[JURIST] The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) [official websites] have filed suit [IRS press release] against five Jackson Hewitt [corporate website] franchises, seeking an injunction to bar the companies from preparing tax returns and alleging that all five corporations were involved in fraudulent tax return preparation including the filing of exaggerated claims and the use fake W-2 forms. The government, which filed lawsuits Tuesday in Chicago, Atlanta, Detroit and Raleigh, further alleged [DOJ press release and complaints] that as a result of the fraudulent activity the US Treasury took a loss of over $70 million. The suits also claim that the corporations, owners, and employees received kickbacks for helping costumers file the fraudulent returns.

Speaking about the lawsuits, IRS Commissioner Mark Everson [official profile] stated that:

I am deeply disturbed by the allegation that a major franchisee of the nation's second-largest tax preparation firm is intentionally preparing improper tax returns with inflated refunds. I'm particularly concerned that many taxpayers of modest means could actually end up owing the government thousands of dollars if they claimed an improper refund.

[JURIST] The government of Thailand [JURIST news archive] Wednesday banned access to the popular video-sharing website YouTube [corporate website] and several other websites that contain material deemed offensive to the country's monarch. The YouTube ban resulted from a video depicting King Bhumibol Adulyadej [Wikipedia profile] as a clown with feet pasted over his head, an insulting image in Thai culture that can amount to a criminal offense. The video, less than a minute long, has had more than 16,000 viewers. Google [corporate website], YouTube's owner, had refused to remove the video before Thailand blocked access to the website.

A similarly offensive video involving the founder of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk [Turkish News profile] prompted a Turkish court last month to order Turkish telecom providers to block access to YouTube [JURIST report]. The court lifted the ban [JURIST report] just two days later for unspecified reasons. The New York Times has more.

[JURIST] The Fiji Human Rights Commission (FHRC) [advocacy website] has accused Australian mining company Emperor Gold [corporate website] of human rights violations at Fiji's Vatukoula gold mine [Emperor Gold backgrounder]. The FHRC claims that mine workers have been subjected to sub-standard housing, paid disproportionate wages, and exposed to hazardous gases. FHRC Commission Director Dr. Shaista Shameem said that an FHRC investigation concluded that accusations levied by over 400 miners at Vatukoula that the company had violated various provisions of Fiji's constitution [text] had merit.

Just last week, Emperor Gold defended itself [Radio New Zealand report] against accusations in a report commissioned by the government of Papua New Guinea that operations at its Tolukuma mine [Emperor Gold backgrounder] in southeastern New Guinea were adversely affecting the health of nearby residents. The study had accused the mining company of dumping toxic metals into nearby rivers, increasing the risk of cancer, infertility, and other illnesses in the locals. A spokesman for Emperor Gold dismissed the findings and said the study was questionable. Northern Territory News has more.

[JURIST] The UK hacker behind unprecedented cyberattacks on US military and NASA computer systems in late 2001 and early 2002 lost an appeal Tuesday in the UK High Court to avoid extradition to the US. Last May, a UK judge recommended extradition [JURIST report] for Gary McKinnon [CNET interview; advocacy blog] to face criminal charges [US DOJ indictment] in a US court as a cyber-terrorist, allegedly causing $700,000 in damages. UK Home Secretary John Reid [official profile] quickly approved the extradition recommendation.

McKinnon will apply to have his case heard before the UK House of Lords as one last chance to avoid extradition. If extradited and convicted in US courts, McKinnon may face serving his entire sentence in US prisons because of the cyber-terrorist charges. McKinnon admits that he hacked into US computer systems seeking evidence that the US concealed evidence of UFOs and other "hidden technology," but claims the level of damages asserted by the US is "ridiculous." AP has more. BBC News has local coverage.

[JURIST] The Iowa House Human Resources Committee [official website] on Tuesday approved SF427 [text], a bill to extend the state's civil rights protections to gays and lesbians. The bill, which still awaits passage by the full Iowa House [official website], was passed by the full Senate last week [JURIST report] and would officially add gender identity and sexual orientation to the categories protected from discrimination in Iowa's civil rights code. If approved by the full House, the legislation would complement passage earlier this year of a bill to protect gay and lesbian students from harassment in schools [SF61 text]. While Democrats support the measure, some Republican representatives expressed concerns about the scope of the protections offered. They worried how it may affect workplace ethics and increase employment lawsuits by giving businesses limited deference to set their own policies. Governor Chet Culver [official profile] said he will sign the legislation if it passes.

