Stories about Law from October, 2009
Inheritance tax and children in limbo: adoption in Japan.
Adoption in Japan is a statistically under-represented, multi-dimensional issue. Young families seeking children, inheritance tax-evading grandchild adoptions, conservative opposition to confusing family blood-lines, and loosely regulated groups illegally netting profit from international adoptions out of Japan.
USA: Interracial couple denied marriage license
Last week, in Hammond, Louisiana, a couple applied for a marriage license and were refused on the basis of their different races. The justice of the peace claimed that "interracial marriages do not last long" and stated that he was "doing it for the children."
Russia: More on the Recent Election
A discussion of last Sunday's local elections in Russia – at Sean's Russia Blog.
Ukraine: Child Rape and Politics
Ukrainiana reports on a controversial child molestation case, the details of which were leaked right before the official start of the presidential election campaign: “How much of this accounts for a smear campaign and how much portrays a shocking case of sexual child abuse remains to be seen.”
Saudi Arabia: Where Plagiarism is a Crime
Saudi bloggers are rallying to the support of a fellow blogger who claims that a newspaper had lifted photographs and copy from his blog without permission.
Paraguay: The Kidnapping of Cattle Rancher
The recent kidnapping of cattle rancher Fidel Santiago Zavala in Paraguay [es] has attracted criticism to President Fernando Lugo for his lack of courage to combat crime, as well as proposals for laws allowing citizens to be armed writes José Angel López Barrios.
Maldives: Abolish Capital Punishment?
Maldives president Mohammed Nasheed suggested a moratorium on capital punishment in a recent radio speech which has sparked a debate in the country. His namesake blogger Mohammed Nasheed has details on this issue.
Uganda: Bloggers discuss anti-gay bill
A Ugandan bill that would make homosexuality officially illegal and punishable with death sentence or life in prison has been tabled in parliament and now only awaits president Yoweri Museveni's signature. Gay bloggers in Uganda discuss.
Trinidad & Tobago: Who's to Blame?
As the Trinidad and Tobago government is criticized over the sub-standard living conditions of Chinese labourers brought in to work on state construction projects, Survivein’ Trinidad says: “If a private company offers me a fully loaded contract (housing, travel allowance, etc.) to work in Germany and I get there only...
Trinidad & Tobago: Open Content
“In Trinidad and Tobago…copyright culture is confused. Fortunately, most people who are creating content on the Internet from Trinidad and Tobago seem to at least have a clue about how copyright works. But even with that,” says KnowTnT.com, “a lot of people don't realize the power of open content.”
St. Vincent & the Grenadines: Yes or No
As referendum day approaches for a new constitution in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Abeni says: “These days it is so hard to find a Vincentian as people prefer to identify themselves as NDP or ULP.”
Jamaica: Change Takes Time
Annie Paul blogs about everything from Jamaican coffee to reggae star Buju Banton's meeting with gay activists: “Yeah right, the Jamaican public is going to listen and learn from a castrated Buju when he tells them he has recanted and they should all follow suit by becoming ‘pro-gay’ whatever that...
China: Fisherman buys newspaper Ad to thank government
ESWN translated an interesting local news story about Chongqi fish farmers having spent 100,000 yuan in thanking the local government's anti corruption campaign. The story is both a praise and a parody of the government as fighting against corruption has become a credit rather than a duty.
United Kingdom: ‘Super injunction’ lifted on Côte d'Ivoire waste dumping report
Trafigura, the British oil trader, has finally released The Guardian newspaper from a secret injunction preventing it from reporting the so-called Minton Report, after an extraordinary week of online activity.
Russia: Election Fraud and Blogging
Reports of vote-rigging in the local elections, which took place in 75 of Russia’s 83 regions on Oct. 11, spurred protests by citizens and politicians in Moscow - and quite an outrage among some of the country's bloggers.
Argentina: The Approval of a New Media Law
The Argentinean Senate approved a new law of audiovisual media, which establishes a new series of rules for the regulation of open signal, cable, and satellite television and radio.
Trinidad & Tobago: Poor Coverage
An incident at Beetham Gardens in Port of Spain causes KnowProSE.com to take a look at the roles of both mainstream and new media: “Here's what I got from the media: some stones thrown, some gunshots, some tires lit…in what is categorized as ‘almost a riot’. From the social media,...
Bahamas: Fed Up With Crime
“This country needs to be done with pandering to the criminals and give them their due so that the rest of us who want to live in a civil society can get on with it”: When it comes to crime, Sidney Sweeting at Weblog Bahamas says “enough is enough”.
Trinidad & Tobago: Registration Legislation?
Trinidadian bloggers Nicholas Laughlin and Caribbean Free Radio draw attention to the “possibility of regional legislation for registering journalists”.
Bermuda: PATI Pending
Of Bermuda's pending Public Access To Information legislation, Catch a fire says: “I don’t understand the reason for PATI only applying to information created following the enactment of PATI. It certainly leaves the government open to rumour-mongering and undermines the credibility of PATI.”
Namibia: Petition to end forced sterilisation
A campaign has been launched to end forced sterilisation in Namibia: “A coalition of civil society organisations has called on Namibians to join a campaign condemning the sterilisation of women living with HIV without their informed consent.”
