Stakeholders in Reform of the Global System for Mutual Legal Assistance

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Swire ◽  
Justin Hemmings
Keyword(s):  
Law Enforcement ◽  
The United States ◽  
Legal Assistance ◽  
Mutual Legal Assistance ◽  
Electronic Evidence ◽  
Key Stakeholders ◽  
Reform Project ◽  
The Us ◽  
Us Government ◽  
National Governments

This chapter briefly explains the reasons that Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties (MLATs) and other forms of trans-border access to electronic data are vital and becoming increasingly more so for law enforcement in this age of globalized evidence. It then presents the goals of key stakeholders in MLAT reform: national governments other than the United States; the US government, both for law enforcement and other goals; technology companies, such as email and social network providers; and civil society, seeking goals including privacy, free speech, and democracy. This chapter is part of a broader research and law reform project on law enforcement access to electronic evidence held in other nations. Our ultimate goal is to propose reforms (or meaningful alternatives) to the Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) system. Any such reforms, however, will have to be built on an accurate understanding of the incentives and perspectives of the major stakeholders.

scholarly journals U.S. Arrest of Former Mexican Defense Minister on Drug Charges Poses Challenges for Future Counter-Narcotics Cooperation

2021 ◽  
Vol 115 (2) ◽  
pp. 334-340
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Law Enforcement ◽  
Drug Trafficking ◽  
The United States ◽  
Secretary General ◽  
Legal Assistance ◽  
Mutual Legal Assistance ◽  
Cross Border ◽  
The U.S

In October 2020, the United States arrested former Mexican Defense Secretary General Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda on drug conspiracy charges, accusing him of accepting bribes to aid a Mexican cartel in evading law enforcement and transporting drugs into the United States. Cienfuegos's arrest sparked diplomatic protests from Mexico, which negotiated to gain Cienfuegos's release before exonerating him and publicizing the U.S. investigation file in what the United States called a breach of the countries’ mutual legal assistance treaty. The incident also prompted Mexico to pass a new law curtailing cooperation with foreign agents and potentially imperiling the long-standing U.S.-Mexico alliance in the fight against cross-border drug trafficking.

Pathways to Legalization: Undocumented Mexican Immigrants in the US/Mexico Borderlands, 1942–1956

2015 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Elizabeth Rosas
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Family Relationships ◽  
Mexican Immigrants ◽  
Extended Family ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mexican Immigrant ◽  
Agricultural Laborers ◽  
The Us ◽  
Us Government ◽  
Contract Laborers

In the 1940s, curbing undocumented Mexican immigrant entry into the United States became a US government priority because of an alleged immigration surge, which was blamed for the unemployment of an estimated 252,000 US domestic agricultural laborers. Publicly committed to asserting its control of undocumented Mexican immigrant entry, the US government used Operation Wetback, a binational INS border-enforcement operation, to strike a delicate balance between satisfying US growers’ unending demands for surplus Mexican immigrant labor and responding to the jobs lost by US domestic agricultural laborers. Yet Operation Wetback would also unintentionally and unexpectedly fuel a distinctly transnational pathway to legalization, marriage, and extended family formation for some Mexican immigrants.On July 12, 1951, US president Harry S. Truman’s signing of Public Law 78 initiated such a pathway for an estimated 125,000 undocumented Mexican immigrant laborers throughout the United States. This law was an extension the Bracero Program, a labor agreement between the Mexican and US governments that authorized the temporary contracting of braceros (male Mexican contract laborers) for labor in agricultural production and railroad maintenance. It was formative to undocumented Mexican immigrant laborers’ transnational pursuit of decisively personal goals in both Mexico and the United States.Section 501 of this law, which allowed employers to sponsor certain undocumented laborers, became a transnational pathway toward formalizing extended family relationships between braceros and Mexican American women. This article seeks to begin a discussion on how Operation Wetback unwittingly inspired a distinctly transnational approach to personal extended family relationships in Mexico and the United States among individuals of Mexican descent and varying legal statuses, a social matrix that remains relatively unexplored.

