Human dignity and vulnerable agency : an ethical framework for forensic practice

In this paper, we present an integrated ethical framework that covers the different levels of ethical tasks inherent in forensic and correctional work. First, we briefly give an overview of the ethical framework and its component notion of human dignity. Second we analyze in depth the concept of dignity and its relationship to normative theories and ethical concepts that are particularly relevant for forensic practitioners. Third, we explore the capacity of the conceptions of human dignity and vulnerable agency to integrate principles typically contained in ethical codes and practice, such as beneficence, autonomy, and justice. Fourth, we discuss how conflict between ethical codes or duties of station adhered to by practitioners can be effectively addressed in light of the model of dignity and agency outlined earlier. Fifth, we explain how individuals' specific ethical judgments and actions should proceed in light of our framework model.

The value of circles and the dangers of straight lines

This article focuses on how respectful learning relationships based on reciprocity between a Anglo-western raised educator and South Sudanese Australian students and graduates in social work and welfare courses in a regional location have (re)shaped the development of a research process. A reflective critique is intertwined with a description of my search (as an experienced practitioner but new researcher) for an appropriate ethical cross cultural framework for researching and advocating with a small ethnic population in a regional location. This includes a description of the process of exploring the need for, and positioning of, changing and re-creating relationships between the ‘researcher(s)’ and the ‘researched’ as co-authors; co-researchers; collaborators and participants to address issues of selfdetermination and power in the context of cross cultural research, education and human rights. The motivation to research seems a pivotal part of ethics in cross cultural research. As an educator I became concerned that the courses I taught in, and my own teaching practices, were (unintentionally) discriminatory. There appeared to be a lack of acknowledgement and/or action regarding the ingrained Western whiteness permeated and privileged knowledge and approaches in the construction and delivery of courses. I did not think I was adequately responding to, recognising or incorporating the different knowledge’s, strengths and needs of South Sudanese Australian students and graduates. There was a lack of fit between the academic rhetoric of human rights and diversity and my/our educator practice. This article explores the ‘corralling’ effect of mainstream research culture with attention to its potential for seduction and corruption that tends to separate the passion from the researcher, the researcher from the researched, and the actual issue(s) of concern ….from everyone.

The pharmaceutical industry, intellectual property rights and access to medicines in Pakistan

The pharmaceutical industry in Pakistan is worth around US$ l.18 billion, with annual growth in 2010 approaching 10 per cent (Khan, 2012). There are more than 650 registered companies, including 31 multinationals, which in 2006 had a market share in value terms of 53.3 per cent, with national firms controlling the remaining 46.7 per cent (IMS Health, 2007). In 2007 medicines worth about US$100 million were exported. Medicines are a vital component of healthcare, and Pakistan spends around three-quarters of its healthcare budget on medicines (WHO, 2004). This chapter provides an overview, from a public health perspective, of the national pharmaceutical market and the development of drug policies and regulation. Pakistan adopted a Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) compliant patent regime in 2000, and the intersection between patents and public health is a central policy challenge. This chapter highlights key issues related to intellectual property, Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), and production and access to medicines.

Contentious Activism and Inter-Korean Relations

In South Korea, the contentious debate over relations with the North transcends traditional considerations of physical and economic security, and political activists play a critical role in shaping the discussion of these issues as they pursue the separate yet connected agendas of democracy, human rights, and unification.

Providing international observers with a better understanding of policymakers’ management of inter-Korean relations, Danielle L. Chubb traces the development of various policy disputes and perspectives from the 1970s through South Korea’s democratic transition. Focusing on four case studies—the 1980 Kwangju uprising, the June 1987 uprising, the move toward democracy in the 1990s, and the decade of “progressive” government that began with the election of Kim Dae Jung in 1997—she tracks activists’ complex views on reunification along with the rise and fall of more radical voices encouraging the adoption of a North Korean–style form of socialism. While these specific arguments have dissipated over the years, their vestiges can still be found in recent discussions over how to engage with North Korea and bring security and peace to the peninsula.

Extending beyond the South Korean example, this examination shows how the historical trajectory of norms and beliefs can have a significant effect on a state’s threat perception and security policy. It also reveals how political activists, in their role as discursive agents, play an important part in the creation of the norms and beliefs directing public debate over a state’s approach to the ethical and practical demands of its foreign policy.

Older prisoners: a human rights perspective

This researcher enhances understandings about the psychological and surrounding circumstances, contributing towards older prisoners' treatment by others. Participants completed a questionnaire, interviews, and mention that older prisoners, and themselves as professionals, could be at risk of harm. This is linked to such conditions as budget constraints and other prison conditions.

Can international human rights law accommodate bodily diversity?

This article considers recent efforts by international bodies and advocacy groups to secure the human rights of individuals with intersex variation. Identifying that these efforts are constrained by powerful assumptions about binary sex, it argues that international rights discourse looks set to regulate intersex individuals by the same protective strategies applied to the last four decades of the women's rights movement. A frank reading of legal feminist scholarship indicates several possible risks for the nascent intersex campaign. Efforts to ensure the substantive enjoyment of rights (for all) need to move beyond the constraints of a binary system in which women and sexed/sexual minorities will always be produced as other. Having argued that human rights are not contingent on biological determinants, the right to non-discrimination on the basis of sex traits is considered.

