Z NTOZINTLE JOBODWANA (B.A (Law), University of Fort Hare, Alice, South Africa; M.A Hons. (Law), University of Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia) is presently the Deputy Head of Department, Department of Public, Constitutional and International Law, College of Law, University of South Africa. He is also the founder member of the ANC (South Africa) Constitution Committee, and its first Secretary, founder member of the United Nations Human Rights Education University Network, Sao Paulo, Brazil, founder member of the Centre for African Renaissance Studies (CARS), University of South Africa and served as ANC (SA) representative in the United Nations Observer Mission, UN Human Rights Commission, and UN Law of the Sea Conferences.

Abstract

The Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) region is striving for an integrated mode of economic development based on political and economic integration now being supervised by the African Union (AU). SADC is one of a number of African regional economic communities whose future activities are coordinated by NEPAD. Members of the SADC region share watercourses and other natural resources in a highly integrated economy dominated by the Republic of South Africa. South Africa is the largest emitter of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in Africa, primarily because of the overall size of its economy and the coal dependency of its energy economy. Air pollution and environmental degradation generally, have impacts that know no boundaries and global warming will have more impacts on developing countries. Responding to this global problem, the world community adopted the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol to stabilise the presence and impacts of Greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere. For years, the South African carbon and coal intensive economy has not been internalising its costs of externalities in terms of “polluter pays principle” and the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities (CBDR). It will be incumbent in future that South Africa adopts very strict measures aimed at pollution mitigation and adaptation strategies. Any delay will be costly to the future economy and will affect the implementation of the country’s development strategies. It is argued in this paper that South Africa alone does not have the capacity to comply with any mitigation and adaptation binding arrangements. This paper advocates for the establishment of a one stop independent, integrated pollution control and prevention regulatory agency for the SADC region accountable to the UNFCCC-KYOTO PROTOCOL Conference of the Parties (COPs) structures. Decisions made by the independent agency, as administrative decisions, would be appealable to a highly specialised climate change regional court.

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Bethuel Kinyanjui ( M.A., Economics University of Nairobi, Kenya; CPA, Strathmore University; BA, Economics University of Nairobi) is a  PhD student at Leiden University, The Netherlands.

Abstract

This paper examines the role of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in economic development in Malaysia for the period 1970-2007. We investigate the impact of FDI on economic growth in Malaysia and the FDI determinants in an endogenous economic growth framework. We analyse the data using three stage least squares. Our results reveal that contrary to the held view of the importance of FDI in Malaysia, there is no significant direct impact of FDI on economic growth. Economic growth impacts negatively on FDI although not significantly. In addition we find that openness in Malaysia is good for FDI but bad for growth. We conclude by observing that the most important growth drivers in Malaysia are quality of human capital, macroeconomic stability and infrastructure while the main FDI determinants are openness, macro economic stability and infrastructure

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Atip Latipulhayat (LL.B, Padjadjaran University ;LL.M, PhD ,Monash University ) is a lecturer at the Faculty of Law, Padjadjaran University, Bandung - Indonesia

Abstract

The International experience including Indonesia shows that after privatising their telecommunications, countries employed three new methods of state control: creating a golden share mechanism, establishing an independent regulatory body and employing a licensing system. All these methods represent the paradigm shift of control from state ownership to state regulatory based control. This paper examines Indonesian telecommunications privatisation and its implications in terms of the meaning of state control under the Indonesian Constitution of 1945. Privatisation, with various definitions and its rhetoric, opposes state intervention in the economy. Meanwhile, telecommunications is a classic example of a strategic sector under direct control of the state. The central issue of this paper concerns the methods of state control applied following the privatisation of telecommunications, the adequacy of these methods and their implications in the context of Indonesian legislation stipulating that telecommunications is a strategic sector that should be controlled by the state. The ultimate conclusion of the paper is that privatisation of telecommunications is not intended to remove state control, but rather change the manner from a direct into an indirect control – from state ownership to state regulation.

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Grace Li is a lecturer at the Faculty of Law, University Technology Sydney (UTS). Grace graduated from Central South University of Political Science and Law (Hunan, China) with First Class Honours in her LLB. She has completed a Graduate Certificate of Business Administration and an LLM from UTS, and is currently undertaking her PHD in Law. She also published articles in various refereed law journals and presented at a number of national and international conferences.

Abstract

2008 marked a big year for the world economy. The damages brought by the global economical downturn extended from financial sector to a wide range industry and from the developed countries to the developing nations. This situation has shaken the world economy to an unprecedented level. China is inevitably part of it.  In responding to the global economic downturn, the PRC president Mr. Wen jiabo announced ‘ten key economic measures’ at a recent State Council meeting, in which stimulating the domestic consumption was pointed out as the most important measure amongst others. Mr. Wen Jiabo also indicated that a total of 4000 billion Chinese Ran (AUD$950 billion) has been budgeted to implement these measures and the money will be spent in the next 2 years till year 2010. 
Interestingly, 2008 was also a big year for PRC’s telecommunications industry. In May 2008, the PRC State Council conducted a significant reform in telecom sector, which created a mega telecommunications regulator and three mega-operators. Simultaneously with this reform, the State Council announced that 3G license would be issued in the near future. Issuing 3G licenses has been a controversial issue in China for a long time. In the past few years, the PRC government has indicated in many occasions that they have been considering to rollout its national 3G network. However, the rollout plan was unable to be delivered in any concrete form for a long period. Nevertheless, in 2008, against a big picture of the global economical downturn and with the government decision to stimulate the domestic consumption, 3G-network roll-out was eventually decided by the government and 3G licenses were consequently issued in Jan 2009 to all the three mega-operators. This paper studies the PRC Telecommunications sector focusing on the current 3G roll-out and its impact against the global economic downturn. This paper also analyses whether the industry is equipped with proper regulatory measures to embrace the forthcoming 3G era. In the course of doing this, this paper will brings out various regulatory issues that the PRC regulator should carefully address. In conclusion, this paper concludes that 3G rollout in PRC is in fact an opportunity for the country at the current time if the regulatory regime can keep the pace with the industry movement in a timely manner.

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Trisha T. C. Lin (Ph.D., University of Hawaii, Manoa) is an assistant professor in the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Her research interests include the adoption and impact of digital video technologies, the diffusion of ICTs in organizations, digital journalism, and mobile communication and policy.

Abstract

Mobile TV brings challenges to existing regulatory framework .The purpose of this paper is to analyze regulatory issues arising from TV services on mobile handsets, including 3GTV and mobile broadcasting TV. The research methods are document analysis  and in-depth interviews with mobile TV policymakers and industrial players. Singapore’s case is used to illustrate how the advancement and  convergence of mobile video technology affect mobile TV policymaking  and complicates regulatory considerations. Since 2005, Singapore’s 3G TV services have been regulated under a Internet services’ Class License scheme. In 2007, Media Development Authority proposed to regulate both 3G TV service and the emerging mobile broadcasting TV under the  broadcasting act with stricter licensing and content regulation. This paper  argues that the old media laws cannot address mobile TV’s uniqe characteristics and complex issues. Finally, it recommends to regulate unicast and multicast mobile TV services separately under a light-touched, customized mobile TV policy.

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