[JURIST] The UN Special Representative to the Democratic Republic of Congo William Swing [official profile] said in a press conference [press release] Thursday that the International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] has issued arrest warrants for five leaders of the Lord's Resistance Army [Wikipedia backgrounder], a Ugandan cult infamous for its cruel treatment of children. The group is believed to have forced more than 10,000 children to take up arms, work as laborers or become sex slaves. The arrest warrants are the first in the history of the three-year old ICC, who has been investigating the situation in the Congo since June 2004 [press release]. Swing did not reveal the leaders' names, and the ICC has yet to formally announce the warrants, which, if sealed, will not be announced until arrests are made. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] In Thursday's environmental law news, the China State Council [official information website] has issued a set of regulations regarding the safety, handling and reporting procedures for radioactive isotope and radiation devices. The procedures [China EPA nuclear regulations] govern both local and national responses for any "radiation-related accidents", and include immediate reporting requirements and punishment procedures. The regulations will become effective December 1, 2005. Xinhua has more.

In other environmental law news...

• The US Environmental Protection Agency [official website] has settled an action with General Electric Co. (GE) [corporate website] to dredge and clean up the Hudson River. GE dumped an estimated 1.3 million pounds of PCBs [EPA backgrounder], a probable carcinogen, into the river before the federal government banned the substance in 1977. Under the agreement, GE will pay the government up to $78 million for past and future costs. GE has already spent some $37 million on the project. AP has more.
  
  
• The US Fish and Wildlife Service [official website] seeks comments on a proposed rule [text] that would designate critical habitat for Brodiaea filifolia [Calflora factpage], in accordance with the Endangered Species Act [text]. The proposed habitat [CA factpage] includes 4,690 acres in Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Orange, and San Diego counties, California. Comments will be accepted until October 20, 2005.

[JURIST] Democratic senators Thursday urged [press release] US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales [official profile] to open a criminal investigation into the Armstrong Williams education scandal [JURIST report]. The controversy stems from an agreement between the Bush administration and conservative commentator Armstrong Williams [Wikipedia profile] under which Williams agreed to promote the No Child Left Behind Act in various media outlets in exchange for $186,000 without disclosing the financial arrangement. In a letter to Gonzales, the Democrats claimed letter that an audit published by the Governmental Accounting Office [official website] last week revealed no evidence of Williams even having carried out the promotion. According to Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) [official profile], a signatory to the letter, "taking taxpayer dollars for work you didn't do is fraud – period.” Senators Edward Kennedy (D-MA) [official profile], John Kerry (D-MA) [official profile] and Byron Dorgan (D-ND) [official profile] also signed the letter. AP has more.

In a letter [PDF text] sent Thursday to opposition colleagues, UK Home Secretary Charles Clarke [official profile] amended a three-week old proposal [PDF text] to criminalize a broad range of activities that could be interpreted as “glorifying” terrorism. The proposal was intended as an addition to an official draft of a new Terrorism Bill [PDF text; Home Office overview] that was agreed upon by opposition parties in late July 2005 in response to the London subway bombings [JURIST archive]. Clarke changed the language of the proposal so that the state must prove that an accused person intended to incite future terrorist acts. Clarke will continue to support another proposal which would allow police to detain terrorism suspects without bringing formal charges for up to three months. The new Terrorism Bill, which will strengthen the current legislation [PDF text] enacted last Feburary, will be debated by Parliament when the summer recess ends next Monday. From London, the Telegraph has local coverage.

[JURIST] Leading Thursday's states brief, the Michigan Senate [official website] voted to approve two resolutions today that would prevent taxpayer money from being spent on same-sex benefits until the state Supreme Court decides whether a lower court ruling allowing public universities and the government to provide same-sex benefits was correct. The lower court judge found that a constitutional amendment [PDF text] passed last year, recognizing only a union between a man and a woman as a marriage or "similar union for any purpose," did not prevent public universities and governments from providing same-sex benefits. Attorney General Mike Cox [official website] plans on appealing the decision, and Sen. Alan Cropsey believes that the status quo should be maintained until the Michigan Supreme Court has a chance to decide the case. The resolutions are symbolic and have no legal effect. AP has more.

In other state legal news ...

• The Illinois Supreme Court ruled [text] today that it will no longer endorse challenges to the state's "15-20-25-to-life" law [text], which provides longer sentences for committing a crime with a gun. Chief Justice Bob Thomas, writing for the majority, said that the arguments that longer sentences are unfair because more serious crimes result in lighter sentences because they were not committed with a gun is not workable because it is not consistently applied. The decision deviated from 20 years of precedent. AP has more.
  
