A “Constitutional” Coup in Hungary between 2010–2014

On Some Aspects of the Exclusive Systemic Exercise of State Power with Regard to Constitutional Law, International Law, and European Law

Author(s): Imre Vörös / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 0

The Fundamental Law, drafted in 2011 and instituted on 1 January 2012, was amended no less than five times over a year and a half.Hungary’s sitting prime minister since 2010 had formulated his intent to stay in power for an extended period of time in his state-of-the-nation speech delivered in Kötcse, as early as 9 September 2009. As well, he expounded the necessity of building a system of political institutions that could guarantee the realization of this plan, practically by establishing a one-party state. His idea of a “central field of power,” especially if designed for the long term, was neither reconcilable with democracy, nor with a multiparty system, let alone with the electoral law which was in force until 2010.

A genocídium fogalmának változásai

Author(s): Éva Gulyás / Language(s): Hungarian / Issue: 3/2018

This study deals with the changes in the meaning of genocide during the past seven decades. It discusses the circumstances of the origin of the legal concept in the works of Raphaël Lemkin and in the international legal documents of the United Nations, and analyzes the political and social concepts of genocide explicated in the years of 1970 and 1980. From the fact that the legal provision of the 1948 Genocide Convention has not been applied in judicial decisions for decades, some experts have come to the conclusion that it should be renewed. During the past three decades, several alternative concepts were coined (such as „democide”, „politicide”, „holodomor”, etc.). These conceptual experiments, however, were not successful.

A háborús múlt nehéz terhe Horvátország és Szerbia jövője szempontjából

Author(s): Beáta Kovács / Language(s): Hungarian / Issue: 1/2018

Brey, Thomas: Die Kriegsvergangenheit als schwere Bürde für die Zukunft Kroatiens und Serbiens = Südosteuropa Mitteilungen, 2017, No.4-5. 68-85.p.

A lengyel elnökség - „Európa lelkiismeret furdalása?”

Author(s): Katalin Szokolay / Language(s): Hungarian / Publication Year: 0

A magyar nemzeti érdekek első világháború alatti érvényesítésének lehetőségei és vaskos korlátai

Author(s): Pál Pritz / Language(s): Hungarian / Publication Year: 0

István Tisza, along with most of the Hungarian political elite was well aware that the country would inevitably suffer damage in the war. In case of a victory, it would have to put up with even more foreign nationals, and upon defeat the empire would fall apart.After a lost war, Saint Stephen’s Hungary was inevitably doomed. However, fate could have been somewhat less tragic. For the subsequent events, the state of the civil democratic revolution of 1918 can partly be held accountable. But the main responsibility lies with István Tisza’s Hungary, and the government in power from August 1919.

A MAGYAR RÉGÉSZETI ÉS MŰVÉSZETTÖRTÉNETI TÁRSULAT RÉGÉSZETI SZAKOSZTÁLYÁNAK TEVÉKENYSÉGE 2001–2011

Author(s): Annamária R. Facsády / Language(s): Hungarian / Issue: 1/2013

Tíz év meghatározó jelentőségű még egy olyan nagy múltú szervezet életében is, mint az 1878-ban Országos Régészeti és Embertani Társulat néven alakult, majd 1970-től mai nevén működő Magyar Régészeti és Művészettörténeti Társulat. Társadalmi megítélése, vállalt szerepe, tudományközvetítő jelentősége szempontjából különösen fontos a – törvényi, technikai, informatikai és egyéb – körülmények változásai közepette eltelt évtized. Át kell gondolni tevékenységének célkitűzéseit, sorra venni lehetőségeit, átgondolni megőrzésre méltó hagyományait, továbblépni működésének kevésbé sikeres elemein. Mindez nem megy eszmecserék, viták, útkeresések nélkül. Szerénytelenség nélkül állíthatjuk, hogy ezen évtized alatt a patinás társulat próbálkozásai során nemcsak kereste, hanem reményeink szerint meg is találta helyét a kor megváltozott igényeihez igazítva. A régészeti szakosztály személyi összetétele és létszáma is változott. Az elmúlt és várható eseményekről pedig az ezen időszak alatt létrehozott – bár további fejlesztéseket igénylő – honlapunkról, illetve közösségi oldalunkról bárki tájékozódhat. Rendkívül fontosnak érezzük a fiatal nemzedék bevonását az aktív társulati életbe. Ennek érdekében alapítottuk 2011-ben az „Ad astra…” díjat, amelyet pályázati munka révén lehet kiérdemelni.

