Human Rights Groups to Monitor Madonna's Adoption of Malawi Boy
A High Court of Malawi has ruled that the Human Rights Consultative Committee and Malawi Human Rights Commission can join the adoption process of Madonna and Guy Ritchie as friends of the court. They may also push for a full judicial review of the interim custody order that has been granted to the Ritchies. The Ritchies' lawyer said that Madonna and her husband have no problems with the ruling. Meanwhile, the boy's biological father hopes that the high profile case will make it easier for foreigners to adopt Malawi children. "In Malawi, there are to many underprivileged children, most of them orphans. I appeal to rich people with Madonna's kind heart to come and adopt these children," he said. For more, read on here.

I know that it seems to be a fad for celebrities to adopt children from third world countries, but I think it is great exposure. People need to understand that there are many parts of the world that need a lot of help, and I see nothing wrong with celebrities using their ability to attract attention as a way to shed light on these problems.

US Want Ban on Luxury Goods to N. Korea
The US is proposing a ban on exporting luxury goods to North Korea. These items are used by the leader Kim Jong Il (picturedto feed not only his appetite, but those of high ranking officials as well. Meanwhile, North Korea citizens continue to suffer from poverty and avoid famine only via foreign aid. So far international embargoes have been ineffective in producing change. Jong Il is still able to import just about anything he pleases. The US feels that this would be a win-win situation because it attacks only those in Jong Il's inner circle and not the common North Korean. I doubt it will have much success, as Jong Il will still be able to bring in whatever he wants, someone will sell it to him no matter what sort of laws there are against it. Still, I suppose it is a nice symbolic move. For more, read on here.

Supreme Court Considers Global Warming Case
The US Supreme Court is currently hearing arguments on the case of Massachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency, et al. that could have an effect on international environmental law and US foreign relations. The case is essentially an argument that the US should consider greenhouse gases to be air pollutants that must be regulated. Browse through the transcript of the hearing yesterday (linked above) and you will see that the Justices are wondering what effect their ruling would have on international agreements in the future. I think this could be a very important decision because the Bush administration has been moving away from the international consensus that global warming is a problem (see the overwhelming number of countries that have ratified the Kyoto Protocol), or at least one we are willing to take serious action on (see US position on Kyoto for example). We are all in this world together, so we should do our part to help. This decision could force us into action. For more about the case read on here and here.

The Hybrid Lebanese Tribunal
In the last week or so I have made several posts about the special tribunal investigating the death of former Lebanese Prime Minister Hariri (see: here and here). Transnational Law Blog has a really interesting post about the hybrid model being used for the tribunal and the possible resulting debate over due process. Do yourself a favor and check it out here.

UN Commissioner On Middle East Violence
After a recent trip to the Middle East UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour reports "the human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territory is grave and worsening, within a general climate of impunity." She also said that Israel has a right to defend itself but must do so "in accordance with international human rights and humanitarian law." There are questions about whether or not Israel violated international law in an attack on the town of Beit Hanun that left 19 Palestinian civilians dead. A fact finding-mission will look into the incident. For more read on.

Update: Vojislav Seselj Hospitalized
Serbian war crimes suspect Vojislav Seselj was hospitalized today. He has been on hunger strike for over two weeks protesting his ICTY trial ("Serbian Refuses to Appear at ICTY Hearing"). The AP has more here.

NATO to "Step Up" Afghanistan Operations
NATO members agreed at a meeting in Latvia to strengthen NATO forces in Afghanistan by removing limited rules of engagement. They also agreed to provide more aircraft, helicopters, soldiers and training for the Afghan National Army.

Additionally, NATO leaders discussed the rebuilding effort, including a call for proposals of a Contact Group and the urging of more cooperation between NATO, the UN, the EU, and the World Bank.

Lastly, the topic of potential new members, such as Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro, was covered. Leaders debated whether or not to expand out of Europe and include countries such as Australia, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea.

The AP has more details here.

Leftist Elected Ecuadorian President
Rafael Correa (pictured in AFP Photo) was declared the winner of Ecuador's Presidential race recently. He is a friend of Hugo Chavez, the Venezuelan President that called US President Bush "the devil" in a UN speech in September. The result weakens US influence in the region as Correa stated he would oppose a free-trade agreement with the US and will not renew the lease for a US airbase. Correa said, "we respect international treaties, but in 2009, when the Manta agreement expires, we will not renew it."

The Latin American region will be a very interesting place to watch over the next few years as quite a few countries have leftist leaders now. TIME has a neat article about the recent developments and what they mean here. For more on the Ecuadorian election, read here. Another article mentions that the airbase closing will end US counternarcotics operations in the region.

ICC Wants to Press On with Lubanga Case
Prosecutors are urging the ICC to confirm the war crimes charges against Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga (read more about the case here and here). If the judges agree it is likely Lubanga will be the first person tried by the ICC. Lubanga's attorney claims that evidence is being withheld from him and that this is a political case. For some reason I do not buy that Lubanga is innocent of the charges, there is just too much riding on this first case for the ICC. I cannot fathom the Court setting itself up for failure right off the bat, it would play into the hands of its detractors. For example, the US has relaxed its stance on the ICC a bit, but the Nethercutt Amendment still punishes those that have signed the ICC treaty but not bilateral immunity agreements with the US (see a list of countries which have signed BIAs as of August). Reuters has more on the Lubanga case if you are interested.

