AI Appeals for Action Feed

Stop mining and refinery projects from devastating communities in India

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:33:48 +0000

Plans to mine bauxite in the Niyamgiri Hills in the Indian state of Orissa threaten the very existence of the Dongria Kondh – an indigenous community that has lived on and around the hills for centuries.

The Dongria Kondh depend entirely on the hills for their food, water, livelihoods and cultural identity. They consider the Niyamgiri Hills as sacred.

The proposed mine could have grave repercussions for their human rights to water, food, health, work and other rights as an Indigenous community in respect of their traditional lands. International law requires that governments seek their free, prior informed consent before beginning such projects.

In Lanjigarh, at the foot of the Niyamgiri Hills, air and water pollution from an alumina refinery run by Vedanta Aluminium are threatening the health and well-being of local communities.

Although the Orissa State Pollution Control Board has reported serious concerns about water contamination and air pollution and documented numerous failures on the part of the company to adequately manage waste disposal from the refinery, this information has never been shared with local people.

No health monitoring has ever been done. Despite the existing problems and widespread community concerns, Vedanta Aluminium has sought clearance to expand the refinery’s capacity six-fold.

Vedanta Resources and its subsidiaries have failed to take action to adequately remedy the problems identified above. The companies involved have also failed to abide by internationally-accepted standards in relation to the impact of business on human rights - to provide information, consult with people and refine plans to ensure rights are not harmed.

Both Orissa state and Indian national level authorities have also failed to protect the human rights of the communities. Government officials have provided misleading and incomplete information to communities on the benefits and risks of the refinery project.

They have not properly assessed the potential impacts on human rights of either project and have not set up a genuine process of consultation with local people. Enforcement of regulations has been weak and inconsistent, leaving people exposed to ongoing harm.

Image: The Vedanta alumina refinery, Lanjigarh, Orissa, February 2009. Copyright: Amnesty International

Stop human rights violations against Uighurs in China

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 11:40:45 +0000

The police crackdown on peaceful Uighur demonstrations in Urumqi in July 2009 echoed incidents from the past, including the violent repression of a Uighur protest in Gulja (Chinese: Yining) 13 years ago in February 1997.

During the intervening years, the Chinese authorities have failed to effectively address Uighurs’ long-standing grievances about discrimination and widespread violations of their economic, social, cultural, civil and political rights.

On 5 February 1997, dozens of people were killed or injured in Gulja in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR) when security forces opened fire on ethnic Uighur protesters.

That day, Uighur residentsof Gulja began a peaceful demonstration. They were protesting against the closure of independent religious schools, the banning of “meshreps” (a traditional form of social gathering), the closure of a local Uighur football league and high rates of unemployment among Uighurs.

Security forces carried out house-to-house searches detaining suspected protesters and supporters. Many of those detained were reportedly tortured, some to death.

No independent investigation is known to have taken place into the allegations of serious human rights violations in Gulja.

Violence in 2009
Violence erupted again last year in Urumqi (Chinese: Wulumuqi) and other parts of the XUAR after police cracked down on initially peaceful Uighur demonstrations on 5 July.

In 2009, the demonstrators were protesting against initial inaction following the death of at least two Uighur workers after a violent riot at a factory in southern China (Shaoguan, Guangdong province) on 26 June.

The crackdown included house-to-house searches, widespread detentions and disappearances and was followed by violence on the part of both Uighurs and Han Chinese that lasted for several days.

Official government reports state that 197 people were killed, the majority of which were Han killed by Uighurs, and that more than 1,600 people were injured.

However, eyewitnesses interviewed by Amnesty International following the unrest contradict the official version of the events. They report witnessing security forces using excessive force against Uighur protesters including beatings, use of tear gas and shooting directly into crowds of protesters, resulting in the deaths of possibly hundreds more.

No independent investigation into the July 2009 violence has taken place to date.

Repression unchecked
Since July, the authorities have detained thousands of people, brought dozens to trial and threatened those involved in the unrest with harsh sentences. By the end of January 2010, 26 people had been sentenced to death in connection with the 2009 unrest and nine executed.

The region has witnessed hasty trials and executions, a lack of legal representation for those detained and the indiscriminate rounding up and detention without charge or trial of Uighurs, under the guise of destroying the ”three forces” of “separatism, terrorism and religious extremism”.

