Archive for the 'human rights' Category
November 13, 2013
Technology is becoming increasingly important in documenting and preventing human rights abuses. But emerging technologies can also pose a threat to human rights defenders. Two pieces on AI’s blog demonstrate that:
On 11 November Tanya O’Carroll, Technology & Human Rights Project Officer, and Danna Ingleton, Individuals & Communities at Risk Research & Policy Advisor, blogged under the title: “An Invisible Threat: How Technology Can Hurt Human Rights Defenders“while Sami Goswami used the headline: “How Technology Is Helping Us Better Protect Human Rights”.
The piece focusing on the negative aspects says inter alia Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in AI, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 3 Comments »
Tags: Amnesty International, email, Front Line Defenders, Human right, Human Rights Defenders, information technology, internet, Jenni Williams, mobile phones, Non-governmental organization, Norma Cruz, protection, threats, urgent action, USA AI
November 11, 2013
Authoritarian Vietnam has stepped up an alarming crackdown on domestic dissent even as it seeks a seat on the UN Human Rights Council, Amnesty International says on 7 November. Vietnam is using a raft of draconian legislation to clamp down on a growing number of citizens who seek to question the party’s stranglehold on power. “Vietnam is fast turning into one of Southeast Asias largest prisons for human rights defenders and other activists” said Amnesty researcher Rupert Abbott to AFP.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in AI, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | Leave a Comment »
Tags: AFP, Amnesty, Amnesty International, bloggers, Dieu Cay, freedom of expression, Human rights defender, human rights lawyer, internet, Le Quoc Quan, prisoners of conscience, Reporters without Borders, Rupert Abbott, UN Human Rights Council, United Nations Human Rights Council, Vietnam
November 11, 2013
If the coming days I am a bit less prolific with news on human rights defenders (maybe a welcome respite!) there is a good human rights reason: I will be in Berlin where on 13 November 2013 the first annual Werner Lottje Lecture will be inaugurated. It is an initiative by Bread for the World and the German Institute for Human Rights. As a good friend of Werner I am delighted to be allowed to speak about his enormous contribution to the human rights world as it is today: Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in human rights | 2 Comments »
Tags: Berlin, Bread for the World, Brot fur die Welt, EKD, film, Foreign Policy, German Institute for Human Rights, German Ministry of Foreign Affairs, human righs, Human rights defender, Human Rights Defenders, HURIDOCS, Igor Kalyapin, International Alert, International Service for Human Rights, Joint Mobile Group, lecture, Margaret Sekaggaya, Martin Ennals, Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders, UN Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, United Nations, Werner Lottje, World Council of Churches
November 10, 2013
The Assam Tribune Online of 9 November provides us with an interesting illustration of how a combination of: (a) local activism, (b) introduction by an international NGO, and (c) invitation to an EU meeting can have result: Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Front Line, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | Leave a Comment »
Tags: activism, Assam, Assam State Government, Civil society, EU-NGO Forum on Human Rights, Front Line Defenders, Human Rights Defenders, India, Indigenous rights, international NGO, KMSS, Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti, meeting, Tarun Gogoi, The Assam Tribune Online
November 9, 2013
The Hong Kong Refugee Advice Centre launched the Human Rights Arts prizes in an effort to show the work of young artists, while recognising the role of art in raising awareness of and defending human rights. The Emerging and the Community winners were chosen by judges working in the human rights field, while the staff from the centre chose two further winners, dubbed the Choice awards.
Works depicting the hardships of mainland immigrants and African refugees won two top awards (Elva Lai Ming-Chu won in the Emerging Artist category and photograper Alvin Fung Tsz Chung won the Community Artist prize). Artist Lo Chi-kit won a Choice award for his piece Under the Shadow, which he dedicated to detained, imprisoned and exiled human rights activists on the mainland. “Chi-kits work highlights the persecution and oppression that human rights defenders face around the world – sometimes to the point of being forced to flee their countries” Miller said.
via Crusading Hong Kong artists awarded inaugural Human Rights Art Prizes | South China Morning Post.
