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The purpose of this article is only to whet the appetite for discussing the relationship between globalisation of crime and civil liberties and privacy. The topic is too complicated to be thoroughly discussed in a short article at a time which is witnessing diversified economic activities emanating from the adoption of policies of deregulation and steps to facilitate the movement of capital across international boundaries. Needless to say, the process of the globalisation of economic activity has been, to a great extent, enhanced by the computer revolution which in turn has reached unprecedent electronic dimensions coupled with a parallel increase in inventions and new complicated industries, all of which are creations of human beings in the drive to meet new changes and challenges. However, not all men are good citizens adhering to ideal principles and norms to maintain social integration, prosperity and public tranquillity. Instead, some people are inclined by their very nature to dismantle the social system by resorting to any means for improving their economic conditions at the expense of other members of society by committing illegal acts, especially in the economic sector. The situation is worse when the system creates a shield against combating economic crime under the pretext of the protection of civil liberties and right of privacy of the offender who takes advantage of the instruments which enshrine such civil liberties and rights.

Notes that Islamic banking is gaining momentum, with over 200 Islamic financial institutions; money laundering is one of many threats to it. Indicates the principle in Islam of bank secrecy and confidentiality, listing the exceptions to this principle: the public interest, when individual rights have been denied, contractual provision, and mandatory disclosure. Describes the practice of Islamic banking, which is well established despite its short existence. Continues with violations of the principles of Islamic banking, with examples from Sudan and Dubai, and finally the BCCI. Concludes that, despite the control and ethical basis which Islamic law gives to banking activities, there are many loopholes in the system which allow money laundering.

Lists the many illegal sources of dirty money. Describes the underground techniques used to launder dirty money; they include investment in real estate or industrial projects, barter deals, and trading in commodities, diamonds and precious metals. Outlines measures to combat these techniques in the Arab countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Afghanistan, and Egypt. Details the provisions of Egypt’s Illicit Enrichment Act, Socialist Prosecutor Act, Emergencies Act, and Penal Code; further legislation may be necessary, based on the Recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force.

A unifying theme apparent at this year's Symposium was the need for balance when lifting the veil of bank secrecy: (1) the need to protect civil liberties versus the need to fight crime; (2) the bank's need to balance its role as policeman while furthering its commercial objectives; (3) the necessity of weighing international cooperation against the awareness that individual nations jealously guard their own legislative regime; (4) the dichotomy of technology that serves both to protect and penetrate secrecy; (5) the balance required when investigating crimes.

In recent times, there has been some disquiet within certain sectors of the Singapore business community over the role of auditors in detecting corporate fraud. The cause of this concern can perhaps be attributed partly to the Barings collapse in February 1995 and the subsequent suggestions that the auditors of the Barings subsidiary in Singapore, Barings Futures Singapore Pte Ltd (BFS), may have been negligent in their audit work. More recently, in mid‐1996, a substantial locally listed company, Amcol Holdings Ltd (Amcol), was placed under judicial management amid rumours alleging possible misdeeds by senior executives and directors. The Amcol saga has, once again, focused some attention on the role of auditors and their duty to detect fraud in company accounts.

The present work aims to prepare biocomposites blend based on linear low density polyethylene/ starch without using harmful chemicals to improve the adhesion between two phases. Also, the efficiency of essential oils as green plasticizers and natural antimicrobial agents were evaluated.

Barrier properties and biodegradation behavior of linear low density polyethylene/starch (LLDPE/starch) blends plasticized with different essential oils including moringa oleifera and castor oils wereassessed as a comparison with traditional plasticizer such as glycerol. Biodegradation behavior forLLDPE/starch blends was monitored by soil burial test. The composted samples were recovered then washed followed by drying, and weighting samples after 30, 60, and 90 days to assess the change in weight loss. Also, mechanical properties including retention values of tensile strength and elongation at break were measured before and after composting. Furthermore, scanning electron microscope (SEM) was used to evaluate the change in the morphology of the polymeric blends. In addition to, the antimicrobial activity of plasticized LLDPE/starch blends films was evaluated using a standard plate counting technique.

The results illustrate that the water vapor transition rate increases from 2.5 g m⁻² 24 h⁻¹ for LLDPE/5starch to 4.21 g m⁻² 24 h⁻¹ and 4.43 g m⁻² 24 h⁻¹ for castor and moringa oleifera respectively. Also, the retained tensile strength values of all blends decrease gradually with increasing composting period. Unplasticized LLDPE/5starch showed highest tensile strength retention of 91.6% compared to the other blends that were 89.61, 88.49 and 86.91 for the plasticized LLDPE/5starch with glycerol, castor and M. oleifera oils respectively. As well as, the presence of essential oils in LLDPE/ starch blends increase the inhibition growth of escherichia coli, candida albicans and staphylococcus aureus.

The objective of this work is to develop cost-effective and environmentally-friendly methods for preparing biodegradable polymers suitable for packaging applications.

