Tennessee politicians propose state constitutional amendment to expand pretrial detention
A bipartisan group of Tennessee state legislators unveiled a proposed state constitutional amendment on Friday to grant judges more discretion to detain individuals without bail before trial for specific violent criminal charges. Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-District 25) made the announcement at Memphis City Hall, flanked by Memphis’ Mayor Paul Young (D), Senate Majority [...]
Kansas lawmakers urge AG to release report on August 2023 raid on local newspaper
Kansas lawmakers urge the state’s attorney general on Tuesday to release a report containing information on an August 11, 2023 police raid on a local weekly newspaper in the state. A local prosecutor previously determined that Marion County police lacked sufficient evidence to conduct a raid on the Marion County Record office. In House Resolution No. 6032, [...]
EU concerned over recent raids and detentions of journalists in Kyrgyzstan
The EU Delegation to Kyrgyzstan expressed concern Thursday over Kyrgyz authorities’ recent clampdown on journalists and media offices operating in the country. The delegation specifically mentioned the recent spike in detentions of journalists and the searching and confiscation of property belonging to independent media offices. The statement by the EU delegation, along with the embassies [...]
Belgium to introduce travel ban on Israeli West Bank settlers
Belgium Prime Minister Alexander De Croo announced on Thursday that Israeli settlers from the West Bank would be banned from entering Belgium. This follows the US’s announcement of travel restrictions “targeting individuals and their family members involved in or meaningfully contributing to actions that undermine peace, security, and stability in the West Bank.” This as tensions [...]
UN human rights office expresses alarm at Israel settler and military violence in West Bank
In a statement released Friday, the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) warned of the “multi-layered human rights violations of Palestinians” occurring in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem. The statement further notes that 132 Palestinians, 41 of which were children, have been killed in the West Bank since Hamas’s October 7 attacks on Israel [...]
Explainer: Why Are Communities Across the Globe Up In Arms Over the Israel-Palestine Conflict?
The Israel-Palestine conflict, which has deep historical, political, and religious roots, has sparked protests worldwide. The conflict has a deep historical ties to the establishment of Israel in 1948 and the displacement of Palestinians. It revolves around competing claims over land, particularly in Jerusalem, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip. Both sides are driven [...]
The US Supreme Court agreed on Friday to hear a case asking whether banning firearms from people subject to domestic-violence restraining orders violates the Second Amendment. The case is an appeal from the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.The lawsuit specifically asks whether 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(8) violates the Second Amendment. According to [...]
Collapse of Privacy Rights for Women: The Overturn of Roe v. Wade
On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Center overturned the landmark case Roe v. Wade. It is essential to clarify the specific right Roe established. It was not an unqualified affirmative right to abortion but a right protecting a woman from unduly burdensome interference with her freedom to [...]
Right to Life Encompasses Non-refoulement: Indian High Court Advances Refugee Policy
In Nandita Haksar v. State of Manipur, decided May 3, 2021, the High Court of Manipur (an Indian state that borders Myanmar) granted seven Myanmarese citizens who had illegally entered India without documentation permission to approach the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Office in Delhi. This decision came after the Government of India [...]
