With the collapse of the Soviet Union and the 9/11 attacks, the landscape of the freedom of religion has changed. The issues now facing freedom of religion varies greatly from the issues that the drafters of the universal declaration of human rights faced after World War II.In the light of the new issues that States face in the intersection of religion and societal interest, scholars have criticized the European Court of Human Rights to give too much leeway to the States in determining how the human rights should be implemented, by using the doctrine of margin of appreciation. Critics of the margin of appreciation claim that it is based on culture relativism and that the doctrine undermines the universality of the human rights. In order to decide if the margin of appreciation has indeed led to a relativization of the human rights I compared it to the jurisprudence of the UN Human Rights Committee and its use of the Syracusa principles. My conclusion is that the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights cannot be considered to be based on culture relativism.

This Bachelor Thesis looks at the cooperation between the Swedish civil society and theEuropean Union (EU), and it aims at evaluating Swedish civil society organizations' influencewithin the EU's development work on policy level. It focuses primarily on eight civil societyorganizations, and it is based on empirical material collected in Stockholm and Gothenburg,Sweden. The material has been analyzed using three theoretical frameworks. The firstdetermines whether the structure of the EU allows bottom-up influence, the second looks atthe communication between the EU and civil society organizations, and the third assesseswhether the civil society has the ability to influence the political agenda within the EU?sdevelopment work.Conclusions of the thesis include determining the complex structure of the EU as a mainobstacle to influencing the EU's development work.

In Sweden, the labour movement historically had influenced both society and politics. In recent times, it is considered a change in society with a stronger employer party while the unions weakened by reduced unionisation. This study aims to highlight the presence of individualistic and collectivistic approaches to the labour market in relation to union density. The different approaches are investigated in the labour market by means of a quantitative survey. The study's survey items are workers in the timber industry.

The breakdown of the ratification process of the EU constitution was in Sweden blamed on a lack of a debate concerning European issues. The constitution can be seen as the best and latest, but in no way the only, example of this problem. The breakdown can also been seen as proof of a larger legitimacy crises within the EU. The aim of the study is to determine whether or not there really was of lack of debate concerning the constitution in Sweden. This question is theoretic¬ally connected to EU legitimacy through Habermas idea of a public sphere.

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the European certificate of succession, and how it affects Swedish inheritance law. The European certificate of succession is a European document that will be introduced in august 2015 in the EU regulation of succession. The certificate of succession is meant to simplify the current process of cross-border inheritance by legitimizing the concerned parties, which according to the regulation are: heirs, legatees, executors of wills and administrators of the estate. According to the regulation, the member state of which the deceased had habitual residence shall have jurisdiction to rule on the succession as a whole. Since the certificate is a European document, it will have legal effect in all member states.

This thesis examines why working time preferences differ between workers and nations, and explains the effect of working time regulation and working time flexibility on negotiating work-life balance. In five separate sections the following working time issues are examined: the number of hours worked by workers in Europe; factors affecting individual working time preferences; how working time preferences are negotiated in the national industrial relations systems of Sweden, France and the United Kingdom; how the institutions of the European Union have influenced working time negotiations through the Working Time Directive; and the benefits and practices available to organisations implementing working time flexibility. Broadly this paper views working time preferences as being a highly personal and influenced by factors such as wages, taxation, culture (national and workplace) and non-work responsibilities. It is argued that negotiating a preferred working time pattern is essential to achieving work-life balance and when such a balance is achieved, workers are more healthy, motivated and committed to their employer. Essentially this provides an incentive for businesses to voluntarily implement working time flexibility beyond the regulatory standards..

The objective of this study was to investigate differences in the portrayal of Western European citizens and non Western European citizens in Hergé?s graphic novels about the young journalist Tintin. We wanted to see if the globalization during the mid 1900?s had an effect on Hergé?s way of portraying the world. We started off by selecting nine novels from three different periods of time, though we read all of the novels in The Adventures of Tintin.

Increased trade and exchange within the European Community has brought with it the need for less restricted circulation of judgments. The situation has improved greatly due to the enactment of Regulation (EC) No. 44/2001 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters (the Brussels I Regulation).Despite recent improvements the proceedings are still time-consuming and difficult. Many creditors refrain from having judgments recognized and enforced as the proceedings cost too much time and are too time-consuming. On January the 21st 2005 a new Regulation entered into force, Regulation (EC) No.