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders | Leave a Comment »
Tags: art, awareness raising, China, Hong Kong, human rights, Human Rights and Liberties, Human Rights Arts, images, Lo Chi-kit, photo exhibit, refugees, South China Morning Post, The Hong Kong Refugee Advice Centre
November 8, 2013
A judge in the Netherlands has just now (8 November) decided that the annual event of Sinterklaas arriving in the capital Amsterdam – with Black Petes – can go ahead as planned on Sunday next week. The judge is of the opinion that the mayor has been right in giving permission. As this was an urgent procedure there is no appeal possible, but the case could proceed before a regular bench and the judge pointed out that the national discussion should not have to end with this judgement.
via Zwarte Piet welkom bij intocht in Amsterdam, oordeelt rechter – nrc.nl.
Posted in human rights | 4 Comments »
Tags: Amsterdam, Black Pete, Black Petes, Dutch people, Eberhard van der Laan, Netherlands, NRC, racism, Sinterklaas, Sinterklaas tradition, United Nation, Zwarte Piet
November 7, 2013
The Asian Human Rights Commission condemns the detention of ASM Nasiruddin Elan and demands his immediate release. Mr. ASM Nasiruddin Elan, Director of Bangladeshi human rights organization, Odhikar, has been detained in prison by the Cyber Crimes Tribunal of Dhaka, today, November 6, 2013. This detention is part of the continued repression against the whistle-blowers exposing the ongoing State-sponsored gross violations of human rights in Bangladesh. Elan has been charged by the country’s police under the Information and Communications Technology (Amendment) Act, 2013, a draconian law, for publishing fact-finding report on governmental crackdown on the pro-Islamist demonstrators in the early morning of 6 May 2013 in Dhaka. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in AHRC, FIDH, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, OMCT | 1 Comment »
Tags: Adilur Rahman Khan, Asian Human Rights Commission, ASM Nasiruddin Elan, Bangladesh, civil society organisations, Dhaka, Elan, Human right, Human Rights Defenders, human rights in Bangladesh, illegal detention, Information and Communication Technology, judicial harassment, Observatory for the Protection of HRDs, Odhikar
November 7, 2013
Posted in human rights, UN | Leave a Comment »
Tags: death penalty, human rights, human rights issues, human rights of women, human trafficking, impu, Indigenous People, indigenous peoples, minorities, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, OHCHR, one pagers, racial discrimination, xenophobia
November 6, 2013
The OMCT and the FIDH, in the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, made an intervention under agenda item 9: “Situation of human rights defenders” at the at the 54th session of African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights [ACHPR] on 5 November.
Human rights defenders were attacked, received threats or were slandered in the DRC, Senegal and Tunisia. In some cases they were even killed, as in the DRC and in Cameroon, in a climate of impunity. Defenders, and in particular defenders of economic, social and cultural rights, also continued to be subjected to arbitrary arrests and judicial harassment in Angola, Cameroon, the DRC, Egypt, Mauritania and Tunisia. Obstacles to freedom of association were also recorded, as for instance in Angola, Egypt and Rwanda. A summary is as follows: Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in FIDH, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, OMCT | 1 Comment »
Tags: African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, Angola, Cameroon, Death threat, DRC, Egypt, environmental issues, FIDH, foreign funding, freedom of assembly, freedom of association, freedom of expression, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, judicial harassment, killing, land disputes, LGBT rights, Mauritania, murder, Non-governmental organization, Observatory for the Protection of HRDs, OMCT, Rwanda, Senegal, Tunisia
November 5, 2013
The Indian government should vigorously investigate allegations that officials are using the law on foreign contributions to repress groups critical of the government, Human Rights Watch said on 31 October 2013.
The government should amend the 2010 Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act to protect the right to freedom of association and expression. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in HRW, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 4 Comments »
Tags: Civil society, Eurasia Review, Foreign Contribution Act, foreign funding, funding restrictions, Government of India, harassment, harss, HRW, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, Human Rights Watch, India, Non-governmental organization, South Asia, United Nations Special Rapporteur
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 