A California appeals court has ruled that a 2005 referendum authorizing the transfer of land, on which a 29-foot cross commemorating veterans sits, to the federal government did not violate the California constitution . The land, owned by the city of San Diego, has been the subject of a legal battle since 1989 . A [...]
Lebanese President Emile Lahoud Friday reiterated his rejection of the Lebanese cabinet's approval of a measure that would establish a UN-supported international tribunal to try suspects accused of assassinating former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, telling JURIST that he "considered the cabinet of Siniora's vote on the second draft for establishing the tribunal as both 'unconstitutional [...]
A Japanese court on Friday ordered the government of Japan to pay 468 million yen to 61 Japanese plaintiffs who were displaced as children in China after World War II. The plaintiffs – known as "war orphans" – alleged that the government failed to promptly remove them from China after the war, causing them to [...]
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has abandoned plans to decrease the frequency of reporting requirements for the release of toxic chemicals by polluting companies, it was announced Thursday. The changes would have required polluters to report every other year rather than the current mandate of annual submissions. The EPA also asserted, however, that it will [...]
Protestors demonstrated Thursday outside the Dutch Parliament building against the Netherlands' plan to completely ban the wearing of the full-length Muslim burqa and the niqab , the Muslim headscarf for women that leaves only the eyes visible. Twenty-seven of the approximately 80 demonstrators wore one of the garments targeted for prohibition in the proposed legislation. [...]
In two separate rulings on Friday, Chinese courts rejected the appeals of a journalist and rights activist who challenged the government. In a five-minute session, the Beijing High Court rejected an appeal by Zhao Yan , a New York Times researcher who was sentenced to three years in prison for fraud in August. Zhao was [...]
Emile Lahoud : "… I was among the first callers for an international investigation commission to conduct an enquiry into the assassination of Prime Minister Hariri. Shortly after the heinous crime, I called up UN Secretary General Kufi Annan demanding him to send an international investigation team to Lebanon. Everybody in Lebanon wants to know [...]
The Central African Republic (CAR) has violated international law by arbitrarily detaining people, holding detainees for extended periods without charges and trials, and maintaining prisons in degrading conditions, according to a study released Thursday by Amnesty International . The study documents the cases of over 40 people who have been arrested in 2006 for their [...]
Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts Justice Judith Cowin ruled Thursday that all seven of the court's justices will hear a request to put a measure effectively banning same-sex marriage on the 2008 Massachusetts ballot if legislators fail to vote on the issue before the end of their term on January 2. Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney [...]
The US Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments Thursday on whether unintroduced non-sensitive evidence from the criminal trial of Zacarias Moussaoui should be turned over to families of 9/11 victims as requested by and promised to them for use in a civil negligence lawsuit against the airline industry and other defendants. Department of Justice [...]