  
• The Delaware Supreme Court has ruled [PDF text] that the identity of an anonymous blogger does not have to be revealed to Smyrna Councilman Patrick Cahill so that Cahill can pursue a libel claim against the person. The decision requires sufficient evidence of wrongdoing before a critic's identity can be given, and makes it difficult for plaintiffs with little chance of prevailing on the defamation claim to force disclosure of the blogger's identity. Chief Justice Myron T. Steele wrote, "We are concerned that setting the standard too low will chill potential posters from exercising their First Amendment right to speak anonymously." The ruling overturned a lower court decision that required Comcast Cable Communications to reveal the blogger's identity. View the friend of the court brief filed by Public Citizen, the Electronic Frontier Foundation [website] and the ACLU here. Delaware's The News Journal has local coverage.

[JURIST] The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts [official website], heard oral arguments Thursday on the issue of whether same-sex couples from out-of-state can marry in Massachusetts, the first state to legalize same-sex marriage [JURIST news archive]. The court is deciding whether a 1913 law [text], which prohibits out-of-state couples from marrying in Massachusetts if their home states do not recognize the union, comports with the Massachusetts constitution [text]. The 1913 law, rarely invoked until the high court ruled same-sex marriages legal [decision, PDF], has been used by Governor Mitt Romney to deny gay couples from nearby states marriage licenses. AP has more. The Boston Globe has local coverage.

Previously in JURIST's Paper Chase...

• Massachusetts Supreme Court to hear gay marriage challenge
• Mass. judge refuses to block law barring marriage of out-of-state couples
• Massachusetts state law limiting out-of-state marriages challenged

[JURIST] AP is reporting that presidential adviser Karl Rove has agreed to provide additional testimony in the investigation into how CIA officer Valerie Plame's name was leaked. Rove will testify before a grand jury without a guarantee that he won't be indicted later. AP has more.

[JURIST] Former Bosnian President Ante Jelavic [BBC report], who unsuccessfully tried to establish an autonomous Croat state within Bosnia, was sentenced Thursday to 10 years for embezzling money from a bank set up by Croat nationalists to fund the mini-state. Released on bail in September, Jelavic has not appeared in court and an international warrant has been issued for his arrest. In 2001, Jelavic was removed by the EU's Office of the High Representative [official website] from government in Bosnia [CIA backgrounder] for his role in supporting Croatian autonomy. BBC News has more. FENA has local coverage.

[JURIST] Mikey Weinstein, a graduate of the US Air Force Academy (USAFA) [official website] filed a lawsuit in federal court on Thursday claiming senior academy officials illegally forced Christianity upon him. Weinstein, who is Jewish, said the USAFA violated cadets' right to worship as they choose. Specifically, his complaint maintains that Christians at the Academy coerced his attendance at religious services, and otherwise attempted "to involuntarily convert, pressure, exhort or persuade" Weinstein to accept their own religious beliefs. In May, the Pentagon investigated [JURIST report; USAFA press release] religious activities at the Academy to determine if the climate there violated the First Amendment [LII backgrounder]. The report [PDF text] issued in June, however, found no overt acts of religious discrimination. AP has more.

[JURIST] Former Russian atomic energy minister Yevgeny Adamov intends to appeal a Swiss court ruling to extradite him to the United States, a spokesman for the Swiss Federal Justice Department said Thursday. Last week, a Swiss court ruled [JURIST report] that the United States has priority in taking custody of Adamov, who is wanted in the US for allegedly stealing approximately $9 million in US Department of Energy [official website] funds. Adamov's lawyer said he will attempt instead to have his client extradited to Russia, where the former head of the Russian Federal Atomic Energy Agency (formally Minatom) [official website; NTI backgrounder] is also facing charges of fraud and abuse of office. RIA Novosti has more. From Russia, Itar-Tass has additional coverage.

Previously in JURIST's Paper Chase...

