Three decades from now, several crucial elements of the Antarctic Treaty will come up for possible renewal, plunging the future of the continent into uncertainty.
For six decades, the treaty has been the cornerstone of governance for our most southerly, harshest and most pristine continent. It has fostered scientific research, promoted international cooperation, ensured non-militarisation, suspended territorial claims and strengthened environmental protections. Its guardians are the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Parties (ATCPs) – chief among them the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Russia, Norway, Germany, Chile and Argentina.
If the ATCPs decide to question the provisions of the Protocol, automated mining could begin soon after. Those in favour might argue that the Antarctic environment is continuing to degrade in a way that no amount of regional management can halt. Or they might put forward the view that the need for new sources of protein outweighs the “restrictive” conservation measures. Either way, the “special” qualities of Antarctica might not carry quite the same emotive weight in the future.
After 2048, Antarctica could be carved up between nations like every other land mass and surrounding ocean, and slowly relieved of its resources. Those who care about the future of Antarctica must keep a close eye on the continent and its surrounding seas, or risk losing them to drones, drills and desperate politicians.
A group of independent UN human rights experts upon Bahrain to end human rights violations and investigate events surrounding the State of National Safety declared in 2011.
The experts warned against military courts exercising jurisdiction over civilians and discrimination based on gender, gender identity and ethnicity. The report called for abolishment of the death penalty and torture of prisoners. The report also advocated for freedom of expression, religion, assembly and association.
The UN commission commended Bahrain for taking measures to better investigate such abuses and for establishing a National Institution for Human Rights. The kingdom has initiated measures to combat human trafficking, initiatives to encourage advancement for women and agencies to assist the disabled. To execute these duties, the kingdom relegated the tasks to independent government-based commissions. At the same time, the commission criticized the government for not granting enough autonomy and independence to these agencies.
https://www.jurist.org/news/2018/07/un-rights-experts-urge-end-to-human-rights-abuses-in-bahrain/
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) said on Wednesday that the judicial authority considering postponement of a European arrest warrant must assess whether there exists “a real risk of inhuman or degrading treatment within the meaning of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union [text, PDF],” a decision that could impact Poland’s ability to extradite from other EU member states.
Extradition requests between EU states are typically granted automatically. The defendant in the case is an Irish man who is wanted in Poland for drug trafficking-related offenses. Poland issued an arrest warrant and subsequently requested extradition from Ireland to prosecute the man in Poland. The man challenged the request, saying Poland’s judicial independence is at risk, which may cause him to be unfairly prosecuted. Ireland’s High Court denied the extradition request, saying there exists real deficiencies in Poland’s judicial system, which would jeopardize the defendant’s right to a fair trial.
The STC has agreed on a new amendment to the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) 2006 and will now be submitted to the next session of the International Labour Conference for adoption.
The amendment, when it enters into force, will address a potential contractual gap for those seafarers who unfortunately fall victim and are held captive on or off a ship as a result of an act of piracy or armed robbery against ships.
The seafarers’ wages and other contractual entitlements will continue to be paid during the entire period of captivity. This will provide the families with the necessary means of survival to partially alleviate the unbelievable psychological distress they undergo whilst their loved ones are held hostages.
The village of Al Khan al Ahmar is home to 180 people on the West Bank of Palestine. It has 40 houses, a mosque and a school built from old tyres and mud. But its residents don’t know if their village will still exist tomorrow – after Israel confirmed plans to demolish the Bedouin settlement.
If the demolition does go ahead, it could amount to a violation of international humanitarian law. Forcible transfer of civilians living under occupation, demolition of Palestinian homes, and the expansion of settlements all violate the Fourth Geneva Convention.
Amnesty International called Thursday for an investigation into possible war crimes in Yemen. The group published a report [text, PDF] detailing the stories of men in southern Yemen detention facilities. The report documents [press release] “how scores of men have been subjected to enforced disappearance after being arbitrarily arrested and detained by United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Yemeni forces operating outside the command of their own government. Many have been tortured, with some feared to have died in custody.” The families of the detainees reportedly have no way of knowing what has happened to them, as their questions “are met with silence or intimidation.”
