[JURIST] Montenegrin Prime Minister Zeljko Sturanovic signed the EU-Montenegro Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) [press release, PDF] Monday, a preliminary step in Montenegro's possible accession [EU materials] to the European Union (EU). The SAA is expected to prepare Montenegro for a projected EU membership in 2015 by creating concrete trade deals and easing access to visas.

Montenegro [JURIST news archive] is the newest European state considering membership; the country's Parliament issued a declaration of independence [JURIST report] June 3, 2006 on the basis of a referendum in which 55.5 percent of Montenegrins voted for independence from Serbia [JURIST news archive]. An EU plan to similarly initiate the membership process with Serbia has been put on hold after Chief Prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia Carla Del Ponte said that Serbia was not sufficiently cooperating with her investigation. On Monday, Del Ponte criticized [statement; JURIST report] Serbia for not making adequate progress toward apprehending fugitive war crimes suspects. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] US military judge Col. Peter Brownback on Monday said that military commission proceedings against Canadian Guantanamo Bay detainee Omar Khadr [JURIST news archive] would resume November 8. Brownback's ruling comes despite Khadr's appeal [JURIST report] challenging the earlier decision to send the case back to a military tribunal last week. In an e-mail order to both parties, Brownback conceded his decision is "unprecedented" but said that does not mean it is "improper or unlawful." Brownback said he could not wait for the decision of the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit on Khadr's appeal because unless the federal appeals court issues a stay in the case, he has a "duty" to proceed in a timely manner with Khadr's case.

Khadr was detained in Afghanistan in 2002 after allegedly throwing a grenade that killed one US soldier and wounded another while fighting with the Taliban. He was only 15 at the time. After earlier proceedings against him were effectively quashed by the US Supreme Court's rejection of presidentially-established military commissions as unconstitutional, he was formally recharged [charge sheet, PDF; JURIST report] in April under the Military Commissions Act [PDF text] with murder, attempted murder, conspiracy and providing material support for terrorism, as well as spying. CBC News has more. CanWest News has additional coverage.

[JURIST] The court-martial [press release; JURIST report] of former US military police commander Lt Col William H Steele began in Baghdad Monday on charges [JURIST report] of aiding the enemy by providing a cellular phone to detainees, giving special privileges, failing to obey an order, and for conduct unbecoming an officer by having an inappropriate relationship with an interpreter. Steele is the first officer to be prosecuted for aiding the enemy since the 2003 Iraq invasion and, if convicted, could face a life sentence.

Steele's defense lawyer said Monday that Steele was trying to make sure that detainees under his control were treated humanely and was making an effort to improve the US image in Iraq, but prosecutors insisted that Steele ignored rules put in place for detainees. Camp Cropper, located near Baghdad International Airport, is the second-largest US-run military prison [WP report] in Iraq after Camp Bucca in the wake of the closing of the notorious Abu Ghraib [JURIST news archive] prison which the US emptied [JURIST report] and transferred to the Iraqi government in 2006. Cropper currently has some 3000 inmates. AP has more.

[JURIST] The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed suit [litigation announcement] on Monday against Nortel [corporate website] for fraudulent accounting practices and also reached settlement [press release] with the telecommunications giant. The lawsuit, filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, alleged that Nortel engaged in two illegal accounting schemes from 2000 to 2003 designed to create a favorable market opinion of the company. As part of the settlement, Nortel will pay approximately $35 million in penalties to be distributed to stockholders. The company also consented to a permanent injunction against breaking any federal securities laws in the future, and agreed to submit quarterly reports regarding its actions to fix its accounting procedures. The lawsuit alleged that Nortel reported revenue earlier to meet quarterly and annual forecasts, and also decreased or increased earnings as necessary to create the appearance of profitability. The SEC also alleged that Nortel submitted a fraudulent earnings restatement in 2003 purportedly to correct the previous accounting problems. The SEC expects Nortel to reduce its 2003 earnings by at least half to correct the misleading restatement. Although Nortel did not deny or admit wrongdoing, the SEC noted the cooperation of the company and the board of directors in the investigation, particularly in the formation of an independent audit committee, the termination of officers and executives responsible for the improper accounting, and extensive remediation procedures for the company's accounting procedures.

Nortel had previously settled a lawsuit with the Ontario Securities Commission [official website] and resolved four material weaknesses in the company's accounting and reporting practices. Nortel has committed in the settlement to resolve the fifth material weakness and report its progress in doing so to the SEC. In March, the SEC filed a lawsuit [JURIST report; litigation release] against former Nortel executives Frank A. Dunn, Douglas C. Beatty, Michael J. Gollogly and MaryAnne E. Pahapill, who were terminated for their roles in the improper accounting schemes in April 2004, for violating federal securities laws and lying to auditors. In September, the SEC added as defendants [litigation release] four other former Nortel executives to the lawsuit. The Wall Street Journal has more. CNN/Money has additional coverage.

