Why Ariel Sharon lost the Likud party poll
Introduction Contrary to expectations raised by both opinion polls and conventional wisdom, Ariel Sharon failed to secure popular endorsement for his unilateral disengagement from Gaza plan on 2 May 2004. Sharon's scheme was rejected by 59.5 per cent of Likud Party members, with 39.7 per cent supporting it. Just over half of the registered party members participated in the ballot. This report explains why Sharon opted to consult his party members and seeks to explain the resounding rejection of his plan.
Referendums on European Integration
Referendums have received increasing attention after the recent round of votes on the Maastricht treaty and the widening process of the European Union. Despite this increased interest in these instruments of decision making, scholarship has not provided us with insights into the relationship between the institutional characteristics and voter's decision. The authors provide a theoretical argument on how the voter's choice is affected by the nature of the referendum. Relevant factors are whether the referendum is required, whether the people's decision has a binding character, or which government coalition is presently in power. These institutional features mediate the impact of political factors, above all partisanship, on voting behavior. The authors test their theoretical arguments on the basis of empirical material from 14 referendums on European integration and find consistent support for their theoretical contentions.
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982, A Commentary
Volume VI is the sixth substantive volume to be published in the series. It deals with the work of the First Committee at the Third UN Conference on the Law of the Sea, namely the international seabed area. The volume thus embraces the deep seabed mining regime set out in Part XI of the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea together with the 1994 Agreement on its implementation. Completion of this commentary was delayed first by the consultations and negotiations that commenced in 1990 and led to the 1994 Agreement and the entry into force of the Convention. It was further delayed until the Assembly of the International Seabed Authority approved the detailed mining regulations in 2000. Additional supplementary material can be found at UNCLOS 1982 Commentary: Supplementary Documents.