Politics, not laws, dictates prisoner exchanges

+ regulating the 'psychedelic renaissance' in Oregon US Edition - Today's top story: 7-nation prisoner swap shows how diplomacy, not law, governs exchanges [View in browser]( US Edition | 2 August 2024 [The Conversation] [The Conversation]( Top headlines - [Harris veepstakes: Who is Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro?]( - [Olympics founder’s almost religious vision for games]( - [Yet another newsy week – take our quiz to see if you kept up]( Lead story There are no particular rules or guidelines that help determine how a high-profile prisoner swap – like the one that happened on Thursday between the U.S., Russia and five other countries – plays out. Freed from Russia were Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan and a prominent Russian opposition leader, among about a dozen others. In exchange, eight Russians who were convicted of various crimes in different countries are being sent back to their homeland. The behind-the-scene workings of delicate deals like these are typically kept closely under wraps at the highest levels of government. But political leaders generally have latitude to make whatever deals they want, according to international and Russian legal scholar William E. Butler from Penn State. He explains that this might matter more as it becomes increasingly common for governments to detain or imprison foreigners on questionable or bogus charges. “The real question is whether it would be better if there were [some kind of international legal framework]( that would allow hostage and political prisoner releases to happen within a prescribed set of guidelines,” Butler explained in an interview with me yesterday. “Each case of a hostage or political prisoner exchange is a story of its own.” [[How faith and religion drive the world. Sign up for our weekly newsletter, This Week in Religion.](] Amy Lieberman Politics + Society Editor President Joe Biden, joined by relatives of prisoners freed by Russia, delivers remarks about the prisoner swap on Aug. 1, 2024. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images [7-nation prisoner swap shows how diplomacy, not law, governs exchanges]( William E. Butler, Penn State The law doesn’t govern political prisoner exchanges. These are political processes done in secret, as governments can agree to whatever deals they want to make − and reject those they don’t. Health + Medicine - [Psilocybin legislation is helping psychedelic drugs make a comeback – a drug researcher explains the challenges they face]( Benjamin Y. Fong, Arizona State University Pharmaceutical giants like Johnson & Johnson as well as smaller startups are investing in psychedelic drug development, and both are pursuing FDA approval for their patented psilocybin formulations. 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