[JURIST] Milberg Weiss [firm website] partner and co-founder Melvyn Weiss [firm profile] pleaded not guilty Monday to federal charges of conspiracy, racketeering, obstruction of justice and making false statements. Weiss was indicted [JURIST report] last month and said at that time that he would remain of counsel to the firm [statement] while defending himself against the charges, but that he had relinquished his management duties. The indictment stems from a long-running US Attorney investigation into allegations that Milberg Weiss paid up to $11.3 million in illegal kickbacks since 1984 to individuals to serve as lead plaintiffs in class action and shareholder derivative lawsuits. Co-defendant and plaintiff Seymour Lazar also pleaded not guilty Monday to four counts of money laundering, while his attorney Paul Selzer pleaded not guilty to four counts of money laundering and one count of conspiracy to launder money.

In May 2006, a federal grand jury indicted [PDF text; JURIST report] the firm and two former name partners, David J. Bershad and Steven G. Schulman, on charges of obstructing justice and conspiracy to make false statements. As part of the scheme, certain individuals agreed to serve as class action representatives in exchange for 10 percent of the attorney fees eventually gathered by Milberg Weiss. This kickback was not revealed to the judge overseeing litigation, and the named plaintiffs who collected the kickback money made false statements under oath concerning the payments. Three individuals pleaded guilty [JURIST report] in connection with the scheme in May 2006, and former Milberg Weiss name partner David Bershad pleaded guilty [JURIST report] to conspiracy charges in July. Last month, Schulman agreed to plead guilty to racketeering, and to forfeit $1.85 million and pay a $250,000 fine. Another former Milberg Weiss partner, William S. Lerach, reached an agreement with prosecutors to plead guilty [press release; JURIST report] to conspiracy to obstruct justice and will forfeit $7.75 million to the government, pay a $250,000 fine, and will serve one to two years in prison. AP has more.

[JURIST] Carla Del Ponte [official profile], the chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) [official website], on Monday chided Serbian authorities for failing to bring to justice [statement] four accused war criminals who are believed to be hiding in that country, saying that Serbia's cooperation with the tribunal is "still too slow and not yet sufficient." In her address to the Council of the European Union, Del Ponte said:

The refusal to provide access to certain archives and the delay in providing documents seriously affects our work. Although there has been progress, we believe that the level of assistance provided by Serbian authorities in providing documents remains insufficient and does not match their declared political commitment. ...

As a result of my most recent visit to Belgrade , the Serbian authorities had pledged to take certain measures to improve their cooperation with the Tribunal. One of these measures was to launch a nation-wide campaign to reward those that provide information leading to the location or arrest of the Tribunal's fugitives. As I mentioned earlier, I was pleased to learn last Thursday that the National Security Council had decided to launch such campaign, which, in my view, sends a very strong signal. The Serbian authorities had also pledged to pass a law which would expand the role of the War Crimes Prosecutor to include jurisdiction over those who aid and abet war crimes fugitives. This law has not yet been adopted. Finally, the authorities have pledged to propose legislation that would freeze assets of those supporting fugitives. We are still waiting for that law to be passed as well. I believe that these initiatives could greatly assist in the search for fugitives and should be implemented immediately....

In conclusion, please permit me to be very frank as has always been my custom: I confirm that the situation today is better than it was a year ago. However, cooperation is still too slow and not yet sufficient. The fact that Ratko Mladic is still at large after all the promises and declarations that have been made over the years clearly demonstrates that fact. I am absolutely convinced that Serbia 's Government possesses the resources and the means to locate and arrest the fugitives. Translating this ability into tangible results remains the principal obstacle. Therefore, I cannot give a positive assessment of full cooperation until Ratko Mladic is arrested and transferred to The Hague.

[JURIST] Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto [BBC profile] will not be arrested upon her return to Pakistan, Minister for Railways Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said Monday. Bhutto has lived in self-exile in London and Dubai since she left the country in 1999 under a cloud of corruption allegations, and the announcement paves the way for to return to Pakistan to campaign for prime minister later this year. Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] earlier this month signed [JURIST report] a "reconciliation ordinance," granting amnesty to Bhutto on corruption charges so that she could re-enter the country for personal talks between her Pakistani People's Party [party website] and Musharraf, though the Supreme Court of Pakistan said last week that it would hear a challenge to the ordinance [JURIST report]. Musharraf won an overwhelming victory [JURIST report] during presidential elections held earlier this month, but the Supreme Court has barred the Election Commission of Pakistan from officially declaring a winner until it can rule on Musharraf's eligibility as a presidential candidate. The Court will hear legal arguments [JURIST report] later this week in a challenge against Musharraf's candidacy because he ran for another term in office while still head of the country's army. Xinhua has more. APP has local coverage.

