[JURIST Europe] The European Court of Human Rights [official website] based in Strasbourg, France, has awarded a landmark compensation payment of 250,000 euros ($300,000) to Alexei Mikheyev, a 29 year old Russian citizen virtually crippled from the waist down as a result of torture by Russian police. The court found Russia in violation of Articles 3 and 13 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms [official text]. Seven years ago Mikheyev was tortured for nine days using electric shock and other methods to produce a confession for the murder of Maria Savalyeyeva, who later turned up alive. His attempts to win justice in Russia have resulted in death threats and in the case being opened and closed 26 times. Two detectives connected to the case have been convicted and sentenced to jail terms. Read the official ECHR court ruling, released Thursday. Russia is obligated to accept the decision under the terms of the Convention. Human rights groups have raised concerns about unrestrained police torture in Russia [HRW report] for years. The Moscow Times has local coverage. The Independent has more.

Tatyana Margolin is an Associate Editor for JURIST Europe, reporting European legal news from a European perspective. She is based in the UK.

[JURIST] French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin [official website, BBC profile] announced [press release] Monday that the number of anti-Semitic and racist acts reported in France [JURIST news archive] dropped significantly in 2005. Anti-Semitic acts (defined as violence or threats of violence) dropped 47 percent, while racist and xenophobic acts decreased by 22 percent. De Villepin noted the decreases while promising more measures to target discrimination. In October, riots [JURIST report] started by immigrant youth broke out across the country and lasted three weeks, leading the government to declare a state of emergency. A law [text in French; Guardian report] passed in February 2005 requiring French history teachers to stress the positive role of French colonialism also precipitated domestic controversy, tension [JURIST report] with Algeria, and a call [JURIST report] by President Jacques Chirac [official profile] for the law to be overturned. France is home to Europe's largest Muslim and Jewish populations. De Villepin's announcement came the same day that a new French poll [AFP report] indicated that more than four of every five French people believe their government has not yet come up with a solution to the ethnic discrimination problem. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] Lucia Pinochet Hiriart, the eldest daughter of former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet [BBC profile; JURIST news archive], was released on bail Monday after appearing in a Santiago appeals court two days after she returned [JURIST report] to Chile to answer charges of tax evasion [JURIST report]. Hiriart had fled to the US but was detained by immigration officials because of the international arrest warrant out against her. Bail Monday was set at $6,000 bond. Augusto Pinochet faces [JURIST report] tax evasion and corruption charges himself, and his wife and son have already been charged as accomplices [JURIST report]. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The US Senate has invoked cloture [Senate backgrounder], voting 72-25 to end debate and cut off any filibuster on the nomination of Judge Samuel Alito [official profile] to the US Supreme Court. A vote on whether to approve the nomination is scheduled for Tuesday at 11 AM ET.

5:55 PM ET - Alito's confirmation Tuesday is virtually assured, with 57 senators in the 100-member upper chamber - 53 Republicans and 4 Democrats - having publicly declared their support of the nominee. AP has more.

ALSO ON JURIST  Topic: Samuel Alito | Op-ed: Alito's Discrimination Problem | Op-ed: Legal Technicalities: Weighing the Alito Nomination

[JURIST] US District Judge Sim Lake Monday told potential jurors in the trial of Enron [JURIST news archive] founder Kenneth Lay [Houston Chronicle profile] and former Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling [Houston Chronicle profile] that it was not up to them to provide justice for the suffering caused by the collapse of the corporation. "We are not looking for people who want to right a wrong", he said. Lake has decided to question the jury pool himself, and hopes to choose twelve jurors and four alternates by the end of the day. The trial is expected to begin Tuesday, and will take place in Houston, TX, where thousands lost their jobs due to the fall of Enron. This comes after defense requests were denied [JURIST report] to move the location of the trial [JURIST report] to escape a potentially hostile jury pool. Lake has been adamant in his warnings to jurors against seeking retaliation against Lay and Skilling, stressing that the trial is about law, not morality. Both Lay and Skilling face charges of fraud and conspiracy [PDF indictment] in connection with the fall of Enron Corporation. If convicted, the two could possibly face decades in prison and be forced to pay millions of dollars in damages. AP has more.

