In association with the International Commission of Jurists

May 2013

16 May

The UN General Assembly has voted to pass a resolution condemning the Syrian government for human rights violations and call for a transitional government. International donors pledged 3.25 billion euros ($4.22 billion) to help Mali recover from a conflict with al Qaeda-linked Islamists. A suicide bomber in a car targeted two vehicles carrying foreign forces in Kabul, Afghanistan. Three people were killed when...

|
15 May

As Peter noted yesterday, the recent tragedies in Bangladesh factories have resulted in a major breakthrough with the signing of the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh. Thus far, leading retailers such as H&M, Marks & Spencer, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Benetton, and Calvin Klein are on board. Notably absent from the list are leading U.S. retailers such...

|
15 May

In my previous post, I expressed my skepticism that the OTP will open a formal investigation into the situation -- loosely defined -- involving Israel's attack on the MV Mavi Marmara. In this post, I want to raise two issues concerning Comoros' referral that I find particularly troubling. First, why is Comoros being represented by Turkish lawyers, the Elmadag Law Firm...

|
15 May

The Japanese military's forced prostitution of Asian women before and during World War II was necessary to "maintain discipline" in the ranks and provide rest for soldiers, an outspoken nationalist mayor has said. Russia has ordered the expulsion of an alleged CIA agent working undercover at the US embassy who was discovered with a large stash of money trying to recruit a Russian...

|
14 May

UN Special Rapporteur Richard Falk urged Israel to stop construction of a highway that would cut off the local roads of Palestinian community Beit Safafa. A Swiss court is trying Belgians and Czechs in one of the biggest money laundering scandals dating back to central Europe's post-communist privatization boom. Major U.S. retailers including Gap Inc. declined to endorse an accord on Bangladesh building and fire...

|
13 May

The ICC's website is its public face. Scholars, activists, and interested laypeople -- many who live in the situations under investigation -- rely on it as their primary source of information about the Court's activities. So it is imperative that the Court update its website in a timely fashion. Time and again, however, it does not. Case in point: three new...

|
13 May

Former Guatemalan dictator Efrain Rios Montt was found guilty of genocide, torture and rape of 1,771 indigenous Ixil Mayans during his rule in 1982-1983. Bangladeshi authorities have arrested Jamaat-e-Islami party leader AKM Yusuf on charges of crimes against humanity allegedly committed during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War. Taiwan's government has issued a 72-hour ultimatum to the Philippines' government, demanding an apology over the...

|
12 May

Ever since my friends at Wronging Rights flagged the upcoming NBC series Crossing Lines, which is about an ICC police unit, I've been scouring the internet for more information about what will no doubt be an absolute train-wreck of a TV show. Tonight I found this: Set in exotic locations around Europe, “Crossing Lines” follows a disgraced New York cop, played...

|
12 May

Calls for Papers In cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, the University of Johannesburg, South Africa, is hosting a conference on the legacy of the ICTR. The organizers are currently calling for papers. A short abstract must reach mswart@uj.ac.za by May 24, 2013. More information on the conference is available here. The University of Oslo is hosting a conference August 30-31, 2014 entitled: The Legitimacy and Effectiveness...

|