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 Friday, July 03, 2009 |
British embassy staff facing Iran trial for allegedly provoking protests
Steve Czajkowski at 11:56 AM ET
[JURIST] Iranian employees at the British Embassy in Iran [official website] will face trial over accusations they contributed to the political protests that followed Iran's recent disputed presidential election [BBC backgrounder] according to statements [Bloomberg report] made Friday by Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, the head of Iran's Guardian Council for the Constitution [official website, in Persian]. While Jannati did not state the official charges the staff may face, he did say that confessions had been made [AP report]. Nine embassy employees were arrested [CNN report] last month following protests over the June 12 re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad [BBC profile; JURIST news archive], but seven have been released. Jannati's comments drew the ire of much of the European community, and European Union (EU) nations are currently considering [NYT report] a British proposal to withdraw all diplomats from Iran. Later Friday, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband [official profile] said in a statement [press release] that the British government was seeking clarification of the issue, and rejected claims that its embassy staff played a role in the protests.
The post-election protests reportedly resulted in at least 17 deaths and hundreds of arrests [JURIST report]. Iranian authorities have said that those arrested would be dealt with by the courts [Reuters report]. Human rights groups have characterized the arrests as political repression [JURIST report], saying that Iranian authorities are using the protests to "engage in what appears to be a major purge of reform-oriented individuals."
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Liberia truth commission urges war crimes prosecutions in special court
Bhargav Katikaneni at 9:56 AM ET
[JURIST] Liberia's Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) [official website] urged Thursday that several one-time military and political leaders be prosecuted in a special Liberian court for war crimes. Those named include ex-president Charles Taylor [BBC profile; JURIST news archive], now on trial at The Hague, and Prince Y. Johnson [BBC profile], a senator elected in 2005. The commission made the recommendation in a new report [text; PDF] detailing atrocities committed during the country's two recent civil wars. The commission called for the Liberian government to set up an "Extraordinary Criminal Tribunal for Liberia" and prosecute all those persons listed as war criminals by the TRC. Prince Johnson has said [AP report] that an amnesty law passed in 2005 forbids the government from prosecuting him for crimes committed during the civil wars.
The TRC also said that those recommended for prosecution be barred from holding elected office for 30 years. Initially, the report had included the name of current Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf [BBC profile] before quickly backtracking [VOA Report] and removing her name from the report. The TRC held its first public hearings[JURIST report] in January and indicated then [JURIST report] that it would be recommending the creation of a war crimes court. Taylor, the commission's top target, is currently being prosecuted by the Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCL) [official website] but he may be released [JURIST report] due to a lack of funds to continue the proceedings.
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Florida Supreme Court say governor cannot delay judicial appointment for diversity
Steve Czajkowski at 9:45 AM ET
[JURIST] The Florida Supreme Court [official website] ruled [opinion text, PDF] on Thursday that Republican Governor Charlie Christ [official profile] could not delay a decision on filling a vacancy in Florida's Fifth District Court of Appeal [official website] in order to consider more diverse candidates. In November, Crist was provided [press release] a list candidates by the Judicial Nominating Commission of Fifth District Court of Appeal (JNC) [Committee list] in order to fill the vacancy resulting from the retirement of Judge Robert J. Pleus [official profile], due to age. Crist rejected the initial list, and requested the JNC reconvene to review other applicants, in particular three African-Americans. When the JNC resubmitted the same list of candidates, Crist did not make an appointment. The Supreme Court held that Crist's actions were unconstitutional.
In its decision, the court concluded that the Florida Constitution [text] requires Crist to make a decision from the candidates approved by the JNC, and the decision must be within the constitutionally specified 60 day period:The plain language of article V, section 11(c), mandates that the Governor, upon receipt of the certified list of nominees from a judicial nominating commission, make an appointment from that list within sixty days to fill the judicial vacancy... we note the absence of any language granting the Governor authority to reject the JNC’s certified list of nominees or to extend the time in which the appointment for judicial office must be made.
[A]rticle V, section 11(c), imposes a clear and indisputable legal duty upon the Governor in his exercise of appointing judicial nominees to act within sixty days of receiving the certified list of nominees... In so holding, we reject the proposition that the Governor’s failure to act within the mandated time frame obviates that duty. To hold otherwise would render the constitutional provision nugatory. The suit was brought by Pleus, seeking a writ of mandamus in order to force the Governor to make a choice from the original list. The initial list provided by the JNC was made up of six candidates out of a pool of twenty-six. All of the candidates approved by the JNC were white [Miami Herald report], four of whom are male, two are female.
