[JURIST] Hundreds of civilians have been arrested for opposing the Republic of Guinea's government since President Lansana Conte [BBC profile] announced martial law last week, according to human rights groups Sunday. Martial law was imposed [JURIST report] after Guinea [JURIST news archive] was swept by protests and strikes in opposition [Reuters backgrounder] to Conte's continued rule. More then 120 people have been killed so far in 2007 during government protests and more than 270 civilians have been arrested since the imposition of martial law. Guinea's military has been accused of firing upon unarmed protesters [HRW report] as well as beating and raping civilians.

The country's unions announced Saturday that they will not negotiate to end the strike until martial law is lifted. The emergency declaration institutes a strict curfew and authorizes the military to monitor phone calls and to put under house arrest anyone who engages in activities against the state. Conte, a known recluse, has been president of the West African country for 23 years. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] Police in the Zimbabwean capital of Harare ignored a court order [Reuters report] and interfered with a political rally held by opposition group Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) [official website] Sunday. According to an MDC spokesman, police arrested members of the audience and used tear gas to break up the crowd gathered to see Morgan Tsvangirai [BBC profile] begin his presidential campaign. Last week police blocked a previous attempt at the rally citing insufficient resources to ensure safety and order, but a Saturday ruling from the Zimbabwe High Court barred the police from interfering as Judge Mary-Anne Gowora ruled that police had ample notice to prepare.

Political tensions have run high in Zimbabwe [JURIST news archive] as President Robert Mugabe [BBC profile] announced in December plans to extend his presidency from 2008 to 2010 to correspond with the parliamentary elections. MDC responded with calls for protests against Mugabe's Zanu PF party [party website],and Tsvangirai moved forward with his 2008 presidential campaign. Earlier this month Mugabe indicated that he would not hesitate to use force [Reuters report] against opposition protests. Mugabe has been office since the nation's liberation from Britain in 1980, and has become the target of growing criticism as unemployment and poverty rates soar and food shortages become more severe. Boycotts calling for higher wages have gripped the health care and education sectors, with the possibility of a civil servants' strike looming in the coming days. AP has more.

[JURIST] Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan [official profile; BBC profile] said Sunday that the US Congress would damage the American relationship with Turkey if it supports a resolution [text, PDF] recognizing the WWI-era killings [BBC backgrounder] of Armenians by Ottoman Turks as genocide. Although the Bush administration has spoken out against such a bill, the Democratic-led Congress may decide to pass a resolution condemning the mass killings in April.

Last week, Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul [official profile] also spoke out against the proposed resolution [JURIST report]. Turkey has maintained that the deaths do not amount to genocide [JURIST comment] and has recently objected to similar legislation or proposed legislation in Argentina and France [JURIST reports]. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] said Saturday in a new report on Saudi Arabia [JURIST news archive] that respect for human rights in the Kingdom seemed to be improving but violations and abuses persisted. The report [text] detailed the existence of unfair trial, the detention of children and the habitual oppression of women and foreign laborers within the Middle Eastern kingdom. HRW was invited to Saudi Arabia in December to conduct a four week mission on the country's progress in the area of human and civil rights.

Although the 13 person group operated under 24-hour surveillance and was denied access to certain jails and judicial proceedings, HRW executive leader Kenneth Roth noted the Saudi government seemed to share a more open view on the value of human rights. However, the government's unwillingness to allow unfettered access to the prisons and trials does give the appeareance the Saudi government "still has much to hide," according to Sarah Leah Whitson, HRW director for the Middle East and North Africa. AP has more.

[JURIST] An appeal was filed Saturday in the case of five Bulgarian nurses [JURIST news archive] and one Palestinian doctor convicted and sentenced to death [JURIST report] by a Libyan court for knowingly infecting over 400 Libyan patients, primarily children, with the HIV virus. Othman Bizanti, lawyer for the accused Bulgarian nurses, lodged the appeal days after counsel for the Palestinian doctor did the same. The medics were sentenced to death in their second trial on December 19 after the initial guilty verdict was overturned by the Libyan Supreme Court in 2005 and a retrial ordered [JURIST reports]. The appeal before Libya's Supreme Court could be the last appeal permitted under the nation's law, though Libya's Supreme Judicial Council has the power to overturn the rulings of the Supreme Court. Bizanti expects the Supreme Court to rule by mid-May.

Bulgaria and its allies, including the US [JURIST report] and the European Union, contend that the nurses are innocent and have said they have been tortured into admitting guilt [HRW report]. Last month a Bulgarian prosecutor announced plans to file charges [JURIST report] against eleven Libyan police officers accused of carrying out the torture; the investigation may lead to a trial in Bulgaria. According to international health experts [JURIST report], poor sanitary conditions in the hospital caused the virus to spread before the nurses even arrived. Libyan leaders have recently indicated that the medics might be released in exchange for compensation [JURIST report] of 10 million euros for each of the victims' families. Bulgaria has so far refused the deal, which it views as an admission of guilt. BBC News has more.

[JURIST] US Marine Lance Cpl. Robert B. Pennington [advocacy website] was sentenced to eight years in military prison [Camp Pendleton press release] Saturday for his role in the death of Iraqi civilian Hashim Ibrahim Awad in Hamdania [USMC timeline; JURIST news archive] in April 2006. The original sentence of 14 years confinement was reduced to eight according to a pre-trial agreement; Pennington was also reduced in rank to Pvt./E-1 and given a dishonorable discharge. The sentence is the harshest to date in the case, which has implicated seven other servicemen [JURIST report]. Pennington pleaded guilty [JURIST report] last Tuesday to charges of murder, kidnapping, housebreaking, larceny and conspiracy; the murder, housebreaking, and larceny charges will be dismissed if he abides by a plea bargain that would require him to testify for the government. The sentence will automatically be sent to an appeals court for review, and Pennington's lawyer plans to try to have the sentence commuted.

Pennington and his squad were accused of shooting the unarmed Awad and leaving his body by the side of the road with a shovel and AK-47 to make him look like an insurgent. Pennington testified that he did assist in restraining and transporting Awad but that he did not shoot the victim. In November, Pennington claimed [JURIST report] that agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service [official website] blocked his access to a defense lawyer and threatened him with the death penalty during interviews in an effort to prevent the prosecution from using statements he made during his court-martial. NCIS agents have denied Pennington's allegations. US Marine Lance Cpl. Jerry E. Shumate Jr., Marine Pfc. John J. Jodka, Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Melson J. Bacos, [JURIST reports] and Marine Lance Cpl. Tyler Jackson [advocacy website; JURIST report] have also pleaded guilty in exchange for their testimony in the case; US Marine Cpl. Trent Thomas was re-charged last week after withdrawing his guilty plea [JURIST reports] in February. AP has more.