UAE: Human Rights Defender Verdict - URGENT ACTION

Amnesty International, USA, Dec 22, 2018.

On 24 December 2018 the Federal Supreme Court in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is set to hear the appeal of prominent human rights defender and prisoner of conscience, Ahmed Mansoor. The court may issue a final verdict. On 29 May 2018, Ahmed Mansoor was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison on charges including "insulting the UAE and its symbols".

Please take action before February 1, 2019.

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UAE: Human Rights Defender Health Deteriorating - URGENT ACTION

Amnesty International, USA, December 21, 2018.

Human rights defender Dr Nasser bin Ghaith detained in the high security al-Razeen Prison, has been on hunger strikes for various lengths of time since 7 October 2018. For over 70 days he has only eaten a small amount of food a handful of times and his health has severely deteriorated. He is protesting against the prison authorities’ ill-treatment of detainees, including denial of access to medical care and inconsistency of family visits. According to reliable information, he has now lost much of his sight and is too weak to stand up and walk unaided as a result of his hunger strike. Dr Nasser bin Ghaith is also demanding his own release following the presidential pardon granted to British academic Matthew Hedges on 26 November 2018, a week after he was sentenced to life in prison on spying charges.

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Women's March 2019: The Women in Our Family

The Women's March 2019 is on January 19, 2019 - check out the website and video below for more information. Thanks for all you do!

Women's March 2019

 

USA: Amnesty International Wins! - GOOD NEWS

Amnesty International Wire Magazine.

Over the last year, almost seven million Amnesty International supporters have taken action - protesting, writing, petitioning and much more - to defend and advance human rights everywhere.

It’s had a huge impact: people who have been unfairly imprisoned have been released; laws have been changed and brave people around the world have stood up and taken action!

CLICK on READ STORIES & SCROLL DOWN to LEARN MORE

BELARUS: Two Prisoners at Risk for Execution - URGENT ACTION

Amnesty International USA, December 14, 2018

Aliaksandr Zhylnikau and Viachaslau Sukharko were originally sentenced to life imprisonment in March 2017 after being found guilty of the murder of three people in December 2015. In July 2017, following an appeal by the prosecutor, the Supreme Court sent their case back to the lower court for a retrial, which resulted in them being sentenced to death on 20 January 2018. On appeal, Aliaksandr Zhynikau’s lawyer asked for a new forensic examination to be ordered which could prove his innocence in two out of the three murders. The lawyer also asked for a less harsh sentence. Both requests were denied and on 30 May 2018, the Supreme Court upheld Aliaksandr Zhylnikau and Viachaslau Sukharko’s death sentences.

Please take action before January 25, 2019.

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SUDAN: Sudanese Activist at Risk of Torture - URGENT ACTION

Amnesty International, USA, December 10, 2018

Sudanese political activist Mohamed Hassan Alim Shareef was deported from Egypt to Sudan on 9 October. Officers from Sudan’s National Intelligence Service (NISS) arrested him upon his arrival in Sudan. He is currently detained at the NISS headquarters in Khartoum North. Amnesty International considers him to be a prisoner of conscience, held solely for peacefully exercising his right to freedom of expression.

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Women will be Silent No More

VIdeo: Women will be Silent No More

It's not too late to help change the world.

70 years ago, world leaders committed to protecting human rights for all people.

 

70 years ago, we committed to achieving "the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family."

 

70 years ago, the world was changed forever.

 

As we celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we honor individuals who have committed their lives to fighting for the rights we all deserve.

 

And we fight right alongside them.

 

Look no further than the women on behalf of whom we are mobilizing across the world today. Atena, Geraldine, Marielle, Pavitri, Awad, Nawal, Nonhle, Vitalina, Gulzar, and the Sengwer Indigenous people have paid with their freedom, their safety, and even their lives to advocate relentlessly for equal rights for all people.

 

Today, we join together with hundreds of thousands of others across the world to amplify the call for justice.

The call for human rights to come first.

 

Today, you can still mark 70 years of human rights by sending a tweet, writing a letter, and using our online tool to send emails directly to decision-makers.

 

We've been doing this for years because it works. Because of you.

TAKE ACTION TODAY

THANK YOU!

Happy International Human Rights Day 2018!

Happy International Human Rights Day 2018!

Thanks for all you to do advocate for human rights across the world. Here are a few videos with special messages on this special day.

Message by United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Human Rights Day 2018

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet's message to mark Human Rights Day 2018

VICTORY: 37 families released!

Today is Human Rights Day. And to say thank you for your continued support of our work, I just have to share this incredibly special photo and breaking news with you.

