[JURIST] French President Jacques Chirac [BBC profile] Monday delivered his first televised address [text, in French; translated excerpts] since a recent surge of violence began in France [JURIST news archive] nineteen days ago, promising that justice would be meted out to those responsible for the riots. "Those who make attacks against property and people must know that in a republic, they cannot violate the law without being arrested, prosecuted and sanctioned," he said, combining reassurances with a request for parliamentary approval of an extended three month state of emergency [JURIST report]. Some 2,700 people have been arrested since the beginning of the violence, and France is preparing to deport all foreign citizens charged with participating in the riots. The cities of Paris and Lyon banned public meetings [JURIST report] this past weekend after the central government authorized local authorities to exercise emergency powers [JURIST reports] to prevent further violence and property damage. Commentators suggest that the riots are fueled by larger racial and class-based tensions existent in France, symbolized by the debate last spring over the French government's banning [JURIST report] of religious dress [JURIST news archive], including Muslim head scarves [BBC report], in schools. Bloomberg has more. Le Monde has local coverage, in French.

[JURIST] In a report [PDF text; summary] released Monday, the US Governmental Accountability Office (GAO) [official website] characterized the Federal Drug Administration's review of the birth control drug Plan B [product website; FDA backgrounder] for over-the-counter sale as "unusual" in procedure. The GAO report alleges that FDA management was more involved in Plan B approval than usual; that the decision not to approve the drug may have been made before the review was completed; and that the reasoning for not switching the prescription drug to an over-the-counter product was "novel and did not follow the FDA's traditional practices." An FDA spokesperson denied the allegations of improper conduct, saying that "the report mischaracterizes facts and does not appear to take into consideration the input provided by the FDA." In August, the agency indefinitely postponed a decision [FDA news release] on whether to approve the drug for over-the-counter sale, prompting an FDA official to resign in protest [JURIST report]; the official later accused the FDA of political maneuvering [JURIST report] during the approval process. A bipartisan group of US representatives introduced a bill [JURIST report] earlier this month that would automatically approve Plan B for over-the-counter sale 30 days after bill approval if the FDA fails to make a decision on the drug by that time. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] European Commissioner for Justice and Home Affairs [official website] Franco Frattini [official profile] said Monday that although the informal EU investigation [JURIST report] into the alleged existence of secret US prisons [JURIST report] in European Union nations has revealed nothing, the EU will sanction any country found to house such facilities. Human Rights Watch [advocacy website] has issued a statement [text] which alleges that "there is no doubt that secret detention facilities operated by the United States exist," pointing to Poland, an EU member nation, and Romania, an EU candidate, as possible prison locations. As evidence, HRW cites Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) [official website] flight logs that they say prove that the US was transporting recently captured al Qaeda members from Afghanistan to Polish and Romanian air fields between 2001 and 2004. EU lawmakers also requested a formal investigation [AP report] into the allegations Monday, though Frattini cautioned that his commission does not have a legal mandate to investigate member nations and is restricted by the EU charter to conducting informal inquiries. The US Department of Justice [official website] is considering an investigation [JURIST report] into whether classified information was leaked from the CIA after US lawmakers requested a congressional inquiry [JURIST report] into a possible leak last week. AP has more.

[JURIST] Racial animus accounted for more than half of the 7,649 hate crimes reported in the United States in 2004, a 5 percent rise from 2003, according to the FBI's annual FBI Hate Crimes Statistics report [text; press release]. Overall, the nation experienced a slight two percent increase in hate crimes in 2004. The report defines hate crimes as any crime committed based on bias against a race, religion, disability, ethnicity, or sexual orientation. AP has more.

[JURIST] Lawyers in the US Department of Justice Civil Rights Division [official website] are leaving their positions in record numbers amid allegations that the current administration is damaging morale and frustrating the efforts of long-time employees, according to a Washington Post report. The report alleges that attorneys in the division, which is charged with enforcing federal civil rights laws, have complained that they are excluded from major policy decisions, and embarrassed by recent criticism, including its endorsement of a Georgia law [PDF] requiring voters to present photo ID at the polls. Last month, a US district judge issued an injunction [JURIST report] barring enforcement of the law; the injunction was later upheld [JURIST report] by the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. A DOJ spokesman contends that the division's overall attrition rate of 13 percent is not substantially higher that the 11 percent rate during the Clinton administration. In the 2005 fiscal year nearly 20 percent of staff lawyers to quit. The Washington Post has more.

