The national security trial of the 47 pro-democracy activists commenced in the Hong Kong High Court Monday, two years since their arrest in 2021. Amongst them, 16 defendants denied the charges. Five of the defendants–Au Nok-hin, Benny Tai Yiu-ting, Andrew Chiu Ka-yin, Ben Chung Kam-lun and Gordon Ng–are accused of being the organizers of an [...]

Myanmar’s military junta Friday announced a new law that restricts the ability of political parties to participate in elections. The new Political Parties Registration Law contains strict provisions, such as requiring parties that wish to take part in the upcoming election to recruit a minimum of 100,000 party members within 90 days and giving the [...]

The Scottish government Sunday announced a prohibition on moving transgender persons with any history of violence against women into women’s prisons until the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) completes a review of transgender prisoner management. Justice Secretary Keith Brown said the measures are an “urgent” response after transgender woman Isla Bryson was found guilty of raping [...]

Tanzania’s opposition leader Tundu Lissu Wednesday returned to Tanzania after his attempted assassination in 2017, which he claims was politically motivated. The Lissu announced his return last Thursday on Twitter, detailing his flight and landing details while announcing his comeback and future political ambitions. Lissu said President Samoa Suluhu Hassan’s early January decision to lift the [...]

The EU General Court Wednesday held that documents circulated in EU Council working groups regarding an amendment to the EU’s 2013 financial statement directive should be publicly accessible. The court reasoned that the release of these documents would not seriously undermine the legislative process. Emilio De Capitani, a former official at the European Parliament, sought [...]

A Brooklyn, New York federal judge Monday rejected Douglass Mackey’s arguments to dismiss an indictment brought by federal prosecutors from the Eastern District of New York (EDNY). Mackey is accused of participating in an online conspiracy to spread deceptive information during the 2016 Presidential election to injure some Twitter users’ right to vote. Mackey argued [...]

Senator Penny Wong from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs Office Thursday said that the “Australian Government is deeply troubled by the ongoing” detainment of Dr. Yang Hengju (also known as Dr. Yang Jun), an Australian citizen and academic. Yang first travelled to Guangzhou, China in January 19, 2019. Since then, Yang has been detained by [...]

Following a decision of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka last week ordering top former authorities, including former president Mathripala Sirisena, to compensate the victims of the Easter Sunday Attack in 2019, spokesperson Jeremy Laurence of the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) urged the Sri Lankan government to provide full compensation to [...]

The Irish Department of Justice Wednesday announced a bill that would make it a crime to entice a child to engage in criminal activity. The bill, the Criminal Justice (Engagement of Children in Criminal Activity) Bill 2023, has secured Cabinet approval and would tailor offences for crimes where the adult “compel, coerce, direct or deceive [...]

The Mexican Government Sunday banned smoking in public and restricted the advertisement of tobacco products as the country’s new General Tobacco Law came into force. The new regulations increase scrutiny on the manufacture, use, and advertisement of tobacco in order to ensure that public spaces are tobacco-free. The General Tobacco Law is among the world’s [...]