NYMHM: War crimes trial, California marijuana law, Alaska losing ground

Wed Jan 30 14:53:34 PST 2008

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  NEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED * January 30, 2008 * Vol. 7, No. 5

  Important but overlooked news from around the world.
  NYMHM is a free service of Newsdesk.org.

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QUOTED:

    "Well, it really is signaling to me the tremendous duplicity
    with which the government has acted on this file. If you remember
    they first denied that there was any risk of torture."

    -- Canadian law professor Amir Attaran on his government's
    Afghan prisoner policy (see "Top Stories," below).

CONTENTS:

    *Top Stories*
      War crimes trial spurs threat claim
      California marijuana law takes a hit
      Canada acknowledges Afghan torture

    *World*
      Uzbek strongman has powerful friends again

    *Environment*
      Erosion takes a toxic toll in Alaska

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  TOP STORIES
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  > War Crimes Trial Spurs Threat Claim

    A witness in the war crimes trial of Charles Taylor, the former
    president of Liberia, said a group of men stormed his family
    compound and said they would "all be killed," reports the BBC.

    The witness -- Vamba Sherif, a former aide to Taylor -- claims
    that the ex-president provided shelter in Liberia to rebels ...

    GET THE WHOLE STORY:

    http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004537.html

  > California Marijuana Law Takes a Hit

    The California State Supreme Court found that employers can
    fire workers for using doctor-approved marijuana, despite a
    voter-approved state law permitting such use of the drug.

    Plaintiff Gary Ross, an Air Force veteran with painful back
    injuries from his military career, was advised to use
    marijuana by his doctor.

    He was drug tested at a telecommunications job despite ...

    GET THE WHOLE STORY:

    http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004538.html

  > Canada Acknowledges Afghan Torture

    Canada's defense minister acknowledged that the military knew
    prisoners they transferred to Afghan jails were being tortured.

    Although the military stopped such transfers last year, the
    decision was kept secret, and publicly Canada's government
    denied any knowledge of torture of ...

    GET THE WHOLE STORY:

    http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004539.html

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  WORLD
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  > Uzbek Strongman Has Powerful Friends Again

    Western nations are once again making diplomatic overtures to
    Uzbekistan, despite the former Soviet republic's dismal human
    rights record.

    Admiral William Fallon, of the U.S. Central Command, visited the
    Central Asian nation's capital last week, and European officials
    have also made the trip in recent weeks.

    The Organization for Cooperation and Security in Europe
    congratulated President Islam Kamirov on his victory in last
    month's elections, despite the fact that it said the vote
    was unfair.

    Uzbekistan's location bordering Afghanistan makes it
    an important ...

    GET THE WHOLE STORY:

    http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004540.html

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  ENVIRONMENT
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  > Erosion Takes a Toxic Toll in Alaska

    It has been widely reported that global warming threatens to
    sweep scores of coastal Alaskan towns into the sea.

    Now, the Anchorage Daily News reports that severe erosion is
    also threatening the ocean by dumping toxins from landfills
    and garbage dumps into the water.

    "A (dump) is kind of like a Pandora's box of surprises," said
    Tamar Stephens of the state's Department of Environmental
    Conservation, the Daily News reported.

    Among the materials of concern are heavy metals and
    biological ...

    GET THE WHOLE STORY:

    http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004541.html

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Editors: Josh Wilson, Will Crain
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