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How perceived data protection issues hindered and effectiveness
Since June 17th, 2020 the Corona Warn App of the German Federal Government has been available for download. After a sharp increase downloads stagnate around a total of 20 million, which is roughly one fourth of the population. Whether everyone who downloaded it actually uses it, is questionable. Objectives We want to show that the underlying concept of an app is questionable, even if each inhabitant with a smartphone downloads and uses it, it would cover barely half of each encounter where COVID-19 could actually be transmitted. Prior work This work is the scientific, extended version of a short article we published in the September 2020 issue of the “Behördenspiegel”, a monthly magazine covering German public administration issues. Approach We use statistical methods to show that, (i) even in the very best case with a perfectly working app the coverage would have been roughly half of all relevant encounters (ii) and that the voluntary usage of this app as well as the free decision of the infected individual to publish its (anonymized) data to warn others in fact reduces any effectiveness considerably. In addition we show that (iii) due to the design of the app there is a likely limit where the app will not be able to warn its users for mathematical and cryptographical reasons. Results We demonstrate by statistical means that this app could never have worked and why similar apps neither would work, let aside probably the “Trace Together” initiative of Singapore, which is based on a combination of an app plus physical tokens for those who do not own nor use smartphones (https://www.tracetogether.gov.sg/). We define some requirements a successful COVID-19 tracing solution must fulfill. Implications We show that such apps are not a solution for the problem, rather an obstacle to a real solution, because they lull their (few) users into a false sense of security which is obviously wrong, based on real figures. Value The paper contributes to transparency of government action during the COVID-19 pandemic. We show that other ways of contact tracing must be pursued in order to be effective and hinder the pandemic from escalating rather than providing a false feeling of safety.
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This study examines the effects of the proliferation of SALWs on the security of the Nigerian state. Although this issue has seldom been tackled in regular or academic literature, it reflects the author’s keen awareness that, in an era of globalization, migrants have been identified as important agents in the proliferation of SALWs into third-world countries. The paper seeks to provide an insight into the socio-economic and political variables operating in the source and destination of such movements, with particular emphasis on migrants and arms proliferation. The study uses the qualitative approach for data analysis, it relies on upon, data gathered through secondary sources, and is reinforced with the argument on the liberal theoretical framework of analysis. The paper concludes that, while weapons play a significant role in intensifying conflict that exerts enormous human and economic costs, the causes of such conflicts lie in political, economic, ethnic, and religious differences and disparities. Finally, the paper looks at the appropriateness of examining the full implications of SALWs as a border management theme and the role of complementary measures for facilitating border control.
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This paper examined whether the revised enlargement methodology represented another step in the direction of gradual EU membership of the Western Balkans. The research problem was based on considerations that the EU enlargement domain has for years been characterized by political stagnation. The research aimed to show that a differentiated accession approach might have been beneficial for Serbia, as a front-runner membership candidate. In terms of methods, the author analyzes the concepts and the applicability of the ‘three-tiered accession’ and ‘staged accession’, having in mind the recently altered enlargement methodology. The author argues that the gradual integration would have been beneficial for two reasons: 1) validating the candidates’ already achieved progress, offering tangible incentives, and potentially preventing the democratic backsliding; 2) taking the pre-scheduled accession dates off the table. Considering that the EU is unlikely to expand further, the author concludes that the gradual membership concept might apply solely to the WB, while also reassuring the Member States regarding the primacy of individual merits and excluding the speedy accessions proposals.
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The paper aims to analyze the development of national and liberation organizations in Baluchistan. The author attempts to answer the following questions: Why had pakistanyiat become obligatory to all people wanting to live in Pakistan? What were the reasons behind the formation of the Baluchistan National Movement, the Baloch Liberation Front, and the Liberation Army? What does the Baloch society expect from the authorities? The study was based on a critical review of the literature and other available and valuable sources such as Jinnah’s speeches. Another method used in the study was a synthesis that allowed the author to form conclusions. Studying Baluchistan means limited access to sources and materials since traveling to the land of Baluchistan is restricted by specific rules, and one can only visit the place under certain circumstances. Research on Baluchistan is relevant for studies of national liberation movements and current internal conflicts.
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For almost a decade, there has been an increase in the investments of the People's Republic of China in the Western Balkans. Capital from the Middle Kingdom has a direct impact on the development of transport infrastructure or the energy sector. According to the authors, Chinese investments within the countries of the former Yugoslavia are a strategic element of the PRC's foreign policy, which is part of the implementation of the project initiated in 2013 under the name One Belt One Road. The article indicates the declared goals and structure of Chinese direct investment. In addition, the impact of the activities of the PRC on the economy and political processes in the region was determined. According to the authors, Chinese investments are the element of influence within the framework of sharp power, the overarching goal of which is to make the Balkan states dependent on Chinese capital, which at the same time will weaken the influence of other world powers in the region. In order to verify hypotheses and answer research questions, the authors used methodological tools such as content analysis, system analysis, or critical analysis.