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Israel, Hamas committed Gaza war crimes: Amnesty International report
Benjamin Hackman at 7:22 AM ET
[JURIST] Both Hamas and Israeli forces committed war crimes [news release] during fighting in Gaza in December 2008 and January 2009, according to Amnesty International (AI). A report [text, PDF] issued by Amnesty Thursday alleges that Israeli attacks killed 1,400 Palestinians, including 300 children. The report says Israel is bound by the international human rights treaties it has ratified, including the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) [text] and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) [text]. Human rights obligations allegedly breached during the conflict include respect for the right to life (ICCPR, Article 6), the right to adequate food and housing (ICESCR, Article 11), and the right to education (ICESCR, Article 13). An AI researcher said that Hamas and other armed Palestinian groups committed war crimes when they fired rockets into southern Israel, killing three. Israel Defense Forces [official website] said AI’s report seemed “unbalanced” [news release]. Hamas has criticized [Haaretz report] AI's report as "unfair."
In December, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay [official profile] condemned [statement text] what she called Israel’s “disproportionate use of force” against Hamas targets in Gaza [JURIST report]. Pillay's call followed two days of Israeli airstrikes that killed 270 people and wounded more than 600, including many civilians, according to a UN report [news release]. In April, Israel announced [JURIST report] it would not comply with a UN Human Rights Council [official website] investigation into fighting [BBC backgrounder] in the Gaza Strip [BBC backgrounder]. AI then accused Israel of war crimes [JURIST report], citing the use of white phosphorous in civilian areas.
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Italy senate passes law criminalizing illegal immigration
Benjamin Hackman at 2:12 AM ET
[JURIST] Italy’s Senate [official website, in Italian] voted 157-124 Thursday to pass a controversial law making illegal immigration a crime [materials, in Italian], punishable by a fine of between 5,000 and 10,000 euros. The law also increases from two months to six [AKI report] the amount of time law enforcement officials may detain suspected illegal immigrants before deporting them. Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi [official profile, in Italian] has supported the bill [Corriere della Sera report, in Italian] as important for promoting public safety. The Catholic church opposes [ANSA report] the law, which the church believes punishes the basic human right of migration. Human Rights Watch [advocacy website] has also opposed [news release] the measure. Italy's Chamber of Deputies [official website, in Italian] approved the bill [JURIST report] in May.
Illegal immigration is a growing problem [BBC report] in Italy, where about 36,000 illegal immigrants arrived by boat last year. In November, UN human rights experts expressed concern [JURIST report] over Italy's treatment of detained migrants and asylum seekers. While the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention [official website] said [UN press release] it was concerned about the facilities in which Italy holds irregular migrants and asylum seekers, UN experts also said Italy's criminal justice system boasts strong due process guarantees against arbitrary detentions.
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Thursday, July 02, 2009 |
India court declares anti-sodomy law unconstitutional
Andrew Morgan at 2:58 PM ET
[JURIST] The Delhi High Court [official website] on Thursday decriminalized homosexual conduct [judgment, PDF] by declaring India's anti-sodomy law unconstitutional. In a petition originally filed and rejected [JURIST report] by the court in 2004, the Naz Foundation [advocacy website] challenged the applicability of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code [text, PDF], a colonial-era law that punishes "carnal intercourse against the order of nature" with 10 years in prison and a fine. They had argued that using Section 377 to criminalize consensual adult sexual conduct ran counter to Article 21 of the Indian Constitution [text, PDF], which provides that "[n]o person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law," as well as the equality under the law provided by Articles 14 and 15. Writing for the court, Justice S. Muralidhar [official profile] agreed:
In our view, Indian Constitutional law does not permit the statutory criminal law to be held captive by the popular misconceptions of who the LGBTs are. It cannot be forgotten that discrimination is antithesis of equality and that it is the recognition of equality which will foster the dignity of every individual.
Muralidhar stressed that the ruling nullifies the application of Section 377 to consensual adult sex only, and does not apply to other sexually-based offenses, such as rape and sex with a minor. The court's decision is only binding within the Union Territory of Delhi [official website], including the capital.
The criminalization of homosexuality has been a divisive issue around the world. In April, an appeals court in Senegal ordered the release [JURIST report] of nine members of AIDS awareness group AIDES Senegal who had been convicted of sodomy and sentenced to eight years in prison. In November, the parliament of Burundi voted to criminalize homosexuality, a move condemned [JURIST reports] by human rights groups. In December, the UN General Assembly [official website] was divided [press release; JURIST report] over the issue as 66 nations signed a statement calling for decriminalization, and nearly 60 nations signed an opposing statement.
