Samsung , the world's largest maker of computer memory chips, has pleaded guilty to criminal antitrust charges and was ordered pay a $300 million fine, the second largest fine in a criminal antitrust case, for conspiring to fix the price of its personal computer chips. The South Korean-based company was charged with artificially inflating the [...]

Senegal President Abdoulaye Wade has called for the creation of an African tribunal that would hear abuse charges against the continent's "dictators", similar to those leveled against former Chad President Hissene Habre . Wade's comments come as Habre resides in Senegal awaiting a decision from the African Union as to whether he must be extradited [...]

Australia's Labor Party leader Kim Beazley said Thursday that the controversial sedition provisions set to be included in Australia's new anti-terror laws lower the country "to the standard of North Korea, Syria and Cuba." On Wednesday, Australian Prime Minister John Howard bowed to pressure from back-benchers and agreed to several amendments to the proposed anti-terror [...]

Iraq Interior Minister Bayan Jabr on Thursday fired Nouri al-Nouri, the country's senior inspector handling human rights issues, in connection with a torture scandal involving dozens of prisoners at a Baghdad prison, according to an Iraqi official. Al-Nouri, the ministry's lead inspector for corruption and human rights violations since Iraq regained sovereignty in June 2004, [...]

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour has warned that the Nepalese government and Maoist rebels must take "steps towards lasting peace" in order to avoid "grave violations of human rights and international humanitarian law" being committed by both sides. Arbour also cautioned that Nepal faces a real possibility of a full-scale armed conflict [...]

Nigeria's Kaduna Code of Conduct Tribunal on Thursday began legal proceedings against Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, governor of the oil-rich state Bayelsa , on charges of corruption. The tribunal, an anti-corruption body that has the power to strip elected officials of immunity, has begun investigating alleged failures by Alamieyeseigha to declare properties and bank accounts. He fled [...]

Walgreens said Thursday it has suspended four Illinois pharmacists without pay for refusing to fill prescriptions for the morning-after pill in violation of a state rule. The pharmacists said their objections stemmed from religious or moral beliefs. Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich issued a rule April 1, 2005 demanding that pharmacists make the pill available "without [...]

The city of York, Pennsylvania, will pay a $2 million settlement to the relatives of a black woman shot to death during race riots in 1969. The two children and two sisters of Lilly Belle Allen will get a total of $200,000 annually for a decade in a deal that would end their federal lawsuit [...]

The South African Constitutional Court on Thursday ruled that it is unconstitutional to prohibit gay couples from marrying and gave parliament one year to amend the 1961 Marriage Act to allow same-sex marriage . According to the court's judgment , if the legislature does not act to recognize same-sex unions, the definition of marriage will [...]

The Japanese government is preparing a legislative proposal that would amend the country's succession law, the 1947 Imperial Household Law , to allow female monarchs. Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe said Thursday that a 15-member team has been established to work on a bill to be submitted when parliament reconvenes in January. The proposal will [...]