Functioning of Ukrainian Bureau in Washington D. C. (March 1939 – May 1940)

2019 ◽  
pp. 142-157
Author(s):  
Danylo Kravets
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
The United States ◽  
College Degrees ◽  
The Us ◽  
Us Government ◽  
General Functioning ◽  
History Of ◽  
Governmental Institutions ◽  
History Of Journalism ◽  
The Military

The aim of the Ukrainian Bureau in Washington was propaganda of Ukrainian question among US government and American publicity in general. Functioning of the Bureau is not represented non in Ukrainian neither in foreign historiographies, so that’s why the main goal of presented paper is to investigate its activity. The research is based on personal papers of Ukrainian diaspora representatives (O. Granovskyi, E. Skotzko, E. Onatskyi) and articles from American and Ukrainian newspapers. The second mass immigration of Ukrainians to the US (1914‒1930s) has often been called the «military» immigration and what it lacked in numbers, it made up in quality. Most immigrants were educated, some with college degrees. The founder of the Ukrainian Bureau Eugene Skotzko was born near Western Ukrainian town of Zoloczhiv and immigrated to the United States in late 1920s after graduating from Lviv Polytechnic University. In New York he began to collaborate with OUN member O. Senyk-Hrabivskyi who gave E. Skotzko task to create informational bureau for propaganda of Ukrainian case. On March 23 1939 the Bureau was founded in Washington D. C. E. Skotzko was an editor of its Informational Bulletins. The Bureau biggest problem was lack of financial support. It was the main reason why it stopped functioning in May 1940. During 14 months of functioning Ukrainian Bureau in Washington posted dozens of informational bulletins and send it to hundreds of addressees; E. Skotzko, as a director, personally wrote to American governmental institutions and foreign diplomats informing about Ukrainian problem in Europe. Ukrainian Bureau activity is an inspiring example for those who care for informational policy of modern Ukraine.Keywords: Ukrainian small encyclopedia, Yevhen Onatsky, journalism, worldview, Ukrainian state. Keywords: Ukrainian Bureau in Washington, Eugene Skotzko, public opinion, history of journalism, diaspora.

Where Is the Fairness in Canadian Cannabis Legalization? Lessons to be Learned from the American Experience

2021 ◽  
Vol 55 (2) ◽  
pp. 395-418
Author(s):  
Akwasi Owusu-Bempah
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Law Enforcement ◽  
The United States ◽  
Systemic Racism ◽  
American Experience ◽  
Drug Law ◽  
Drug Law Enforcement ◽  
The Us ◽  
International Attention ◽  
Drug Prohibition

Canada has received praise and international attention for its departure from strict cannabis prohibition and the introduction of a legal regulatory framework for adult use. In addition to the perceived public health and public safety benefits associated with legalization, reducing the burden placed on the individuals criminalized for cannabis use served as an impetus for change. In comparison to many jurisdictions in the United States, however, Canadian legalization efforts have done less to address the harms that drug law enforcement has inflicted on individuals and communities. This article documents the racialized nature of drug prohibition in Canada and the US and compares the stated aims of legalization in in both jurisdictions. The article outlines the various reparative measures being proposed and implemented in America and contrasts those with the situation in Canada, arguing, furthermore that the absence of social justice measures in Canadian legalization is an extension of the systemic racism perpetuated under prohibition.

The American Perception of the Palestine-Israel Conflict

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Israa Daas ◽  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Political Party ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Us ◽  
The World ◽  
Us Government ◽  
Source Of Information

Abstract The Palestine-Israel conflict is probably one of the most pressing problems in the Middle East. Moreover, the United States has been involved in this conflict since the 1970s. Therefore, the present research aims to learn more about the American perception of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. It was conducted using a survey that addressed Americans from different backgrounds, focusing on four variables: the American government’s position, solutions, the Israeli settlements, and Jerusalem. The research suggests a correlation between political party and the American perception of the conflict. It appears that Republicans seem to be against the withdrawal of the Israeli settlements, and they believe that the US government is not biased toward Israel. Nevertheless, Democrats tend to believe that the US government is biased in favor of Israel, and they support withdrawing the Israeli settlements. Moreover, there might be another correlation between the American perception and the source of information they use to learn about the conflict. Most of the surveyed Americans, whatever their resource of information that they use to learn about the conflict is, tend to believe that the US is biased in favor of Israel. It is crucial to know about the American perception when approaching to a solution to the conflict as the US is a mediator in this conflict, and a powerful country in the world. Especially because it has a permanent membership in the UN council. KEYWORDS: American Perception, Palestine-Israel Conflict, Jerusalem, Israeli settlements

