The National Election Board of Ethiopia announced Tuesday that it would postpone Ethiopia’s upcoming general election amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The board had planned to conduct the election in August. The planned elections marked a transition towards democratic stability in Ethiopia. Ethiopia experienced a period of ethnic tension and unrest throughout 2016 and 2017. The [...]
Thirteen detainees of the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency won a temporary restraining order from a Pennsylvania federal court Tuesday after complaining of the poor conditions in the facilities where they were held and their risk of contracting COVID-19. Judge John E. Jones III described the unique and fraught circumstances of the response [...]
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, issued a statement on Tuesday in response to recent measures Hungary has taken to further consolidate power in the hands of its prime minister, Viktor Orbán. While not calling out Hungary by name, the statement from the EU leader condemns exploiting emergency situations to undermine democratic [...]
The US Department of Justice Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) announced via Twitter Monday evening that hearings in non-detained immigration cases will be postponed until May 1. The EOIR said that immigration courts are open for detainee hearings, including bond hearings, where applicable. Operational status of courts nationwide are updated on the office’s website. [...]
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Pennsylvania filed an emergency petition to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Monday seeking the release of some in the Commonwealth’s county jails—what the petition argues is a necessary measure to allow jails space to follow CDC-recommended safe social distancing practices to prepare for COVID-19. The petition asks the [...]
US Federal Communications Commission Chairman (FCC) Ajit Pai on Monday announced his plan for a $200 million COVID-19 Telehealth Program to support health care providers responding to the ongoing pandemic. As part of the CARES Act, Congress appropriated $200 million to the FCC to support health care providers’ use of telehealth services in combating the [...]
Lawmakers in Hungary’s Parliament voted 137-53 Monday to grant Prime Minister Viktor Orbán extensive powers to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite protests from the opposition parties, the bill did not limit the powers to a specific time frame. The bill allows Orbán’s government to suspend the enforcement of some laws and permits deviation from legal [...]
The California Judicial Council held a telephonic meeting on Saturday to instate new measures for handling the hearing deadlines for individuals currently being held in jails in California. The state has mandatory deadlines to ensure efficiency in their jail system but is struggling to meet the deadlines with the COVID-19 crisis. The Judicial Council cited [...]
The US Center for Disease Control (CDC) issued a travel advisory Saturday for New York, New Jersey and Connecticut residents amid COVID-19 spread concerns. The CDC recommends that residents of these states refrain from domestic travel for the next 14 days. However, the agency advises critical infrastructure industry employees to continue travel. The CDC explained [...]
The Federal Reserve announced Friday that it would loosen bank regulations to support lending during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Federal Reserve Board specifically modified two previous regulations: the standardized approach for measuring counterparty credit risk rule (SA-CRR) and the current expected credit loss rule (CECL). The SA-CRR modification will apply to the reporting period that [...]
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