[JURIST] Zimbabwe Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) [party website] party treasurer general Roy Bennett has been indicted on terrorism and other charges, a lawyer for Bennett said Sunday. Bennett, who was scheduled to be sworn in as deputy agriculture minister in the country's new coalition government [BBC report] last week, is accused of funding the purchase of fire arms and explosives intended to be used as part of an insurgency. The MDC has criticized Bennett's Friday arrest, which they characterized as an abduction [press release], and there has been speculation that it could cause increased friction between the MDC and the African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) [party website] party of President Robert Mugabe [BBC profile; JURIST news archive]. The two groups entered into a power-sharing agreement [JURIST report] in September of last year in an effort to end violence following the country's hotly contested presidential elections [JURIST news archive]. Bennett had originally faced treason charges, but they were dropped [Times report] in favor of the terrorism and other charges. He is scheduled to appear in court on Monday.

Bennett's arrest came shortly after he returned to Zimbabwe [IOL report] for the first time in five years. After being imprisoned in 2004 for participation in an alleged assassination attempt on Mugabe, Bennett sought political asylum in South Africa. In 2006, prosecutors of an alleged coup plot [JURIST report] against Mugabe also sought Bennett for questioning, but is not clear whether the current indictment is for those or separate charges.

[JURIST] Venezuelans began voting Sunday on a proposed constitutional amendment [text, in Spanish] that would eliminate presidential term limits in the country. The amendment, which would allow President Hugo Chavez [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] to seek re-election in 2012, was passed [JURIST report] by the Venezuelan National Assembly [official website, in Spanish] last month, but must pass the referendum before taking effect. A similar amendment was among constitutional reforms rejected by voters [JURIST report] in a 2007 referendum, but a January poll by Datanalisis [corporate website, in Spanish] showed that a small majority of likely voters now favor the amendment. 

Voters in the country have been strongly divided over the measure. Earlier this month, thousands gathered in Caracas to protest [JURIST report] the amendment, but supporters submitted a petition signed by almost five million people [JURIST report] endorsing the amendment to the National Assembly late last year. Opposition politicians have accused Chavez [JURIST report] of using the constitutional reforms to consolidate his power.

[JURIST] Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga [official website] on Saturday maintained [press release] that the government was determined to form a local tribunal to address the December 2007 post-election violence [JURIST report], despite a defeat [JURIST report] in the Kenyan Parliament [official website] last week. Odinga said he had discussed the situation with mediator Koffi Annan [official profile] and remained hopeful that lawmakers would establish a Special Tribunal. The Commission of Inquiry on Post Election Violence (CIPEV), or Waki Commission, has set a March 1 deadline for the creation of a tribunal, after which a list of 10 high-ranking officials accused of orchestrating the violence is to be delivered to the International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website].

Voting on the bills to establish the tribunal was postponed [JURIST report] following allegations that government officials tried to bribe or blackmail MPs to gain support for the measure. More than 1,000 people were killed and 500,000 displaced by violence following allegations of fraud [JURIST report] in the country's presidential election. The defeated bills were proposed by CIPEV [JURIST report] in October 2008 after Odinga and President Mwai Kibaki [official profile] approved a power-sharing agreement [JURIST report] in March 2008.

[JURIST] The first trial in the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) [official website; JURIST news archive] is in danger of being tainted by the body's failure to meet international fair trial standards [HRW press release], Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] said Saturday. The ECCC will begin its prosecution of former Khmer Rouge [BBC backgrounder] leaders with Kaing Guek Eav [JURIST report], better known as "Duch," on Tuesday. HRW claims political interference is apparent in the prosecution's approach of trying few of the possible former Khmer Rouge leaders, in the name of "national reconciliation." HRW called on the international community, which is providing financial support for the tribunal, to demand that such concerns over corruption and political influence be addressed.

HRW's plea follows the release of an Open Society Justice Initiative [advocacy website] report [JURIST report], which raised similar concerns last week. UN and Cambodian officials called for anti-corruption measures [JURIST report] in December after allegations were made of kickbacks for judicial appointments. ECCC judges denied [JURIST report] the corruption allegations in January, stating that they had no reason to pay kickbacks to government officials. A New Zealand judge serving on the ECCC insisted [JURIST report] in an August address to colleagues that the genocide trials "are so important for the people of Cambodia [that they] must not be tainted by corruption." The Khmer Rouge regime is generally held responsible for the genocide of an estimated 1.7 million Cambodians [PPU backgrounder] between 1975 and 1979.