Like many states, Iowa is struggling to refine its gay rights [JURIST news archive] laws. Over the past few months, Washington Senate has passed [JURIST report] a civil unions law, while Rhode Island and New Jersey have moved to recognize gay couple married in other states [JURIST reports]. Meanwhile, Indiana has joined a number of states in banning gay marriage and Hawaii has shelved its proposed civil unions legislation [JURIST reports]. The Waterloo, Iowa Courier has more.

[JURIST] UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon [official website] Wednesday urged all countries to sign and abide by international treaties banning landmines International Mine Awareness Day [press release]. Those treaties include the Ottawa Treaty [text; ICBL backgrounder], which bans all anti-personnel landmines, and the Protocol Five to the Certain Conventional Weapons Convention [text], scheduled to assemble in November to consider how to eradicate land mines left behind in former war zones. Ban said in a statement [text] said:

Today, I encourage all States who have not yet done so to accede to all these treaties as soon as possible.

I call upon all States Parties to honour their obligations under the treaties, including the commitment, for those in a position to do so, to render assistance to affected States and victims in need.

And I reiterate my call on the international community to address immediately the horrendous humanitarian effects of cluster munitions. These indiscriminately kill and maim civilians, just as easily and frequently as landmines do. International outrage has driven a large group of countries to pursue a new international treaty to deal with these weapons, thus complementing and reinforcing other on-going efforts.

[JURIST] The state of North Carolina is violating international freedom of association labor standards [ILO materials] by prohibiting governmental entities from bargaining with unions, according to a decision released Tuesday by the International Labor Organization (ILO) [official website], the labor standards branch of the United Nations. North Carolina General Statute section 95-98 [text] states:

Any agreement, or contract, between the governing authority of any city, town, county, or other municipality, or between any agency, unit, or instrumentality thereof, or between any agency, instrumentality, or institution of the State of North Carolina, and any labor union, trade union, or labor organization, as bargaining agent for any public employees of such city, town, county or other municipality, or agency or instrumentality of government, is hereby declared to be against the public policy of the State, illegal, unlawful, void and of no effect. (1959, c. 742.)

[JURIST] Iraqi Shiite religious leader Grand Ayatollah al-Sistani [official website; JURIST news archive] said Tuesday he in fact did not oppose a proposed law [JURIST report] which would return former Baath party [BBC backgrounder] members to their previously held government positions, as initially reported [JURIST report] Sunday. A spokesperson for Sistani denied the reports without revealing the Grand Ayatollah's position on the law, instead saying the issue is constitutional and not religious in nature. Reuters has more.

The draft law, introduced by President Jalal Talabani [official website, in Arabic; BBC profile] and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki [BBC profile] last month, would allow former members of Saddam Hussein's now-defunct Baath party to return to their government or military jobs or receive pensions if they are denied such jobs. Despite provisions in the proposal that would prevent reemployment of former Baathists who have been charged with, or are sought for, criminal activities, several Shiite leaders oppose the draft law as being "dangerous."

Supporters of the draft measure are looking for a way to reinstate [JURIST report] former Baath party members who say they joined the party for professional reasons; Hussein only allowed university enrollment, career progression and specialized medical aide to those who were members of his party. Without approval by Shiite religious leaders, the proposed law has little chance of being passed by the Iraqi National Assembly [official website] since Shiites currently hold 130 of the 275 parliamentary seats and often vote according to the advice of their religious leaders. Some Kurds, who were also suppressed by Hussein's Baathist regime, oppose the draft law as well.

[JURIST] A former Bosnian Serb soldier was sentenced to 15 years in prison [judgment text, PDF; summary] Wednesday on rape and torture charges by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) [official website]. Dragan Zelenovic [ICTY case backgrounder] was accused [indictment] of raping eight Bosnian Muslim women under circumstances amounting to torture between July and October of 1992 after Serbian forces took control of the the Foca municipality in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina. Zelenovic also pleaded guilty to one rape charge that did not amount to torture, aiding and abetting one other rape, and being a co-perpetrator in two others.

Zelenovic pleaded guilty [JURIST report] to the crimes in January 2007. He was indicted in 1996, arrested in Russia in 2005, and extradited to The Hague [JURIST report] in 2006. BBC News has more.

[JURIST] Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad [official website, in Persian] announced Wednesday at a news conference [IRNA report] in Tehran that he had "pardoned" and was releasing 15 British military personnel detained [JURIST report] by Iranian forces earlier this month, and would not bring them to trial. An Iranian ambassador had previously suggested the UK personnel could face charges [JURIST report] stemming from allegedly trespassing on Iranian waters contrary to international law. AP has more. The International Herald Tribune has additional coverage.

