In the motion for reconsideration, appellants provide considerably more detailed information concerning the implementation of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010 than they did in their May 20, 2011, opposition to the motion to lift the stay. ... Appellants acknowledge that they did not previously inform the court of the full extent of the implementation of the Repeal Act. In order to provide this court with an opportunity to consider fully the issues presented in light of these previously undisclosed facts, the stay ... is reinstated temporarily.

In November, the court issued the original stay [JURIST report] suspending enforcement of the injunction against DADT. The government had requested that the litigation be placed on hold in light of the passage of an act to repeal the policy [JURIST report], arguing that moving forward with the appeal would interfere with the repeal schedule. After hearing seven months of arguments and briefs, the Ninth Circuit rejected that appeal and lifted the stay. Congress recently tried to delay the repeal of DADT when it passed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 [HR 1540 materials], which contains a provision requiring the chiefs of the branches of the military to submit written certification that the DADT repeal will not be harmful. Since the enactment of DADT in 1993, approximately 13,000 servicemen and women have been discharged from the armed forces as a result of the policy.

Abortion still remains a hotly debated issue in Europe. In May, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) [official website] ruled that a Polish woman who had been denied genetic testing and an abortion was subjected to "inhuman treatment" [JURIST report] violating the European Convention on Human Rights [text]. Last year, the court ruled that Ireland failed to provide [JURIST report] "effective and accessible procedures" to allow Lithuanian women to assert constitutional rights to a lawful abortion. The ruling followed after several women filed suits asserting a violation of their rights to have to travel abroad for abortions. In March 2010, thousands protested in Spain against a bill that would allow abortions [JURIST report] up until 14 weeks of pregnancy.