[JURIST] The US Senate [official website] on Tuesday rejected a conservative amendment to proposed immigration legislation [text] that would have required new US border security measures to be fully completed and fully operational before the government could implement a program for illegal immigrants to earn citizenship as proposed by President Bush during his immigration reform address [JURIST report] Monday night. The amendment, sponsored by Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-GA) [official website], was defeated 55-40 [roll call]. The Senate then adopted [vote list] a competing amendment by Sen. Ken Salazar (D-CO) [official website], allowing the President to implement the provisions of the bill when he deems them to be in the national interest. AP has more.

Meanwhile, a range of critics assailed other aspects of Bush's immigration reform plan. Gov. Bill Richardson (D-NM) [official website] expressed skepticism about the deployment of up to 6,000 members of the National Guard to support the US Border Patrol [official website], calling it a "stop-gap measure." Immigration rights activists in San Francisco marched in protest [AP report], urging the US not to "militarize" the border. AP has more.

[JURIST] Martin Scheinin [official profile], UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Counterterrorism, said Tuesday that US officials have been stonewalling investigations into allegations that the Central Intelligence Agency [official website] flew terrorism [JURIST news archive] suspects through Europe to countries where they could be tortured [JURIST news archive]. Scheinin expressed concern that as a result of US reluctance to cooperate with investigators it could take several years to determine the truth of the allegations.

Members of a European Union [official website] delegation investigating the practice known as rendition [JURIST news archive] also complained of a lack of cooperation [JURIST report] from the State Department [official website] during its visit to Washington last week. The EU visit was part of a European Parliament inquiry [official website] into whether European countries were involved in clandestine CIA prisons [JURIST report] or flights moving suspected terrorists. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] US Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter [official biography] and conservative members of the committee [official website] have struck a deal on Specter's proposed bill [PDF text] to clarify the legality of the National Security Agency [official website] surveillance program [JURIST news archive], according to a Wednesday report in The Hill. Republican sources said Specter agreed to drop the bill's requirement that the Bush administration seek approval [JURIST report] for domestic spying from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, the special court established by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978, known as FISA [text].

Instead, the program could be challenged only by a plaintiff with legal standing who has actually suffered damage from the program. Because plaintiffs who lack standing are kept out of court, Specter's concession would give the administration an advantage. Under the deal, the FISA court [membership list] would retain jurisdiction over challenges to the surveillance program. The Hill has more.

[JURIST] The UN Security Council [official website] unanimously passed a resolution [text] Tuesday that accelerates planning for a United Nations [official website] peacekeeping force in Sudan's Darfur region [JURIST news archive]. US President Bush last week asked the Council [press briefing transcript] to adopt the resolution, which demands that an assessment team be deployed to Sudan within a week to prepare for UN control of the African Union-led peacekeeping mission now in Darfur. Drafted by the US, the resolution also threatens sanctions against anyone who interferes with the peace agreement [text; BBC report] between the Sudanese government [official website; CIA backgrounder] and the main rebel group.

Sudan's government opposed UN-led peacekeeping forces [JURIST report] before the May 5 peace agreement, but has since indicated that it may agree to the UN presence. The African Union agreed Monday to transfer authority over the 7,300 peacekeepers [BBC report] to the UN no later than the end of September. AP has more. The UN News Centre has additional coverage.

[JURIST] The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals [official website] has stayed Tuesday's scheduled execution [JURIST news archive] of a gang member who tortured and killed two teenage girls [Texas AG press release]. The reason for the stay, announced in a brief order Monday, was unclear. Lawyers for Derrick Sean O'Brien [NCADP profile], 31, had argued that the drugs used for lethal injection "unnecessarily create a risk that O'Brien will suffer excruciating excessive pain" in violation of the Eighth Amendment.

The US Supreme Court heard arguments [transcript; JURIST report] last month in a Hill v. McDonough [merits briefs], a case from Florida about whether inmates can file last-minute civil rights challenges to the chemicals used in lethal injection even if they have exhausted their regular appeals. Texas' lethal injection procedure is similar to Florida's, but O'Brien's case is the first to raise the question in the Texas courts. O'Brien's lawyers said the ruling indicated the court's willingness to impose a moratorium on executions pending the Supreme Court's decision. The Texas court may have a chance to clarify the significance of the stay before Wednesday evening, when Texas is scheduled to execute another inmate, Jermaine Herron [TDCJ profile]. AP has more. The Houston Chronicle has local coverage.

