The NDAA was not signed into law [JURIST report] without controversy. According to Obama, his administration will implement the controversial provisions, including that saying "all necessary and appropriate force" may be used to detain those suspected of terrorism, in a manner which will provide the maximum measure of flexibility. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) vigorously chastised the President stating that the statute is dangerous due to its lack of temporal or geographic limitations. Both houses of Congress reached an agreement [JURIST report] on the language of the NDAA's most controversial sections in mid-December. Earlier in December, the Senate Armed Services Committee unanimously approved [JURIST report] a provision in the NDAA that gives the military complete control and custody over terror suspects. Shortly before the SASC's decision, the ACLU issued a report [pdf] claiming that the US is diminishing its "core values" [JURIST report] with regard to various counterterrorism measures put in place during the 10 years since the 9/11 attacks.

In February 2009, a five-judge panel of the UK's Law Lords ruled unanimously that Qatada could be deported [JURIST report] to Jordan despite fears he might be tortured upon his arrival. This decision overruled an April 2008 decision by the Court of Appeal blocking [JURIST report] deportation. Qatada was originally ordered deported [JURIST report] in February 2007. He was expected to be one of the first terror suspects to be deported under the UK's 2005 extradition oversight agreement [JURIST report] with Jordan.

Israel has never put forth any concrete security rationale for blanket policies that have made life a nightmare for Palestinians whom it considers unlawful residents in their own homes. The current policies leave families divided and people trapped on the wrong side of the border in Gaza and the West Bank. Israel should revise these policies and process requests for families to reunite, so that Palestinians can live with their families where they want.

While HRW has urged Israel to change its policies concerning Palestinian residencies, Israel has recently made some changes on its own accord to certain legislative policies. In January, an Israeli government panel approved a bill [JURIST report] that would make it illegal to use any Nazi symbols, names, or images, including the use of the term "Nazi" and any clothing resembling that worn by prisoners at concentration camps. Also in January, the Israeli Knesset passed a bill [JURIST report] that imposes harsher penalties on illegal migrants in Israel, as well as on Israelis who help illegal migrants. The bill amends the Prevention of Infiltration Law of 1954, broadening the law to include not only individuals suspected of terrorism, but all illegal migrants.

In 2009, a sharply divided Montana Supreme Court [official website] ruled [JURIST report] that physician assisted suicide is not banned by state law, making Montana the third state to allow the practice after Oregon and Washington. The court upheld in part and reversed in part a lower court ruling, agreeing with its finding that physician assisted suicide is not illegal under state law, but giving no opinion on the greater constitutional question addressed by the lower court. Instead, it found in a 4-3 decision that physician assisted suicide was not rendered illegal under state statute or by public policy concerns.

I remain of the firm conviction that justice and accountability measures, as well as measures to ensure access to the truth, are fundamental for Myanmar to move forward towards national reconciliation. During my mission, I made a careful assessment as to whether the National Human Rights Commission could play a role in this regard. However, considering the lack of independence and the limited capacity of the Commission, it is crucially important that the Government of Myanmar involve stakeholders, including victims of human rights violations, in order to get their advice and views on how and when to establish truth, justice and accountability measures. It is also important to learn lessons from other countries that have experience in these processes.

Myanmar has made a series of reforms following a transfer of power from a military regime to a civil system last March. Last month Myanmar President Thein Sein [BBC backgrounder] signed a clemency order on that shortened sentences for many prisoners on humanitarian grounds in celebration of Myanmar's independence day. In December the Myanmar government announced that the political party of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi [JURIST news archive] would be allowed to register for the next elections, an announcement that followed Suu Kyi's release [JURIST reports] in November after eight years under house arrest. In September, Myanmar's government created the Myanmar National Human Rights Commission (MNHRC) [JURIST report] to safeguard citizens' constitutional rights.

The Working Group considers the need to address the problem of security in the country as a legitimate and critical issue of concern. It believes that the right to security is an important human right that is interlinked with the right to life. At the same time the Working Group reiterates that the right to liberty and to be free from arbitrary deprivation of liberty is also of extraordinary value and that there is a dire need to safeguard both fundamental rights. The need for public security cannot therefore be pursued or achieved without due consideration of the right to liberty and the right to be free from arbitrary arrest and detention.

Human rights groups have been increasingly vocal about the need for human rights amidst recent protests and investigations of detention facilities. In January, Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] released [JURIST report] its annual World Report, leading with a criticism of Western governments' support of Middle Eastern regimes that stifle and suppress protests. In December, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay urged [JURIST report] the UN Security Council to refer the situation in Syria to the International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] for investigation into crimes against humanity committed by the Syrian government. An estimated 7,000 detainees are still being held without due process by Libyan revolutionaries, according to a UN report [JURIST report] made public in November. In October, UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) [official website] released a report stating that the prisoners in some Afghan-run detention facilities have been beaten and tortured.

Egypt's crackdown on NGOs has drawn criticism for months. In January, the Egyptian government denied cracking down on pro-democracy NGOs after officials raided the offices of 17 different NGOs [JURIST reports] the previous week. Authorities stated that the raid was part of an investigation of illegal political funding activities, but accusations spread that the government was trying to silence the military council's vocal opposition. A spokesperson for the US State Department said that the raids on NGOs did not positively reflect the Egyptian government's commitment to democracy. Despite Egypt's assurances to the US that it would return to the NGOs all property and assets seized in the raids, the Egyptian military also proclaimed that it would not tolerate foreign interference [Reuters report] in the nation's affairs. This week's decision to investigate NGO employees coincides with ongoing violence in Egypt [NPR report], where more than 70 people were killed Thursday during a riot in a soccer stadium and as many as 13 killed in protests during the last five days.

Gaddafi's son, Saif al-Islam, faces the death penalty in Libya for crimes against humanity based on charges of killing protesters. If he is transferred to the International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] to stand trial, he would be one of the most prominent figures to be tried by the ICC. Last week, in response to international criticism, the Libyan Ministry of Justice announced [JURIST report] that it will be commandeering "makeshift prisons" around the country to prevent further torture of detainees. Deputy Minister Khalifa Ashour acknowledged that primarily loyalists to former dictator Gaddafi have been tortured in unregulated prisons. Allegations of war crimes and human rights violations have been widespread in the aftermath of the Libyan conflict. In January Amnesty International (AI) [advocacy website] reported the recent deaths of several Libyan detainees who were apparently tortured while in custody [JURIST report]. In the midst of the Libya conflict, the ICC issued an arrest warrant [JURIST commentary] for Saif al-Islam, who was an extremely recognizable figure in the Gaddafi regime.