[JURIST] Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] on Friday called [press release] the closed door trial of Cambodia's opposition leader Sam Rainsy [official profile] and two others a "farce," saying the ruling demonstrates the government's control over the country's judiciary. Rainsy was convicted [RFA report] Wednesday, in absentia, of inciting racial discrimination and intentionally destroying posts demarcating the border between Cambodia and Vietnam. Two villagers were convicted of the same crimes. HRW Asia Director Brad Adams said the decision was the result of political motivations by Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen [official profile]:

The Cambodian government's relentless crackdown on critics continues apace in 2010. Hun Sen seems intent on reversing the political pluralism that has been created over the past two decades. Any hopes of slowing Hun Sen's assault on the political opposition now depends on the donor community, which props up the government financially. This political trial should make donors recognize the gravity of the situation.

[JURIST] US President Barack Obama on Friday ordered the federal government to reduce [press release] its greenhouse gas emissions [JURIST news archive] by 28 percent by 2020. The reduction is pursuant to Executive Order 13514 [text, PDF], signed by Obama in October. The order provides, in part:

It is therefore the policy of the United States that Federal agencies shall increase energy efficiency; measure, report, and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions from direct and indirect activities; conserve and protect water resources through efficiency, reuse, and stormwater management; eliminate waste, recycle, and prevent pollution; leverage agency acquisitions to foster markets for sustainable technologies and environmentally preferable materials, products, and services; design, construct, maintain, and operate high performance sustainable buildings in sustainable locations; strengthen the vitality and livability of the communities in which Federal facilities are located; and inform Federal employees about and involve them in the achievement of these goals.

[JURIST] The Supreme Court of Canada [official website] ruled [judgment text] Friday that while the treatment of Canadian Guantanamo Bay detainee Omar Khadr [DOD materials; JURIST news archive] violated his rights, the government does not have to press for his return to Canada. In a unanimous decision, the court ruled that the interrogation of Khadr by Canadian officials while in detention violated section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms [text]. According to the ruling, Canadian officials questioned Khadr, who was captured at age 15, even though they knew he was being indefinitely detained, and, in March 2004, he was questioned with knowledge that he was subjected to three weeks sleep deprivation by US authorities. Still, the court said that forcing the government to press for his return was not an appropriate remedy. The court reasoned that ordering such a remedy would overreach its authority by not respecting the power of the executive to act on issues of foreign affairs. The Canadian chapter of Amnesty International [advocacy website] urged [press release] the government to exercise its authority to remedy the violations of Khadr's constitutional rights:

Amnesty International is calling on the Canadian government to respond immediately to today's unanimous Supreme Court of Canada declaration that Omar Khadr's rights have been violated. As a remedy to those violations, Amnesty International continues to call on the Canadian government immediately to seek Omar Khadr's repatriation from Guantanamo Bay back to Canada.

[JURIST] A Nigerian court ruled Friday that ailing President Umaru Yar'Adua [BBC profile] is not required to formally transfer his powers to Vice President Goodluck Jonathan [Online Nigeria profile] or any other interim leader. The Federal High Court in Abuja rejected [BBC report] a lawsuit brought by the Nigerian Bar Association [official website], seeking to have presidential powers temporary endowed in Jonathan pursuant to Article 145 of Nigeria's Constitution [text]. Last week, the court ordered [JURIST report] Nigeria's cabinet to pass a resolution within 14 days on whether Yar'Adua is capable of running the country. Earlier this month, a judge for Nigeria's Federal High Court ordered [JURIST report] Jonathan to assume executive powers in Yar'Adua's absence. Yar'Adua has been receiving medical treatment in Saudi Arabia since late November

In 2008, the Nigerian Supreme Court upheld the results of disputed 2007 election that brought Yar'Adua to power, despite opposition groups' allegations of fraud [JURIST reports]. Yar'Adua had promised to step down if the court invalidated the election. A tribunal [JURIST report] formed before the 2007 election to deal with allegations of fraud ruled that the opposition groups lacked enough evidence of fraud to have the results overturned.

