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Book part
Publication date: 13 October 2017

Anne Lafarre

Since we have seen in the previous chapter that only small part of the shareholder rights is harmonized at the European level, we explore the national regulations in this and the…

Abstract

Since we have seen in the previous chapter that only small part of the shareholder rights is harmonized at the European level, we explore the national regulations in this and the subsequent chapter. In this chapter, we focus in particular on procedural and information rights, including the organization of the meeting, forum rights and the disclosure of ownership information. We find that, inter alia, there are many differences in the national provisions regarding shareholder forum rights, despite article 9 of the Shareholder Rights Directive that provides shareholders with the right to ask questions. Also in the meeting’s organization there are large differences between countries, for example, regarding the use of EGMs.

Content available
Book part
Publication date: 13 October 2017

Anne Lafarre

Abstract

Details

The AGM in Europe
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78743-533-9

Book part
Publication date: 13 October 2017

Anne Lafarre

In this chapter, we explore the legal framework of AGMs of listed companies in Europe, which forms the foundation for the empirical analyses in the subsequent chapters. We…

Abstract

In this chapter, we explore the legal framework of AGMs of listed companies in Europe, which forms the foundation for the empirical analyses in the subsequent chapters. We consider the decision-making rights, information rights (including forum rights) and procedural rights of shareholders at the European level. As this chapter shows, only a small part of the legal framework of AGMs is harmonized at the European level and this harmonization mostly consists of procedural rights. The recently adopted amended Shareholder Rights Directive will introduce more material European rights such as a say on pay.

Article
Publication date: 21 April 2022

Marie Claire Van Hout, Charlotte Bigland and Triestino Mariniello

The first prison system case in Zimbabwe was notified in July 2020 shortly after State declaration of disaster. A legal-realist assessment was conducted of the Zimbabwean…

Abstract

Purpose

The first prison system case in Zimbabwe was notified in July 2020 shortly after State declaration of disaster. A legal-realist assessment was conducted of the Zimbabwean correctional system response to COVID-19 during state disaster measures, with a focus on assessing right to health, infectious disease mitigation and the extent to which minimum state obligations complied with human and health rights standards.

Design/methodology/approach

The Zimbabwean correctional system operations during COVID-19 disaster measures are scrutinized using a range of international, African and domestic human rights instruments in relation to the right to health of prisoners. This study focused particularly on standards of care, environmental conditions of detention and right of access to health care.

Findings

Systemic poor standards of detention are observed, where prisoners experience power outages, water shortages and a lack of access to clean drinking water and water for ablution purposes, a severe lack of safe space and adequate ventilation, poor quality food and malnutrition and a lack of sufficient supply of food, medicines, clothing and bedding. Whilst access to health care of prisoners in Zimbabwe has greatly improved in recent times, the standard of care was severely stretched during COVID-19 due to lack of government resourcing and reliance on non-governmental organisation and faith-based organisations to support demand for personal protective equipment, disinfection products and medicines.

Originality/value

Prison conditions in Zimbabwe are conducive to chronic ill health and the spread of many transmissible diseases, not limited to COVID-19. The developed legal-realist account considers whether Zimbabwe had a culture of respect for the rule of law pertinent to human and health rights of those detained during COVID-19 disaster measures, and whether minimum standards of care were upheld.

Details

International Journal of Prisoner Health, vol. 19 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1744-9200

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 1 July 2004

Katherine Franke

In this essay Katherine Franke examines two contemporary cites in which state efforts to eradicate the traces of empire and to resurrect an authentic post-colonial nation have…

Abstract

In this essay Katherine Franke examines two contemporary cites in which state efforts to eradicate the traces of empire and to resurrect an authentic post-colonial nation have produced sexual subjects that serve as a kind of existential residue and remainder of a demonized colonial past and absence. Looking first at post-colonial Zimbabwe, Franke argues that President Mugabe’s aggressively homophobic policies have played a key role in fortifying his leadership as authentically African and post-colonial.

Franke then turns to current efforts by the Mubarak government in Egypt to publically prosecute men for having sex with men. The Mubarak government has used homosexual show trials, first in security courts, and then in civilian courts, as a dry run for the reorganization of the Egyptian court system’s jurisdiction over dissenters and outcasts.

Details

Studies in Law, Politics and Society
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-0-76231-109-5

Book part
Publication date: 13 October 2017

Anne Lafarre

In this chapter, we are among the first to investigate the actual course of affairs in AGMs with respect to shareholder forum rights. In the first part of the chapter, we provide…

Abstract

In this chapter, we are among the first to investigate the actual course of affairs in AGMs with respect to shareholder forum rights. In the first part of the chapter, we provide descriptive statistics on the use of the right to ask questions and speak in AGMs in the Netherlands. We find that in an average meeting there are around 42 questions and remarks made by around 8 shareholders. Most of these questions and remarks seem to be relevant; with a categorization framework of 14 topics, we could already identify over 50% of these questions and remarks. However, we also find that the average number of shareholders that physically ask questions is only 8. Next, we consider the determinants of the use of these forum rights. In several panel data analyses with a Poisson distribution and a negative binomial distribution, we, inter alia, found that the ‘importance of the meeting’ generally contributes to the amount of questions and remarks and the number of shareholders that actively engage in discussions. We have also found that the number of speakers – and the number of private investors – that actively attend the AGM depends on previous attendance numbers. This may imply that there is a small base of very active (private) investors in the Netherlands. We conclude that the forum function of AGMs is definitely relevant, but given the low number of shareholders that make use of these rights, amendments may be considered.