In the last decade the Italian authorities have tried to adapt themselves to a united European asylum system, in the European Union, through the adoption of legal reforms, intended to improve the conditions of asylum seekers in Italy. Despite these reforms, asylum seekers and refugee?s living conditions are far from covered. The aim of this study is to explore the different functions of social work in the Italian reception process regarding unaccompanied minors and their implications on the wellbeing of the unaccompanied minors. This study was conducted through several interviews with both social workers, which in some way worked with unaccompanied minors, and the unaccompanied minors themselves.

 Euro barometer surveys show quite an astonishing change in Turkish opinion towards European Union. In 2004, 73 % of the population considered EU as a good thing. In 2008, only 49 % were of the same opinion. At the same time, skepticism towards European integration is explained differently in earlier research. Some scholars claim that partisanship may explain attitudes of citizens better than ?cost and benefit? approaches.

This essay explores the economical and social paradigms surrounding one of the most influentialNordic border dynastic noble families in the second half of the fifteenth century - the AxelssonTotts. How mercantile possibilities and opportunities offered to them, reflected on their politicalactions and social bands. The Axelsson brothers of the Tott Dynasty would become of one of themost powerful noble families within the Nordic Union between 1444 och 1487.Axel Pedersen (Tott) would through well chosen marriage alliances into the noble families of bothDenmark and Sweden, and with political prowess lay the foundation for one of the most dynamicfamily empires of the fifteenth century. In the year 1442, the Axelsson brothers swore loyalty toeach other; to protect and defend their mercantile and economical interests in Denmark andSweden. They would eventually control the trading routes in the border areas of the Union, and byexploiting the political chaos within the Union they would gain access and influence to the landtrading routes for export and import within the Union and the shipping export routes in the BalticSea allowing them access to the Russian market through Finland and Estonia.The island of Gotland, with its tactical and important geographical position in the Baltic Seabecame the key to the Nordic Union.

This essay illustrates the rules and procedures when it comes to inclusive labor markets. In Sweden we have a labor market program called entry-level jobs, which makes it easier for immigrants to get work since our public employment agency pay remuneration to the employers.In this essay I am answering the following questions:How does the work of our public employment agency and trade union looks like before, during and after an employee has gotten a subsidized employment called entry-level job, and in which way can this work be improved if necessary?How extensive do entry-level jobs contribute to increased integration and establishment on the labor market for newly arrived immigrants?How does the Swedish measure on entry-level jobs approach within the scope of European regulations about measures for inclusive labor market?To find answers to my questions I have used social science methodology and juridical method. I have performed document studies and interviews with concerned parts.The conclusion of above subordinated questions is that we need to extend the Swedish laws covering entry-level jobs so that the concerned parts know which assignments they will be responsible for when problems emerge on a workplace.When it comes to if entry-level jobs contribute to increase integration and establishment on the labor market it seems to be more important to integrate the immigrants quickly, and with which quality it is made does not seems to matter. The public employment agency has to emphasize the importance of Swedish language so that the employees can be independent from authorities in the future.

The courts international juristiction within the European Union is regulated by the Brussels I Regulation. Article 2.1 of the Brussels I Regulation contains the fundamental provision. According to this Article the plaintiff shall submit an action where the defandent is domiciled. The Regulation provides exemptions to the this provision in Article 2.1.The court of the international case can also be determined according to Article 5 (1) of the Brussels I Regulation. This Article contains an alternative to the general provision within Article 2.1.

This thesis paper is based on Ian Manners Normative Power Europe-theory with a focus on EU?s military operation in Somalia. By examining documents from EU institutions in the form of reports concerning EU NAVFOR ? Operation ATALANTA ? EUTM Somalia ? EUCAP NESTOR. This study shows that the Normative Power Europe-theory can get expressed and that the EU continues its normative statements in Somalia. This result is an interesting contribution to the theory of Normative Power Europe witch have gotten a lot of critic about how a military operation should effect and diminish the theory..

The swedish rule concerning the treatment of employee stock-options have changed and the new wording of the rule will be applicable for the first time in 2010. The previous wording of the rule stated that the employee shall be taxed for the stock-option when moving abroad, even if the option is not exercised. The Swedish Skatteverket and Regeringsrätten have found that this rule is in conflict with the free movement of persons within the European Union. The new wording of the rule states that the employee shall be taxed when the option is excercised, no matter where the employee is situated. A state`s right of taxation of a stock-option determines wheter and to what extent the employee stock-otion derives from that state..