[JURIST] The White House is considering moving the trials of alleged 9/11 conspirator Khalid Sheikh Mohammed [JURIST news archive] and other high-profile terror suspects out of New York City, a senior official said Friday. Although the deputy press secretary reaffirmed [transcript] earlier this week that US President Barack Obama "agrees with the Attorney General's opinion that ... he and others can be litigated successfully and securely in the United States of America, just like others have," the administration is now considering moving the trial [NYT report] after strong local opposition. Earlier this week, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg [official profile] cited costs and potential disruptions to the lives of New Yorkers in urging the federal government to move the trials. Bloomberg reiterated that position Friday, saying [recorded audio, MP3] that "it would be phenomenally expensive and it is very disruptive to people who live in the area and businesses in the area ... and it would be better to do it elsewheres [sic] if they could find a venue."

In November, US Attorney General Eric Holder [official website] appeared before the Senate to defend plans [JURIST reports] to try Mohammed, Ramzi Bin Al Shibh [JURIST news archive], Walid Bin Attash, Ali Abdul-Aziz Ali, and Mustafa Ahmed Al Hawsaw in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York. Earlier in November, the US Senate defeated [JURIST report] an amendment [S AMDT 2669 materials] to an appropriations bill [HR 2847 materials] that would have prevented Guantanamo detainees accused of involvement in 9/11 from being tried in federal courts. In October, Obama signed [JURIST report] into law the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act of 2010 [HR 2892 materials], which allows for Guantanamo Bay detainees to be transferred to the US for prosecution and, among other provisions, requires certain information about each transferred detainee to be disclosed to Congress including costs, legal rationales, and possible risks.

[JURIST] A French public prosecutor on Friday announced plans to appeal the acquittal [JURIST report] of former prime minister Dominique de Villepin [BBC profile; JURIST news archive], which cleared him of all charges for his role in an alleged plot to defame several businessmen, including current President Nicolas Sarkozy [official profile, in French; JURIST news archive]. The appeal comes shortly after Sarkozy announced that he would not appeal [NYT report] the verdict. According to French Media Advisor Franck Louvrier, prosecutors were not given instructions from the president, and Sarkozy will not be a civil party to the appeal [Le Monde report, in French].

In October, de Villepin denied breaking the law and claimed that Sarkozy ordered the prosecution [JURIST report] for personal and political reasons. De Villepin and his alleged co-conspirators went on trial [JURIST report] last September. In November 2008, de Villepin was ordered to stand trial [JURIST report] for his connection with the long-running political scandal known as the Clearstream Affair [BBC backgrounder]. De Villepin's political image was tainted by the allegations as well as by his advance of an unpopular youth labor law [JURIST news archive] during his time as prime minister.

[JURIST] Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] Luis Moreno-Ocampo [official profile] said [Reuters report] Thursday that he believes the ICC's appeals chamber will add a genocide charge to the case against Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir [BBC profile; JURIST news archive]. The chamber will rule [press release] next Wednesday on an appeal challenging the ICC's decision not to include a count of genocide in its March arrest warrant [JURIST reports] for al-Bashir on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Darfur [JURIST news archive]. The court found insufficient evidence to support the additional charge at the time, though Moreno-Ocampo argued that the evidentiary standards imposed by the pre-trial chamber in advance of the March indictment were an improper interpretation of Article 58 of the Rome Statute [texts]. Al-Bashir has denied all accusations, and will seek re-election in April.

The warrant was met with mixed reactions, with some believing that its enforcement would jeopardize peacekeeping efforts [JURIST report] in Sudan. The African Union [official website] reversed its initial opposition to the warrant, later recommending cooperation [JURIST report] on the principle that those sought by international courts should be required to face the charges against them. Al-Bashir scoffed [JURIST report] at the warrant upon its issuance, saying that it represents an effort by Western countries to reassert colonial power over Sudan, and criticized the ICC for failing to take action in conflicts in Iraq and the Gaza Strip. He is accused of leading the systematic harassment and murder of members of the Fur, Masalit, and Zaghawa ethnic groups under the pretext of counter-insurgency since 2003.

