Environmental Protection and BITs of Bangladesh, Malaysia and USA: A Comparison

Abstract In absence of any global treaty, the bilateral investment treaties (BITs) are playing an important role in regulating foreign investments in the host countries. According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, there are 2361 BITs in force and like other members of the World Trade Organization, Bangladesh, Malaysia, and the USA also signed BITs to facilitate trade. The primary purpose of economic globalization is the economic development of the developing and least-developed countries as well as to facilitate the benefits of the home states. Bangladesh and Malaysia foreign investment laws have no specific provision of protecting the environment and fails to maintain high standard like USA environment laws. This paper addresses two questions: (a) do the bilateral investment treaties of Bangladesh, Malaysia, and USA have any specific provisions to protect the environment in the host country? (b) should environmental protection be considered during the entry of foreign investments in Bangladesh, Malaysia, and USA? Using the doctrinal research method, we critically analyzed 40 BITs signed by Bangladesh, Malaysia, and USA with different countries to explore whether there is any specific reference to protecting the environment. We find that the existing BITs mainly have provisions to promote and protect foreign investments, and 7 out of 40 BITs have a specific reference to protecting the environment. Therefore, governments should consider this important factor to insert while signing any future BITs.Keywords: Bilateral investment treaties, environmental protection, Bangladesh, Malaysia, United States of America. AbstrakJika tidak ada perjanjian global, maka perjanjian investasi bilateral (BIT) memainkan peran penting dalam mengatur investasi asing di negara setempat. Menurut Konferensi Perserikatan Bangsa-Bangsa tentang Perdagangan dan Pembangunan, ada 2.361 BIT yang masih berlaku, dan seperti anggota Organisasi Perdagangan Dunia lainnya, maka negara Bangladesh, Malaysia, dan AS juga menandatangani BIT untuk memfasilitasi perdagangan. Tujuan utama globalisasi ekonomi adalah pembangunan ekonomi negara-negara berkembang dan negara tidak berkembang, serta untuk memfasilitasi keuntungan negara asal. Undang-undang investasi asing Bangladesh dan Malaysia tidak memiliki ketentuan khusus untuk melindungi lingkungan dan gagal mempertahankan standar tinggi seperti undang-undang lingkungan AS. Makalah ini membahas dua pertanyaan: (a) apakah perjanjian investasi bilateral Bangladesh, Malaysia, dan AS memiliki ketentuan khusus untuk melindungi lingkungan di negara asal? (b) haruskah perlindungan lingkungan dipertimbangkan selama masuknya investasi asing di negara Bangladesh, Malaysia dan Amerika Serikat? Dengan menggunakan metode penelitian doktrinal, penulis menganalisis secara kritis 40 BIT yang ditandatangani oleh negara Bangladesh, Malaysia dan AS dengan berbagai negara untuk mengeksplorasi apakah ada referensi khusus untuk melindungi lingkungan. Kami menemukan bahwa BIT yang ada terutama memiliki ketentuan untuk mempromosikan dan melindungi investasi asing, dan 7 dari 40 BIT memiliki referensi khusus untuk melindungi lingkungan. Oleh karena itu, pemerintah harus mempertimbangkan faktor penting ini untuk dimasukkan saat menandatangani BIT di masa mendatang.Kata Kunci: Perjanjian investasi bilateral, perlindungan lingkungan, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Amerika Serikat. АннотацияВ отсутствие какого-либо глобального договора Двусторонние Инвестиционные Договоры (ДИД) играют важную роль в регулировании иностранных инвестиций в принимающих странах. По данным Конференции Организации Объединенных Наций по торговле и развитию в настоящее время действует 2361 ДИД, и, как и другие члены Всемирной Торговой Организации, Бангладеш, Малайзия и США также подписали ДИД для облегчения торговли. Основная цель экономической глобализации – это экономическое развитие развивающихся и наименее развитых стран, а также получение выгод для стран базирования. Законы Бангладеш и Малайзии об иностранных инвестициях не содержат конкретных положений о защите окружающей среды и не поддерживают высокие стандарты, такие как законы США об окружающей среде. В настоящей статье рассматриваются два вопроса: (а) есть ли в Двусторонних Инвестиционных Договорах Бангладеш, Малайзии и США какие-либо конкретные положения по защите окружающей среды в принимающей стране? (б) следует ли учитывать защиту окружающей среды при ввозе иностранных инвестиций в Бангладеш, Малайзию и США? Используя метод доктринального исследования, мы критически проанализировали 40 ДИД, подписанных Бангладеш, Малайзией и США с разными странами, чтобы выяснить , есть ли какие-либо конкретные ссылки на защиту окружающей среды. Мы обнаружили, что существующие ДИД в основном содержат положения о поощрении и защите иностранных инвестиций, а 7 из 40 ДИД содержат конкретные ссылки на защиту окружающей среды. Таким образом, правительству следует учитывать этот важный фактор при подписании будущих ДИД.Ключевые слова: Двусторонние инвестиционные договоры, охрана окружающей среды , Бангладеш, Малайзия, Соединенные Штаты Америк

