Federal Judge Maryellen Noreika on Friday refused to grant Hunter Biden’s motion to dismiss the federal gun charges he is currently facing. This means the case against Hunter Biden, who is US President Joe Biden’s son, will continue. Hunter Biden’s original motion to dismiss the charges alleged that the appointment of Special Counsel David Weiss, [...]
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UN experts raise concerns about Guadeloupe water crisis and censorship
UN independent experts expressed concern about the ongoing water shortage in Guadeloupe, a French Caribbean island. They raised concerns over tap water pollution, steep prices and attempts to silence critics, calling the situation a threat to human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation. After a last-minute ban was imposed on a planned debate about [...]
EU institutions agree on draft proposal for new independent ethics body
Seven EU institutions are in agreement on the creation of a new ethics body following a press conference with representatives and negotiators. The agreement marks significant progress in the establishment of the body, initially proposed by Parliament in 2021 and deemed “unsatisfactory” in 2023. The call for a regulatory ethics body aims to protect EU [...]
Australia MPs pass motion calling for return of Julian Assange
Australian Federal MPs voted Wednesday in favour of a motion supporting the return of Wikileaks’ founder Jullian Assange to Australia, ahead of a US extradition hearing next week in London’s High Court of Justice. In an unprecedented show of political support for Assange, the Australian Parliament called upon the US and UK to bring the [...]
UN must amend cybercrime treaty draft to uphold human rights protections: NGO coalition
A coalition of organizations issued an open letter on Wednesday to the Chair of the UN’s Ad Hoc Committee on Cybercrime, emphasizing “critical flaws” in the latest draft of the UN Cybercrime Convention—the so-called Zero Draft—and urging significant amendments. The coalition warned that without significant amendments, the convention could compromise global cyberspace security and human [...]
Thousands protest in Slovakia over proposed criminal law reforms
Thousands of protesters gathered in front of Slovakia’s Parliament, as well as almost 30 other Slovak cities, on Wednesday and Thursday to voice opposition to the passage of criminal reforms. Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico first announced the criminal reforms in December 2023. They passed through Parliament on Thursday via a fast-track procedure. The reforms will [...]
Texas attorney general offers to accept contested facts to end whistleblower lawsuit
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton offered to end a whistleblower lawsuit against him on Thursday by not contesting the facts of the case and accepting any judgment against him. The lawsuit alleges that Paxton fired and retaliated against former top staff members who threatened to reveal his financial relationship with Austin, Texas real estate developer [...]
Slovak President Zuzana Čaputová urged lawmakers on Thursday to reconsider Prime Minister Robert Fico’s proposal to reform Slovakia’s criminal law and dissolve the Special Prosecutor’s Office. She warned that Fico’s proposed legislative changes may violate the country’s legislative process, constitution and principles of the rule of law. Fico introduced the reforms in December as a [...]
European Parliament concerned over Slovakia proposed legislative reforms
The European Parliament adopted a resolution on Wednesday, expressing concerns over Slovakia’s proposed criminal code reforms and the dissolution of the Special Prosecutor’s Office. The European Parliament is worried the moves potentially endanger the rule of law in Slovakia. Slovakia Prime Minister Robert Fico introduced reforms in December. The reforms relaxed penalties for corruption and [...]
On October 2, 2023, Ukraine’s High Anti-Corruption Court granted a $360,000 reward to a whistleblower in a corruption case involving an attempted $6 million bribe—the biggest reported bribe attempt in Ukraine’s history. This reward marks the first payment to a whistleblower under the Law of Ukraine on the Prevention of Corruption, a major piece of [...]