Chinese authorities have failed to recognize and adequately address the repression and discriminatory policies that fueled the unrest in Gulja in 1997 and Urumqi in 2009.

These include arbitrary detention, unfair trials, employment discrimination, and repression of religious freedoms and cultural rights.

They have interpreted all Uighur dissent as stemming from “terrorist” or “separatist” activities, justifying their harsh crackdown on Uighurs’ civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights.

The ongoing human rights violations experienced by Uighurs need to be urgently addressed in order to achieve the ‘social harmony’ that the Chinese government claims to seek. The ethnic identity of Uighurs is being systematically eroded. They are being discriminated against simply because of who they are.

READ MORE
Rebiya Kadeer's personal account of Gulja after the massacre on 5 February 1997
Uighur ethnic identity under threat in China

Image caption: A Uighur woman protests before a group of paramilitary police in Urumqi, 7 July 2009. © ASSOCIATED PRESS/Ng Han Guan

Roma families forcibly evicted in Romania

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 12:52:31 +0000

Across Romania, Romani families are being evicted from their homes against their will. When this happens, they don't just lose their homes. They lose their possessions, their social contacts, their access to work and state services. When they try to raise their voice against the discrimination affecting their own lives, they are often simply ignored.

Although some Roma people live in permanent structures with legal tenancy, many other long-standing Romani dwellings are considered by the government as "temporary" and unofficial, and their inhabitants do not have any proof of tenancy, which exacerbates their vulnerability to eviction.

On the occasions when alternative housing is offered by the authorities, it is often built in very precarious conditions and lacks basic facilities such as water, heating or electricity. In recent years, Romani communities have been evicted and relocated next to garbage dumps, sewage treatment plants or industrial areas on the outskirts of cities.

This pattern of forced evictions, without adequate consultation, adequate notice or adequate alternative housing, perpetuates racial segregation and violates Romania’s international obligations.

There are almost 2.2 million Roma in Romania – making up about 10 per cent of the total population. Yet discrimination, both by public officials and society at large, remains widespread and entrenched, resulting in as many as 75 per cent of Roma living in poverty, as opposed to 24 per cent of Romanians in general and 20 per cent of ethnic Hungarians, the largest minority in Romania.

About 75 Roma people – including families with young children – have been living in metal cabins and shacks next to a sewage treatment plant at the end of Primaverii Street since 2004 in Miercurea Ciuc, Central Romania. They were moved to the area, deemed unfit for human habitation, from a crumbling building in the centre of the town.

They were told the move was temporary, and for their own safety. After more than five years, and various court cases, the continued violation of their right to adequate housing – among a host of other rights – is beginning to feel very permanent.

Erzsébet, who lives next to the sewage treatment plant with her husband and nine children, told Amnesty International what life is like in a metal cabin: "It is tight, when the whole family goes to sleep we don’t fit in. We cannot take a bath; we cannot clean ourselves. It is too small. We don’t want the older girls to take a bath in front of their father."

The temporary metal cabins and shacks are close to the sewage treatment plant, falling within the 300-metre protection zone established by Romanian law to separate homes from potential toxic hazards.

Ilana told Amnesty International: "The houses fill up with that smell. At night… the children cover their faces with the pillows. We don't want to eat when we feel the smell… I used to have another child who died when he was four months old… I don’t want to lose the rest of my children."

The ordeal of the Roma families has continued for six years. Now is the time for the local authorities to provide them with adequate housing close to services and facilities in a safe and healthy location.

Picture copyright: Amnesty International

Mexico must protect activists

Thu, 21 Jan 2010 13:26:45 +0000

Mexico is a dangerous place for human rights activists. They face threats, harassment and intimidation, wrongful prosecution and even death in retaliation for their human rights work.

Activists highlight human rights violations committed by the military, police and non-state actors, they also campaign for the rights of Indigenous Peoples, migrants, women and those whose environmental rights are threatened. This work to improve the rights of others often brings them into conflict with the police, illegal loggers, landowners - anyone who sees them as a threat to their vested interests.

Over the last three years Amnesty International has documented at least six cases of killings of human rights defenders. Activists also suffered threats, attacks and wrongful prosecution on spurious charges. Virtually none of these abuses have been investigated effectively by either federal or state authorities. In some instances, investigations have been wholly negligent.

As the Mexican authorities are often slow and ineffective in handling request for protection, defenders in danger in Mexico have to rely almost entirely on requests issued by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to the Mexican authorities for their protection.

