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Press Release

The authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have overseen a systematic crackdown on opponents of President Joseph Kabila’s attempt to stay in power beyond the constitutionally mandated second term, Amnesty International said today. In a new report, ‘Dismantling dissent: DRC’s repression of expression amidst electoral delays’ Amnesty International says the DRC government is using state institutions to prevent people who oppose a prolongation of President Kabila’s term in office to organize and express themselves. “The government is violating the rights of opposition politicians and pro-democracy activists to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly while expelling foreign researchers…

September 13, 2016

Press Release

The undersigned civil society organizations applaud U.S. Representatives Chris Smith, Keith Ellison and Mike Coffman for introducing House Resolution 861, entitled “Supporting human rights and encouraging inclusive governance in Ethiopia.”

September 13, 2016

Press Release

Security forces are using arbitrary and excessive force in response to protests in Jammu and Kashmir, violating international standards and worsening the human rights crisis in the state, Amnesty International India said today. At least 78 people, including two security force personnel, have been killed in the state since 8 July, following protests and violent clashes after the killing of a member of the Hizbul Mujahideen armed group. Some demonstrators have thrown stones and attacked police stations, government buildings and politicians’ homes. Security force personnel have fired live ammunition, tear gas and pellets from pump action shotguns. “Pellet-firing shotguns have…

September 12, 2016

Press Release

To mark his 72nd birthday today, Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) released a new video urging President Obama to grant clemency to Anishinabe-Lakota Native American activist Leonard Peltier before leaving office. The video highlights Amnesty International’s human rights concerns about Peltier’s case and is narrated by actor Peter Coyote. Amnesty International has joined Indigenous activists, human and civil rights groups, and Peltier’s family and friends to call for his release. The full video is at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAx2djDvrCU Peltier has been imprisoned for 40 years serving two consecutive life sentences, despite the fact that the legal processes surrounding his extradition, conviction, and post-conviction…

September 12, 2016

Press Release

While a federal court has ruled construction on a disputed pipeline in North Dakota can go forward, authorities must continue to protect the right to peaceful protest.

September 9, 2016

Press Release

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) must immediately end the shocking and arbitrary detention of a Yezidi woman who has been held without trial for nearly two years after surviving captivity at the hands of the armed group calling itself Islamic State (IS), Amnesty International said. Bassema Darwish, a 34-year-old mother of three from the Babira village in Ninewa Governorate, has been detained by the KRG since October 2014. She has been accused of complicity with IS forces who killed three members of the Peshmerga (KRG’s armed forces) when they arrived at the house where she was being held captive in…

September 9, 2016

Press Release

Footage released by Amnesty International today shows the remarkable journey of two refugees, Alan Mohammad, 30, and his sister Gyan, 28, who travelled from Syria to a refugee camp in Greece to escape the armed group that calls itself Islamic State (IS). Alan and Gyan, who were born with muscular dystrophy, fled their home in Al-Hasakah in northeastern Syria as IS advanced. On three occasions they tried to cross the border into Turkey but each time were fired on by Turkish police. They then tried a different escape route, crossing the border into Iraq. As IS advanced in Iraq they…

September 8, 2016

Press Release

The government of Zimbabwe must respect a court ruling overturning the ban on protests in the country, Amnesty International said today, as the High Court issued its verdict allowing public demonstrations. “Today’s High court decision is a victory for Zimbabwe’s constitutional principles. It sends a clear message to the authorities that the right to protest, as enshrined in the country’s constitution, cannot just be stripped away by the state on a whim,” said Deprose Muchena, Amnesty International’s Director for Southern Africa. “Zimbabwe’s authorities must respect and obey today’s ruling and allow people to assemble and raise their grievances, as long…

September 7, 2016

Update

Many people have heard of the March 2016 murder of Berta Cáceres, an award-winning environmental and indigenous rights leader in Honduras, and the many threats that proceeded her death. They may not know, however, that the Honduran authorities had falsely charged Cáceres with inciting usurpation of land, coercion, and damages against the company building the hydo-electric damn opposed by her organization, the Civic Council of the Indigenous and Popular Organizations of Honduras (COPINH), in 2013. Amnesty International’s new report, “We Are Defending the Land with Our Blood,” demonstrates that Cáceres is not the only heroic land and environmental rights activist…

September 6, 2016

Press Release

In advance of the US-ASEAN Summit, the Lao authorities should lift all restrictions on journalists and allow them to do their job and move  freely, Amnesty International said today. Foreign journalists will be arriving in Laos to cover USA President Barack Obama’s participation in the Summit from 6-8 September. Previously, Lao officials warned that foreign journalists may have to submit their articles and broadcasts for approval before publication. Foreign journalists may also be assigned a minder who will trail them for the duration of their stay in Laos. “The restrictions imposed on journalists covering the ASEAN summit in Laos amounts…

September 6, 2016

Press Release

The Bangladeshi authorities must immediately release a 22-year-old student activist detained for two Facebook posts criticising the country’s Prime Minister, Amnesty International said today. Dilip Roy, a student activist at Rajshahi University in western Bangladesh, will be appearing at a bail hearing on 4 September. “Bangladesh’s authorities should immediately drop this case. By invoking draconian laws to hound critics for Facebook posts, they are not just cracking down on peaceful dissent but courting embarrassment,” said Champa Patel, Amnesty International’s Director for South Asia. Dilip Roy could face up to 14 years in prison after a student body linked to the…

September 6, 2016

Press Release

The detention of Ruslan Sokolovsky, a Russian blogger from Yekaterinburg (Urals region) who was sentenced to administrative arrest for two months after posting a video of himself   playing Pokémon Go in a church is a farcical attack on freedom of expression, said Amnesty International.   “The absurdity of the case of the Russian blogger jailed for playing Pokémon Go in a church highlights what happens when authorities hold the freedom of expression in such low regard. Even if Sokolovsky’s behaviour may have been regarded as disrespectful by some, states should not be jailing people simply for offending religious sensibilities,”…

September 6, 2016