Yesterday, 15 October, the Kenyan police arrested seven members of Bunge la Mwananchi on suspicion of illegal assembly as they were protesting a tax increase on commodities. Amongst those arrested was human rights defender Ruth Mumbi. Read the rest of this entry »
Posts Tagged ‘Human Rights Defenders’
Kenya: Human Rights Defenders under attack but continue to speak out against skipping the ICC
October 15, 2013Risks for Women HRDs: “To be a human rights defender is to make a choice…”
October 15, 2013
From 8 – 11 October 2013 took place the 7th Dublin Platform for Human Rights Defenders organised by Front Line Defenders. I share the impression as posted by Executive Director, Deon Haywood, of Women With A Vision [WWAV’s] who joined 145 activists from 95 different countries for the meeting. “This is a vital international forum for human rights defenders at risk, as many cannot speak freely in their own country. Through plenary presentations and working group discussions, defenders shared experiences, learned from each other and came up with new and more effective strategies for their security and protection. This year’s Dublin Platform also included a specific focus on the risks faced by women human rights defenders.”
When addressing this global community of activists during the Dublin Platform opening, Deon Haywood spoke of a choice that rang true for so many attendees: “To be a human rights defender is to make a choice between standing up for what is right and defending the rights of others, or passively accepting that there is no other way. Being here with 145 other human rights defenders from every corner of the globe, all of whom face very similar risks, reminds me of the rightness of our cause. When you see the energy and the commitment of the people in this room, then there is a real cause for optimism for the future.”
Conclusions of Side Event on Reprisals against Human Rights Defenders
October 14, 2013To launch its new In-Brief on reprisals against human rights defenders, the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights organized a side event at the 24th Session of the Human Rights Council. The round table discussion was presided by Prof. Andrew Clapham The main Conclusions are: Read the rest of this entry »
ICC should continue its work in Africa, says Tutu in N.Y.Times
October 14, 2013While 130 NGOs in Africa and elsewhere call in a joint letter to the African Union not to abandon the International Criminal Court, Bishop Desmond Tutu publishes in the New York Times of 10 October an excellent piece explaining why it is a terrible mistake. Here is it is in full:
CAPE TOWN — MEMBERS of the African Union will meet in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, today to discuss recent calls by some African leaders to withdraw from the International Criminal Court. These calls must be resisted. The continent has suffered the consequences of unaccountable governance for too long to disown the protections offered by the I.C.C. Read the rest of this entry »
Join on-line Conversation on the power of narrative for HRDs as from today
October 14, 2013
You can Join the Center for Story-based Strategy CSS and the New Tactics community for an online conversation on Change the Story: Harnessing the power of narrative for social change from October 14 to 18.
People and communities use stories to understand the world and our place in it. These stories are embedded with power – the power to explain and justify the status quo as well as the power to make change imaginable and urgent. …This conversation is an opportunity for human rights defenders to learn more about story-based strategy and how to integrate it into campaign planning. This is also an opportunity for those practitioners using story-based strategy to share their experiences, questions, and ideas with each other. Practitioners to lead this conversation are:
Danielle Coates-Connor, Conversation Facilitator of the Center for Story-based Strategy
Nathan Schneider of Waging Nonviolence
Soriano of Lionswrite Communications
Kathleen Pequeño of the Progressive Communicators Network
Nadia Khastaqir of the Design Action Collective
Kristi Rendahl of the Center for Victims of Torture
Lama Sangye and Justin Von Bujdoss of the New York Tsurphu Goshir Dharma Center
Chris Cavanagh of the Catalyst Centre
Dr. Cara Lisa Berg Powers of Press Pass TV
Laura Revels, Digital Storytelling Trainer
Shreya Atrey, practitioner.
September’s Conversation on Media Tactics for Social Change now has a summary posted and in November there will be a Conversation on Visualizing Information for Advocacy, in partnership with Tactical Technology Collective.
via Join our conversation on the power of narrative, this week!.
RFK Center Expands Human Rights Video Contest to Students from the whole USA
October 12, 2013On Thursday 3 October the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights [RFK Center] launched its third annual “Speak Truth to Power Student Video Contest“. This year, the contest is for the first time open to student filmmakers from all of the USA in partnership with the American Federation of Teachers, the New York State United Teachers and the Tribeca Film Institute. The video competition, originally launched in New York State in 2011, invites students to create a 3-6 minute video examining a human rights issue or violation and profiling the defenders who are fighting to restore justice.
Last year’s prize went to students of the Young Women’s Leadership School of Brooklyn, who made a film about the work of sexual slavery and trafficking activist Juliana Dogbadzi of Ghana.
Additional details can be found at http://www.speaktruthvideo.com
BREAKING NEWS: LAUREATE MEA 2013 JUST ANNOUNCED: JOINT MOBILE GROUP, Russia
October 8, 2013 
The Joint Mobile Group was selected by the International Human Rights Community (See Jury Below) as the Laureate 2013 of the Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders. Read the rest of this entry »
Chinese human rights defender Ni Yulan freed
October 6, 2013
Finally a tiny bit of good news from the Chinese front: After 2,5 years in jail the Chinese human rights defender Ni Yulan has been freed. In 2011 she won the Dutch Tulip for HRDs award. She has never been able to receive the award in person and even her daughter had not been allowed to leave the country for that purpose.
As reported by the ANP via Chinese mensenrechtenactiviste Ni weer vrij | nu.nl/buitenland | Het laatste nieuws het eerst op nu.nl.
Related articles
- China activist Ni Yulan released (bbc.co.uk)
Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies assesses UN Human Rights Council latest session
October 4, 2013Looking back at the 24th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council which came to an end last Friday, the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies [CIHRS] is disappointed to see how timid the Council becomes when dealing with human rights in the Arab region. Indeed, the people of Syria, Sudan, Bahrain, Egypt, Palestine, and Yemen need all the support they can get to move their countries towards political stability and the rule of law. The Council should be a driving force in confronting cases of human rights violations and making recommendations to address them.
CIHRS notes with regret Read the rest of this entry »
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 