The Fukushima Daiichi plant was hit by a magnitude 9 earthquake in March 2011, knocking out main power for cooling reactors, and the subsequent 15-meter tsunami destroyed electrical equipment and disabled backup generators. The meltdown is considered one of the biggest man-made environmental disasters of all time and the largest nuclear accident since Chernobyl in 1986. Japan has been criticized for its handling of the crisis, and international reception to nuclear energy has fallen sharply since the incident. In August Japan prosecutors initiated [JURIST report] a criminal investigation into the nuclear disaster. In July a Japanese expert panel issued a report claiming that the Fukushima disaster was preventable [JURIST report]. In June more than 1,300 people filed a criminal complaint [JURIST report] against Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) [corporate website] for the crisis and for the plaintiffs' resulting radiation. The complaint named as defendants Tsunehisa Katsumata, the chairman of TEPCO, Masataka Shimizu, the former president of the company, and Haruki Madarame [Washington Times profiles], the chief of the Nuclear Safety Commission, along with 30 other executives. In March of that year TEPCO executives faced another complaint filed by a group of shareholders [JURIST report] for similar claims in the amount of US$67 billion.

Dozens have died in street protests since the death sentences were originally handed down in late January, leading President Mohamed Morsi [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] to declare a state of emergency [JURIST reports] in an attempt to quell the violent protests that subsequently erupted. Egypt has been plagued by protests and violence since the beginning of the Egyptian Revolution [JURIST backgrounder] two years ago. Also in January an Egyptian rights group reported that police abuse and torture continue to be ongoing issues [JURIST report] and that police conduct has not improved since the abuses faced under the old regime. In December Egypt's Supreme Constitutional Court indefinitely halted operations [JURIST report] amid pressure from protestors aiming to block judges from meeting to rule on the validity of the country's new constitution.

[JURIST] Kenya's election commission on Saturday declared Uhuru Kenyatta [BBC profile; JURIST news archive], son of Kenya's first president Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, the winner of the nation's 2013 presidential election. Shortly after the official announcement Kenyatta's top election opponent Prime Minister Raila Odinga [Al Jazeera profile] announced that he would refuse to concede[BBC report], stating that the election was rife with voting irregularities. The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) [advocacy website], however, has reportedly called the elections complex but credible and transparent, and has urged the candidates to accept the commission's official results. The final vote tallies showed Kenyatta with 50.07 percent of the vote [AP report] and Odinga with 43.3 percent. Odinga has promised to challenge the election results in the Supreme Court of Kenya [official website]. The reported 86 percent turnout of the Kenyan electorate has been said to be the largest of any election ever held in the African nation.

Kenyatta has been charged by the International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website; JURIST backgrounder] with crimes against humanity arising from violence following Kenya's disputed 2007 presidential election. Earlier this week the ICC agreed to delay [JURIST report] until July the trials of Kenyatta and his co-defendant Francis Muthaura [case materials]. Last month Kenyatta and Muthaura asked [JURIST report] the ICC to review the decision to move forward with the trial. In December the two Kenyans announced [JURIST report] that they would be running together in the March elections despite the upcoming trials. In October the ICC called for complete cooperation [JURIST report] from the Kenyan government in the investigation and trial process. Also facing trial are former cabinet minister William Ruto [case materials] and journalist Joshua Arap Sang [case materials]. In June the ICC expressed its desire to start the two Kenyan trials simultaneously [JURIST report] to avoid any appearance of bias in the March 2013 presidential election.

[JURIST] The Supreme Court of Mexico [official website, in Spanish] ruled [press release, in Spanish] on Wednesday that certain offensive statements regarding another individual's sexual orientation are not protected under the nation's freedom of expression laws. In a 3-2 decision the Mexican high court held that two derogatory words used in Mexico to describe gay people are hate speech, and are therefore not legally protected. The case concerned a journalist who sued a columnist [AP report] at a different newspaper for moral damages after the columnist wrote a story describing the journalist in terms used to denigrate gay people. The court ruled that although the terms were deeply rooted in Mexican society, their use is not protected when the intent is to cause harm to others. The court is expected to issue a full opinion at a later date.

Mexico [JURIST news archive] has been at the center of legal and political controversy in recent years surrounding same-sex marriage [JURIST backgrounder] and other issues pertaining to gay rights. Two weeks ago the Mexican Supreme Court published the written judgment [JURIST report] for its December decision striking down Oaxaca's same-sex marriage ban. In August 2010 the Mexican Supreme Court upheld a Mexico City law [JURIST report] allowing adoptions by same-sex couples. Earlier that month the court ruled 9-2 that same-sex marriages performed in Mexico City must be recognized nationwide [JURIST report]. The court found that although Mexico's 31 states are not required to allow same-sex marriages to be performed in their jurisdictions, they must confer marital rights to same-sex couples married in Mexico City. Earlier in 2010 the court ruled 8-2 that Mexico City's same-sex marriage law is constitutional [JURIST report].