[JURIST] Federal Communications Commission (FCC) [official website] Chairman Julius Genachowski [official profile] on Monday proposed [press release, PDF] "net neutrality" [JURIST news archive] regulations that would prevent Internet providers from restricting access to particular services. At a speech [text; recorded video] at the Brookings Institution [think tank website], Genachowski unveiled OpenInternet.gov [official website], stressing the importance of "open Internet" principles. The FCC currently follows four open Internet principles: that consumers must be able to access the lawful Internet content, applications, and services of their choice, and attach non-harmful devices to the network. Genachowski introduced two new principles: preventing Internet providers from discriminating against particular Internet content or applications while allowing for reasonable network management, and ensuring that Internet providers are transparent about the network management practices they implement. Genachowski also said that the FCC would take steps to formally codify the principles as regulations, saying:

We have an obligation to ensure that the Internet is an enduring engine for U.S. economic growth, and a foundation for democracy in the 21st century. We have an obligation to ensure that the Internet remains a vast landscape of innovation and opportunity.

This is not about government regulation of the Internet. It's about fair rules of the road for companies that control access to the Internet. We will do as much as we need to do, and no more, to ensure that the Internet remains an unfettered platform for competition, creativity, and entrepreneurial activity.

[JURIST] A US military judge on Monday granted [order, PDF] the government's request for a 60-day continuance [JURIST report] in the trial of five Guantanamo Bay detainees accused of plotting the 9/11 attacks [JURIST news archives]. Judge Stephen Henley granted the delay in the case of self-proclaimed architect of the attacks Khalid Sheikh Mohammed [BBC profile; JURIST news archive], Ramzi bin al-Shibh [JURIST news archive], and three others, noting that the defendants do not oppose the delay. This is the government's third continuance in the case, having been granted 120-day continuances in January and May [JURIST reports]. Pentagon prosecutors said Attorney General Eric Holder will decide by November 16 [Miami Herald report] whether to continue the military commission proceedings or to transfer the case to federal court.

While the Obama administration decides what to do with Guantanamo detainees who are under investigation or who have been charged with crimes, a number of former detainees are being relocated around the globe in order to meet the January deadline for closing the facility. Last week, Hungary said that it would take one Guantanamo detainee [JURIST report]. Earlier this month, three Chinese Uighur Muslims agreed to be relocated to the Pacific island nation of Palau, and two more agreed [JURIST reports] over the weekend. In late August, Portugal accepted two Syrian nationals , and five other EU members agreed [JURIST reports] to give serious consideration to receiving former detainees.

[JURIST] Italy systematically forces migrants to return to Libya where they face human rights abuses without screening them for possible asylum claims, according to a report [text, PDF; press release] released Monday by Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website]. The report found that Italy often intercepts migrants traveling by boat from Libya and fails to screen migrants for potential refugee status before returning the migrants to Libya. This policy, according to the report, violates a number of international agreements and norms including Article 3 of the European Convention of Human Rights [text] and the principle of non-refoulement [CW backgrounder]. Some of those interviewed for the report accused Italian troops of using excessive force, confiscating personal items and documents, and failing to offer food to the migrants. Upon being returned to Libya, the report found that migrants often face prolonged confinement and abuse. The report recommends that Libya overhaul its refugee detention system and investigate claims of abuse. Until such time, the report recommends that Italy cease to intercept migrants from Libya and make sure each migrant has a chance to present his or her case for asylum. The report also called on the European Union and other European institutions to ensure Italy's compliance with EU law and to pressure Libya to improve its treatment of refugees.

Illegal immigration is an increasing problem [BBC report] in Italy that resulted in approximately 36,000 people arriving by boat last year, mostly from Africa. In May, the lower house of Italy's parliament passed a bill [JURIST report] increasing penalties for illegal immigration. Also in May, the Italian government sent 227 migrants back to Libya [AFP report] without asylum hearings in violation of the UN Refugee Convention [text]. The UN Refugee Agency [official website] has urged Italian authorities to reconsider their position, pointing out that Libya is not a member of the UN Refugee Convention and is lacking a functional asylum system. HRW criticized the actions, maintaining that returning the migrants to Libya put them at risk for harm and inhumane treatment. In November, UN human rights experts expressed concern [JURIST report] for Italy's treatment of detained migrants and asylum seekers. The issues raised in Monday's report echo many of those raised by a similar HRW report [text; JURIST report] in 2006.

