In Utah, we have beautiful and resource-rich land. Our lands have supported both a strong energy development industry and a vibrant outdoor recreation industry for years. They can continue to do so if all stakeholders are allowed to collaborate within a proper legal framework to determine the best use for our lands. ... Corporations will not invest the time or resources to prepare new bids and engage in new explorations in an unsteady regulatory environment. This order is bad policy, it's bad for Utah, and it's bad for the entire nation.

This is not the first time a district court has been called upon to settle a dispute over wilderness protection. In February, the US District Court for the District of Idaho [official website] dismissed a lawsuit brought by environmentalists [JURIST report] that challenged the state's "roadless rule" [JURIST news archive] to manage and protect its nine million acres of forests. The National Forest Service (NFS) [official website] issued the Roadless Area Conservation Act [text] in 2001, which prohibited the building of roads or the use of roadless lands in National Parks for timber production. The act is currently in force in all states except Idaho and Alaska. Environmentalists argued that Idaho's version of the rule provided less protection than its federal counterpart. In February 2010, the US District Court for the District of Columbia [official website] granted summary judgment [JURIST report] for the NFS, upholding an agreement limiting the amount of timber that can be harvested in Alaska's Tongass National Forest. Several Alaska towns and companies challenged the 2008 forest plan, which, among other things, designated parts of the forest "old growth reserves," limiting the amount of timber that could be harvested.

The reality is that appealing to the courts has ended. Appealing to the decency and the will of voters is next. This is also a political issue. Most Canadians would be appalled at the working and living conditions of tens of thousands of Ontario agriculture workers. ... There is an Ontario election coming and we and our allies and members will make this an issue.

Public unions' rights to engage in collective bargaining has become a major issue in the US as well. Earlier this month, Wisconsin's attorney general filed a Petition for Supervisory Writ to the Wisconsin Supreme Court [JURIST report] claiming that a circuit court judge did not have the constitutional authority to issue a restraining order to temporarily block publication [JURIST report] of the state's Budget Repair Bill [Senate Bill 11 text, PDF]. The original lawsuit alleged that Republican lawmakers did not follow the state's open meetings law [JURIST report] when passing the legislation. The court order was issued in response to debate among government officials [JURIST report] that the law, which strips public unions of the vast majority of their collective bargaining rights, went into effect after it was published on the Wisconsin Legislative Bureau's website. Last month, the Ohio Senate passed a bill [JURIST report] that alters Ohio labor law and restricts the collective bargaining abilities of unions and public sector workers. Governor John Kasich signed the bill into law [Plain Dealer report] at the end of March. Opponents of the bill have begun a campaign to put the issue to a vote by placing a referendum on the November ballot. Several other states are considering similar legislation.

Manning faces two charges [charge sheet, PDF; JURIST report] under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) [text] for the transfer of classified information and exceeding his authorized computer access. His prosecution has sparked heated debate between defenders and critics. Those who support Manning's actions refer to him as courageous for acting as a whistleblower [advocacy petition] against government crime and corruption. He has been compared to famous US whistleblowers such as Frank Serpico and Daniel Ellsberg [personal websites], who leaked information regarding corruption in the New York Police Department and the Pentagon, respectively. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates [official profile] has criticized the video [WSJ report], claiming it provides the public a view of warfare "as seen through a soda straw." He noted that public attention was not drawn to what was discovered by US ground forces following the helicopter gunfire, including AK-47s and rocket-propelled grenade launchers. He also defended the reality of fighting terrorist organizations, which is made up of combatants who do not wear enemy uniforms.

Last month, a commission of Arab and Egyptian human rights groups accused the former president [JURIST report] and the country's police of murdering protesters during the demonstrations in Egypt early this year. The joint commission submitted their report to Egypt's top prosecutor for further investigation. The Supreme Military Council of Egypt, which assumed power after Mubarak's resignation, instructed Egypt's top prosecutor to investigate the death of protesters [RIA Novosti report] during the three weeks of demonstrations in the country. Following the demonstrations, Egypt's chief prosecutor requested in February that Foreign Ministry officials take steps to freeze any foreign assets [JURIST report] belonging to Mubarak and his family.