Article
Publication date: 29 November 2013

Jean-Francois Pelletier, Denise Fortin, Marc Laporta, Marie-Pascale Pomey, Jean-Luc Roelandt, Pauline Guézennec, Michael Murray, Paul DiLeo, Larry Davidson and Michael Rowe

– The purpose of this paper is to update the Global Model of Public Mental Health (GMPMH) in light of the WHO QualityRights project.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to update the Global Model of Public Mental Health (GMPMH) in light of the WHO QualityRights project.

Design/methodology/approach

Being able to refer to international conventions and human rights standards is a key component of a genuine global approach that is supportive of individuals and communities in their quest for recovery and full citizenship. The GMPMH was inspired by the ecological approach in health promotion programs, adding to that approach the individuals as agents of mental health policies and legislation transformation. The GMPMH integrates recovery- and citizenship-oriented psychiatric practices through the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion (WHO, 1986).

Findings

Updating the GMPMH through the WHO QualityRights Toolkit highlights the need for a new form of governance body, namely the Civic Forum, which is inclusive of local communities and persons in recovery. People with mental health disabilities, intellectual disabilities, and substance use conditions can be “included in the community” (UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Article 19) only if the community is informed and welcoming, for instance through a Civic Forum and its organizing Local Council of Mental Health.

Research limitations/implications

Transition from social marginalization to full citizenship represents a daunting challenge in public mental health care. An approach that focuses primarily on individuals is not sufficient in creating access to valued roles those individuals will be able to occupy in community settings. Instead, public intervention and debate are required to promote and monitor the bond of citizenship that connects people to their communities.

Originality/value

The GMPMH is the result of a conceptual cross-breeding between recovery and health promotion (WHO, 1986). The GMPMH is an offspring of the ecological approach in health promotion programs, adding to that approach individuals as agents of mental health transformation. It refers to international conventions and human rights standards as a central component of a genuine global approach. A community-based participatory research design is well suited, which includes a Civic Forum for local communities to become involved and supportive of service users in their quality and human rights assessments.

Details

Journal of Public Mental Health, vol. 12 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1746-5729

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 30 June 2011

Kathleen M. Sullivan and Sandra Brunnegger

Keal argues that Europeans began formulating their modern system of international laws in conjunction with their colonial projects in the early 1500s. The colonial projects gave…

Abstract

Keal argues that Europeans began formulating their modern system of international laws in conjunction with their colonial projects in the early 1500s. The colonial projects gave rise to several key legal debates regarding: (1) European claims on territories in what we now know as the Americas, and (2) proper conduct of relationships of conquest between indigenous peoples and Europeans (Keal, 2003, pp. 84–87). Initially, competing territorial claims between Spanish and Portuguese interests were settled through a series of Papal Bulls that gave Spain a larger share of Central and South America. The Dutch, English, and French pursued their interests through military and mercantilist means, reconfiguring Spain's initial hold on the majority of the Central and South America (Burkholder & Johnson, 2010).

Details

Studies in Law, Politics, and Society
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78052-080-3

Book part
Publication date: 9 May 2022

Robin Shura and Brian Gran

This chapter provides an overview of ways the European Network of Ombudspersons for Children (ENOC) has influenced the development, structure, and functions of independent…

Abstract

This chapter provides an overview of ways the European Network of Ombudspersons for Children (ENOC) has influenced the development, structure, and functions of independent children’s rights organizations (ICRIs). Employing theoretical perspectives of New Institutionalism and World Society Approach and other concepts from institutional theories, this chapter explores explanations of isomorphic impacts of ENOC on ICRIs. This chapter examines how ENOC membership criteria have influenced ICRIs and their work, how ENOC’s influences on ICRIs may be tied to deterring decoupling from the symbolic promises nation states make when ratifying children’s rights instruments, and how agendas at ENOC annual meetings foster focused attention and work of ICRIs on specific substantive issues relevant to the promotion of children’s rights. That ENOC has served as a model organization of ICRIs suggests worldwide influences on the promotion of children’s rights.

Details

The Roles of Independent Children's Rights Institutions in Advancing Human Rights of Children
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80117-608-8

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 19 August 2019

Niklas Kreander and Ken McPhail

The purpose of this paper is to explore how the Norwegian Government incorporated its responsibility for human rights into the investment practices of its Global Pension Fund and…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore how the Norwegian Government incorporated its responsibility for human rights into the investment practices of its Global Pension Fund and how human rights issues were negotiated when exclusion was considered.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on a series of interviews the authors analyse the way in which responsibility for human rights has been translated into the practices of the Norwegian Government Pension Fund Global.

Findings

The paper documents how a large investment fund used several mechanisms to address human rights risks. The authors demonstrate that different logics among actors sometimes impeded addressing human rights issues. The findings demonstrate that sovereign wealth funds (SWF) can be held accountable for human rights.

Research limitations/implications

The paper illustrates the difficulty of co-operation between actors with different logics. This can result in institutional conflict, but also in positive outcomes for human rights.

Practical implications

Attempts to introduce human rights into state investments may result in increased institutional complexity. The findings indicate that state investors can address human rights issues, but that the ability to do so is diminished where divestment creates political tension.

Social implications

Large investors can influence companies on specific human rights issues.

Originality/value

This is one of the first empirical investigations of the human rights practices of a SWF. The authors contribute to the literatures on accounting and human rights, SWF and institutional theory.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 32 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

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