A multilevel analysis of the returns to education in Ecuador. The multifaceted impact of human capital

Author(s): Mercy Raquel Orellana Bravo,Monica Raileanu Szeles,Dalia Maritza Argudo Barrera / Language(s): English / Issue: Spec/2016

This paper analyses the returns to education in Ecuador based on cross-sectional data collected by a National Survey at the individual- and canton-levels in 2005 and 2015. The multilevel analysis provides the methodological framework that allows capturing the regional peculiarities of data as well as addressing the high regional economic heterogeneity. The two level- random intercept and random slope models are used to examine the impact of individual-level and canton-level characteristics on the labour income. In subsidiary, the paper explains the proportion of variance in individual- level income that is explained by canton- level characteristics.

A promising beginning of negotiations of a convention banning nuclear weapons

Author(s): Miroslav Tuma / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 2017

The first round of talks regarding the negotiations of a treaty prohibiting nuclear weapons (their use, production, ownership, etc.) took place on March 27–31, 2017, at the UN Headquarters in New York under the presidency of Ambassador Elayne Whyte Gómez of Costa Rica. The second, and final round of talks, during which the finalization and adoption of the proposed convention is expected, should take place in New York from June 15 to July 7, 2017. The aforementioned first round was preceded by an organizational meeting in New York on February 16, 2017, in the presence of representatives of more than 100 countries, at which the provisional agenda and the rules of procedure for the general meeting of the UN General Assembly were agreed. According to these rules, a two-thirds majority is necessary for decisions on important questions and a simple majority of all present members is required for procedural issues. In contrast to consensus decision-making, which is valid, for instance, for the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, no country present at the UN conference can veto an adopted decision.The first round of negotiations was attended by around 130 countries, and representatives of several organizations, such as the UN, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and a number of non-governmental organizations, as well as surviving victims of the US-caused nuclear explosion in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which are called Hibakusha in Japan. All countries that own nuclear weapons, as well as a large majority of Alliance states, including the Czech Republic, and partner countries relying on nuclear protection, especially protection by the US, boycotted the meeting. From the Alliance states, only the Netherlands attended, and from the European Union states, the already mentioned Netherlands, and also Austria, Sweden and Ireland participated. From the partner countries, Japan was present.

A reassessment of the relationship between working capital management and firm performance: evidence from non-financial companies in Nigeria

Author(s): Sunday Simon,Norfaiezah Sawandi,Mohamad Ali Abdul-Hamid / Language(s): English / Issue: 3/2018

This paper reassesses the relationship between working capital management (WCM) and firm performance in the Nigerian context. The study is motivated by the limited insights available on the impacts of WCM on firm performance in the country. To date, most studies from Nigeria have been largely descriptive and focused on a small sample size that is non-representative of the population. In addition, there are limited rigorous statistical analyses involved in such studies. This paper addresses the methodological limitations apparent in prior literature and provides a better understanding of the relationship between WCM and firm performance, revealing how firms can manage their operations more profitably. The paper adopts a panel data regression analysis on a sample of 75 non-financial firms listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange from 2007 to 2015. The results of the analyses showed that WCM variables have an inconsistent relationship with the measures of performance adopted, which were return on assets and Tobin’s Q. Specifically, accounts receivable management and inventory management were negatively associated with the return on assets, while accounts payable management, cash conversion cycle and cash conversion efficiency were positively associated with return on assets. Additionally, accounts receivable management and inventory management were positively associated with Tobin’s Q, whereas accounts payable management, cash conversion cycle and cash conversion efficiency were negatively associated with Tobin’s Q. These results were found to be robust using quantile regression. The results of the quantile regression showed inconsistency across the various quantiles used (0.10, 0.25, 0.50 and 0.75). These findings have two important implications. The first is that WCM variables influence the performance of firms. The second is that the mixed findings partly indicate that firms and managers must understand and formulate WCM policies that reflect their peculiar conditions.