[JURIST] Australia's three major news organizations have submitted a joint report to the Australian Law Reform Commission [official website; sedition materials], the independent federal statutory agency charged with conducting official inquiries into areas for possible legal reform, slamming the late 2005 enactment [JURIST report] of the new federal sedition laws [summary] as part of sweeping anti-terrorism legislation [text]. Fairfax, the publisher of Melbourne's The Age, News Ltd. and Australian Associated Press [media websites] said that the laws dealing with incitement of terrorists are excessive and should not be applied to major Australian media outlets.

The publishers expressed concern that they could be found guilty of sedition by printing quotations from groups or individuals that criticize Australian or US policies in Iraq or elsewhere if the quotes are found by a court to provide support for terrorists, or if the quotes are found to "urge" communal violence threatening the peace, order and good government of Australia, which are both criminalized by the new sedition laws. Furthermore, the publishers insist that the good faith defense afforded by the new law would not necessarily provide adequate protection to news outlets, as good faith could be impossible to prove. The Law Reform Commission is actively soliciting public comment on the sedition laws, and the Australian government has insisted that criticism of the law will be duly considered. AAP has more. International press freedom group Article 19 [advocacy group] has also made a submission to the Australian Law Reform Commission criticizing the new laws [PDF].

[JURIST] Leading Tuesday's international brief, South Korea's Supreme Public Prosecutor's Office [official website] confirmed that Hyundai Chairman Chung Mong-koo [Wikipedia profile] has been indicted on charges of embezzling company funds and allegedly using secret accounts to bribe politicians. Chung was arrested [JURIST report] last month and, if convicted, faces life imprisonment. Kia Motors chairman Chung Eui-sun and Hyundai Motor vice chairman Kim Dong-jin have also been investigated and prosecutors have confirmed that they face possible charges as well. Prosecutors are attempting to trace the funds and any possible connections to abuse of office of public officials. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of South Korea [JURIST news archive]. Chosun Ilbo has local coverage. Reuters has more.

In other international legal news ...

• Nepal Home Minister Krishna Prasad Sitaula told reporters that the official announcement of the new power structure for the Nepalese monarchy will be released on Thursday. The announcement was made in response to ongoing protests [Reuters report] by Nepalese citizens after the cabinet announced it was delaying the proclamation until the full executive branch had a chance to review the document. The cabinet is expected to drastically curtail the power of King Gyanendra [official profile], removing his control of the army and making his position ceremonial. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Nepal [JURIST news archive]. eKantipur.com has local coverage.
  
  
• Jenni Williams, leading Zimbabwe human rights activist and head of the Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) organization [advocacy website], has alleged that a Bulawayo police official has threatened her with death if she organizes any more protests against current Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe [BBC profile]. WOZA has organized several protests against Mugabe's policies and most of its members are routinely arrested during the events. The threat on Williams' life reportedly occurred as she was being released following her latest arrest for a protest in Bulawayo. Police officials said they have not yet received a complaint, but members of the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights said that they are gathering information on Williams' behalf in preparation for submitting a report to police officials. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Zimbabwe [JURIST news archive]. ZimOnline has local coverage.

[JURIST] Malawi Vice President Cassim Chilumpha [official profile] has been released on bail but placed under house arrest three weeks after police arrested [JURIST report] him in connection with an alleged plot to assassinate Malawi President Bingu wa Mutharika [official profile; BBC profile]. After being released Monday, Chilumpha proclaimed his innocence on the treason charges, saying that he angered the government by refusing to join the Democratic Progressive Party [Wikipedia backgrounder], established by the President in the wake of his renunciation of the United Democratic Front party [Wikipedia backgrounder].

The president sent a letter [text] to Chilumpha in February asking for his resignation, but a court intervened [BBC report], saying the president has no constitutional authority to fire the vice president. Mutharika is faces impeachment charges [JURIST report] for allegedly misusing funds and violating the constitution. AP has more.

