Stories about Law from January, 2007
Haiti: Pre-Carnival Festivities A Blast for All
Due to regained security in the capital, pre-carnival festivities in Port-au-Prince have been about as well attended as carnival itself, says (Fr) HaitiXchange. Adds the site: “Marching bands and the better known DJs were all part of the festivities. People came from everywhere: Petion Ville, Delmas, Cite Soleil, Martissant…in order...
St. Vincent & the Grenadines: Drive-bys arrive
Abeni regrets to report that drive-by shootings have arrived in St. Vincent.
Bahamas: Does the war on drugs make sense?
Larry Smith offers a useful historic overview of the history of the drug trade in a post that asks the question: can the war on drugs be won?
Poland: Sex Scandal and Cronyism
Traveling Life writes about Poland's ongoing sex scandal and about yet another case of cronyism: “I know that each political appointee has an army of advisers to make sure he doesn't screw up too much. But at some point we have to ask when the sheer incompetence of political appointees...
Bahrain Jails Political Activists
A court in Bahrain today sent two political activists to jail for possessing leaflets calling for a boycott of recent legislative elections, reports blogger Mahmood Al Yousif, who describes the sentence as “Disgusting. Another blow for freedom of speech in Bahrain.”
Syria May Abolish Capital Punishment
Syrian blogger Mustafa Hamido reports that Syria may abolish capital punishment.
Iranian Bloggers Talk About Their Prison Experience
Many people for political reasons have been sent to prison in Iran. A few of those former prisoners shared their stories in books, through painting or in their blogs. Some people, including bloggers and researchers, have tried to look at prisons in Iran as an outsider, who was not in...
Kazakhstan: James Giffen
Leila translates a post on James Giffen, an American businessman facing trial in the United States for bribing Kazakhstan's president, something he says that he did with the knowledge of the US government. The case has been used by opposition politicians in Kazakhstan against the president.
Nepal: Madhesh Is Burning
Madhesh is the southern plains of Nepal where half of the country lives. Madhesi are the people of Nepal, roughly half of the country. The Madhesi have been discriminated against for centuries. Now they are in a revolt that feels like the second part of the world shaking April Revolution....
China: Out of Libya
It‘s [zh] since been disabled, but there was one especially eye-catching post on Tianya, one of China's most widely-read bbs forum sites last month. ‘Save us!’ it read. ‘We've been stuck in Libya for over a year and we're about to go crazy here!’ Racist attitude, seen further down, might...
UAE: Interrogation Stories at US Border Anyone?
UAE resident SolitudDeGitana questions whether anyone knows what the amount of information you have to/should divulge during airport interrogations. “(T)he woman over at luggage inspection started asking me a string of other questions, namely about whether I had a boyfriend where I'm living in the MIddle East. I answered her,...
Serbia: Mladic and the EU
Neretva River points out some legal issues that might make the transfer of Ratko Mladic to the ICTY impossible.
South Asia: Forced marriages in the UK
A House of Lords discussion in the UK on forced marriages covered at Pickled Politics. “Lord Lester said that on the bicentenary of the abolition of slavery, it was scandalous that we were turning a blind eye to the sexual and domestic slavery of women; he said is was fully...
Africa: French Double-Standard Vis-a-Vis China
Says Generation Consciente (Fr): “I'm not sure if I should laugh or cry about the French giving ethics lectures to the Chinese presence in Africa, urging them to encourage democracy and peace, as France itself hasn't ceased doing so for a half century through coups, killings of nationalist leaders and...
Israel: More Jews Migrating to Canada
Writing in Jewish Sans Frontieres, Mark Elf, reports that Canada is granting residency to growing numbers of Israeli asylum seekers, including ethnic Russians, ultra-orthodox Jews and political dissidents who say they are victims of political or religious persecution in Israel. He also wonders why why the presence of more Jews...
Bangladesh: Drugs, Sex Education, Freedom of Press, Winter Fruits and Vegetables and Man-Eating Tigers
There seems to be no stopping drug frenzy once it takes hold of a nation. Drishtipat Group Blog tells how Yabba, a speed/amphetamine derivative from Thailand is taking on Bangladesh. It started a few years ago as experiments of the upper class. It has penetrated deeply into the working class...
Trinidad & Tobago: Police force irrelevance
Manicou hits out at the “irrelevance” of the Trinidad and Tobago police force, in light of their handling of the organiser of last week's proposed national shutdown.
Crime and Punishment in Kazakhstan
Blogger's Trial Kazis Toguzbayev, a journalist who uploaded his articles on KUB, a group blog, was tried in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on 22 January. In his article, Toguzbayev implied that the President was covering the murders of the opposition figures. He got a two-year suspended sentence for violating the Criminal Code...
Romania: EU Residency Permit
Csikszereda Musings has just received his third residency permit for Romania in two years: “Because now, of course, Romania is in the EU, and my ability to stay here is determined by that new status. (Romanians can't stay in the UK longer than 3 months, but fortunately for me the...
Trinidad & Tobago: National shutdown organiser arrested
Attillah Springer confesses to a sense of unease as the organiser of today's national shutdown in Trinidad and Tobago is charged under the country's anti-terrorism act.
Arabisc: Hijab-clad Doll Under Fire in Tunisia
This is Fulla, the Hijab-clad Arab Muslim adaptation of the decadent West's Barbie doll. Our Barbie wears the Hijab (head scarf) and Islamic attire – a long dress with long sleeves. While she is a blessing to many parents in the Muslim world who are happy to see their children...
