AuNesrY lNrenNAtrroN¡.u HoNc KoNc
Elläl*+tFâ,ftA,Ëkãä ln March, the 6-year
long campaign to combat violence against women was launched both locally
STOP VIOLENCE
and internationally. Launch activities in-
WOMEN
conference, performances, petitioning and
cluded¡ a press
AGAINST
demonstrations. All aimed to raise oublic awareness of the issue and exert oressure on those who have com-
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mitted violence against women.
ln Hong Kong on
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the campaign by holding a collection of activr-
ties on TST Parklane Shopper's Boulevard.
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We had 10 new exhib'tion panels, petitioning
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The launch event attracted quite good public attention. Within 3 hours, 587 signatures were collected. The event was also reported by two major local newspapers, namely Sing Tao and
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Ming Pao. Ms Clara Law, Centre-in-charge of the Lai Kok Centre of the Hong Kong Federation of Women's Centres came to talk to us on 12 March as one of the launch activities. She explained VAW with reference to a gender perspective, ie that genderbased violence against women originates from the imbalance of oower between men and women. She also shared her frontline experience as a counselor in a womenjriendlv seruice centre. campaign. They included a series of 10 exhibition panels, 5 appeal case leaflets for different countries and the launch repoft, lt's in our hands. These materials also serve a public education purpose. lf you are interested in them and would like cooies of the leaflets. olease contact the AIHK office. To learn more about this campaign, please visit
http:i/web.
amnesty.org/actforwomen/index-eng
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tÊg' Apr - Jun 2004 Newsletter
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for appeal cases and street theatre pedormances.
We produced very good bilingual materials for this
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The tragic deaths of Tin Shui Wai mother, Kam Shuk-ying, and her two daughters have reinitiated the discussion on the need to protect women against domestic violence'
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Violence against women, rooted in and reinforcing the discrimination whiðh denies women's equality with men in all areas gf
life, is a human rights catastrophe. lt is a violation against women's human rights, though it has taken a long time to overcome the false division between violations in the public arena
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will remain unfulfilled. The Hong Kong government is a signatory tional human rights treaties. We therefore u government to fullfill its obligations in combat women as a form of discrimination against vention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) has been applicable to Hong Kong since 1996' General Recommendation No. 19 stresses that "state parties
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Article 3 of the lnternational covenant on civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) emphasizes that state parties must ensure the equal iigl'ìt ot men and women in the enjoymenl of all the rights set to-rtfr ¡n the ICCPR, such as the right to life (Article 6) and the right not to be subjected to tofture or cruel, inhuman or degradirig treatment (Article 7). Human rights experts have pointed out
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It must take effective steps to prevent and punish such acts.
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+-fl+' involved and hope to see you as well. lf you can't make it, you could still tie up a blue ribbon outside your window to show your wish for a violence{ree Hong Kong.
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EHE,2004+5814E ducted in Cantonese. lf you are English-speaking and would like to work on SVAW, please contact the office at 2300 1250'
We hope to start up an English-speaking group on SVAW in the
future.
The solidarity of men is an essential component for achieving the eradicatión of violence against women' Regardless of our gender, it's in all of our hands to create a violence-free world'
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Si-si Liu Apr - Jun 2004 Newsletter VAEì<E Ê=J\ page 2
Death Pena'lty
11
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Over the last few months Amnesty lnternational has issued two impoftant death penalty repofts: on China, the biggest executor in absolute numbers, and Singapore, the biggest executor per capita. Both these reports can be accessed via the AIHK website.
The report on China, Executed according to the /aw, details how the Chinese government routinely abuses national laws and international standards in the course of
executing thousands of people each year. ln past years, the Chinese authorities have taken the oerverse decision
to mark the lnternational Day against Drug Abuse and Trafficking, 26 June, by mass executions. AIHK are planning an anti-execution rally to mark the day. Please join in. See the website for details.
The Singapore reporl, The death penalty, a hidden toll of executions, states there is virlually no public debate about the death penalty in Singapore. The Singapore government has consistently maintained that capital punishment is not a human rights issue, and that it
has been effective in deterring crime. Controls imposed by the government on the press and civil society organizations curb freedom of expression and are an obstacle to the independent monitoring of human rights, including the death penalty. Despite this, the Singapore government was sufficiently concerned to issue a six-page rebuttal within days of the repofi coming out. The AIHK DP group, in common with student groups and DP groups internationally, is taking parl in a campaign to halt the execution of juvenile offenders, using activities
such as petitioning, debates and school talks. The first stage of this campaign concentrates on the USA, the only state that admits to executing juvenile of-
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stay of execution in all cases. On 4 July AIHK students groups are hoping to mark America's lndependence Day with some aclivities calling for an end to the execution of juvenile offenders in the USA.
The student groups are particularly well placed to work on this campaign as they are well aware that, as there are numerous activities they are not allowed to engage in before the age of 18, eg drinking alcohol, voting, getting married and driving, it is therefore inconsistent to punish them as adults for crimes committed before the age of 18. lt is doubly sad that a 16 or 17 year old can be considered beyond rehabilitation before they have even grown up. ln the second stage of the campaign we will be concentrating on countries in the region, ie the Philippines Apr - Jun 2004 Newsletter
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page 3
.
and Pakistan, which, despite having laws precluding juveniles being on death row, have allowed it to happen because of inaccurate documentation and lack of orocedure. ln response to President Arroyo's threat to end the de{acto moratorium in the run up to the Philippines election, AIHK and our partners at Justice and Peace collected 800 signatures from Filipinos in Cþter Road congregating on their day off in February. The petitions wer6later presented to the Philippines Consulate.