Amnesty’s report not only documents the stories of the families searching for information on their detained family members, but also documents the use of torture in the detention facilities.
https://www.jurist.org/news/2018/07/amnesty-calls-for-probe-into-yemen-war-crimes/#
Venezuelan Supreme Court justices currently in exile have filed a complaint with the International Criminal Court (ICC) accusing President Nicolás Maduro of crimes against humanity. The complaint was initially filed with the Venezuelan Supreme Tribunal of Justice (STJ) by Hebert Garcia Plaza, a former member of the Maduro cabinet. However, the STJ stated that many of the actions alleged in the complaint could potentially qualify as crimes under the Articles Five, Six, and Seven of the Rome Statute and that, under Venezuelan law, it did not have jurisdiction to consider the matter. Accordingly, the complaint was filed with the ICC. This is not the first complaint filed with the ICC alleging Venezuelan officials committed these crimes. Last Thursday on 23rd November, 2017, Luisa Ortega Díaz, Venezuela's deposed chief prosecutor, also filed a complaint with the ICC calling for the arrest and trial of top Venezuela officials for crimes against humanity. Ortega Díaz alleged that "8,290 deaths took place between 2015 and June 2017 on government orders." She also charged the government officials with "over 17,000 arbitrary and politically motivated arrests, hundreds of cases of torture, and the general paramilitarization of the civilian population.
http://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2017/11/exiled-venezuelan-supreme-court-justices-file-complaint-against-president-in-icc.php
Speaking in a cabinet meeting on 20th November, 2017, Monday US President Donald Trump announced that the US is re-designating North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism nine years after it was removed from the list. Trump stated, "Today the United States is designating the North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism. Should have happened a long time ago. Should have happened years ago." The president said that, "This designation will impose further sanctions and penalties on North Korea and supports our maximum pressure campaign to isolate the murderous regime." He said that new sanctions on North Korea would be announced by the Treasury Department within the coming weeks.
http://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2017/11/trump-places-north-korea-on-list-of-state-sponsors-of-terrorism.php
The Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front (ZANU PF) on 26th November, 2017, Sunday demanded the resignation of 93-year-old Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe. The document threatened that the ZANU PF, which has kept Mugabe in power for decades, would launch impeachment proceedings under Section 97 of the country's constitution if he did not step down by noon on Sunday. Mugabe has been at the forefront of Zimbabwe's government ever since the country was founded in 1980. Calls for his resignation were prevalent a decade ago when economic mismanagement devastated the country's economy, resulting in currency hyperinflation which has been estimated to have reached a monthly inflationary rate over 79 billion percent at its worse in 2008. Recently Mugabe ousted his longtime ally and vice president Emmerson Mnangagwa in an apparent attempt to consolidate power for his wife, Grace Mugabe. This triggered a backlash from the military and the ZANU PF, both of which have been instrumental in the maintenance of his authority for all these years as a "soft coup" was launched against Mugabe last week.
http://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2017/11/zimbabwe-ruling-party-moves-to-impeach-mugabe.php
Turkish officials banned all events by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) non-governmental groups on Saturday in Ankara, the country's capital, asserting that the measure will ensure peace and security, personal immunity, safety and security of the public. Officials cited Article 11 of the State of Emergency Law, which allows for certain measures to be taken to ensure public safety, as justification for the ban, stating that these events may cause other groups to garner hostility jeopardizing crime prevention, general health and morals, or the protection of rights and freedoms of others. Events such as cinema, theater, panel, interviews, exhibitions are banned until further notice, labeling such events as "social sensitivities".
