Dutch foreign minister calls Rice rendition assurances ‘unsatisfactory’ News
Dutch foreign minister calls Rice rendition assurances ‘unsatisfactory’

[JURIST Europe] Addressing the Dutch Parliament [official website] Tuesday, Dutch Foreign Minister Ben Bot [official profile] called assurances by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that the US does not conduct renditions for torture "unsatisfactory." The Netherlands has been reported as one of the countries in which CIA rendition flights made stop-overs. Bot nonetheless asserted that rendition itself was not a form of kidnapping. He wants Rice to provide more satisfactory answers during a meeting with foreign ministers of NATO [official website] states scheduled for Thursday, as Rice continues her five-day visit to Europe. Expatica has more.

Angela Onikepe is an Associate Editor for JURIST Europe, reporting European legal news from a European perspective. She is based in the UK.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Indian National Congress founded

The Indian National Congress (INC) was founded on December 28, 1885 in Bombay (now Mumbai), India. In subsequent decades, the so-called Congress Party would advocate for Indian independence from the UK, which was eventually achieved in 1947. The first Prime Minister of independent India, Jawaharlal Nehru, was elected as a member of the INC. Learn more about the history and founding of the Indian National Congress.

Congress recognized Pledge of Allegiance

On December 28, 1945, Congress officially recognized the Pledge of Allegiance and encouraged its recitation in schools. The Pledge was supposedly written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus Day. The words “under God” were added by Congress in 1954. The revised version of the Pledge was the subject of litigation before the United States Supreme Court originally brought by Michael Newdow, a parent who unsuccessfully objected to his daughter's school district policy requiring daily recitation of the Pledge. The court ruled that Newdow had no standing.

Nepal ends monarchy, establishes republic

On December 28, 2007, the Kingdom of Nepal's interim parliament ended the country's monarchy and established the Republic of Nepal. Free elections were held on April 10 of the following year to elect a Constituent Assembly.

Learn more about the rise of democracy in Nepal.