Category «Civil Liberties»

First Online Free Expression Day Launched on Reporters Without Borders Website

“Reporters Without Borders calls on Internet users to come and protest in virtual versions of countries that are Internet enemies…There are 15 countries in this year’s Reporters Without Borders list of “Internet Enemies” – Belarus, Burma, China, Cuba, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Vietnam and Zimbabwe. There were only …

Subjects: Blogs, Censorship, Civil Liberties, Internet

House Democrats Reject Telecom Immunity

House Democratic Majority Leader/AP: “Locked in a standoff with the White House, House Democrats on Tuesday maintained their refusal to shield from civil lawsuits telecommunications companies that helped the government eavesdrop on their customers without a secret court’s permission. But they offered the companies an olive branch: the chance to use classified government documents to …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Congress, Government Documents, Legislation, Privacy

Celebrate Women's History: 2008

“Women have made great strides in the fight for equality, but gender bias continues to create huge barriers for many—especially immigrants, women of color, women with low incomes, and victims of domestic violence. Women’s History Month draws attention to the women who have fought for the rights we have today, and at the same time …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Internet

UN: Good Practices for the Protection of Witnesses in Criminal Proceedings Involving Organized Crime

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime: Good Practices for the Protection of Witnesses in Criminal Proceedings Involving Organized Crime, January 2008. “The United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and its Protocols call upon State Parties to introduce appropriate measures to prevent witness intimidation, coercion, corruption or bodily injury, and to strengthen international cooperation …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Courts, Government Documents, Legal Research

Recent CRS Reports: Corporate Mergers, Hate Crime Legislation, FDA Fast Track, Federal Pollution Controls

February 21, 2008 – FDA Fast Track and Priority Review Programs February 20, 2008 – Constitutional Limits on Hate Crime Legislation February 20, 2008 – Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) for Workers: Current Issues and Legislation February 20, 2008 – Federal Pollution Control Laws: How Are They Enforced? February 20, 2008 – Privacy and Civil Liberties …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Congress, Government Documents, Legislation, Privacy

National Summits Help Federal Courts Prepare for Sentence Reduction Requests

Follow up to December 11, 2007 posting Retroactivity Approved for Crack Cocaine Guideline, from the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts : “As of March 3, 2008, more than 21,000 inmates serving time for federal crimes involving crack cocaine will be eligible to have their sentences reduced. Federal courts already are preparing to rule on …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Courts, Legal Research

Unclassified DNI Data Mining Report Released By Secrecy News

Secrecy News: “The Office of the Director of National Intelligence provided an overview of U.S. intelligence data mining development programs in…Data Mining Report,” ODNI Report to Congress, February 15, 2008. Data mining is used by intelligence agencies to search through databases in order to discern patterns of activity that could indicate a threat to national …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Congress, Government Documents, Privacy

Registry of USG Recommended Biometric Standards

“This Registry of USG Recommended Biometric Standards (Registry) supplements the NSTC Policy for Enabling the Development, Adoption and Use of Biometric Standards. This Registry is based upon interagency consensus on biometric standards required to enable the interoperability of various Federal biometric applications, and to guide Federal agencies as they develop and implement related biometric programs. …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, E-Government, E-Mail, Government Documents

DHS Begins Collecting 10 Fingerprints From International Visitors at O'Hare,

DHS press releases, February 1, 2008: “The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today that it has begun collecting additional fingerprints from international visitors arriving at Chicago O’Hare International Airport (O’Hare), Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (Hartsfield), and George Bush Houston Intercontinental Airport (Bush Intercontinental). The change is part of the department’s upgrade from two- …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, E-Government, Government Documents, Privacy

U.S. v. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, et al.

FindLaw: U.S. v. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, et al. (Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, Feb. 11, 2008) – “The U.S. Department of Defense announced that six high-value detainees held in Guantanamo Bay were charged, under the Military Commissions Act, with planning and executing the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Specific charges include violations of the laws of war, …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Courts, Government Documents, Legal Research

Senators Leahy, Whitehouse Urge AG Mukasey To Clarify Testimony About Destruction of CIA Tapes

Press release: “Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), who also sits on the panel, sent a letter Thursday urging Attorney General Michael Mukasey to clarify testimony given to the Committee during last week’s Department of Justice oversight hearing. In the letter, they ask the Attorney General to explain the …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Congress, Government Documents, Legal Research