AI News & Updates Feed

Death sentences commuted in Ghana – time for abolition

Fri, 09 Jan 2009 12:50:28 +0000

The outgoing President of Ghana, John Kufuor, commuted all death sentences in the country. Amnesty International welcomed the action and urged the new President of Ghana, John Atta Mills, to seize the moment and take immediate steps to abolish the death penalty in law.

Several influential figures in Ghana have, in recent years, voiced their opposition to the death penalty, including the former Minister of Justice and Attorney General who is reported to have said in 2007 that the death penalty has no deterrent effect.

In meetings with Amnesty International in April 2008, the former Minister of Justice, as well as members of Parliament, underlined the need for a debate around death penalty in Ghana. While no death row prisoner has been executed since 1993, the death penalty continues to be in the statute books and death sentences continue to be imposed.

In 2008, 3 people were sentenced to death and approximately 105 prisoners were on death row, including three women.

As of today, 138 countries have abolished the death penalty in law or in practice. The continent of Africa is largely free of executions, with only seven of the 53 African Union member states known to have carried out executions in 2007: Botswana, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Libya, Somalia and Sudan.

Amnesty International made the abolition of the death penalty on of the key points in a seven point human rights agenda for the new President.

President-elect Barack Obama: set a date to close Guantánamo

Fri, 09 Jan 2009 14:17:27 +0000

President-elect Obama has committed to closing the US detention centre at Guantánamo Bay. On the eve of the seventh anniversary of the first transfers to the facility, on 11 January 2002, Amnesty International is calling on him to go a step further and set a date for closure, promptly after taking office.

Activists around the world will take action this weekend and call on President-elect Obama to make sure this is the last ever Guantánamo anniversary. Activists dressed in the familiar orange boiler suits will congregate outside US embassies and in city centres from Finland to Peru.

Bringing an end to the Guantánamo detentions and the wider system of abuses that have been the hallmark of the US government’s counter-terror policies and practices over the last seven years must be prioritized by President-elect Obama. Amnesty International has launched a checklist of issues that it is calling on him to tackle within his first 100 days in office in order to begin to restore US compliance with international law.

Activists will also be urging other countries to facilitate the closure of Guantánamo by offering humanitarian protection to detainees who cannot be returned to their countries of origin for fear of torture or other human rights violations. A number of European Union (EU) states, including Germany and Portugal, have voiced support for the idea of accepting detainees in the EU.

Take action online to call on President-elect Obama to demonstrate a commitment to human rights in his first 100 days in office. His first steps should be:

Announce a plan and date to close Guantánamo
Ban torture and other ill-treatment as defined under international law
Ensure that an independent commission on US "war on terror" abuses is set up

Iranian Aids doctors tried in closed hearing

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 14:49:33 +0000

Brothers Arash and Kamiar Alaei, two Iranian doctors, detained without charge for six months, are awaiting the verdict of the unfair trial they faced in a closed session before a Revolutionary Court in Tehran, Iran on 31 December 2008.

Specialising in the prevention and management of HIV and AIDS, they have worked for nearly a decade on HIV and AIDS programs in Iran, notably those addressing harm reduction aimed at injecting drug users.

Amnesty International fears that they are prisoners of conscience. Despite repeated calls from international bodies and by the organization and its worldwide membership, for the brothers to be released unless charged with an internationally recognizable criminal offence, the Iranian authorities responded by unfairly trying them.

In a press conference on 30 December 2008, Iran’s spokesperson for the judiciary, Alireza Jamshidi stated that the Arash and Kamiar Alaei faced charges of “acting against national security through cooperating with America”, “propaganda against the system” and “membership in groups hostile to the system”.

One of the charges appears to be Article 508 of Iran’s Penal Code. It allows up to ten years’ imprisonment for “cooperation” with an “enemy government”, though the Penal Code is silent as to what constitutes “cooperation” or what is meant by an “enemy government”.

Amnesty International has repeatedly drawn attention to the catalogue of vaguely worded articles relating to association and ''national security'' in Iran’s Penal Code. These prohibit a range of activities, such as those connected with public discourse, and, as in this case, contact with international bodies.