Bhutto, who left the country after her government collapsed [PBS backgrounder] in 1999, still retains wide support in her party, the largest in Pakistan [JURIST news archive], but risks losing popularity with the Pakistani public if she reaches any kind of agreement with Musharraf. Also Monday, Pakistani Minister for Information and Broadcasting Muhammad Ali Durrani told reporters that upon her return, Bhutto would be granted full constitutional protection as enjoyed by citizens. APP has additional coverage.

ALSO ON JURIST  Op-ed: Pakistan's Constitutional Mess

[JURIST] UN Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Myanmar Ibrahim Gambari [official profile] Monday criticized Myanmar's detention of four more pro-democracy activists [JURIST report], urging the military government to release political prisoners and end the detention of peaceful democracy activists. Gambari is currently visiting Asian states to solicit greater support for multilateral sanctions against Myanmar.

The latest detainees, all members of the 1988 Generation Students group [BBC backgrounder], were detained after Myanmar's military government rejected [JURIST report] a UN Security Council statement [text; UN News report] denouncing the country's violent reaction against peaceful demonstrators. Myanmar also rejected the UN Security Council's call for the military junta to release political prisoners and negotiate with the opposition National League for Democracy. The military government has reported only 10 deaths linked to the protests, while dissident groups have suggested that some hundreds and perhaps even thousands have been killed. BBC News has more. The UN News Centre has additional coverage.

[JURIST] Four prominent Sri Lankan human rights activists have resigned from a government advisory panel to protest Sri Lanka's worsening human rights situation, including ongoing extradjudicial killings, activist and lawyer Nimalka Fernando [advocacy profile] said Monday. The four submitted their resignations last week after Sri Lankan Human Rights Minister Mahinda Samarashinghe rejected [JURIST report] a proposed UN monitoring mission supported by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour [official website].

In August, Human Rights Watch [advocacy website] accused the Sri Lankan government of being responsible for a dramatic increase in unlawful killings and other human rights violations [JURIST report]. In June, the Sri Lankan government, which has been fighting the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) [CFR backgrounder] since 1972, briefly engaged in the systematic detention of ethnic-Tamils until the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka stopped [JURIST report] the practice. AFP has more.

[JURIST] UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in the Palestinian Territories John Dugard [academic profile] told the BBC Monday that he will recommend that the UN withdraw as a mediator in the Middle East unless action is taken on human rights violations in the Palestinian territories. Dugard said that the UN's membership in the Middle East Quartet [US DOS statements], comprised of Russia, the UN, the US, and the EU, does little good if it fails to protect human rights. He said that the rights situation for Palestinians was worsening due in large part to Israeli security measures that restricted Palestinians' freedom of movement, a policy that Dugard found to be "very disproportionate" to any threat posed.

In February, Dugard released a report [PDF text; JURIST report] criticizing Israel's continued military occupation of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, characterizing the occupation as "colonialism" and "apartheid." The report also condemned violations by Palestinian militants, including the onslaught of violence in civilian areas. Dugard was appointed in 2001 as an independent expert by the now-defunct UN Commission on Human Rights [official website] to investigate Israeli violations of human rights. Israel and the US have dismissed his reports as one-sided. BBC News has more.

[JURIST] Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani [official profile] defended the legality of the semi-autonomous Kurdish government's Kurdistan Oil and Gas Law [official statement] in an interview aired on Al Jazeera Sunday, faulting the Iraqi national government in Baghdad for failing to finalize oil revenue legislation. Barzani insisted that the KRG's oil contracts with foreign companies were consistent with the Iraqi constitution [JURIST news archive] and with revenue-sharing requirements of the draft national oil law. Barzani said that the KRG will retain 17 percent of the total revenues from the independent oil contracts, with the remainder distributed to other Iraqi provinces.

In September, the KRG called for the resignation [JURIST report] of Iraqi Oil Minister Hussein al-Shahristani after al-Shahristani accused the KRG of illegally exporting oil. Al-Shahristani contends that the KRG's contracts with several global companies are illegal because the Iraqi parliament has not yet passed a controversial oil law [JURIST news archive]. The Kurdistan Oil and Gas Law, adopted [JURIST report] in August, allows the Kurdish government to control its own oil resources and select its own foreign investors. Iraq's national draft oil revenue bill has been a source of tension between various ethnic fractions in the Iraqi parliament, and has endured lengthy delays due to successive legislative boycotts [JURIST reports]. Sunni politicians have pushed for federal control over oil revenues and approval rights for foreign development, while Kurds have been adamant about retaining domestic control over oil resources. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said Sunday that the House will vote on a resolution [HR 106 materials; text] labeling as genocide the World War I-era killings of over one million Armenians by Turkish soldiers [ANCA backgrounder; Turkish DC Embassy backgrounder] despite complaints from Turkey. In a Sunday interview on ABC News' This Week, Pelosi said that the resolution will go forward for a vote on the House floor and noted that it is in line with what the US has always unofficially said about the killings. US Senate Majority Leader Steny Hoyer also said Sunday that he expects the resolution to pass [Fox News Sunday transcript; Bloomberg report] before Congress breaks for recess for the year.

