. Thirdly, the law is considered necessary because it labels a deviant behaviour. In particular, despite the fact that investigations do not lead to a conviction for money laundering they allow investigators to collect information in support of criminal cases for the predicate offences or to start a preliminary investigation for a predicate offence. In this sense, the function of the 'law in action', despite being questionable, is objectively instrumental. However, the fact that the law serves the purpose of tackling predicate offences through the support of investigations does not exclude the hypothesis that the law was enacted to pursue latent functions too. According to the sociologist Aubert, it is not necessary that the latent goal is the only one that plays a role, but it is necessary that the other purposes would not explain the analysed phenomenon completely. Indeed, in the opinions of those who exclude the symbolic function, yet the results achieved through compliance do not legitimate the burden imposed by the legislation. In other words, it seems that they recognise that the purpose of compliance cannot completely explain the policy makers' motivation, which re-opens the doors for the hypothesis of the existence of latent functions. In fact, such a demanding policy cannot be accepted for the sole purpose of re-enforcing the action of the criminal justice system in tackling predicate offences. On the other hand, compliance with the policy in terms of building of a structure and of expertise does not automatically mean fulfilling the policy's purpose. Particularly the creation of new professionalism, has been interpreted by scholars as a sign given to the public that the policy has produced certain effects. In conclusion, on the background of the research's outcome, the paper tries to reply to the question: (How) can the effectiveness of the money laundering offence be improved? While technical hindrances can (and perhaps) will be removed through legal reforms, 28 the inherent political economic and financial conflicting interests that impede a higher level of effectiveness are more difficult to solve. In contemporary industrialised economies there is a complicated and sometimes shifting boundary between legitimate and illegitimate transactions. This is particularly exacerbated in the context of financial capitalism, which 'subordinates the capitalist productive process to the circulation of money and monetary assets and hence to the accumulation of money profits'. Since the very beginning, determining the boundary between an area defined as 'criminal' and the space of 'legality' has been controversial. In fact, money has a neutral nature, pecunia non olet, making profit, irrespective of the monies' origin, is a very strong interest for both private and public entities, which collides with the one of eliminating illicit financial flows. In other words criminal policy goals diverge from purely economic interests. While one can assume the justice and correctness of the current financial system, and thus describes money laundering as harmful because it interferes with the existing economic order, one can also assume that the capitalist system leads per se to injustice and inequality, and that money laundering is actually embedded in this profit-oriented system and represents just the darker side of the capitalist economy. A compromised viewpoint is the one that describes money laundering as an accepted collateral effect of the capitalist system, that is to say 'a certain amount of illicit financial flows may be considered an acceptable price to pay for a market where free mobility of capital is guaranteed'. In other words, money laundering is intrinsic in or at least exacerbated by the capitalist system.