[JURIST] Thousands in Taiwan are expected to protest China's proposed anti-secession law [JURIST report] in demonstrations Sunday. The proposed legislation authorizes China to take military action if Taiwan declares formal independence from the mainland. In Saturday's the opening spring session [Xinhua report] of China's parliament, the National People's Congress [official Third Session website in English], Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao [BBC profile] re-emphasized the importance of the legislation and the reunification issue. Taiwan has been the seat of China's Nationalist government since its 1949 defeat by mainland Communist forces led by Mao Tse Tung. Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian has threatened to enact an "anti-annexation" law and hold a referendum [JURIST report] if the mainland anti-secession bill passes. A vote on the bill is expected within a week. VOA has more.

[JURIST] The Dutch Parliament's lower house [Parliament official website, English version] passed a new terror bill Friday that will lower the level of evidence needed to hold a terror suspect, allow the government to hold suspects for up to two weeks without filing charges, and require suspected terrorists to regularly report to authorities. The bill, proposed by the Dutch Justice Ministry [official website, English version], will allow authorities to use presently outlawed techniques such as infiltrating terror cells for undercover operations, telephone taps and entrapment tactics. In addition, prosecutors will be able to approve the use of spot searches of people and cars in public places under suspicion of a terror attack plot. The proposed legislation is in response to a recent string of terrorist activity, including the November murder of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh by a Muslim radical [BBC report]. The bill must now pass the upper house. AP has more.

[JURIST] A Berlin administrative court Friday dismissed the title and reparation claim of Germany's largest department store operator, and ordered the government to pay compensation directly to the heirs of a Jewish family that owned property taken by the Nazi government 70 years ago. The property in question once belonged to Jewish-owned retailer Wertheim, and is now owned by KarstadtQuelle [corporate website]. In 2001 Germany's restitution office [official website in German] ordered the government to pay restitution to surviving Wertheim family members. In its claim, KarstadtQuelle argued it should receive part of the payments because it acquired the family's business in 1994. The court ruled that KarstadtQuelle has no title to the land or its proceeds - including restitution payments. Under the Federal German Restitution Law [backgrounder and text], victims of Nazi persecution that resulted in the lose of life, freedom, or property have the right to file claims for compensation from the government. KarstadtQuelle released a statement [official website, English] late Friday that it will file an appeal to the German Federal Administration Court [courts overview]. There are currently 45,000 Nazi reparation cases pending in Germany. The Houston Chronicle has more.

[JURIST] Coincidentally on the thirty-fifth anniversary of the entering into force on the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty [UN Secretary General statement], Iran said Saturday that it was unwilling to put a permanent end to enriching uranium and warned that further US-led efforts to push Iran before the UN Security Council would result in a more unstable Middle East. Top Iranian nuclear negotiator Hassan Rowhani [BBC profile] insisted that efforts to permanently extend Iran's temporary halt to uranium enrichment would negatively effect energy supplies from the Middle East and damage the European economy. Read the news release in English from the Islamic Republic of Iran New Agency (IRNA). Washington accuses Iran of secretly trying to build a nuclear bomb, a charge Iran denies. AP has more.

[JURIST] American women delegates joined their counterparts from around the world meeting at the United Nations [UN conference summary] Friday to reaffirm a blueprint aimed at supporting global equality for women. The reaffirmation of the goals of the 1995 Beijing World Conference on Women [UN website] came after the US backed down [JURIST report] from an initial proposal to include an anti-abortion amendment. When reassurances were provided to the US that terms such as "reproductive health services" and "reproductive rights" did not constitute support, promotion, or advocacy of abortion, the declaration was unanimously adopted. Though representatives from many countries felt that the abortion issue was a distraction from more important topics in the economic, political, and educational lives of women, UN Status of Women Commission Chair Kyung wha-Kang was grateful for the "spirit of cooperation" in the final voting. AP has more.

[JURIST] A soldier from the Indiana National Guard [official website] will be court-martialed for the murder of an Iraqi police officer, the US Army said Friday. Corporal Dustin Berg is accused of killing Hussein Kamel Hadi Dawood Al-Dubeidi near Baghdad in December 2003 and then shooting himself. Berg, who received a Purple Heart [award criteria] for his injuries, initially claimed to have been shot by a man in a red turban and a white shirt before changing his story multiple times and eventually admitting to the killing. Berg has been charged [JURIST report] with murder, lying about the incident, and wearing an unauthorized award. His court-martial follows a previous Article 32 hearing Uniform Code of Military Justice text] of his case. AP has more.

[JURIST] In response to a Freedom of Information lawsuit [ACLU backgrounder and materials] by the American Civil Liberties Union [official website] over prisoner abuse in Iraq, the US Army released 1200 pages of documents on Friday. The documents cover 13 investigations into prisoner abuse that resulted in no charges due to insufficient evidence. At the center of the controversy is a DVD entitled "Ramadi Madness," [ACLU press release] a compilation of recordings made by a unit of the Florida National Guard [official website] posted to Iraq in 2003 and early 2004. Though the video itself was not released, Army documents decribe "inappropriate rather than criminal behavior," including kicking an injured Iraqi soldier and manipulating the dead body of an Iraqi killed after running a checkpoint. Over 100 investigations remain open in relation to Iraq prisoner abuse. The ACLU says it will post the released document to its website on Monday. AP has more.