Below you’ll find breaking news as well as reports, updates on our campaigns, and victories.
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Report
Agents of the people: Four years of foreign agents law in Russia
More than a hundred organizations have seen their funding shrink, their reputations tarnished, and their staff intimidated under Russia’s draconian “foreign agents” law, said Amnesty International ahead of the fourth anniversary of its coming into force on November 21, 2012.
November 17, 2016
Press Release
Venezuela: Authorities deny medical care to severely ill imprisoned opposition leader
The Venezuelan authorities’ denial of medical care to a severely ill imprisoned opposition leader shows the cruel lengths they are prepared to go to in order to stifle dissent, Amnesty International said. Rosmit Mantilla, Member of Parliament, human rights activist and prisoner of conscience was scheduled to undergo surgery for multiple bladder stones, recurrent gallbladder attacks and gastric wall thickening on 31 October. However, despite a judge’s order, he was instead placed in a punishment cell in a prison in Caracas. His health has been rapidly deteriorating since then. “Authorities in Venezuela seem to be playing an incredibly dangerous game…
November 4, 2016
Press Release
Russia: Moscow authorities stonewall Amnesty International’s attempts to resolve office closure
While yesterday’s surprise sealing of Amnesty International’s long-term office by Moscow city authorities will hamper day-to-day work, its staff will continue to stand up against human rights violations and abuses committed in Russia and abroad, the organization said. Attempts to resolve the issue have so far been stonewalled by municipal authorities, who falsely claimed that Amnesty International was in arrears on its rent, and terminated the organization’s lease in a clear abuse of process. “If the authorities remain unwilling to solve this issue, it will soon start to look ominously like a deliberate move to obstruct our work…
November 3, 2016
Press Release
Amnesty International Moscow office sealed
Staff at Amnesty International’s Moscow office arrived at work this morning to find their office unexpectedly sealed with a notice from municipal authorities warning people not to enter.
November 2, 2016
Press Release
Egypt: Lift Abusive Arbitrary Travel Bans
Human rights lawyer latest to be barred from travelling abroad The Egyptian authorities should stop imposing travel bans to prevent human rights defenders from leaving the country and speaking out about Egypt’s appalling human rights record, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said after another prominent human rights lawyer was banned from travelling today. The bans are part of a larger campaign to suppress independent, critical voices inside the country. Early this morning, human rights defender Malek Adly was stopped from boarding a flight to France without any reasons given, as required by law, he said by phone. Since the armed forces…
November 2, 2016
Press Release
Cameroon: Military court imposes 10-year sentence on young men who joked about Boko Haram
Three students in Cameroon were sentenced by a military court to 10 years in prison today after sending a sarcastic text message about Boko Haram. Fomusoh Ivo Feh, Afuh Nivelle Nfor and Azah Levis Gob were convicted for “non-denunciation of terrorist acts.”
November 2, 2016
Press Release
Activists’ murders turn Honduras into no-go zone for environmental
The brutal murders of two land rights activists in Honduras last night are the latest tragedies in a seemingly unstoppable wave of deadly attacks turning Honduras into a no-go zone for human rights defenders, said Amnesty International.
October 19, 2016
Press Release
Ilham Tohti: 2016 Martin Ennals Award Laureate for Human Rights Defenders
The Martin Ennals Foundation has today announced Ilham Tohti as the 2016 Laureate Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders. Ilham Tohti was selected by a jury of 10 global human rights organizations, including Amnesty International. The Award is given to Human Rights Defenders who have shown deep commitment and face great personal risk. The aim of the award is to provide protection through international recognition. Strongly supported by the City of Geneva, the Award will be presented on Oct. 11th. Ilham Tohti (China) A renowned Uyghur intellectual in China, Ilham Tohti has worked for two decades to foster dialogue and…
October 11, 2016
Press Release
Iran: Shameful 16-year-sentence for Narges Mohammadi a devastating blow to human rights
In response to the news that the 16-year prison sentence against prominent human rights defender Narges Mohammadi, who is critically ill, has been upheld on appeal, Amnesty International’s Research and Advocacy Director, Philip Luther, said: “This verdict is yet another cruel and devastating blow to human rights in Iran, which demonstrates the authorities’ utter contempt for justice. Narges Mohammadi is a prominent advocate of human rights and a prisoner of conscience. She should be lauded for her courage not locked in a prison cell for 16 years. “By insisting that this harsh and appalling sentence is imposed for her peaceful…
September 28, 2016
Press Release
Amnesty International welcomes release of Dr. Homa Hoodfar from prison in Iran
Amnesty International Canada welcomes the release of Dr. Homa Hoodfar from Iranian prison after more than three and a half months of detention on arbitrary charges with extremely limited access to her family or lawyer. Amnesty International considered Dr. Hoodfar to have been a prisoner of conscience detained on trumped-up, national security-related charges. She was imprisoned in solitary confinement in Tehran’s Evin Prison, which is under the control of the Revolutionary Guards. During this period, grave concerns were raised about her health and lack of access to adequate medical care. Amnesty International lobbied Iranian authorities for her immediate and unconditional…
September 27, 2016
Press Release
India: Kashmiri human rights activist re-arrested
Kashmiri human rights activist Khurram Parvez has been detained a second time, after a court ordered his release from administrative detention on Tuesday. “Detaining a person right after he is released, without any intention to charge him or bring him to trial, amounts to using a revolving door of persecution,” said Aakar Patel, Executive Director, Amnesty International India. “This kind of arbitrary use of the law suggests that the Jammu and Kashmir police are determined to lock up Khurram Parvez at any cost.” The activist was first arrested on 16 September and placed in administrative detention in a jail in Kupwara, over…
September 21, 2016
Press Release
Viet Nam: President Hollande must back one woman’s fight for justice
President Francois Hollande of France must confront Vietnamese authorities over their treatment of one women’s fight for justice when he visits the country this week, Amnesty International said today. Amnesty International calls on the French president to raise in particular the case of Ngô Thanh Kiều, a young man who died in police custody in Phú Yên province in 2012. Since his death, his sister Ngô Thị Tuyết and her family have undertaken a brave crusade for justice in the face of physical attacks, death threats and other forms of intimidation. Recently, the family found the carcass of a shaved…
September 6, 2016