Visions of Reality

John Clare: A Biography , by Jonathan Bate
W. B. Yeats: A Life, Volume 2: The Arch Poet , by R. F. Foster     

NGOs,corporate social responsibility,and social accountability: Inditex vs. Clean Clothes

Markets and businesses are undergoing major changes as globalisation deepens. Pressure from diverse social groups, both environmental and economic, is changing the operating environment. Many corporations are interested in devising social-responsibility strategies, both as a response to outside pressures and in their own interests. Against this background, this article considers the case of Inditex, a company based in Galicia, and the ‘harassment’ to which it was subjected by Setem, the Spanish chapter of the Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC). Reviewing Setem's claims leads to a better understanding of the repercussions for social systems that are now increasingly informed by external actors. The authors argue that both corporations and non-government organisations must account for the social impact of their activities.     

The limits of the physician's secrecy duty in risk situations. Special reference to genetics]

This work deals with those conflict situations that arise between the duty of secrecy by health professionals and the interest in safekeeping the life and physical integrity of third parties when dealing with behaviours by the patient, whether intentional or not, that could harm or place in danger those legal goods. The special situations of conflict that could arise in the ambit of genetic diagnosis are dealt as a special problem.     

Exporting ‘active citizenship’: foreign support for citizenship education in the Arab world

What explains the rise in support for active citizenship programs in the Arab region? How has active citizenship been envisioned and taught with support by foreign states? How do participants understand the usefulness and impact of such programs? In this paper, we examine the contexts in which citizenship programs that embody the political aspirations of foreign states, are implemented. Embedded in local political realities, participants in these programs routinely question the ef?cacy and applicability of training modules focused on active citizenship and civic engagement. We argue that the proliferation of active citizenship programs for civil society organizations in practice serves to both bolster state legitimacy and discourage community leaders and activists from expressing political dissent. By submerging con?icting values, practices, and perspectives while encouraging civic participation based on conformity rather than dissent, active citizenship programs risk fostering a depoliticized civil society that is detached from the local political context.