In The News

A Life or Death Decision

Robert Verkaik March 7, 2008
The punishment for practicing homosexuality in Iran is a slow and excruciating public hanging. An Iranian student in London, named by a former partner before an execution in Iran, failed to receive asylum in the UK, and has since fled to the Netherlands. A Dutch appeals court will rule on granting the young man Dutch asylum or returning him to the UK. Gay-rights activists throughout Europe...

Integrating Islam into the West

Phillip Blond February 21, 2008
The rule of law evolves gradually over time, casting judgment on behavior as right or wrong. Media reports that the archbishop of Canterbury suggested Great Britain should adopt some aspects of Shariah or Islamic law ignited immediate protests. “Unfortunately, the media storm masked the real message of the speech, which concerned the authority of the secular state and its impact on religious...

Long, Cruel Road to the Slaughterhouse

Emily Dugan February 14, 2008
Ten major animal charities investigated the global trade in livestock, documenting the cruelties that live animals endure on journeys that last thousands of miles, from countries like Australia and Brazil to Europe and the Middle East. “Thousands of animals die en route from disease, heat exhaustion, hunger and stress,” reports Emily Dugan for the Independent. Low transportation costs encourage...

Sharia Law in UK Is “Unavoidable”

February 8, 2008
Host nations often welcome new immigrants and attempt to accommodate cultural differences in many ways. Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams takes that one step further: He suggests that some Muslims in the UK do not relate to the British legal system and adds that adopting parts of Islamic Sharia law, for example on marital or financial matters, may “help maintain social cohesion,” reports...

China Hits Out at Attempts to Politicize Olympics

Jonathan Watts January 31, 2008
Cities compete fiercely for the opportunity to host the Olympics and display their culture and sporting venues under a global spotlight. As Beijing prepares to host the 2008 Olympics, protesters also plan ways to call attention to a range of problems, including genocide in Darfur, repression in China and independence for Taiwan. "No country in the world will compromise its core interests to...

Closing a Legal Gap Between China and WTO 　

Xi Si January 18, 2008
Governments are big spenders, and the World Trade Organization’s Agreement on Government Procurement opens government purchases to international competition. The voluntary agreement, in effect since 1996, currently has 28 members, all developed nations, who agree to regulations and schedules. China has also applied, but other members balk at that application: “Chinese state-owned enterprises…are...

US Courts Consider Legality of Laptop Inspections

Adam Liptak January 11, 2008
Travelers often lug laptops with them, and the US government claims that inspecting the computers is no different than checking suitcases. But privacy advocates and some academics and business people are increasingly concerned, supporting searches only when there is reasonable suspicion. A lone judge has weighed in on the case, adding that information stored on a computer is an extension of one’s...