Tag Archives: Amnesty International

December 11, 2011 · 8:49 pm

Nine years of resistance

Today’s letter in the Amnesty International’s Write for Rights Global Write-a-thon went to President Calderón of Mexico on behalf of Inés Fernández and Valentina Rosendo.

For more than nine years, these two courageous women have taken on the military and authorities to demand justice after soldiers raped them in 2002. Inés Fernández and Valentina Rosendo are Indigenous Me’phaa (Tlapaneca) women. Amnesty International notes that:

Indigenous women in Mexico who are raped rarely file a complaint due to cultural, economic and social barriers. Inés Fernández and Valentina Rosendo have shown courage in reporting their ordeals and have followed up their cases in national and international courts. The women and their families have faced threats as their battle for justice continues.

Guided by Amnesty International’s sample letter, I urge President Calderón to ensure a swift, full and impartial investigation into the rape Inés Fernández Ortega and Valentina Rosendo Cantú. This investigation should take place in civilian courts as should all cases of human rights violations by military personnel.

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December 9, 2011 · 9:16 pm

Freedom of expression in Paupua province

English: Former U.S. First Lady Eleanor Roosev...

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Today’s letter in the Amnesty International’s Write for Rights Global Write-a-thon addressed the situation of Filep Karma, who was arrested in December 2004 for his participation in a peaceful flag-raising ceremony in Papua province of Indonesia. Karma is serving a 15-year sentence on charges of treason.  Amnesty International considers him to be prisoner of conscience and is calling for his immediate and unconditional release.

My letter asked Amir Syamsuddin, Indonesia’s Minister of Justice and Human Rights to release Filep Karma and to make a public commitment that there will be no further arrests of individuals purely for the peaceful exercise of their right to freedom of expression, assembly, or association.  It included a request that the Minister ensures that laws concerning “rebellion” (Articles 106 and 110 of the Criminal Code) are not used against people who have engaged only in peaceful activities. The request was rooted in the right to freedom of expression includes the right to peacefully advocate referenda, independence, or other political solutions.

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December 8, 2011 · 9:47 pm

On behalf of teachers

Today’s letter in the Amnesty International’s Write for Rights Global Write-a-thon  focused on teachers which comes close to my heart since my family contains a number of teachers over the generations.

Jalila al-Salman and Mahdi ‘Issa Mahdi Abu Dheeb, leaders of the Bahrain Teachers Association, appear to have been imprisoned because of the association’s calls for strikes during the protests earlier this year.

Amnesty International reports that authorities first arrested Jalila al-Salman on 29 March 2011, and reportedly ill-treated her in detention.   Mahdi Abu Dheeb was arrested on 6 April and reportedly suffered torture and solitary confinement.  Although civilians, the two teachers were tried before a military court, in breach of their right to a fair trial.  In September, Jalila al-Salman was sentenced to three years in prison, and Mahdi Abu Dheeb was sentenced to ten years.  Their appeal is to be heard by the High Criminal Court in December.

The request to the King asks for an investigation into the case and the allegations of torture and ill-treatment.  It asks that any who are found responsible for ill-treatment be held accountable. It further asks that if the investigation shows that Jalila al-Salman and Mahdi Abu Dheeb were arrested because of their leadership of the Bahrain Teachers Association and their peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly,  should be immediately and unconditionally released, and all charges against them should be dropped.  The King is asked to ensure that their appeal hearing meets international standards and that any evidence obtained through torture or duress not be used against them.  The King is also asked to uarantee that they receive appropriate medical care and are protected from ill-treatment.

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December 7, 2011 · 10:06 pm

For a Nobel Peace Prize recipient

Today’s letter in the Amnesty International’s Write for Rights Global Write-a-thon focused on Liu Xiaobo, 2010 Nobel Peace Prize recipient, who was given an 11-year prison sentence in December 2009 for calling for political and legal reform in China. The letter went to Premier Wen Jiabao of the People’s Republic of China.

Amnesty International notes that Liu Xiaobo’s imprisonment is a clear attempt to prevent him from carrying out his peaceful and legitimate human rights activities. Amnesty further notes that the detention, restriction, and harassment of peaceful human rights activists has increased in recent years, running counter to promises made by officials in China’s National Human Rights Action Plan 2009-2010.

My letter, guided by Amnesty, asked the Premier to release Liu Xiaobo immediately and unconditionally and to lift the surveillance and severe restrictions currently placed on his wife Liu Xia.  It called the Premier to see that Liu Xiaobo has access to his family and lawyers. It further addressed the systemic issue of the use of broad and vaguely defined charges to arbitrarily detain and prosecute activists, journalists and internet users.

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December 6, 2011 · 11:39 pm

Charge and try – or release

Today’s letter in the Amnesty International’s Write for Rights Global Write-a-thon went to U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta. It included the broad request that detainees at Guantanamo and the detention facility at Bagram in Afghanistan should either be charged and tried in U.S. federal court or be released to countries where their human rights will be respected.

It specifically asked that the U.S. government either either charge and fairly try Guantanamo detainee Shaker Aamer in U.S. federal court, or release him to the United Kingdom (UK), as the UK government has requested.

Shaker Aamer, a former UK resident, has been held without charge at the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for nearly 10 years.  The UK government has repeatedly requested that he be returned to the United Kingdom, where his wife and four children live.  February 2012 will mark the tenth anniversary of his detention without charge at Guantanamo.

