In 2010, Byelorussia undertook an ambitious plan to reduce dependence of its energy sector on supplies of Russian energy sources. In accordance with the adapter concept, participation of local fuels in the country’s energy balance is to increase from 20.7% in 2010 to 32% in 2020. Implementation of the strategy for increasing participation of local and renewable energy sources in the country’s energy and fuel balance encounters numerous problems. Insufficient financial resources, corruption scandals in the background, and problems with finding foreign investors seem to jeopardise chances for implementation of the government strategy concerning the renewable energy sources. Thus, Byelorussia will still remain a country strongly dependant on supplies of Russian natural gas.

The paper attempts to estimate chances for modernisation of the Byelorussian Energy system in the years 2011–2016. In accordance with the government strategy, in 2015 Byelorussia is to become an energy independent country. The ambitious government plan provides for modernisation of several tens of power facilities. It also aims at reducing the dependence of the domestic energy sector on Russian energy sources. However, the modernisation plans of the energy system include a significant risk, as their financing largely depends on obtaining foreign loans. The current implementation rate of the government strategy indicates that chances for modernising the outdated Byelorussian energy system are small. Only commissioning of a nuclear power plant will end Byelorussian problems with electric power shortages.

Artykuł przywołuje filozofię władzy Michela Foucaulta i pokazuje, jak może ona zainspirować polską politologię do przyjęcia innego podejścia do badania władzy. Autor wskazuje, jak Foucault analizował historyczne praktyki i techniki władzy „produkujące” podmiotowość i tożsamość jednostek. W takim ujęciu władza nie może być pojmowana jako własność jakiejś konkretnej osoby, grupy ludzi czy instytucji, ale jako pewnego rodzaju strategia działania. Autor ukazuje też, na czym może polegać zainspirowana myślą Michela Foucaulta formuła krytyki akademickiej, stanowiącej etos i określoną postawę badawczą.

Although a current and marketable term in the literature and political discourses, the notion of ‘international role’ still lacks a clear and succinct, let alone consensually applicable, definition. This article posits that, from the actorness perspective as a point of departure, the concept of “international role” may well be assessed through the lenses of the quad-element “PIPP” analytical model, which is herewith developed. Thereby, the analysis of actor’s international role has to make a long conceptual sojourn from power, influence presence to performance (PIPP). These four embedded concepts (PIPP model) help assess the explanandum, i.e. “actor’s international role”, in a theoretically-informed, systematic and holistic way, thus avoiding the pitfalls of sporadic (mis) usage found in common parlance.

SOCIO-TECHNICAL ASPECTS OF PERSONALIZATION OF POLITICS

An issue of interest is the process of personalization of politics. I am going to examine it from the point of view of social engineering. There is no doubt that we can find many things in common between social engineering and personalization. Personalization is a broader syndrome of traits that can be reduced to a change in the nature of leadership in democracy, especially in campaign. As one might expect cause of this state of affairs, on the one hand it is still a growing number of those who serve as prime minister on the basis of “presidential style of administration”, on the other hand – the actual (institutional) changes in parliamentary systems.

The issue of rulers’ sanctity in the Early and High Middle Ages – a Polish case against the European background

The text analyses the problem of the sanctity of rulers, especially non-martyrs, in Latin Europe in the Early and High Middle Ages. The starting point for this discussion is a frequently asked question about the reasons for the lack of such a phenomenon in Poland.

Przedmiot niniejszego artykułu stanowi nauczanie społeczne Kościoła katolickiego ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem interpretacji i wkładu weń papieża Benedykta XVI. Autor pragnie dokonać rekonstrukcji stanowiska papieża Benedykta odnośnie władzy politycznej. W ramach artykułu autor analizuje sposób, w jaki zjawisko władzy politycznej interpretowane jest w katolickiej nauce społecznej oraz sposób, w jaki papież Benedykt XVI interpretował i rozwijał nauczanie Kościoła dotyczące tej problematyki. Dodatkowo rozbudowany został fragment dotyczący stosunku Benedykta XVI do systemu politycznego demokracji.

