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1. Ancillary Units as a Tool of Sublocal Governance in the Polish Major Cities

Author:
Malgorzata Madej
Publication Date:
03-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
After the post-communist transition, decentralisation and subsidiarity have become one of Poland's major principles of political organisation. Moreover, especially the original 1990 reform and establishment of self-governing communes are regarded as a success story, not only in improving the quality of governance and public service provision but also in the civil society and citizen participation, as evidenced by the development of modern urban movements. The article explores legal possibilities for further decentralisation of municipalities, analysing the role of ancillary units in regional capitals. Ancillary units in Poland have developed differently in the countryside and urban communes. Relying on publicly available information and data provided by the respective municipal offices, the article describes the ancillary units' statutory role, competencies, and actual activities. The findings enable the assessment of the application of the sublocal decentralisation solution in Polish cities and the identification of its benefits and shortcomings.
Topic:
Civil Society, Governance, Urban, Local, and Post-Soviet Space
Political Geography:
Europe and Poland

2. Forms of the Government Administration’s Impact on the Activities of Local Governments During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Author:
Maciej Serowaniec and Piotr Paczka
Publication Date:
03-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The primary burden of tackling the pandemic COVID-19 lies with the state as the entity responsible for protecting the health and life of its citizens. Hence, it can be argued that the focus of the pandemic-induced changes to the Polish legal order was on administrative law, which not only sets out the principles of the functioning of the State as the executive power but also governs the relations between the government, local government and citizens, which had to be significantly modified during the pandemic. It would be impossible to analyse and discuss all the emergency measures that appeared in Poland’s administrative law due to the threats posed by the pandemic. The subject matter of the present study is the analysis of the legal solutions adopted in the Republic of Poland in the sphere of public law in connection with the spread of the virus and particular provisions shaping relationships between the two basic structural branches of Polish public administration, viz. the government administration and the local-government administration. The following part of this study will accordingly be devoted to the analysis of the legislative solution contained in Article 11h of the COVID-19 Act, establishing a legal framework for issuing binding instructions to, among others, the various bodies of local governments, local-government legal persons and local-government organisational entities without legal personality.
Topic:
Governance, Leadership, Local, Pandemic, and COVID-19
Political Geography:
Europe and Poland

3. The Europeanisation of the Local Self-Government in the South Caucasus

Author:
Rafal Czachor
Publication Date:
06-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The following paper employs a normative approach and focuses on the problem of the current state of the local self-government in the South Caucasus countries: Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. Since all these countries are members of the Council of Europe, a reference point for decentralisation is the European Charter of Local Self-Government. The paper's main thesis is that despite showing some similarities, the countries have introduced different models of decentralisation that do not fully meet the Council of Europe’s criteria. Such variation is in line with the different political systems of these states and their level of democratisation. The more democratic the state is, the stronger the decentralisation it has adopted. Thus, decentralisation in Georgia follows the European model of public policy, while Azerbaijan is preserving the former Soviet model of weak self-government, with central authorities playing the leading role in public services. The current changes in Armenia’s model resemble the Georgian track of reforms. The findings of this paper may be applicable both in further theoretical research and in implementing reforms of local self-government in various post-Soviet states.
Topic:
Governance, Europeanization, Local, and Influence
Political Geography:
Europe, Caucasus, and South Caucasus

4. Poland’s Cultural Relations with Middle-Eastern Arab Countries

Author:
Jacek Knopek and Zbigniew Danielewicz
Publication Date:
01-2020
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The article takes up the subject of Poland’s cultural relations with some Middle Eastern Arab countries, i.e. with Iraq, Jordan, Syria and Palestine in particular. It has been done in historical perspective, analyzing development of the connections, the determinants influencing the course of changes, and political events and processes that have been strengthening or weakening the ties. Despite the long geographical distance between Poland and the Middle East, the cultural ties have turned out to be astonishingly rich, which was so partly due to the idiosyncrasy of their history - abound with wars and full of dramatic transformations. The three-part text begins with a historic overview of the relations that have gained a momentum during the World War II and in the post-war decades. Part two concerns the relations on official diplomatic level, usually ending up in initialed agreements and exchanging official visits. And the last part scrutinizes the spontaneous grassroots links forged between groups, individuals and non-political institutions. In this case the links embrace the field of academia, education, high culture and private lives of individuals and families.
Topic:
Diplomacy, International Cooperation, Religion, Culture, and Local
Political Geography:
Europe, Middle East, and Poland

5. Changes in the Electoral Code and Their Impact on the Security of the Election The Origin for Discussion Based on Selected Comments

