The Janplex Post

Voting is considered to be one of the fundamental rights of people in human society. In countries such as Australia, Belgium and Bolivia it is mandatory for every person within the age of voting to cast their vote on Election Day. With the exception of countries such as Austria, Brazil, Bolivia and Cuba where the minimum age of voting is 16 years, the minimum age of voting in most of the countries of the world including United States of America, United Kingdom, France and China is 18 years. There is no upper age limit to voting in all these countries except in the Holy See where Cardinals over 80 years of age are barred from voting for a new pope. This has raised the debate about whether it is sensible to prevent people between 16 and 17 year of age from voting. The main reason often given for not allowing people between the ages of 16 and 17 years to vote is that people in this age group are not matured enough to make the right decision about voting. Research has shown that

Last week a former CIA technical worker, Edward Snowden, leaked one of the most kept secrets of the United States of America called the Prism Program. This Prism Program was used covertly to collect information about internet activities and telephone conversations of people around the world. People both in the US and abroad were alarmed and furious over this revelation and had demanded for explanations from the US government. The United States try to limit the potential damage that this revelation could cause by cancelling the passport of the whistleblower and trying to get him into custody as quickly as possible. Fearing for his arrest Edward Snowden decided to ask Ecuador for political asylum. The question now is whether he is a refugee that needs protection or fugitive trying to evade prosecution and punishment for crimes? For Snowden to be considered a refugee he must satisfy the condition required by the 1951 Refugee Convention. The Refugee Convention of 1951 stipulates th

For a very longtime there was the myth that bankers commit white collar crimes (crimes committed by a person within an organisation for his or her selfish interests) and corporate crimes (crimes committed by employees on behalf of their employers) which do not cause any harm to any person. This view however was challenged following the banking crises of 2008 in which the economy of the world was plunged into turmoil and a large number of people either lost their home or job or both. There are now attempts by policy makers and financial regulators to criminalise banking crimes with criminal sanctions in the form of prison terms for bankers who are found guilty of banking offences. Capping the amount of bonus that bankers can receive at any particular period of time is also another measure being explored as a way of reducing banking crimes. The issue that arises however is whether these measures are necessary and whether they can help to reduce bankers’ appetite for financial gains a

The fundamental rights of people particularly those living in western society are considered to be their inalienable rights – rights that cannot be taken away from people. They include rights such as the right to free speech, right to a family life, right to worship, right to privacy, and right to vote and be voted for. A number of bodies including the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) are set up to protect these rights against violations by states and individuals, as well as address any violations of such rights by imposing fines on violators and awarding compensations to victims. By implication criminals in prison lose their ability to enjoy some of these rights such as the right to privacy and right to liberty. Despite this, some observers still want more of the fundamental rights of criminals to be taken away from them. The three main fundamental rights at the centre of this controversy are the right to vote, the righ

An easy way to distinguish between bribery and lobbying is using the legal system.  Bribery is condemned and criminalised by all legal systems around the world.  In some countries such as United States and United Kingdom where the issue of bribery is considered very seriously people who are caught offering or attempting to offer bribes are punished severely. In contrast to bribery, lobbying is not condemned or criminalized by legal systems. In countries such as United States the law indirectly encourages lobbying by allowing a register of lobbyists in government establishments.  However, these differences between bribery and lobbying might not be as large as suggested by legal systems.  Instead they might be attributable to the way in which the concepts of bribery and lobbying are defined. Bribery is considered to be an act that involves offering of a gift either in kind or cash to a person, a body or a government with an evil intent to get such a person, body or government to act con

It is very easy to dismiss any association between smoking and salt consumption in terms of harm they can cause to the body.  There is widespread consensus that smoking is never good for humans.  Smoking is associated with heart diseases such as atherosclerosis.  In contrast, consumption of salt can be beneficial to the body.  Salt helps in the regulation of blood pressure and the nervous system.   These perceptions have wider implications in health policies regarding smoking and salt consumption. Smoking in public places has been banned by a number of western countries including England, Scotland and some states in the United States.  There are also calls for smoking in cars to be banned to protect non-smokers particularly children from the harmful effect of smoking.  Furthermore, displaying of brands on cigarette packets has also been banned in countries such as Australia and United Kingdom to discourage young people from smoking. Similar steps have not been taken to e

Being diagnosed with mental disorder can have far reaching consequences on sufferers.  Employers are not willing to employ people with mental health history.  The court can order for a forced medical treatment on any person clinically diagnosed with mental disorder.  In addition many universities may not be willing to admit people with known mental health problems.  In short the world seems to be turned up side down for people diagnosed with mental disorders.  These raise two important questions.  What instrument is used for diagnosing mental disorders?  How precise is such instrument? A well-known measure for mental disorders is the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for mental disorders (DSM) published by the American Psychiatric Association.  The current version is DSM- version 5 (DSM - V).  DSM is graded to help provide standardization to diagnosis of mental disorder.  Patients are diagnosed not by arbitrary decisions of clinicians but through established measures.  Thus, it becom