More...From the Green and Digital to the Smart Cities
The city has always brought within itself the characteristics of the historical period in which it existed and of the population that inhabited it. In the last years new kind of cities were born, some of them are called green, some others digital and then some are the Smart Cities. The latter has the same features of the first two cities, but them are also committed into satisfying the expectations of its population and caring about citizens’ welfare first. The Smart Cities are the result of technological progress and the search for environmental sustainability. The city was born as a consequence, almost obvious, of the improvement of human skills: many nearby houses represented a possibility of bringing together resources and abilities in an almost uninhabited land.Small villages have become towns, cities and metropolitan cities in which all the technological discoveries were applied and made concrete in the services that these cities could then offer to their inhabitants. The cities, and its various existing types, up to the green cities and digital cities and finally the Smart Cities will be described, as the apex of the discoveries of the digital and sustainable people, who respects the environment in which they live, indeed, which regenerates the environment from past pollution. In these cities, people live within a virtual environment too.These cities are in continuous evolution, extremely rapid, in a competition to each other, made up of skills and technological discoveries, which contain within their borders innovative services for all of its inhabitants, and all its stakeholders. This paper discovers the way of the first inhabited centers towards Smart Cities.
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The Macedonian election rules, i.e. the setting of the electoral system, produce a double effect, an effect on the voter, and an effect on the party system. Therefore, each change in the electoral regulations would not only alter the voters’ comportment but also impact the political parties. Considering these effects, the paper aimed to compare the attitudes of the citizens and political parties regarding the electoral legislature (both for the parliamentary and local elections); and produce adequate electoral solutions as a corrective for the detected shortcomings of the current regulations. The paper relied on content analysis of theoretical literature and research, empirical qualitative research based on citizens’ focus groups from each region in Macedonia, questioned political parties, and additional data analysis. The ultimate findings propose a way to promote the equal value of each vote, proportional regional representation, and MPs' accountability at the parliamentary elections. For the local elections, the proposed solution referred to reducing the election cost, the possibility of political bargaining, and preserving the legitimacy of elected mayors.
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Albania’s national interest is the integration into the European Union. To fulfill this objective, every state component, public institutions, civil society, the media, and the citizens, play a very important role. The main focus of this paper is the public sphere, the attitudes of Albanian citizens toward the EU membership, and their role in the process. By applying qualitative and quantitative methods, the main theories of the field, global and regional indexes, studies, surveys, interviews, and personal observations, we aim to focus on the citizens' attitudes toward the EU membership process. Our in-depth analyses have shown that the Albanian institutions, CSOs, and media to inform and include the citizens in the Europeanization process have not been effective enough. Thus, there is a knowledge gap between sensitive groups and the other part of society.
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The paper analyzed the challenges of poverty in Montenegro. It provided an overview of the structure and scope of UN action in Montenegro and general sustainable development policies and their national implementation. The objective was to research the contributions of the UN system to the sustainable development of Montenegro while focusing on the role of the UNDP in eradicating poverty. The methodology consisted of the literature overview and the case scenario analysis of integrated social protection and employment policies. In addition, secondary data analysis has been employed to complement the research findings. The paper has identified the national socio-economic situation and the contributions of the UNDP in eradicating poverty through the design and implementation of integrative policies. The research proved the importance of the UNDP in fighting poverty in Montenegro and the effective role of the UN in achieving sustainable development.
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Fight against international terrorism is also led by a regional organization such as the Commonwealth of Independent States, which demonstrates the experience of effective counter-terrorism in the format of cooperation between CIS member states. This is done on the basis of the Treaty on Cooperation in Combating Terrorism (1999) drawn up in the provisions of the Protocol on the procedure and implementation of joint counter-terrorism measures on the territories of the CIS member states. Programs to combat international terrorism and other manifestations of extremism, for example, developed for the period 2020-2022, come to coordinate the efforts of the CIS states. With the understanding of the extent of the real threat of terrorism, the idea of creating a coordination center arose in the CIS, which later materialized through the creation of the CIS Anti-Terrorism Center (2000). The CIS is in a state of constructive dialogue with various international organizations to find effective ways to combat terrorism.The article will highlight the activities, the political and legal framework of the Commonwealth of Independent States as a regional security organization in the field of combating and preventing terrorism. The priority areas of cooperation between the CIS and other international organizations in the field of combating terrorism will be also analyzed.
