The Supreme Court of Canada affirmed on Thursday the constitutionality of sex work-related offenses. The court held that the impugned offenses do not infringe the right to security of sex workers under Section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The appeal concerned Criminal Code sections 286.2 and 286.3, which prohibit the procurement [...]

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) affirmed Wednesday obligations of states relating to climate change under treaties and customary law. The court emphasized that the severe and far-reaching climate change consequences are an “urgent and existential threat.” The court affirmed that environmental treaties, climate change treaties, and customary law inform one another and are the [...]

A Hong Kong court ruled Wednesday that the segregation of the sexes in public conveniences is unconstitutional for its disproportionate interference with transgender individuals’ right to privacy and equality. Judge Russell Coleman directed the government to review its regulations on the gender recognition scheme relating to access to public conveniences within 12 months. The government [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported Thursday on the grave impact of humanitarian aid cutbacks on the education crisis in Bangladesh’s Rohingya refugee camps. The group urged the country’s interim government to lift restrictions on refugees and intergovernmental agencies to include Rohingya educators in the decision-making process. In early June, the decline in foreign humanitarian assistance [...]

Hong Kong Deputy High Court Judge Frankie Yiu refused to grant leave for a constitutional challenge against a provision criminalizing the incitement of casting invalid votes. In the judgment issued Tuesday, Judge Yiu ruled that the challenge is not reasonably arguable because the provision is necessary to improve the electoral framework. The impugned provision is [...]

INTERPOL Manila arrested the former president of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, on Tuesday for the alleged crimes against humanity committed during his “war on drugs” campaign between 2011 and 2019. According to the Philippines Presidential Communication Office, INTERPOL Manila arrested Duterte at the airport upon his arrival from Hong Kong, after receiving an arrest warrant [...]

Sudan instituted proceedings against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Thursday. The claim alleged that the UAE had directly supported the paramilitary Rapid Support Force (RSF) and its militia in West Darfur, violating the Genocide Convention. Sudan’s claim against the UAE is based on the weapons seized by [...]

The Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal on Thursday unanimously upheld the conviction of opposition activist Tam Tak Chi for uttering seditious words under now-repealed section 10(1)(b) of the Crimes Ordinance. The case concerns whether the prosecution must prove the defendant’s intention to incite third parties to violence or public order for a sedition offense. [...]

The US Supreme Court, by a 5-4 majority, upheld a temporary restraining order against Trump’s administration on Wednesday. The government must reinstate the frozen foreign assistance fund of approximately $2 billion. Writing for the dissent, Justice Samuel Alito described the majority’s decision to uphold the temporary restraining order as “an act of judicial hubris.” The [...]

The Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal on Thursday unanimously quashed the convictions of opposition activists Chow Hang-tung, Tang Ngok-kwan and Tsui Hon-kwong for failing to comply with notices to provide information under Article 43 of the China-imposed National Security Law (NSL). The legal dispute concerns provisions of section 3(3) in Schedule 5 of Implementation [...]