April 23rd, 2008 at 07:11pm
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) held its largest meeting ever during 8-11th April. Attended by member states and 2 new participants, China and Spain, the focus of the meeting was research and development needs in safeguards and verification. 41 delegates discussed the future agenda of the Member State Support Programme (MSSP), specifically addressing areas of research, technology transfer and operational support for verification activities. Given the IAEA’s own limitations in finance and implementation, the IAEA relies on its member states in order to meet its safeguards. The organization also released its publication, “Research and Development Programme for Nuclear Verification, 2008-2009,” a document released biennially detailing the IAEA’s activities in research, development and implementation activities. For further details, please click here.
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April 22nd, 2008 at 10:08am
Director General of the WTO Pascal Lamy appealed to a meeting of the International Monetary and Financial Committee in Washington on April 12 to push for a conclusion to the Doha round as a way of ensuring global economic stablity. “This year I am completely convinced that we have it within our means, politically and technically, to finish the Doha round this year,” said Lamy. “To do so, the first step we need is for WTO Member governments to agree at Ministerial level by the end of May on the framework for cutting agricultural tariffs, agricultural subsidies and industrial tariffs.” Lamy said that the WTO played a critical role in absorbing the fallout from the Asian financial crisis ten years ago and that the completion of the Doha round would renew confidence in rule-based trade systems as a source of economic stability.
The original WTO press release is available here.
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April 21st, 2008 at 01:38pm
European Court of Justice - Court of First Instance upholds fine imposed on Deutsche Telekom for abuse of dominant position.
In 2003 the Commission of the European Communities – the executive branch of the European Union – found that Deutsche Telekom “had been abusing its dominant position on the markets for direct access to its fixed telephone network.” Deutsche Telekom, a German-based former state-owned monopoly, is the largest telecommunications company in Europe. The Court of First Instance rejected the company’s legal objections to a EUR 12.6 million fine imposed by the Commission. The Court also noted that the Commission’s authority to find infringements of competition law is not abrogated by decisions made by national authorities. For more information, please click here.
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April 21st, 2008 at 01:34pm
In a speech at the European Nuclear Assembly Conference, Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs reiterated the importance of nuclear energy for the reduction of carbon emissions, while emphasizing the “need to strengthen the cooperation between EU Member states on the issues related to the safety and security of nuclear installations and the treatment of nuclear waste.”
Commissioner Piebalgs’ comments reflect the Commission’s commitment to invest in Europe’s rapidly aging power plants while addressing the public interest in nuclear safety and waste management through initiatives such as the High Level Group on Nuclear Safety and Waste Management, the European Nuclear Energy Forum and the Sustainable Nuclear Energy Technology Platform (SNE-TP).
For more information, click here.
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April 15th, 2008 at 06:53am
The Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) responded to the controversy surrounding investments by government-owned Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs) by releasing a report stating its commitment to remain open to such investments as long as they are commercially rather than politically motivated. The report responds to concerns among OECD member countries that such funds will be used for political purposes. It also sought to deal with fears among the oil-producing and export-focused Asian nations that operate SWFs that recipient nations will use political concerns as a means to impede legitimate SWF commercial activities. For more information, please click here.
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April 15th, 2008 at 06:44am
In a non-binding opinion released last week, Advocate General Ruiz-Jarabo proposed extending the principle of double jeopardy to include cases in which the initial penalty could never be enforced.
The case discussed is a reference from a lower-level German court hearing the case of Klaus Bourquain. Mr. Bourquain, who is a German citizen, deserted from the Foreign Legion in 1961 and was convicted of murder and sentenced to death in absentia by a French military tribunal in Algeria. Bourquain subsequently fled to Germany and no further charges were sought against him. Had he been recaptured, under the laws of the time a new trial would have ensued, moreover, France has since abolished the death penalty, instituted amnesty for Algerian actions, and the statute of limitations has run now out. Nonetheless, in 2002, German prosecutors brought proceedings against Mr. Bourquain in order to try him in Germany for the crime committed in Algeria.
AG Ruiz-Jarabo stated that the sentence in absentia should have constituted a judgment with the force of res judicata by 2002. Although a procedural idiosyncrasy in French law does not allow the sentence to be carried out, that does not in any way impair the legal force of the judgment as an enforceable, final legal act. For more information, click here.
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April 15th, 2008 at 06:42am
Tourism ministers from 18 APEC member states met on 9-10th April 2008 in order to further a “commitment towards responsible tourism in the Asia Pacific region” and adopted the Pachacamac Declaration. The Declaration acknowledged tourism as an important service sector, providing income and employment to numerous people in the member states. The Declaration emphasized cooperation between the Tourism Working Group (TWG) members, awareness of tourism, and the economic role of tourism as key objectives. The group also agreed to bring corporate responsibility, environment responsibility, climate change and indigenous tourism within the sphere of ‘responsible tourism’. For the complete text of the Pachacamac Declaration, click here.
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April 13th, 2008 at 12:47pm
Cambodia recently became the sixth nation to ratify the ASEAN Charter. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, is an organization comprised of ten Southeast Asian nations whose aim is promote regional cooperation on economic, social and security issues. Drafted in late 2007 after over two years of deliberations, the Charter has come under intense criticism for not forcefully addressing human rights. The failure to address human rights is especially pertinent given the widely-documented human rights abuses of Myanmar (Burma), a member state since 1997. Its defenders argue that the Charter, though watered-down, still signifies an important development in the organization’s 40 year history. It will not go into effect until ratified by all ten member states.
For the full story, please click here.
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April 11th, 2008 at 12:01am
Last week, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) acquitted former Kosovo prime minister Ramush Haradinaj of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Haradinaj was also a commander in the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) during the late 1990s. Although he was charged with crimes such as murder, rape, and torture, the ICTY found that these crimes, if committed, may have been targeted against individuals rather than against groups. Because the victims may have been targeted for individual reasons, the ICTY could not find that Haradinaj had targeted entire civilian groups.
Although one of Haradinaj’s co-defendants, Idriz Balaj, was also acquitted, a third co-defendant, Lahi Brahimaj, was convicted and sentenced to six years in jail for cruel treatment and torture.
Judge Alphonsus Orie stated that the court has had difficulty in obtaining testimony from a significant number of witnesses. Orie remarked that “The Chamber gained a strong impression that the trial was being held in an atmosphere where witnesses felt unsafe.”
More on the story here.
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April 10th, 2008 at 05:44am
The European Court of Human Rights recently held in Koretskyy & Ors. v. Ukraine that there was a violation of Article 11 (freedom of assembly and association) of the European Convention on Human Rights, where the Ukrainian authorities refused to register the applicants’ association called the “Civic Committee for the Preservation of Wild (Indigenous) Natural Areas in Bereznyaky”. The organization was a voluntary association of citizens, non-governmental organizations and other legal entities aiming to preserve wild, natural systems in Ukrainian cities and towns. It was alleged by the government authorities that the association articles had not been drafted in accordance with domestic law. Specifically that the articles failed to contain the association’s status, provided for more activities in other cities than permitted, and entrusted the executive board with financial activities. The Ukrainian Government also argued that it had the exclusive right to regulate independently the activities of non-governmental organizations on its territory. The court opined that the regional court’s decision was insufficient and lacked explanation on any of the allegations. It also held that the association had completely peaceful and democratic aims and did not threaten the system of registration by functioning in towns other than Kyiv. The court found an Article 11 violation because there was no pressing social need to refuse registration.
For further details, click here.
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