International Organisations Efforts in Regulating Foreign Direct Investments in the Host States

Despite various efforts made by the international organisations over the decades, the idea of concluding an international agreement on foreign investment is still some way off. Due to the protest from the developing states, at this moment, international organisations do not have this item on their active agenda. The objective if this paper is to provide a thorough understanding of the law of foreign investment and the interplay between law and politics in regulating foreign investment. This paper examines two questions, namely, what are the efforts of the international organisations of regulating foreign investment? How has the law been interpreted over the years? Using doctrinal research method, this paper will critically analyse various international instruments in order to find out their effort to regulate FDI in host states. The findings of this study show that contribution made by the UN and other international organisations may not have led to a triumphant conclusion of a universal instrument but they have spelt out the main principles of law governing the treatment of foreign investment under international law

Can Business Students Forecast Their Own Grade?

This study examines grade expectations of two groups of business students for their final course mark. We separate students that are on average “better” forecasters on the basis of them not making significant forecast errors during the semester from those students that are poor forecasters of their final grade. We find that the better forecasters are students that have a higher final grade on average than the poor forecasters. The sample evidence indicates that students’ are overconfident, as indicated by their initial grade expectations, irrespective of ability to forecast. But these expectations change during the semester in the downwards direction as students accumulate information on their performance. As expected the poor forecasting students have much more sluggish expectations

THE RECONSTRUCTING LEGAL POLICIES OF THE MANAGEMENT AND CONTROL OF ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS FOR INDUSTRIAL AREAS IN URBAN OF CENTRAL JAVA

The pace of development is often faced with the challenge of decreasing the quality of a healthy environment. Meanwhile, the management and control of impacts must continue to be pursued properly and committed to maintaining health and environmental sustainability. This article aims to describe how environmental management in the city of Semarang is amid the rapid industrial growth in the area and what obstacles and challenges are faced. This study uses an empirical juridical approach with qualitative analysis techniques. The study results indicate that the strategy for controlling environmental impacts includes developing priority programs and strategies. The program can be measured in a certain time with clear benchmarks of success, structuring regulations in the field of pollution control, increasing the commitment of decision-makers in government and society, and community participation in environmental impact control programs. On the other hand, the function of Central Java’s Environmental Impact Control Agency (Bapedalda) is to monitor the implementation of Environmental Feasibility Study (EFS), evaluate environmental impact control activities and EFS implementation in the region, provide recommendations for determining EFS approval, make efforts to inform EFS, carry out technical guidance and supervision of environmental impact control, restore the environmental quality of life and control pollution and environmental damage

Some aspects of fluvial erosion in the watersheds of southern Ontario, Canada.

Dept. of Geography. Paper copy at Leddy Library: Theses & Major Papers - Basement, West Bldg. / Call Number: Thesis1980 .K426. Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 40-07, page: . Thesis (M.A.)--University of Windsor (Canada), 1980

A comparative study of the foreign direct investment laws at the pre-entry stage in Bangladesh and Malaysia

The primary purpose of economic globalisation is the economic development of the developing and least-developed countries as well as to facilitate benefits of the home states. Due to recent economic crisis and negative effects of FDI in various places in the world, many host states has started to adopt restrictive entry regulation for the multinational enterprises (MNEs). These regulatory conditions and restrictions differ between countries, depending on the development goals and objectives of the respective host states. Accordingly, restrictions on entry and permission imposed by different host states can be categorised primarily into three groups: (a) Sovereignty, national interest and security; and foreign ownership; (b) Capitalisation and performance requirements; (c) Screening of investment proposal and environmental protection. Due to fierce competition and attracting more foreign investments, host states like Bangladesh and Malaysia has lax regulatory laws and policies. Even though FDI has played a key role in the modernisation of Bangladesh and Malaysia’s economy, there are also negative effects, which are caused due to lack of effective legislation and control. Similarly, findings of this study shows that BITs and TIPs of both countries mainly protect foreign investors and lacks specific regulatory provisions to control them. In this study, six factors: sovereignty, national interest and security, foreign ownership, capitalisation requirement, performance requirement, screening of foreign investment and environmental protection has been selected and discussed in order to regulate FDI during the pre-entry stage. The primary research question was – to what extent the existing FDI governing laws were comparative at the pre-entry stage in Bangladesh and Malaysia? In this relation, the existing legal framework, BITs and TIPs of both countries have been critically evaluated. The primary research objective was to compare the FDI laws, BITs and TIPs in both countries. This study adopts qualitative, doctrinal and non-doctrinal legal research and comparative research methodology. The qualitative and doctrinal aspects are library-based complemented by ten semi-structured interviews, while the comparative aspect involves reference to relevant FDI laws of various host states. The analysis of data employs doctrinal, comparative, thematic, critical and analytical methods. The findings indicate that the existing legal framework of both Bangladesh and Malaysia are not completely harmonious in relation to six factors to regulate foreign investors at the pre-entry stage. Similarly, the BITs and TIPs of both states mainly protect foreign investors and most of them lack specific provisions to cover six factors at the pre-entry stage. Based on the findings, this study recommends that the Government of Bangladesh and Malaysia could consider including these six factors, either through amending the existing legal framework or the BITs and TIPs. At the same time, implementation of the legal frameworks must be strengthened further to ensure that the foreign investors are fulfilling all the requirements at the pre-entry stage in both countries

