“We do not want marches crying for the dead, nor 1 May protests” – taken from a paramilitary death threat sent to trade unionists in the department of Santander on 22 April 2008. 

Across much of the world, May Day – International Workers’ Day – represents an opportunity for workers to celebrate their rights and [...]

Tags: Colombia, Trade Unions

Leave a comment »

The UN General Assembly will elect, in direct and individual elections and by secret ballot, 15 new members of the Human Rights Council on 21 May 2008. The Council is the principal human rights political body of the United Nations.
All members of the United Nations have a duty to ensure that the Human Rights Council [...]

Tags: UN

Leave a comment »

Climate of Impunity Contributes to Illegal Detention, Beatings and Torture
The Burundian government should take immediate steps to end the climate of impunity that facilitates illegal detention, mistreatment and torture of individuals by the police, Human Rights Watch said in a new report released today.
Link to hrw.org

Tags: Burundi

Leave a comment »

Prime Minister Fukuda Should Highlight Rights Issues in Bilateral Relations
Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda should make human rights issues a priority in his historic meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao in Japan next week, Human Rights Watch said in a letter today.
Link to hrw.org

Tags: China, Japan

Leave a comment »

Labour Day Campaign Challenges Employers to ‘Put Yourself in Her Shoes’
Lebanese employers, placement agencies, and the Lebanese authorities should improve the treatment of domestic workers by ensuring fair contracts, timely payment of wages, and a weekly day’s leave, Human Rights Watch said today, on the eve of Labour Day. Human Rights Watch is launching a [...]

Tags: Lebanon

Leave a comment »

Sentenced in Secret After Party Urges ‘Quick Hearings’
The trials of 30 Tibetans accused of participating in violent protests on March 14 in Lhasa were not open and public, as claimed by the Chinese government, and did not meet minimum international standards of due process, Human Rights Watch said today.
Link to hrw.org

Tags: China, Tibet

Leave a comment »

In a report published today, Amnesty International revealed the extent of police violence in Mozambique, saying that police are killing and torturing people with near total impunity.
“Police in Mozambique seem to think they have a licence to kill and the weak police accountability system allows for this,” said Michelle Kagari, Deputy Director of Amnesty International’s [...]

Tags: Mozambique

Leave a comment »

More than 3,000 Palestinian refugees are currently cut off from the rest of the world in dire conditions without access to adequate humanitarian assistance.
In March 2008, Amnesty International delegates met with Palestinian refugees stranded in al-Tanf camp in no-man’s land between the borders of Iraq and Syria.
Al-Tanf camp, a narrow strip of land wedged between [...]

Tags: Palestine

Leave a comment »

Secretly filmed footage of a man being beheaded in Saudi Arabia has been received by Amnesty International. The organization strongly condemns the execution and calls for the Saudi Arabian government to adhere to the UN moratorium on executions around the world.
The horrific footage shows the condemned man’s public execution. He kneels on a mat while [...]

Tags: Saudi Arabia

Leave a comment »

The Pakistan government must reinstate around 60 judges of the higher courts removed by President Pervez Musharraf under emergency law ahead of a 30 April deadline set by the ruling coalition, Amnesty International has said.
“The restoration of the judges is a necessary step toward ensuring an independent judiciary,” said Amnesty International. “Judges are in a [...]

Tags: Pakistan

Leave a comment »