The prosecution is said to have cited the brothers' participation at international AIDS conferences as part of their scheme to foment a so-called "velvet revolution" against Tehran.

“Contacts with international public health and academic bodies to share knowledge and ensure that HIV and AIDS sufferers obtain the best treatment possible should be acknowledged not criminalized,” said Drewery Dyke, Iran researcher at Amnesty International.

The conduct of their one-day trial did not meet the most basic fair trial standards. The prosecutor was said to have refused to disclose in court some of the charges faced by the brothers, so that their lawyer, Masoud Shafie, did not know all the charges they faced in order to prepare an effective defence; he was not allowed to review all the evidence nor reportedly given adequate opportunities to refute the prosecution's case.

Jonathan Hutson, a spokesperson for Physicians for Human Rights stated that "The publicly announced charges were unfounded, politically motivated and illegitimate; […] they were not guilty of crimes. They were practicing good medicine."

At the time of the trial, the brothers had been held five months longer than what is envisaged in Iran’s Code of Criminal Procedures allows. Article 33 of the Code calls for cases to be settled within one month of arrest, and although temporary extensions to the detention order are allowed; it is not clear in the brothers’ case that the detention orders were, as required, documented, nor whether they had the opportunity to challenge the order.

Who are the Alaei brothers?
Dr Arash Alaei was arrested by Iranian security forces on 22 June 2008.The following morning, they escorted him to his mother’s house in Tehran, where they arrested his brother, Dr Kamiar Alaei They also seized documents belonging to the brothers.

Kamiar Alaei is a doctoral candidate at the State University of New York (SUNY) Albany School of Public Health in Albany, New York. He was due to resume his studies there last September. He holds a Masters degree in Population and International Health from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston.

Arash Alaei is the former director of the International Education and Research Cooperation of the Iranian National Research Institute of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease.

Since 1998, the Alaei brothers have been working on HIV and AIDS treatment and prevention programs, particularly focused on harm reduction for injecting drug users.

The brothers’ work with drug addicts and prostitutes in Tehran featured in a 2004 BBC television documentary, Mohammed and the Matchmaker, in which Kamiar Alaei said: "We face a huge potential HIV problem in Iran, and in order to start to confront it we need to talk about the root causes […] Many people are still afraid to talk about it. Some people with HIV are ostracised and stigmatised, and they are often very isolated."

In addition to their work in Iran, the Alaei brothers have held training courses for Afghan and Tajik medical workers, and have worked to encourage regional cooperation among 12 Middle Eastern and Central Asian countries.

Their efforts expanded the expertise of doctors in the region, advanced the progress of medical science, and earned Iran recognition as a model of best practice by the World Health Organization.

Iran’s response to HIV and AIDS – pioneered at least in part by the brothers - has been accorded international respect, particularly the preventative measures promoted by Arash and Kamiar Alaei,

According to the 2008 Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic (published by UNAIDS on 29 July 2008 and available at www.unaids.org) “the… support for needle exchange projects in countries such as the Islamic Republic of Iran… serve as clear examples of courageous, visionary leadership in the response to HIV”.

However, the government of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, which took office in August 2005, has started to remove its support for such centres.

Over 3,100 doctors, nurses and public health workers from more than 85 countries have signed an online petition demanding their release. The petition can be signed at http://www.iranfreethedocs.org.

Gaza civilians endangered by the military tactics of both sides

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 11:52:48 +0000

Amnesty International said on Wednesday that both Israeli soldiers and Palestinian fighters are endangering the lives of Palestinian civilians – including by using them as human shields.

“Our sources in Gaza report that Israeli soldiers have entered and taken up positions in a number of Palestinian homes, forcing families to stay in a ground floor room while they use the rest of their house as a military base and sniper position,” said Malcolm Smart, Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Programme. “This clearly increases the risk to the Palestinian families concerned and means they are effectively being used as human shields.”