The resolution was approved by the House Foreign Relations Committee [JURIST report] last week and now goes to a vote before full House. On Sunday, Turkish General and commander of the Turkish Armed Forces Yasar Buyukanit [official profile] warned that US-Turkish ties will be permanently damaged if the House passes the resolution [JURIST report]. Last Wednesday, US President George W. Bush expressed disappointment [press briefing] over the committee decision and urged the full House not to approve the resolution out of concern that it could alienate Turkey, a key US supporter in the war on terror. The Washington Times has more.

[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website; JURIST news archive] granted certiorari [order list, PDF] Monday in a case where the Court will consider what constitutes money laundering, specifically whether the government must prove an intent to make money received from an unlawful activity appear to be from a legitimate source, or whether a defendant can be convicted of money laundering for merely hiding money. In Cuellar v US (06-1456) [docket; cert. petition, PDF], the defendant is seeking to overturn an international money laundering conviction under 18 USC 1956 [text]. A three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit overturned [opinion, PDF] the conviction, holding that the government had to prove an intent to make the monies appear legitimate as required by law. On rehearing en banc, the full Fifth Circuit reversed [opinion, PDF], saying that the panel had too narrowly interpreted the statute.

Cuellar was arrested in 2003 for hiding a large amount of cash in his car while en route to Mexico. AP has more. SCOTUSBLOG has additional coverage.

[JURIST] The US Department of Defense (DOD) secretly issued hundreds of national security letters (NSLs) [CRS backgrounder, PDF; FBI backgrounder] to obtain financial, telephone and Internet records without court approval, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said Sunday when it released documents obtained from the Defense Department [press release; summary]. The ACLU filed a lawsuit [complaint, PDF] in June to compel the DOD and CIA to hand over documents relating to the organizations' use of NSLs to obtain personal records. The ACLU studied 455 NSLs issued after September 11, 2001, and found that:

that the Defense Department seems to have collaborated with the FBI to circumvent the law, may have overstepped its legal authority to obtain financial and credit records, provided misleading information to Congress, and silenced NSL recipients from speaking out about the records requests...

The documents make clear that the Department of Defense may have secretly and illegally conducted surveillance beyond the powers it was granted by Congress. It also appears as if the FBI is serving as a lackey for the DoD in misusing the Patriot Act powers. At the very least, it certainly looks like the FBI and DoD are conspiring to evade limits placed on the Department of Defense's surveillance powers.

[JURIST] The trial of 30 suspected terrorists [BBC report] accused of plotting to explode the Spanish National Court in Madrid began Monday. The defendants are charged with membership in a terrorist organization, conspiracy to commit a terrorist attack and forgery. The group, led by alleged mastermind Abderrahmane Tahiri, also known as Mohamed Achraf, allegedly planned to run a truck loaded with 1,100 pounds of explosives into the court house, creating an explosion that could have killed up to 1,000 people. Switzerland extradited Tahiri to Spain in 2005 [BBC report] to face charges in Spain.

Spanish judge Baltasar Garzon first charged 17 members of the group in 2004 after police initially arrested eight suspects [JURIST reports] in the plot. Spain's National Court is widely viewed as the center of Spain's anti-terror investigations, and the bomb plot was aimed at killing the country's top judges and case files. AP has more. El Mundo has local coverage, in Spanish.

[JURIST] Emadeddin Baghi [personal website], founder of Iran's Society for Defending Prisoners' Rights [advocacy website], was arrested on charges of violating national security, the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency reported Sunday. An unnamed government official told IRNA that Baghi and family members had participated in opposition meetings designed to overthrow Iran's Islamic regime. Specifically, Baghi has been charged with "spreading propaganda against the regime and publishing secret government documents." Baghi allegedly obtained confidential documents from prisoners and then made those documents available to the public.

Baghi, who has already been accused of mistreating inmates, was reportedly working "against national security under the cover of defending prisoners' rights." He was arrested in 2003 on different charges of violating national security, and already served two years of a three-year prison sentence. The third year of the sentence was suspended, but Baghi will now begin serving that term. Recently, Baghi has been publicly protesting hangings in Iran [JURIST report] and openly criticized heads of reformist parties for not reacting to the hangings. AP has more. AFP has additional coverage.