[JURIST] Judges from Thailand's Supreme Court, Constitutional Court, and Administrative Court [official websites] on Tuesday rejected the October 22 date set by the Election Commission [official website] for new parliamentary elections and again demanded that the Commission resign [JURIST report] after organizing last month's failed parliamentary elections [BBC report]. One justice said the recent Commission meeting where the October date was proposed was illegal because only three of the five commissioners were present, as one has resigned and another has died.

While the courts do not have the power to forcibly remove the commissioners from office, they have taken a more proactive role [JURIST report] in these elections than ever before, at the request of Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej [official profile]. The constitutional court annulled [JURIST report] the results of the April election after finding the Election Commission unconstitutionally organized the elections too soon after Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra [official website] dismissed parliament, leaving candidates with little time to prepare campaigns. The court also found that the voting booths did not afford enough privacy to voters. After Thaksin and the election commission arranged for the elections to be scheduled three years earlier than previously anticipated, the opposition party boycotted the polls and asked voters to cast protest votes. AFP has more.

[JURIST] Defense witnesses began testifying Tuesday in the trial of Saddam Hussein [JURIST news archive], following Monday's reading of formal charges [JURIST report] against the deposed Iraqi leader and seven co-defendants for murder, torture, and the illegal arrests of 399 people in Dujail as part of a crackdown in the town after an assassination attempt on Hussein's life. Witnesses, who were unidentified and included some relatives of the defendants, testified while concealed behind a curtain. Hussein and four of the co-defendants were not in the courtroom on Tuesday during the witness testimony, but presiding Judge Raouf Abdel-Rahman [BBC profile] said that the presence of Hussein's lawyers ensured fairness in the proceedings.

After being formally charged yesterday, Hussein and his co-defendants refused to enter a plea and Hussein insisted that he remained the leader of Iraq and claimed the trial was illegal. Abdel-Rahman entered not guilty pleas on their behalf. Under Iraqi criminal law [summary, PDF; Iraqi Criminal Procedure Code, PDF], defendants are not formally charged until after the prosecution has presented its evidence; but once they are charged, the defendants have the burden of disproving the charges against them. AP has more.

[JURIST] Dutch MP Ayaan Hirsi Ali [BBC profile], who was born in Somalia, resigned her office Tuesday and announced that she will leave the Netherlands in response to the controversy surrounding her naturalization. Ali admitted lying on her 1992 asylum application during her confirmation proceedings for parliament in 2002, but recent reports surfaced about the discrepancies and Dutch Immigration Minister Rita Verdonk [official profile] said Monday that citizenship should not have been granted to Ali [AP report]. Ali changed her name and birth date and omitted on her application that she had lived in three countries before the Netherlands.

The Dutch government placed Ali under guard after the November 2004 murder of Theo Van Gogh [Wikipedia profile], the filmmaker who directed "Submission," a critical film about the treatment of women in Muslim society which was penned by Ali. Van Gogh's killing provoked over 150 retaliatory attacks on local Islamic mosques and schools and prompted changes in Dutch anti-terrorism laws [JURIST report]. AP has more.

[JURIST] New York City has filed a lawsuit [press release] against 15 rogue out-of-state gun dealers in an attempt to stymie the influx of weapons into New York, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Monday. The suit, which was filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York [official website], seeks to compel the dealers to undergo mandatory training, and to pay compensatory damages to the city and punitive damages to victims. The lawsuit also requests the appointment of a special investigator to monitor the dealers. The dealers named in the complaint reside in Georgia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Virginia.

City law enforcement tracked guns used in crimes back to the dealers. Private investigators hired by the city uncovered the allegedly unlawful selling practices by making undercover purchases from those dealers. The suit claims that the dealers allowed straw purchases where one person fills out the necessary paperwork, while another person, who has not undergone the requisite background check, pays for and receives the gun. AP has more.