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Ex-Guantanamo detainee civilian trial set for September 2010
Jaclyn Belczyk at 2:49 PM ET
[JURIST] A federal judge on Thursday set a trial date for terrorism suspect and former Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] detainee Ahmed Ghailani [GlobalSecurity backgrounder; JURIST news archive] of September 13, 2010. Ghailani, the first Guantanamo detainee to be transferred [JURIST report] to the US for a civilian trial, faces charges for his alleged involvement in the 1998 bombings of US embassies [PBS backgrounder; JURIST news archive] in Tanzania and Kenya. The trial date was set by Judge Lewis Kaplan of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York [official website]. No date was set for the next hearing, as defense lawyers asked for more time to prepare. Prosecutors have not yet decided whether they will seek the death penalty.
Earlier this week, Ghailani's lawyers requested access [JURIST report] to secret prisons [JURIST news archive] operated by the Central Intelligence Agency [official website], known as "black sites," at which their client was held prior to his transfer to Guantanamo Bay. Having been held at the Guantanamo facility since 2006 following his 2004 arrest in Pakistan, Ghailani was transferred to the US last month to face 286 separate counts including involvement in the bombings and conspiring with members of al Qaeda to kill Americans worldwide. He pleaded not guilty [JURIST report] at his initial appearance. In a rare move [JURIST op-ed] last month, Kaplan tentatively granted [JURIST report] Ghailani's request that his military lawyers be allowed to represent him in civilian court, pending military approval. The announcement [JURIST report] that Ghailani would be tried in federal court came last month following the ordered review of all Guantanamo detainees pursuant to plans to close the detention facility [JURIST news archive].
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UK court recognizes pre-nuptial agreement in landmark ruling
Andrew Morgan at 1:31 PM ET
[JURIST] A British appellate court on Thursday recognized [judgment, PDF] a pre-nuptial agreement for the first time in the UK, where they have been generally disregarded by courts hearing divorce proceedings. The UK Court of Appeal of England and Wales [official website] overturned a lower court ruling that awarded £5.8 million to the ex-husband of German heiress Katrin Radmacher despite a pre-nuptial agreement intended to shield her assets. Noting that the UK's treatment of pre-nuptial contracts sets it apart from both other European Union [official website] countries and the "wider common law world," Lord Justice Thorpe said:
In so far as the rule that such contracts are void survives, it seems to me to be increasingly unrealistic. It reflects the laws and morals of earlier generations. It does not sufficiently recognise the rights of autonomous adults to govern their future financial relationship by agreement in an age when marriage is not generally regarded as a sacrament and divorce is a statistical commonplace.
Thorpe directed judges in the future to "give due weight to the marital property regime into which the parties freely entered." The judgment awards Nicolas Granatino £1 million in compensation, £700,000 for payment of his debts, and a £2.5 million in trust for a familial residence until their youngest daughter turns 22. He is expected to appeal the ruling to the House of Lords [official website].
UK divorce courts have traditionally not taken [backgrounder] pre-nuptial agreements into account when dividing marital assets. Instead, the courts have assessed the financial needs of the couple and any dependents in an effort to protect the financially weaker partner. Thorpe's ruling suggests that recognition of pre-nuptial contracts is in line with the British approach to contracts generally.
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Germany leaders agree to set aside Nazi-era treason verdicts
Andrew Morgan at 11:55 AM ET
[JURIST] The political parties that make up Germany's coalition government agreed Wednesday on a proposal to set aside all Nazi-era treason verdicts. The Socialist Democrats (SPD) and the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) [party websites, in German] of Chancellor Angela Merkel [official profile] agreed to draft a law bypassing the current system, in which treason convictions must be considered on an individual basis, and exonerate all persons convicted of the broadly classified Nazi offense. SPD parliamentary leader Volker Kauder [personal website, in German] said that the measure is likely to succeed in parliament [Israel News report] before September elections.
CDU members had originally opposed [AP report] the proposal, on the grounds that the alleged acts of treason may have been committed third parties, rather than the Nazi government. Germany has taken other legislative measures to combat Nazi-era offenses. In November, German lawmakers passed [JURIST report] a law intended to counter anti-Semitism [JURIST news archive] just before the 70th anniversary of Kristalnacht [PBS backgrounder], when Nazi troops destroyed thousands of Jewish businesses and synagogues.