The impact of the Human Rights Act 1998 on mental health care

Some may argue that the introduction of the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA) has benefited only celebrities and asylum-seekers. Others contend that the HRA is a significant piece of legislation that has the potential to promote and protect the rights of the most vulnerable in our society. A few years after the Act's introduction this contribution considers the impact it has had on mental health practice in the UK.

O processo de construção da identidade do profissional Perito Criminal Federal

Segundo o Código de Processo Penal brasileiro, a Perícia é imprescindível, e não pode ser substituída pela confissão do acusado, nos crimes que deixem vestígios. Esta pesquisa inicia um estudo acerca da construção da identidade profissional do Perito Criminal Federal, o Perito que atua no âmbito da Polícia Federal no Brasil. A abordagem acadêmica foi adotada no sentido de serem identificadas as principais questões que contribuem na construção da identidade desse profissional. O objetivo principal do trabalho é o reconhecimento pelo Perito Criminal Federal do seu papel para a sociedade, de modo que se vislumbrem iniciativas que possam incentivar a busca de melhorias, de aprimoramento na formação e evolução dos profissionais, beneficiando não apenas a motivação e satisfação profissional, mas, sobretudo, a resposta que este produz para a sociedade. O resultado da pesquisa revelou que sua identidade, como a de qualquer profissional, está em constante metamorfose, e sofre a influência de sua história e verdades individuais e das influências do ambiente social e profissional. O estudo demonstrou que existem lacunas a serem preenchidas na visão do próprio profissional com relação ao retorno quanto ao resultado efetivo do seu trabalho, além da preocupação com o equilíbrio entre quantidade e qualidade na produção de Laudos Periciais Criminais. Observou-se ainda a existência de um ambiente organizacional desfavorável quanto ao cumprimento de leis e recomendações, internacionais e nacionais, que preconizam a necessidade de autonomia para a realização do trabalho pericial, de forma a garantir a prova isenta e neutra em busca da justiça. Também ficou nítida a necessidade de maior comunicação e discussão interna acerca da visão de futuro da profissão. É primordial para a efetivação de uma sociedade democrática, que respeita os direitos humanos e zela pela segurança pública, uma Perícia Criminal Federal consciente de sua identidade, efetiva, que possa atuar com motivação, celeridade e qualidade em prol da justiça para os cidadãos brasileiros.

The limits of human development and the use of energy and natural resources

The development of nations is an unquestionable requirement. A lot of challenges concerning health, education and economy are present. A discussion on these development models has occupied the minds of decision makers in recent years. When energy supply and demand is considered, the situation becomes critical and the crucial question is: how to improve the quality of life of developing countries based on available models of development that are related to the life style of developed countries, for which the necessary use and waste of energy are present? How much energy is essential to humanity for not so as to endangering the survival conditions of future generations? the human development index (HDI) establishes the relationship among energy use, economic growth and social growth. Here it can be seen that 75% of the world population has a significant energy consumption potential. This is a strong reason to consider that the sustainable development concepts on energy policies are strategic to the future of the planet. This paper deals with the importance of seeking alternative development models for human development balance, natural resources conservation and environment through rational energy use concepts. (c) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The antibiotics roseoflavin and 8-demethyl-8-amino-riboflavin from Streptomyces davawensis are metabolized by human flavokinase and human FAD synthetase

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Collagen is reduced and disrupted in human aneurysms and dissections of ascending aorta

In ascending aorta aneurysms, there is an enlargement of the whole vessel, whereas aortic dissections (ADs) are characterized by the cleavage of the wall into 2 sheets at the external half. We searched if alterations in collagen could be related to these diseases. Sections of aortas from 14 case patients with acute dissections, 10 case patients with aneurysms, and 9 control subjects were stained with picrosirius. Slides were analyzed under polarized microscopy to evaluate the structure of collagen fibers. The proportion of collagen was calculated in each half of the medial layer by color detection in a computerized image analysis system. Collagen appearance under polarized light was consistent with collagenolysis. The mean collagen proportions at the inner and outer halves, respectively, were 0.50 +/- 0.13 and 0.40 +/- 0.08 in the control group, 0.20 +/- 0.10 and 0.18 +/- 0.12 in the AD group, and 0.33 +/- 0.12 and 0.19 +/- 0.12 in the aneurysm group. The AD (P < .01) and control (P = .04) groups had less collagen at the external half, no difference was found in the aneurysm group (P = .71). In both halves, there was less collagen in the case patients than in the control subjects (all P < .01), but at the internal half, the decrease was significantly greater in the case patients with aneurysms than in those with dissections (P = .03; at the external half, P = .99). Aortic dissections and aneurysms show a decrease in collagen content that could be related to a weakness of the wall underlying the diseases, but the locations of the decrease differ: in dissections, it is situated mostly at the external portion of the media (site of cleavage), whereas in aneurysms, it is more diffuse, consistent with the global enlargement. (c) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Prevention and insurance of conflict and terrorism: issues and evidence for Latin America

Includes bibliography

National mechanism for gender equality and empowerment of women in Latin America and the Caribbean

Incluye Bibliografía

The frontiers of vulnerability: gender, migration and sexual and reproductive rights

Includes bibliography