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The article aims to investigate the impact of the migration phenomenon in the European Union (EU). It briefly examines the concept of smuggling of migrants and the main routes of illegal migration as well as the measures adopted by the EU institutions, in view of the priorities set by the EU institutions and the Member States, to step up efforts to establish an effective, humanitarian, and safe European migration policy. The article also pays particular attention to the illegal nature of this phenomenon and highlights the multiple and far-reaching implications of the activities surrounding illegal migration which generate and reinforce numerous other criminal activities.
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In this paper analyses the problem of limiting the freedom of the press in Malta after published leaks about corruption in public administration. A turning point was murdering Daphne Caruana Galizia in 2017, which drew the international community's attention. The study verifies the following hypothesis: after disclosing corruption scandals, the ruling elite decided to use the means characteristic of quasi-militant democracy to limit the freedom of the press against journalists who reported that issue and recognized them as enemies of the state. This measure was used in practice, despite the legal framework that guarantees the protection of this freedom. The level of using quasi-militant democracy means to limit independent media did not decrease after Galicia’s murder, despite pressure made by international opinion. On the one hand, this phenomenon is the effect of solid foundations for legitimizing corruption in domestic policy. Therefore, public opinion did not seek to disclose abusing power by journalists. On the other hand, NGOs' failed efforts to increase the protection of the freedom of the press result from a lack of efficient measures to improve media freedom. Therefore, ruling elites only declared changes to calm down international opinion but, in practice, adopted other, more personal, non-direct restrictions on independent media. I decided to use quasi-militant democracy as a theoretical category to explore the motivations and consequences of limiting the freedom of the press. The paper’s conclusions will be useful in analyzing restrictions against independent media in the name of protecting democratic regimes in semi-consolidated democracy and explaining the reasons behind this phenomenon.
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The notion of human security has become a dominant theme in international political discussions. This is partly explained by the fact that the production of arms and ammunition does guarantee security. Economic, food, health, environmental, and personal safety are all components of human security. In Nigeria, the country is grappling with security hitches cutting across the six geo-political regions. Kidnapping, banditry, robbery, murder, and wanton killings are common items in the daily news. More worrying is that, despite huge resources being injected into the defense sector, the Nigerian government seems unable to curb this menace that has been troubling the nation's well-being. The government, security agencies, and intelligence organizations, on the other hand, appear to be caught off guard by the atrocities committed by terrorists, herders, and instances of interethnic violence pointing to the fact that Nigeria is prone to anarchy. Against this background, this paper contextualized the lawlessness in Nigeria with specific reference to human security. The paper employs the qualitative method of data collection that utilizes secondary sources such as newspapers, the internet, and extant scholarly works. Based on findings, the rate at which schools are closing, frequent jailbreaks, rising food prices, citizen apathy toward the government, the obvious inability of the government to uphold its own end of the social contract it made with its subjects, and failure of all security containment strategies are all overt signs of a failing state. It is submitted that there is a need for government to be conscious of its primary goals, which include welfare and the protection of people's lives and property. The article suggests that Nigeria should employ artificial intelligence to combat the threat to the nation's status as a sovereign republic, which is being posed by groups that have taken over the numerous ungoverned spaces that dot the country's territory. Nigeria should also invest in digital learning methods and coordinate its numerous security agencies. The political order, authority, law, and structures must all be rebuilt because they have all fallen apart.
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Today we are experiencing a deep crisis in society, accentuated by the pandemic with this Coronavirus, but chronicled and accentuated by the gloomy prospects after the end of the plague. What is happening is not at all proof of the lucidity of the world, no testimony of solidarity, and no proof of vigilance in the service of universal values. What is happening is simply evidence of gross manipulation, produced against the background of the lack of education and culture of the population. Everyone who goes to a serious school and accumulates enough knowledge of general culture - not necessarily historical - knows that each historical epoch has its own values and prejudices. Many times, what had been perfectly moral and legal in the past had become immoral and illegal in newer times. Of course, over time things have changed gradually, in stages and now the pandemic, artificially created and premeditated, has profoundly affected human security with the immediate consequence of altering life, dignity, rights, and fundamental freedoms, the rule of law being on the verge of dissolution. How did you get here and what to do, here are the questions that this study is trying to answer.