6:04 PM ET - CNN is reporting that jury selection for the trial is now complete, with nine women and seven men picked.

[JURIST] Lawyers for former WorldCom [MCI/WorldCom website] CEO Bernard Ebbers [JURIST news archive] urged federal appeals court judges Monday to reconsider his 25-year prison sentence [JURIST report], questioning the fairness of the prosecution during trial proceedings. Ebbers was convicted of fraud and conspiracy [JURIST report] in March 2005 in connection with an $11 billion fraud scheme which drove WorldCom into bankruptcy. Ebbers lawyer Reid Weingarten is calling for a new trial, claiming that the previous trial was manipulated against Ebbers because three high level WorldCom executives were barred from testifying on Ebbers' behalf. The three executives agreed to testify that they and Ebbers had no knowledge of the fraud, but were blocked from providing testimony at the trial because they were subjects of a criminal probe. In oral argument Monday, Judge Jose Cabranes of the US Second Circuit Court of Appeals seemed sympathetic to Ebbers, commenting "There are many violent criminals who don't get 25 years in prison. Twenty years does seem an awfully long time". A written decision from the appellate court is expected within the next few months. AP has more.

[JURIST] US diplomats at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) [official website] have expressed concern over Russia's newly adopted NGO law [JURIST report], which grants the Russian government tight control over the registration, financing, and activities of non-governmental organizations in the country, including a variety of foreign and domestic human rights groups. In remarks [PDF] Friday to the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna, Austria, US Ambassador Julie Finley [official profile] said the new law does not meet human rights standards and fails to fulfill Russia's OSCE commitments, noting that its vague criteria gave the Russian government too much power over NGOs and could be applied selectively for political purposes. The NGO law has been widely criticized [JURIST report] since it was approved by parliament [JURIST report] and signed into law [JURIST report] by Russian President Vladimir Putin in early January. The US State Department has more.

[JURIST] The American Bar Association [official website] has recommended a moratorium on the Georgia death penalty after an ABA panel study [ABA materials] identified numerous flaws in the state criminal justice system that it claimed greatly compromised the fair administration of capital punishment. The Georgia Death Penalty Assessment Report [DOC] noted that Georgia is the only state that does not guarantee lawyers to death row inmates at every stage of their appeals process, that state requirements to prove that a defendant is mentally retarded and therefore ineligible for execution are the toughest in the nation, and that research shows race plays a key role in a defendant's likelihood to receive the death penalty. Earlier this month, New Jersey imposed a temporary moratorium on the death penalty [JURIST report] after the state legislature found alarming flaws in its system [JURIST report]. AP has more.

[JURIST] Democrats in the US Senate spent Monday morning lobbying against US Supreme Court [official website] nominee Judge Samuel Alito [official profile; JURIST news archive] in their last efforts to block his confirmation [JURIST report] to the high court. The Senate will hold a cloture vote [Senate backgrounder] Monday afternoon and if Alito wins at least 60 votes, the final confirmation vote will be held Tuesday morning. Those opposing Alito's spot on the Supreme Court say he will endanger individual rights and liberties if appointed. US Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) [official website] said Alito would not be part of the "continued march towards progress," and the Senate's only independent member, Sen. Jim Jeffords (VT) [official website], said Alito's confirmation would "unacceptably shift the balance of the court." Despite last minute attempts to block his confirmation, Alito's supporters claim he has more than enough votes [JURIST report] to secure his place on the Supreme Court. AP has more.

[JURIST] The Moscow City Court has denied a petition for release [JURIST report] by former Russian nuclear minister Yevgeny Adamov [Kommersant profile; JURIST news archive], ruling that he will remain in custody until April 12. Adamov, who is charged with fraud and power abuse by both Russian and US prosecutors, cited health reasons for his requested release. The former atomic energy minister was detained [JURIST report] last year in Switzerland by request of the US Justice Department [official website] on charges that Adamov appropriated $9 million given to Russia by the US Department of Energy for nuclear security improvements. Russia also brought charges against him and Adamov was extradited from Switzerland [JURIST report] to Russia last December. From Russia, MosNews has local coverage.