The analysis in this article provides an overview of the research on the current relations among countries of the South China Sea basin. For this purpose, I have decided to apply the geopolitical research workshop, focusing on its contemporary approach. On the one hand, this work uses the available indicators and index to gauge the level of development, economic and demographic potential, and military expenditure of these states. On the other hand, an effort was made to analyze and measure power, taking into account the changing geopolitical status of countries in this sub-region.
Contemporary geopolitics in this context allows to verify the scale of the impact on permanent environmental and geographic factors (e.g. publicized investments carried out by the People’s Republic of China in Mischief Reef, Fiery Cross, Subi Reef and Woody Island) and the elaboration of proposals going beyond the classical, geopolitical framework (morphological, political and military factors). Therefore, this article also includes the use of geopolitical codes to assess the current strategies of these countries and to describe potential scenarios of actors’ behaviour in the sub-region.

Summer Olympic Games in Beijing in the context of selected scientific theories

Summer Olympic Games is, apart from football world cup, the most popular sports event. It is widely believed that it is something more than just sports event. It can be analysed from economic, marketing or political perspective. It is an opportunity to present country’s own culture, technology and history. However, there is also some kind of threat associated with such events. Organization of such events is not possible without involvement of public sector and political bodies. It creates specific relationship in which sport affects functioning of the state in some areas and state may use Olympic Games for its own particularistic interests. Such relationship occurred also in the case of 29th Summer Olympic Games in Beijing that took place between 8.08.2008 and 24.08.2008.
This article shows how China tried to use the olympic games to achieve political goals. Additionally, it was verified to what extent the organization of the event influenced the change of perception of China to international arena, civil liberties and the consolidation of society around the political bodies. The considerations were based on several scientific theories defining the role of sport in image building countries – presented by Barrie Houlihan, Joshua Goldstein, Walter Maening and Maurice Roche.

Attempts to regulate by the governance of mode of life and behavior of partials in the history of imperial states were especially evident in the fashion industry. The article explores the evolution of the Russian court costume, as well as the uniform of officials and students during the XVIII-XIX centuries in the context of social political reforms that took place in the state during this period of time.
The content of government decrees published in the full collection of laws of the Russian Empire is analyzed, which contain orders on the color of the fabric, cut and trim of the costume. The purpose of this lawmaking is to “reconcile” the old Russian traditions with the norms of modern European life. A special place in the study is given to the reforming activities of Peter I, who, with his decrees, changed the entire “sign” system of Ancient Russia. Peter I “changed clothes” of the Russian elite into a European costume, but after the October Revolution of 1917, the Soviet elite could not wear the prePeter garb, which, like the entire “sign system” of the Moscow kingdom, was associated with the ideas of Orthodoxy, the inviolability and the eternity of regal power.
In the 20-30s of the twentieth century, the struggle in the USSR against the tailcoat and tall hat was a struggle against bourgeois ethics, and as a result, a struggle against the norms of Western European etiquette.
It is revealed that the problem of “form” in the broadest sense of the word was of particular importance for Russian life. The pressure of a powerful, but not organized force - all this increased the importance of external forms and organization of life, be it a form of government structure or everyday life.

By May 29, 2019, Nigeria’s Fourth Republic and democracy had achieved an unprecedented 20 unbroken years of active partisan politics and representative democracy. The First Republic had lasted barely three years (1963-1966); the Second Republic and its democratic institutions lasted just four years (1979-1983) while the Third Republic (19921993) could barely hold its head for one year. Hence, by mid-2019, not many analysts have congratulated Nigeria for its longest democratic experience since its independence from Britain in 1960, but hardly did any of them identify the core reasons for such a sustained rule of democratic ethos for two decades. In this paper, we show the origin and practice of political parties in Nigeria. We argue that the country had succeeded in its Fourth Republic as a democratic country because its law and constitution together with the political culture of the people had permitted multiparty democracy by which governments had been formed, political inclusion and popular participation ensured, and public policies initiated. We also present an analysis of party politicking in the country from its beginning in 1923 and conclude that Nigeria has achieved meaningful and sustainable dividends of democracy in her Fourth Republic because of a maturing culture of partisan politics.