[JURIST] A Federal Communications Commission [official website] order [PDF text], which sets the date for all broadband and internet-phone providers to modify their systems to comply with a federal law that requires telecommunications providers to cooperate with law enforcement agencies seeking to conduct wiretaps, took effect Monday. The order, adopted in September 2005, widens the scope of the 1994 Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA) [text, FCC materials], which mandates that "[all] entities engaged in the transmission or switching of wire or electronic communications as a common carrier for hire must cooperate with law enforcement to conduct electronic surveillance", to include emerging technologies including broadband and certain voice data providers. Many carriers are concerned that the vague language of the order will lead to inconsistent enforcement, and many non-profit and public interest groups have asked for exemptions [FCC comment archive]. Affected carriers have 18 months from Monday to ensure that the mandated measures are in place. CNET News has more.

[JURIST] Kizza Besigye [BBC profile], the president of the opposition Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) party, was arrested and charged with treason and rape in Uganda [JURIST news archive] Monday. Prosecutors allege that Besigye participated in acts of treason to overthrow the government with the radical rebel group People's Redemption Army (PRA), a crime that carries the death penalty. Besigye's arrest sparked riots in the city of Kampala, and is expected to lead to further unrest in the already troubled region. In addition, the government is also expected to charge Besigye with the 1997 rape of a young girl in the Ruzira suburb. Besigye, an outspoken opponent of the incumbent government, has denied all charges and contends that he is the victim of political persecution. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Tuesday. AFP has more.

[JURIST] Lawyer Thamer Hamoud al-Khuzaie, who represents two of Saddam Hussein's co-defendants, has fled Iraq and is seeking asylum in Qatar following an attempt on his life. The news was revealed in a letter, obtained by Reuters Monday, written by Khuzaie to Qatar's Emir Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani [profile]. "I ask your generous highness and all Arabic leaders to grant me humanitarian asylum with my family because danger is chasing us every minute," Khuzaie wrote to the Emir. The actions taken by Khuzaie come after Saddam's lawyers severed contact [JURIST report] with the Iraqi Special Tribunal [official website] last week in response to the murder of defense team member Adil al-Zubeidi [BBC report; TIME interview]. Khuzaie was wounded in the same attack. Reuters has more.

Previously in JURIST's Paper Chase...

• Iraqi government claims Saddam agents murdering defense lawyers to halt trial
• Iraqi tribunal could appoint new lawyers to Saddam defense team
• Saddam lawyers sever contact with Iraq court over latest lawyer murder
• ICC president says Hague has no jurisdiction over Hussein trial
• Saddam defense team asks UN to press for venue change
• Saddam lawyers announce court boycott over security demands
• Bush says Baghdad safe for Saddam trial
• Iraqi government promises heightened security for Saddam trial lawyers
• Saddam defense team demands delay or foreign trial venue after lawyer murder

[JURIST] A document [PDF text] released Monday by the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library reveal that Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito [White House profile; US News profile] wrote in 1985 that he was proud of helping the government argue that "the Constitution does not protect a right to an abortion." Part of more than 100 pages on Alito [Reagan library documents; Bush library documents] released by the libraries Monday, the letter was related to Alito's attempt to secure the job of deputy assistant attorney general in 1985. He moved to the position in 1987. In the document Alito also wrote that he was "particularly proud of [his] contributions in recent cases in which the government argued that racial and ethnic quotas should not be allowed." Ralph Neas, head of the liberal People for the American Way [advocacy website; press release] said that the document "underscores our concern that he would vote to turn back the clock on decades of judicial precedent protecting privacy, equal opportunity, religious freedom, and so much more." Wendy Long, who works with the conservative Judicial Confirmation Network [advocacy website; press release] noted that Supreme Court Justices Ginsburg and Breyer had "taken clear public positions to the contrary, and no one argued that those positions should be held against them." AP has more.

