Japan’s amended Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act, which allows foreigners who qualify for Specified Skills visas to work in Japan, went into effect on Monday. Originally passed on December 8, the new legislation permits foreign workers to enter Japan to work in designated sectors, including construction, manufacturing, hospitality, aviation, nursing and agriculture, for a five-year [...]

New Zealand’s Parliament on Tuesday voted overwhelming in favor of a bill proposed containing new gun regulations, aiming to vote it into law by the end of next week. The vote occurred one day after the Arms (Prohibited Firearms, Magazines, and Parts) Amendment Bill was introduced. The bill seeks to amend New Zealand’s Arms Act [...]

Venezuela’s Supreme Court ruled Monday that Juan Guaidó, head of the opposition-controlled National Assembly, is in contempt, and requested the pro-Maduro National Constituent Assembly to withdraw the opposition leader’s parliamentary immunity. The court found Guaidó to be in contempt after concluding that he violated travel restrictions imposed by the court in January. According to Voices of America, Guaidó traveled to several South [...]

US Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) filed a lawsuit Monday against the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) to recover personal loans he made to fund his campaign.  Under current election law, candidates may fund their campaigns by loaning personal funds to the campaign at a “commercially reasonable” interest rate, but the FEC caps loan repayment at $250,000 [...]

A delegation of the UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) arrived in Sri Lanka on Tuesday for an 11-day visit. The SPT will examine the treatment meted out to people deprived of their liberty in the Indian Ocean island nation and the safeguards in place for their protection from torture. It will hold meetings [...]

UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned on Tuesday against the growing anti-Muslim sentiment in the wake of the deadly terrorist attack on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, less than one month ago. He also referred to the synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh last year, calling it “the worst anti-Semitic terrorist attack in United States history.” Guterres [...]

The co-founder of ride-sharing company Uber, Travis Kalanick, and the company’s directors on Monday won a dismissal of a lawsuit brought by major investors who sought to hold the company liable for a delay in the company’s push into autonomous vehicles caused by a fight over trade secrets. The lawsuit, brought by investor Lenza McElrath, [...]

The US Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a case from Georgia over whether holding an accused man in prison because he could not afford bail was a violation of his equal protections rights. Maurice Walker was arrested in Calhoun, Georgia, and accused of being a pedestrian under the influence of alcohol in September [...]

The US Senate on Monday voted down a disaster aid bill that sought to provide additional funding to areas of the US struck by natural disasters over the last two years. Senate Democrats voted against the Republican-sponsored bill, saying that the proposal does too little to aid Puerto Rico. The island was devastated by Hurricane [...]

US District Court Judge Roger Benitez ruled Friday that California’s ban on magazines that hold more than 10 rounds imposes a burden on the constitutional rights of its citizens. The high-capacity ban provision is included in Prop. 63, which was approved by California voters in 2016 in reaction to the killing of 14 people and [...]