Guidelines for Retracting Articles
Journal Of Kufa For Chemical Sciences take the responsibility to maintain the integrity and completeness of the scholarly record of the content for all end users very seriously. The journal place great importance on the authority of articles after they have been published and our policy is based on the best practice followed in the academic publishing community.
It is a general principle of scholarly communication that the Editor of a learned journal is solely and independently responsible for deciding which article(s) shall be published out of the submitted articles in a particular time. In making this decision, the Editor is guided by the policies of the journal's Editorial board and constrained by such legal requirements in force regarding copyright infringement and plagiarism. An outcome of this principle is the importance of the scholarly archive as a permanent, historic record of the transactions of scholarship. Articles that have been published shall remain extant, exact and unaltered as far as possible. However, occasionally unavoidable circumstances may arise where after publication the article requires retraction or even removal from a particular journal. Such actions must not be undertaken lightly and can only occur under exceptional circumstances, such as:
Article withdrawal: This is only used for “Article in Press” which represents the early versions of the accepted articles. If any article at the stage of “Article in Press”, by any means, represents infringements of professional ethical codes, such as multiple submissions, bogus claims of authorship, plagiarism, fraudulent use of data or similar incidences, the article may be withdrawn depending on the Editor’s discretion. In this regard, Editor’s decision must be considered as final following the deep assessment and analysis of the situations, on a case by case basis.
Article retraction: Infringements of professional ethical codes, such as multiple submissions, sham claims of authorship, plagiarism, fraudulent use of data and similar claims will lead to the retraction of an article. Occasionally, a retraction may be considered to correct errors in submission or publication.
Article removal and replacement: Subjected to legal limitations of the publisher, copyright holder or author(s). Identification of false or inaccurate data representation which may pose a serious health risk and involves any means of scientific data tampering or other fraud hindering fair practice of science should be treated with highest possible strictness.
The core objective of these measures is necessary to maintain the integrity of the academic record.
Encouraging academic integrity
Request evidence of ethical research approval for all relevant submissions and be prepared to question authors about aspects, such as, how patient consent was obtained or what methods were employed to minimize animal suffering.
Ensure that reports of clinical trials cite compliance with the Declaration of Helsinki 6th revision, Good Clinical Practice and other relevant guidelines to safeguard participant.
Ensure that reports of experiments on or studies of, animals cite compliance with the US Department of Health and Human Services Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals or other relevant guidelines. Consider appointing a journal ethics panel to advice on specific cases and review journal policies periodically.
Ensuring the integrity of the academic record
Take steps to reduce covert redundant publication, e.g., by requiring all clinical trials to be registered. Ensure that published material is securely archived. Have systems in place to give authors the opportunity to make original research articles freely available.
Preclude business needs from compromising intellectual and ethical standards
Errors, inaccurate or misleading statements must be corrected promptly and with due prominence. Editors should follow the COPE guidelines on retractions.