Both Israeli soldiers and Palestinian gunmen are continuing to fire at each other from areas close to civilian homes, endangering their inhabitants.

Israeli forces have bombed civilian homes and other buildings, arguing that they had been used as cover by gunmen firing at Israeli targets, although Palestinian fighters usually vacate the areas as soon as they have fired.

“The Israeli army is well-aware that Palestinian gunmen usually leave the area after having fired and that any reprisal attack against these homes will in most cases cause harm to civilians -- not gunmen.”

“Fighters on both sides must not carry out attacks from civilian areas but when they do take cover behind a civilian house or building to fire it does not make that building and its civilian inhabitants a legitimate military target. Any such attacks are unlawful,” said Malcolm Smart.

“The use of these tactics at a time when armed confrontations are taking place in streets in the middle of densely-populated residential areas underlines the failure of both sides to respect the protected status of civilians in armed conflict,” said Malcolm Smart. “It underlines too the urgent need for an independent investigation into alleged abuses, including possible war crimes, by both sides and for perpetrators to be held to account.”

Background
Following Tuesday’s attack on an UNWRA school in the Jabaliya refugee camp, Israeli government spokespeople said their forces shelled the school after Palestinian gunmen fired at them from it, but this is disputed. The artillery strike, which killed some 40 Palestinians, including children, and wounded more than 50 others, appears clearly to have been a disproportionate attack.

In the past, Israeli soldiers have frequently taken over Palestinian homes, effectively imprisoning their occupants, to use as military observation and firing positions. In other cases, they have forced Palestinian civilians, at gunpoint, to go before them into buildings from which they feared attack.

The practice by Israeli soldiers of taking over Palestinian civilians’ homes and holding their inhabitants as human shields while using the house as a shooting position has been very common in the past eight years both in the Gaza Strip and in the West Bank. In a previous incursion in the Gaza Strip in March 2008, Israeli soldiers took over at least three houses in the north and in February 2008 soldiers took over another house in the village of Beit Ummar, near Hebron, in the West Bank.

Palestinian families caught up in the current fighting in the Gaza Strip report that in some cases Palestinian gunmen have agreed to vacate areas near civilian homes without firing at Israeli forces when local residents have objected to their presence. In other cases, they have refused the residents' requests and only left after firing. In still other cases, residents say they were too scared to ask the gunmen to leave.

The use of “human shields” in conflict is prohibited under Article 51(7) of the Geneva Conventions: "The presence or movements of the civilian population or individual civilians shall not be used to render certain points or areas immune from military operations, in particular in attempts to shield military objectives from attacks or to shield, favour or impede military operations."

Firmer European voice needed to unblock humanitarian crisis in the Middle East

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 16:38:57 +0000

As EU Foreign Ministers meet in Prague, Amnesty International today urged them to spare no efforts to pressure Israel to end attacks which are directed at civilians or civilian buildings in the Gaza Strip or are disproportionate, and to allow much needed humanitarian access to the region.

In a letter sent to the EU Troika upon its return from the Middle East (available at www.amnesty-eu.org) Amnesty International expressed particular concern about the EU’s failure, so far, to play a decisive role at the United Nations Security Council. The organization urged the EU to work proactively with all Security Council members so that a humanitarian truce is implemented without delay.

“There are 1.5 million people effectively trapped in the Gaza Strip, in the midst of a humanitarian disaster. EU member states need to put their differences aside and send a strong signal to both parties” said Nicolas Beger, Director of Amnesty International’s EU Office.

“To show that it means business, the EU should put on hold discussions on the upgrade of relations with Israel and work on getting concrete commitments from Israel to end the humanitarian catastrophe” he added.

Despite EU and other diplomatic efforts, the conflict has intensified over the past few days with civilian casualties increasing day by day. In Gaza, schools and universities are being targeted while media and organizations such as the Red Cross are denied full access. EU aid is also being prevented from reaching the Gaza Strip.

At the same time Amnesty International continues to call for an end to on-going indiscriminate rocket attacks by Palestinian armed groups into civilian areas in southern Israel.

