Newsroom

Update

I wasn't going to post again today, but I was just reading Erica's post, and I went to Daily Kos to check out the comments. One commenter was of the opinion that free speech is just an American construct, and others responded that freedom of expression and information are acutally guaranteed in Article 19 of the UDHR and also in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, of which China is a signatory. That's good to know, but that level of discussion can make it easy to forget about the actual human cost of governments not respecting those human rights,…

March 12, 2009

Update

As the Justice Department's Office of Professional Responsibility prepares to release its long awaited report on former Office of Legal Counsel deputy John Yoo’s alleged abuse of his office, there has been a renewed interest amongst political commentators in prosecuting human rights abuses committed as part of the Bush administration's war on terror. Writing for The Daily Beast Scott Horton, a law professor and commentator who has consistently led calls for such prosecutions, noted: “It is widely suspected that the memos were requested as after-the-fact legal cover for draconian policies that were already in place… If the Justice Department internal probe…

March 11, 2009

Update

Senator Jon Kyl (R-AZ) yesterday withdrew his controversial amendment that would have discriminated against Palestinian refugees from Gaza. The amendment was reportedly based on internet rumors and triggered strong opposition both on the hill and from human rights organizations and activists, led by Amnesty International USA. Thanks to everyone who took action!

March 10, 2009

Update

Yesterday, the New Mexico Senate Judiciary Committee voted 6-5 in support of HB 285, the bill that repeals New Mexico’s death penalty.  This is the committee that, in the past, has killed death penalty abolition, so in advancing to the full Senate, this bill has gone farther than it ever has before.  It now only remains for the full Senate to vote (possibly this week) and then for New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson to sign the legislation into law.  Governor Richardson has expressed at least a willingness to sign the bill, but he could always use your encouragement.  New Mexico’s…

March 10, 2009

Update

The Saturday New York Times story on Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Presiding Justice Sharon Keller contains this gem:  "We can’t give new trials to everyone who establishes, after conviction, that they might be innocent,” she later told the television news program Frontline. "We would have no finality in the criminal justice system, and finality is important." Judge Keller is now in big trouble in Texas, not for this callous attitude towards innocent people, but for her role in shutting her court down promptly at 5 pm despite knowing that an appeal in the death penalty case of Michael Richard…

March 9, 2009

Update

Should Palestinians from Gaza be treated differently under US refugee law? According to Senator Jon Kyl (R – AZ), the answer is yes. Last Friday, Senator Kyl introduced an amendment to the Omnibus Appropriations bill, which adds the following line to page 942: "None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be made available to resettle Palestinians from Gaza into the United States." This amendment comes after a time of conflict, which sharply deteriorated the existing humanitarian situation in Gaza. Contrary to a policy of 30 years, which extends protection to refugees on the basis…

March 9, 2009

Update

I just got back from an amazing week in Chicago, and I was trying to decide whether I should use the above as the title for this post, or if I should call it "Solidarity Means Hope," because those were really the two main themes of the past week. I was there to take part in a series of events in support of the Women of Atenco, including a forum at DePaul University, a rally outside the Mexican consulate, and a meeting with the Consul General. The events, planned by Amnesty International in conjunction with a wonderful coalition of Chicago-area…

March 9, 2009

Update

Reporters Without Borders (RWB) and Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) yesterday called on U.S. Internet companies Google, Microsoft and Yahoo! to give the world a day of censorship-free Internet search and blogging, in recognition of World Day Against Cyber Censorship, March 12. In other words, we’re seeing if Internet companies are willing to give the world a free trial of freedom of expression.  Like free trials of software downloads, the hope is that if these Internet mammoths can find it within themselves to stand up to censorship requests for just one day, they, we, the world, might like it enough to…

March 7, 2009

Update

Lancet, a British public health journal, released yesterday a series of reports entitled Health in the Occupied Palestinian Territories which examine the health situation in the West Bank and Gaza. The five reports cover the status of health in the OPT, maternal and pediatric health, common diseases, health as a security issue, and a health-care system assessment for the occupied Palestinian territories and take into consideration issues such as security, the availability of resources, the various conflicts between Israel and Palestinian organizations, the blockade of Gaza, and the occupation of Israeli troops. The series was compiled as a joint effort…

March 6, 2009

Update

Senator Pat Leahy (Democrat, Vermont) told today’s Judiciary Committee hearing on “Getting to the Truth through a Nonpartisan Commission of Inquiry” that he had received 65,000 emails and letters from members of the public supporting his call for a Commission to investigate human rights abuses in the War on Terror. Senator Leahy added: "Nothing has done more to damage America's place in the world than the revelation that this nation stretched the law and bounds of executive power to authorize torture." Senator Leahy’s call for a Commission of Inquiry received strong support from Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (Democrat, Rhode Island) and…

March 5, 2009

Update

Gisha, Legal Center for the Freedom of Movement, an Israeli non-profit organization, produced this powerful animated short, 'Closed Zone'.   They tapped the talent of Yoni Goodman, the animator of the award winning animated film 'Waltz with Bashir': You can also watch the short video on the making of 'Closed Zone'. In the meantime, Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton is in the Middle East committing $900 million in aid to the Palestinians.  The issue remains how the aid being purchased is to make it into the Gaza Strip to the people that need it.  Secretary Clinton urged the Israeli government to allow…

March 5, 2009

Update

Until I attended law school, my strongest exposure to court rooms came from an old "L.A. Law" addiction.  (If you don't know what that is, do me a favor and don't depress me by asking.  Think "Boston Legal" for the 80s.)  One of my girlfriends in grad school came from a family with a strong legal tradition and was a lot savvier than me when it came to actual courtroom experience.  For years, her father argued cases in front of the Supreme Court and I listened with interest as she shared insider's knowledge.  Jennifer said that one of the hardest…

March 5, 2009