Constitutional Legal Framework for the Participation of Citizens of the Republic of Uzbekistan in Managing the Affairs of Society and States

The article examines the right of citizens to participate in the management of state affairs, its constitutional features. Special attention is paid to its role and place in the system of constitutional human and civil rights and freedoms. It is concluded that the participation of citizens in the management of state affairs is one of the guarantors of ensuring the rights and freedoms of the individual and the most important institution of a democratic society.

Sustainability Assessment for Wastewater Treatment Systems in Developing Countries

As the assessment of the economic, environmental, institutional, and social sustainability of wastewater treatment systems may have several conceivable goals and intended recipients, there are numerous different approaches. This paper surveys certain aspects of sustainability assessment that may be of interest to the planners of wastewater treatment systems. Here, the key criteria assess the system’s costs and financing, including its affordability for the users, the environmental impact, the benefits for health and hygiene, the cultural acceptance of the system and its recycled products, the technical functioning, and the administrative, political, and legal framework for its construction and operation. A multi-criteria approach may then be used to analyze possible trade-offs and identify the most suitable system for a certain location.

Potentials and Prerequisites on the Way to a Circular Economy: A Value Chain Perspective on Batteries and Buildings

It is becoming increasingly clear that linear modes of production and consumption are unsustainable. A circular economy would help to minimize both environmental and social problems. As a result, the concept is gaining momentum in the political discourse. However, current policies do not seem sufficient to transform linear value chains to circular ones. This paper compares the potentials of and prerequisites for a circular economy along two important value chains. As a best practice example, the legal framework along the battery value chain is analyzed. This analysis is used to derive recommendations for how to improve the legal framework along the building value chain. We find that the battery value chain is already addressed by targeted instruments and the instruments addressing the building value chain have to be aligned and their credibility improved through mandatory requirements. A value chain-specific approach to develop the legal framework is promising for key sectors, while both general frameworks and value chain-specific instruments are required to fully exploit the CE for every product.

Assessing the Potential of “Mobility as a Service” in Passenger Maritime Transport

This article assesses the potential of Mobility as a Service in passenger maritime transport from the supply perspective by collecting and analyzing data provided by interviews to key experts in passenger transport from both industry and academia. “Mobility as a service” in passenger maritime transport (also in this article referred as “Maritime MaaS”) describes the integration of passenger maritime services with land mobility into a single mobility service delivered through a unique platform for planning, booking, ticketing, and payment. The scope of this article is to explore the potential interest of mobility service providers to develop a MaaS that has as a backbone coastal shipping at the Aegean Archipelagos, in Greece. The Maritime MaaS ecosystem with its key actors is identified, while the perceived challenges, opportunities, and benefits envisaged by the adaptation of this innovative concept from urban transport to the maritime sector are recorded. Computer-assisted interviews were performed at a panel of 17 experts representing different types of decision makers. Participants were selected according to their current industry position or their academic profile. A content analysis with the use of NVIVO was conducted, followed by a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis based on the experts’ input, in order to assess the MaaS business environment. Results indicate that the maritime transport sector is relatively ready to adopt MaaS from a technological readiness perspective, while land transport seems to be in a lower level of technological readiness. PAYG (pay as you go) MaaS business model is preferred than a “MaaS package” model by most stakeholders. Finally, main challenges toward MaaS implementation are the discrepancies in reliability of service among different transport modes and the ferry fleet operational flexibility ceilings that are imposed by legal framework for ferry routings in Greece.

Interference with Freedom of Expression

Established as a personal right, the right to free speech implies obligations and duties, which may generate possible restrictions. Freedom of expression works correctly in a legal framework when it comes to a legitimate aim in a state law. Article 10, paragraph 2, of the Convention explains the conditions under which the right to freedom of expression is justified by the need to protect certain public interests (such as those relating to national security, the territorial space of the state, public order, the prevention of crimes, the protection of health and social morals, the guarantee of authority and the impartiality of the judiciary) but also to protect certain private interests, such as reputation and the rights of others. persons or the need to prevent the publication of secret information. This paragraph basically authorizes states to take certain measures to protect those interests, which materialize through rules and normative rules of the right to conscience, opinion and freedom of expression States enjoy a margin of appreciation for establishing the need for such reactions in a state governed by the rule of law, but in the end it is also up to the European Court of Human Rights to rule on the compatibility of interference with the provisions of the Convention, assessing on a case-by-case basis if the interference arises as a result of the urgent social issues and whether it is fair.

The Current Status and Future Direction of Clinical Research in Japan From a Regulatory Perspective

In Japan, a law called the Clinical Trials Act went into being effective on April 1, 2018, and clinical research on human subjects conducted in Japan has been undergone major changes. Those other than clinical trials for marketing approval of drugs or medical devices are broadly classified into “specific clinical trials” and others, and regulations have been tightened for each. As a result, clinical interventional study was drastically reduced, and observational clinical study increased. For the observational clinical study, the two previous ethical guidelines were merged into the “Ethical Guidelines for Medical and Biological Research Involving Human Subjects,” which was enacted in March 2021. The observational clinical study is now subjected to these ethical guidelines. In addition, changes are planned for the Act on the Protection of Personal Information, which greatly affects data collection in clinical research. Clinical research in Japan must be conducted appropriately while adapting to these various changes in the external environment and legal framework. Adapting to these changes is not an easy task, as it requires increased financial and human resources for all stakeholders.

Considerations on the Infringement Procedure against Romania

This paper is a study of the infringement procedure, as it is regulated at EU level. Thus, we first analyze the existing legal framework on the matter. The implementation of this procedure in various Member States of the European Union and its consequences are then presented. Last but not least, the article refers to a series of aspects regarding the fields in which the procedure was directed against Romania since its integration into the EU. The purpose of the essay is to present in detail Romania's situation regarding the violation of EU’s law.Thus, a comparative presentation throughout time of the number of such proceedings launched against the Romanian state was made.A relevant case in which Romania was tried and convicted was also presented in detail.The large number of cases launched in 2021 highlights the delays registered by Romania on the matter. The measures ordered by the Romanian government through the elaborated the Annual Transposition Plan-2021must be carefully and systematically implemented. Romania could also consider and effectively apply the examples of good practice from the other EU’s member states. The historical and the comparative methods used in this presentation reveal both the similarities between the application of this procedure in the EU Member States under review as well as the differences and its succession in time. The article is important not only for the scientists, but also for the practitioners to dispose all the necessary measures that are required.

Lessons from UNCITRAL for Reforming the South African Legal Framework Concerning Security Rights in Movable Property

This article analyses the South African legal framework governing security rights in movable property with the view to inspire law reform. The analysis is based on a comparison of the current South African framework with the UNCITRAL Legislative Guide on Secured Transactions, a soft-law instrument containing international best practice. The problematic aspects of the South African framework benchmarked against the UNCITRAL Guide are: (1) not having a common legal framework that equally applies to all types of (including quasi-) real security transactions; (2) the scope of the current framework not being comprehensive (inclusive) enough; (3) not having an efficient enough method of creating the security right; (4) the current publicity method, particularly concerning special notarial bonds, being overly cumbersome and not providing effective public notice to third parties; and (5) the current enforcement measures potentially not being the most efficient. Regarding each of these problem areas, the article makes proposals on how the South African legislature could reform the current framework into one that is legally efficient and in step with international best practice.