Australia defends refugee policy after boat surge
Canberra insisted on Monday that a new deterrent policy of locking up refugees on remote Pacific islands was working despite a weekend surge in arrivals and self-harm attempts among detainees.
15 October 2012 11:03
Canada bars US extremist pastor Terry Jones
Notorious US pastor Terry Jones said Thursday he has been barred from entering Canada after an anti-Islam video he backs triggered violent protests across the Muslim world.
Philippine president defends cybercrime law
Philippine President Benigno Aquino defended a new cybercrime law Friday amid a storm of protests from critics who say it will severely curb Internet freedoms and intimidate netizens into self-censorship.
06 October 2012 13:16
US court blocks controversial voter ID law
In a win for President Barack Obama's Democrats, a judge in Pennsylvania ordered state officials Tuesday not to enforce a controversial voter ID law in the coming presidential election.
03 October 2012 18:59
Swiss parliamentarians reject burqa ban
Swiss parliamentarians narrowly voted Friday against a ban on wearing the Muslim burqa and other face coverings in public places, including public transport.
30 September 2012 11:00
Outrage over Philippine cybercrime law
A new cybercrime law in the Philippines that could see people jailed for 12 years for posting defamatory comments on Facebook or Twitter is generating outrage among netizens and rights groups.
Road cleared for self-driving cars in California
California Governor Jerry Brown on Tuesday signed a bill clearing the way for self-driving cars to jockey with human-operated vehicles to test the technology on the state's roads.
27 September 2012 13:24
Uruguay takes step toward legalizing abortion
Uruguay took a step toward legalizing abortion on Tuesday as lawmakers in the lower chamber of parliament narrowly passed a bill allowing the procedure under certain conditions.
26 September 2012 14:22
Swiss voters say no to tightening of smoking ban
Two-thirds of Swiss voters rejected a referendum Sunday to tighten a smoking ban, to the relief of hotels and restaurants, while two cantons split in a vote over keeping tax breaks for rich foreigners.
Activists seek ban on 'cruel' bullfights in France
France's top constitutional body will decide Friday on a request by animal-rights activists to ban bullfighting, defended in the south as an important tradition and key source of tourist revenue.
20 September 2012 14:00
Germany wrestles with ban on anti-Islam film screening
German politicians and Muslim groups are agonising over whether to ban a small far-right group from screening in public an anti-Islam film that has sparked violent protests from Pakistan to Sudan.
20 September 2012 10:02
Arizona police start enforcing new immigration law
Police in Arizona can now start asking crime suspects about their immigration status, as a contested law that raised fears of profiling of Hispanics took effect in a state bordering Mexico.