[JURIST] A Vietnamese court sentenced writer and democracy activist Pham Thanh Nghien to a four-year prison term on Friday on charges of spreading anti-state propaganda. Foreign observers were not permitted to attend the trial, which took place in the city of Haiphong in the northern region of Vietnam [JURIST news archive] and lasted less than a day [AFP report]. Nghien was sentenced under Vietnam's Penal Code Article 88 [text], which provides for up to 20 years in prison for crimes including "propagating against" the government or "circulating documents ... with contents against" the government. Convictions under Article 88 have been criticized [press release] by groups such as Amnesty International [advocacy website], which calls the law "vaguely worded" and accuses authorities of a "long history of using its sweeping provisions to silence voices they deem unacceptable."

Nghien is the latest in a string of dissidents to be convicted for anti-government activities. Last week, a Vietnamese court convicted four democracy activists [JURIST report] of subversion in a one-day trial. Prominent human rights lawyer Le Cong Dinh [JURIST news archive], Le Thang Long, and Nguyen Tien Trung were given prison sentences between 5-7 years, and Internet entrepreneur Tran Huynh Duy Thuc received a 16-year sentence. Dinh was originally charged [JURIST report] with spreading propaganda under Article 88, but was eventually convicted of the more serious crime of subversion. Last month, pro-democracy dissident Tran Anh Kim was also sentenced [JURIST report] to five-and-a-half years in prison for subversion. In 2009, two Vietnamese newspaper editors were dismissed from their jobs for protesting the arrests of two journalists [JURIST reports] who reported on government corruption. The arrested reporters, accused of "abusing freedom and democracy," were sentenced to two years of prison and "re-education" for reporting on the so-called PMU 18 corruption scandal [JURIST reports].

[JURIST] Kenya's Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) on Thursday recommended [statement] eliminating the position of prime minister in the country's draft constitution [text, PDF]. Other PSC proposals [Daily Nation report] include an expanded parliament, with some seats guaranteed to women, a prohibition on members of parliament serving in cabinet positions to maintain a separation of powers, and a presidency that requires a candidate to receive a majority of the popular vote as well as at least a quarter of the vote in at least half the counties. The PSC will share its decisions with Kenya's Committee of Experts on Constitutional Review [official website] for it to consider.

Last week, the PSC decided that it would not recommend marriage rights [JURIST report] for women equal to those of men. The first draft of the constitution was unveiled [JURIST report] in November. The changes are intended to reduce the widespread injustice throughout the country, and specifically address issues that led to violence following the 2007 presidential elections [JURIST news archive]. In October, former UN secretary-general Kofi Annan [official profile; JURIST news archive] called for constitutional reform in Kenya before the next electoral cycle begins in 15 months. In 2007, tens of thousands of protesters took to Kenya's streets accusing President Mwai Kibaki [official profile] of election fraud after early opinion polls suggested rival Raila Odinga [campaign website] was in the lead.

[JURIST] Malaysia's Kuching High Court [official website] has issued an injunction to stop a company from destroying the homes of indigenous Malaysians. Last week, state-government agents began tearing down [BMF report] Iban houses on land controlled by the native Iban people [backgrounder] at the request Tatau Land Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of ASSAR Group [official website], a government-owned holding company seeking to develop the land. Between 25 and 30 houses were destroyed. The injunction [Bintulu report], issued Monday, prohibits Tatau Land and government agencies from entering the Iban land until at least February 9, when the court will conduct a full hearing.

A number of indigenous people have attempted to assert land rights in recent years. In August, an indigenous Indonesian tribe sued a subsidiary [JURIST report] of US mining company Freeport-McRoRan Copper & Gold [corporate website], claiming it owned the land the company was mining. In May, the Swedish Sami Association [advocacy website, in Swedish] brought a lawsuit [JURIST report] against Sweden's government, claiming the state was violating Sami hunting rights. In March, Brazil's Supreme Court expelled 200 rice farmers [JURIST report] from an area of land, ruling that the land belonged to indigenous peoples. In 2008, the New Zealand government and several Maori groups signed a deed of settlement [JURIST report] worth nearly NZ $196 million to resolve certain indigenous claims concerning land taken by British settlers in the 19th century.