Poland legislature votes on abortion rights issues, facing EU criticism for near-total abortion ban
After a contentious debate Thursday, the Sejm, the lower house of the Polish legislature, voted on four abortion–related proposals Friday and created an Extraordinary Committee to draft new abortion laws. Meanwhile, the EU Parliament voted to include the right to a safe and legal abortion in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, specifically condemning Poland’s [...]
Shamima Begum, a young woman who left the UK as a schoolgirl to join ISIS in Syria, has recently lost an appeal to regain her British citizenship. This decision, leaving her effectively stateless and in a Syrian detention camp, has sparked renewed debate. In this interview, JURIST speaks with Professor Ben Saul, a UN expert [...]
Yonatan Shapira is an ex-captain and pilot in the Israeli Air Force. In 2003, he helped coordinate the circulation of a letter that was signed by 27 Israeli Air Force pilots expressing their refusal to engage in Israeli military actions targeting Palestinians. Additionally, Shapira has endorsed the domestic Israeli movement supporting Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions [...]
The French National Assembly passed a bill on Thursday banning discrimination over the texture, length, color or style of a person’s hair on first reading. The bill will now go to the Senate for further approval. The proposed bill aims to amend the wording of existing anti-discrimination measures adopted in the labor code, penal code and [...]
UK Home Office social care worker visa program criticized in newly released report
A new inspection report released Tuesday detailed failures in the UK Home Office’s system for granting care worker visas. The report is highly critical of the sponsor licensing regime for low-skill roles and highlights that these migrant workers are at a higher risk of exploitation because of the Home Office’s shortcomings. The report stated that [...]
Recently, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC or Red Cross) has been accused of facilitating payments to accused terrorists captured and held by Israel in the ongoing Hamas-Israel conflict. The ICRC denies this claim. The ICRC has a blemished record, disturbingly far from its professed humanitarian mandate. A journalistic investigation conducted by ProPublica [...]
Nepal dispatch: glaring gender pay disparities revealed in Nepali cricket
Law students and law graduates in Nepal are reporting for JURIST on events in that country impacting its legal system. Smriti Pantha is a graduate of the Kathmandu University School of Law. She files this from Kathmandu. The Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) issued a press statement on February 26 that revealed the annual central [...]
Canada announces decrease in issuance of temporary immigration visas
Canada announced Thursday it will decrease temporary immigration due to concerns over a resource shortage. Immigration Minister, Refugees and Citizenship Marc Miller stated in a press conference: Recently, Canada’s temporary resident volume has increased significantly, now reaching up to 6.2% of our population in 2023. Therefore, in our level planning we’ll be including a target [...]
The Georgia House of Representatives passed a bill on Wednesday prohibiting companies that benefit from state economic development incentives from recognizing unions without first conducting formal secret-ballot elections. The bill, Senate Bill 362, now awaits Governor Brian Kemp’s signature to become law in the state. The bill has sparked debate regarding its compliance with federal [...]
UN agency reports forced labor generates US$236B illegal profits per year
The UN’s International Labor Organization (ILO) stated in a report on Tuesday that forced labor in the private economy generates annual illegal profits of US$236 billion per year. This has risen by US$64 billion since 2014. Forced labor is a criminal offense and violation of fundamental human rights. It is defined in the Forced Labor [...]
