The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) adopted a resolution Thursday condemning North Korea for human rights violations. The resolution decries "grave, widespread and systematic human rights abuses in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, in particular the use of torture and labour camps against political prisoners and repatriated citizens of the Democratic People's Republic of [...]
Stephanie Toti : "The Oklahoma Supreme Court recently struck down an omnibus statute, S.B. 1878, that imposed a host of contradictory restrictions on the provisions of reproductive health care in the State. The law included a provision that would have prohibited a woman from having an abortion unless she first had an ultrasound and listened [...]
The UK Parliament's Joint Committee on Human Rights recommended Thursday that the government review anti-terror laws and policies passed since the 9/11 attacks to make sure they are necessary and do not violate human rights. The committee found that, despite claiming to support human rights, many government policies appeared to threaten those rights, questioning whether [...]
The Quezon City Trial Court in Manila on Thursday issued arrest warrants for 189 suspects for their alleged role in the November 2009 massacre in semi-autonomous Maguindanao province that left 57 dead. Eight more individuals are also wanted in connection with the killings, but they are already in custody on separate charges for allegedly mobilizing [...]
US Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Thursday announced changes to the enforcement of the Don't Ask Don't, Tell policy to make it more difficult to expel openly gay service members from the military. The changes, set to take effect immediately, include raising the level of who can initiate and conduct investigations, revising what constitutes credible [...]
The US and Russia reached an agreement Wednesday to reduce nuclear arms, marking the first such agreement between the two nuclear powers in nearly two decades. According to an anonymous Kremlin spokesperson, the two countries have come to an agreement that will be finalized at a meeting Friday between US President Barack Obama and Russian [...]
A judge in the US District Court for the District of Columbia on Wednesday denied a Yemeni Guantanamo Bay detainee's habeas corpus petition on its merits, allowing the US government to prolong the detention indefinitely. Detainee Makhtar Yahia Naji al Warafi was captured during the 2001-2002 American intervention campaign in Afghanistan and maintains that he [...]
The US Senate voted 56 to 43 to pass a modified version of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 Thursday, after certain language in the original bill was altered to fix parliamentary problems highlighted by Republicans. The bill will now be sent back to the US House of Representatives for a final [...]
The US Supreme Court on Wednesday granted a temporary stay of execution for convicted murderer Henry "Hank" Skinner who requested DNA testing be conducted in his case to prove his innocence. The court granted the stay just one hour prior to Skinner's execution and will now decide whether to grant certiorari. Skinner is requesting access [...]
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday called for a renewed international commitment to eradicate all forms of slavery . Ban's comments took place on the International Day of Remembrance of Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade , which is held annually pursuant to General Assembly resolution A/62/L.32 . In his statement, Ban said [...]
