(In)equality and the South African Constitution

ABSTRACT

Does the South African Constitution constrain or empower government, courts and citizens in addressing systemic social and economic inequalities? This article argues that the Constitution is explicitly ‘transformative’, but is an enabling document, providing ‘scaffolding’ for political and legal activities. It is government, strong institutions and civil society that are ultimately responsible for securing its equality aspirations. Here the Constitution admits of different understandings of equality and different economic and social policy choices. This article identifies these contested meanings of equality and suggests that a liberal egalitarian/social democratic version is dominant in policy choices and the jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court. It illustrates this with reference to the Court’s jurisprudence on equality, and suggests that more radical and transformative interpretations remain possible. However, it concludes that we cannot escape politics, the need for good policy choices and effective implementation and enforcement.     

谈体育教学改革发展趋势

体育教学“以人为本”观念形成的社会环境是现代化发展的必然结果。我们教育改革思路提出“健康第一”的指导思想，同样验证了“以人为本”的现代体育观念的社会环境背景。学生对体育课的要求和看法将对体育教学改革提供“主体”依据，体育教学改革要“以人为本”。     

Ill-behaviour of transformation-frontiers with environmental quality versus pollution

If one looks at environmental quality N as a renewable natural resource (with its own natural dynamics) which is changed by emissions Z, then one gets a better understanding of the shape of the damage function. In the case of a logistic growth dynamics one obtains a well-shaped transformation frontier N(Z), even in a two-species natural dynamics. For a more general natural interaction in the framework of a prey-predator model one obtains the possibilities of a cusp catastrophe which makes the transformation frontier N(Z) ill-shaped for the standard arguments of economists and their most favoured environmental policy instruments.     

The approach to transforming the traditional agricultural economy: a research on the multiple paths of poverty alleviation and transformation in rural China

Transforming a traditional agricultural economy into a modern economy is one of the main themes in economic development. Through theoretical and empirical analysis, this paper finds out that the key to transformation is to raise the economic value of people, to improve human capital investment and to match the stocks of physical and human capital. China’s rural economy is on the edge of economic take-off, and different zones may pursue different paths for transformation. The source of rural poverty is not the scarcity of income or consumption, but the deficiency of education, social security, medical care and economic opportunity, which we define as “capability poverty”. __________ Translated from The Journal of World Economy (世界经济), 2005,(2) (in Chinese)     

"转化"理论在马克思劳动价值论中的地位及其局限

本文认为,马克思的劳动价值论是以“简单商品经济”为基础构建起来的,“转化”理论是马克思劳动价值理论由“简单商品经济”通向资本主义现存生产方式的桥梁,它使马克思劳动价值论不再仅仅局限于“简单商品经济”的范围,而是其全部理论的支点。然而它在马克思的劳动价值理论中并非是一种完全自洽的存在,它在解释资本主义社会现实经济活动方面,本身也存在一些局限,留下了一些值得思考的问题。     

Use of Statistics in the Monetary Policy of the Czech National Bank: The Case of a Country in Transition

In the presented text the authors judge the importance of statistics in the monetary policy of the Czech National Bank (CNB) over the course of the economic transformation process, with particular consideration of changing statistical needs and the possibilities and limits of statistical data exploitation in the monetary analyses. The importance of statistics lies on the level of collection and processing of statistical information and on the level of use of statistical methods to analyse data. Since the start of the 1990s the requirements for statistics were significantly influenced by monetary policy. In the period 1990–1997, monetary targeting was the primary influential factor. Since 1998, the monetary policy is influenced by inflation targeting. Statistical priorities switched from monetary data to economy and financial market data. Much progress has been made in the use of statistical methods for analysing data. Statistics available at present cover the CNB's standard monetary-policy requirements and are on par with those in developed countries. Its further development will reflect the standard changes taking place in the more advanced countries.     

对我国金融资产管理公司转型的思考

经过5年多的发展,我国金融资产管理公司(AMC)到现在面临转型。本文分析了我国金融资产管理公司转型的必然性,就转型的路径选择做出三种预测,以及对金融资产管理公司转型提出一些准备。     

服务贸易发展的宏观政策战略转变分析

顺应全球产业结构的发展变化趋势,做好中国服务贸易发展的战略准备。作者提出了中国宏观经济发展思路和宏观经济发展政策的八个战略转变建议及具有针对性的有关中国服务贸易发展的五大产业政策转变对策。     

晋商兴衰与我国家族企业发展

我国家族企业经过20多年的长足发展,其规模和效益得到了不断的扩大和提高。但家族式的管理体制已明显地不适应企业进一步发展的需要,成为了阻碍企业发展的桎梏。因此,转换企业经营机制、实施代企业制度改造已成为其不可逾越的重要环节。在机制转换过程中,应以史为镜,积极借鉴和深刻吸取明清晋商机制转换和管理体制“改革”的成功经验与失败的教训。     

晚清民初上海文人的经济生活与身份转型——以王韬、包天笑为例

近代上海城市的发展，把一批传统士人卷了进来，中国文人由此开始走出延续千百年的仕途经济，走向近代城市的分工体系和独立职业空间。作为晚清上海初始城市化的亲历者，王韬在文化心理和经济生活两方面，经历了一场由“士人”转向城市职业者的艰难蜕变。而生活于清末民初上海的包天笑，则以明确的职业归属感，取代了传统士人的仕宦情结，中国文人至此初步完成了由传统政教依附者向近代独立文化人的转型。