ICTY prosecutor calls on EU to suspend membership talks with Serbia News
ICTY prosecutor calls on EU to suspend membership talks with Serbia

[JURIST] In an interview [in French] with Paris newspaper Le Figaro published Wednesday, the chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugsoalvia [official website] urged European Union officials to suspend membership talks with Serbia in order to pressure Belgrade to arrest wanted war crimes suspect Ratko Mladic [JURIST news archive]. Carla del Ponte [BBC profile] wants Brussels to delay plans towards a Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) [EU backgrounder], the first legal step towards EU membership, until Mladic is captured. Mladic is wanted on charges of genocide and war crimes stemming from his involvement in the Bosnian war in the early 1990s. Serbia and Montenegro Defense Minister Zoran Stankovic has admitted to secret talks with the Mladic family, but claims that he does not know where Mladic is hiding. The Serbian Supreme Defense Council has also admitted [AP report] that retired army officers previously helped hide Mladic, but they maintain that they have no knowledge of Mladic's current whereabouts. EUObserver has more.

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.