“The escalation of violence by both parties’ demonstrates that diplomatic efforts have not yet had a significant impact. EU Foreign Ministers need to show determination so that their efforts are not ignored” said Beger.

The United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva will also hold a Special Session on the situation in Gaza Strip this Friday. Amnesty International urges the EU to do all it can so that there is a clear an unambiguous call by this key human rights body to end the violations of human rights and international humanitarian law.

Ghana's new President must commit to human rights

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 12:38:54 +0000

The African republic of Ghana swore in a new President on Wednesday. Professor John Evans Atta Mills of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) won more than 50 percent of the votes in a second round of the country's election on 28 December.

Professor Atta Mills takes power in a country that has seen considerable improvements in the human rights situation since 1992. However, there remain a number of human rights problems which require immediate action, such as violence against women, the death penalty and unfair trials.

Amnesty International said that the inauguration of the new government provides a good opportunity to show that Ghana is truly and fully committed to the protection of internationally recognized human rights.

The organization has highlighted the issues in need of improvement in its new document, "Seven point human rights agenda for the new government."

Professor Atta Mills replaces President John Agyekum Kufuor of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), who was required to stand down after completing two terms. Professor Atta Mills had previously stood against John Kufuor in 2000 and 2004, and was vice-president from 1997-2001 under Jerry Rawlings.

The election was observed by a Pan-African Parliament Election Observers and the European Union (EU) Election Observation Mission. The EU mission concluded that, despite incidents of violence and disruptions of the polling in a limited number of cases, the second round of the election in Ghana was been conducted in an open, transparent and competitive environment.

"Seven point human rights agenda for the new government" calls on the new President to make human rights central to his political programme and to commit to implement a clear agenda for human rights which should include the following seven points:

Full compliance with Ghana’s international and regional human rights obligations and commitments, as explicitly set out in the treaties it has ratified.
The abolition of the death penalty
An end to illegal detentions, and prompt and fair trials in accordance with international human rights treaties and standards.
Significant reductions in the overcrowding in prisons and other places of detention
Eradicating violence against women.
Immediately stop and prevent forced evictions.
Effective protection against so called mob violence.

Ethiopian parliament adopts repressive new NGO law

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 13:53:52 +0000

The Ethiopian parliament has adopted a potentially repressive new law which could criminalise the human rights activities of both foreign and domestic non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

The Charities and Societies Proclamation law (CSO law), adopted on Tuesday, is designed to strictly control and monitor civil society in an atmosphere of intolerance of the work of human rights defenders and civil society organisations.

Previous drafts of the CSO law imposed strict government controls and harsh criminal penalties on NGOs. The final text of the law is not expected to substantially differ.

The Ethiopian government claims the CSO law addresses perceived inadequacies in the existing legal regime, promotes financial transparency and accountability, and provides "proper" administration and regulation of civil society. But it goes far beyond what should be necessary to legalize NGO standards.

The law's repressive provisions are believed to be an attempt by the Ethiopian government to conceal human rights violations, stifle critics and prevent public protest of its actions ahead of expected elections in 2010.

Amnesty International also considers that the enforcement of certain provisions of the CSO law would violate international and regional human rights treaties to which Ethiopia is a party.

If enforced, the CSO law will criminalise human rights activities undertaken by Ethiopian organisations that receive more than ten percent of their funding from abroad.

The law will also criminalise human rights activities by foreign NGOs, including campaigning for gender equality, children's rights, disabled persons' rights and conflict resolution.

It will also impose disproportionate and criminal penalties for even minor administrative breaches of the law; establish a Charities and Societies Agency with broad discretionary power over civil society organizations; and allow government surveillance of, and interference in, the operation and management of civil society organisations.

The Ethiopian government's human rights record became markedly worse after the disputed 2005 elections, when at least 187 demonstrators were killed and thousands were arrested, including scores of opposition parliamentarians, opposition party leaders, journalists and human rights defenders.