[JURIST] British Liberal Democrats [party website] voted Monday to support a motion [text; press release] calling for a public investigation into the UK's potential complicity in torture. The motion, passed at the party's conference [official website], calls for:

A full and independent public inquiry into the facts relating to the involvement or knowledge of the British Government on matters relating to torture, extraordinary rendition and the illegal transfer of detainees to foreign jurisdictions in the period between 11 September 2001 and 20 January 2009.

[JURIST] Pakistani authorities on Monday placed under house arrest the leader of an Islamist group suspected of playing a key role in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks [JURIST news archive]. Hafiz Muhammad Saeed [Global Jihad backgrounder], the founder and leader of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT)[CFR backgrounder] was restricted from leaving his home by Pakistani authorities pursuant to Pakistani governmental orders. This is the second time Saeed has been placed on house arrest. In June, a Pakistani court ended [JURIST report] Saeed's house arrest after not having enough evidence to link him and his group to the Mumbai attacks. There is no word from authorities on how long Saeed will be under house arrest.

On Saturday, Pakistan Interior Minister Rehman Malik announced that his government would indict seven suspects [JURIST report] in the Mumbai terror attacks, also requesting further evidence from India that Saeed was involved in planning the attacks. In August, India sentenced three terrorists to death for their part in similar attacks in 2003 [JURIST report]. In July, India announced that it would continue the trial [JURIST report] of a man suspected in the 2008 hotel attack [BBC backgrounder] that killed more than 100 people, despite his mid-trial confession [JURIST report]. Pakistan has postponed the trial of five others [JURIST report] allegedly connected with the 2008 attack. Mumbai has suffered a number of terrorist attacks allegedly linked to the LeT in recent years, leading the government to consider controversial terrorism laws and to institute special courts [JURIST reports] to try suspects.

[JURIST] A French court on Monday began the trial of former prime minister Dominique de Villepin [BBC profile; JURIST news archive], accused of slandering businessmen and top politicians including current French President Nicolas Sarkozy [official website, in French; JURIST news archive]. De Villepin is accused [AFP report] of having orchestrated the release of a fabricated list of government officials and business people who profited from illegal arms sales, including Sarkozy. Twenty witnesses are expected to testify during the trial, which is likely to run until the end of October. If found guilty, de Villepin could face up to five years in jail and a €45,000 fine.

In November, de Villepin was ordered to stand trial [JURIST report] for "complicity in slanderous denunciation" in connection with a long-running political scandal known as the Clearstream Affair [BBC backgrounder]. In 2006, French authorities searched de Villepin's home and questioned [JURIST reports] him for 17 hours in connection with the scandal. De Villepin's political image was tainted by the allegations as well as by his advance of an unpopular youth labor law [JURIST news archive] during his time as prime minister.

[JURIST] The German Bundesrat [official website] gave final approval to a bill [text, PDF, in German] Friday that will allow Germany to ratify the EU reform treaty, known as the Lisbon Treaty [EU materials; text]. Although both houses of Germany's parliament had previously approved the treaty [JURIST report], the German Constitutional Court [official website] ruled [judgment; JURIST report] in June that the treaty could not be ratified without certain parliamentary reforms ensuring Germany's sovereignty. The Bundestag [official website, in German], Germany's lower house of parliament, passed the bill [JURIST report], which was drafted [JURIST report] in August, by a vote of 494-46 with two abstentions earlier this month. The bill will now be signed into law by President Horst Koehler [official profile, in German], paving the way for the treaty's ratification.

Efforts to ratify [JURIST news archive] the treaty in all of the 27 member countries required for approval have met some obstacles. Although the treaty has been approved in 23 countries, Irish voters rejected [JURIST report] the treaty last June, leading Czech President Vaclav Klaus [official website] to refuse to sign the measure, despite approval [JURIST report] by the Czech Senate [official website]. Last July, Polish President Lech Kaczynski [official website] refused to sign [JURIST report] the treaty despite parliamentary approval, calling it "pointless" in light of the Irish rejection. Ireland agreed in June to hold a second referendum [JURIST report] after EU leaders agreed to certain concessions [presidency conclusions, PDF].