[JURIST] US Army Sgt. Kevin D. Myricks was sentenced [Central Command press release] on Monday to six months in a military prison and a demotion in rank for his involvement in the beating of two detainees [JURIST report] in his custody at Forward Operating Base Ripley in Afghanistan's Uruzgan province last year. Myricks was found guilty of conspiracy to maltreat a detainee and maltreatment of two detainees in violation of the Uniform Military Code of Justice [text] when he punched the men in the chest and arms. Last week, fellow soldier Army Spc. James Hayes was convicted on similar charges [JURIST report]. AP has more.

[JURIST] Former Zambian President Frederick Chiluba [profile] has asked the African Union [official website; JURIST news archive] to intervene to halt criminal charges filed by Zambia [BBC report] in the United Kingdom. Chiluba contends that as a member of the AU, Zambia is bound by an agreement that all former African heads of state facing charges stemming from their time in office will be tried in their home countries. Arrested in 2002, Chiluba is currently on trial in Zambia on charges of corruption and theft of public funds, but frustrated with the lack of progress in the trial, the government sanctioned legal proceedings against Chiluba in 2004 on charges that he defrauded the government by funneling nearly $35 million in funds acquired through an arms deal to private bank accounts in London. The Mail & Guardian Online has more.

[JURIST] The British government has rejected calls to reduce the legal time limit for abortions, despite a new poll that shows women want changes to make it more difficult to obtain an abortion later in a pregnancy. The Observer reported Sunday that according to a survey, 47 percent of British women feel the legal limit for an abortion should be reduced from the current 24 weeks [EFC backgrounder]. Last year, the UK's opposition Conservative Party [party website] pressed British Prime Minister Tony Blair [official website] to reassess the abortion law and reduce the legal time limit to 20 weeks [BBC report], but no changes were made. UK Health Minister Patricia Hewitt [official profile] says she is against a change in the law, highlighting that women wishing to seek abortions late in their pregnancies should receive "good counseling and advice." AAP has more.

[JURIST] A senior Hamas leader said Sunday that the party plans to use Islamic sharia [Wikipedia backgrounder] as a guide for lawmaking as Hamas members take their seats in the Palestinian Legislative Council [official website], but that Hamas will convince people in a "polite" way to choose Islam and hold a referendum to allow the people to decide. Mahmoud Ramahi, a Hamas member who won a parliamentary seat after his party's surprise victory [JURIST report] in the Palestinian elections last week, also said that the party does not intend to enforce strict Islamic law, prevent men and women from associating in public, or close bars serving alcohol. Ramahi said that the party wouldn't introduce sharia law "by using force" and stressed that the decision would be left up to the Palestinian people. Ramahi's comments serve as a contrast to those offered by Sheik Mohammed Abu Teir, the number two candidate on the Hamas ticket, who said Saturday that introducing Islamic sharia will be the party's first priority [JURIST report]. Hamas [MIPT backgrounder] softened its stance against Israel prior to the elections and now wishes to form a coalition with other Palestinian parties, but Fatah party members led by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas [BBC profile] have so far rejected that possibility. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] A bail hearing for Lucia Pinochet Hiriart, daughter of former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet [BBC profile, JURIST archive] is set for Monday in Santiago Monday following Hiriat's return to Chile [JURIST report] Saturday after she withdrew her request for asylum in the United States. She fled Chile last week after being indicted on tax evasion charges [JURIST report]. Hiriat was told that it could take months to process her asylum request, during which time she would remain in an Arlington, Virginia jail as a common illegal immigrant, a status to which she was reduced because of the international arrest warrant out against her. Hiriat said of her time in US custody "It was a nightmare... I had to wear a prison uniform and handcuffs when I appeared before the (U.S.) judge." Rodrigo García, Hiriat's son, was quoted in press reports as saying "She couldn't stand another day." Bail has been set for 3 million Chilean pesos (roughly $6,000). The Santiago Times has more. La Nacion has additional coverage [in Spanish].

[JURIST] AP is reporting that the chief lawyer for Saddam Hussein [JURIST news archive] has said that Hussein and his defense team will boycott trial proceedings when they resume Wednesday. The trial [JURIST news archive] resumed briefly Sunday under new Kurdish chief judge Ra'uf Rasheed Abdel-Rahman [Aljazeera profile] but was adjourned again after Hussein, defense lawyers, and two co-defendants left the courtroom in protest of the earlier removal of Hussein's half brother and co-defendant Barzan al-Tikriti, who had been complaining about his medical treatment.