In the context of democratic discourse, civil society is given a decisive role in the formation of power and influence on power. However, between the authorities (state and self-governing) and public organizations, as representatives of the interests of civil society, mostly subject-object relations are established, where the subject is the government. The article is devoted to finding an answer to the question: can the model of subject-subject relations between the government and civil society, where both social institutions are equal participants in the political process, have practical application? Analysis of social changes in Western Europe and Ukraine gives grounds to support the point of view of those scholars who consider civil society the basis of the state, a factor that gives a specific character to each state formation, regardless of the generality of democratic processes. At the same time, attention is drawn to the heterogeneity of civil society, which is a barrier to its consolidation and strengthening of subjectivity. There is a noticeable increase in competition between the state and civil society in terms of influencing society, as well as the manipulation of public movements by public authorities to achieve political goals. However, a fairly high level of public confidence in public organizations and the potential for their advocacy allow the use of public influence to activate the population and strengthen the position of civil society in relations with the authorities.

Zasadniczym celem artykułu jest kwestia zorganizowania skutecznego systemu obronnego Unii Europejskiej w kontekście zmiany geopolitycznej dokonującej się w świecie. Tym samym istotna staje się odpowiedź na pytanie, czy Unia Europejska chcąc utrzymać istotną rolę w globalnym układzie politycznym może tego dokonać nie dysponując sprawnym instrumentem militarnym? Wydaje się, że Unia Europejska pozbawiona efektywnej siły militarnej może zachować ważną pozycję w systemie globalnym, lecz zostanie zredukowana do roli mocarstwa drugiego rzędu, jako podmiot nie pełnowymiarowy. Zasadniczymi metodami badawczymi są różne metody pomiaru potęgi jednostek politycznych.

Problematyka tekstu konkluduje wokół zagadnienia przemocy, którego źródła należy dopatrywać się w tekście „Przyczynek do krytyki przemocy” autorstwa Waltera Benjamina. Przedmiotem refleksji są różne formy przemocy ustanawiającej prawo, jak i przemocy podtrzymującej prawo, a także ich związku z wolnymi od przemocy środkami, a więc „czystymi środkami”. Takie podejście pozwala na krytyczną analizę zależności istniejącej między jednostką (człowiekiem), a funkcjonowaniem instytucji (państwa, władzy) opartej na określonych regulacjach prawnych. Tekst zachęca do zastanowienia się nad tym: czy przemoc rozumiana jako zasadna może być moralna? i czy wszelka przemoc jest środkiem do sprawiedliwego czy też niesprawiedliwego celu? Wydaje się, że część końcowa tekstu poprzez różnicowanie rodzajów przemocy, dzieląc ją na boską, mityczną, wychowawczą, pozwala odpowiedzieć na te dwa kluczowe, przedstawione wcześniej pytania.

Philosophical and Theoretical View on the Meaning of Tenure

The author analyzes two approaches to the terms of office of the authorities. The study discusses the evolution of thinking about terms of office, which took place not only in doctrine, law, religion, but also in the understanding of people in power.

