JURIST - World Legal News

[JURIST] The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and UN Women [official websites] on Monday urged [press release] Afghanistan's government to fully respect and defend the fundamental rights of women and girls by ensuring the implementation of and respect for women's rights legislation. This call comes in response to the Afghanistan parliament, which blocked legislation [JURIST report] on Saturday that would have protected provisions of the 2009 Law on Elimination of Violence Against Women (EVAW) [text, PDF] from being repealed...... [full story]

[JURIST] A UK immigration tribunal denied bail for radical cleric Abu Qatada [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] Monday due to the high risk of escape. Qatada's lawyers insist that he should be able to spend time with his family before he leaves the UK for Jordan, where he will stand trial for terrorism. Qatada was convicted in absentia for organizing and encouraging terrorist attacks in Jordan in 1999 and 2000. Justice Stephen Irwin of the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC)...... [full story]

[JURIST] Former military ruler Pervez Musharraf [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] was granted bail Monday by a Pakistani anti-terrorism court (ATC), but he remains on house arrest over the murder of former prime ministerBenazir Bhutto [BBC obituary; JURIST news archive]. Judge Habibur Rehman ordered Musharraf to pay two bonds each worth one million rupees (approximately USD $10,163). Musharraf has been held at his Islamabad farmhouse since April 19. The ATC is a special court established in April for hearing a...... [full story]

[JURIST] The EU expressed concern [press release, PDF] with Russia's human rights record Sunday, focusing on the country's recent adoption of restrictive legislation, the prosecution of political activists and efforts towards establishing an independent judiciary. At the human rights consultation in Brussels the EU confirmed its intention to continue to monitor the implications of Russia's recent "Foreign Agents" law and urged Russia to refrain from adopting legislation on "homosexual propaganda," which the EU believes could "increase discrimination and violence against...... [full story]

[JURIST] Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] said [press release] Monday that no progress has been made in Sri Lanka regarding respect for basic rights and liberties in the four years since the end of the country's brutal 26-year civil war [JURIST backgrounder]. According to HRW, the government of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa [official website] has failed to investigate and prosecute alleged war crimes, has cracked down on media and human rights activists, and has continued to abuse suspected...... [full story]

[JURIST] A senior judge for the Judiciary of England and Wales [official website] on Friday partially upheld [Reuters report] a request by British Foreign Secretary William Hague [official profile] to withhold certain information from the investigation into the 2006 death of Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko [JURIST news archive]. Litvinenko was a member of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB) [official website, in Russian] when he was poisoned to death. Sir Robert Owen was appointed [press release] in...... [full story]

[JURIST] The Afghanistan parliament on Saturday blocked legislation that would have worked to strengthen women's rights in the country. If passed, the legislation would have protected provisions [AP report] of the 2009 Law on Elimination of Violence Against Women (EVAW) [PDF], which was originally implemented by presidential decree, from being repealed by a future Afghanistan president. The law criminalizes child marriages and forced marriages and states that rape victims should not be charged with adultery or fornication. Fawzia Koofi [official...... [full story]

[JURIST] Five human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website], sent a letter letter [text] Cameroon authorities on Friday to drop the charges against two transgender youths rather than undergoing an appeal to the Cameroon Supreme Court [official website]. The defendants, who identify as women, were arrested [press release] in July 2011 and prosecuted on charges of homosexual conduct. Police who saw them dressed in women's clothing and stopped their vehicle, claiming the people in the car were...... [full story]

[JURIST] Portugal's Parliament [official website] voted Friday to approve a law allowing same-sex married couples to adopt their partners' children. The Parliament also voted on Friday to reject the Left Bloc and Green Party's [official websites, Portuguese] proposal to grant gay couples the same adoption rights as heterosexuals. The bill approved by Parliament is intended to primarily serve the children in the event that their biological parent dies or falls ill. It was passed by only five votes, while 9...... [full story]

[JURIST] French President Francois Hollande [official website, in French] gave final approval Saturday to legislation [text, PDF, in French] legalizing same-sex marriage and establishing the right of same-sex couples to adopt. The widely controversial bill, which was part of Hollande's campaign pledges, was was approved by parliament [JURIST report] last month, but France's Union for a Popular Movement party [party website, in French] filed a legal challenge with the country's Constitutional Council. The court rejected the challenge [JURIST report] on...... [full story]

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