Author:
Karol Pachnik
Publication Date:
01-2020
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
After the local government elections in Poland in 2018, the adopted solutions aimed at increasing the security of the elections were reviewed. Some of the solutions adopted so far have been abandoned, such as transmissions from the polling station, while others have been minimized (the division of the precinct electoral commissions in the precinct electoral commission for voting in the region and the precinct electoral commission for determining the results of voting in the region). In public opinion polls, the National Electoral Commission achieved record of confidence.
Topic:
Security, Elections, Democracy, and Local
Political Geography:
Europe and Poland

6. Leaders, Managers or Administrators – Mayors in Central and Eastern European Countries

Author:
Karolina Tybuchowska-Hartlinska
Publication Date:
01-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
This paper is the first step to fill a gap in the studies on the position of mayors in European local government systems. The first part of the paper will be devoted to critical analysis of theoretical and methodological studies on the position and selection of mayors. The second part will focus on verifying the proposed hypotheses. In the conclusions, an at- tempt will be made to present a profile of local democracy in CEE countries.
Topic:
Government, Governance, and Local
Political Geography:
Europe, Eastern Europe, and Central Europe

7. Local Self-Government as a Problem of Political Theory

Author:
Łukasz Swieciki
Publication Date:
01-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The article aims at restoring local self-government as a research problem of political theory. In contemporary political science literature, local self-government is not treated as one of its normal, standard research problems. The main obstacle of its ambiguous position within political theory is, as I argue, the forced and imposed apolitical character of local self-government considered as a part of public administration. Despite some degree of organizational, especially institutional and legal, self-determination, the local self-government is not a political, i.e. sovereign entity. However, its non-sovereign status, which is legally established, does not exclude the existence of political potency in it.
Topic:
Sovereignty, Political Theory, Governance, Legitimacy, and Local
Political Geography:
Global Focus

8. The State and Local Self-Government. Territorial Organization of the State

Author:
Radoslaw Kaminski
Publication Date:
01-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
Local self-government constitutes a part of executive power in the state, with the state’s law underlying its functioning. Local government remains under the state’s supervision, representing a form of the political system within the decentralized public administration. 2018 marks 20 years of the functioning of local self-government based on a three-tier structure. The aim of the paper is an attempt at finding the answer to the question whether or not the organizational solutions adopted by the legislator and established in practice need to undergo reforms and if so, to what extent? The question thus formulated relates directly to the argument that the organization of local government system is not sound while the criteria assumed in the territorial breakdown of the local government organization do not correspond to the conditions in which those units operate, and therefore what appears necessary is for the system to be reorganized and the number of units at individual tiers to be reduced. The paper presents selected problems of the local administration in the context of a systemic organization and suggest possible (or necessary) changes which, in the author’s view, should become a subject of discussion (and in practice are such) between local selfgovernment and government administration.
Topic:
Governance, Reform, Local, Decentralization, Federalism, and Territory
Political Geography:
Global Focus

9. Local Self-Governments as New Actors in the International Stage. The Scope of the Issue

Author:
Stanisław Falinski
Publication Date:
01-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The aim of the article is to present, in a short and a synthetic form, self-governments as new actors on the international arena. Discussed are the genesis and the development of this new international activities being undertaken by local residential areas such as the “twinning movement” and the programme for establishing “sister cities”. Briefly described are the key international organizations focused on the local self-governance. Discussed is also, in a relative detail, is the cooperation of the Polish self-governance entities with local self-governance partners within the international sphere. The author concludes by attempting to define the scope and importance of the international cooperation of local self-governance entities in general and its impact on the individual participating partners.
Topic:
International Cooperation, Governance, Local, Decentralization, and Federalism
Political Geography:
Global Focus

10. Wrocław Civic Budget. Social Innovation Adapted in Polish Local Government

Author:
Malgorzata Madej
Publication Date:
01-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
The paper explores Wrocław Civic Budget in the context of procedures and impact. It reviews various data to present different aspects of this process: number of projects submitted and implemented, citizens’ participation in the selection process, geographical distribution of the implemented projects and their contents, showing the significant fall in the citizens’ interest in the process after two years of its implementation. The paper aims to analyze whether the project in its current form actually succeeds in activating the citizens’ and involving them in the local decision-making on one hand, and changing the city on the other. The effectiveness of participatory budgeting in Wrocław is explored, considering such criteria as reliability, impact, activation and innovativeness. The data reveal both the successes and drawbacks of Wrocław Civic Budget, allowing for presentation of recommendations.
Topic:
Governance, Reform, Budget, Social Policy, and Local
Political Geography:
Europe and Poland