"Ethics and Deontology" Journal

A short summary of some provisions of Law no. 199 of 2023 regarding higher education, applicable to the activities of university ethics commissions.

Cristina Mihaela SALCĂ ROTARU — 2023-09-14

The new law on higher education, Law 199 of 2023, is one of the laws that have sparked wide debates in the public space for various reasons, including those regarding the regulation of university ethics. It is clear to us that new regulations were needed, as the previous law (Law 1 of 2011, still in force at the time of writing this study) had enough loopholes to determine a chaotic application, both at the institutional level and at the court level, of the rules regarding university ethics. These comments on the new regulations open the series of articles on legislative news, through a first presentation of those regulations that target the most important aspects from the perspective of the functioning of ethics commissions. Aspects regarding the independence of the commissions and their functional structure, the legal regime of the documents issued by the commission and the new sanctions applicable to those who violate the norms of university ethics and deontology are presented. It is noted that more in-depth analyzes of these provisions can only be made after the issuance by the Government or the Ministry of Education of the normative acts implementing the law.

Ethics, integrity ... and anti-corruption

Laura MANEA — 2023-09-14

Corruption, as a crime and deviation from morality and duty, has been and is sanctioned by the rules of criminal law in any rule of law, and when acts of corruption are committed by civil servants, the sanctions are more serious. Anti-corruption policies within a public authority or institution focus on mechanisms and tools to raise awareness among civil servants about the status of the function and the public authority with which they are invested, so that the exercise of the public function is carried out in accordance with the specific norms of conduct focused on the interest of the citizen. Given that each public entity establishes its own rules of internal conduct and standards of ethics regarding its own activity, legislation has become a necessary and appropriate tool for harmonizing these anti-corruption policies by identifying common and specific standards, respectively, but also the establishment of uniform reports of good practices as well as of integrity incidents, which is reflected in national anti-corruption strategies and even at EU level. In this article we present the applicable national normative acts in the field, by reference to the requirements of the European Union, the functional principles that must be respected by public entities in the organizational integrity plan and we analyze the national legislative framework regarding the mechanisms for ensuring ethics and integrity in the operation of the public administration.

Parliament Overshadowing Supreme Court Judgements in India: A Game of Ethics

Prabhpreet SINGH — 2023-09-14

The Principles of separation of power form the backbone of most democratic nations in the world. This system of governance also incorporates checks and balances. Parliament, Executive, and Judiciary have well-defined powers and functions within the constitutional Framework. The judiciary is vested with the power to check the legitimacy of laws. This power enables the judiciary to review the constitutionality of laws on the touchstone of the constitution. This paper deals with case study of two important cases which includes Common Cause and Government of NCT Delhi. In both the cases court declared the actions of parliament invalid. Parliament passed the amendments to overshadow the ruling of the Supreme Court. Such actions in democracy disturb the governance of the country. Also, such practices in the state are considered unethical. Therefore, this paper highlights such practices in reference to the ethical standard set by the Constitution of India.

Transnational Organized Crime: the required Interconnection of States in their International Environment

Ana CAMPINA — 2023-09-14

Transnational Organized Crime is one of the most nowadays global serious problems affecting Humanity, States, Governments in the most different areas. Nowadays, in a global context, there are multiple international criminal organizations, individual criminals, as well as States and Governments involved, supporting, and promoting conditions to implement the Transnational Organized Crime. So, this complex problem involves all kind of criminals as victims. The International Organizations, as United Nations and the Council of Europe, as most of the juridical and judicial systems of the States, recognize, prevent, and fight against this criminality, but as one of the worst threats globally, the difficulties are more relevant due the higher capacities of the criminals enrolled in the Transnational Organized Crime. So, through the results of this research, we can affirm the real combat and the effective protection of millions of human beings, the (re)education of the Public Opinion, the (re)action of the States, the crucial interconnection within States and Governments, as the need of denouncing (individuals, groups, states, governments) those who are under this criminality that surpass the borders, is done with multiple violence, blaming all and allow the justice happen. The Transnational International Crime is one of the most serious threats, everywhere and each moment, so it´s fundamental to avoid the “normalization” and the relieve the (re)action meaning the out-of-control evolution, escalation and its dissemination. It is ethical that everyone must assume their responsibility. The law (state and international) as the Justice have to be a reality around the world.