The intervention of the Inter-American system should be a last resort, not a first recourse. Amnesty International has called on the Mexican government to develop an effective and comprehensive domestic protection programme for human rights defenders, which would include the effective investigation of abuses against defenders.

Picture caption: Obtilia Eugenio Manuel of the Me'Phaa People's Organization at a protest in front of Auytla prison, Guerrero State, to demand the release of five prisoners of conscience. Copyright: Javier Verdin/La Jornada

Protect civilians in Sudan

Fri, 08 Jan 2010 12:18:37 +0000

On 9 January 2010, thousands of campaigners will gather around the world to call on world leaders to prevent a return to severe and widespread conflict in Sudan.

The effort comes one year before a referendum that will decide the future of Sudan, and falls on the five year anniversary of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement that called for the referendum.

2009 was the most violent year in the South of Sudan since the Comprehensive Peace Agreement was signed, with over 2,500 people killed and 350,000 displaced.

In Darfur, the civilian population continues to bear the brunt of the conflict with more than 2.6 million individuals still living in camps for the internally displaced.

With the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections in Sudan in April 2010 and the referendum on independence of South Sudan in 2011, there is a risk of increased violence and human rights violations.

Throughout 2009, there was a sharp increase in attacks against civilians in the South of Sudan, particularly in the disputed border areas between North and South Sudan and in Jonglei state.

Recent outbreaks of violence have reignited ethnic conflicts in the South, undermining the relative peace experienced since 2005, and placing civilians at risk of human rights abuses.

In Darfur, civilians continue to face insecurity on a daily basis and UNAMID still lacks equipment and strength to fully fulfil its mandate.

Amnesty International has called on the UN Security Council to ensure that UNAMID and UNMIS fulfil their civilian protection mandate by clearly defining their goals and priorities.

Amnesty International has also called on member states of the UN Security Council to provide the two forces with the equipment and support they need to effectively fulfil their mandates.

Iran must release activist Emadeddin Baghi

Fri, 08 Jan 2010 15:13:48 +0000

Prominent Iranian Journalist and human rights activist Emadeddin Baghi was arrested on December 28, 2009, the day after massive protests were held in Tehran and other cities to mark the Shi'a religious observance of Ashoura.

He is not known to have been charged with a crime. He is in poor health stemming from his previous imprisonment, and Amnesty International is concerned that he could be subjected to ill-treatment and medical neglect while in detention.

Emadeddin Baghi was the 2009 recipient of the prestigious Martin Ennals Award for human rights activists, although Iranian authorities prevented him from going to Geneva to attend the award ceremony on November 9, 2009. It was the first time in the award's 18-year history that the recipient was denied the opportunity to receive the award in person.

Emadeddin Baghi is the founder of the Association for the Defense of Prisoners' Rights, which had been compiling information on torture and other abuses of detainees. He has focused attention on Iran's appalling record of executing juvenile offenders, as well as the execution, following grossly flawed legal proceedings, of a number of Iranian Arabs accused of politically motivated crimes.

In the late 1990s he exposed the mysterious serial murders of Iranian intellectuals. His books Right to Life and Right to Life II argue for the abolition of the death penalty using Islamic texts and jurisprudence. They have been banned by Iranian authorities - who had previously shut down his newspaper Joumhouriat in 2003 - and Mr Baghi has served years in prison on charges of "endangering national security" and "printing lies."

In December 2007, during his last imprisonment, he suffered three seizures and a heart attack and remained in poor health without adequate medical care until his release in October 2008. Officials closed down the office of the Association for the Defense of Prisoners' Rights in September 2009.

The Martin Ennals award, named after the first secretary-general of Amnesty International, is a collaboration of ten of the world's leading human rights organizations, including Amnesty International. It is "granted annually to someone who has demonstrated an exceptional record of combating human rights violations by courageous and innovative means." The Chairman of the Jury of the MEA, Hans Thoolen, described Emadeddin Baghi as "an exceptionally brave man defending human rights despite imprisonment and poor health."

Picture: Poster for the Martin Ennals award featuring Emadeddin Baghi. Copyright: Martin Ennals Foundation

Israel must stop harassment and detention of Palestinian activists

Fri, 08 Jan 2010 17:19:10 +0000

Two prominent campaigners for the dismantlement of the fence/wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) are currently held by the Israeli military.