• Switzerland to extradite former Russian nuclear minister to US
• Imprisoned Russian ex-energy minister goes on hunger strike in Switzerland
• Swiss court: arrest of former Russian energy minister legal
• Swiss court says arrested ex-Russian minister must stay in prison
• Former Russian energy minister arrested in Switzerland on US fraud charges

[JURIST] The United Kingdom's Department for Constitutional Affairs [official website] has said it will review rules preventing prisoners from voting in British elections, after a European court upheld an earlier decision [ECHR overview] that determined that the rules violate prisoners' human rights. The case leading to the department's review was filed by John Hirst, who had been sentenced to life in prison for killing his landlord. Hirst claimed he should be able to vote while in prison and the European Court of Human Rights [official website] agreed, ruling [judgment; press release] that the Representation of the People Act of 1983 [text] breached Hirst's human rights. But Lord Chancellor Lord Falconer [official profile], Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs, said that all 70,000 inmates in Britain's prison system would not be given the right to vote after the departmental review. In an interview with BBC Radio, Lord Falconer said that those prisoners convicted of lesser offenses might be able to vote, but it was clear that he did not favor voting rights for those convicted of more serious crimes. Lord Falconer said, "This is not a wholesale change, this is simply the court saying [to the government] 'Consider carefully the basis of your law'." The UK Press Association has more.

[JURIST] The Supreme Court in Indonesia [JURIST news archive] Wednesday ordered that courts should not imprison journalists found guilty in criminal press dispute cases, but should instead impose fines against them. Indonesian Chief Justice Bagir Manan said in a statement that punishment in press disputes "must not in anyway interfere with media activities," during a recent meeting attended by Indonesian Supreme Court justices and other top judges in the country. But Bagir said that criminal charges could still be filed against media outfits, thereby denying requests by some journalists that courts hearing media dispute cases should use the Press Law rather than the country's Criminal Code [backgrounder]. Bagir said, "Media that use their freedom wantonly must be considered a threat to the press and growing democracy in general. For us in Indonesia, criminal charges in media disputes are still necessary." The high court's decision came in response to observations that the country's freedom of press was in question after several verdicts were handed down ordering the jailing of journalists [JURIST report]. From Indonesia, the Jakarta Post has local coverage.

[JURIST] President Bush's former top procurement official was indicted Wednesday by a federal grand jury on five felony counts, including making false statements and obstructing investigations into Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff. The charges against David Safavian relate to an investigation [JURIST report] by the Senate and executive branch into whether he assisted Abramoff in his attempts to take over property near Washington, DC, which was controlled by the General Services Administration (GSA) [official website] during the time that Safavian was chief of staff at the GSA. The investigation examined an August 2002 golf trip to Scotland that Safavian took with Abramoff, and the indictment alleges that Safavian concealed the fact that he was helping Abramoff deal with the GSA and that Abramoff had done business with the GSA prior to the trip. After Safavian's tenure at the GSA, he became the government's top procurement officer in the Office of Management and Budget [official website], but resigned three days before his arrest last month on related charges. If convicted, Safavian faces a $250,000 fine and up to five years in prison for each of the five counts. AP has more.

[JURIST] Human rights groups Amnesty International [advocacy website] and Reprieve [advocacy website] have sent a joint letter to British Prime Minister Tony Blair [official profile], asking him to pressure the US government to consider the demands of hunger strikers at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive]. Over 200 detainees are still on a hunger strike, which entered its 56th day Thursday, and military officials are force-feeding 21 of the strikers, according to Amnesty and a lawyer for some of the prisoners. Prisoners say they began the strike to protest [JURIST report] their extended imprisonment without charges, lack of due process, and inhumane conditions at the camp. Six of the detainees are British citizens, and the rights groups are calling on Blair to give assurances [BBC report] that the UK will assess condition of those on hunger strike. The US military said there were only 36 detainees on strike two weeks ago, but lawyers for the detainees said the number is actually closer to 210. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] A Canadian judicial advisory committee has recommended that detailed court filings should not be available for viewing via the Internet, despite the fact that they are considered "public documents." The committee, comprised of judges on the Canadian Judicial Council [official website], said that while they accept that court opinions and some case information may be found on the web, detailed filings such as pleadings, motions and affidavits should not. The guidelines also suggest that personal information, including phone numbers, addresses, and social security numbers, should be removed before court documents are publicized "to ensure the safety and security of those whose lives are exposed in legal proceedings." The policy drafted by the committee is not mandatory and individual courts can still decide what information they will allow to be disseminated on the web. In the meantime, courts in the US have been more willing to allow internet access; federal court documents can be downloaded through the Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) [official website] system. Thursday's Globe and Mail has more.