Aamer may be guilty; he may be innocent. In either case, he has the right to be charged and tried. If the U.S. is not prepared to do that – after almost 10 years – he should be released.

Indefinite detention is a human rights violation.

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December 6, 2011 · 10:38 pm

Sri Lanka – Ragihar Manoharan

Letter three in Amnesty International’s Write for Rights Global Write-a-thon went last night to the President of Sri Lanka. It focused on  Ragihar Manoharan. Ragihar was one of five students killed by security forces in the city of Trincomalee on January 2, 2006. The letter asks the President to tell his family the truth about what happened to their son. Amnesty International reports that a commission of inquiry examined the killing of Ragihar Manoharan. My letter and the Amnesty International Campaign ask for the release of the commission’s report.

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December 4, 2011 · 9:46 pm

Jean-Claude Roger Mbede – Cameroon

Letter two in Amnesty International’s Write for Rights Global Write-a-thon was written and sent today. Today’s letter went to the President of Cameroon on behalf of Jean-Claude Roger Mbede.

Amnesty International reports that Mr. Mbede is serving three years in prison on charges of homosexuality based on his perceived sexual orientation. My letter asks for his immediate and unconditional release. It further calls the President of Cameroon to ensure the safety of Mr. Mbede in prison. Finally it urges the President of Cameroon to work for the repeal of the section of the country’s Penal Code under which Mr. Mbede has been imprisoned.

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December 3, 2011 · 10:29 pm

Shine A Light on Freedom of Expression

I sent my first letter in Amnesty International’s Write for Rights Global Write-a-thon today. I wrote to the President of Azerbaijan on behalf of Jabbar Savalan.

Here is how Amnesty describes Jabbar’s situation:

Hours after posting a Facebook message calling for protests against the government, Jabbar Savalan told his family that he was being followed. The next evening, police brought him to a police station, where they “discovered” marijuana in his outer coat pocket. Questioning him without a lawyer for two days, police reportedly hit and intimidated him to make him sign a confession. Jabbar Savalan maintained that he does not use drugs and that the marijuana was planted on him. Authorities in Azerbaijan have a history of using trumped-up drug charges to jail those seen as critical of the government. Amnesty International believes the charges against Jabbar were fabricated, and considers him a prisoner of conscience.

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December 2, 2011 · 11:33 pm

Words can save lives

Will you write a letter to save a life?

I will.

Tonight I signed up to participate in Amnesty International’s Write for Rights Global Write-a-thon.

Hundreds of thousands of people from around the world will take part in the Write for Rights Global Write-a-thon; Amnesty International calls it the world’s largest human rights event:

Through letters, cards and more, we take action to demand that the human rights of individuals are respected, protected and fulfilled. We show solidarity with those suffering human rights abuses, and work to bring about positive change in people’s lives.

Words carry great power. Amnesty International helps us put our words to use in the cause of human rights. Our words can bring hope to a prisoner. They can expose the corners of torture chambers. They can offer courage to those who defend human rights. They can challenge the powers that be. They can set the oppressed free. They can save lives.

Sign up now to Write for Rights!

I will post about my writing. I invite you to let me know what you write.

And I will see you along the Trail.

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September 21, 2011 · 3:38 am

Is this how we want to mark the International Day of Peace?

Without an intervention of some sort, Troy Davis will be executed by the State of Georgia tomorrow – September 21 on the International Day of Peace at 7:00 p.m.

I do not believe in the death penalty. I do not think it makes us safer. It does not bring anyone back. It rips the fabric of society – causing more wounds rather than working healing and restoration. It is rooted in vengeance – a lethal concoction of drugs injected into one’s veins in exchange for murder or rape or other capital crime. Such crimes are heinous. Monstrous. Evil. Unspeakably so. But there has to be another way, other ways, to respond than execution. As my friend Shannon points out, are the countries that use the death penalty really the company I want my country to keep?

All that aside, there is also the question of doubt in the case of Troy Davis. He was convicted, but since then: seven of the nine original witnesses have recanted or changed their testimony; many of these witnesses have stated in sworn affidavits that they were pressured or coerced by police into testifying or signing statements. Courts have ruled that Troy Davis’ innocence cannot be proved. But when does doubt reach the level of being “reasonable?” Does that level change after a person is convicted? Should the fact that the punishment is death affect what constitutes “reasonable doubt?” Does proving innocence trump reasonable doubt after conviction?

The NAACP provides a petition to ask Chatham County District Attorney Larry Chisolm, who requested the death warrant against Troy Davis, to petition the judge to withdraw the death warrant against Troy Davis.

Amnesty International also provides an opportunity to contact the Georgia State Board of Pardon and Paroles.

I have taken both of those actions. In addition, I plan to fast tomorrow evening. And I will pray.

I will pray for Troy Davis and his family and friends.

I will pray for the family and friends of Savannah Police Officer Mark Allen MacPhail. Officer MacPhail’s brutal murder was the crime of which Troy Davis was convicted.

I will pray for those who are in a position to stop this execution.

I will pray for those who are in the position of having to carry out this execution should it come to that.

I will pray for all people who have had a loved one murdered.

I will pray for all people who have had a loved one executed.

I will pray.

May God have mercy on us all.

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