Principles and Ethical Values promoted by Romanian Diplomacy at the Paris Peace Conference 1919-1920

Cristinel Ioan MURZEA — 2023-09-14

On the coordinates of international life, the defeat of the Central Powers and the victory of the Entente opened a new stage in international political and diplomatic history, asserting new principles and orientations aimed at more or less democratic practices that were objectified in the peace treaties known generically under the name "Versailles System". For Romanian diplomacy, the fundamental strategic objective was that of the recognition of the new international status of the young independent national-unitary state, which came to confirm the historical decisions of the "great national assemblies", through which the Romanian people, by virtue of the historical right to self-determination, fulfilled the goal of centuries, that aimed at the political and territorial union of all Romanian provinces. Deep ethical principles and values are now being set in motion, all converging towards the creation of a climate of international peace and security.

Education and Algorithms – where to? Some Ethical Issues of concern

Zeno GOZO — 2023-09-14

School and education in general are confused, lost somewhere between the excesses and perversions of laissez-faire democracy coupled with the après nous le déluge philosophy of libertine consumerism. Such manifestations are, unmistakable evidence of neoliberalism. Our great moral-axiological benchmarks, the voice of authority, respect for the specialist or reverence for the professional found themselves set aside by the postmodern spirit – the "anything goes" philosophy – to which we all obey as a fashion or a universal trend. Unfortunately, such fashion leaves deep traces in our very human evolution which is called into question by the latest developments, tendencies or trends. The positioning of the human being – as the crown of evolution –, although exaggerated by its excessive anthropocentrism, is challenged by the current evolution of machines and computers – faster, more efficient and infinitely more unpretentious. In this paper we want to review at least some aspects of the general field of education, understood as influencing and manipulation, aspects that point, if we squint a little beyond the immediate present, to the worrying destinations, worrying both from an ethical point of view and from a broader anthropological or ontological perspective. It seems that the human being ends up being "raised" or "educated" to "serve" the algorithms of the machine, be it a robot or a computer. From an ethical point of view, this should give us something to think about in the most serious way possible. From this perspective, the present paper is meant to be an alarm that invites, at least, to some fundamental moral inquiries and reflections regarding the question: "What should I do?". We believe that ethics – given its orientative mission and its teleological "regard" – is able to offer us at least some markers to navigate through the thicket of equivocal possibilities of informatics and the Internet.

Discussions regarding the Incompatibilities applicable to Civil Servants during the Suspension of Service Relations

Silviu-Gabriel BARBU — 2023-09-14

Incompatibility and conflict of interest of public servant are often confused in the mind of public opinion. If the ethical aspects are more obvious in first case, because they concern the public servant when, by virtue of the position he holds, he is to take a decision or participate in the taking of a decision regarding which he has a personal interest, in the second case, they may appear as non-existent because they strictly aim at prohibiting the occupation, in certain situations, of several functions at the same time. A current issue of the judicial practice is the implementation of the public servants’ incompatibilities during the suspension of their employment relationship. Our paper analyzes the existence and the causes of a non-unitary judicial practice, anticipating the possible problems under the current legislation and formulates proposals for its improvement. These would allow to avoid in the future the non-unitary administrative and judicial practice regarding the incompatibilities of public servant whose service report has been suspended, but also to adapt the behavior of the recipients of the law in order to prevent any possible situations of incompatibility, which would also cover ethical aspects of these situations

