Newsroom

Update

A couple of days ago, we revealed staggering statistics about countries utilizing capital punishment. Our newest report Death Sentences and Executions shows that the U.S. ranks 7th in the world. Texas leads with the number of executions performed in 2009. Without wasting any time, college students in San Antonio, TX raised their voices in protest against the death penalty. Check out this video from the event: Visit www.amnestyusa.org/abolish or email [email protected] to get involved.

April 1, 2010

Update

The disruption of a plot by a clandestine militant group in Clayton, Michigan, to murder law enforcement officials illustrates perfectly what an unholy and inconsistent mess America’s counter-terrorism architecture has become. Major Hassan’s murderous rampage in Fort Hood, Texas, is repeatedly described as terrorism but the word is barely mentioned when a group of white right-wing extremists plan to do almost exactly the same thing in Michigan. The chosen target was the same – men and women in uniform. The chosen method was the same – murder. In both cases the motivation seems to be prompted by perverted religious teachings.…

March 31, 2010

Update

Our 10,000 Against Torture campaign is now over. You've helped us achieve extraordinary results, with 90,000 actions to stop illegal detention and ensure accountability for torture - including mailing 283 letters to the editor, holding 145 local events, and sending tens of thousands of letters and emails to President Obama and Congress, not to mention the volume of calls to the White House and Senator Graham's office. Thank you for this! But there are still some major obstacles standing in our way: • Senator Graham's legislation may have been capped for now, but he's still got his sights on gutting…

March 31, 2010

Update

A Challenge to the Outliers Today we released our annual report on global death penalty statistics. The good news: the world has made progress toward upholding the fundamental right to life by continuing to decrease the use of the death penalty. The bad news: a handful of countries are carrying on business as usual and need to hear the message more clearly that the time for global abolition has come! Interesting Facts from the Report: In 2009, 139 countries were death penalty free in law or practice.  (This is up from 16 countries in 1977, when Amnesty began working to…

March 30, 2010

Update

On February 22, James Chaparro's sixth day on the job as the head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) behemoth detention and removal operation, he issued a memo directing all ICE field office directors to collectively identify, detain and deport 400,000 individuals in 2010. Stressing the need to increase this year’s numbers, the memo communicated the quota and provided ideas for how individuals could be identified for deportation, including increased use of detention and deportations without an immigration court hearing (i.e., expedited and stipulated removal). Entirely missing from the memo was any consideration of the drastic impact massive detention and…

March 30, 2010

Update

As Women’s History Month comes to an end, it’s a good time to consider what still needs to be done to promote women’s rights globally.  Across the globe women are still confronted daily with inequality and discrimination.  Some face cupfuls of acid, hurled stones, and brandished knives.  Others are perpetually shrouded by the threats of rape, mutilation, and murder.  Even in countries where gross human rights violations are not a daily occurrence, women are not free from discrimination and subordination.  They face poverty, unequal rights in the workplace, and inequitable access to the basic human rights of health, food, shelter,…

March 29, 2010

Update

The votes have come in and the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board decided by three votes to two to recommend that Governor Brad Henry commute Richard Smith’s death sentence.  Because this recommendation is nonbinding, it is vital that we continue speaking out in the name of justice for Mr. Smith.  Governor Henry has received six previous recommendations for clemency for death row inmates from the Pardon and Parole Board since he has taken office on January 13, 2003.  Unfortunately, he has taken the Board’s advice on only two of those six recommendations.   In addition to the Pardon and Parole Board,…

March 26, 2010

Update

Today, we celebrated the addition of a new co-sponsor to the Conflict Minerals Trade Act (H.R. 4128): Republican Congressman Edward Royce, representing California’s 40th congressional district. As we have reported before, the Conflict Minerals Trade Act is a great first step in ensuring that the flow of conflict minerals from the Democratic Republic of Congo is stemmed. Conflict minerals play a large role in perpetuating conflict and human rights abuses through financing the activities of many armed groups in the region, and end up in pieces of technology you use every day, including the equipment you’re using to read these…

March 26, 2010

Update

Over the past decade, Nigeria has seen its fair share of violence. On January 17th, Nigeria came back into the headlines as violence erupted in the central city of Jos and in surrounding villages. Although there is disagreement over the exact number of people killed during January’s violence, most residents and aid workers estimate that around 400 people lost lives. Around 18,000 were displaced by the violence. Using the power of satellite images, which were acquired and analyzed by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), we were able to document the impact of January’s violence on infrastructure in…

March 25, 2010

Update

UPDATE: The US Supreme Court has stayed the execution of Henry Skinner, at least temporarily.  He has filed a petition to the Supreme Court, and if the Court declines to hear his petition, the stay will be lifted.  If the petition is accepted, the stay would continue indefinitely and there would be a hearing at the Supreme Court. Today, Texas is scheduled to execute Henry “Hank” Skinner, despite the fact that readily available evidence in his case has never been tested for DNA which might prove his innocence (or confirm his guilt).  Adopting a policy of willful ignorance is nothing new for…

March 24, 2010

Update

Back in early January, we called for the unconditional release of Steven Monjeza and Tiwonge Chimbalanga, two men who were arrested after having a traditional engagement ceremony in Malawi. They were charged with "unnatural practices between males and gross public indecency" and were reportedly beaten while in custody. In Malawi, homosexual acts can carry a maximum prison sentence of 14 years. And just yesterday, the BBC reported that there will be a full trial for the two men beginning in April. The men deny the charges and will soon have to begin calling defense witnesses. This case serves as a sad…

March 23, 2010

Update

Thousands of Amnesty International activists have been putting the pressure on Internet giant Google in recent years to stop censorship in China.  The good news is that work has paid off:  yesterday Google decided to stop censoring Internet search results in China! By acknowledging that their corporate policies were incompatible with the self-censorship required to operate inside China, Google has challenged the Chinese authorities to respect the right to freedom of expression provided in the Chinese Constitution. Amnesty has been working on the issue of Internet freedom in China for over seven years.  In 2006 we released a report focusing…

March 23, 2010