Unresolved Questions in the Bill of Rights of the New Iraqi Constitution: How Will the Clash Between Human Rights and Islamic Law Be Reconciled in Future Legislative Enactments and Judicial Interpretations?

This Article endeavors to answer the question, are the provisions on “human rights” and “Islamic Law” in the new Iraqi constitution compatible? The new Iraqi Constitution recognizes the concept of “human rights” in accordance with Iraq\u27s international obligations, establishes an independent “Supreme Commission for Human Rights,” limits the work of governmental intelligence agencies in accordance with human rights, and prohibits tribal customs that contradict human rights. At the same time, the Constitution makes some references to Islamic Shari\u27ah: it establishes Islam as the official religion of the State, recognizes Islam as a source of legislation, recognizes Iraq as a part of the Muslim world, guarantees the Islamic identity of its majority, allows Iraqis to choose their personal status law according to Islamic Law, and requires that the Federal Supreme Court contain jurists of Islamic Law. This Article endeavours to answer the question by briefly examining the various provisions of the Iraqi Constitution that cover the rights of the Iraqi people

Foundational Theory for Understanding Policy Routing Dynamics

In this paper we introduce a theory of policy routing dynamics based on fundamental axioms of routing update mechanisms. We develop a dynamic policy routing model (DPR) that extends the static formalism of the stable paths problem (introduced by Griffin et al.) with discrete synchronous time. DPR captures the propagation of path changes in any dynamic network irrespective of its time-varying topology. We introduce several novel structures such as causation chains, dispute fences and policy digraphs that model different aspects of routing dynamics and provide insight into how these dynamics manifest in a network. We exercise the practicality of the theoretical foundation provided by DPR with two fundamental problems: routing dynamics minimization and policy conflict detection. The dynamics minimization problem utilizes policy digraphs, that capture the dependencies in routing policies irrespective of underlying topology dynamics, to solve a graph optimization problem. This optimization problem explicitly minimizes the number of routing update messages in a dynamic network by optimally changing the path preferences of a minimal subset of nodes. The conflict detection problem, on the other hand, utilizes a theoretical result of DPR where the root cause of a causation cycle (i.e., cycle of routing update messages) can be precisely inferred as either a transient route flap or a dispute wheel (i.e., policy conflict). Using this result we develop SafetyPulse, a token-based distributed algorithm to detect policy conflicts in a dynamic network. SafetyPulse is privacy preserving, computationally efficient, and provably correct.National Science Foundation (CISE/CCF 0820138, CISE/CSR 0720604, CISE/CNS 0524477, CNS/ITR 0205294, CISE/EIA RI #0202067

Cerclage for the prevention of prematurity: for whom should it be indicated?

Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Escola Paulista de Medicina Departamento de ObstetríciaUNIFESP, EPM, Depto. de ObstetríciaSciEL

On the Interaction between TCP and the Wireless Channel in CDMA2000 Networks

In this work, we conducted extensive active measurements on a large nationwide CDMA2000 1xRTT network in order to characterize the impact of both the Radio Link Protocol and more importantly, the wireless scheduler, on TCP. Our measurements include standard TCP/UDP logs, as well as detailed RF layer statistics that allow observability into RF dynamics. With the help of a robust correlation measure, normalized mutual information, we were able to quantify the impact of these two RF factors on TCP performance metrics such as the round trip time, packet loss rate, instantaneous throughput etc. We show that the variable channel rate has the larger impact on TCP behavior when compared to the Radio Link Protocol. Furthermore, we expose and rank the factors that influence the assigned channel rate itself and in particular, demonstrate the sensitivity of the wireless scheduler to the data sending rate. Thus, TCP is adapting its rate to match the available network capacity, while the rate allocated by the wireless scheduler is influenced by the sender's behavior. Such a system is best described as a closed loop system with two feedback controllers, the TCP controller and the wireless scheduler, each one affecting the other's decisions. In this work, we take the first steps in characterizing such a system in a realistic environment

Legal Analysis of Anti-Dumping Cases Raised against Saudi Arabias Petrochemical Products

The subject matter of this article is to examine some of the anti-dumping cases against the Saudi Arabian petrochemical products by the European Union EU Turkey and India The repetition of having anti-dumping cases against these products has raised a question about the reasons behind this scenario as well as the impact of such cases on these products and the whole Saudi Arabian petrochemical sector There is a strong link between having cheap raw materials in this sector and anti-dumping cases since Saudi Arabia is one of the largest oil producer and reserve in the world Moreover Saudi Arabia needs to establish a realistic and practicable competition polices inside its market in the context of these products Yet Saudi Arabian government still owns the majority of the petrochemicals industries which makes these products target for the anti-dumping cases abroa

Anti-dumping and anti-subsidy on Saudi’s petrochemical products

This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University London.In recent years, petrochemicals products from Saudi Arabia have been the subject of anti-dumping (AD) cases in several countries. This has raised questions about whether Saudi Arabia’s domestic laws and regulations relating to AD and anti-subsidy are, (1) effective, and (2) compatible with Saudi Arabia’s international legal obligations under the World Trade Organisation (WTO). This thesis examines the compatibility of Saudi Arabia’s domestic laws concerning AD, with international trade law, under the WTO agreement on the Implementation of Article VI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (Anti-Dumping Agreement (AD Agreement)). It critically analyses cases filed against Saudi Arabia’s petrochemicals products in a number of countries; including India, China, and Turkey, and in the European Union. It is observed that the high number of AD cases filed against Saudi Arabia’s petrochemicals products around the world reflect a need to strengthen Saudi Arabia’s domestic laws, and the regulations applicable to dumping. Arguably, some aspects of the WTO AD Agreement are in need of reconsideration by the contracting parties in view of the modern context of trade between contracting parties. Aspects to be re-examined include, for example, dispute resolution procedures. In this respect, this thesis argues that some parts of the WTO AD Agreement should be subject to further negotiations between the WTO contracting parties, with a view to making appropriate amendments. Finally, this research will present recommendations for the Saudi Arabian economic system, suggest amendments relating to AD and anti-subsidy provisions under the WTO and finally offer recommendations for the dispute resolution mechanism under the DSU. This will help to improve and develop an effective AD legal regime under the WTO agreement, which would be applicable in the context of the changing circumstances of global international trade

Language and Betrayal: Posthuman Ethics in Kazuo Ishiguro’s \u3cem\u3eNever Let Me Go\u3c/em\u3e

Netty Mattar discusses in her article “Language and Betrayal: Posthuman Ethics in Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go” the complexities of ethical compassion in this biotechnological age. Mattar highlights how genetic technology creates new forms of life that dissolve the line between ‘human’ and ‘technology.’ In spite of this, contemporary ethical discussions do not take into account changing conceptions of human subjectivity and instead reinstate older assumptions about what ‘human’ is. Mattar argues that speculative fiction (SF), as a self-conscious play on signs and signification, can draw attention to how ethical responses are determined by the language we use. Mattar reads Kazuo Ishiguro’s SF novel Never Let Me Go as a critique of liberal humanist ethical discourse, which eliminates difference as it promises inclusion. She argues that Ishiguro’s uncanny narrative presents a posthuman ethics that forces the reader to confront their own dependence on exclusionary understandings of ‘human’