The committee's 2004/2005 meeting will, in all probability, take place at Washington & Lee University Lexington, Virginia, USA on March 10-12, 2005.

Kindly direct proposals, suggestions and inquiries to

Dr. Dr. Krzysztof Jasiewicz
Professor of Sociology
Washington and Lee University
5 Newcomb Hall
116 N. Main Street
Lexington VA 24450-0303
USA
Phone: +01-540-468-8790
F fax: +01-540-468-8498
e-mail: jasiewiczk@wlu.edu

RC 16 Panels at the triennial meeting of the International Political Science Association in Durban, South Africa, in June 30-July 4 2003. You can view updated scheduling information for these and other panels here.

Panel 16(1}
Civil Society and Political Pluralism in a Global World

Since the fall of the Soviet empire, the combination of a civil society encompassing a wide network of voluntary associations, a pluralist democracy, and a free market economy tempered by a welfare system has become, seemingly, the ultimate form of existence of the human race. Yet certain recent developments have cast a shadow of doubt on such assumptions. This ideal is being called into question not only by oppressive governments, but also by social movements speaking in the name of various particularistic ethnic and cultural identities. In addition, anti-globalization movements within Western societies point out that unifying trends implied by such universalism conceal the drive to expand economic, political, and military domination of the West. The papers composing this panel address various general and specific issues stemming from this situation.

Convenor and Chairperson:
- Krzysztof Jasiewicz, Washington and Lee University, USA
  jasiewiczk@wlu.edu

Discussants:
- Tom Lodge, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
  064tom@muse.wits.ac.za
- Surinder Shukla, Panjab University, India
  surinderkshukla@hotmail.com

Presentations:
- Elements of Pluralist Approach to Political Globalization
  Phil Cerny, University of Manchester, United Kingdom
  msgsspgc@man.ac.uk
- Divergent approaches to ethnic party politics: "Radicals" as a litmus test in democratic theory
  Christian Leuprecht, Queen's University, Canada
  leuprech@qsilver.queensu.ca
- Civil Society and Political Pluralism: The Case of Poland
  Andrzej Korbonski & Jane L. Curry, University of California, Los Angeles / University of Santa Clara, USA
  akorbonski@isop.ucla.edu / jcurry@scu.edu
- Women's Right to Equality and Freedom of Religion in a Pluralistic Society of India
  Kuldeep Kumar, Sirohi Government College, India
  kuldeepkr@rediffmail.com

Panel 16(2)
Pluralism, Poverty and Public Policy: The Effects of Globalization

Democracy has spread across most areas of the world bringing with it the presumption of equal rights and political representation. However, the ability to take advantage of these formal rights is affected by disparities in control over economic and political resources. Their relative poverty may disadvantage less affluent groups in representing their interests and making the political process accountable. This concern is heightened by the process of globalization, which is inciting fundamental reforms in public policies, even as it increases social inequalities. The panel will examine the following key issues:

- Do social and economic inequalities limit the ability of disadvantaged groups of representing their interests in the process of policy reform that has oc-curred in the wake of globalization?
- Have the policy responses to globalization further exacerbated social and economic inequalities?
- Have the changes that have occurred diminished the capacity of state institutions for equitable representation of societal pluralism?

Convenor and Chairperson:
- Rainer Eisfeld, University of Osnabrueck, Germany
  rainer.eisfeld@uos.de

Discussants:
- Jane L. Curry, University of Santa Clara, USA
  jcurry@scu.edu

Presentations:
- Transition to Market Society, Growing Inequality and Public Policies in Poland
  Henryk DOMANSKI, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
  hdomansk@ifispan.waw.pl
- The Incapacity of West European Social Democratic Parties to Represent the Interests of Dis-advantaged Groups in the Process of Globalisation
  André DONNEUR, Université du Québec à Montréal, Canada
  donneur.andre@uqam.ca
- Globalisation in the Indian Sub-Continent: Effects on Pluralism, Poverty, and Public Policy
  Surinder K. SHUKLA, Panjab University, India
  surinderkshukla@hotmail.com
- Politics, Poverty and Policy in South Africa, 1994-2002
  Tom LODGE, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
  lodget@social.wits.ac.za

IPSA RC16: Conferences

Panel 16(1} Civil Society and Political Pluralism in a Global World

Panel 16(2) Pluralism, Poverty and Public Policy: The Effects of Globalization

Panel 16(1}
Civil Society and Political Pluralism in a Global World

Panel 16(2)
Pluralism, Poverty and Public Policy: The Effects of Globalization