The European Court of Justice ruled that, according to the press release, “[h]omosexual applicants for asylum can constitute a particular social group who may be persecuted on account of their sexual orientation.” According to European Council Directive 2004/83/EC, a refugee is anyone who “owing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country.” ...
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.
A new UN-backed report, titled “After Trafficking: Experiences and Challenges in the (Re)integration of Trafficked Persons in the Greater Mekong Sub-region,” finds that victims of human trafficking are not given adequate help for reintegration into their communities. The study was commissioned by the Governments of the Coordinated Mekong Ministerial Initiative against Trafficking (COMMIT) and was prepared by the NEXUS Institute with support from the United Nations Inter-agency Project on Human Trafficking (UNIAP) and civil society partners. According to the news story, the report focuses...
On October 29, 2013, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution calling for an end to the economic, commercial, and financial blockade imposed by the United States against Cuba. According to the news story, this is the twenty-second consecutive year that the General Assembly has adopted a resolution on the matter. Passed by a vote of 188 member states in favor, two against (the United States and Israel), and three abstaining (Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and Palau), the General Assembly again urged all member States “that have and continue to apply such laws and...
The International Crimes Tribunal Bangladesh reportedly sentenced Chowdhury Mueen Uddin and Ashrafuzzaman Khan to death following a trial conducted in abstentia. The men were found guilty of “‘aiding, abetting, instructing, ordering, encouraging and providing moral support to’ the killers of the 18 people . . . who supported the independence movement.” The Tribunal found that the victims were executed to “paralyze the nation” by killing the “most notable intellectuals belong to different professions.” Both men currently live in the UK and the US, respectively.
In a separate...
The EU Commission has found that the UK’s “patent box” scheme—adopted earlier this year and providing a 10% rate of corporation tax for income derived from patents—violates the EU Code of Conduct for Business Taxation, which aims to prevent countries from operating policies that result in harmful tax competition. According to a recent article, the patent box violates the code for two reasons. First, it is not “sufficiently linked to real economic activity” given that “it would allow companies that are merely managed in the U.K. to claim the credit, regardless of whether the actual ‘...
A Trial Chamber of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon held its first pre-trial conference in the Ayyash et al. case. According to the press release, Presiding Judge David Re stated that the Trial Chamber intends to start trial on January 13, 2014, and called upon the parties “to cooperate with the Trial Chamber so that it will be able to meet the start of trial expeditiously.” Judge Re also noted that the twelve motions currently pending before the Trial Chamber may impact the date on which trial begins. The Trial Chamber also heard from the Office of the Prosecutor, Defence...
The Trial Chamber of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) concluded 10 days of closing statements in Case 002/01 against Khieu Samphan and Nuon Chea. According to the press release, Nuon Chea, who served as deputy secretary of the Communist Party of Kampuchea, and Khieu Samphan, the former head of state of Democratic Kampuchea, are charged with crimes against humanity related to the forced movement of the population from Phnom Penh in April 1975, the subsequent forced movement of the population from other regions, and the alleged execution of Khmer Republic soldiers...
Judge Carmel Agius, Acting President of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, issued a decision assigning Judge Mandiaye Niang to the Bench in the case of Prosecutor v. Vojislav Šešelj, following the disqualification of Judge Frederik Harhoff from the Bench in August 2013. According to the press release, Judge Agius also urged the Trial Chamber to “consult with the Accused on whether to rehear the case or continue the proceedings with the newly appointed Judge,” as provided for in the Tribunal’s Rules of Procedure and Evidence. Vojislav Šešelj, the...
Over 300 senior tax officials from more than 100 jurisdictions and international organizations met in Paris during the 18th Annual Tax Treaty Meeting to discuss solutions to unintended double non-taxation caused by base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS). According to the press release, the officials “discussed the content of the Action Plan on BEPS released in July 2013 and ways through which developing countries can engage and provide input.” The Action Plan on BEPS relates to “tax planning strategies that exploit gaps and mismatches in tax rules to make profits ‘disappear’ for tax...
Click here for news report (approximately 2 pages); click here for resolution (approximately 3 pages)
In an extraordinary session of the Assembly of the African Union (AU) on October 12, 2013, leaders passed a resolution regarding Africa’s relationship with the International Criminal Court. While reiterating the AU’s commitment to fight impunity, the Assembly resolved that sitting African heads of state shall not appear before any international court during their term of office. The ICC is currently pursuing cases against Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and Deputy President William...