Suchergebnisse

Annals, 1st cong.-18th cong. 1st sess.--Register, 18th. 2d sess. 25th cong. 1st sess.--Globe, 23rd cong.-42d cong.--Record 43rd cong. ; Mode of access: Internet.

The Kurdish nationalist tradition is surely not very old. The earliest origins of Kurdish nationalism coincide with the beginning of modernity in Kurdistan, which emerged with the secular humanism of the 'Western Enlightenment,' ushering in a gradual decline of traditional Islamic identity. The nineteenth and the early twentieth centuries in Kurdish history were a period for the incubation and growth of nationalism in Kurdistan. The famous temporary conquest of Iranian Kurdistan by Sheikh 'Ubaydullah Nehrî (d. 1883), son of Sheikh Sayyid Taha, is the most important event in the history of early Kurdish nationalism. What I want to present here is in no way a complete investigation of the revolt of 'Ubaydullah and his nationalist efforts. This is no more than an introduction to some newly-found Persian documents from the Institute of Persian National Records (IPNR) in Tehran, a schema of basic subjects surrounding the rebellion of 'Ubaydullah and the Kurdish tribes as reflected in Persian diplomatic reports. Here I can only list the documents without entering into much detail. This collection has attracted little attention yet, but is well worth intensive investigation.

An examination of official employment figures in Russia that show unemployment decreased significantly in 1999, & has continued in a downward direction, argues that these figures are extremely misleading. The unconsolidated nature of Russia's current labor market is discussed, along with various interrelated factors that make it impossible to accurately assess the situation. One key factor is that official records are kept by the employment service & only show individuals that qualify for the status of "unemployed," omitting large numbers of "unqualified" unemployed persons. The structure of Russian's employment service & social insurance fund is examined, along with regional differences, & government attempts to redistribute employment funds from richer areas to those with greater needs. As a result, the employment service became indebted to its own employees in some regions. It is contended that "concealed employment" is another key factor affecting the validity of official employment rates. Different kinds of "superfluous employment" are explored, along with hidden employment in the new private sector. Prospects for change are discussed. 35 References. J. Lindroth

An examination of the UN Charter, the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, examining the wording & resulting interpretations with respect to women's rights. The story of the drafting process is told with illustrative vignettes, referencing various participants' statements & dialogue with each other. Despite discussion, contention, & lobbying, linguistic sexism still exists in the finished document. Particularly problematic are: the reference to "all men" in Article 1, issues regarding the family & children in Articles 16 & 25, marriage & divorce in Article 16, & suffrage & pay in Articles 21 & 32. It is argued, however, that the Universal Declaration does not deny women's rights as individuals. C. Grindle

In the wake of the German Democratic Republic's collapse in 1989/90, the new all-German Bundestag made special arrangements for the holding & use of the records of its infamous Ministry of State Security (MfS, or Stasi). They were handed over, not to the Bundesarchiv (Federal Archive), which would have kept them from public examination for 30 years, but to a new special authority, the Bundesbeauftragte fur die Unterlagen des Staatssicherheitsdienstes der ehemaligen Deutschen Demokratischen Republik (BStU, or Federal Commissioner for the Records of the State Security Service of the former German Democratic Republic). The law governing the Federal Commissioner's work, the Stasi-Unterlagen-Gesetz (StUG), came into force at the end of 1991. The current federal commissioner, Frau Marianne Birthler, succeeded her predecessor, Dr. Joachim Gauck, late in 2000. The Federal Commissioner is required to report to the Bundestag every two years on her activities & has accordingly reported six times since 1991. This article examines the BStU's work since 2001 & draws heavily on the sixth report (2003). It chiefly examines the two great issues which arose in those two years: the litigation over the MfS file of the former Federal Chancellor, Dr Helmut Kohl, which led in 2002 to the fifth amendment of the Stasi-Unterlagen-Gesetz, & the acquisition by the BStU of the microfilmed card indexes relating to the agent network of the MfS's foreign intelligence service, the Hauptverwaltung Aufklarung (HVA, or Main Intelligence Directorate). As will be seen, in both cases the Federal Commissioner managed to ensure that the principles of the revolution of 1989-1991 were upheld. Adapted from the source document.

This article evaluates four popular claims regarding human trafficking's international magnitude, trends, and seriousness relative to other illicit global activities. I find that the claims are neither evidence-based nor verifiable. Second, an argument is made for carefully conducted microlevel research on trafficking. Several such studies are described, including the contributions to this volume of The Annals. I argue for microlevel research, which has advantages over grand, macrolevel claims—advantages that are both quantitative (i.e., identifying the magnitude of trafficking within a measurable context) and qualitative (i.e., documenting complexities in lived experiences)—and is better suited to formulating contextually appropriate policy and enforcement responses.