G8 leaders to develop legal system for trying suspected pirates News
G8 leaders to develop legal system for trying suspected pirates

[JURIST] Officials from the G8 countries [BBC backgrounder] on Saturday agreed to work toward establishing a system for trying pirates captured in African waters [JURIST news archive]. The recent increase in pirate activity has created problems for where to try captured pirates. If the pirates are tried in Europe, they may be able to bring successful asylum claims, and in Africa, poor governance and corruption place great obstacles in trying the pirates. The G8 ministers recognized the importance of aiding the region to fight drug trafficking cartels and improve their own judicial systems to effectively process and try captured pirates. The proposal will be presented at the upcoming G8 summit in L'Aquila [official website] in July.

Kenyan authorities have brought charges [JURIST report] against 18 Somali nationals who were captured by German and French forces over the past two months as a result of an agreement reached by the EU and the Kenyan government. There is a similar agreement [Reuters report] between the US and Kenya, through which other Somali nationals have been captured and turned over to Kenyan authorities. Earlier this month, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime [official website] obtained Kenyan support [VOA report] to launch a new plan to combat piracy by policing Horn of Africa waters.

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.