BREAKING NEWS ~ Saddam, lawyers to boycott next trial session News
BREAKING NEWS ~ Saddam, lawyers to boycott next trial session

[JURIST] AP is reporting that the chief lawyer for Saddam Hussein [JURIST news archive] has said that and his defense team will boycott trial proceedings when they resume Wednesday. The trial [JURIST news archive] resumed briefly Sunday under new Kurdish chief judge Ra'uf Rasheed Abdel-Rahman [Aljazeera profile] but was adjourned again after Hussein, defense yers, and two co-defendants left the courtroom in protest of the earlier removal of Hussein's half brother and co-defendant Barzan al-Tikriti, who had been complaining about his medical treatment.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Laws of Burgos put into effect

The Spanish Crown put the Laws of Burgos into effect on December 27, 1512. These laws governed the relationship of Spanish settlers with the indigenous peoples of the Caribbean. The laws established the encomienda system of labor, promoted conversion to Catholicism, and safeguarded the indigenous peoples from physical abuse.  However, historians argue that the laws were ineffective at protecting the rights of the indigenous population. Learn more from the Library of Congress.

Prohibitionist Carrie Nation carried out her first public bar smashing

On December 27, 1900, militant Prohibitionist Carrie Nation carried out her first public smashing of a bar, at the Carey Hotel in Wichita, Kansas. Nation argued that destroying bars was an acceptable means of battling the liquor trade since the Kansas Constitution prohibited alcohol. Learn more about Carrie Nation.

World Bank created

On December 27, 1944, the World Bank was created during the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, USA. Learn more about the history of the World Bank.