[JURIST] Six of the most prominent American business groups voiced their concerns over the USA PATRIOT Act [text] to Congress Wednesday, saying the law makes it too simple for the government to obtain confidential business records. The groups wrote a letter to Senate Judiciary Committee [official website] Chairman Arlen Specter saying, "Confidential files — records about our customers or our employees, as well as our trade secrets and other proprietary information — can too easily be obtained and disseminated under investigative powers expanded by the Patriot Act. These new powers lack sufficient checks and balances." The business groups favor amendments to the act which would require investigators to explain the link between requested information and suspected terrorists, and would enable businesses to challenge the requests in court. The US Chamber of Commerce [group website], the National Association of Manufacturers [group website], and the National Association of Realtors [group website] were among the groups which signed the letter. Both houses of Congress are preparing to negotiate [JURIST report] whether to extend controversial provisions of the act which expire at the end of the year. AP has more.

[JURIST] A committee of Japanese lawmakers [JURIST report] met Thursday to discuss amending a pacifist clause in Japan's constitution [text], which has not been changed since US occupation forces wrote the document in 1947. Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party [official website, English version] and the country's top opposition party, the Democratic Party of Japan [official website, English version], both are in favor of amending the constitution's highly debated Article 9 [JURIST report], which currently disallows the use of military force to settle international disputes and prohibits Japan from keeping a military for warfare. Lawmakers have said that the article should be more clearly written to ensure Japan's entitlement to a "self-defense" force. But a minority of the committee feel that the changes would hinder Japan's foreign relations and one member of Japan's Communist Party [official website, English version] said that amending the article would destroy the international community's trust in Japan. A two-thirds majority in both houses of parliament would be necessary to endorse any proposed amendments, after which a national referendum would take place for final approval by Japanese citizens. AP has more.

[JURIST] A lawyer for Islamic cleric Abu Bakar Bashir [BBC News profile], imprisoned for his role in the 2002 Bali bombings [CNN backgrounder], on Thursday protested an Australian official's statements with regard to Bashir's sentence as interfering in Indonesian affairs. Australian Justice Minister Chris Ellison [official profile] said Wednesday that Australia opposed any further reduction [transcript of Ellison's remarks] in Bashir's 30-month sentence for conspiracy charges connected with the attacks. The Indonesian government has typically granted annual remissions of prisoners' sentences for good conduct, and Bashir received a remission [JURIST report] in August and could receive another in November. Mohammad Assegaf, one of Bashir's attorneys, said Indonesia had authority to grant the remissions as a sovereign. AFP has more.

[JURIST] More than 20 years following the death of Roberto Calvi [BBC profile], the trial of five people accused of murdering him began Thursday in Italy. Calvi, known as "God's Banker" for his financial ties to the Vatican, was found hanging from Blackfriars Bridge in June 1982 in London. His death was originally ruled a suicide, but prosecutors now contend that Calvi was murdered in a joint effort by the Mafia and power Sardinian banker Lucio Gelli after Calvi allegedly stole from them. After opening briefly Thursday in Rome, the trial adjourned until November. In addition to Gelli, prosecutors charged convicted Cosa Nostra treasurer Pippo Calo. Calvi was killed shortly after the bank he ran, Banco Ambrosiano, went bankrupt. Prosecutors have focused on millions of dollars that left Banco Ambrosiano in the weeks preceding Calvi's death. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The trial of Saddam Hussein [JURIST news archive] for the 1982 killings of 143 Shiite Muslims in the village of Dujail [JURIST report] will likely be postponed, according to a senior British official. Earlier this week, the Iraqi Special Tribunal [official website] officially confirmed that the trial would start October 19 [JURIST report], but the unnamed official said Wednesday that Iraq will not have time to finish preparations before then, suggesting the trial could be delayed until December. The report of a possible delay comes as one of Hussein's lawyers said that the defense team had run out of money [Telegraph report]. Khalil Dulaimi said that the Iraqi government had not responded to a request for legal aid, and he also threatened to stop talking to reporters unless western media sources contributed money to Hussein's legal costs. In another development, Iraqi president Jalal Talabani [BBC profile] told Egyptian newspaper al-Ahram [media website] that supporters of Hussein, who Talabani says are among those behind insurgent attacks in Iraq, are making efforts to negotiate with the United States [AAP report]. According to Talabani, Hussein supporters have offered to halt attacks in exchange for a pledge that Hussein will not be executed if found guilty. In June, a London-based paper reported that US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld offered to take the death penalty off the table [JURIST report] for Hussein's trial if insurgents put down their arms, but that the offer was turned down. Talabani has repeatedly said that he will refuse to sign any Saddam death order [JURIST report], saying that he would resign instead. The Guardian has more.