Regulatory Issues on Raising Capital through Debentures by Public Companies in the United Kingdom

Nowadays, it is common for the loans to be aggregated as a lump sum, which is then advanced to the company by the trustees. In this situation, the lenders subscribe for debenture stock, sometimes called loan stock, out of the fund. As with shares, such stock forms part of the company’s securities, which can be traded in the Stock Exchange. The lenders might require security for their loans. In this situation, a company will charge its property to secure the loan. In light of the Companies Act 2006 of the United Kingdom, this paper will analyze the various mechanisms whereby public companies raise money through debentures and the regulatory consequences of doing so. The companies legislation requires certain particulars of the charge to be registered. Therefore, this paper aims to reflect on: (a) how public companies borrow its capital through debentures or debenture stock; (b) what types of charge the public companies could issue to lenders as security; (c) how to differentiate between fixed and floating charges. This paper will also examine the question of priority among competing creditors and inconsistent decisions of the court regarding fixed and floating charges. The objectives of this paper are to: describe the meaning of ‘debenture', discuss the dispute relating granting a fixed charge over book debts, sketch the priority of charges and the statutory listing system, describe the meaning of book debts,  explain the character of and the differences between floating and fixed charges. This paper will provide recommendations that could be taken into consideration for future amendments of the Companies Act 2006

NON-INTERFERENCE PRINCIPLE OF ASEAN IN THE ROHINGYA CRISIS: INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS LAW AS ALTERNATIVE FOOTHOLD

Artikel ini mengevaluasi prinsip non-interferensi Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) dalam mengelola krisis Rohingya. Studi ini menekankan pada standar etika dan integritas penting yang ditemukan dalam hukum hak asasi manusia internasional. Dalam penelitian ini, literature review digunakan untuk mengumpulkan data dari berbagai sumber ilmiah yang relevan dengan menggunakan metode penelitian deskriptif kualitatif. Berdasarkan kerangka teoritis akuntabilitas hak asasi manusia dengan hukum hak asasi manusia internasional dalam konteks hubungan internasional, temuan menyoroti bahwa ASEAN harus bertindak sesuai dengan hak asasi manusia internasional di bawah aturan etika dan integritas dalam mengelola krisis regional. Temuan tersebut menegaskan perlunya membandingkan kerangka kerja hak asasi manusia internasional yang lebih baik untuk mengatasi masalah regional seperti krisis Rohingya, serta segala kekhawatiran yang mungkin berkembang di masa depan. Sebagai saran praktis, badan pengelola konflik perlu dibentuk di dalam ASEAN. Kata Kunci: Akuntabilitas, ASEAN, hukum hak asasi manusia internsional, krisis Rohingy

Development of ultrasound image contrast enhancement and speckle noise reduction for knee osteoarthritis early detection / Md Belayet Hossain

Knee Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the most common diseases among the elderly. Typically, medical attention is not sought until the disease has progressed to a point at which it is not possible to diagnose effectively, often due to concerns over the cost of detection at an earlier stage. Ultrasound (US) imaging has a number of advantages as an imaging technique; it is a low cost diagnostic method, non-invasive, non-ionizing and able to provide intuitive visualization. There is a significant change in the shape of cartilage due to the progression of knee OA and its associated cartilage degeneration. By using US imaging, it is possible to detect knee joint space narrowing. Nevertheless, the low contrast ratio and presence of speckle noise limit this application of US. The objective of this thesis is to propose a new contrast enhancing and speckle reducing method which will overcome the existing limitations. In the proposed method, contrast enhancement for optimum values of contrast, brightness and detail preservation will be taken into consideration. Most of the conventional contrast enhancing methods emphasize only one character; in contrast, the proposed method involves establishing a separating point to segment histogram for optimal contrast, brightness and detail preservation simultaneously. Three metrics will be used in this optimization, namely Preservation of Brightness Score function (PBS), Optimum Contrast Score function (OCS), and Preservation of Detail Score function (PDS), each of which will be defined. To both reduce speckle noise and preserve edge features, a new diffusivity function and four gradient thresholds instead of one are used. For performance analysis, quantitative and qualitative analysis has been performed using both synthetic and real ultrasound images. Results prove that the proposed method out-performs existing methods