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US immigration agency intensifies employer monitoring efforts
Andrew Morgan at 10:19 AM ET
[JURIST] The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement [official website] agency on Wednesday issued [press release] inspection notices to 652 businesses in an increased effort to target employers that use illegal labor. ICE notified selected employers that they would be auditing their I-9 [text, PDF] employee eligibility forms, which employers are required to file and retain for each employee. Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for ICE John Morton [official profile] said that the measure was "first step in ICE's long-term strategy to address and deter illegal employment" and that the agency is "committed to establishing a meaningful I-9 inspection program to promote compliance with the law." The audit reflects a shift in focus [JURIST report] in federal immigration enforcement, from workplace raids to targeting employers directly, announced last month by US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) [official website] Secretary Janet Napolitano [official profile] during a speech [transcript] at the Aspen Institute [organization website].
In March, the administration proposed an overhaul [press release] of US immigration policy. Last month, Attorney General Eric Holder [official profile] vacated [order, PDF; JURIST report] an order [text, PDF] by former attorney general Michael Mukasey [JURIST news archive] that had denied those facing deportation the right to challenge immigration decisions based on ineffective assistance of counsel claims. In February, Napolitano called for a review [JURIST report] of workplace raids conducted by ICE agents. ICE has arrested [JURIST report] many non-criminal illegal immigrants in the past year, many of whom were imprisoned [JURIST report]. In April 2008, Seton Hall Law School's Center for Social Justice filed a lawsuit [Star-Ledger report] claiming that warrantless immigration raids violate the US Constitution.
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Israel high court orders stronger penalty in prisoner abuse case
Andrew Morgan at 8:49 AM ET
[JURIST] The Israeli Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) [official websites] to refile indictments on more serious charges against a soldier and an officer accused of shooting a blindfolded prisoner with a rubber bullet. Human rights groups B'Tselem, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI), the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI) [advocacy websites], and Yesh Din [advocacy website, in Hebrew] filed suit against the IDF, saying that a charge of conduct unbecoming a soldier, the least serious military criminal sanction, did not reflect the severity of the crime. The charges stem from an August 2008 incident [video] in the Palestinian town of Ni'lin in which an IDF soldier shot a handcuffed and blindfolded protester, Ashraf Abu Rahma, in the foot with a non-lethal rubber bullet at an officer's direction. Rahma did not sustain serious injury as a result. Writing for a three judge panel, Supreme Court Justice Ayala Procaccia said [Jerusalem Post report] that the officer had committed a moral failure in ordering the shooting, and that the soldier should not have followed the officer's order because the act was illegal. The rights groups welcomed [press release] the decision, but expressed dismay that the Supreme Court's intervention was necessary in the matter.
Rights groups have long been critical of IDF tactics in Palestine. Last month, PCATI issued a report [JURIST report] asserting that harsh shackling techniques used by the IDF and the Shin Bet Security Agency (GSS) [official website] constitute torture. Last year, PCATI alleged [JURIST report] that detainees are regularly beaten and abused by IDF soldiers after they no longer pose a security risk. In 2007, the IDF launched investigations into two incidents [JURIST reports] of soldiers using Palestinians as human shields, in violation of Article 51(7) of the 1977 Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions [text] and other international agreements.
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Iran bars publishing of opposition newspaper
Devin Montgomery at 7:14 AM ET
[JURIST] The Iranian government on Wednesday prevented the publishing [press release, in Persian] of the opposition Etemad-e-Melli [media website, in Persian] newspaper in its latest move to quash anti-government reporting in the country. International journalists in the country have also been ordered to stay indoors [AP report]. The newspaper was linked to opposition candidate Mehdi Karroubi [personal website, in Persian]. Both he and candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi [IranTracker profile] have continued to criticize the government for both alleged election fraud and its harsh treatment of protesters and the press following the announcement that incumbent candidate Mahmoud Ahmadinejad [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] had won the highly-disputed election [JURIST report]. In reaction to Mousavi's increasing criticism of the government, some in the government and its Basij [GlobalSecurity backgrounder] security forces have called for his arrest [Press TV report], calling him a threat to national security.
Earlier this week, Iran's Guardian Council of the Constitution [official website, in Persian] certified [press release, in Persian; JURIST report] the election results week after the Council rejected [BBC report] protesters' requests to abandon the results and start over after a partial recount [JURIST report]. Protests of the results have reportedly resulted in at least 17 deaths and hundreds of arrests [JURIST report]. Authorities stated that those arrested would be appropriately dealt with [Reuters report] by the court system. Human rights groups have viewed the arrests as political repression [JURIST report], saying that Iranian forces are using the protests to "engage in what appears to be a major purge of reform-oriented individuals." Amnesty International [advocacy website] has called for authorities to respect and nurture debate stressing [press release] that "healthy debate on issues of fundamental importance to peoples' lives" informs, rather than threatens, policy makers."
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