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Society & Politics 1/2007

(Társadalom & Politika 2007/1)

Foreword of the Editors

European Studies
Ferenc Gazdag: Theories on the Foreign Policy of Integration
On the basis of sometimes correlating, sometimes contradicting views and opinions of several authors, the study attempts to present and analyse in detail the various theories on the foreign policy of the European Union – despite the fact that many thinkers consider constructing such theories to be needless, as we can also analyse the foreign policy of the EU by means of the notions of the general theory of international relations, which is given from the beginning. All the theoretical frameworks present themselves parallel with the continuous widening and deepening of the integration, and the constant growth of its international political weight and importance. Analysing, interpreting, and descripting discussions on the foreign policy of the EU are constantly present, and they will probably get even more and more abundant parallel with the organizational and thematic enrichment of the common foreign, security and defence policy. The essay provides us with an insight, with which we can consider the deficiencies of the foreign policy of the EU, and evaluate those suggestions that concern how the Union can represent itself on the international scene in the most successful way.

International Politics
Olivér Horváth: Xanana Republic – East Timor on Predetermined Paths
Anyone who is interested in politics can hardly find a more interesting issue than the birth and the first steps of a new country, a new state. The subject of the study, East-Timor is an example on which we can examine almost every possible question of the phenomenon. Can a constitutional system formed by UN experts become firm and generally recognized? Can nation-building be successful when the Timorese identity is dubious and fragile? Can charismatic leadership be in accord with democracy, and doing justice in accord with reconciliation? Recent prospects might lead us to pessimism, but it might be too early to announce a new failed state. The struggle of East Timor takes place in front of our eyes, and this writing may contribute to the understanding of the processes behind.

Security Policy
Lóránt Dávid — Ferenc Molnár: Security, Terrorism and Tourism – International and Hungarian Relevancies
The paper connects different fields of research – such as security studies, sociology, and tourism. It makes apparent that changes of the security environment and of perceived security influence people’s way of life in developed countries. The authors point out the crucial role of globalization, which provides virtually limitless flow of information, travelling opportunities, and economic collaboration. Right this phenomenon has changed the social perception of security and the opportunity for tourism, and has empowered international terrorism. In spite of the fact that terrorism is present in public discussions and is targeting tourists, it is not perceived as the most important threat, and does not provide an unambiguous threat towards tourism. The authors claim more attention on the complex nature and effects of terrorism both on the political level and among tourist industry organizations.

Political Culture
Kata Kondár: Women in Post-Transition Hungarian Politics (1990—2006): Facts and Opportunities
The paper examines the situation and the roles of women in Hungarian politics – as well as the changes that have taken place after the transition to plural democracy. The results of the research, in fact, did not support the original hypothesis, according to which the participation rate of women in Hungarian politics and government had constantly been improving during the first 16 years of the post-transition era. In fact, participation of women is greatly influenced by party politics: party leaders decide on the candidacies both in voting districts and party lists; moreover, electoral attitudes and the distorting effect of the electoral system also have a rather “discouraging” effect. The study, first, briefly presents feminism as an ideological/political movement, and examines the concept of gender; then, it continues with examining the effects of Hungarian elections on the roles played by women MPs, the different strategies of candidate nomination as applied by the major parties, the different means of getting women elected in Parliament, and their ratios and distribution among the several party fractions; finally, in a separate chapter, the author discusses some international experiences encountered during her research – with the aim of presenting several successful solutions that could improve the participation of women in the Hungarian parliament.

Media and Communication
Dániel Bita: Endorsements in the Anglo-Saxon and in the Hungarian Printed Press
The author, in his essay surveying the relationship between media and politics, tries to answer questions like: What are the main tasks and responsibilities of journalism?; What is democratic journalism all about?; What is the substance of freedom of the press?; etc. The essay especially focuses on endorsements. Endorsements constitute a genre of opinion-journalism, they are pieces of writing that incorporate the action of declaring the personal support of a journalist or the collective support of an editorial staff for a candidate or a party during the campaign period of elections; they try to persuade readers to follow the editors’ lead; in this way, endorsement editorials constitute an important statement of political views and position of the newspaper. The author aims to demonstrate that frank and argumentative endorsements help the political system to function better, and help voters with finding the party or the candidate best fitting their positions. Therefore, he analyses several endorsements published in the United States during the presidential election campaign of 2004, in the United Kingdom before the parliamentary elections in 2005, and in Hungary in 2006.

Reflections
Ferenc Bohoczky: The Present Status of Renewable Energy Resources and Potentials of the Next Decades
Zoltán Vasali: „Alternative” Sources of Energy – Energy Policy in the European Union and in Hungary

Interview
Ervin Csizmadia, director of Méltányosság Politikaelemző Központ (“Equity Political Analysis Centre”)

Review
Ágnes Huszár: Speaking Out. The Female Voice in Public Contexts

Currents
POLI2007 – Roaming Conference of Students of Political Sciences
“Once Upon a Time there was the State...” political science conference for PhD students (Eötvös Loránd University of Budapest, Faculty of Law)
“New Research Issues of the Modern and the Present-Day Era” historical science conference for PhD students (Eötvös Loránd University of Budapest, Faculty of Arts)

Presentation
Politikatudományi Szemle 2007/1. (a leading periodical of social sciences)
POLITIKA.hu 2007/1. and 2007/2. (national periodical of students of political science studies)
“Kitekintő” (“Looking out”) news and community portal

Currents
POLI 2007 – Roaming Conference of Students of Political Sciences
“Once Upon a Time there was the State...” political science conference for PhD students (Eötvös Loránd University of Budapest, Faculty of Law)
“New Research Issues of the Modern and the Present-Day Era” historical science conference for PhD students (Eötvös Loránd University of Budapest, Faculty of Arts)

Contents & Abstracts