Assessing the Integration of Vulnerable Migrant Groups in Ten EU Member States

Author(s): Mila Mancheva,Andrey Nonchev,Slavyanka Ivanova / Language(s): English

This publication presents the results of a comparative monitoring study of the integration policies and outcomes for third-country-national (TCN) women, TCN children and TCN victims of trafficking in ten EU member states: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Spain. The study produced findings at two levels of analysis: an in-depth assessment of how migrant integration policies and programmes meet the needs of vulnerable migrant groups, and an assessment of their integration outcomes. Drawing on the analysis of these findings, the publication provides recommendations for improving monitoring mechanisms for migrant integration at the national and EU levels and for elaborating policy approaches for better integration of vulnerable migrants.

Supporting Vulnerable Groups before the State: The Role of Civil Society Organisations

Author(s): Maria Doichinova,Yva Alexandrova,Miriana Ilcheva,Svetla Encheva / Language(s): English

The study analyses the mechanisms for interaction between public institutions and NGOs in supporting four vulnerable groups: persons deprived of their liberty, victims of trafficking in human beings, domestic violence survivors, and persons seeking international protection and other vulnerable foreigner nationals. Furthermore, it identifies trends in the cooperation between institutions and NGOs in assisting these communities. The report sums up the profile of the bodies and organisations involved and identifies problems in their interaction. Instruments for cooperation between public institutions and NGOs in relation to each vulnerable group are reviewed in detail, both on legislative and practical level. Correlations between identified problems and aspects of the interaction between public institutions and NGOs that could help resolve these problems are highlighted. In conclusion, recommendations are made to involve civil society in providing comprehensive support, in particular legal, social and administrative assistance, to vulnerable persons. These recommendations rest on the shared experience and opinions by public authorities and civil society, as well as on applicable foreign models and good practices.

Уязвими групи лишени от свобода: Наръчник

Author(s): Alejandro Forero Cuéllar,María Celeste Tortosa,Klaus Dreckmann,Dimitar Markov,Maria Doichinova / Language(s): Bulgarian

In prison, certain groups of inmates are subject to disadvantages due to specifics of their origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, etc. These groups usually need special treatment, which is not always provided, which leads to unequal treatment and violation of their rights. This handbook examines the situation of such vulnerable groups within the prison systems of Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Lithuania and Spain. Starting from the classification of the UN Handbook on Prisoners with special needs and looking at the different national contexts, the authors identify different groups as vulnerable in different countries. In order to encompass as many groups as possible, their list was extended to include some particularly marginalised groups, such as sex offenders, prisoners with disabilities, etc. Each group is viewed in context, explaining the situations of vulnerability both generally and in the selected countries. From one side, the handbook presents the efforts for compensation of vulnerabilities in every country available in the legislation or provided by prison authorities or other actors. From the other side, it identifies the gaps in the measures and practices, which vary both from country to country and from group to group.

Социално-икономически ефекти от публичните инвестиции за приобщаване на ромите в Каварна

Author(s): Yva Alexandrova,Slavyanka Ivanova,Anna Ivanova / Language(s): Bulgarian

The aim of the current report is to provide new data and insight on the social and economic effects of public investments in Roma communities from a human development perspective. Its objective is to establish the effects of a wide range of public investments made by Kavarna municipality in the mostly-Roma neighbourhood of Hadji Dimitar, between 2004 and 2014. The investment covered areas such as housing and infrastructure, healthcare, employment, income, poverty and social exclusion, justice and crime, and political participation. It reviews a range of indicators with the aim of establishing the effects of these investments on the social and economic development of the neighbourhood and its residents, both Roma and non-Roma. It also looks beyond the neighbourhood to provide a comparative perspective on a national level. The data presented here is derived from a variety of sources and covers a range of indicators. Every effort has been made to ensure the use of similar indicators and definitions as previous household surveys, notably the UNDP/FRA study, and the NSI, however, the results are not directly comparable due to the difference in survey methodologies, samples and scope. The data presented should be taken as an indication of trends and tendencies. The lack of concrete data on the initial investments, the inputs and relevant baseline indicators has also challenged the quantifying of the contribution of individual public investments. Different investments have had different impact on the development of the neighbourhood and reducing the distances with the Bulgarian residents. This impact has been established by looking at the results obtained from a specialised household survey conducted among 300 Roma and non-Roma households in the Hadji Dimitar quarter of Kavarna in 2015. The relevance and impact of these changes is analysed through comparison with the national averages for the whole population and the averages for Roma nationally. It is also measured against the investments to establish a positive correlation between the effect and the investment where such data exists.