EU Countries Knew of Secret US Prisons
A new report shows that many EU countries "co-operated passively or actively (with the CIA)" in transporting or detaining terror suspects. There are at least 18 "extraordinary renditions" cited in the report. BBC has more on the story here, and you can read the report for yourself here (Hosted by The Jurist). Several lawsuits are already active in connection with these renditions and, if successful, I imagine we will see quite a few more. If it is found that these suspects were in fact tortured, I hope criminal punishment of those responsible follows.

Pinochet Indicted For Executions
Just days after taking political responsibility for the actions of his regime, General Pinochet has been indicted for the executions of two bodyguards of the toppled President Allende in 1973. He was originally ruled too ill to stand trial, but last year the Supreme Court of Chile said he was fit. I am not sure if Pinochet will live long enough to be found guilty, but I always applaud efforts to try human rights violators because of the deterrence effect. For more, read the AP article.

Israel Willing to Swap Prisoners for Soldier
Israeli Prime Minister Olmert said that Israel is prepared to return many Palestinian prisoners in exchange for captured soldier Gilad Shalit (pictured). I really do not feel this is a good idea for Israel to swap a bunch of prisoners for one soldier, and apparently Olmert felt it was a "major mistake" a few months ago. I am not sure what changed, maybe political pressure? Either way, it just seems like a dangerous precedent. Well, I take that back, Israel and Hezbollah made a similar swap just two years ago. Palestinians apparently took note of that and decided to try it themselves. So I guess I am left to wonder what is to stop any of Israel's enemies (and they have many) from kidnapping soldiers to achieve their goals?

Australian Co. Paid $224 Million to Hussein in Kickbacks and Bribes
A report investigating the UN food-for-oil program was released today and showed that Australian company AWB had paid Hussein in a scheme designed to deceive the United Nations. AWB initially withheld thousands of documents and its lawyers made false statements. The investigation turned up that several other companies may have worked with the AWB to hide the payments. It is a disgusting tale of corporate greed and the power of the dollar, read it in full here.

Hussein Anfal Trial Continues
Saddam Hussein's genocide trial for the killing of up to 180,000 Kurds in 1987-88 is under way again after a two week break. Many of those deaths are believed to be a result of gassing, but Monday a witness testified that Iraqi soldiers lined Kurdish villagers in a trench and just started shooting. Iraqi authorities are hopeful they will finish the trial before is executed as a result of his sentence for crimes against humanity from a previous trial. I think they should ensure that the execution is delayed until the completion of this trial and any appeal that may follow. Iraq should try to give as much legitimacy to the trials as possible and give all the victims and their families justice. Saddam's responsibility for the heinous acts needs to be proven in a court of law, otherwise the world could end up with another Milosevic situation. For more on Hussein's trial, read on here.

Pinochet Takes Responsibility
In a prepared statement read at his birthday yesterday, General Pinochet took responsibility for the acts of his administration from 1973-1990 that includes thousands of killings, torture and false imprisonment. He faces many charges in connection with human rights violations, but the courts are not pursuing the cases because of his poor health. I think that it is great that he is finally admitting fault, but I still do not like that he gets to enjoy his final days in freedom. You can read more here. Frightening to think that the US, specifically the CIA, aided him at times.

Turkish Prosecution Could Hinder EU Chances
Two Turkish Christians recently went on trial for insulting "Turkishness" and disparaging Islam. The men were apparently trying to convert Muslims, a dangerous undertaking in this majority Islamic country. Turkey's Article 301 which prohibits denigration of "Turkishness" is highly controversial, as it has been used against many journalist and intellectuals, including a recent Nobel Prize winner (although those charges have since been dropped). Officials have demanded that the law be changed if Turkey is to join the EU. For more, read on here.

Rwanda Breaks Diplomatic Ties with France
Following Tuesday's accusation by a French judge that Rwandan President Kagame (pictured) should be tried for the death of former Rwandan President Habyarimana that led to the Rwandan genocide, Rwanda has decided to end diplomatic relations with France. Rwanda says that France is "trying to bring down its government." Meanwhile, Rwanda has launched an investigation into France's possible involvement with the genocide. President Kagame has immunity from French prosecution, but could be tried by the UN's ICTR. Get more information here.

Hariri Panel to Investigate Gemayel Assassination
A UN panel recently formed to investigate the 2005 murder of former Lebanese Prime Minister Hariri has agreed to investigate Tuesday's killing of Lebanese Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel. It will be very interesting to see if any hard evidence implicating Syria in the string of Lebanese assassinations can be found. Read on here.

Belarus, Myanmar Cited for Human Rights Abuses
A UN panel approved draft resolutions that reprimand the two countries for rights abuses. The resolutions follow controversy about public chiding as a double standard because of abuses by more powerful countries such as the US (Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib). Reuters has more here.

Serbian Refuses to Appear at ICTY Hearing
Vojislav Seselj, a war crimes suspect, refused to appear at his hearing yesterday. He cited weakness from a hunger strike as the reason. Seselj has refused to eat since last week because he wants copies of court documents, visits with his wife and the right to act as his own counsel. Seselj would also like the ICTY to dismiss his court appointed attorney. For more, read on here.