Kyu Ho Youm : "The Icelandic Modern Media Initiative is a welcome development in the ongoing global movement for press freedom. It deserves serious attention from those who want to expand freedom of the press as a universal human right. The Initiative should serve as a worthy benchmark on what ought to be minimally done [...]

Indian lawmakers on Monday introduced a bill to ensure that one-third of seats in parliament are reserved for women, marking International Women's Day . The Women's Reservations Bill , introduced in the Rajya Sabha , or Council of States, would increase the number of women serving in the 543-seat legislature, which currently has no gender [...]

A Haitian judge on Monday ordered the release of one of the last two US missionaries out of a group of 10 who were arrested on kidnapping charges following the January 12 earthquake . The judge announced last month that both missionaries would be released, following the release of the other eight members of the [...]

The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Monday postponed the trial of former Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) vice-president Jean-Pierre Bemba , originally set to begin April 27 , until July 5. The trial was delayed to allow the court more time to consider the defense's motion on the admissibility of the case, filed in February. [...]

The top rights official at the Council of Europe on Monday rejected the notion of banning Muslim burqa and niqab garments. Commissioner for Human Rights Thomas Hammarberg noted in a written statement marking International Women's Day : Those who have argued for a general ban of the burqa and the niqab have not managed to [...]

Thousands of Spaniards gathered Sunday to protest recently approved changes to Spain's abortion laws. Protesters marched in cities across Spain to protest the new law , which will allow abortion up to 14 weeks in most cases. Organizers in Madrid estimated that as many as 600,000 people took part in the protests. Pro-life activists urged [...]

The Chinese National People's Congress (NPC) on Monday opened consideration of election reforms designed to afford equal representation to residents of rural and urban administrative areas. China's current electoral law provides more congressional representatives to residents of urban districts than residents of rural ones. The draft amendment aims to eliminate the disparity in representation. Vice [...]

The US Supreme Court on Monday granted certiorari in three cases. In Snyder v. Phelps , the court will take up the controversial issue of picketing the funerals of soldiers killed in combat. Reverend Fred Phelps and members of the Westboro Baptist Church have been traveling around the country picketing military funerals in recent years, [...]

Vietnamese human rights lawyer and activist Le Thi Cong Nhan was released from prison on Saturday after serving a three-year sentence for allegedly spreading propaganda against the state. Although she has been released from jail, she will now serve an additional three years of house arrest. Nhan was convicted and imprisoned in 2007 for allegedly [...]

The US Supreme Court on Monday ruled 7-2 in Bloate v. United States that time granted to prepare pretrial motions is not automatically excludable under the Speedy Trial Act . The court held that such time may be excluded only when a district court grants a continuance. The US Court of Appeals for the Eighth [...]