Below you’ll find breaking news as well as reports, updates on our campaigns, and victories.
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Press Release
Journalists detained for reporting on corruption in Oman
Oman’s authorities have carried out a string of journalist arrests in recent weeks signaling a growing crackdown on freedom of expression in the country, said Amnesty International.
August 10, 2016
Press Release
Maldives: New defamation bill another blow to free media
Responding to the Maldivian Parliament’s passage today of a new defamation bill, Champa Patel, Amnesty International’s Director, South Asia Regional Office and Senior Research Adviser, South East Asia and the Pacific Regional Office, said: "The new defamation bill is another attack on free media by the Maldivian authorities. Defamation should never be criminalized – this bill gives the authorities sweeping powers to fine and imprison journalists, or even to shut down whole outlets. We urge the authorities to scrap or substantially amend this flawed piece of legislation as soon as possible.” The People’s Majlis passed the Defamation bill granting regulators…
August 10, 2016
Press Release
Philippines: President’s ‘Shoot to kill’ directive violates fundamental right to life
Philippine President Duterte’s promise on August 5 to maintain a “shoot to kill” order in his crackdown on crime is a clear violation of the fundamental human right to life and could lead to further killings in the country.
August 10, 2016
Press Release
Congressional letter urges State Department to address human rights in Mexico
Amnesty International supported a letter that Congressman Alan Lowenthal, along with 68 of his House of Representatives colleagues, sent to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry urging the State Department to address serious human rights abuses in Mexico. The letter also highlighted an Amnesty International report of 100 women arrested in Mexico who were tortured by security forces. The full letter can be found here.
August 10, 2016
Press Release
Women’s rights activists treated as enemies of the state in renewed crackdown in Iran
Iranian authorities have intensified their repression of women’s rights activists in the country in the first half of this year, carrying out a series of harsh interrogations and increasingly likening any collective initiative relating to women’s rights to criminal activity, Amnesty International said today.
August 9, 2016
Update
Just Off-Screen in Rio, a Community’s Homes Vanish in Olympic Shadow
The land that the community sat on was sold to a developer who intended to raze the homes and businesses of Vila Autódromo and incorporate the land into the Olympic Park.
August 8, 2016
Press Release
Massive hydroelectric dam threatens Indigenous communities in Canada
A massive hydroelectric dam now under construction in the Canadian province of British Columbia violates Canada’s commitments to uphold the human rights of Indigenous peoples, says a new brief by Amnesty International.
August 8, 2016
Press Release
Uganda minister’s remarks against LGBTI people amount to advocacy of hatred
Reacting to threats by Uganda’s Minister of Ethics and Integrity Simon Lokodo that he will suppress the activities of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) rights activists and “rehabilitate” LGBTI people, Amnesty International said the following
August 8, 2016
Press Release
Attack on Quetta hospital in Pakistan an abhorrent disregard for the sanctity of life
An apparently pre-planned suicide attack, which killed at least 63 people and wounded more than 50 others in a hospital in Quetta, south-western Pakistan, today is the latest in a series of horrific attacks by armed groups targeting ordinary people in Pakistan, said Amnesty International.
August 8, 2016
Press Release
Dozens killed as police use excessive force against peaceful protesters in Ethiopia
At least 97 people were killed and hundreds more injured when Ethiopian security forces fired live bullets at peaceful protesters across Oromia region over the weekend, according to credible sources who spoke to Amnesty International.
August 8, 2016
Press Release
Amnesty International USA: Drone Disclosures a Welcome but Incomplete Step
WASHINGTON, D.C.—In response to today’s release of the Presidential Policy Guidance—a document setting out U.S. standards that appears to apply to some drone and other air strikes overseas— Amnesty International USA’s Security & Human Rights Program Director Naureen Shah issued the following statement: “While this policy guidance appears to set an important precedent for protecting civilians and limiting killings, it is impossible to assess whether and how it’s been followed. The Obama Administration has still never provided basic information needed to assess the drone program, including the names and identities of people killed in the strikes. “The Obama administration’s disclosures…
August 6, 2016
Update
Manning Faces Charges for Attempting to Take Her Life
The news was hard to take when I first learned of it on 7 July – Chelsea Manning, who publicly stood up and took responsibility for releasing materials she felt would demonstrate the atrocities of war to the world, had attempted to take her own life nearly two days prior. Having witnessed how she sat in Court each day during her military trial, back stiff as a board, in front of media, M.P.s and observers as expert witnesses spoke about her struggles and her desire to present as a woman; knowing that she continued to struggle against the military as…
August 5, 2016