[JURIST] Several human rights groups, including Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website; JURIST news archive], on Sunday expressed concern over the potential for violence as the Thai government begins the forced deportation of 4,000 ethnic Hmong [materials] to Laos from a refugee camp inside Thailand. The Hmong fear that they will face [AP report] persecution in Laos for supporting the opposition government if they are forced to leave their camp in Thailand. The Thai government believes that the Hmong entered the country illegally, and therefore are not entitled to be protected as refugees. In anticipation of potential problems with the evacuation, more than 4,500 Thai troops, police and security staff were sent [Bangkok Post report] to the camp for assistance. In a statement [text] issued by the US Department of State [official website] last week, the US government asked Thailand to reconsider its decision.

The deportation of the Hmong has already caused tension in the region. In October, HRW called on Laos [JURIST report] to release Hmong leaders who were forcibly repatriated from Thailand and imprisoned in Laos for their role in a June protest at the camp. The Hmong have been engaged in conflict with the Laos government since the Vietnam War, during which they supported the US [MSF backgrounder, PDF]. Over 300,000 Hmong fled Laos to Thailand in the early 1970s, where several thousand still remain. In 2004, Thailand began forcibly repatriating [BBC report] Hmong refugees to Laos, where refugees reportedly fear reprisal.

[JURIST] At least four people were killed in Iran on Sunday after violence broke out between government security forces and opposition protesters. The protests, which were the largest since those that followed the June presidential election [JURIST news archive], interrupted [Tehran Times report] the Shia Muslim celebration of Ashura, which marks the 7th century death of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson Hussein. Iranian officials warned the public against protests prior to the holy day. The government initially denied reports that shots were directed into the crowds, claiming that the security forces were not armed. Police later confirmed [Tehran Times report] that four individuals were killed, several others, including police officers, were injured and over 300 protesters were arrested. Among those reported dead [NYT report] is the 35-year-old nephew of opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi [JURIST news archive].

The Iranian government has faced significant international scrutiny for its handling of the protests and treatment of thousands arrested as a result. Earlier this month, Amnesty International (AI) [advocacy website] labeled [JURIST report] human rights violations committed by the Iranian government following the election among the worst of the past 20 years. In September, human rights groups called for [JURIST report] the UN General Assembly [official website] to appoint a special envoy to investigate allegations of rights violations. Alleged human rights abuses of detainees include sexual assault, beatings, and forced confessions [JURIST reports].

[JURIST] Former US Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor [JURIST news archive] and the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System (IAALS) [advocacy website] this week began a campaign to urge state legislatures to move towards merit-based judicial appointments instead of direct judicial elections. According to the IAALS there are 33 states that select judges through direct elections, which it says have become characterized by unprecedented campaign spending and sensational advertising. The O'Connor Judicial Selection Initiative (OJSI) [advocacy website] will likely push legislatures to adopt a system similar to the one O'Connor helped to introduce in Arizona, where a state commission made up mostly of non-lawyers pick judges, Governors appoint judges selected by the commissions, and voters decide in future elections whether the judges stay in office. Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Seamus McCaffery [official profile] has called the system elitist and says [CNN report] that elections make him accountable to the citizens of Pennsylvania, rather than the governor or a commission. OJSI will push for these reforms to be made in the 2010 state legislative sessions.

The initiative comes after a June decision [JURIST report] by the US Supreme Court that West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals [official website] Justice Brent Benjamin [official profile] violated the due process [Cornell LII backgrounder] rights of a civil plaintiff when he did not recuse himself from a case where the defendant was a major campaign contributor of his. In September 2006, O'Connor said that judges have been intimidated and judicial independence threatened [JURIST report] by the involvement of the legislative and executive branches. O'Connor, the first woman ever on the US Supreme Court, retired [JURIST report] in January 2006 after 25 years on the bench.