In related news, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas [official profile, PDF] said Friday that "the only issue, the central issue in [federal court appointments], is abortion. It's not the other things that people throw out." He added that, "The whole judiciary now is being held, in a sense, hostage to that one issue." Speaking to law students at the University of Alabama, Thomas said the confirmation process should be less intrusive and not delve into every aspect of a nominee's life. AP has more.

ALSO ON JURIST  Topic: Samuel Alito | Op-ed: Why Feminists and Liberals Have Nothing to Fear from Judge Alito

[JURIST] At the close of a three-day meeting in Brussels Monday, the leaders of eight Bosnian political parties failed to reach an agreement on a new draft constitution [JURIST report] for the country. Representatives of the three main nationalities in Bosnia [government website; CIA backgrounder], Muslims, Serbs and Croats, agreed to disagree and to extend negotiations into next week, when they will resume talks in Washington. The goal of the new negotiations, sponsored by the European Union and the United States, is to simplify and stabilize the current constitution [text], which created one of the world's most ineffective and complex governments. American diplomat Donald Hayes, who chaired the Brussels meeting, said some progress has been made especially in the areas of elections and involvement in the EU. AKI has more.

[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website, JURIST news archive] ruled Monday that parents who challenge special education programs for not meeting their children's needs must bear the burden of proving the programs' inadequacies, and not school officials. The case, Schaffer v. Weast [Duke Law backgrounder], is a loss for a Maryland family that challenged a special education program for their son who is afflicted with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Read the Court's majority opinion [text] by Justice O'Connor, along with a concurrence [text] from Justice Stevens, a dissent [text] from Justice Ginsburg and a second dissent [text] from Justice Breyer. AP has more.

Also on Monday, the Court granted certiorari in two cases. In Woodford v. Ngo, the Court is expected to clarify what steps prison inmates must take before they may file a federal lawsuit challenging prison conditions. In Beard v. Banks, the Court could reinstate rules that keep newspapers and magazines out of the hands of disruptive Pennsylvania inmates. The Court agreed to hear an appeal of a decision [PDF text] from the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit which upheld inmates' claims that the ban on most reading material and personal photographs violated their free speech rights. US Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito [JURIST news archive], who currently sits on the Third Circuit, wrote a dissent in the case. Read the Court's full Order List [PDF]. AP has more.

[JURIST] A court in Uzbekistan [BBC profile, JURIST news archive] has found 15 men guilty of terrorism, attempted overthrow of the government, hostage taking and murder. The defendants, who all pleaded guilty, were accused of leading an uprising [JURIST report] in the town of Andijan in May. The uprising was sparked by the Uzbek government's controversial trial of 23 Muslim businessmen for extremism and resulted in approximately 200 deaths [JURIST report] at the hands of police. The 12 men from Uzbekistan and 3 from Kyrgyzstan received sentences of between 14 and 20 years. The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) [official website] has expressed concern [JURIST report] over the fairness of the trial. Human rights groups have alleged that torture was used in extracting guilty pleas from the suspects, although the government has denied these charges [JURIST report]. BBC News has more. MosNews has local coverage.

Previously in JURIST's Paper Chase...

• Trial starts for 15 Uzbek men accused in Andijan uprising
• Accused 'chief' confesses to leading Uzbekistan uprising
• Uzbek government denies using torture to extract confessions
• UN rights expert doubts fairness of Uzbek rebel trial
• Uzbek prosecutors seek extended jail terms for accused Andijan rebels
• UN rights experts question fairness of Andijan rebel trial

[JURIST] Courts in Spain, Italy and Germany are considering inquiries into CIA operations in Europe, specifically its rendition program, where suspected terrorists are kidnapped and sent to countries that will torture them. The Spanish investigation began in March when a Majorcan newspaper reported that CIA planes were visiting the island's international airport [Diaro de Mallorca report, in Spanish]. A Spanish national court will now examine [La Voz report, in Spanish; UK Press Association report] whether those planes were used in the rendition of suspected terrorists. In Italy, Justice Minister Roberto Castelli is considering a prosecutor's request for the extradition of 22 CIA operatives [JURIST report] accused of kidnapping Egyptian Abu Omar in Milan and sending him to Egypt, where he was reportedly tortured. German prosecutor Eberhard Bayer is pursuing a separate investigation into the kidnapping of Omar. The European Parliament will also debate the reports of secret CIA prisons [BBC report] in Europe on Monday. EUObserver has more. Corriere della Sera has coverage in Italian and Zweibruecken has coverage in German.