A Scientist and a Poet. Life Trajectories of Professor Ignacy S. Fiut

Author(s): Magdalena Szpunar / Language(s): English / Issue: 4 (236)/2018

The text presents the figure of an extraordinary scholar, Ignacy S. Fiut. It shows him not only as a great scientist, but also a sensitive and good man, whose multifaceted personality is reflected in scientific works as well as poetry.

A SEMANTIC-COGNITIVE ANALYSIS OF THE CONCEPT OF UKRAINE IN THE SPEECHES OF B. OBAMA (2014)

Author(s): Anatoliy Khudoliy / Language(s): English / Issue: 16/2016

This article presents a semantic-cognitive analysis of the concept of Ukraine, verbally represented in the speeches of the American President, Barak Obama. The peculiarities of the President’s worldview are highlighted. The objective of the article is as follows. Firstly, it aims to demonstrate that the concept of Ukraine is verbally represented in the speeches of Obama. This means that Ukraine as a country, moving towards democracy despite the war with Russia, is an object of focus for American leaders. Secondly, the article suggests that there is a connection between the concept described, its pragmatic orientation and its cognitive processes. Thirdly, it describes the semantic peculiarities of the concept of Ukraine in the political speeches of the American leader, which are due to the role Ukraine plays in the local and regional context. Our research is based on the content-analysis of political speeches delivered by American President. The functional, communicative and pragmatic orientation of the speeches is highlighted. In line with the approaches of cognitive scholars, the article concludes that the concept of Ukraine is a complex semantic-cognitive structure that consists of core, transition zone and periphery. During the research for this article, fifteen speeches made by Obama in 2014 were analysed. This research presupposes the application of content analysis. It is relevant in the analysis of international relations with respect to the notions used by President Obama in his speeches delivered during 2014 in the relations between: the USA – Ukraine, Ukraine – Russia, the USA – Russia, and Europe – Ukraine.

A slack-based measure of agricultural efficiency in the European Union countries

Author(s): Kristína Kocišová,Beata Gavurova,Anna Kotásková / Language(s): English / Issue: 1/2018

The main aim of this study is to examine the relative efficiency of agriculture in the European Union using Data Envelopment Analysis for the period 2005- 2015. We have examined the relative efficiency using non-radial and non-oriented slacks-based model (SBM) under the assumption of a variable return to scale. We have looked for causes of inefficiency and have come up with the recommendations how to change input and output variable to reach the efficiency frontier. The results show that, on average, the European Union agricultural sector has been performing efficiently, and its development could be considered as stable. After taking into account the size of the economies in form of gross domestic product in market prices, we can say, that the efficiency was positively affected mainly by the development in large countries. By examining the optimal values for the variables used in the SBM model, it has been found that on average for the movement on the efficiency frontier it is necessary to reduce both inputs (labour and utilised agricultural area) and simultaneously increase both outputs (animal and crop production).

A szentföldi konfliktus – világrendszer-szemléletben

Author(s): Gyozo Lugosi / Language(s): Hungarian / Publication Year: 0

A török külpolitika és a Nyugat-Balkán

Author(s): Ágnes Kovágó / Language(s): Hungarian / Publication Year: 0

A történelemtankönyvek vitája Japánban

Author(s): Krisztina Merényi / Language(s): Hungarian / Publication Year: 0

A világháborútól a világválságig

Beszélgetés Székely Gábor professzorral hetvenedik születésnapja alkalmából

Author(s): Béla Háda / Language(s): Hungarian / Publication Year: 0

Academic (Non)Reading from the Perspective of “User Friendliness:” an Insight from the Fields of the Sociology of Literature and of Multimedia

Author(s): Piotr Toczyski / Language(s): English / Issue: 2/2016

This article discusses data that is usually difficult to find but sometimes becomes publicly accessible, facilitating reflection on the current transformation of the humanities within Polish academia. The data was collected during classes at metropolitan universities in 2013, when over 700 students of law and other humanities individually responded to auditorium questionnaires. To account for the results of the study, the researchers suggest the categories of “non-reading” and of “ease of access”. Studies of (non)reading in Poland from 2012 form the backdrop for this investigation.

