[JURIST] The Nicaraguan National Assembly [official website, in Spanish] has passed new legislation to provide increased legal protections to refugees and asylum seekers coming from other Central American countries and, increasingly, from Africa and Asia [UNHCR report]. Nicaragua [JURIST news archive] occupies a strategic location on a common migratory route north to the US and Canada. The measure adopted Tuesday says refugees have a right to seek employment or use state services, and would provide for legal counsel for underage or especially disadvantaged refugees. It would also compel Nicaraguan security and immigration officials to notify refugees of the services available to them.

The law was passed after extensive lobbying by the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) [official website]. A Mexico City-based UNHCR regional representative characterized the law as "a positive step forward in upholding refugee rights as human rights." UNHCR has more.

[JURIST] Zimbabwean police detained US and UK diplomatic envoys for several hours at a roadblock Thursday, threatening them and beating one of their drivers, according to US Ambassador to Zimbabwe James McGee, who described the incident as an "illegal action." US State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said that the Zimbabwean government's actions had "flouted all international convention" [press briefing, video] and that the US intended to raise the issue in a UN Security Council meeting late Thursday. UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband said [press release] that the event was an example of the intimidation encountered daily by Zimbabwean citizens. Zimbabwean officials said that the detention was for the convoy members' safety after they left a rally that had turned violent. AP has more. Sky News has additional coverage.

On Wednesday, opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) [party website] leader Morgan Tsvangirai [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] was stopped at a roadblock and then held for nine hours [Reuters report] for drawing and addressing a crowd of people. Tsvangirai is involved in a dispute with President Robert Mugabe [BBC profile] over the disputed results of the recent presidential elections [JURIST news archive]. The MDC has estimated that at least 65 of its members have been killed [BBC report] since the first election in March, and human rights groups have suggested that state-sponsored violence will only increase as the second presidential vote draws closer.

[JURIST] A Tel Aviv court Wednesday charged former Israeli Finance Minister Abraham Hirschon [Knesset profile] with embezzlement for allegedly misappropriating nearly $1.2 million [Ynet.com report] as head of a trade union between 1998 and 2005. Hirschon and five other union employees allegedly used the money stolen from the National Workers Organization and its subsidiary Nili to pay for personal expenses, including medicine and meals. Hirschon stepped down as finance minister in April 2007. AP has more. Ha'aretz has local coverage.

Hirschon's party, the Kadima [party website], is the dominant party in the Israeli Knesset [official website, in Hebrew] and is also the party of embattled Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert [Knesset profile; JURIST news archive], who also faces allegations of corruption. Last month, Israeli prosecutors alleged that Olmert took bribes [JURIST report] from US businessman Morris Talansky; Talansky later admitted to giving Olmert approximately $150,000 in loans and donations over 15 years. Earlier that month, police raided Olmert's offices [JURIST report] as part of a corruption probe.

[JURIST] Five men charged with plotting the Sept. 11 attacks [JURIST news archive] were arraigned before a military court at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] Thursday. The group includes the alleged lead planner of the attacks, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed [BBC profile; JURIST news archive], who said that he wished to represent himself and that he would welcome a death sentence as a chance to become a martyr. The Pentagon approved [JURIST report] death penalty charges against the five defendants last month. Mohammed had confessed to plotting the 9/11 attacks, but later alleged that the confession was the result of harsh interrogation tactics. At Thursday's hearing, he indicated that his confession was "mistranslated". CBC news has more. Reuters has additional coverage.

US Attorney General Michael Mukasey [JURIST news archive] anticipated Thursday's events when he warned in March that executing the Sept. 11 suspects would make them martyrs [JURIST report]. He commented Wednesday that the military commission trials would be "in the best tradition of the American legal system." The chief prosecutor for the Guantanamo Bay military commissions, US Army Col. Lawrence Morris, said that the trials of Mohammed and the other Sept. 11 suspects would be broadcast [JURIST report] live on closed-circuit television to several military bases so that the victims' families could watch. Mohammed's military defense lawyer, US Navy Capt. Prescott Prince, has expressed concern [JURIST report] that the trial will not be fair.

[JURIST] The Korean Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) [official website] Thursday levied nearly $26 million in fines against US computer chip manufacturer Intel Corp. [corporate website] after a KFTC probe [JURIST report] found that the company had engaged in anti-competitive practices. Intel allegedly offered rebates to South Korean computer makers in return for not using chips made by Intel rival Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) [corporate website]. An official notification of the fine is still pending, but Intel indicated that it would appeal. Reuters has more. The Joong Ang Daily has local coverage.