The British government had published GPS data [MOD press release] purportedly demonstrating that the personnel had not been in Iranian waters. The soldiers were seized at the mouth of a river that Iraq refers to as the Shatt al-Arab [Wikipedia backgrounder] and Iran calls the Arvandrud. Control of the river and its use has been a longstanding source of tension [ICE backgrounder] between the two countries.

[JURIST] Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko [official website; BBC profile] has refused to rescind Monday's decree [statement] ordering parliament to dissolve and new elections to be held in May as the constitutional crisis in Ukraine continues. On Tuesday, Yushchenko met with his main political rival, Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych [BBC profile], in an attempt to persuade Yanukovych to withdraw an court appeal [JURIST report] seeking to block the decree and allow the current parliament to remain in power. Earlier Tuesday, Yanukovych said [speech transcript] the purpose of the president's decree is to usurp power, to discredit parliamentarism, and to "guarantee power retention for some individuals regardless of any results of the elections." Yushchenko defended the decree [commentary, subscription required] in Tuesday's Financial Times, writing:

Ukraine's young democracy today faces a new and dangerous challenge, one that requires a firm and immediate response. It comes from a ruling coalition that has exceeded its mandate and attempted to monopolise political power, even at the cost of violating the constitution and ignoring the democratically expressed wishes of the Ukrainian people.

[JURIST] Australian Guantanamo Bay detainee David Hicks [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] will not speak to the media in violation of a court order, Hicks' lawyer said Wednesday. Despite statements by Australian Attorney-General Philip Ruddock [official profile] that Australia cannot enforce the gag order [JURIST report] once Hicks returns to the country, Hicks' lawyer told Australia's ABC News that Hicks is not interested in speaking to the media. According to his lawyer, Hicks "is focused on getting home...[to] be close to his family."

Hicks submitted an application Monday to be transferred to a prison near his home in South Australia to serve the remainder of his nine-month sentence after pleading guilty to a charge of supporting terrorism [JURIST reports] last week. The Australian government is awaiting formal documentation from US authorities to move Hicks from the US prison camp at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive]. Once this information is received, the Australian federal government can approach the state government in South Australia to move the process forward, including assessing security requirements and a potential control order [JURIST report]. Australia's ABC News has more.

[JURIST] Human Rights groups REDRESS and the International Federation for Human Rights [advocacy websites] said Tuesday that the European Union should hold trials for the 37 Rwandan genocide suspects known to be living in European countries. The suspects have been living in Belgium, France, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Norway, and the rights groups condemned the countries for giving them safe havens [press release, PDF]. At a conference marking the thirteenth anniversary of the 1994 Rwandan genocide [HRW backgrounder; BBC backgrounder], the groups stated that "it is unacceptable that perpetrators continue to live freely in Europe."

Last month, the trial of Desiré Munyaneza [Trial Watch profile; JURIST report], former Rwandan militia commander, began in Canada. In February, Rwanda released 8,000 prisoners [JURIST report] implicated in the genocide in an effort to combat prison overcrowding despite fears of retribution. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] Monica M. Goodling, on leave from her post as special counsel to the US Attorney General, told the House Judiciary Committee [JURIST report] on Tuesday that she will not speak to the committee about her role in last year's firing of eight US attorneys [JURIST news archive]. Committee members said that a voluntary interview would forgo the need to subpoena Goodling, but Goodling's lawyer stated that even if she was subpoenaed before the committee, she would claim protection under the Fifth Amendment. Some House representatives doubt her ability to do so, stating that "her claims do not constitute a valid basis for invoking the privilege against self-incrimination." Goodling has said previously that she will refuse to testify [JURIST report] before Congressional committees, indicating that she would plead the Fifth Amendment if called to speak.

Senate Democrats have rejected attempts by the White House to advance the date that US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales [official profile; JURIST news archive] is scheduled to testify on the firings. Gonzales defended his role [JURIST report] in the firings on Friday, admitting that there has been some confusion, but saying that his involvement in the matter was limited to signing off on recommendations made by his former chief of staff Kyle Sampson [official profile]. Sampson, who resigned last month [DOJ press release], told the Senate Judiciary Committee last week that the prosecutors were fired for political reasons [JURIST report] rather than for poor performance as the Justice Department has claimed [JURIST report]. Sampson also said Gonzales did more than merely follow his recommendations, and that Gonzales and former White House counsel Harriet Miers [official profile] were deeply involved in the firings. AP has more. The Boston Globe has additional coverage.