[JURIST] The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) [official website] on Monday charged Bank of America [corporate website] with misleading investors [complaint, PDF] regarding billions of dollars paid to Merrill Lynch [corporate website] executives during the acquisition of the firm. The complaint alleges that, during the merger of the companies, the agreement for BOA to allow Merrill Lynch to pay discretionary bonuses was located in a separate document that was not disclosed prior to the shareholders' vote on the merger. The agreement allowed Merrill Lynch to pay up to $5.8 billion of the $50 billion merger consideration as executive bonuses. Ultimately, $3.6 billion in bonuses were paid to Merrill Lynch executives despite record losses in 2008. BOA agreed to settle [press release] with the SEC and pay a $33 million penalty but did not admit or deny the allegations. The terms of the settlement enjoin BOA from violating proxy solicitation rules set forth in § 14 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 [text].

Last week, BOA announced that it reached a settlement [JURIST report] with Italian dairy company Parmalat SpA [corporate website; JURIST news archive] in litigation stemming from the company's 2003 collapse. The settlement agreement dictates that BOA will pay Parmalat $100 million in cash and non-cash components, resolving a 2004 lawsuit brought against the bank. In June, the SEC charged [complaint, PDF; JURIST report] former Countrywide Financial Corporation officials with securities fraud arising from misleading investors about credit risks involved in the company's efforts to build and maintain their market share. Countrywide was acquired by BOA in July 2008, making the bank the nation's leading mortgage originator.

[JURIST] Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei [official profile; BBC profile] on Monday endorsed [press release] President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] for a new four-year term, saying that his election was a vote toward combating poverty, corruption, and discrimination. After praising Ahmadinejad as being a "hard-working and prudent man," Khamenei called for the administration to strictly follow the constitution and to consider the opposition's views. The leader classified the 85 percent turnout for the election as "clear proof" of the voters' dedication to the country and as hope for its improvement. According to the reports, opposition leaders boycotted [NYT report] Monday's ceremony.

Khamenei's comments follow a much-disputed election [JURIST news archive] in which opposition candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi [IranTracker profile] lost to Ahmadinejad. On Saturday, Iran began the trials [JURIST report] of 100 detained protesters. Last week, Iranian officials announced that 140 people detained during post-election protests would be released [JURIST report] and that the judiciary would decide whether to try or release the approximate 500 others. In July, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran reported that the number of deaths during the protests exceeded government reports [JURIST report]. Khamenei granted a request [JURIST report] from the Guardian Council of the Constitution [official website, in Persian] in June to accept new complaints from the opposition although he maintained that he would not succumb to pressure over the results.

[JURIST] Kenya should establish an independent tribunal [press release] to prosecute those believed to be responsible for the post-election violence in Kenya [JURIST report] in late 2007 and early 2008 instead of relying on its own judicial system, Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] urged Monday. The HRW statement comes in response to last week's announcement [press release] by the Kenyan Cabinet [official website] that it will undertake judicial reforms [speech text] to keep the option of trying suspects in domestic courts open. The cabinet did not reach a firm decision, but said it is still weighing its options and pledged a "commitment to the rule of law." HRW called for an independent tribunal with international support and participation, saying:

The argument for a special tribunal has always been that the Kenyan judiciary lacks independence, and the necessary root-and-branch reforms of the entire justice system will take years. The idea that the existing judicial system can deal with the senior politicians and government officials who allegedly incited and organized the killing is an insult to the memory of those who lost their lives.

[JURIST] A Malaysian court charged 29 protesters on Monday for their alleged involvement in weekend rallies against the country's Internal Security Act (ISA) [text, PDF; AI backgrounder]. The law, which allows indefinite detainment without trial, was protested by an estimated 10,000 to 20,000 people in Kuala Lumpur, resulting in 589 arrests [AFP report] and the use of tear gas and water cannons by police. The protesters were charged with aiding an illegal organization or participating in an illegal rally since a police permit was not obtained. The demonstration was allegedly started by the Abolish ISA Movement [advocacy blog], a group which a defense lawyer maintained is not an illegal organization since it is composed of registered NGOs and political parties. The Malaysian Bar Council [professional website] opposed the arrests [press release] and the use of force, saying that it was an "over-zealous and abusive show of power in [the government's] apparent determination to crush the people’s exercise of its right to the twin freedoms of assembly and expression." Prime Minister Najib Razak [official website; BBC profile] dismissed the protest as being unnecessary since he previously pledged to review the controversial law. Those charged face up to two years in prison.

After taking office in April, Najib called for the release [JURIST report] of 13 people who were detained under the ISA, including two ethnic Indian leaders. In November, Malaysian High Court Justice Syed Ahmad Helmy Syed Ahmad ordered the release [JURIST report] of blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin, finding insufficient grounds for his arrest under the ISA. In January 2008, the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) [advocacy website, in French] called for the country to abolish the ISA [JURIST report], claiming that the law was being used to stifle peaceful dissent.

[JURIST] Japan began its first trial under the new lay judge system at the Tokyo District Court [official website, in Japanese] on Monday. Katsuyoshi Fujii is on trial for the murder of his neighbor, a South Korean woman. The proceedings began with the selection of six lay judges [Mainichi Daily News report] and three backups by a lottery system after the pool was narrowed down based on interviews. The panel also includes three professional judges. Of the 73 lay judge candidates summoned by the court, 47 appeared [Kyodo News report] Monday. The law specifies that failure to appear when summoned could result in a fine. Because Fujii has already admitted to killing his neighbor, the trial will focus on the appropriate sentence, and a decision is expected to be reached within several days. The lay judge system has caused controversy, and demonstrators gathered outside the court Monday to protest a system that would require them to stand in judgment of fellow citizens, which they believe violates the constitutional principles of freedom of thought and conscience.

The lay judge system was set to get in effect on May 1, but was postponed after 20 members of the Japanese parliament, the National Diet, formed a nonpartisan group to delay [JURIST report] its implementation. The group had concerns over rules governing disclosure and trial duration, along with the belief that the members of public will not be prepared make decisions in serious cases. The Supreme Court of Japan [official website, in Japanese] has said that approximately one out of every four citizens would not be eligible to serve as lay judges. Those who are ineligible to serve include policemen and security personnel. Others are given the option of serving, including those who are over the age of 70, are full time students, or have serious medical conditions. Japan previously experimented with a jury system from 1928 to 1943 in which only males over the age of 30 could participate.

[JURIST] An Iraqi court on Sunday convicted Ali Hassan al-Majid [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] and former foreign minister and deputy prime minister Tariq Aziz [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] of forcing the Kurdish population to be displaced from the northeast of Iraq during the late 1980s. The Supreme Iraqi Criminal Tribunal [governing statute, PDF] sentenced al-Majid, better known in the western media as "Chemical Ali," and Aziz, along with former officials Sadoon Shakir and Mizban Khudr Hadi, to seven years in prison [Alsumaria report] for their involvement in Saddam Hussein's campaign against the Kurds in which many villages were destroyed. Aziz was defended on the grounds that he spent much of his time on foreign diplomatic missions and was therefore not involved in the forced displacements.

The sentence will extend Aziz's prison term to a total of 22 years following a March conviction [JURIST report] for his involvement in the 1992 murders of 42 merchants accused of price-gouging during UN-imposed sanctions. Prior to his March conviction, Aziz was acquitted of charges [JURIST report] in connection with the killing of protesters who rioted in Baghdad and Amarah following the alleged assassination of Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Sadiq al-Sadr. Hussein's cousin al-Majid received a third death sentence for his involvement in the alleged assassination.