Hawala: An underground haven for terrorists or social phenomenon?

In the wake of September 11, authorities have increasingly focused on an age-old method of banking and money transfer known as “hawala.” In this system, a local hawala dealer in one country (or area) takes money from a customer and (for a nominal commission) has an associate in another country (or area) give an equal amount of money to the recipient. This type of underground banking system remains resilient due to several key characteristics. These are: the system's simplicity, its inclusiveness (enabling it to function without any type of external support), and most importantly, its considerable prominence within, and adherence upon specific cultural and religious spheres. This article provides an overview of hawala banking, together with the historical and cultural milieu that gave rise to, and continues to foster it. It suggests that while Islam addresses the issue of debt transfer through the Islamic concept of hawala, the system is widely practiced through many parts of the world by both Muslim and non-Muslims alike. Therefore, to refer to the practice as wholly “Islamic” is erroneous. This study also demonstrates that the initiatives taken towards regulation and/or elimination of hawala are ill suited to deal with the operation of this particular system. This failure particularly reflects the lack of appreciation, on the part of authorities and policy-makers, for the broader social and cultural context in which hawala opearates. A more insightful understanding of the system will address such issues as competing legal paradigms, the local appeal of the system, as well as the likely negative consequences of current regulatory efforts. Thus, any attempts at regulating hawala should ensue with great cultural and religious sensitivity, and should address some of the larger issues that continue to uphold the system, such as the existence of inadequate economic infrastrcture in such nations as Afghanistan and Somalia.     

医疗行为秩序的刑法规制

医疗行为有序开展能够让医患双方预科到各自的行为将会给对方带来怎样的后果,使人们在医疗行为活动中有一种被实现的预期,带给人们以安全感。刑事法律制度是保障公民合法权益中一项重要的法律制度。在对医疗行为的刑法规制中,其通过对严重损害就诊人员生命健康权益的医疗行为规制,及去刑化的理论探讨,体现了刑法对公民的生命健康权的保障;通过对医疗行为中行为人刑法规制的限制性规定,体现了刑法对医务人员工作权益的保护。突显了刑法最终保障公民权益的根本目的。     

Privacy regulations on biometrics in Australia

This paper aims to provide an analysis of the current regulatory environment, at the federal level, of privacy protection concerning biometrics in Australia. The study only focuses on the federal Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Biometrics Institute Privacy Code. The discussion is based on the legal concerns of the use of biometrics, and an analysis is made concerning the implications of privacy protection sources.     

论农村换届选举的法律规制

选举是民主政治的基石。农村基层民主选举是农村基层民主建设的重要内容,搞好农村基层民主选举是建设稳定和谐、幸福的社会主义新农村重要举措。建立完善的农村选举制度和村务管理制度是有效防止少数人为追求非法利益,采取一些违法手段破坏农村的换届选举有力武器。     

家庭暴力与法律规制

家庭暴力是世界公害 ,也是我国一个严重的社会问题。我国现有法律法规在预防和制止家庭暴力方面起了很大的作用 ,但也存在诸多不足之处。进一步完善立法 ,加强对家庭暴力的法律规制 ,是遏制家庭暴力 ,切实维护家庭暴力受害者合法权益的必然要求     

Semi-annual agenda of regulations: Health and Human Services Department. Publication of semi-annual agenda of regulations

The President's February 17. 1981, Executive Order (12291) and the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 require the Department to publish an agenda of significant regulations being developed and an indication of those regulatory actions that are being analyzed for their effect on small businesses. The Department published its last agenda on November 10, 1981.     

The new EMTALA regulations and the on-call physician shortage: in defense of the regulations

This Article examines the new Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) regulations, focusing on the on-call provisions, in light of the practical realities of the on-call physician shortage. It provides an historical account of issues surrounding the delivery of emergency care by on-call physicians and the legal background of EMTALA insofar as it relates to on-call physicians. Ultimately, the author concludes that, although the current shortage of on-call physicians has caused hospitals to anticipate EMTALA liability and advocate for more specific regulations, a closer look reveals that hospitals' fears are overstated. As long as hospitals have proper procedures in place, the new regulations will not put them in violation of EMTALA.     

Private security services regulations in the United States today

ABSTRACT

Security services regulations in the United States began formally in the second half of the twentieth century. Many states – never the federal government – first set and then increased, and sometimes decreased, standards over the years. With the shock from the events of 11 September 2001 (9/11) and the subsequent war on terrorism, the pace of regulatory growth increased. Even so, regulations for security personnel – especially security guards – remain at an indefensibly low level with 12 states having no requirements at all for unarmed security personnel and 14 having none for armed. Yet along the way, regulatory pre-employment screening requirements have incrementally improved, training demands, less so. Expecting a security officer with zero-to-a-few hours preassignment training to be a competent first responder, a skilled communicator with the public, a knowledgeable person about applicable law, an informed user of security technology, and a worker educated on the mission and operations of the workplace is not a convincing point of view. The security industry espouses higher standards, including through regulation, but then does not act upon its aspirations. For other security services – alarm installation and monitory personnel, investigators/private detectives, and locksmiths – regulations vary widely according to state. They don’t exist at all for security consultants. This article comments on and reviews regulations for all these security services.     

