A Human Rights Perspective of the Supreme Court Verdict on the Basic Structure Doctrine
In a recent verdict by the Supreme Court of Pakistan (“SCP”), the constitutionality of, inter alia, the 21st amendment—whereby the Federal Government can transfer the trial of certain terrorism-related offences...
Keeping Abreast of Hong Kong’s ‘Breast Assault’ Case: A Legal and Feminist Critique
All men are equal, but some men are more equal than others – others as in women, regrettably. It may not be surprising to find this in a dystopian animal...
Asia Bibi’s “Unfair Trial”
The week before last, the Pakistani Supreme Court admitted Asia bibi’s appeal against her conviction and death sentence for blasphemy under Section 295-C of the Pakistan Penal Code. Even if...
India, the Land of Ironies: A Constitutional Democracy’s Dance with the Death Penalty
India is a country of ironies. Barely a fortnight ago, we had a consultation on the death penalty organised by the Law Commission of India where participants advocated for the...
The Execution of Justice in Venezuela
In 2009, Judge María Lourdes Afiuni released a political prisoner on bail. Hours after the judgment was delivered, the late President Hugo Chávez appeared on national television, labelling Afiuni a...
The Pornography of Policing: The “Rape Bait”
In Bombay, two men posing as cops raped a 17-year-old girl and filmed the violence they perpetrated on the phone they stole from her. Her assailants subsequently threatened to release...
Glossip v Gross: Taking Up Justice Breyer’s Call to Question the Death Penalty
Last month the United States Supreme Court ruled in Glossip v. Gross 135 S. Ct. 2726 (2015) that the use of midazolam in Oklahoma’s injection protocol was not unconstitutional under...
The Mandatory Death Penalty and Narratives of the Common Law
Some people say the common law is all about narrative. A story gets told, then retold and retold and with each retelling it changes a little. Most of the work...
"You Have the Right to an Attorney that We Approve of”: Right to Counsel under Iran's New Criminal Procedure Code
Under Iran’s new Criminal Procedure Code only lawyers pre-approved by the Head of the Judiciary may intervene during the investigation stage in security related cases. This is a huge blow...
Glossip v. Gross: SCOTUS Affirmation of Underdeveloped Science for the Lifeline of the Death Penalty
On 29 June 2015, in Glossip v. Gross 576 U. S. ____ (2015), Justice Alito gave the majority opinion (joined by Roberts C.J., and Scalia, Kennedy and Thomas, J.J.), which...
Imprisoning Children: Against Lowering the Age of Criminal Responsibility in Brazil
The Brazilian House of Representatives is on a fast track to adopt a constitutional amendment (PEC 171/1993) by the end of this month to lower the age of criminal responsibility...
The Death Penalty for Foreign Nationals and Migrant Workers
On 16th and 17th June, 2015, a group of experts met in Geneva to address the issue of foreign nationals, including migrant workers, facing the death penalty abroad. The meeting...