http://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2017/11/turkish-officials-ban-
lgtbi
-group-events.php
The chief judge of the EU's rule of law mission in Kosovo, Malcom Simmons, resigned on 23rd November, 2017, Thursday over frustrations with corruption, he alleged in an interview with the French newspaper Le Monde. The mission, known as EULEX, exists to promote the rule of law in Kosovo, mentor lawyers and judges in that young nation's justice system, and participate in trying sensitive cases, specifically war crimes. The British judge Simmons says the reality of EULEX is a political mission backed by the EU. Before becoming the mission's chief judge he was pressured by then chief judge Charles Smith to reach of verdict of condemnation in the war crimes case against former guerrilla leader Fatmir Limaj in order to prevent Limaj from standing in elections.
http://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2017/11/chief-judge-of-eu-kosovo-mission-resigns-alleging-corruption.php
Colombia's Constitutional Court on 21st November, 2017, Tuesday ruled that provisions for special justice tribunals outlined in the 2016 peace accord between the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) were constitutional. The Final Agreement to End the Armed Conflict and Build a Stable and Lasting Peace is the second recent attempt to obtain peace between Colombia's government and rebel forces. Chapter 5 of this modified peace accord, Comprehensive System for Truth, Justice, Reparations and Non-Recurrence, sets forth the Special Jurisdiction for Peace which will provide alternative sentences to FARC members convicted of war crimes. Such alternatives will be available only to those who recognize their responsibility in committing the crimes, where those who do not will serve 15 to 20 years in prison.
http://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2017/11/columbia-constitutional-court-rules-justice-tribunals-are-constitutional.php
The Australian Bureau of Statistics on 22nd November, 2017, Wednesday announced the results of a national postal survey on Australia's marriage law in which voters voted that Australia's marriage law should be changed to allow same-sex couples to marry. The "yes" vote had 61.6 percent of the national votes, and was the majority in every state and territory in Australia. The "yes" response won in 133 of the 150 Federal Electoral Divisions, and the "no" response won the remaining 17 divisions. 79.5 percent of all eligible voters participated in the postal survey. Although the results of the vote are not binding, Australia's Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has stated that the changes to the law should be enacted before Christmas. This vote makes Australia one of several countries that have recently made steps to legalizing same-sex marriage.
http://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2017/11/australia-votes-to-legalize-same-sex-marriage-in-non-binding-ostal-survey.php
The European Court of Justice ruled on 22nd November, 2017, Tuesday that an EU citizen who becomes a British citizen is allowed to have their non-EU spouse live with them in the UK. The ruling came in a case brought by a Spanish national who had attained dual citizenship status with Spain and the UK and then the UK denied her Algerian husband residency.The court held that a third country national does not have the right of residence under Directive [2004/38] but is eligible for the right of residence through his spouse under Article 21(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). The general reasoning is that this right of a third country national exists where the EU citizen's right to be able to move freely would be infringed if it did not exist. Thus, there is no direct conferring of the right to the third country national through the TFEU but only as through the EU citizen spouse. The standard for assessing this right of residence of a third country national through TFEU must be similar but not harsher than the standard used through Directive 2004/38.
http://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2017/11/eu-court-citizens-who-become-british-may-bring-foreign-born-spouse-to-uk.php
Syria announced on 22nd November, 2017, Tuesday during UN Climate Change Conference (COP23) in Bonn, Germany, that the nation is poised to send its ratification of the Paris Climate Accord to the UN. The Syria People's Assembly voted to approve ratification of the agreement last month. Syria, a nation engrossed in a civil war since 2011, was not present at the 2015 negotiations for the climate agreement. The country has not yet submitted targets for cutting greenhouse gases. Syria produces a small portion of CO2 emissions, but every country that is party to the accord has produced a plan for cutting carbon output. This announcement leaves the US as the lone country in the world to reject the pact after President Donald Trump announced in a Rose Garden speech this summer that the US would withdraw from the agreement.
http://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2017/11/syria-agrees-to-join-
paris
-climate-accord.php
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