Legal reserve and other questions related to the use of DNA in criminal research (part I)]

Lately, there has been an expansion phenomenon in the use of DNA techniques in criminal investigation. Several of our European neighbouring countries are undertaking reforms in this area. However, the proliferation in the use of DNA is hindering a series of guarantees that up until present were considered settled. The exceptions to the judicial due process is an evident example of this trend. Examples of this can be seen in the last interpretation that the Supreme Court has made of the Spanish regulation and the last reform in Germany, both of which we will take a look at.     

Portugal

European Journal of Political Research -     

Privacy notices versus informational self-determination: Minding the gap

Privacy notices are instruments that intend to inform individuals of the processing of their personal data, their rights as data subjects, as well as any other information required by data protection or privacy laws. The goal of this paper is to clarify the current discourse regarding the (in)utility of privacy notices, particularly in the context of online transactions. The perspective is a European one, meaning that the analysis shall be geared towards the European Data protection framework, particularly the European Data Protection Directive. The paper discusses the role that privacy notices play under the European data protection framework today, summarizes the main critiques regarding the use of privacy notices in practice and develops a number of recommendations.     

Food policy and politics: The political economy of the public distribution system in India

This article discusses the history and political economy of the Public Distribution System (PDS) in India. This food distribution programme, which dates from 1939, is meant to increase food security both at the national and the household level. Since its emergence, it has passed through several phases, the latest one starting in 1991 when India introduced a Structural Adjustment Programme. From a social constructivist perspective, this article aims at understanding (a) the most important features of this system in the various phases of its history, (b) the social processes that led to the emergence and subsequent development of distribution policy and (c) the various functions PDS has served in the course of its history. It concludes that in the most recent era, there are two contradictory tendencies (one coming from economic rationalisation, the other from populist politics) which push and pull the PDS in different directions. The latter tendency is so strong that a drastic curtailment of the food distribution programme is unlikely, despite the pleas made by those favouring cutting down subsidies and reducing the responsibility of the state.