The majority of those arrested and tried were acquitted, or released post-conviction after presidential pardons were negotiated in 2007. But last week former judge and current leader of the new Unity for Democracy and Justice Party, Birtukan Mideksa, was re-arrested. She was told by the Ministry of Justice that her original sentence of life imprisonment would be reinstated.

Amnesty International has urged donor governments – including the US, the UK and France -- and international organizations to condemn the new legislation, and to closely monitor its impact on human rights organizations operating in the country.

These governments should clearly state their intention to use their influence to prevent human rights violations from being committed in Ethiopia under the provisions of this law.

Amnesty International calls for an immediate humanitarian truce in Gaza

Wed, 07 Jan 2009 10:24:15 +0000

Amnesty International has urged the UN Security Council to demand that Israel, Hamas and Palestinian armed groups observe an immediate truce in Gaza to allow desperately needed humanitarian assistance to the beleaguered civilian population, evacuation of the wounded and safe refuge for civilians wishing to flee the conflict zone.

"Civilians in Gaza are trapped in an unfolding humanitarian catastrophe, and need immediate respite," said Malcolm Smart, Director of Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Programme.

"It is abundantly clear that the parties to this conflict are failing to respect international humanitarian law, and that the civilian population of Gaza is paying a very heavy price.

"Eleven days into the conflict and amid a mounting toll of civilian casualties in Gaza, calls for a ceasefire have as yet gone unheeded by both Israel and Hamas,” said Malcolm Smart. "In the absence of a ceasefire, an immediate humanitarian truce is urgently needed to protect the civilian population. The fighting must stop long enough so that humanitarian assistance can reach those in need and so that those who want to leave can be evacuated.

"An immediate pause in hostilities would at least make it possible for basic assistance to be got to civilians in dire need, permit the evacuation and treatment of the wounded and the burial of the dead," said Malcolm Smart. "It would also allow civilians trapped in Gaza an opportunity to leave the conflict zone safely to seek refuge with the assistance of neighbouring states where necessary, allow emergency repairs to essential infrastructure, and ensure that humanitarian workers can provide protection and assistance in safety."

Amnesty International has repeatedly urged Israel, Hamas, and other Palestinian armed groups to end attacks on civilians and other violations of international humanitarian law, and to allow access to humanitarian assistance. The organization has urged the UN Security Council and the international community to ensure compliance with international law.

However, civilians – particularly the 1.5 million Palestinians trapped in Gaza – continue to both be targeted and suffer disproportionately in this conflict.

China urged to release scholar Liu Xiaobo from 'residential surveillance'

Wed, 07 Jan 2009 11:12:04 +0000

A dissident literary scholar has been held without charge at an unknown location in China since 8 December.

The Chinese authorities detained Liu Xiaobo after he signed a campaign for political and rights reform in China, known as Charter 08. They have not yet made public any information concerning his alleged crimes, the charges against him and his current whereabouts.

Under Chinese laws, Liu Xiaobo could be held under "residential surveillance" for a maximum of six months. During that time he cannot leave his residence or meet people without prior police approval.

His family do not know where he is. He has not spoken to his lawyer. He doesn't have the right of access to a judge to challenge the grounds of his detention, unless his detention exceeds the six month limit.

"The use of such detention without formal arrest or charge against peaceful activists is arbitrary and in violation of international human rights standards, including the rights to liberty, security of person and fair trial," said Roseann Rife, Deputy Director of Amnesty International’s Asia Pacific Programme.

"Even as prescribed by Chinese law, "residential surveillance" contravenes essential elements of the right to fair trial under international human rights standards, including the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights. These include the right to be brought promptly before a judge or judicial officer and the right to challenge the lawfulness of detention."

Charter 08, initially signed by approximately 300 Chinese scholars, lawyers and officials, proposes a blueprint for fundamental legal and political reform in China, with the goal of a democratic system that respects human rights.

Since the Charter 08 launch, Chinese authorities have questioned and harassed numerous signatories. Charter 08 is now considered a "counter revolutionary platform". This could signal harsher treatment of signatories. So far, Liu Xiaobo is the only known signatory in detention.