scholarly journals PENGEMBALIAN ASET TINDAK PIDANA KORUPSI PELAKU DAN AHLI WARISNYA MENURUT SISTEM HUKUM INDONESIA DALAM MEWUJUDKAN NEGARA HUKUM KESEJAHTERAAN

LITIGASI ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Haswandi Haswandi
Keyword(s):  
Law Enforcement ◽  
Welfare State ◽  
Legal Assistance ◽  
Mutual Legal Assistance ◽  
Civil Lawsuit ◽  
The Family ◽  
Asset Recovery ◽  
The Law ◽  
Close Relatives ◽  
Cover Up

Criminal laws regulating asset recovery of corruption today experience a paradigm oversight since it only relies on the money substitute in corruption under Article 18 of Law No. 31, 1999 concerning The Eradication of The Crime of Corruption as amended with the Law No. 20, 2001 in which asset recovery is addressed only to the convict. In fact, modus to cover up the proceed of corruption usually involves the family, close relatives or confidants including the heirs. The obstacle in recovering the asset is that civil lawsuit is not yet effective as the means to recover the asset, the organization of law enforcement, the ratification of 2003 UNCAC that is also not yet effectively implemented in Indonesian law, and the laws against corruption that are weak. Future concept of law in asset recovery of proceed of corruption by the culprit and the heirs in order to materialize a legal welfare state should at least done through progressive laws i.e. reformation of law, optimization of Mutual Legal Assistance, the widening of authority implemented by the Eradication Commission of Corruption in recovering the asset as the proceed of corruption, the strong inter-agency coordination of law enforcements, and the urgency to promulgate the Recovery Asset Act.Keyword: Recovery; Proceed of Corruption; HeirsABSTRAKPerangkat hukum pidana dalam mengembalikan aset hasil tindak pidana korupsi pada saat ini mengalami kekeliruan paradigma karena hanya mengandalkan uang pengganti kejahatan korupsi yang terkandung dalam Pasal 18 Undang-Undang Nomor 31 Tahun 1999 Tentang Pemberantasan Tindak Pidana Korupsi sebagaimana telah diubah dengan Undang-Undang Nomor 20 Tahun 2001, di mana Pengembalian harta atau kekayaan hanya ditujukan kepada terpidana. Padahal modus menyembunyikan harta kekayaan hasil korupsi biasanya dengan menggunakan sanak keluarga, kerabat dekat atau orang kepercayaannya termasuk para ahli warisnya. Hambatan pengembalian aset tindak pidana korupsi disebabkan belum efektifnya gugatan perdata sebagai sarana untuk mengembalikan aset hasil kejahatan korupsi, kelembagaan penegak hukum, belum efektifnya Ratifikasi UNCAC 2003 dilaksanakan dalam hukum Indonesia, serta kelemahan di ranah regulasi tindak pidana korupsi. Konsep hukum mendatang dalam pengembalian aset tindak pidana korupsi pelaku dan ahli warisnya dalam mewujudkan negara hukum kesejahteraan, setidaknya ditempuh dalam beberapa langkah hukum progresif, yakni perbaikan regulasi peraturan perundang-undangan, optimalisasi Bantuan Hukum Timbal Balik, Perluasan kewenangan Komisi Pemberantasan Korupsi dalam Pengembalian Aset hasil tindak pidana korupsi, Penguatan koordinasi antar lembaga penegak hukum, serta menyegerakan menyelesaikan Undang-Undang Pengembalian Aset.Kata Kunci: Pengembalian; Aset Korupsi; Ahli Waris 

scholarly journals Quebec’s Economic and Commercial Linkages with the United States, 1994–2017