Gives a bibliographical review of the finite element methods (FEMs) applied for the linear and nonlinear, static and dynamic analyses of basic structural elements from the theoretical as well as practical points of view. The range of applications of FEMs in this area is wide and cannot be presented in a single paper; therefore aims to give the reader an encyclopaedic view on the subject. The bibliography at the end of the paper contains 2,025 references to papers, conference proceedings and theses/dissertations dealing with the analysis of beams, columns, rods, bars, cables, discs, blades, shafts, membranes, plates and shells that were published in 1992‐1995.

This paper aims to identify the pre-design critical success factors CSFs pertaining to different types of construction projects in the rapidly growing city of Dubai, by adopting one of the multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) tools, analytic hierarchy process (AHP).

A mapping process was utilized to filter and categorize CSFs gathered from a literature review. A total of 5 main and 27 sub-main criteria were derived following RIBA's Plan of Work 2020 (Royal Institute of British Architects). A questionnaire was distributed among experts in the construction industry to assess the development in vicinity of the Sheikh Zayed Road (SZR). An analysis was conducted to prioritize the CSFs as per experts' judgment.

According to the experts' combined judgment, CSFs linked to client requirements (CR) are the most significant at 22.9% priority weight. Overall project review (OPR), project team (PT), project preparation (PP), previous projects feedback and experience (PPF) success factors achieved 21.4, 19.5, 18.9 and 17.2%, respectively. Within CR, sub-CSFs of client consultation and acceptance (CCA), responsibly matrix for stakeholders (RM), client track record (CTR) and client level of service (CLS) were prioritized by the experts.

This work was carried out by respondents based in UAE only, and focused on one urban stretch of Dubai, this could be replicated by employing experts from other countries and other case study areas within Dubai.

This study would significantly have an impact on the education of current and future project managers, planners, engineers, architects and, most importantly, decision-makers on helpful pre-design strategies for enhancing their project success. This research could assist, direct and educate management, as the management provides/manages the necessary resources for projects. Furthermore, management also has the authority to choose project leaders/consultants that will make the project successful.

Consolidating Dubai's phenomenal growth requires prioritizing socio-economic strategies in future development projects at the pre-design and pre-construction stage, which will improve the city's business environment and the quality of life for Dubai's residents. This opens up fresh possibilities over the next few years for integrating robust procedures for successful execution, monitoring and evaluation of future construction developments from the outset.

Although many studies have identified various factors as important for successful building projects, few appear to have done a complete analysis using pre-design criteria to systematically categorize professional views on the relative relevance of CSFs. There is a lack in research examining the factors that led to Dubai's successful construction projects. This study attempts to bridge this gap and provide a prioritized framework reference model to assist project/asset managers and decision-makers.

This paper attempts to present varying discourses pertaining to women's work and how it is impacted by interpretations of Islam.

Current discourses from various viewpoints are presented including Muslim scholars on the one hand and active feminists on the other. Personalities are presented as being representative of the debate that has been going on pertaining to women in Arab societies.

Attempts that aim at categorizing Arab thought and activism into two camps, one is religious‐based adverse to women's causes, and the other being secular and supportive of their causes does not present a candid depiction of the different forces.

Personalities chosen represent specific case studies that, although thought to be representative, cannot realistically reflect all the multitudes of views expressed pertaining to the issues discussed. Future studies may cover other relevant personalities in the region.

Developing the status of women in Arab societies requires a major reassessment of Muslim history and traditions. The dialogue and debates going on among religious scholars and feminists should be continuously communicated, discussed and exposed. Readers and mangers would benefit from understanding the complexity of issues and diversity of views presented.

This paper offers a window into the world of women's work and participation in Arab societies and how such participation is impacted by Islam, or its interpretations thereof. In addition to the English sources, this paper offers an opportunity for the reader to get a glimpse of the debate that has been going on in Arabic (especially when it comes to the little known religious discourse).

This study aims to investigate the effects of different leadership styles, transformational, transactional and authentic leadership, on travel agents’ innovational behavior, with organizational culture as a mediator.

The study aim was achieved by using an integrative model using LISREL 8.80. Quantitative research was used using a questionnaire. A convenient sampling technique was used to select the sample. A total of 500 questionnaires were distributed to travel agents, out of which 415 were returned, and 376 usable ones were statistically handled (75.2% response rate).

Transformational leadership has a significant impact on organizational culture (ß = 0.34) and innovational behavior (ß = 0.46). Authentic leadership has a significant impact on both organizational culture (ß = 0.38) and innovational behavior (ß = 0.52). Transactional leadership significantly impacts organizational culture (ß = 0.38); however, it has no significant impact on innovational behavior (ß = 0.31). The positive influence of leadership styles on innovative behavior is mediated by innovative organizational culture (ß = 0.92).

Further research should explore the relationship between other leadership styles and innovation. Additionally, investigates the relationship between organizational culture factors and innovation. This study targeted category “A” travel agencies. Therefore, to generalize the study findings, the study should be replicated with other categories of travel agencies.

Travel agencies organizations should invest in managers who adopt authentic and transformational leadership, whereas transactional leaders are urged to be open to new ideas, invest in the knowledge and skills of their employees, encourage friendly communication with their employees and ensure that there are reasonable punishment and reward systems within the organization.

This study presents new insights into tourism field by integrating the study variables (organizational culture, innovative behavior and leadership style), into one framework, particularly in developing countries’ contexts.