The Uses and Abuses of Neoliberalism and Technocracy in the Post-totalitarian Regimes in Eastern Europe: The Case of Macedonia

Author(s): Katerina Kolozova / Language(s): English

Human Rights and Collective Identity - Serbia 2004 -

Author(s): / Language(s): English

Report on Human Rights in Serbia in 2014: Political Culture vs. Europeanization

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

Serbia is once again at crossroad that calls for the engagement of its entire society. The steps the government has made toward EU accession are insufficient, the more so since the government itself is not unanimous about the course. This is more than evident in the implementation of the Brussels Agreement. The great majority of citizens knows nothing or knows little about what a membership of EU implies. Besides, most major national institutions such as Serb Orthodox Church, parts of the Serbian Academy of Arts and Sciences (now trying to change its course), influential intellectuals and parts of the civil sector are not committed to the values on which EU rests. Turbulence within EU itself and disorientation of some member-states play into the hands of EU opponents and fuel their resistance. Human rights and freedoms have regressed considerably over the past three years, the backsliding itself escalating during the state of emergency declared because of floods (May 15-23, 2014) and in the aftermath. Requiring expertise and, above all, preventive measures, the crisis situation itself revealed the government’s weaknesses and its attitude toward key issues of further democratization.

Ljudi 18. stoljeća na hrvatskom prostoru. Od plemića i crkvenih dostojanstvenika do težaka i ribara

Author(s): Ruža Radoš,Filip Novosel,Vedran Klaužer,Maja Katušić,Ivana Horbec,Lovorka Čoralić / Language(s): Croatian

The book deals with individual and collective biographies of people and groups associated with the 18th century. It is divided into several separate sections, which encompass groups such as peasants, citizens, nobility, soldiers, monks, spiritual figures, intellectuals, artists, as well as other social and professional groups. The biographies presented here aim to provide a comprehensive example for the social and professional categories to which they belonged.

Риск от бедност или социално изключване в България

Author(s): Mariana Mourgova,Marta Sugareva,Veselka Pavlova,Vasil Bozev,Iva Raycheva / Language(s): Bulgarian

The reduction in the number of poor in the European Union (EU) is one of the key tasks in the Europe 2020 Strategy of the European Commission. Another priority objective is to reduce the size of the population at risk of social exclusion. Bulgaria is the EU Member State where the risk of poverty or social exclusion is one of the highest. This unfavorable position requires studying the causes and inferring policies to reduce the number of the population at risk of poverty or social exclusion. The aim of the study is to analyze the causes of high poverty among three of the most vulnerable groups in Bulgaria: children, working poor and elderly people over 65 years of age. The period from 2010 to 2021 is considered according to the available statistical data. The study includes six chapters. The first chapter examines the main measures of poverty and social exclusion used by various international institutions. Some key documents and strategies at international and national level related to poverty and the possibilities for its eradication are presented. The nature and manner of measuring the main measures of poverty and social exclusion, including those used by Eurostat, is clarified. The second chapter presents a review of the literature on the problems of poverty, social exclusion and social inequalities in Bulgaria. In the third chapter a critical analysis of the poverty measures used by Eurostat and other institutions is made, pointing out their shortcomings and consequences in their interpretation. An international comparison of countries is made according to poverty rates as measured by the indicators material deprivation and extreme material deprivation. The next three chapters present an analysis of the risk of poverty and social exclusion among the three most vulnerable groups of the population – children, working poor and people aged 65 and over.