水资源管制立法内涵解读

Water resources have the functions as domestic water, resource water and environmental water, on the basis of which the legislative framework of water resource regulations shall be studied. Firstly, domestic water shall be deemed as property right and the legislation shall protect the realization of the fundamental human rights for use of domestic water. Secondly, with respect to resource water, an independent water resource regulatory agency shall be established; and meanwhile, the legislation shall promote the construction of water right market based on property rights and improve the utility of water resources. Thirdly, since environmental water is one of the public goods, the legislation shall create a path of privatization in implementing mechanism for realizing the use of environmental water and the franchising system provides a practical solution to privatization of environmental water. Xu Jinhai, Ph.D in Law, is a vice director of the Public Utilities Law Institute of Hohai University. Since 2001, he has released nearly twenty articles in Nanjing University Law Review and Jiangsu Social Science Journal and other academic journals.     

Public Health Service--health maintenance organizations: final regulations

These rules amend the Public Health Service (PHS) regulations by implementing certain changes made by the HMO Amendments of 1978 with respect to grants and loan guarantees for planning and initial development costs (Subpart D) and to loans and loan guarantees for initial costs of operation (Subpart E). These regulations change Subpart D by including projects for the "expansion of services" of an HMO among the projects eligible for initial development assistance. In addition, they change the limits on the amount of assistance permitted for initial development projects. These regulations also change Subpart E by substituting the words "costs of operation" for the words "operating costs," thereby expanding the scope of assistance for initial operations (1) to include costs of certain small capital expenditures for equipment and alterations and renovations of facilities and (2) to incorporate into the regulations a longstanding policy which specifies the amount of preaward balance sheet liabilities which may be paid for with funds under operating loans (whether made directly or guaranteed by the Secretary).     

Ontario court affirms that medical marijuana regulations are unconstitutional

On 7 October 2003, the Ontario Court of Appeal upheld the Ontario Superior Court of Justice decision in Hitzig, which found that the Marihuana Medical Access Regulations (MMAR) represented an unconstitutional barrier to accessing a legal supply of marijuana for persons with a recognized medical need. The Court of Appeal tailored its remedial order by striking down the second specialist test required for certain applicants, and eliminating the unconstitutional eligibility and supply provisions, rather than declaring unconstitutional the entire MMAR as the lower court had done. The court's declaration was made effective immediately, in order to maintain the prohibition for non-medicinal possession of marijuana under section 4 of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (CDSA), and to constitutionalize the medical exemption for marijuana possession created under the MMAR.     

Grants for various health professions projects--PHS. Final regulations

These regulations govern grants to public or nonprofit private entities for various health professions projects authorized under section 788(b) of the Public Health Service Act. The specific types of health professions projects for which support will be available will be announced from time to time in the Federal Register.     

论行政法规制定权限的监督与制约

行政立法是国家行政机关依照法律规定的权限和程序,制定行政法规和行政规章的活动。《中华人民共和国立法法》和《行政法规制定程序条例》分别于2000年和2002生效,但由于行政立法主体的多层次性和立法内容的广泛多样性,在实际生活中出现了行政机关所立之法相互矛盾、相互重叠的现象,甚至出现了行政机关超越自己的立法权限进行立法、所立之法与国家的宪法和基本法律相抵触的现象,直接给公民和有关组织的权益造成了严重的损害。为了防止行政机关滥用立法权,保护公民的合法权益,必须对行政立法进行监督。     

Fair credit reporting medical information regulations. Final rules

The OCC, Board, FDIC, OTS, and NCUA (Agencies) are publishing final rules to implement section 411 of the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 (FACT Act). The final rules create exceptions to the statute's general prohibition on creditors obtaining or using medical information pertaining to a consumer in connection with any determination of the consumer's eligibility, or continued eligibility, for credit for all creditors. The exceptions permit creditors to obtain or use medical information in connection with credit eligibility determinations where necessary and appropriate for legitimate purposes, consistent with the Congressional intent to restrict the use of medical information for inappropriate purposes. The final rules also create limited exceptions to permit affiliates to share medical information with each other without becoming consumer reporting agencies. The final rules are substantially similar to the rules adopted by the Agencies on an interim final basis in June 2005.