[JURIST] New court documents have been released outlining potential arguments to be made during the penalty phase of proceedings against 9/11 suspect Zacarias Moussaoui [JURIST news archive]. According to the transcript of an October hearing recently unsealed, prosecutors will argue Moussaoui deserves the death penalty because he "lied to federal agents to allow his al Qaeda 'brothers' to go forward with the operation to fly planes into American buildings." Defense attorneys plan to show that Moussaoui knew very little about the September 11th plot and will attack the government, including the Clinton and Bush Administrations, for failing to respond to threat warnings. Moussaoui, who pleaded guilty [JURIST report] to six conspiracy charges [indictment] in April, intends to testify on his own behalf and has vowed to fight against the death penalty. Jury selection for the penalty phase is scheduled to begin on January 9 [JURIST report]. Monday's Washington Post has more. The US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia maintains a list of case materials.

[JURIST] Callixte Kalimanzira, Rwanda's interior minister during the 1994 genocide [BBC backgrounder], pleaded not guilty to three counts of genocide and crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) on Monday. Kalimanzira surrendered [JURIST report] to the tribunal voluntarily on November 8. Prosecutors allege [ICTR press release] that he incited the genocide in his public speeches, distributed weapons to be used in the massacres and participated in some of the killings. Kalimanzira has dismissed the charges as "lies" and said that he is "deeply sorry" that the killings occurred. Kalimanzira's surrender brings the total number of suspects detained by the ICTR to 72. The ICTR has convicted 19 people and acquitted three, and trials for 25 others are in progress. AP has more.

[JURIST] US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales promised his Australian counterpart Philip Ruddock Monday that Australian terror suspect David Hicks [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] would receive a fair trial before a military commission [JURIST news archive], but refused to give a time frame for when the trial is likely to occur. Preliminary hearings in Hicks' trial are scheduled to begin on November 18 [JURIST report], but his lawyers have argued that the trial should not begin before the Supreme Court issues a decision regarding the legality of the commissions [JURIST report]. The Pentagon previously announced that no delay [JURIST report] would be granted. Gonzales also promised that Hicks "will be provided with a fair trial, fair opportunity for right to counsel and the right to ask questions of witnesses." AAP has more.

[JURIST] Last week's ruling by the European Court of Human Rights [JURIST report; opinion text] upholding Turkey's ban on headscarves [JURIST news archive] in public universities, has led to confrontation between the Islamic government and the law's secular proponents. Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer [official profile], who supports the ban, says the court's ruling was "binding" and should end the controversy. The country's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan [BBC profile] and Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul [official website] have argued the opinion is not binding and promised to continue fighting the decision. The ban, which includes college campuses and state offices, has been enforced by the secular military since 1986. The European court upheld the ban because the Turkish Constitution [text] prevents the state from showing a preference for a particular religion or belief. AP has more.

[JURIST] US National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley [official profile] refused to rule out the possibility that torture would be used [interview transcript] to prevent a future terrorist attack, during an appearance Sunday on CNN's Late Edition, but maintained that the country will act within the confines of the law. The Senate voted 90-9 [JURIST report] earlier this month to approve an amendment prohibiting "cruel, inhuman or degrading" treatment of detainees in US custody [JURIST document], but the Bush Administration has promised to veto the measure unless there is an exception for the CIA [JURIST report]. Hadley said the White House hoped to compromise on the measure, saying he wants to "come up with an approach that both allows us to do what we need to do to defend the country against terrorist attack, and at the same time, make good on the president's commitment that we will not torture and we will act within the bounds of law." AFP has more.