[JURIST] Leading Monday's international brief, the Sudanese government [official website] has criticized a UN High Commissioner for Human Rights report [DOC text] released last Friday which sharply condemned the human rights condition in Darfur [JURIST news archive]. Jamal Mohamed Ibrahim, the spokesperson for the Sudanese Foreign Ministry, called the report excessive and warned that it would contribute to inflexibility on the part of Darfur rebel groups currently attending peace negotiations. The report highlighted the lack of fair trials for captured rebel members and the continuing system of detention for those not capable of being tried. Sudan objected that the report ignored the creation of human rights courts in the Darfur region and pointed out some positive elements noted by the report. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Sudan [JURIST news archive]. The Sudan Tribune has more.

In other international legal news ...

• Indonesia [government website in Bahasa Indonesian] has announced plans to revise the legislation creating the Financial Transaction Reports Analysis Center (PPATK) [official website], which is tasked with tracking down money laundering in Indonesia, and give the agency much greater powers to accomplish its task. The draft revision of Law No. 25/2005 on Money Laundering [PDF text] would allow the PPATK to take over investigations of money laundering from police officials, freeze financial assets related to an investigation, and stop financial transactions from individuals suspected of money laundering violations. The legislation is due to be presented to the House later this week or early next week. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Indonesia [JURIST news archive]. The Jakarta Post has local coverage.
  
  
• After meeting late into the night Saturday, the UN Security Council [official website] announced on Sunday that it has passed a resolution condemning the actions of militias in the Great Lakes region of Africa. Resolution 1653 [PDF text] focuses on the high number of rebel and anti-government militias in the area and condemns the negative human rights impact they are having. Early last week, eight UN Peacekeepers in DR Congo were killed by militants of the Lord's Resistance Army [MIPT backgrounder], one of the militias alleged to have killed the most civilians in its several decade revolt against the Ugandan government. BBC News has more.
  
  
• Ten Somali men captured by the US Navy [official website] have been transported to Mombasa, Kenya and are scheduled to be charged with piracy. The ten men were captured [ICC-CSS report] by the American destroyer USS Winston S. Churchill last Tuesday and arrangements were made last week for the men to be turned over to Kenyan authorities for prosecution. The Somali coast has been designated the world's most dangerous coastline for pirate activity by the International Maritime Bureau [official website]. One of the first pieces of legislation passed by the new Somali government, which has yet to take official control of the country, was the hiring of an American contracting firm to enforce anti-piracy measures along Somalia's Indian Ocean coast. BBC News has more.

[JURIST] The trial of Uzbek opposition leader and businessman Sanjar Umarov [party profile] opened and promptly adjourned Monday in Tashkent after defense lawyers requested more time to prepare their case. Umarov, a leader of the opposition Sunshine Uzbekistan Coalition [party website], was arrested in October [JURIST report] on charges that include embezzlement, tax fraud, and bribery. The Bush administration and international human rights organizations have criticized the arrest [JURIST report] as being politically motivated. The coalition gained prominence during the Andijan uprising [JURIST archive] in May 2005, which has prompted President Islam Karimov [BBC profile] to take increasingly repressive steps against opposition groups. The Uzbek Prosecutor-General's office has insisted that the trial has "nothing to do with politics" and that Umarov is on trial for "purely economic crimes." Proceedings will recommence on February 3. Meanwhile, two other Sunshine Uzbekistan Coalition activists, Nodira Khidoyatova and Mutabar Tojiboeva [RFE/RL reports], are also currently on trial. Radio Free Europe has more.

[JURIST] British politicians, writers and comedians are urging members of the UK House of Commons [official website] to accept freedom of speech revisions in the controversial Racial and Religious Hatred Bill [text; BBC Q/A], which returns to the Commons for a vote Tuesday. The bill was amended [official amendments; JURIST report] in the British House of Lords [official website] last year when peers voted to restrict punishable actions to "threatening words or behavior" rather than including words which may be insulting or abusive, which critics say would unfairly infringe upon comedians [JURIST report] and writers who satirize religion. The vote on the bill coincides with British police reports indicating that religious hate crimes in London have dropped [BBC report] below their level one year ago for the first time since the London bombings [JURIST news archive] last July. A Metropolitan Police [official website] spokesperson said the lowered number was due to police efforts to reduce faith hate crimes, but a Muslim Safety Forum spokesman said the drop could be due to unreported incidents. BBC News has more.