In an extraordinary move, 37 families — who are seeking a better life in safety — have been released from the South Texas Family Residential Center in the town of Dilley. Their releases are especially significant in light of the Trump administration’s hostility toward immigrants and asylum-seekers.

Their lawyers just shared this beautiful photo with me. And I had to share it with you today, as we honor Human Rights Day. 

Do you see these smiling faces? These families are smiling thanks to our impactful work together. 

This decision is a huge relief for these mothers and their children, who were forcibly separated and then reunited behind bars. After spending months in family detention, these children will now be able to play in the park, go to school, and live their lives in freedom while their asylum applications are processed.

This is a step in the right direction, but we must make sure everyone arriving in the United States is given a fair hearing and humane treatment. Families should be met with compassion, not contempt.

Our fight for human rights continues. And we are so grateful to have you standing by our side.

Thank you. We really can’t say it enough. 



Margaret Huang
Executive Director
Amnesty International USA

TURKEY: Human Rights Activists jailed for their work

You helped win my freedom when I was jailed by the Turkish Government for speaking up for human rights. Now, I’m asking you to speak up for four other women who face injustice simply because they stood up for what's right.

Nonhle, Atena and Vitalina are in danger right now — imprisoned or at risk for their human rights work. Tragically, Marielle was killed earlier this year for standing up for her community.

We need to demand that Marielle’s killers are brought to justice, and make sure Atena, Nonhle and Vitalina are safe.

Your words can change lives. Demand justice and protection for Marielle, Nonhle, Atena and Vitalina.

I’ll never forget the day I was arrested.

The Turkish police detained me at a human rights workshop in 2017. Until recently I was the Director of Amnesty Turkey and I am no stranger to injustice. But when it happens to you — it makes you lose your breath.

They charged me and nine other human rights defenders with aiding a terrorist organisation. We spent almost four months in prison.

But there was hope: Amnesty supporters like you around the world who were willing to speak up for me until I was released.

I am now free and so are my colleagues; we are all so thankful. If it wasn’t for your efforts, we wouldn’t be here.

That’s why I must help others and I hope you’ll join me.

Make a difference for Marielle, Nonhle, Atena and Vitalina.

PS. Marielle, Atena, Nonhle, Vitalina and I all live in different countries, but each of us have paid a price for defending human rights. We can help these brave women and their families by demanding an end to threats and for those accountable to be brought to justice.

SOUTH AFRICA: Defender of Ancestral Lands Harassed - ONLINE ACTION

Amnesty International, Australia, Dec 2, 2018.

When Nonhle Mbuthuma’s people were threatened with eviction from their ancestral lands by the subsidiary of an Australian mining company, she and her community united five villages to push back.

Now, Nonhle is being harassed just for defending their rights. She’s even survived an attempt on her life.

CLICK HERE to TAKE ACTION

IRAN: Juvenile at Risk for Execution - NEWS

Iran Human Rights, December 4, 2018.

Milad Azimi is a juvenile offender who allegedly committed a murder at the age of 17. His death sentence was upheld by the Iranian Supreme Court a few months ago. The plaintiff has set a diyeh (blood-money) of 500 millions Toman (approximately 50.000 USD) with the deadline of December 4. Milad's family are not able to pay that amount of money. Therefore, if he fails to win the plaintiff’s consent, his execution will be carried out quite soon. Local civil society activists have been trying to collect money to save Milad's life.

Iran Human Rights (IHR) urges the Iranian authorities to stop juvenile executions and calls on the international community to act in order to save Milad's life.

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STATE OF PALESTINE: Social Justice Activist on Hunger Strike - URGENT ACTION

Amnesty International, USA, November 29, 2018.  

On 3 November at 8pm, Suha Jbara was arrested by Palestinian security forces from her home in Turmusaya near Ramallah in the West Bank, and taken to Jericho Detention and Interrogation Center used by the Joint Security Committee.

According to her lawyers, Mohannad Karajah and Thafer Sa’ayda, Suha Jbara was in interrogation for three consecutive days during which she alleges she was tortured by several male interrogators. She told her lawyers that she was severely beaten on her chest and back, shaken and slammed against the wall, and threatened with sexual violence.  Her father Badran Jbara, 56, visited her in prison on 21 November and told Amnesty International that his daughter showed him bruises on her body as a result of beating. Suha has been held in solitary confinement since arriving at the Jericho Prison.

During a closed court session on 22 November, Suha Jbara announced she started a hunger strike in protest against her detention and ill-treatment, and stated her intention to continue it until she is released. A request from her lawyer for her to be examined by a forensic doctor to check her claims of torture during interrogation was rejected. She has been taken to the Jericho hospital twice since she started the hunger strike and each time returned to prison. Her lawyers are denied access to the casefile which is held by the Attorney General.

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