Vasiljkovic, an Australian citizen, is accused of war crimes occurring during the 1991-1995 Croatian war of independence [GlobalSecurity backgrounder]. The high court's decision to extradite overturns a September ruling by the Federal Court of Australia [official website], which held [JURIST report] that Vasiljkovic should not be extradited due to the risk that his political beliefs would subject him to prejudice if he were returned to Croatia. The High Court's decision comes after a prolonged judicial debate over whether Vasiljkovic should be returned to Croatia to stand trial. trial. In 2007, an Australian court ordered [JURIST report] that Vasiljkovic be handed over to Croatian authorities. Subsequent appeals resulted in conflicting federal court judgments and ultimately led to the high court decision. Vasiljkovic was arrested in Australia in 2006 pursuant to an extradition request [JURIST reports] from the Croatian government.

Kazakhstan has come under increased scrutiny as the first former Soviet republic to chair the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) [official website], a role it assumed at the beginning of 2010. In March Amnesty International (AI) [advocacy website] published a report criticizing the government [JURIST report] for failing to curb torture. In February, Kazakh non-governmental organizations asked [submission, PDF] the UN Human Rights Council [official website] to address instances of torture and the use unlawful evidence obtained through torture during trial. In August, Reporters Without Borders [advocacy website] condemned a Kazakh high court decision upholding the conviction [JURIST report] of a journalist charged with publishing state secrets. In December, Human Rights Watch [advocacy website] said that the former Soviet nation is falling short [JURIST report] on reforms promised in advance of their assumption of the OSCE chairmanship.

In February, Tymoshenko withdrew a lawsuit [JURIST reports] filed in the Supreme Administrative Court of Ukraine claiming that the country's presidential election was corrupt. Tymoshenko dropped the suit claiming she would not receive a fair hearing in the court. She had alleged that widespread voter fraud allowed Yanukovych to win the election. Tymoshenko has a history of being at the center of controversial political moments in Ukraine. In March 2009, she called for constitutional changes [JURIST report] to provide more separation between parliamentary and presidential powers. In October 2008, Tymoshenko withdrew a lawsuit [JURIST report] she had brought against then-president Victor Yushchenko [JURIST news archive] after he suspended a plan to hold early elections following the collapse of the country's coalition government. Before suspending the plan, Yushchenko had issued a decree abolishing a Kiev court after it tried to block [JURIST reports] his order dissolving parliament.

Last week, a UN official called on the US and Canada to respect international conventions [JURIST report] and release Khadr into Canadian custody. In February, Khadr's lawyers filed an emergency motion in the Federal Court of Canada [official website] challenging the decision of the Canadian government not to seek his repatriation [JURIST report]. The Supreme Court of Canada ruled that Canada was not obligated [JURIST report] to seek his repatriation despite having violated his rights under section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms [text].

If the charges for deprivation of honest services had been the only pending counts, the denial of the request to continue the trial pending the Supreme Court's resolution of the cases pending before it might give us pause. However, the defendants face additional charges. In addition, the defendants cannot demonstrate that the challenged orders are effectively unreviewable at the end of the case.

Last month, the prosecution was ordered [JURIST report] to release a 91-page government proffer outlining evidence in its case against Blagojevich. According to the proffer, Blagojevich tried to sell the senate seat vacated by President Barack Obama, made appointments based on anticipated campaign contributions, and took kickbacks from a number of companies. In March, Blagojevich pleaded not guilty [JURIST report] to eight amended corruption charges. In January 2009, the Illinois State Senate voted unanimously [JURIST report] to convict Blagojevich of abuse of power and remove him from office. Blagojevich is the first Illinois governor to be impeached and removed from office. Blagojevich and his chief of staff John Harris were initially arrested [JURIST report] in December 2008 on allegations that they had conspired to sell the Senate seat left vacant by Obama.

Sri Lanka has faced numerous allegations of human rights violations originating from incidents that took place during the final months of the civil war by both the government and the rebel LTTE, which ended last year. In January, UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial killings Philip Alston urged an investigation [JURIST report] into possible war crimes after authenticating a video of members of the LTTE being executed by members of the Sri Lankan military. In October, the US State Department [official website] released a report [text, PDF] on the conflict, urging [JURIST report] Sri Lankan officials to investigate reports of human rights violations and war crimes and prosecute those responsible. While the government of Sri Lanka rejected [statement] the findings of the report, President Mahinda Rajapaksa [official website] decided in October to appoint an independent committee [JURIST report] to investigate allegations of human rights violations.

Last week, Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson [official profile] agreed to delay the implementation of a controversial new state law [HB 2780 text, RTF] requiring women seeking an abortion to consent first to an ultrasound. The Center for Reproductive Rights [advocacy website] requested a restraining order temporarily barring enforcement of the law. In April, the Oklahoma Senate voted to override [JURIST report] Henry's veto of two anti-abortion bills, including the ultrasound bill. The Oklahoma laws join another restrictive abortion law passed recently in Nebraska, which bans abortions after 20 weeks [JURIST report].

In February 2009, several advocacy, rights, and philanthropic groups filed an amicus curiae brief [text, PDF; JURIST report] in the case, arguing against the classification of some charitable groups as terrorist organizations without due process. The brief argued that the designation of charitable groups as terrorist organizations without due process violates the groups' constitutional rights and discourage and undermine their humanitarian aid efforts. Kindhearts had argued that the Treasury's asset freeze, investigation, and refusal to allow KindHearts to dispute the findings were arbitrary and capricious and violated KindHearts' First, Fourth, and Fifth Amendment [text] rights.