Compliance with Ethics in Pandemics

Cătălina-Georgeta DINU — 2023-09-14

The COVID-19 pandemics involved, both for the society and for the representative authorities of the states, a huge and sustained effort to identify the right balance in the relationship between the protection of the general interest of taking the necessary public health measure, on the one hand, and the respect for individual rights and freedoms, on another hand. Often, however, this fragile balance was overcome by the measures that had been decided and applied at the level of various public or private entities. In the present study, we want to highlight the situation of issuing some certificates in the Romanian medical field for patients who have been infected with SARS-CoV-2 and the ethical aspects that it is raising. The article also analyses the impact, from an ethical perspective, of the measures that regulated the possibility of volunteering by students of the faculties of Medicine, during the state of emergency and/or alert established in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ethics and Model in the Academic Environment

Gabriel Stănică LUPU — 2023-09-14

The current society is going through significant changes, both due to the emergence and development of digital technologies, as well as the lack of effective filters to detect information and its quality, given that the shortening of the path it travels in time and space, from the sender to the receiver does not still has a selection role. Young people, who do not yet have a personal system based on solid and valid knowledge and values, living in an era of self-centered, intergenerational disintegration, are looking for compass people to help them find their purpose and their way. If a profession is acquired on the basis of natural characteristics, together with a certain level of education in the respective field, the human quality is only acquired through individual approach and personal effort, through the assimilation of rules, norms and customs, together with the identified behavioral models in the external environment. This environment is not secured by the presence of parents and those close to them, who a priori want the good of the young person. The student has at his disposal a huge virtual space over which those entitled to guide him have only limited control or even no control at all. Here he meets a wide variety of people, whose intentions he does not know, but who can exert a significant influence on him. This diffuse space populated with models and anti-models is still unexplored, and there is no definite exhaustive assessment of the impact it has on the young person. Arming pupils and students with tools to select the role models they will follow is imperative if we want a functioning society tomorrow.

Aspects regarding some Provisions included in the Codes of Ethics and Conduct of some of the Universities in Romania

Oana Elena GĂLĂȚEANU-IACOB — 2023-09-14

In this paper, a presentation is made, through a comparative study, of some aspects related to a series of existing provisions, or not, in the Ethics Codes and the Regulations for the operation of the ethics commissions from different universities in Romania. For this purpose, a presentation is made of the various provisions contained in them regarding the governing principles of university ethical behavior, the possibility of reporting to the competent commissions and the aspects of the applicable procedure in the resolution of various cases brought before the legally established ethics commissions at the level of universities . As a result of the research, both negative and positive aspects are found and presented, which we discuss including through the research of the specialized literature. In the conclusions, some proposals for improving these provisions are presented.

Impartiality - Fundamental Value of the Ethics of the Profession of Judge

Cristinel GHIGHECI — 2023-09-14

Impartiality represents one of the three great ethical values of the profession of judge, along with independence and integrity. The problems raised by the impartiality of the judge are of interest not only to professional ethics, but also to the smooth running of the process, considering that the impartiality of the court is an aspect included in the partie's right to a fair trial, guaranteed by Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights. For this reason, the procedural codes regulate several procedures in which the lack of impartiality of the court can be invoked, namely abstention, recusal and even transfer of the case to another court, when is invoked the impartiality of all judges from the court charged with solving the case. The law does not regulate an exhaustive number of cases to establish the lack of impartiality of the judge, but they are crystallized over time, in judicial practice.

The Professional Ethics of the Physician. Criminal Law in Medical Malpractice

Maria-Magdalena BÂRSAN — 2023-09-14

Like any other profession or professional activity, that of physician must be coordinated by a set of ethical rules, so that any professional in the medical field can perform the medical act at the highest professional standards, with the patient's interests as a priority. The fundamental obligation of the physician is that of providing medical assistance. This obligation is both of a moral and legal nature, as it must be fulfilled by the physician regardless of the situation and it cannot be restricted only to a formal setting. Medical act must not be influenced, as the physician is the only one who can decide on how to perform his duties. Thus, the medical professional will always choose to perform the medical act in accordance with ethical principles, professional principles and the current laws and professional standards in force. This article discuss relevant issues related to medical malpractice, the incidence of criminal law in medical malpractice, criminal liability and differences between the two forms of guilt – intent and fault.