Prominent Chinese human rights lawyer Pu Zhiqiang has been released after receiving a suspended sentence on Tuesday. Zhiqiang was indicted in May on charges of fanning ethnic hatred and provoking trouble for comments that he posted online. He stood trial on December 14 after more than 19 months in detention. He was sentenced to three [...]

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos on Tuesday signed a decree fully legalizing medical marijuana in the country. Santos said the new regulations, which make it legal to grow, process, import and export marijuana for medical and scientific use, would put Colombia “at the forefront in the fight against disease.” Santos stressed that the new regulations [...]

Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin on Tuesday signed an executive order to no longer require county clerks’ names to appear on marriage licenses. The follows the refusal by county clerk Kim Davis to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, arguing that her Christian faith should exempt her. The order cites the Kentucky Religious Freedom Restoration Act, [...]

A judge for the US District Court for the Central District of California ruled Tuesday that sexual orientation discrimination is prohibited under a law that protects gender-based discrimination. The order pertains to the motion to dismiss brought by Pepperdine University challenging two female students’ claims that the school’s basketball coach wanted them removed from the [...]

The Court of Appeals of Quebec on Tuesday overturned a lower court injunction and ruled that Quebec’s physician-assisted death law is not in conflict with any elements of the Quebec Criminal Code . The legislation , which became law on December 10, 2014, lays out how terminally-ill patients may obtain physician assistance in ending their [...]

Burkina Faso’s military court issued an international arrest warrant on Monday for former president Blaise Compaore for the assassination of revolutionary leader Thomas Sankara. Sankara was killed along with 12 of his supporters during a 1987 coup that brought Compaore to power. Compaore resigned in October 2014 after a military takeover and protests against his [...]

The Panama Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered the detention of multimillionaire businessman and former president Ricardo Martinelli on allegations that the former leader used public money to illegally spy on more than 150 people. Martinelli, who ruled Panama from 2009 to 2014, fled the country in January amid other allegations of impropriety in office, and [...]

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Monday upheld the authority of Governor Tom Wolf to postpone executions in the commonwealth. The unanimous decision came after Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams petitioned the court to reject reprieves as an unconstitutional intrusion of state executive power into the realm of the legislature and courts. Concerned with the death [...]

Justice Minister Samuel Tembenu announced this weekend that there will be a moratorium placed on anti-homosexuality laws in Malawi, effectively suspending enforcement of these laws until a decision is made regarding repeal. Along with this decision came the release of two men that were arrested under these laws. Many human rights groups are in favor [...]

A court in Dhaka ruled on Monday that 41 defendants can be tried for murder for the April 2013 garment factory collapse that killed 1,135 workers. Initially charged with culpable homicide, the defendants were charged with murder upon investigation of their irresponsible conduct. Investigators found that the defendants illegally added floors to the original five-story [...]