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Self-management and authority in Yugoslavia In what way does self-management affect the authority of the Party and the State ? This is the question examined in this article in relation to decision-making and the legitimacy of power. In the context of decision-making, the model for a self-managing socialist society contains various elements which call into question the communist Party's monopoly in this respect, however the role of the Party, in any case an essential element in the model itself, in practice apparently continues to be significant, no doubt showing in informal links between party and state executive institutions, and in personnel selection. It could be that the main obstacle to the implementation of self-management lies in the connection between the power-structure and the Party (including political and military security). Worker's participation in the enterprise, citizens' participation in socio-political councils, continue to be limited. On the other hand, there has been a genuine measure of decentralization, mainly in the political context, to republican and provincial level and also to the level of the commune but it reflects a power structure linked to the Party, thus ensuring the continued presence of the Party, as such, in the country, even if decentralized political administrations find support in the aspirations of the local population (nationalism, local patriotism). It is this aspect of decentralization which creates problems for the central authority in the introduction or implementation of its policy, since the radical changes necessary in a crisis prove difficult to impose, insofar as they impinge on too many vested interests. On the implementation of self-management, two questions arise concerning the relationship between society and the idea of self-management : how far is self-management suited to society in its present form, and how far is the chosen model adequate for the purpose envisaged ? However, even if self-management is proving to have little real impact, it has nevertheless, through its related activities and institutions a part to play in the relationship between authority and society, often contributing to the legitimacy of constituted authority ; there is also great importance attached to the « liberalization » which accompanied the introduction of the system of self-management (links with the outside world, westernized life-style, artistic freedom, etc.). To-day, Yugoslavia is experiencing a serious crisis, both in its economy and in the context of nationalities. In the economic domain, self-management is a widespread operation, but it would seem that the difficulties originate in the negative aspects of decentralization and in the structure of authority ; in any case, the policy of economic stabilization may be breaching the consensus in the communist Party and with the people. The changes demanded in the political system, or at least in its operation, seem however to be difficult to achieve, impinging on the interests of informal power groupings, enterprises, the population and in the end threatening the role of the Party itself.

An analysis of articles on work discipline in the USSR The article looks at the way in which the various media outlets (both the daily papers and the specialist press) approach the question of « work avoidance » in the USSR, and analyses in turn the distribution and the tone of various articles denouncing this particular phenomenon, the different intepretations offered (evasion, « therapeutic » analyses) and suggested tactics for remedying the situation. There are two further perspectives for consideration in the study : the image that Soviet society has of itself and the way in which it rationalizes its follies ; and what ways, what exhortations are used to bring back into line the « uncommitted » or unactivated sections of the Soviet working class.

The URSS and European Comecon countries : the economic situation and the effect of the drop in oil prices on foreign trade earnings Following the pattern of recent years, economic results in the Comecon countries in 1982 have again been poor ; the rate of growth has fallen noticeably short of forecast and has tended to decelerate, while Poland has experienced a further down-turn. It is doubtful whether the steps taken to encourage economic rationalization and strengthen discipline will have any significant effect in 1983. While the drop of 15 % in the world price of oil and, consequently, gas has on the whole had beneficial effects for the countries of the West ? except perhaps for the effect of the rise in the rate of exchange for the dollar ? the situation within Comecon is more complex : the USSR will lose over 4 billion dollars in a full year on its hard currency exports, which may lead to an imbalance in its trade with the West, subject to any advantage to be gained from changes in the dollar exchange rate or from a possible reduction in food imports. But for the other Comecon countries, less rich in energy resources, the position is worrying. The bulk of their purchases of oil and gas comes from the USSR at a preferential rate which, because of the way in which it is calculated, is now operating to their disadvantage, thereby nullifying the efforts which have been made to halt the growing deficit in their trade with the USSR. The fact that the 37 th Comecon Congress has been put back from the spring to the autumn is a measure of the difficulties experienced in solving the fuel problem ? what quantities should be delivered by the USSR and at what jjrices ? and also the more general problem of overall economic coordination.

Problems of international comparison of living standards The author's aim is to arrive at a proper combination of the necessary factors which will make it possible to compare the standards of living of any two countries on an equal basis. He starts with a simplified model of the universe U, made up of the two environments Ea and Eb, and two countries Pa e EA and PB e Eb. Included under each of the environments are climate and natural conditions, the national spiritual inheritance, human rights, health and education. The quality of the respective environments, as with other goods and services, contributes to relative living standards. Together they make up a totality which the author places in three categories : specific, common and mixed. For purposes of comparison, only the « common » ones, so long as they have a similar internal structure, are perfectly comparable and permit an unambiguous quantitative comparison of the countries' relative living standards. The article points out that most of the international comparisons of living standards between countries with very different environments and quality of goods and services do not fulfil the above conditions. As an illustration, the author describes two kinds of « Paradoxes arising from non-comparabilities » which are the unintended consequences of certain types of comparative study (e. g. Gilbert et Kravis) based alternatively on the prices in Pa and Pb. The first paradox expresses a situation where the standards are measured in terms of A prices, for example, but where comparing the two standards at B prices gives the opposite result. The second paradox is illustrative of an instance where the systems of A and B prices give two different results as to the degree of superiority of standard PA over PB.

Soviet theory of international law for the seventies Towards the end of the sixties, Soviet leaders became convinced that in order to move forward with the development of Soviet economy, it is necessary to establish closer economic and cultural relations with the industrialized West. One of the facets of this policy was the reorientation of Soviet science of international law, and a less critical view of what was being done scientifically in Western cultures. A turning point took place during the annual meeting of the Soviet Association of International Law, in 1972 at which Professor Tunkin, the leading Soviet publicist criticized the uncritical attitude of his colleagues towards Western science of international law. Since the time, Soviet publicists have adopted the methods of research, techniques of scientific inquiry, and the organization of treaties of international law in the West. Professor Tunkin himself in his studies reaffirmed that there is only one science of international law (Soviet and Western included), that the development of international law is also the achievement of Western scholars, and that only since the October revolution SovieL science armed with the theories of Marx and Lenin are able to perceive more correctly the real development of international law. Soviet scholars began to write with approval about their colleagues in the West, although basic criticism has remained in place. What is even more important, the accepted view now is that there is one general international law binding the capitalist and socialist world, with this reservation however that socialist countries are more respectful of the rights of other countries guaranteed by international law.

The government and its role in the political system of the People's Republic of Poland (1970-1980) This article brings together the results of research done over the past ten years at the Institute of State and Law of the Polish Academy of Sciences, and at the same time gives a historical analysis of the role of the government and the supreme organs of power since the first constitution of the Republic of Poland. In order to understand how the organs of power have evolved, one must bear in mind the leading role of the Party, which exercises political control over all governmental and social institutions of the socialist State. The author studies, in turn, ? the way in which the Party fulfils its directorial and supervisory functions, ? the position and the part played by the Council of Ministers and the ministers themselves, ? the responsabilises of the organs of the Council of Ministers, ? how the role of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers has developed, ? the role of the investigating magistrate and its degree of indépendance opposite the government. In conclusion, he examines the decisions taken by the Extraordinary Congress of the United Polish Workers' Party in 1981, and the changes made in 1980 in the procedures of the Polish Diet which were of some importance in the present context.

Is the « third wave » of Soviet emigration coming to an end ? A study of the cultural life of Soviet dissidents in France suggests to the author that since 1980 there have been various quantitative and qualitative changes in emigre views, which indicate that the present influx of emigres may be gradually coming to an end.