Stories about Law from May, 2007
Egyptian Blogger Monem to Be Freed
Jailed Egyptian blogger Abdulmonem Mahmood is being released on Saturday - but Egyptian bloggers are holding their breath and are full of apprehension on their future in a country which has so far conducted a witch hunt on bloggers, reports Freedom For Egyptians.
Russia, Austria: Raiffeisen, Murder and Money Laundering
Robert Amsterdam writes about the alleged ties of Raiffeisen Zentralbank (RZB) of Austria to murder and money laundering in Russia.
Latvia: Gay Parade and Other “Problems”
“Gay parade is the least of our problems,” writes All About Latvia: abortions, the lowest life expectancy in the EU, and human trafficking are no less – if not more – significant.
Guyana: Monetary Compensation & Sexual Assault
Following a case in which when a 39 year-old man was accused of sexual assault against a 17 year-old girl, The Guyana Groove writes: “When a woman is forced to accept monetary compensation from the very person who already violated her, it is as if she is forced to put...
Jordan: Smoking Fines
Naseem Al Tarawnah from Jordan challenges statistics about smoking fines in his country. “First of all, I’m positive that between my friends and I (which definitely total less than the number of enviro-cops) we could issue over 3,000 tickets in a single week let alone eight months! “Second of all,...
Japan: “Thought Check” Screening for Citizen Judges
While news in Japan this week has been understandably fixated on the sensational suicide of Agriculture Minister Matsuoka Toshikatsu, another story revealed in a blog entry by Diet member Hosaka Nobuto slipped by with little fanfare last weekend. In the post, Hosaka outlines the latest step in moves by the government to implement a "citizen judge system" in Japan. This step, he claims, would allow the prosecution to effectively disqualify, through a "thought check" screening process, all citizens judge candidates who express doubt about the trustworthiness of police investigations.
Uzbekistan: Prohibition's Consequences
Tolkun Umaraliev posts that restrictions on the sale of hard alcohol in Uzbekistan is driving sales underground and spurring some to instead drink beer.
Albania: Ban on Smoking
Our Man in Tirana reports on whether the ban on smoking in all public places really works.
Ukraine: Internal Troops
“When Ukrainians send Troops to suppress protestors they never – thank God – seem to arrive. In Russia (and the remainder of the CIS) they always arrive and, as in Uzbekistan in 2005, they shoot to kill,” writes Taras Kuzio and shares ideas on how to transform Ukraine's “internal troops”...
India: Builders and the Law
Mitesh points to a blogger who has a horrifying experience with builders and a disinterested judicial system. “What can common law-abiding people like us, who work hard for several hours a day and pay all taxes honestly, do when we get duped like this? Local politicians, corporators and police most...
Bahrain: Police Excessive Use of Force
“I’m not sure what the Ministry of the Interior wants to achieve by its continuous excessive use of force. If this is their idea of instilling love for the country, they failed; if it is their intention to protect public and private property, they failed, their habitual use of tear...
China: GFW and Google
Zola claims that once he becomes more well off and famous, he will sue GFW and Google, the former blocks his blog from local access, the latter stops his adsense account without giving him any reason (zh).
Landing at the Iraqi Blogodrome
If you read nothing else in Global Voices today read this post. I mean it. Everything is here from going to schools in a war zone, review of the latest political scene in Iraq, must-see video blogs, stories of extreme bravery and extreme pathos, a $1000 KFC meal, and if you read to the end, how gays cruise in Amman.
Bulgaria: George Michael For Tripoli Six
Eternal Remont reports that George Michael has joined the “You Are Not Alone” campaign to raise awareness of the Tripoli Six, “the six Bulgarian nurses who await death by firing squad in Libya.”
Bahrain: The ‘two seas’ are now a concrete jungle
From 'blog wars' to work ethics, the Bahraini blogosphere is bubbling with new ideas and excitement. Ayesha Saldanha sheds more light on discussions taking place this week about Bahrain's jungle of concrete, compensation for the victims of the capsized Al Dana dhow, the historic Bab Al Bahrain (Bahrain Gateway) and much more.
Internet Censorship Law Proposal in Israel
Internet censorship could slowly and surely find its way to Israel. Now that a new proposal “that is supposedly meant to protect kids from the dangers of pornography, violence and gambling sites” has passed the primary voting stage in the Israeli Knesset, bloggers writing in Hebrew are asking: What is...
Bolivia: Troubles with the Constitutional Tribunal and a Bittersweet Mother's Day
Another varied week in the Bolivian blogosphere bring us news on the recent conflict involving the Constitutional Tribunal, the appearance of transvestites on the streets of Santa Cruz, a question about Bolivia's nationalization and the celebration of Mother's Day.
Singapore's Myanmarese Go Online for Double Taxation Petition
Myanmar residents abroad have to pay an additional tax to the Myanmar government in addition to the tax they pay in their host countries. Failure to pay this this tax results in Myanmar embassy denying them consular services. Myanmarese residents in Singapore are using their blogs and other online means to get support for a petition to avoid this double taxation.
Serbia: 50 Human Rights Tasks
Belgrade 2.0 comments on Goran Miletic's “fifty human rights tasks that new government should do.”
Zambia: corruption wars
Cho discusses corruption wars in Zambia: “I have watched with some amazement at the recent flurry of discussions on corruption following the London judgement on our ex President FTJ. The issue has been much debated on every Zambian blog, forum and newspaper. As always these discussions have been led from...
Belize: Supreme Court Rules Against Police
The Belize Supreme Court has ruled that the police cannot prevent citizens from protesting against the controversial Universal Health Services loan guarantee during today's House of Representatives meeting. Belizean quotes United Democratic Party leader Dean Barrow: “The will of the people obviously cannot be thwarted and the right to dissent...