The South Korean fine comes amidst other global probes into Intel's rebate program. In February, the European Commission carried out an unannounced inspection [JURIST report] at Intel's Munich office as part of the European investigation [JURIST news archive] into the rebate program. In January, the state of New York opened an investigation [JURIST report] into possible Intel anti-competitive practices directed at AMD. In October 2007, the US Federal Trade Commission announced it would not open a formal investigation [JURIST report] into Intel's rebate program.

[JURIST] An Afghan journalist employed by a Canadian television network who is being held as an "enemy combatant" in Afghanistan filed a lawsuit [petition, PDF; press release] against the Bush administration Tuesday, alleging violations of due process and the right to counsel. The complaint, initiated by Ahmad's father, accuses the Bush administration of holding Ahmad illegally for more than six months without being charged in violation of the US Constitution, military regulations, the Administrative Procedures Act [text], the Geneva Conventions, and general international and human rights law. The petition requests that the administration either release Ahmed or state the evidence against him, allow him to speak with lawyers and stop all inhumane treatment. AP has more.

The US military designated Jawed Ahmad [SAJA report; CPJ report], a cameraman for Canadian CTV [media website], as an enemy combatant [JURIST report] after US officials alleged he had Taliban phone numbers and videos in his possession when he was detained by coalition forces at a NATO airbase in Kandahar last October. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) [advocacy website] has called for disclosure [CPJ report], and CTV has made similar appeals [lawsuit press release] to the US government, NATO, and the Canadian military. US military forces have previously detained without charge journalists working in Iraq and Afghanistan.

[JURIST] The Constitutional Court of Turkey [official website, in Turkish] Thursday struck down recent amendments to the country's constitution [text] designed to ease a ban on headscarves [JURIST report] in universities, finding that they violated the country's secular principles. Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party [party website] (AKP) had proposed the amendments to ensure equal access to higher education, but the pro-secular opposition Republican People's Party [party website, in Turkish] had appealed [JURIST report] to the Constitutional Court, saying the ban was necessary to protect the separation of religion and state. In February, the Grand National Assembly of Turkey passed [JURIST report] the amendments by a final vote of 403-107, and Turkish President Abdullah Gul approved [JURIST report] them shortly afterwards. AP has more.

Critics have contended that the constitutional amendments are only the most recent example of the Islamist-based AKP pushing a conservative religious agenda. AKP currently faces a legal challenge filed by Chief Prosecutor Abdurrahman Yalcinkaya [official profile, in Turkish] to have the party legally dissolved [JURIST news archive] for not respecting Turkey's strict secular principles. In March, Yalcinkaya petitioned the court to disband the AKP and bar Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and President Abdullah Gul [BBC profiles] from political office. In May, the AKP filed a response [IPS report] to the dissolution petition, arguing that shutting down the party would leave a political void and endanger Turkey's democracy.

6/6/2008: AKP officials called an emergency meeting [AP report; Hurryiet local report] Friday to discuss the ruling's implications on the prosecutor's case to dissolve the party. The ruling is seen as a possible judicial agreement with critics' charge that the AKP is pushing a conservative religious agenda. Party leaders initially attacked the ruling, leaders are expected to decide how to proceed at the Friday meeting.

[JURIST] A court-martial panel Wednesday acquitted [press release] a US Marine intelligence officer charged in connection with the November 2005 killings of 24 Iraqi civilians in Haditha [USMC timeline; JURIST news archive]. US Marine Corps 1st Lt. Andrew Grayson [defense website; JURIST news archive] had been charged [text] with multiple violations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) [text], including making a false official statement, obstructing justice, and dereliction of duty. Grayson rejected a plea offer [JURIST report] in September 2007 requiring him to admit to an attempted cover-up of the killings in exchange for prosecutors dropping all charges. He was accused of allegedly ordering a subordinate to delete photographic evidence [JURIST report] taken hours after the killings to keep it out of a report being prepared for top-ranking officers and a journalist. A judge dismissed [JURIST report] the obstruction charge Tuesday, and the panel cleared him of all remaining charges Wednesday. If convicted, Grayson could have faced more than 20 years in prison, dismissal from the military and forfeiture of all pay. AFP has more.

Eight Marines were initially charged in connection with the Haditha incident, though the cases against six of them have since been dropped or resolved through acquittal. The court-martial of Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich [defense website; JURIST news archive], leader of the squad implicated in the killings, was postponed indefinitely [JURIST report] in March, while proceedings in the case of Lt. Col. Jeffrey R. Chessani [JURIST news archive] were postponed [JURIST report] until later this month so that a judge could consider whether several military officials were under "undue command influence" to charge the Marine.