Accuracy of Health, Population and Development Counting Vectors: Evidences from the UN Resolutions Markings and Policies (2012-2016)

Author(s): Daniel Alin Olimid,Anca Parmena Olimid / Language(s): English / Issue: 52/2016

The present article explores the recent United Nations (UN) resolutions in the field of health, population and development adopted in the period 2012-2016. The analysis argues that the official documents of the Commission on Population and Development may pose a challenge to the UN “mission model” by emphasizing the major relevance of the current course of the cross-resolutions agendas. More than twenty-four concepts and related items are interlinked and used to measure the UN millennium development goals towards international peace, sustainable development, health outcomes and human rights displays by identifying the conceptual mapping and the subsequent causal effects in the research areas of: population, migration, migrant population. The article also reviews the consequences of the UN key actions and programmes focusing on the transmission of concepts within the institutional engagements considering the following resolutions: (a). the Resolution adopted by the Economic and Social Council on 27 July 2016 (2016/25. Future organization and methods of work of the Commission on Population and Development) (E/RES/2016/25); (b) the Resolution 2016/1 Strengthening the demographic evidence base for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (Resolution 2016/1); (c) the Resolution 2014/1 Assessment of the status of implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (Resolution 2014/1); (d) the Resolution 2013/1 New trends in migration: demographic aspects (Resolution 2013/1) and (e) Resolution 2012/1 Adolescents and youth (Resolution 2012/1);

ADALET VE KALKINMA PARTİSİ DÖNEMİ TÜRKİYE-BULGARİSTAN İLİŞKİLERİ (2002-2015)

Author(s): Kader Özlem / Language(s): Turkish / Issue: 2/2015

Turkey and Bulgaria, being two neighbor countries, have strategical importance for each other in terms of political, economic, cultural, geographical and social aspects. Although the incidents in the historical process create a confidence problem, there have been positive political, military and economic developments in bilateral relations because of the structural changes in foreign and internal policies of Bulgaria after the end of Todor Zhivkov regime. In this, Bulgaria’s renunciation of the assimilation policies towards Turks in 1980s has been main factor in thatregard. The bilateral relations have developed rapidly after the Zhivkov period and this trend continued in 2000’s as well. The aim of this study is to examine the relations between Turkey and Bulgaria with the political, military, economic and Turkish minority dimensions in the period of Justice and Development Party (Ak Party).

Adjusting the EU’S Geopolitical Posture in the Eastern Neighborhood

Author(s): George Vlad Niculescu / Language(s): English / Issue: 1-2/2017

The conflict in Eastern Ukraine has signaled the end of cooperative security, and the shift to a new stage of evolution of the European system. This new stage seems to be defined by a geopolitical confrontation between the West and Russia, which seems to reshape the relations within todays’ Europe. In June 2016, the EU Global Strategy suggested that Europeans must be able to protect Europe, respond to external crises, and assist in developing partners’ security and defence capacities. It also referred to European security and defence efforts which should enable the EU to act autonomously, while also contributing to, and undertaking actions in, cooperation with NATO. The Eastern Partnership was supposed to advance regional cooperation but, so far, it has done little to do so. According to the lessons learned in the Balkans in the first decade of the 2000’s, this approach should change on a medium to the long term, as necessary and possible, if the EU was to capitalize on the benefits of regional cooperation through increasing the synergies of its own policies with regional initiatives. A reshaping of existing EU policy instruments with greater concerted emphasis on the Baltic and Black Sea regionalisms will be critical, at that stage.