Česká zahraniční politika v roce 2013: Analýza ÚMV

Author(s): / Language(s): Czech

Since 2007 the Institute of International Relations continuously monitors the Czech foreign policy, and it has released seven analytical monographs about it, which have always corresponded to the same unified analytical framework. The books’ structure is and always has been as follows: The first two chapters analyze the overall domes-tic political and media context of the Czech foreign policy and identify the influence and involvement of each of the main actors in it. The second part focuses on the most important thematic areas of the Czech foreign policy, specifically the Czech impact on the European Union and the Czech security and defense policy. The third part shows the main trends and dynamics of the Czech activities in the region that is geographically closest to the Czech Republic – Central Europe. The fourth section maps out various important bilateral and regional relations, and the fifth part analyzes the participation of the Czech Republic in other multilateral and thematic areas. Alongside this composition, all the chapters follow a unified analytical structure. Each chapter works with the Czech Republic’s political and conceptual context as a basic internal basis for the Czech foreign policy. In the second part of each chapter, a specific agenda and some events of the examined year, as well as their impact and relevance for the Czech foreign policy, are analyzed. Most of the authors also included an analysis of the involvement of the different actors in the monitored area and also the media coverage of the given topic. The team of authors emphasizes continuity in both conceptual and thematic matters. For this reason, the analysis can build on a robust empirical basis and deepen people’s understanding of the Czech foreign policy. In the yearbook for 2013, there are two significant shifts from the above described concept. First, partly due to a three-year grant of the Grant Agency of the Czech Re-public, the team of authors has enriched the conceptual framework by adding several further analytical categories that would allow them to qualitatively improve the theoretical knowledge of foreign policy-making in the future. Secondly, thanks to the deepened cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the long-discussed plan of the Ministry to replace the regularly published Czech Foreign Policy Report with a new output that would preserve the statistical level of the Report but would also include evaluations and analyses has been put into practice, as this book is precisely this kind of output. On the basis of these discussions, a new concept has materialized this year for the first time. In accordance with this concept, the Institute of International Relations’ foreign policy analysis now includes, for the first time, parts dealing with statistics and surveys, and these parts were prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. English versions of the yearbook will also be prepared with the support of the Ministry in the future. Regarding the overall conceptual framework, there have been several changes in terms of the main questions that we are asking, as well as in how the above described concept will be fulfilled. The aim is to develop a new conceptual framework for explaining the foreign policy of small and medium-sized states, as well as a more general explanation of the Czech foreign policy as such.

Česká zahraniční politika v roce 2016: Analýza ÚMV

Author(s): / Language(s): Czech

Since 2007 the Institute of International Relations continuously analyzes the Czech foreign policy, and this years marks the 10th edition. The analytical framework remains the same over all these years (though there was a major addition to it in 2013), which provides a unique opportunity for a long-term comparison of how the foreign policy changed over the years. With this insight in mind, the authors can say that since 2014 that the turbulent international environment contributed to the fact that the domestic political and public interest in foreign policy reached recorded levels that were previously unheard of. In the past, the authors criticized the overwhelming disinterest in foreign policy matters on the part of the politicians and the public in the Czech Republic. However, the heightened, if aroused, political and public attention to foreign policy cannot be rendered exclusively – or even predominantly – as a positive and constructive feature of the foreign policy since then. This is not to say that in the long term, the increased interest in the foreign policy, if sustained and managed in a conscious and responsible way, will not yield a fruitful result in the future. But the nature of the political and public context of the foreign policy since 2014 exposed the immaturity and irresponsibility of the politics of the Czech foreign policy. As mentioned, the books’ structure has been the same since 2007, with slight variations as to which particular chapter was included or excluded in a given year. The first chapter analyzes the overall domestic and global political context of the Czech foreign policy and identify the influence and involvement of each of the main actors in it. The second part focuses on the Czech acting within the European Union and the Czech security and defense policy. The third part analyzes the main development and dynamics of the Czech policies in Central Europe. The fourth section maps out various important bilateral and regional relations, and the fifth part analyzes the participation of the Czech Republic in other multilateral and thematic areas. The fifth part is an up-to-date record of the diplomatic activities and interconnections of the Czech Republic. Furthermore, all the chapters follow a unified analytical structure. Each chapter begins with the political and conceptual context of the discrete analyzed field. In the second part of each chapter, a specific agenda and some events of the examined year, as well as their impact on and relevance for the Czech foreign policy, are analyzed. Most of the authors also included an analysis of the involvement of the different actors in the monitored area and also the media coverage of the given topic. Also, thanks to the deepened cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, for the fourth year now, the IIR’s analysis also includes an overview of the diplomatic activities of the main Czech foreign policy actors.

