The Cambodian parliament passed a controversial anti-corruption bill Wednesday meant to further transparency in government while opposition parties staged a walkout, saying the new law would stifle criticism and foster corruption. The law will create a national anti-corruption council to oversee investigators, but critics have said that the lack of independence from the government is [...]

The Virginia General Assembly on Wednesday passed a bill that will ban any federal mandate for individuals to have health insurance. The bill, called the Virginia Health Care Freedom Act, is the first of its kind passed by any state, and says that no individual shall be held liable if they refuse to sign up [...]

A bill to amend the Code of Virginia by adding a section numbered 38.2-3430.1:1, relating to individual accident and sickness insurance coverage, Virginia General Assembly, March 10, 2010 . Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here. Latest commentary available here. JURIST has more on federal health care reform.

Kenneth Green : "China's agreement to accept the "non-binding" greenhouse gas reduction goals of the Copenhagen Accord is a combination public relations ploy, and an effort to ensure that western wealth continues to flow to China for the construction of low-cost "renewable" energy systems such as wind turbines and solar panels. As the world's largest [...]

Nigerian police officials said Wednesday that 49 people, predominately Muslims, will be charged with murder following the recent killing of Christian villagers near the city of Jos. Reports have varied as to the number of people killed in the weekend attack, but police now put the number at 109. The attacks were apparently in retaliation [...]

The Afghan government should retract a law granting amnesty for war crimes and human rights abuses committed prior to December 2001, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Wednesday. The National Stability and Reconciliation Law was originally passed by the Afghan Parliament in 2007, but did not take effect until it was recently published in the official [...]

The US Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing Wednesday on the effects of the recent Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission , which eased restrictions on political campaign spending by corporations. The hearing, entitled "We the People? Corporate Spending in American Elections after Citizens United," did not focus on any specific [...]

The Italian Senate on Wednesday gave final approval to a bill that would allow cabinet ministers, including Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi , to postpone criminal proceedings against them on the grounds that they would interfere with official duties. The legislation, passed by a vote of 169-126 with three members abstaining, will allow officials to suspend [...]

Myanmar's military junta announced the implementation of another election law on Wednesday that establishes procedures for the country's first election in 20 years. The Political Parties Registration Law prevents political prisoners from participating in the election and also makes it illegal for members of religious orders, insurgent groups, and foreigners to join political parties. The [...]

An Iranian court on Tuesday began the trial of 12 Iranian prison officials accused of torturing three prisoners to death, according to the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) . The three victims, identified as Mohsen Rouholamini, Mohammad Kamrani, and Amir Javadifar, were arrested for their involvement in the protests following the June 12 presidential [...]