ALSO ON JURIST  Topic: Torture | Op-ed: Perjury, Lies and Degrading Treatment: The Case for the McCain Amendment

[JURIST] The UN Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI) [official website], in its second bi-monthly human rights report [text, DOC] covering the period from September 1 to October 31, on Monday warned of human rights violations in Iraq [press release, DOC] in light of the increased number of detainees held on terrorist-related charges [JURIST news archive]. UNAMI said that Iraqi police and special forces do not consider human rights when they make security sweeps, stating that forces continue to disregard guidelines administered by the minister of interior to safeguard individual guarantees during searches and detaining operations. The report also suggested that bombing campaigns against civilians and mosques by insurgents is resulting in community relations that are "descending into a pattern of fear, animosity and revenge." AFP has more.

[JURIST] Two Bangladeshi judges were killed on Monday after a man threw a bomb at their car while the judges were on their way to the Jhalakathi district court, 155 miles south of Dhaka. Police said a young man has been arrested at the blast site where an unexploded bomb was also found. This year, Bangladesh has been hit by bombings attributed to Islamist militants who have threatened judges, demanding [JURIST report] that the judiciary introduce Islamic Sharia law [CFR backgrounder] into the legal system. In August, bombs exploded in three district courts [JURIST report; BBC report] outside Dhaka. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The French Cabinet Monday approved an extension to emergency powers authorized earlier this month [JURIST report; press release, in French] in order to help quell riots [JURIST report] that started on October 27. Parliament is expected to approve the bill, deemed by French President Jacques Chirac [official profile] to be a "measure of protection and precaution." The bill was submitted in a special cabinet session to extend the emergency powers by three months from November 21 when the state of emergency is currently due to expire. On November 8, the country declared a state of emergency [PDF decree] under a 50-year-old law [JURIST document] which gives top local officials broad powers to impose curfews and restrictions as required in light of the surge of violence. Police said violence dropped after the 18th straight night of unrest [JURIST report] in the poorer suburbs of the Paris region and provincial cities, with youths setting fire to 284 vehicles compared to youths destroying 375 vehicles in petrol bomb attacks [Reuters report] the night earlier. The riots are thought to be a protest against racism, poor job prospects and the sense of exclusion felt by young French immigrant youths from North and West Africa in French society, and have been said to have been sparked off by the country's banning of religious dress [JURIST report]. France is expected to start deporting foreigners that are implicated in the violence according to a plan set out by Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy [official profile, in French], raising human rights concerns [JURIST report] and questions from other ministers. Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy [official profile, in French] said he agreed that illegal immigrants could be sent home, but not foreigners with permission to live in France, noting that "[a] French person who carried out a crime or a misdemeanor in France cannot be treated in one way while a foreigner with papers in order is treated in another." AP has more.

Previously in JURIST's Paper Chase...

• French PM to impose curfews, deploy police forces to combat rioting
• France authorizes emergency powers to cope with riots
• French emergency laws helping to quell riots, say officials
• French immigrants, rights groups question use of emergency laws
• Paris police enforcing new ban on disruptive rallies
• French interior minister preparing deportations as riots spread to Lyon

[JURIST] Both the number of people sentenced to death and the number executed declined in 2004, according to US Justice Department statistics [PDF report; DOJ press release] released Sunday. According to the report, in 2004 a dozen states executed 59 prisoners, six less than in 2003 and 125 people convicted of murder received a death sentence, the smallest number since 1973. Report authors attributed the decline to a murder rate that is at its lowest level in 40 years. Advocacy groups also attribute the decline to habitual offender laws, which take potential capital murderers off the street, the decline in juror reluctance to award the death penalty in the face of media or legal investigations, the use of DNA evidence, and the increased use of life-without-parole sentences as an alternative to capital punishment. Out of 38 states with the death penalty, only New Mexico does not have a life-without-parole alternative. Texas recently enacted [JURIST report] Senate Bill 60 [text; JURIST report], which creates a life-without-parole sentencing option in state capital murder cases, and this option may have a significant effect in the state which in 2004 had three times as many death row inmates as other states. AP has more.