Česká zahraniční politika v roce 2009 Analýza ÚMV

Author(s): / Language(s): Czech

What was the Czech foreign policy in 2009 like and why? The team of authors from the Institute of International Relations and four other partner institutions have been looking for answers to these questions for three consecutive years. The book Czech Foreign Policy in 2009: Analysis of the IIR is thus the third volume of the IIR’s series of books on Czech foreign policy, bringing together 21 chapters from 19 authors. The analytical framework of the book remained unchanged. The analysis begins with a general chapter that explores the nature of the political context of the process of the Czech foreign policy making. The main argument is that even if the executive and administrative background of the Czech foreign policy is solid and full of potential, the worsening political context (embodied in the fall of the government as the Czech Republic was in the middle of executing the European presidency) seriously hampers the outcomes of Czech foreign policy. The second general chapter adds an important analysis of the media coverage of the Czech foreign policy as a part of the policy’s context. This chapter has undergone a conceptual change since the last edition as it now also includes a qualitative analysis of the media coverage in addition to the quantitative one. The following individual chapters follow the same structure as their counterparts in the previous two editions. Each chapter first inquires into the nature of the political and conceptual context of a given foreign policy dimension or theme, and then it goes on to follow the actual agenda and main events in 2009. Each chapter also contains an important part that consists of focusing on the key actors involved in the particular policy making, thus enabling us to point out possible changes in the process of the Czech foreign policy making. The last part of each chapter is devoted to the public and media substratum of a given policy.

Česká zahraniční politika v roce 2010 Analýza ÚMV

Author(s): / Language(s): Czech

What was the Czech foreign policy in 2010 and why? A team of authors from the Institute of International Relations in Prague and other Czech partner institutions have been looking for answers to these questions for four consecutive years. The book Czech Foreign Policy in 2010: Analysis of the IIR is the fourth volume of a series focused on the Czech foreign policy. In 20 chapters by 19 authors, the book provides a deep exploration of the Czech foreign policy based on an unchanged analytical framework. The book begins with an analysis of the general political context of the Czech foreign policy. The basic argument is that despite the fact that the government of Petr Nečas had a considerable majority, the Czech foreign policy during this time partly remained hostage to two basic features of the Czech foreign policy of the previous years: indifference and turbulent and unstable political conditions. Yet, several positive tendencies in it were recorded, such as, for example, the general calming down of the foreign policy debate, the more coherent foreign policy program declaration of the new government, or the beginning of work on a new foreign policy conception which had been promised since 2006. The second chapter adds an important analysis of the media context of the Czech foreign policy making, proving that there is a long term tendency to-ward excessive selectivity in the major media while this selectivity is determined not by the relevance of particular issues but by other, less relevant factors. This selectivity goes hand in hand with the rising personalization and more emotional framework of Czech news making. The rest of the book is divided into several chapters, and each chapter reflects a selected dimension of the Czech foreign policy. Each chapter follows the same unifying structure: in the first part, the chapter analyses the nature of the political context of the given foreign policy dimension in order to illuminate the link between the political background and the actual foreign policy outputs, which are then explored in the second part. The third part focuses on the roles and involvement of particular actors participating in the foreign policy, and the fourth part aims at describing the media coverage and media context of a particular foreign policy agenda.

Czech Foreign Policy in 2015: Analysis

Author(s): / Language(s): English

When analysing the last year (2014), the authors of this publication concluded that it was the most significant year in terms of foreign policy for the entire monitored period and, to a large extent, for the entire period of existence of the independent Czech Republic in general. The trend towards the weakening of the multilateral and open global order and towards the decrease of trust in this order deepened more in 2015. It is a purely negative phenomenon for a country that has the size and abilities of the Czech Republic. Therefore, the key question for us is still the same: How and why does the Czech Republic react to the challenges coming from the outer regional-international-global environment, and how has it itself tried to influence this environment? Does the Czech Republic contribute with its foreign policy to the cultivation or at least to the sustainment of the multilateral global order or not? In this context, we further ask the following questions: In which areas and why did the Czech Republic implement a proactive, a reactive or “any” policy, and how successful was it? In which areas did the polarization and politicization of the foreign-policy agenda occur, and what was the influence of these factors on the Czech foreign policy?

European Financial Resilience and Regulation 25 Years United under Euro - Proceedings of the International Conference EUFIRE-RE 2024

Author(s): / Language(s): English

The volume offers a framework for debating the main challenges faced within the European Union and globally, emphasizing the regulatory perspective for the financial sector, in particular, and for the business sector, in general.

Употреба силе у међународним односима

Author(s): / Language(s): Serbian

This thematic collection represents an attempt to systematically address some issues related to the use and exploitation of armed force, which is one of the central themes of international relations. The contemporary international context is constantly changing, and after the end of the Cold War there was a tendency to increasingly talk about the superiority of force in the era of globalization, that is, about the predominance of so-called non-military security threats. Unfortunately, practice shows that traditional armed force is a constant companion of international relations, which proves the justification, both social and scientific, for now, towards the end of the second decade of the 21st century, to re-examine some of the fundamental concepts and practices of international relations related to its use...