[JURIST] The prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) [official website] Wednesday asked the UN Security Council [official website] to extend the ICTR's mandate so that the court can complete all war crimes trials. Hassan Bubacar Jallow [official profile] said in a report [PDF text] that the recent arrests of several Rwandan genocide suspects meant that the court would not have time to finish several first-instance cases until 2009. Pursuant to UN Security Council Resolution 1503 (2003) [PDF text], the court is to complete all trials by the end of the year, and to complete all of its work, including appellate review, by 2010. AFP has more.

Also at the UN Wednesday, Russian diplomat Vitaly Churkin [video, interview] called for the closure of both the ICTR and the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY). There have been significant developments [JURIST news archive] this year in the prosecution of several individuals accused of involvement in the 1994 Rwandan genocide, and those convicted are now allowed to serve out their sentences in Rwanda. Neither the ICTR nor the ICTY has been able to bring all suspects into custody, and the courts have often been criticized for their slow progress. Churkin asserted that after 2009, national courts should handle any new cases. Novosti has more.

[JURIST] The US District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma [official website] granted a preliminary injunction [order, PDF] Wednesday blocking the enforcement of employer-related provisions of Oklahoma's controversial immigration law [HB 1804 text, DOC]. Judge Robin Cauthron concluded that it is "substantially likely" that the provisions are preempted by federal immigration law, and that there was a risk of harm to the plaintiffs if the challenged provisions were to come into effect on July 1, 2008. The US Chamber of Commerce [official website], one of the named plaintiffs, applauded [Chamber of Commerce press release] the court's decision to delay enforcement, maintaining that "through harsh civil penalties, the Oklahoma law unfairly shifts the burden of immigration enforcement from government onto the backs of businesses." Additional proceedings are required in Chamber of Commerce of the United States, et. al. v. Henry before the court decides whether to grant the requests for declaratory relief and a permanent injunction [PDF, complaint]. AP has more.

HB 1804, which has been called the toughest illegal immigration statute in the nation, requires employers doing business with the state to verify the eligibility of their employers with the federal government's E-Verify program [DHS backgrounder]. The law imposes strong civil sanctions against employers who fail to comply with the law, including increased tax rates, the loss of contracts, and exposure to litigation if an employer “should have known” that an employee was unauthorized to work. In January, the law was challenged [JURIST report] in Oklahoma state court. In October 2007, the US District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma [official website] dismissed an earlier lawsuit [JURIST report] challenging the law because the plaintiffs had suffered no cognizable injury as a result of its enforcement.

[JURIST] The Third Appellate District of the California Court of Appeal [official website] Wednesday ruled [opinion, PDF] that a plan to ease prison overcrowding by transferring prisoners to out-of-state facilities does not violate the state constitution [text]. The California Correctional Peace Officers Association and Service Employees International Union [trade union websites] had challenged the plan, alleging that Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger [official website; JURIST news archive] had exceeded his power under the California Emergency Services Act [PDF text] in authorizing private companies to perform services normally undertaken by state employees. The court rejected that argument, finding that section 8658 of the Act granted the governor authority to address prison conditions in times of emergency. The court remanded the case back to Sacramento Superior Court with instructions to "enter a new judgment denying plaintiffs the relief they seek." The Sacramento Bee has more.

In 2006, a federal judge ordered California [JURIST report] to solve its prison overcrowding problem and vowed to release prisoners early if an adequate solution was not reached. In response, Schwarzenegger issued an emergency declaration [JURIST report] to allow out-of-state transfers. The California Department of Corrections [official website] began out-of-state transfers [JURIST report] in November 2006. Schwarzenegger also considered but ultimately rejected [JURIST reports] an early release program.

[JURIST] Terror suspects should be tried in military commissions, not federal courts, US Attorney General Michael Mukasey [official profile; JURIST news archive] said in a Wednesday speech to judges at the 2008 DC Circuit Judicial Conference [conference program, PDF]. Mukasey said that sending terror cases to civilian courts could require the release of sensitive national security information, but human rights groups have argued that federal courts are the best venue [JURIST report] because they are versatile enough to address both defendants' rights and national-security issues. Rights groups have also expressed concern that the military tribunals allow some evidence that is barred from federal court, including hearsay or coerced confessions. AP has more.

In June 2006, the Supreme Court ruled [opinion, PDF; JURIST report] that the military commission system as initially constituted violated both the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the Geneva Convention. Congress subsequently passed the Military Commissions Act of 2006 [DOD materials], which established the current military commissions system. Questions about the system were raised again after the recent dismissal [JURIST report] of the US military judge presiding over the military commission trial of Canadian Guantanamo detainee Omar Khadr [DOD materials; JURIST news archive], but the chief Guantanamo judge has insisted that the military tribunals are capable and independent judicial bodies [JURIST report].