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Earl H. Fry
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Trade Agreement ◽  
The United States ◽  
The North ◽  
Nation States ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Us ◽  
Us Government ◽  
Big Picture ◽  
The Impact

This article examines the ebb and flow of the Quebec government’s economic and commercial relations with the United States in the period 1994–2017. The topic demonstrates the impact of three major forces on Quebec’s economic and commercial ties with the US: (1) the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) which became operational in 1994 and was fully implemented over a 15-year period; (2) the onerous security policies put in place by the US government in the decade following the horrific events of 11 September 2001; and (3) changing economic circumstances in the United States ranging from robust growth to the worst recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s. The article also indicates that the Quebec government continues to sponsor a wide range of activities in the United States, often more elaborate and extensive than comparable activities pursued by many nation-states with representation in the US. 1 1 Stéphane Paquin, ‘Quebec-U.S. Relations: The Big Picture’, American Review of Canadian Studies 46, no. 2 (2016): 149–61.

scholarly journals Limits and Possibilities of the United States Military in Post-Conflict Reconstruction and Stabilization

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alcir Santos Neto
Keyword(s):  
Nation Building ◽  
The United States ◽  
Humanitarian Assistance ◽  
Inspector General ◽  
Post Conflict ◽  
Us Military ◽  
The Us ◽  
Us Government ◽  
Post War ◽  
Military Engagement

This study probes the limits and possibilities of US military efforts to facilitate the transition from warfighting to nation-building. Most comparative studies conceive the complexity of this transition along a spectrum from conflict to humanitarian assistance to post-conflict stabilization. While the last two stages have often been interpreted as a coordinated act of civil-military ‘nation-building’; the spectrum, in fact, represents an ideal type simplification. At one level, outcomes depend on the players involved, including: sovereign nations, national militaries, international and regional institutions, UN peacekeepers, private security contractors, and non-governmental humanitarian providers, among others. On the other hand, because the number, types, and causes of case outcomes are highly diverse and contingent upon many possible factors (among them for example: political, economic, military, organizational, humanitarian, cultural, and religious), institutions like the US military face serious difficulties both planning and coordinating post-conflict scenarios. Assuming this complex backdrop, the present study offers a qualitative analysis of two recent US government reports by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) and the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR) on US military engagement in Afghanistan and Iraq. In both cases, the US government sought to ‘nation-build’ by facilitating post-war stabilization and humanitarian assistance, detailing its genuine efforts to record both processes. While results indicate some limited successes in both cases, they also indicate a familiar pattern of uneven performance failures consistent with other cases internationally. The analysis concludes with recommendations for further research that may better control the contingencies of post-conflict management.

'I chose the values I regarded as American': sexuality, ethnicity, and FBI informant Angela Calomiris

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (20) ◽  
pp. 109-135
Author(s):  
Veronica A. Wilson
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Later Life ◽  
The United States ◽  
Red Scare ◽  
Federal Bureau Of Investigation ◽  
Avant Garde ◽  
Greenwich Village ◽  
The Us ◽  
Us Government ◽  
Second World

For personal or political reasons undocumented and controversial to this day, Greenwich Village lesbian photographer Angela Calomiris joined forces with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) during the Second World War to infiltrate the Communist Party of the United States (CPUSA). As Calomiris rose through CPUSA ranks in New York City, espionage efforts resulted in the Attorney General's office declaring the avant-garde Film and Photo League to be a subversive communist organisation in 1947, and the conviction of communist leaders during the Smith Act trial two years later. Interestingly, despite J. Edgar Hoover's indeterminate sexuality and well-documented harassment of gays and lesbians in public life, what mattered to him was not whether Calomiris adhered to heteronormativity, but that her ultimate sense of duty lay with the US government. This article demonstrates how this distinction helped Calomiris find personal satisfaction in defiance of patriarchal conservative expectations and heteronormative cold war gender roles. This article, which utilises FBI files, press coverage, some of Calomiris's papers and her memoir, concludes with a brief discussion of Calomiris's later life in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where she continued to craft her identity as a left-liberal feminist, with no mention of the service to the FBI or her role in fomenting the second Red Scare.

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