IRAN - Prisoner Force-Fed While on Hunger Strike - PRESS RELEASE

Amnesty International, USA, October 26, 2018

Farhad Meysami, a medical doctor, was detained in July for supporting a campaign against Iran’s laws imposing forced hijab (veiling) on women and girls. He has been on hunger strike since 1 August and his health has deteriorated drastically. On 26 September, he was forcibly transferred from section 4 of Evin prison to the medical clinic, where he is being held in isolation, and has been administered intravenous fluids against his will. Sources told Amnesty International he is being held there until he agrees to end his hunger strike.

“Farhad Meysami’s only ‘crime’ is speaking out against Iran’s degrading and discriminatory practice of forced hijab and defending women's rights to choose their own clothing. He is a prisoner of conscience and it is utterly outrageous that he is being detained at all,” said Philip Luther, Amnesty International’s Research and Advocacy Director for the Middle East and North Africa. 

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MALAYSIA - Death Penalty Victory! GOOD NEWS

Amnesty International, New Zealand, October, 2018

On World Day Against the Death Penalty, we were excited to hear the Malaysian Government announce plans to abolish the death penalty. With more 800 people on death row, this is a huge victory for human rights. 

Thank you for supporting Amnesty International's 40-year long campaign to end the cruel and inhumane punishment that is the death penalty. This win shows our power. When we come together, governments listen. 

USA: Caravan from Central America & Mexico - ONLINE ACTION

Amnesty International, USA, October 24, 2018.

Thousands of people from Central America are crossing into Mexico as part of a caravan heading towards the United States. Many of these families are fleeing violence and persecution, seeking refuge in a country that claims to be a beacon of hope to the world.Instead of finding safety, these families are being detained.

CLICK HERE to TAKE ACTION

TURKEY: SEEK UN INVESTIGATION FOR JAMAL KHASHOGGI - ONLINE ACTION

Amnesty International, Canada, October 18 2018

The whole world now knows the name of Saudi Arabian journalist Jamal Khashoggi, but those dearest to Jamal are no closer to finding out what happened to him.

When we see injustice, it's up to all of us to take a stand. 

Two and a half weeks ago, journalist Jamal Khashoggi walked into the Saudi Arabian consulate in Turkey to get some paperwork and never came out. Saudi Arabian authorities claimed that he left the building, but Turkish authorities reported that he was 

assassinated inside.

Will you call on the UN Secretary General António Guterres and demand an independent investigation now?

USA: Ask US Government to Stop Civilian Killings - ONLINE ACTION

Amnesty International, USA, October 15, 2018.

The US Government claims it’s keeping Americans safe by using drones, air strikes and Special Forces operations to kill people it calls “militants” or “terrorists” around the world. But in the process it is killing thousands of civilians, usually without explanation or an effort to compensate survivors or their families for their devastating losses.

The US Government claims to investigate civilian killings caused by its military actions, but it also seems to assume that the people killed are “militants” or “terrorists” when they are actually civilians.

Under international law, the US Government in an armed conflict may only kill members of enemy armed forces. If it’s not clear whether certain individuals are members of the enemy armed force, then the government must presume they are civilians. And outside of an armed conflict zone, everyone is a civilian: the government can only kill individuals who pose an imminent threat to human life.

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Write for Rights 2018: 11 Human Rights Women Defender Cases

Write 4 Rights cases for 2018:

(1) Brazil: Investigate the killing of human rights defender Marielle Franco

(2) India: Protect Pavitri Manjhi, a defender fighting for the rights of indigenous communities

(3) Iran: Free Atena Daemi, a prisoner of conscience jailed for opposing the death penalty

(4) Kenya: Let the Sengwer people live on their land in peace

(5) Kyrgyzstan: Support Gulzar Dushenova, a defender of the rights of people with disabilities

(6) Morocco: Stop harassing human rights defender Nawal Benaissa

(7)  South Africa: Protect Nonhle Mbuthuma, on a “hit list” for her human rights activism

(8)  Ukraine: Support Vitalina Koval, violently attacked for her LGBTI rights activism

(9)  United States of America: Let in Awad, a human rights defender and refugee from Sudan

(10) Venezuela: Drop the case against Geraldine Chacon, a defender of youth rights
(11) Vietnam: Free blogger and prisoner of conscience Me Nam (Mother Mushroom)

They need YOU to sign TODAY!

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TENNESSEE: Man at Risk for Execution - URGENT ACTION

Amnesty International, USA, October 12, 2018

Edmund Zagorski has been on death row in Tennessee for over 30 years after allegedly receiving ineffective counsel. He was scheduled to be executed on 11 October, using a three-drug lethal injection. After challenges made through litigation, the state Governor issued a ten-day reprieve to allow for preparation of the execution.

Edmund Zagorski was convicted in 1984 of the first-degree murders of two men. The State of Tennessee presented evidence that Edmund Zagorski promised to sell them marijuana, then shot and killed both men. 

In the penalty phase of his original trial, Edmund Zagorski expressed a desire to receive the death penalty, rather than spend his life in prison. Edmund Zagorski claimed the statements he made to police were coerced; that police kept him in isolation, deprived him of sunlight, and exposed him to extreme temperatures while he was detained. 

He appealed his original conviction, stating that police coerced him to implicate himself in the murders, improperly withheld evidence, and that he did not receive effective counsel. 

Please take action before October 21, 2018.

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IRAN: World Day Against the Death Penalty - REPORT

IRAN Human Rights, October 10, 2018

Every year several hundred people are executed by the Iranian authorities. According to reports by Iran Human Rights (IHR) and other human rights groups, death row prisoners have often no access to a defence lawyer after their arrest and are sentenced to death following unfair trials and based on confessions extracted from them under torture. 

These are issues which have been addressed in IHR’s previous reports. The current report is based on first-hand accounts of several inmates held in Iran's prisons and their families. The report seeks to illustrate other aspects of how the death penalty affects the inmate, their families and, as a consequence, society.

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UW: New Barbarianism Film - EVENT

Please attend if you can.

ICAN - International Day for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons - INFORMATION

ICAN,  September 26, 2018.

September 26th is the International Day for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, and this year,  people all over took action for a nuke-free world. 

At the UN’s New York HQ, that action translated into vocal and active support for Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, during the UNGA’s events marking the day and – most importantly – at a high-level ceremony where 7  countries signed and 4 countries ratified the the Nuclear Ban Treaty.

ICAN was at both events, and took the opportunity to deliver two powerful appeals to the world leaders, urging them to join the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

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WASHINGTON DC: Women's March - EVENT

Women's March 2019;  Sept 28, 2018.

After the Supreme Court nomination of Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh advanced on Friday to a vote by the full Senate, organizers of the Women’s March said messages came pouring in.

The confirmation proceedings, particularly the testimony of Christine Blasey Ford, who accused Judge Kavanaugh of sexual assault decades ago, rallied women who themselves had been sexually assaulted or harassed.

Even as the Senate waits for a renewed F.B.I. background check before a final vote on Judge Kavanaugh, who has denied the accusations, many saw the support for him as an endorsement of a culture that fosters and allows sexual misconduct.

People were “enraged,” Linda Sarsour, a chairwoman of the Women’s March, said on Saturday.

“Our email inboxes were full: ‘Women’s March, where are you? When are we marching? Tell us when? Tell us where?’” she said.

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