Meanwhile, the Organization of Islamic Conferences (OIC) [official website, English version] and the Arab League [official website, English version] announced Sunday that they plan to request a resolution from the United Nations [official website] that would ban religious insults. The request has been immediately prompted by cartoons published in a Danish newspaper and a Norwegian magazine depicting the Prophet Muhammad [BBC profile], which many Muslim communities say is blasphemous [OIC press release]. Several Middle Eastern countries, including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, and Libya have publicly condemned the cartoons and have called for the media houses to stop publishing them. Libya said Monday it was closing its embassy in Denmark [AKI report] over the Danish incident. Media Line has more.

[JURIST] The Egyptian government has said that it will not deport hundreds of Sudanese detainees who lack status as refugees or asylum seekers. The detainees were arrested after a three-month sit-in protest in front of UN offices in Cairo resulted in a violent clash with Egyptian police on December 30, resulting in 27 deaths [BBC report]. The Sudanese protesters sought resettlement in a third country. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs [official website, English version] has said that following extensive interviews [press release] with the detainees by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees [official website], none will be deported to Sudan, and that Egypt [JURIST news archive] will take steps to grant legal status to those who do not qualify for international protection. Egypt had earlier announced plans to deport [JURIST report] 654 Sudanese refugees, but this was met with pressure from the international community [JURIST report]. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] Cambodian President Hun Sen [BBC profile] has said that a court has refused to allow him to drop criminal defamation charges against a group of human rights activists, as he had promised [JURIST report] last week. In a speech on Monday, Hun Sen said that the court ruled out dropping the charges because investigative proceedings had already begun. The accused include a radio journalist, a union leader and two activists from the Cambodia Center for Human Rights [advocacy website] who were arrested earlier this month [JURIST report] for allegedly accusing Hun Sen of ceding land to Vietnam. The arrests have drawn criticism from the international community and groups like Human Rights Watch [advocacy website], which has released a report [JURIST report] listing Cambodia among the Asian countries whose human rights records have seriously declined over the past year. AP has more.

Previously in JURIST's Paper Chase...

• Cambodia PM drops defamation charges against critics
• Cambodian rights activists released from jail
• Cambodia PM defends defamation lawsuits against rights activists
• Cambodia police continue arrests of human rights activists

[JURIST] Jury selection is set to begin Monday in the criminal trial of former Enron [JURIST news archive] founder Kenneth Lay [Chronicle profile] and former CEO Jeffrey Skilling [Chronicle profile] on conspiracy and fraud charges [PDF indictment]. Defense lawyers for Lay and Skilling had asked that the trial be moved [JURIST report] out of Houston, arguing that they will not get a fair trial due to a biased jury pool. US District Judge Sim Lake rejected the request [JURIST report], but has said that are efficient safeguards in place to ensure an unbiased jury. AP has more. The Houston Chronicle has local coverage.

[JURIST Europe] Finnish leaders hinted over the weekend that they would like to put the European Constitution [JURIST news archive] back on the table for discussion at the October summit of European Union [official website] leaders scheduled during Finland's six-month presidency [official backgrounder] of the regional group. Although the document seemed to be dead after the French [JURIST report] and the Dutch [JURIST report] voted against it last spring, several leading EU politicians, including new German Chancellor Angela Merkel [JURIST report], have recently suggested the revival of the draft pact, despite a distinct lack of enthusiasm [JURIST report] from some of their colleagues. Finnish Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen [official website] is the only current EU head of government who was a member of the original constitutional convention [official website] that drew up the document. So far 13 countries have ratified the Constitution. The treaty requires ratification by all 25 members before it can come into force. The Examiner has more.

Tatyana Margolin is an Associate Editor for JURIST Europe, reporting European legal news from a European perspective. She is based in the UK.