Determinants of financial development Abstract The paper studies effects of country level determinants on the rate of financial development and, in particular, assesses the empirical question whether democracy and political freedom can enhance financial development, as measured by Bank Private Credit to GDP and Liquid Liabilities to GDP. Using Fixed Effects estimation techniques and a panel data for a list of 39 countries over the period 1990 to 2011, we provide evidence that suggests positive link between political openness and financial development. The empirical evidence also confirms financial openness and real per capita income to be positively correlated to financial deepening and in contrast, we find that size of financial sector does not spur the rate of financial development.

The Arab Spring put several revolutions in motion in the Middle East and North Africa. However, Tunisia was the only country that succeeded with a democratization process, making the country a fairly new democracy. Simultaneously, independent research networks and organizations whose main focus is democracy and democratic values such as Freedom House, V-Demand the Arab Barometer are presenting worrying information about democracy around the world. Democracy is in crises - evident by the remarkable decline or erosion in democratic norms and practices. While scholars have already begun investigating the causes of democratic deconsolidation or backsliding in the context of western democracies, notably those of western Europe and the US, still little is known with regards to new democracies from other parts of the globe. To fill this research gap, this qualitative case study focuses on Tunisia, with the core objective to investigate whether or not Tunisia is experiencing democratic deconsolidation. By using the three criteria described by the political scientist Yascha Mounk in his deconsolidation theory, the result suggests that while democratic values are still quite strong amongst the Tunisian citizens, it is evident that a majority of the Tunisian citizens are experiencing institutional dissatisfaction and low institutional trust.

The purpose of this study is to, based on a comparative case study design, find out what reservations have been made against CEDAW. Furthermore, the purpose is also to compare differences and similarities between the states that have ratified the Convention and made reservations against it. In addition, the study will examine whether the purpose of the convention is sought based on the reservations made. In the study, two international relations theories have been applied, the feminist theory and the liberal internationalist theory. To respond to this purpose, two questions have been formulated. What type of reservations have been made against CEDAW and by which countries? What are the differences and similarities between the reservations and their countries that have made reservations? The results that emerged during the study show that reservations have been made against 9 articles in the convention and the reservations have been made by several different countries. Furthermore, the results also showed that there are more similarities than differences between the countries. The most prominent similarities are based on religion, governance and legislation. One differences between the countries was their completely different rankings on Freedom Houses annual world report on political freedoms and civil rights.

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Despite being free from colonialism for decades, the country continues to experience political instability and a lack of democracy. There is a knowledge gap when it comes to understanding democracy in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the challenges the country faces in establishing and maintaining a functioning democratic government. The purpose of this essay is to examine the political and social situation prevailing in the DRC in light of the challenges to sustaining and establishing a functioning democracy. Through a democratic and institutional perspective, the study will investigate the current situation in the country and how the established institutions impact its democratic development. The study is limited to the Democratic Republic of Congo (also abbreviated as DR Congo or Congo Kinshasa) and will be referred to as Congo in this essay. This limitation is due to the existence of two countries with similar history and destiny. The study is confined to the Democratic Republic of Congo (also abbreviated as DR Congo or Congo Kinshasa) and will be referred to as Congo in this essay. To achieve this purpose, previous research and reports from Freedom House will serve as the primary empirical material, supported by research from Amnesty International and previous studies in the field. The choice of Freedom House as a source is due to the organization's focus on states' situations and their degree of freedom and rights. In conclusion, the analysis of the political situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) reveals a discrepancy between the fundamental principles of the country's constitution and the actual practice. Despite the constitution establishing principles such as decentralized power, citizen participation, and protection of political rights, research from organizations like Freedom House and Amnesty International has shown that these principles are not upheld in practice.

The aim of this study is to examine the democratization process of Kosovo in the years after the countries independence was assured. Two central questions for the case study consist of whether a democratic improvement in the country has occurred and which factors, positive and negative, are present to further improve or impede the democratizationprocess. The study builds upon two central definitions, democratic states and democratization in order to gain theoretical background to be able to measure these two quite abstract expressions. A socioeconomic model is used to measure favorable or negative developments within Kosovos society and the findings of this model confirms the hypothesis of modernization theory, namely that increased socioeconomic development increases the chance of a positive democratizationprocess. There has been a positive democratic development aswell as socioecomic progress but since the nature of this study is merely descriptive and not explanatory, it doesnt make claims on the explanatory power of modernization theory. A transition model is used for gaining a general overview of where in the democratizationprocess Kosovo currently resides. The findings of this model suggests that Kosovo currently sits in the transitionsphase of the model with problems like corruption and ethnical conflicts between minorities aswell as gender inequality as the main forces holding back the quality aspect of the consolidationphase.

The thesis presents a contribution to the topic of critical examination of various ways to evaluate and compare the level of press (media) freedom in countries throughout the world. It analyses the process of presentation the conclusions of press freedom indices to the public. The analysis is guided on two levels. First, the form in which the press freedom indices are published is investigated. And second, the media reflection of these publications is examined. The starting-point of this analysis focuses on theoretical view on various definitions of press freedom. First part of the thesis therefore provides the summary of important fields that should not be forgotten by any conceptualization of press freedom. Second chapter deals with the problems connected to evaluations and comparisons of press freedom in general and then in particular concerning the Freedom of the Press index by Freedom House and World Press Freedom Index by Reporters Without Borders. In the second part of the thesis, Czech media reflection of the two concerned indices is analyzed. First, the specifics of the Czech media landscape are dealt with. Next, the content analysis is applied that should approach the way Czech media use the data provided by the indices. The thesis then concludes the most serious weaknesses in the process through...