[JURIST] A Russian judge on Tuesday said that Nurpashi Kulayev [Wikipedia profile] participated in the September 2004 Beslan school siege [BBC backgrounder; MosNews report], committing an act of terrorism, but has not yet issued a final verdict on Kulayev's guilt. Kulayev, who is the sole surviving attacker from the siege, pleaded not guilty [JURIST report] to terrorism and murder charges, denied [JURIST report] killing anyone during the attack, and claimed that he was forced to participate in the siege by terrorists. Although prosecutors requested the death penalty [JURIST report], any such verdict would be changed into life imprisonment because the country has placed a moratorium on capital punishment. The judge began reading the verdict in the case Tuesday, a process which could last several days.

Critics of the trial, including survivors and victims' families, seek further investigation into the tragedy to uncover fault within the government's response, including disorganized medical care, lack of resources, and the use of heavy artillery before all hostages were rescued. The government admitted that negligence contributed to the effects of the tragedy, but did not implicate any specific government employees. The Voice of Beslan [advocacy website, in Russian], a group of activist survivors, spoke out against the reinstatement of the death penalty so that Kulayev can aid a probe into the siege. Reuters has more. MosNews has local coverage.

[JURIST] Federal Communications Commission [official website] chief Michael J. Copps said Monday that the agency should investigate [statement, DOC] the access to domestic customers' phone records [USA Today report; JURIST report] allegedly granted to the National Security Agency (NSA) [official website] by telecommunications giants Verizon, AT&T, and BellSouth [corporate websites]. Reacting to reports that the companies complied with NSA requests to look at the records, Copps said that "protecting the security of the American people is our government's number one responsibility" and that a probe was necessary to determine whether a violation of Section 222 [text] or any other provisions of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 [text] occurred. On Thursday, US Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said that he would call on the phone companies [Reuters report] implicated in the USA Today report to provide information to the committee on the allegations, while President Bush defended [JURIST report] domestic surveillance activities. AP has more.

BellSouth said Monday that it cannot find any proof [AP report] that the company turned over records to the NSA. A company spokesperson also said that an internal review uncovered no evidence that BellSouth was even contacted by the NSA. According to reports, Qwest Communications [corporate website], a regional Bell based in Denver, did not allow the NSA to access its customer records. Meanwhile AT&T and Verizon have neither confirmed nor denied the veracity of the allegations against them.

Meanwhile, lawyers have filed suit in New York federal court against Verizon for its alleged involvement in the disclosure of phone records. The suit, brought Friday, claims violations of the Telecommunications Act and the Stored Communications Act of 1986 [text]. Verizon could be fined up to $1,000 for every violation of the Telecommunications Act. The attorneys, who seek to certify the suit as a class action, are considering joining AT&T as a defendant. AT&T already faces a class action lawsuit filed by the Electronic Frontier Foundation [advocacy website] because the company allegedly allowed the NSA to use its infrastructure [JURIST report] to wiretap US citizens. CNET News has more.

[JURIST Europe] The International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights [official website] has claimed in a new report [text] that Russia is maintaining secret prisons in Chechnya [BBC backgrounder; government website, in Russian] and is using them for kidnapping and torturing separatist Chechens in violation of European and Russian laws.

The group submitted the report to Dick Marty [official profile], the Chairperson of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights of the Council of Europe [official website]. Marty is also heading the investigation into alleged secret CIA detention centers in Europe. In the past, Russia has rejected allegations of Chechen torture [JURIST report] and has not yet commented on the latest report. Voice of America 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 Europe] President Bush has imposed a US travel ban on Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko [official website; BBC profile] and his associates. In a proclamation [text] released Monday, Bush cited election fraud, corruption and human rights violations as reasons for the ban, saying that its targets are those who "undermine or injure democratic institutions or impede the transition to democracy in Belarus." The Bush administration has in the past referred to Lukashenko as “Europe’s last dictator” [White House press secretary statement].

The European Union issued a travel ban [JURIST report] against Belarus officials almost immediately following the March presidential elections, which were widely criticized for fraud and irregularities [JURIST report]. The jailing [JURIST report] of several opposition leaders after a rally in Minsk last month prompted further outrage from the international community. Belarus’ current government enjoys the support of neighboring Russia; President Vladimir Putin [official website] was one of the only world leaders to congratulate Lukashenko on his victory. Reuters 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.