Below you’ll find breaking news as well as reports, updates on our campaigns, and victories.
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Press Release
Afghanistan: UN probe into US airstrikes on Kunduz a welcome step towards accountability
In response to today’s announcement by the United Nations that it will investigate last week’s US-led airstrikes in Kunduz province, in which more than 30 civilians were killed, Champa Patel, Amnesty International’s South Asia Director said: “The horrific events in Kunduz last week are the latest in a growing list of incidents which have resulted in Afghan civilians being killed or injured in attacks that appear to have violated international humanitarian law “We hope that this UN investigation into the circumstances surrounding the bombing represents a step towards truth and justice for the victims and their families. “If the investigation…
November 7, 2016
Press Release
Angola: Blocking rap concert is state censorship
Ahead of the planned livestream of a concert this evening in Luanda by Luaty Beirão - also known as Ikonoklasta - and MCK, two well-known rappers and critics of the Angolan government, Tjiurimo Hengari, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for Southern Africa said: “Angolan authorities must ensure that the rappers’ concert takes place without any further interference by the police, who blocked it over the weekend.” “The unexplained police intervention has potentially far-reaching consequences for freedom of assembly and artistic expression in the country, and smacks of state censorship of Luaty Beirão and MCK for their criticism of Angola’s government.”…
November 7, 2016
Press Release
Sierra Leone: Continued pregnancy ban in schools and failure to protect rights is threatening teenage girls’ futures
Sierra Leone must lift a deeply discriminatory ban on visibly pregnant girls attending school and taking exams, which continues to entrench gender inequality in the country and puts thousands of teenage girls’ futures at risk, Amnesty International said today, a year on from its report on the issue.
November 7, 2016
Update
Race and the Death Penalty: “Just a Bunch of Racists”?
At a recent public debate of California’s competing ballot initiatives on the death penalty, Paul Pfingst, a former district attorney for San Diego County and a supporter of Prop 66, spoke about the role race plays in the death penalty. He said that race plays a role in every facet of the criminal justice system, but the notion that "the people making these decisions [about death penalty sentencing] are just a bunch of racists who don't care about these things, is just unfair.” Pfingst was speaking in support of Prop 66, a ballot measure that would impose limits on death…
November 4, 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
Pakistan: Deportation of iconic National Geographic Afghan girl is a grave injustice
Reaction to Pakistan's decision to deport Sharbat Gula, the iconic 'Afghan girl' whose striking portrait adorned a 1985 cover of National Geographic magazine
November 4, 2016
Press Release
Kenyan court to hear petition against closure of world’s largest refugee camp
The High Court in Kenya will hear a petition on Monday filed by two civil society organizations challenging the government’s decision to close down the world’s largest refugee camp in Dadaab and disband the Department of Refugee Affairs (DRA).
November 4, 2016
Press Release
Syria: Fears of civilian carnage in Aleppo amid threat of impending assault on city
Fears for the safety of civilians in eastern and western Aleppo city are mounting amid the looming threat of a resumption and possible escalation of fighting and bombardment by Syrian government forces with Russian support, and non-state armed groups once a humanitarian pause comes to an end later today, said Amnesty International today. Media reports indicate that a fleet of Russian warships have made their way to Latakia on the Syrian coast in recent days indicating that Syrian and Russian forces are preparing a final bloody assault to seize control of the city. “Even in times of wars, there are…
November 4, 2016
Press Release
Malaysia: Journalists at risk as threats to news site mount
The Malaysian authorities must immediately take steps to protect journalists at the respected news site Malaysiakini against intimidation and threats from vigilantes, Amnesty International said today. The so-called “Red Shirts” movement, has vowed to “tear down” the offices of Malaysiakini on Saturday and continues to mount aggressive demonstrations outside them. “Everyone has a right to peaceful protest, but what the red-shirts are threatening is violence. They have a right to freedom of expression but they cannot use threat and violence to deny journalists that same right,” said Josef Benedict, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for South East Asia and the Pacific.…
November 4, 2016
Press Release
Kenya: Deportation of South Sudanese opposition spokesperson a chilling assault on refugee rights
The Kenyan government’s deportation of James Gatdet Dak, the spokesperson of South Sudan opposition leader Riek Machar, despite the fact that he is a recognized refugee, is a brazen and dangerous attack on refugee rights, said Amnesty International. He was forced onto a flight on Thursday afternoon and flown to South Sudan’s capital Juba. “Gatdet’s deportation is Kenya’s latest attack on refugees’ right to safety and it places Gatdet at grave risk of torture and other ill-treatment,” said Sarah Jackson, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for East Africa, the Horn and the Great Lakes. Gatdet was arrested by Kenyan authorities at…
November 4, 2016
Press Release
Turkey: HDP deputies detained amid growing onslaught on Kurdish opposition voices
The detention of 12 deputies from the Kurdish-rooted leftist Peoples’ Democracy Party (HDP) since last night marks the latest escalation in the onslaught on dissent amid Turkey’s state of emergency, Amnesty International said today. The detentions – on a range of “terrorism”-related charges – come on the heels of mass closures of Kurdish media outlets, the ousting of at least 24 pro-Kurdish mayors and rolling blackouts on internet access that hinder communications. They were followed this morning by an explosion killing at least eight people in Diyarbakır in the mainly Kurdish south-east of the country. “Today’s detention of HDP deputies…
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