10:54 AM ET - A spokesperson for the Iraqi Special Tribunal denied rumors Thursday that Saddam Hussein's trial will be postponed, confirming the October 19 start date. However, sources close to the court have said that the tribunal will only hold a short session to hear motions for a delay in proceedings. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The Israeli Supreme Court [official website] on Thursday ruled that Israeli defense forces' use Palestinian civilians as human shields [JURIST report] during arrest raids violated international law. Human rights groups had petitioned to halt the practice after a temporary injunction was previously issued in August 2002. The court held that the use of civilians for such a purpose amounted to a "slide toward a severe violation of international law." The issue became a concern during Israeli raids on the West Bank in 2002, in which civilians were made to lead soldiers into homes of suspects and were wounded and killed by crossfire on several occasions. In response to the earlier injunction, Israeli military forces changed procedures to allow use of Palestinian civilians only if they agreed to cooperate and their lives would not be endangered. The Israeli high court held, however, that cooperation would rarely be voluntary. Haaretz has local coverage of the decision. AP has more.

[JURIST] The Spanish government has announced plans to expel hundreds of illegal African immigrants who have entered the country over the past week in a series of mass rushes [BBC News report] on the country's small border with Morocco in Melilla. Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Maria Teresa Fernandez de la Vega [Euroresidentes profile] said that illegal immigrants would be returned to Morocco in the coming days under a 1992 agreement with the Moroccan government. Melilla, a tiny Spanish enclave on the northern coast of Africa, has become a focal point for many Africans seeking to enter the EU. In the past week, hundreds of desperate Africans have rushed the border five times, with many of them successfully scaling the razor wire fences and evading security forces. Spain [JURIST news archive] has criticized Morocco for failing to prevent the assaults on the border, but commended an increased security presence during the most recent incident on Wednesday. Previously, many illegal immigrants have successfully made it into Spain because Spanish law did not allow the government to expel them if their home government will not accept them. Also Wednesday, Italy reportedly deported 80 illegal immigrants [AFP report] to Egypt from detention facilities at Lampedusa that have previously been criticized [JURIST report] by EU officials for rights abuses. Melilla Hoy has local coverage [in Spanish] of Spain's deportation plans. AP has more.

[JURIST] Greece's handling of asylum seekers and immigrants includes incidents of human rights [JURIST news archive] abuses and discrimination, according to a new report from Amnesty International [advocacy website]. According to the report, titled Out of the Spotlight [full report], Greece has failed to meet international human rights standards in its asylum and immigration procedures, and people have reported incidents of shootings on the country's border and asylum-seekers being housed in metal containers. The report also said that the government's failures in this regard have created increasing intolerance and discrimination in the country, creating a climate of xenophobia. The Greek government responded that it opposed human rights violations completely. Amnesty has a news release on the report. BBC News has more.

[JURIST] Spain's Constitutional Court ruled Wednesday that thousands of alleged killings and kidnappings committed during Guatemala's civil war [BBC News timeline] may be tried by Spanish courts. The court ruling opened up the country's tribunals to hear genocide cases, even if they do not involve Spanish citizens. The court concluded that universal jurisdiction outweighed national interests in cases of genocide. Nobel peace prize winner Rigoberta Menchu [Nobel profile] has pursued the case in Spanish courts. Although the Supreme Court rejected the challenge narrowly in 2003, the Constitutional Court held that the ruling violated Menchu's rights. A Spanish court convicted a former Argentine naval officer [JURIST report] earlier this year for war crimes committed during military rule although no Spanish citizens were involved. Other countries have used universal jurisdiction to try those accused of war crimes, including Belgium, which last week issued an international arrest warrant [JURIST report] for a former Chad leader. BBC News has more.

[JURIST] A North Carolina judge ruled Wednesday that $318 million in funds from a 1998 tobacco settlement should be released to tobacco farmers as litigation continues over other remaining payments. Tobacco companies had sought a refund of the money after the federal government approved a $10 billion buyout of tobacco quotas last year. However, North Carolina Business Court [official website] Judge Ben Tennille ruled that payments made by tobacco firms during the first three quarters of 2004 should be released, despite litigation over a final $106 million payment due from the fourth quarter of the year. The payments to farmers [payment summary], part of a massive $206 billion settlement [settlement summary] of lawsuits filed by 46 states against tobacco companies, called for $5.1 billion in payments over 12 years to farmers to compensate them for reduced demand for tobacco. The settlement called for a halt to payments, though, if the farmers were compensated from another source. AP has more.