Chile’s justice system allows for police brutality by requiring such cases to be heard in military courts, where similar personnel manage the judicial process, Amnesty International (AI) said in a report Tuesday. According to the report: Under the Chilean Code of Military Justice, common crimes committed by members of the military&#8212#8212;including the Carabineros de Chile [...]

The California Supreme Court ruled Monday that employees who can do their jobs while seated are entitled to a place to sit. The court held in a 7-0 ruling that “if the tasks being performed at a given location reasonably permit sitting, and provision of a seat would not interfere with performance of any other [...]

The National Assembly of Cambodia approved legislation on Monday that sets rules for the creation and operation of trade unions. All 67 members of the ruling Cambodian People’s Party voted for the law, which passed the lower house of the legislature and now moves to the senate. The government of Cambodia supports this legislation, despite [...]

Former Bangladeshi prime minister Khaleda Zia surrendered on Tuesday to a court after an arrest warrant was issued against her in connection with the firebombing bus attack last year staged in opposition of the government. She was granted bail on consideration of her physical condition and her age of 70. Arrest warrants have also been [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) and several other rights groups on Tuesday urged Thailand to repeal an order granting sweeping police powers to the military, expressing concern that it will worsen human rights conditions. The law grants broad powers to “prevent and suppress 27 categories of crimes including against public peace, liberty and reputation, immigration, human [...]

The US Department of Defense (DOD) on Monday announced the transfer of two Guantanamo detainees to Senegal. Libyan nationals Salem Abdu Salam Ghereby, 55, and Omar Khalif Mohammed Abu Baker Mahjour, about 44, were released after being held nearly 14 years without charges. Last week a US government official said that the DOD has told [...]

A judge for the US District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana on Monday entered a final judgement approving a $20 billion settlement in the BP Oil Spill case . The settlement was reached last summer and has been awaiting final approval. The agreement between BP and the US Department of Justice and the [...]

The trial of three UN peacekeepers accused of sexual misconduct in the Central African Republic (CAR) began on Tuesday in front of a tribunal in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Two of the peacekeepers are charged with raping minors, and a third is charged with attempted rape of a minor during a peacekeeping [...]

South Carolina’s summary courts, which try and convict defendants for low-level offenses, are failing to provide legal representation and other constitutional safeguards, according to a study released Monday by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) . According to the study, summary court judges are not required to have law degrees, and police officers may serve [...]

Bela Biszku, a high-ranking Communist official convicted of war crimes committed during the aftermath of the Hungarian revolution , died on Thursday at the age of 94. When Soviet forces shut down the Hungarian uprising in 1956, more than 224 civilians were executed and 10,000 civilians imprisoned. At the time, Biszku was operating as a [...]