Their arrests last year and continuing detention indicate a growing crackdown on the legitimate expression of opposition to the construction of the fence/wall through the occupied West Bank.

Abdallah Abu Rahma and Mohammed Othman are human rights activists who have been campaigning for years against the fence/wall by raising awareness about its negative impact on Palestinians, organizing grassroots opposition to it and peacefully demonstrating against it.

A third activist, Jamal Juma’ was also detained before being released on 12 January 2010.

Amnesty International said it is concerned that Abdallah Abu Rahma and Mohammed Othman have been detained solely on account of legitimately exercising their right to freedom of expression in opposing the Israeli fence/wall.

The detainees have repeatedly expressed their commitment to the principle of non-violence and Amnesty International is unaware of any credible evidence that they have used or advocated violence.

If this is the case, Amnesty International considers the detainees to be prisoners of conscience and calls for their immediate and unconditional release. Otherwise they should be brought to trial on recognizable criminal charges and in full conformity with international fair trial standards.

In June 2004 the International Court of Justice issued a unanimous advisory opinion which stated that the construction of the wall in the OPT is contrary to international law and that Israel was obliged to dismantled sections already built there and provide reparation to Palestinians affected by the construction. The Israeli government rejected these recommendations.

Furthermore, when Palestinians, together with Israeli and international supporters, have demonstrated against the fence/wall, Israeli forces have often used excessive force against them. Some demonstrations are conducted peacefully; in others, some protestors throw stones at the Israeli military or attempt to damage the fence/wall.

In the last 18 months, Israeli forces have killed six people, including a ten-year old boy, at the sites of such demonstrations and injured scores more, some very seriously. In no case have the Israeli authorities subsequently produced credible evidence that those killed posed a threat to the lives of the soldiers involved.

Many Palestinian participants in demonstrations are arrested and held briefly before being released, but a few are convicted or held in administrative detention and therefore without charge.

In September 2009, an Israeli activist, Kobi Snitz, was convicted of being present in a “closed military zone”, which the army had declared around the site of a demonstration, and, in a rare occurrence for a Jewish Israeli citizen, served a prison sentence, in this case of 20 days.

Abdallah Abu Rahma, head of the “Popular Committee Against the Wall” in the village of Bil’in, was arrested on 10 December 2009. He has subsequently been charged with three offences: incitement, stone-throwing, and possession of arms. Amnesty International understands that the last charge relates solely to his involvement in the collection of used M16 bullets and empty sound and gas grenades employed by Israeli forces to disperse demonstrators against the fence/wall and their exhibition in Bil’in museum.

Mohammed Othman, a volunteer with the “Stop the Wall” campaign, has been continuously detained without charge or trial since he was arrested by the Israeli authorities on 22 September 2009 when he returned from Norway, where he had met activist groups campaigning against the fence/wall. Amnesty International understands that he is currently held under an administrative detention order which is due to expire on 22 January 2010, but could be renewed indefinitely.

Please write to the Military Advocate General at the Israeli Defense Forces, Brigadier General Avihai Mendelblit, to ask for the immediate release of the detainees unless they are brought to trial promptly on recognizable criminal offences and in full conformity with international standards for fair trial.

Picture copyright: Neta E. / Machsom Watch

Protect migrant workers in South Korea

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:04:03 +0000

South Korea was one of the first Asian countries to guarantee the rights of migrant workers - but today migrant workers in the country are exposed to abusive work conditions including discrimination, verbal and physical abuse.

Around 500,000 low-skilled migrant workers are employed in South Korea in manufacturing, construction, agriculture and other industries.

They are required to work long hours, night shifts, many without overtime pay, and often have their wages withheld. On average, they are paid less than South Korean workers in similar jobs and are at greater risk of industrial accidents, with inadequate medical treatment or compensation.

Women migrant workers are particularly at risk of exploitation. Many are sexually assaulted or harassed by management staff or their co-workers and some female workers have been trafficked by their employers.

The South Korean government announced in September 2008 that they are going to “harshly deal with illegal foreigners” and reduce them by half by 2012.

This has meant a dramatic increase in immigration raids of workplaces, on the streets, near public transportation hubs, in markets and in the private homes of migrant workers. There was a 50 per cent increase in the number of arrests of irregular migrant workers from 2007 to 2008.

