Tunisia has faced global criticism and political turmoil since former president Zine Al Abidine Ben Ali [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] left office amid nationwide protests in January 2011. In August the UN Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and in practice [official website] urged the Tunisian government to ensure that women's rights are protected [JURIST report] in line with the nation's international human rights obligations. Also in August HRW called on the new government to ensure judicial independence [JURIST report]. In July a Tunisian military court sentenced Ben Ali in absentia to life in prison [JURIST report] for his involvement in the killing of 43 protesters during the 2011 Tunisian revolution, which resulted in the death of more than 200 protesters. Ben Ali was already sentenced to life in prison [JURIST report] for his involvement in the killing of 22 protesters. He has also been sentenced to 20 years [JURIST report] on charges of inciting violence and murder in connection with the death of four protesters. In April the country's military appeals court upheld [JURIST report] the convictions against the former president for torturing military officers over an alleged coup plot in 1991. Ben Ali has denied [JURIST report] all charges brought against him. During the 2011 revolution, Amnesty International (AI) [advocacy website] called for investigations into the Tunisia Security Force's alleged brutality against protesters, and HRW similarly urged police [JURIST reports] to end the alleged violence.

Bahrain has faced international criticism for its crackdown against dissidents since anti-government protests began last year. Earlier this month the Bahrain Court of Cassation upheld jail sentences [JURIST report] for nine medics convicted for their involvement in Bahrain's pro-democracy uprisingAccording to BNA, the medics were working at Salmaniya Medical Complex [official website], and, during the time of the uprising, "took over the complex, detained and imprisoned kidnapped persons, and transformed the hospital to a place of illegal gathering and strikes, in violation of laws." According to Physicians for Human Rights, at least 95 health workers were arrested in Bahrain only after some medics treated those hurt by security forces and spoke out against the crackdown against protesters, which included firing upon ambulances. Last month government officials pledged to fulfill [JURIST report] the 158 recommendations included in the UN Universal Periodic Review [materials] regarding human rights abuses against political opposition. HRW called on Bahrain to follow through with their promises, but raised doubts as to whether the government is fully committed to reform.

Voting rights [JURIST backgrounder] have been the subject of significant debate and court decisions throughout this election cycle. Last week a federal court ruled South Carolina's new voter ID law [JURIST report] does not promote discrimination, allowing it to take effect next year. While strict voter ID laws still remain intact in a handful of jurisdictions [NCSL backgrounder], state and federal courts have recently been very active in reducing the requirements necessary to vote in the upcoming election. Earlier this month, the Mississippi voter ID law [JURIST report] was delayed beyond the November election pending federal review while the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court on remand from the state's Supreme Court issued a preliminary injunction [JURIST report] against new legislation requiring voters to show photo ID at the polls. In September the US Department of Justice (DOJ) [official website] approved a New Hampshire law [JURIST report] requiring those who are unable to present a government issued ID will be permitted to cast a regular ballot after they sign a qualified voter affidavit and allow for a photograph to be taken of themselves at the polling location. In contrast, the DOJ rejected a stricter Texas law [JURIST report] on the grounds that it would disproportionately impact the state's Latino voters and promote discrimination.

Morgan Stanley's policies and practices have resulted in considerable racial disparities. They caused New Century borrowers in the metropolitan Detroit region to be significantly more likely to receive Combined-Risk Loans, and thus suffer the harms associated with such loans, if they were African American.

Several other large financial entities have dealt with accusations of discriminatory mortgage lending practices. In May SunTrust Mortgage [corporate website] agreed to a $21 million settlement [JURIST report] for discriminating based on race and national origin. In December Bank of America [corporate website] agreed to a $335 million settlement [JURIST report] for discrimination by its subsidiary, Countrywide Financial, against Hispanic and African-American home buyers.

Apple's appeal is the most recent event in a protracted patent litigation battle [JURIST op-ed] with Samsung that spans four continents. The Tokyo court handed down its August ruling after Apple won a USD $1.05 billion judgment [JURIST report; video] against Samsung in late August in the US District Court for the Northern District of California [official website]. The dispute covered everything from the shape and design of the competing companies' tablets and smartphones to the technology employed in the devices' software interface. Further, a South Korean court held in mid-August that the technology companies had violated [JURIST report] each others' patents and banned sales of several products in the country. In July a UK court held that Samsung tablets did not infringe on Apple's patents, and earlier in July a federal judge enjoined [JURIST reports] Samsung to stop sales of its Galaxy Nexus smartphone in the US. Apple in April of last year filed [JURIST report] the original suit alleging that Samsung had violated 10 patents, two trademarks and two trade dresses by copying iPhone and iPad technology in the making of its "Galaxy" products.

The current draft of the referendum differs considerably in terms and direction from the original [JURIST report], presented in February 2010, although both draw their authority from Section 30 of the Scotland Act [text]. The current Scottish Parliament, formed in 1997 and known as the Holyrood, consists of 129 members, 52 percent of which are from Salmond's Scottish National Party, followed by 29 percent from Cameron's Conservative Party [party website]. Current polls [NYT report] show 63 percent of Scottish voters opposed to independence and 37 percent supporting it. Cameron, facing an election in 2015, desired an earlier referendum date for political separation and has promised an aggressive campaign to maintain the Union. Salmond gained concessions to allow all Scots 16 years and older to vote on independence, despite the legal voting age of 18 in the UK, though this is expected to add only 2.5 percent to the rolls. Salmond hopes the Scottish people will find that the potential increase in revenues to be gained from a larger share of the North Sea oil fields, will offset the considerable loss of the British annual transfer payments which are critical to the Scottish economy.