The European Court of Human Rights ruled Tuesday that England and Wales’ indeterminate sentences for protection of the public (IPP) without the means for inmates to prove their rehabilitation are arbitrary and unlawful. The IPP requires an inmate to demonstrate to the Parole Board that he or she is no longer a threat to society [...]
Pakistan Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf announced on Tuesday that he will allow Switzerland to reopen corruption charges against President Asif Ali Zardari . Appearing before the Supreme Court in connection with the ongoing standoff between Pakistan’s judiciary and executive officials regarding Zardari’s case, Ashraf agreed to draft a letter to Switzerland by September 25 [...]
Seven police officers in Bahrain have been charged with torturing and mistreating medical professionals who were detained during opposition protests held in March 2011, authorities said Monday. The police officers were trying to coerce the medical professionals into confessing that they committed misdemeanor assault and slander . The police officers’ trial is scheduled to start [...]
The US Department of Justice on Monday filed a motion for an emergency stay in the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in an attempt to lift last week’s permanent injunction of portions of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) . The DOJ argued that Judge Katherine Forrest’s ruling interpreted the Authorization for [...]
Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Monday urged Morocco to release five prisoners who were allegedly convicted based on false confessions obtained through torture. Six activists were convicted last week in Casablanca for assaulting and insulting police officers during anti-monarchy protests held in July. When released from police custody, the group stated that they had been [...]
The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) on Monday called on Libyan authorities to implement a transitional justice strategy in order to rebuild and reshape its decades-long history of dictatorial cruelty and last year’s civil war. The report, Transitional Justice – Foundation for a New Libya , makes several recommendations that UNSMIL believes will move [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on Monday suspended litigation between the Authors Guild and Google pending an appeal of a May ruling allowing a class action lawsuit over Google’s book-scanning initiative . The court’s order will halt the Guild’s seven-year attempt to block Google from creating the world’s largest library of [...]
JURIST Guest Columnist Frank Barile, St. John’s University School of Law Class of 2013, is the author of the fourth article in a 15-part series from the staffers of the Journal of Civil Rights and Economic Development. Barile explains the negative impact of a new Florida law on welfare law and policy…
UN investigators testified before the UN Human Rights Council on Monday that human rights violations in Syria committed by both sides of the conflict are growing in number and severity . Chair of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic Paulo Pinheiro stated that both sides of the Syrian conflict are [...]
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay condemned human rights violations in Mali on Monday and called for international action to address the problems. Pillay stated that two militant Islamic groups, Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO) and Ansar Dine, are recruiting child soldiers, committing cruel punishments such as amputations and [...]