Mother of God, Banish Putin. Feminists Against Authoritarianism in Russia

The events that took place in Russia at the end of 2011 – the rigged parliamentary elections and the nomination of Vladimir Putin as presidential candidate, his return to the Kremlin after four years, caused numerous protests on a previously unknown scale. According to various estimates, tens of thousands of dissatisfied citizens took to the streets of Moscow. They were led by Alexei Navalny and Boris Nemtsov, who was later murdered in 2015. The public support of the authorities and the condemnation of the protesters by Patriarch Cyril – the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, was met with a reaction from a now outraged society. On February, 21 2012, the famous feminist group Pussy Riot, staged a performance in the building of the Council of Christ the Saviour in Moscow. The performance was to be a form of protest against the informal alliance of „the throne and the altar”. This informal alliance has been present in Russia for many years, it obliges both sides to mutual support, especially in times of crisis. The trial of the three members of the Pussy Riot group – Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Ekaterina Samucevich and Maria Alokhina was strictly political, despite strict efforts of judges and prosecutors to change its character. Under the pretence of offending religious feelings, a political lynch was carried out against the three women. The real reason for such harsh actions, was disobedience against the head of the Russian state and standing in opposition to the authoritarian form of government. The phoney trial was treated as a warning to the system’s opponents, for them to think twice before undertaking any actions against the state authorities. Pussy Riot’s performance and its consequences have provoked many questions about the condition of the rule of law in Russia and the durability of Vladimir Putin’s regime. The article describes the earlier activities of Pussy Riot, background of the events preceding performance in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, a trial and the world’s response to the verdict. The research area durability and stability of political system in Russia during the presidency of Vladimir Putin and what it guarantees. The main hypothesis is the assumption that any manifestation or insubordination to the existing order in Russia is treated as an affront, and every person undertaking such action must be severely punished and stigmatized. The research method used in the article is an analysis of written sources.

Essay About The Province (Notes About the Lack of Power in Modern Russia)

In this article, the author using sketches of Russian culture, tries to understand, how institutions of power can function in the Russian province, and how they can be perceived by the society. The power is distributed unevenly, and this has a full effect on its deficit in relation to provincial political discourse. The Russian example is not an exception. From the author’s point of view, modern practices may have significant cultural grounds, hiding in a special relation to the province, which traditionally accompanied political discourse. The author sees this attitude in various sketches from the texts of Aleksandr Pushkin, Andrey Platonov, Anton Chekhov, Ivan Bunin and other Russian classics. The author’s interpretation of the problem required an appeal to the theoretical works of political philosophers, such as Giorgio Agamben, Albert Camus, Niklas Luhmann, Michel Foucault and Max Scheler. The author believes that in the space of the Russian province there is an objective deficit of institutions of power, which speaks, on the one hand, of a certain disregard for the province, and, on the other hand, testifies to the strength of resistance to local initiatives and legal nihilism that has become part of the political philosophy of the Russian provincial. In turn, the provision of a person to himself, affects a fairly critical attitude toward the political power. A person is not more capable of trusting the authorities and seeking support from them. His being increasingly assumes an existential character. The policy of the federal government in modern Russia gives rise to serious gaps between the center and the province, which can forms affect the specific perception of power itself, and also affects the formation of anarchic attitudes.

The aim of the article is to present the concept of legitimacy of power throughout history in philosophical, political, and legal thought. Particular attention is paid to confronting political and sociological views, which place emphasis on the social reception and acceptance of power, with the concepts of lawyers, for whom formal aspects are more important. The author also introduces the English-speaking reader to a different way of understanding the term ‘legitimacy of power’ among Polish researchers, which is a result not only of their original scientific concepts, but also of semantic differences between the term itself in Polish and English.

The People’s Courts of the nomadic population of tsarist Turkestan – an important element of the “local” authorities’ structure (based on archives, legal documents and other materials)

The article considers the status and the role of “native” judicial power in the system of common local self-government bodies among the nomadic population in the pre-revolutionary Central Asia.

The power of national parliaments to make and interpret European Union rules. Functional analysis

The scientific aim of the article is to identify the principles relating to the power of national parliaments in the European Union system. The research problem is the analysis of the process of establishing and interpreting rules by national parliaments, examined using functional analysis. The research argument here is based on the theoretical perspective of neorealism and refers to the rules of competence influencing the further functioning of the European Union. In terms of research results, the article answers questions about the consequences of strengthening the competences of national parliaments in terms of setting and interpreting the principles of the European Union. The originality and relevance of the problem contained in the article is based on the empirical belief that the expanding power of national parliaments in the EU directly affects the quality and legitimacy of the decision-making process by the EU institutions.