Трета национална докторантска конференция по социология : Сборник с доклади

Author(s): / Language(s): Bulgarian

The collection of articles, presented during the Third National Doctoral Conference on Sociology at the University of National and World Economy in May 2023, addresses diverse and interdisciplinary topics reflecting the state of contemporary social research in Bulgaria. The volume brings together empirical and theoretical contributions of doctoral students, ranging from the impact of digitalization on political campaigns and labor dynamics in online platforms to explorations of professional autonomy and the symbolic boundaries of public spaces. With a strong focus on empirical methodologies, the collection provides fresh insights into themes such as organisational conflicts, healthcare reforms, transhumanism and civic engagement. Noteworthy are the innovative approaches and critical discussions led by doctoral researchers and established academics, fostering a productive exchange of ideas. This collection not only enriches the sociological discourse in Bulgaria but also has the potential to contribute to the global understanding of social transformations in post-transition contexts.

Scientia Moralitas Conference Proceedings

Author(s): / Language(s): English

These proceedings represent the work of contributors to the Scientia Moralitas Conference held online on February 19-20, 2023. The conference was organized by the Scientia Moralitas Research Institute and the Research Association for Interdisciplinary Studies. The objective of this conference is to promote multidisciplinary research in social sciences, humanities, and ethics and facilitate discussions on contemporary real-world challenges.

Активното стареене – здравни, социални и икономически детерминанти

Author(s): Veselka Pavlova,Ekaterina Tosheva,Mariana Mourgova,Ralitza Pandurska,Anastas Dimov / Language(s): Bulgarian

The publication focuses on pressing issues related to the health status and access to healthcare for elderly people in Bulgaria, their social life, and their participation in the labor market. A comparative analysis of demographic trends in Bulgaria and the European Union indicates that by 2050, population aging processes will deepen, with the rate in Bulgaria exceeding the EU average. A comparison of the Active Aging Index demonstrates that Bulgaria's low position is due to the very limited participation of elderly people in social and political life. Based on data from the SHARE study, an analysis was conducted on the health status and access to medical care and services for individuals aged 55 and over. The findings conclude that a significant portion of elderly people in Bulgaria suffer from chronic illnesses and overweight, do not visit dentists, or consult medical professionals. The study highlights the extremely limited involvement of elderly people in political and social life. Significant differences in quality of life and life satisfaction were identified across various socio-demographic groups. Conclusions were drawn regarding the advantages and risks of flexible retirement and its connection to active aging. An analysis of the dynamics of working retirees from 2009 to 2019 reveals a growing participation of elderly individuals in the labor market. A key conclusion of the study is that elderly people with poorer health, unfavorable financial conditions, and lower levels of education are more inclined toward early retirement.

Polski aktywizm. Działalność organizacji pozarządowych w kryzysie uchodźczym związanym z wojną w Ukrainie

Author(s): Paweł Mikołajczak,Anna Waligóra,Magdalena Głowacka,Joanna Wiśniewska-Paluszak,Grzegorz Paluszak / Language(s): Polish

W książce została podjęta problematyka zaangażowania polskich organizacji pozarządowych w zapewnienie wsparcia uchodźcom po agresji Rosji na Ukrainę w 2022 r. Stanęły one wówczas przed ogromnym wyzwaniem dostosowania działań do sytuacji i szybko nawiązały współpracę z otoczeniem. Autorzy wskazali, że fundamentem tej aktywności był potencjał ludzki, a kluczową rolę odgrywali wolontariusze. Na podstawie studiów literaturowych i badań empirycznych autorzy określili potencjał zasobowy organizacji i jego związek ze skalą udzielonej pomocy. Liczba ukraińskich obywateli wspieranych przez polskie organizacje pozarządowe wykazała istotny statystycznie związek z liczbą pracowników organizacji, poziomem znajomości wśród wolontariuszy zasad udzielania profesjonalnej pomocy uchodźcom, liczbą godzin poświęconych na pomoc uchodźcom oraz liczbą sposobów motywowania wolontariuszy. Przeprowadzone badanie wypełnia lukę w literaturze naukowej poświęconej sektorowi non profit, zagadnieniu spontanicznego wolontariatu i pojęciu potencjału zasobowego organizacji. Monografia jest pierwszą publikacją naukową w Polsce, która w ilościowy sposób prezentuje rolę organizacji pozarządowych i wolontariuszy w pomocy udzielonej ukraińskim uchodźcom w początkowym okresie wojny. Zawarte w książce wnioski są kierowane głównie do menedżerów organizacji non profit oraz decydentów politycznych odpowiedzialnych za zapewnienie systemu wsparcia uchodźców w czasach kryzysu.