On August 4, 2016, nine Central and North American states released the San Jose Action Statement, wherein they endeavor to take concerted action to strengthen protection for refugees fleeing Central America. Most refugees from the region are forced to flee pervasive violence caused by heavily armed, transnational criminal gangs, particularly in El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala. In the statement, the governments of Belize, Canada, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, and the United States asserted: “[W]e are confronted with a growing number of asylum seekers and...
International Law in Brief
International Law in Brief (ILIB) is a forum that provides updates on current developments in international law from the editors of ASIL's International Legal Materials.
On August 3, 2016, North Korea fired an intermediate range ballistic missile into Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the Sea of Japan. According to a press source, the missile landed within 155 miles of the Japanese coast, the closest a North Korean missile has come to Japan since 1998. U.S. Strategic Command reported that the missile was one of two “No Dong” missiles fired near the city of Hwangju; the other exploded shortly after launch. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe condemned the missile launch, stating, “That it landed in our nation’s E.E.Z. makes it an intolerable act of...
On August 2, 2016, China’s Supreme People’s Court (SPC) issued an advisory ruling (not yet available in print) that those caught fishing illegally in waters claimed by China could face up to one-year in prison. According to reports, in its ruling, the SPC stated, “judicial power is an important component of national sovereignty,” and “People’s courts will actively exercise jurisdiction over China’s territorial waters.” The opinion defined waters over which Chinese courts could exercise jurisdiction as including contiguous zones, exclusive economic zones (EEZ), and the Asian continental...
On July 29, 2016, the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) ruled that damages for defamation claims must be awarded in accordance with the law, practice, and traditions of the state in which the injury occurred and cannot be assessed on the basis of a comparison of awards made in other Caribbean territories where prevailing socio-economic conditions, including GDP, are different. According to the press release, the case concerned an article and two caricatures published in the Kaieteur News in 2000, which “refer[ed] to Dr Ramsahoye in exceptionally disparaging terms.” Ramsahoye sued...
On July 28, 2016, the European Court of Human Rights declared the complaints of three Ukrainian homeowners regarding the shelling of their homes during the hostilities in Eastern Ukraine inadmissible due to lack of evidence. According to the press release, “armed pro-Russian groups started to seize official buildings in the east of Ukraine,” which prompted the Ukrainian government to respond with an “anti-terrorist” operation, during which the applicants’ houses were damaged or completely destroyed. As evidence of this, they presented copies of their passports and photographs of the...
On July 24, 2016, the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Executive Board decided not to issue a blanket ban on Russian athletes for the upcoming summer games in Rio de Janiero, Brazil. Instead, each sport’s international governing authority will determine whether a particular Russian team or athlete is allowed to compete. The IOC decision states that Russian athletes may participate in the Rio games provided they meet strict anti-doping criteria, do not have a history of doping, and undergo “rigorous additional out-of-competition testing program[s].” Russian athletes seeking to...
On July 22, 2016, the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution authorizing states to assist the Libyan government in destroying its remaining stockpile of chemical weapons. According to reports, the resolution builds upon discussions between Libya’s Government of National Accord and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), the non-governmental organization charged with monitoring the international Chemical Weapons Convention. Libya reported to the OPCW that its remaining Category 2 precursor chemicals—which are mixed to create toxic chemical weapons—had...
On July 21, 2016, Turkish parliament approved (press release available in Turkish) measures granting authorities emergency powers. According to reports, the measures stipulate a three-month state of emergency during which Turkey’s executive branch may issue binding decrees. The decrees may be overruled by the parliament but are not subject to review by the Turkish Constitutional Court. According to a report, the emergency measures are expected to allow continued detention and expedited prosecution for those alleged to have participated in the unsuccessful July 15 coup attempt in which...
On July 18, 2016, the International Labour Organization (ILO) released a report concluding that incorporating labor provisions in trade agreements does not harm or divert trade. In fact, the report found that “a trade agreement with labour provisions increases the value of trade by 28 percent on average, while a trade agreement without labour provisions increases trade by 26 percent.” The study defines “trade-related labor provisions” expansively as “any standard which addresses labour relations or minimum working terms or conditions, mechanisms for monitoring or promoting compliance, and/...
On July 15, 2016, the Special Tribunal for Lebanon issued a contempt judgment, finding both Akhbar Beirut S.A.L, a daily newspaper, and Ibrahim al Amin, its editor-in chief, guilty of interfering with the administration of justice. The contempt judge found that the accused had “publish[ed] information on purported confidential witnesses in the Ayyash et al. case” and had “thereby undermin[ed] public confidence in the Tribunal's ability to protect the confidentiality of information about, or provided, by witnesses or potential witnesses.” The contempt judge found that by publishing articles...