Chinese authorities seized Liu Xiaobo at his Beijing home two days before the Charter 08 planned launch, which was timed to coincide with the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

It is not clear if Liu Xiaobo was given any official notice of his "residential surveillance", as required by judicial interpretations on criminal procedures. Sources in China told Amnesty International that Liu Xiaobo's family did not know when the "residential surveillance" started and police said that the charge against Liu Xiaobo would be decided by the higher authorities upon completion of the investigation.

One of China's best-known dissidents, Liu Xiaobo has been detained twice before for his writings and his support of the 1989 pro-democracy movement in Beijing. He spent several years in detention.

Amnesty International has urged the Chinese authorities to immediately and unconditionally release Liu Xiaobo and to cease harassing the other signatories of Charter 08.

The organization has also called on the authorities to make public any information about Liu Xiaobo's arrest and to allow him access to legal counsel of his choice.

Journalists and humanitarian workers at risk in war-ravaged Somalia

Tue, 06 Jan 2009 18:00:07 +0000

A worker with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) was killed by unidentified gunmen in southern Somalia on Tuesday. 44-year-old Somali national Ibrahim Hussein Duale, was shot while monitoring school feeding school in a village in the Gedo region, the WFP reported.

The killing highlights the dangerous environment in which journalists and humanitarian workers in the war-torn country continue to work.

Two European journalists were released two days ago after being kidnapped for 40 days. UK journalist Colin Freeman, aged 39, and Spanish photographer Jose Cendon, 34, were handed over to local elders by their kidnappers and flown to Kenya on Sunday.

Less fortunate was Hassan Mayow Hassan, a Somali journalist working for Radio Shabelle in the Afgoye District of the lower Shabelle region. He was shot dead on 1 January by armed men while seeking to report on fighting in the area.

He is at least the tenth Somali journalist to have been killed since February 2007. Some were targeted in deliberate killings. Others were killed when caught in armed conflict between the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and its Ethiopian allies and armed opposition militias.

Somali journalists not only risk their lives in order to publish much needed information on a highly volatile situation. In the past two years, they have also faced death threats by TFG security forces and armed groups; arbitrary arrests and detentions; beatings; abductions; the closure of radio stations and other media outlets; and other restrictions on their activities and coverage.

In a report in 2008, Amnesty International described these attacks against journalists as deliberate actions taken by all parties to the conflict in Somalia to silence them. Yet Somali journalists' work is vital, as they are the only ones to report on the daily violence affecting the population, in a conflict which has become too dangerous for consistent international monitoring.

Somali journalists continue to bear witness to a vicious war that has, since the start of 2007, killed more than 16,000 civilians and displaced at least 870,000, and created a humanitarian crisis, with 3.25 million Somalis now depending on aid agencies for their survival.

The human rights situation in Somalia, already battered by conflict and the absence of an effective government since 1991, has sharply deteriorated over the past two years. In late 2006, Ethiopian troops entered the country to support the Transitional Federal Government in Somalia, appointed in 2004, and oust the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) from the capital Mogadishu and surrounding regions, where they had maintained effective control since June 2006.

In response, remnants of ICU militias and other armed groups launched an insurgency against Somalia's transitional government and its Ethiopian allies. All parties to the conflict have been responsible for indiscriminate or targeted attacks against civilians.

In a disturbing trend, killings and threats have extended beyond journalists, with human rights and humanitarian workers increasingly targeted. Amnesty International has investigated 46 cases in which humanitarian workers and members of Somali civil society organizations were killed in 2008, the majority of whom were victims of targeted killings. These attacks have served to silence reports of human rights abuses and to severely limit the flow of aid to a desperate population.

Conscious of their important role as witnesses to the plight of the population, Somali journalists demonstrated on 28 December in Mogadishu calling for the warring parties to respect the rights of media workers.

As Somalia enters an increasingly uncertain period of political transition, with the withdrawal of Ethiopian troops and the resignation of the President of the transitional government, Amnesty International has appealed to all parties to the conflict to stop attacks and threats against civilians, including journalists, civil society activists and humanitarian workers.