Iran: Amanj Veisee, Juvenile Offender, Sentenced to Death Again - URGENT ACTION by April 1, 2016

Amnesty International

    Juvenile offender Amanj Veisee was resentenced to death for the murder of his cousin by Branch Three of Criminal Court No. 1 in the western province of Kermanshah in December 2015. The court ruled that “there is no doubt about his mental maturity at the time of the crime”. The verdict is less than a page long, and refers briefly to two statements by Amanj Veisee, which it states were later proven to be false, and point to his “intelligence and maturity”. In these statements Amanj Veisee had claimed that he stabbed his cousin only once in the leg, using a knife that a stranger passed on to him during the fight. The verdict also notes an expert opinion from a state forensic institution, the Legal Medicine Organization, on Amanj Veisee’s “lack of maturity at the time of the crime” but states, “the tests done now cannot reveal the truth about the past” and that expert opinions are intended only as guidance and are not binding on the court if they contradict other materials and existing evidence.

Click here for ENTIRE URGENT ACTION.

Amnesty International URGENT ACTIONS - Feb 19 to Feb 26, 2016

Click here for entire list of URGENT ACTION for the week of Feb 19  to Feb 26. (This post is updated daily.) 

 Countries include: Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Iran, Tunisia, Vietnam, Uzbekistan, South Sudan, Iran, Lesotho, Myanmar, Uzbekistan, China, India, and Tajikistan.

Note: Most Urgent Actions require a written letter. See our guidelines for writing letters.  Countries are added to this list during the week. The link contains all Urgent Actions for the week.

Iran: Flawed Reforms: Iran’s New Code of Criminal Procedure - Report and public statement

Amnesty International

Nearly four decades after Iran’s 1979 Revolution shook its criminal justice system to the core, the country’s legal framework remains largely inadequate, inefficient and inconsistent with international fair trial standards, leaving individuals who come into contact with it with little or no protection. Amnesty International’s new report, Flawed reforms: Iran’s new Code of Criminal Procedure, provides a comprehensive analysis of Iran’s new Code of Criminal Procedure, which came into force in June 2015.

The report welcomes the introduction of several long overdue reforms but expresses concern that the Code constitutes a lost opportunity as it fails, by and large, to do more than scratch the surface of the flaws that run deep in Iran’s criminal justice system.
Please find the report attached and online at the following link: https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde13/2708/2016/en/
We are also sharing with you the Public Statement that launches the report, titled Iran: Nearly four decades after revolution, legal framework remains deeply flawed. You can find it attached and at the following link: https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde13/3420/2016/en/

USA: Albert Woodfox is free after 43 years in solitary confinement. #Angola3 - VICTORY!

Send a message to Albert Woodfox, free after 43 years in solitary confinement

 Amnesty International UK
Click here for to send him a message.
 
FAMILY

GREAT NEWS!!!  A MOMENT FOR US ALL TO CELEBRATE.  GREAT WORK AND CONGRATULATIONS TO US ALL BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY

ALBERT WOODFOX!!!!

Ernest Coverson

Also:

"Today, Louisiana prisoner Albert Woodfox walked free in Louisiana on his 69^th birthday, 44 years after he was first put into solitary confinement. He was the United States’ longest serving prisoner held in isolation.

Nearly every day for more than half of his life, Albert woke up in a cell the size of a parking space, surrounded by concrete and steel. Tomorrow morning, for the first time in more than four decades, he will be able to walk outside and look up at the sky.

Over the course of nearly five years working on Albert’s case at Amnesty, I heard many, many times about how insurmountable the odds were. How working to free a Black Panther convicted of killing a correctional officer in a case so thoroughly tainted by racism, prosecutorial misconduct and injustice was tilting at windmills - and in the state with the nation’s highest rates of incarceration state, no less.

But I always know that Albert would come home.  

I have seen the incredible power of our movement when we work together, and the courage, humility, and conviction of so many of you who have played big and small roles to help this historic human rights victory come to fruition. And I have seen the incredible conviction of the Angola 3: Robert King, Herman Wallace, and Albert himself - all three of whom endured unthinkable nightmares, but persevered with their humor, convictions and dignity intact to wage  a relentless fight against the cruel, inhuman and degrading practice of solitary confinement in the United States.

In the final statement that Herman Wallace issued to his supporters before he was released, and succumbed to liver cancer he wrote: “The State may have stolen my life, but my spirit will continue to struggle along with Albert and the many comrades that have joined us along the way here in the belly of the beast….although I’m down on my back, I remain at your service.” I’m carrying those words with me today and remembering Herman as we celebrate this victory.

Thank you, for everything you have done and continue to do. I am so proud to be part of this work with you.

Yours,

J 

 Jasmine Heiss

Senior Campaigner, Individuals at Risk Campaign
Amnesty International USA

Also see: 

•  a link to the NYT article.Thanks, Angie, for the link and for sharing this fast-breaking story with our membership. 
•  Albert Woodfox To Be Released From Jail After 43 Years In Solitary Confinement, HuffPost

AI Madison Group #139 Weekly Update - February 19, 2016

 Greetings Everyone!

     As I sit here with my box of tissue (yes, I have yet a-n-o-t-h-e-r cold), I am reminded of my son's science project from elementary school. He created a poster using little mouse stickers to demonstrate how many mice there would be if only two mice started multiplying. Part of our Amnesty International mission is to spread the word, shed a light, let people know what is happening and what they can do about it. This week, please consider sharing our Weekly Update with one more person. If you use social media, consider sharing our Weekly Update with your friends. We have 5 human rights petitions, 7 Urgent Actions, 8 Members Links & Petitions, 3 online actions, 3 News items, 3 Amnesty International organizational posts, 6 Calendar of Events, and one super cool music video. Join us as we "spread the word."

    

     -Debbie, Weekly Update Editor

Click here for links to this week's Amnesty International and Human Rights Information and Actions

Play for Change: Groove in G (5 min)

Play for Change
Groove in G

Uploaded on Apr 21, 2011

Playing For Change is a movement created to inspire and connect the world through music.

New Zealand & Australia: Don’t send 267 people back to offshore detention #LetThemStay - ONLINE PETITION

Amnesty International New Zealand

In just a few days, Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is threatening to forcibly deport 267 people seeking asylum, including 37 small babies back to Nauru – putting their physical and mental health at serious risk. Urge Prime Minister John Key to urgently call on his Australian counterpart to let these 267 vulnerable people stay.

Click here for complete INFORMATION.