From January to May 2009, more than 11,000 irregular migrant workers were arrested and detained and more than 11,000 others were deported.

Amnesty International has reported instances of arbitrary arrest, collective expulsions and violations of law enforcement procedures when carrying out these crackdowns.

The mass crackdowns have put pressure on detention facilities, contributing to problems of overcrowding, poor living conditions and delayed access to medical treatment.

Some irregular migrant workers are held in former office spaces that have been remodelled as detention centres. These facilities are wholly inappropriate, as they were not designed to detain and house people. They have poor ventilation – some with no external windows – and lack outdoor recreational space.

Image caption: International Migrants' Day protest in front of Seoul Station, South Korea, 13 December 2009.

Save two men from execution in Belarus

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 12:49:12 +0000

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Interview with Andrei Zhuk’s mother, Svetlana, recorded by Amnesty International in October 2009.

Andrei Zhuk and Vasily Yuzepchuk are currently awaiting execution in Minsk. Their appeals have been turned down.

Both men have applied for clemency to President Alyaksandr Lukashenka - but Amnesty International knows of only one case in which clemency was granted since President Lukashenka took office in 1994.

Andrei Zhuk was convicted of armed assault and the murder of a man and woman in February 2009. Vasily Yuzepchuk was found guilty in June 2009 of murdering six elderly women in the Grodno region.

The date for their execution will be set by the Director of the Remand Prison in Minsk, where they share a cell. Neither they nor their families will be informed of the date in advance.

Amnesty International understands that when the time comes, they will be taken to a room and told their appeal for clemency has been turned down. They will then be taken to a neighbouring room, forced to their knees and shot in the back of the head.

Andrei Zhuk’s mother, Svetlana Zhuk has written to President Alyaksandr Lukashenka asking for clemency on behalf of her son.

In her letter she writes that the death sentence confirmed by the Supreme Court on 27 October was handed down “not just to Andrei, but to all his family".

"Our life has become a nightmare," she writes. "We fall asleep and wake in a cold sweat; we shudder at every phone call and every sound. We are tired of the whispering behind our backs ‘There goes the Mother (father, brother) of a killer’”.

Svetlana Zhuk asked guards at the prison whether she would be able to once more hold her son in her arms, but was told that all their meetings must take place behind a glass screen, through a telephone.

The use of the death penalty in Belarus is compounded by a flawed criminal justice system that applies capital punishment in a manner violating international laws and standards pertaining to the death penalty. There is credible evidence that torture and ill-treatment are used to extract "confessions".

Andrei Zhuk's lawyer says there were procedural violations during his client's initial interrogation. He has also cited the influence of the Belarus media, plus a statement by the Minister of Internal Affairs referring to Andrei Zhuk and his accomplices as "criminals" before they had been convicted, which violates the right to presumption of innocence.

Vasily Yuzepchuk belongs to the marginalized Roma group. He may have an intellectual disability and his lawyer has stated that he is illiterate. Vasily Yuzepchuk has alleged that he was beaten while in pre-trial detention on two separate occasions.

Both men have applied to the UN Human Rights Committee, which called on the Belarusian government not to execute the men until the Committee has considered their cases.
Belarus is the last country in Europe still carrying out death sentences. Amnesty International estimates that as many as 400 people may have been executed since Belarus gained its independence in 1991.

The whole process is shrouded in secrecy; there are no official statistics for the number of executions, the body is not handed over to the family and the place of burial is kept secret.

Honduras security forces must be held accountable for human rights abuses

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 12:30:54 +0000

On its 10-day visit to Honduras during the presidential elections in November, Amnesty International documented numerous cases of human rights abuses carried out by the security forces since last June, when President Manuel Zelaya was forced into exile.

These included killings following excessive use of force, arbitrary arrests of demonstrators by police and military, indiscriminate and unnecessary use of tear gas, ill treatment of detainees in custody, violence against women, harassment of activists, journalists, lawyers and judges.

Amnesty International found that members of the military assigned to law enforcement duties were involved in committing serious human rights violations such as killings following excessive use of force, arbitrary arrests and illegal raids.

Amnesty International has called on the future Honduran government to ensure that all members of the security forces are held accountable for human rights abuses committed between 28 June and the end of November

Please also write directly to the Honduran security forces to ask that human rights are respected by police and army personnel and that there is full cooperation with any investigation into allegations of human rights abuses.