Religious violence and discrimination is a problem worldwide that many countries are trying to eliminate. In July an Indian court sentenced 21 people [JURIST report] to life imprisonment when they were found guilty of murdering a Muslim family in 2002. Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] in June sent a letter [JURIST report] to a Bulgarian minister asking her to denounce violence by anti-gay and lesbian groups. In 2007, the US State Department [official website] released a report [JURIST report] criticizing some of its allies' lack of religious freedom and the amount of religious violence that occurs in those countries.

The issue of the death penalty [JURIST news archive] continues to be debated in countries throughout the world, and Gambia's recent executions added fuel to the fire. At the end of last month the UN encouraged Gambia [JURIST report] to reinstate an immediate moratorium on the death penalty. In July Singapore went the other direction, announcing plans to relax mandatory death sentences [JURIST report] for drug trafficking and murder. A week earlier UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon [official profile] called on all member states to abolish capital punishment [JURIST report]. Human rights groups have also researched the topic, and the Anti-Death Penalty Asia Network [advocacy website] released a report in December that showed the Asia-Pacific region executes more people [JURIST report] than the rest of the world.

The Budget Repair Bill has been the subject of copious legal and political controversy since its passage in March 2011. In July the Wisconsin Supreme Court [official website] refused to reopen a case challenging the Budget Repair Bill because of a justice's refusal to recuse himself [JURIST report]. The Supreme Court's upholding of the Budget Repair Bill overruled a Dane County Circuit Court's decision [opinion, PDF; JURIST report] last year that struck down the law for violations of the open meetings rule. The law had previously been temporarily blocked [JURIST report] from publication and implementation by the same judge. The bill, which limits collective bargaining rights of state employees and requires them to contribute a percentage of their salaries to their health care and pensions, was signed into law [JURIST report] in March of last year.

The purpose of these restrictions or conditions would be (1) to ensure that the Accused does not flee the jurisdiction of this Court (2) to ensure she does not interfere with witnesses or other accused giving evidence at trial (3) to ensure her safety and public order and (4) to ensure that her health is adequately monitored to enable the Trial Chamber to remain informed of her medical condition.

Ieng Thirith was indicted [JURIST report] in September 2010 along with her husband and former foreign minister Ieng Sary, chief ideologist Nuon Chea and former head of state Khieu Samphan [ECCC profiles]. The ECCC ruled in November that Ieng Thirith was unfit to stand trial [JURIST report], but the Supreme Court Chamber ordered that she remain in detention [JURIST reports] and that the Trial Chamber exhaust all measures so that she could stand trial. The other three went on trial [JURIST report] in November.