Saudi Arabia has been criticized for conducting unfair trials against opposition leaders and human rights activists. Last month Human Rights Watch [advocacy website] urged Saudi Arabia to drop apostasy charges [JURIST report] against a website editor, claiming that his arrest violated his right to freedom of expression. In August a number of human rights groups sent a letter to the Saudi Ministry of Justice requesting that trials against activists be made public [JURIST report]. Last January the UN Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights [official website] issued a report which criticized Saudi Arabia for its increased use of capital punishment [JURIST report] and for using torture in order to obtain confessions.

The international community has become increasingly concern with forced labor issues and human rights abuses in Eritrea. In June UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay [official profile] condemned [JURIST report] Eritrea for its failure to address the human rights violations in the country. These sentiments came on the heels of the US State Department [official website] Trafficking in Persons Report 2009 [22 USC § 78 text], which added Eritrea and five other countries to its list of countries with the worst human trafficking records. In conjunction with the report's publication, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton [official profile] called for an end to what she sees as "modern slavery," and emphasized the broad global impact such trafficking can have on national economies and public health and safety.

Iran's nuclear program continues to raise international concern. In August UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon [official profile] expressed concern [JURIST report] about Iran's human rights conditions and nuclear program during a visit to Tehran. Earlier that month US President Barack Obama announced two new economic sanctions [JURIST report] on Iran's oil exports that aim to cut the country's financial transactions with the Chinese and Iraqi banks allegedly doing business with Tehran. In the first of these orders Obama explained that the penalties were imposed to prevent funding for "Iran's illicit proliferation activities." In March, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) upheld a lower court decision [JURIST report] that a UK subsidiary of Bank Melli Iran (BMI) can be included in a list of entities engaged in nuclear proliferation. A 2007 UN Security Council Resolution [Resolution 1337 text] requires member states to freeze the assets, funds and economic resources of entities and their subsidiaries that are determined to be "engaged in, directly associated with or providing support for Iran's proliferation sensitive nuclear activities or the development of nuclear weapon delivery systems."

More than 60,000 people have been killed [JURIST report] during a 21-month-old revolt against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad [BBC backgrounder], which began with protests that quickly turned into violence between Assad's forces and demonstrators. A study carried out by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights [official website] reported that the average number of deaths per month has increased significantly since the summer of 2011, where the average was approximately 1,000 per month, to an average of 5,000 deaths per month since July 2012. In October UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay [official profile] urged [JURIST report] world powers to work toward ending the suffering in Syria, emphasizing uniformity and cooperation amongst leaders to quell the violence. One year ago UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon [official profile] demanded [JURIST report] that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad end the violence against the Syrian people. Ban called for an embrace of democracy and real reform in Syria and throughout the Middle East.

Ashraf's brief term as Prime Minister has been fraught with conflict and tension between the executive and the judiciary. Ashraf's predecessor, Yousuf Raza Gilani, was forced out as prime minister last June after the Supreme Court convicted him of contempt [JURIST report] for failing to pursue a corruption case against the president. In July, only a month after Ashraf became prime minister, the Supreme Court ordered him to reopen the investigation [JURIST report] against President Asif Ali Zardari [official website] within three weeks. The National Assembly of Pakistan [official website] approved a bill [JURIST report] to shield senior officials from contempt of court proceedings, which was widely seen as an attempt to exempt Ashraf from possible claims of contempt for failing to follow the order. When Ashraf did not do as the court requested, the Supreme Court granted him [JURIST report] another two weeks to comply with its order. When in early August Ashraf still did not reopen the investigation, the court ordered [JURIST report] him to appear and explain his refusal to comply with the July orders. After his appearance in court, the Supreme Court then granted Ashraf an additional three weeks to reopen the corruption case. Finally, in mid-September, Ashraf agreed to allow the corruption case to be reopened [JURIST report].

Increasing laws protecting homosexuals from discrimination have caused conflicts between secular governments and those religious institutions that take issue with homosexuality. In 2010 the UK Charity Commission [official website] ruled [JURIST report] that the Catholic social services agency Catholic Care [agency website] may not restrict its adoption services to married heterosexual couples. In March of the same year the UK High Court [official website] issued a judgment [JURIST report] instructing the commission to reconsider a previous ruling on the adoption service's practice citing that respect for religious views is not a justification for discrimination in this particular case, because adoptions are a public service.

In Boyer v. Louisiana [transcript, PDF], the court considered a Sixth Amendment [text] case directly on appeal from the Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit [opinion]. At issue is if the state violates the "speedy trial clause" by not paying court-appointed counsel in a timely manner. Counsel for the petitioner argued that the Louisiana court incorrectly determined that the cause of the delay was beyond the control of the state. Counsel for Louisiana argued that while the delay may have been within the state's control, the court should nonetheless uphold the lower court's reasoning. Much media attention was given to the fact that Justice Clarence Thomas, known for remaining silent during oral arguments, broke his seven-year silence during this argument with the words "Well—he did not." It is unclear exactly what he meant, but he spoke in response to questioning from Justice Antonin Scalia about the lawyer in the case being Harvard educated.

The impeachment Bandaranayake has been a source of great controversy. Earlier this month a UN independent expert expressed concern [JURIST report] about the increasing threats and attacks against judges and lawyers who fight for the independence of the judiciary in Sri Lanka. Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers Gabriela Knaul [official profile] called for the independence of the judiciary and criticized the parliament for exercising control over judicial matters, which violates the principle of separation of powers, due process and international standards. In mid-December Bandaranayake appealed [JURIST report] her conviction of misconduct, arguing that she was not given adequate opportunity to present her defense. She was found guilty [JURIST report] of three out of five charges of misconduct by the parliamentary committee earlier that month. More than 300 of Sri Lanka's judges had met in the capital Colombo to call for impartiality [JURIST report] in the impeachment proceedings. In November Knaul urged [JURIST report] Sri Lanka to take appropriate measures to protect the country's judiciary from threats, intimidation and physical attacks. Earlier that month hundreds of Sri Lankan lawyers and citizens protested [JURIST report] on the street in Colombo calling the government to halt to the impeachment proceedings.