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Through a critical analysis of J. Morawiecki’s Szuga. Krajobraz po imperium [Szuga. Landscape after the Empire], Paweł Rogalski ponders a number of questions: Does Russia still exist in the 21st century in the imperial discourse? Has the superpower paradigm, as a certain manifestation of anarchy and a fallen myth, not already been ruined or exhausted? Is the empire an episode necessary historically to balance forces in a global crisis? Is the war in Ukraine (2014 and 2022) perhaps the “new-old” founding murder of the Eastern civilization, incorporating the model of the Russian empire? Does ideology as a glue, instead of positively constructing the subjectivity of the community, contribute to building a new, dangerous phantasm of the empire? In this context, the travel narrative authenticates the message by reaching abandoned and blurry places, where the encountered human subject generates not only events and adventures, but is a record of ideological traces left on the body and the psyche. As Czesław Niedzielski wrote: “In all varieties of reportage prose, the identity of the speaking subject and the author (regardless of the form of the reporting) is one of the basic premises determining the documentary and, most of all, the authentic qualities of the genre”.
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This study provides evidence of the challenges faced by women journalists in Albania after the fall of communism based on a nationwide survey of 295 journalists. Despite an increase in the number of women journalists, their emancipation in journalism is not necessarily implied. Women journalists tend to be confined to reporting on “soft news” sections or cultural and social topics, reinforcing traditional gender roles. Many women journalists conform to societal expectations and adopt gender stereotypes to exert influence while facing obstacles such as a male-dominated hierarchy, self-censorship, and pressures from family and editorial supervisors. Female journalists who make a name for themselves often cover male-dominated topics, following a masculine logic to gain respect and struggling to maintain their femininity. The study sheds light on the challenges and complexities women journalists face in Albania, providing insights into the gender dynamics within the media industry.
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The Sovereign Citizen Movement is one formed by people who interpret the political, legal, and social reality through the prism of their own religious beliefs. The man was created freely by God, meaning "sovereign". Consequently, individuals are free from the legal norms imposed by other people. This is a movement without an organizational structure, which is replaced by its system of beliefs and values held by leaders and clearly defined organizations. Gordon Kahl's manifesto undoubtedly highlights the religious side of the sovereign citizen movement. The individual said in 1983 that the Kingdom of Christ was under siege by the forces of Satan who control the governments of the states, which is why people should no longer submit to them. Followers of the Sovereign Citizen Movement believe that their actions and attitudes are approved by God. They issued their own IDs, passports, and vehicle registration numbers, some with the phrase "Kingdom of God" emblazoned on them. Some of the "sovereign citizens" took their beliefs to extremes and became violent, killing those who opposed them. For this reason, the Federal Bureau of Investigation labeled the most extreme among them as terrorists.
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The concept of work-related security is associated with seven forms of security, as described in ILO’s Socio-Economic Security Program . This paper aims to analyze how the lack of seven forms of work-related security influences the decision to migrate, focusing on the case of Albanian citizens who have migrated to different Western European countries. The migration of people in work active age from the Republic of Albania to Western countries, associated with a frenetic population decline, is the biggest concern nowadays in Albanian society. The present paper shows the results of a qualitative study. The study highlighted that the lack of one or more forms of work-related security plays a very important role in motivating people to emigrate. The present study results can orient other quantitative studies that lead to measuring the impact of work-related security forms in the decision to emigrate. This study also sheds light on the way policies should consider work-related security to normalize the phenomenon of migration from Albania to Western countries.
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In this paper, we have chosen to discuss the topic of illegal migration from the perspective of the authorities responsible for maintaining law and public safety in Romania. Specifically, we will explore their approach to this threat and propose solutions within national strategies for law and public safety.Following an extensive analysis of the current social context, the evolution of criminality, the effects of antisocial acts, as well as the prevention and combat methods employed by other entities within the country and the European Union, the Ministry of Internal Affairs is seeking solutions to reduce the negative impact of these threats on public order. The objectives of national public order strategies vary from country to country, but they all share the common goal of ensuring a safe and secure environment for citizens. Considering factors such as increased mobility (including policies that promote it), legal and illegal migration, the dynamics of the international security environment, interstate relations, and cross-border criminality, cooperation in ensuring public order becomes imperative.National public order strategies are essential tools for preventing and managing events that may disrupt the harmony and stability of nations. They contribute to maintaining the safety of citizens, protecting individual rights and freedoms, and promoting social cohesion. A well-developed and implemented national strategy has a significant impact on the quality of life for citizens, creates opportunities, attracts foreign investments, and thus fosters economic development and social progress.This article provides an overview of the most important aspects considered relevant for the analysis and planning of illegal migration. It aims to review previously developed public order and security strategies, identifying parallels to assess the dynamics of the related criminal phenomenon and the evolution of preventive and counteraction procedures.
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