THE PHILIPPINES Larina Perpinan -- sentenced to death in 1998 The Phjl¡ppines DP âction in Fcbruîr) ,Eitl?', ;++E F È.i+''? Ê 21i q)
Philippine law precludes the use of
-
the death penalty against people under 18 at the time of the crime, yet at least seven child offenders are currently under sentence of death.
Larina Perpinan was 17 years old when she was arrested with 10 others for the kidnao and ransom of an elderly woman, who was later released unharmed. Upon her arrest Larina Perpinan lied about her age and name to "avoid trouble at home". She received poor legal counsel dur-
ing her trial and was sentenced to death in October 1998. Although she later produced a birth cefiificate proving her age to be 17 at the time of
arrest, the judge has reportedly re-
fused to reverse the death sentence. Her case is repofiedly still under reconsideration by the lower court.
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Good neurs - Sok Yoeun reseffled Last year AIHK took part in a worldwide action in supporl of the Cambodian refugee Sok Yoeun. Sok Yoeun is a Cambodian political activist who fled to Thailand after he was accused of being involved in a 1998 plot to assassinate Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen. lt was widely believed that the charges against him were politically motivated. Sok Yoeun fled to Thailand after friends warned him that he was wanted by the authorities. He was imprisoned on immigration charges in Thailand for four years. Sok Yoeun was recognised as a refugee by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and Amnesty lnternational campaigned for his release. His health in jail was poor and he suffered from a series of liver, lung and heaft ailments. Last year, Amnesty sections worldwide sent postcards to the Thai government calling on them to release Sok Yoeun.
Finland, meanwhile, had already agreed to accept him as a refugee. On January 12, 2OO4 Cambodia's King Norodom
Sihanouk announced that the country's authorities would drop their demand for his extradition, and Sok Yoeun was released from prison in Thailand and flown to Finland in
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who sent off the postcards. Together we made a difference!
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February.
AIHK enclosed postcards calling for Sok Yoeun's release in our October newsletter. Thanks to all the members
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Apr - Jun 2004 Newsletter Eã^',F1
Ê;Il
page 4
& ïhink Glubelty Deliberately repressive government policies may mean that law enforce-
ment officers engage in violent policing. But inadequate training and equipment can also lead to exces-
sive and arbitrary use of guns and other force by police officers. The global proliferation of guns means that oolice and other law en-
forcers are under pressure to
counter rising levels of violent gun crime and are expected to confront
armed offenders in the course of their work. ln many countries the resources for police equipment and training are insufficient. Resources may be available to provide guns and
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Control arms: guns and polidirg Et å$ Ë ffilJ = {Ê ôi ¡il fr#++)âæ pol¡ce point riot guns ãt demonst¡atoß in Cincinnati, USA- Police fired bem bags md rubber bullets to quel1 demonstraloß who broke windows ¡n downtown Cincinn¿li ¡n protest over the shooting of m unmed blæk mm,April 2001
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to train officers how to shoot them, but not, crucially, when to shoot. lf communities do
not have trust in their police, they may be more likely
to keep and use weapons themselves. Agreed international standards exist to control the use of force and firearms by the police. They include the UN Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials and the UN Basic Principles for the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials. At their heart is the question of what constitutes legitimate force. Police sometimes need to use force, or lethal force, to do their job of keeping communities safe and protecting people from life{hreatening attacks. The force used must not be arbitrary; it must
be proportionate, necessary and lawful. lt must only be used in self-defence or against the imminent threat of death or serious injury. To comply with this essential principle, police must know how to assess rapidly when a threat to life is being made so that they can judge whether to use force, including lethal force. Too few governments have incorporated the UN standards into their law and practice. Al's new report, Policing and guns (ACT 30/001 12004), published as part of the ControlArms campaign which is run jointly with Oxfam and the lnternationalAction Network on SmallArms (IANSA), shows how police forces ignore the standards. The UN Code of Conduct states that law enforcement agencies "should be representative of and responsive and accountable to the community as a whole." Yet repeated testimony from the poorest communities in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for example, shows that policing practice discriminates violently against them, with frequently fatal consequences.
o
o The UN Basic Principles state that firearms should only be used by police in self-defence or against the imminent threat of death or serious injury. Yet in Jamaica, which has the highest rate of police
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shootings per capita in the world, evidence repeatedly contradicts police claims that they were fired upon first and indicates instead a disturbing pattern of extrajudicial executions. Apr - Jun 2004 Newsletter
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However, some positive steps have been made by police and governments towards a greater respect for the UN standards. ln South Africa, for example, under previous legislation, police were allowed to shoot suspected thieves, drug dealers and fleeing suspects who posed no threat to life, a clear violation of the UN standards. This law has now been amended. ln Cambodia, an ambitious project for storage and management of weapons is underway. Al and ils Control Arms partners, Oxfam and IANSA, are campaigning for governments and law en-
forcement agencies to invest significant resources in improvements in policing to meet the UN standards. The standards need to be incoroorated into law and practice; donors should require adherence to them before funding projects concerned with poficing or community safety; and guns, ammunilion and other policing equipment with a potential for abuse should not be sold or transferred to slates whose police forcgs do not comply with the standards. /
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lsa al-Merbati's wife and five children have not seen him for over two years. He is one of five Bahraini na-
people are being detained without charge, access to lawyers, relatives or the couns. With the WglCOme feleaSeS in fgCgnt mOnthS Of
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tionals being held thousands of miles away at Guantánamo Bay, the US military base in Cuba where more than 600
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nitely detained thousands of miles from their homes. Neither must we forget the emotional impact such enforced separation is having on the families. Al has launched a new round of campaigning for individuals detained at Guantánamo, focusing initially on Kuwaiti and Bahraini nationals, and offering solidarity and support to their families. Al activists will be calling for the fair trial or release of the detainees, for them to be treated humanely and granted their full legal rights, including access to lawyers. Members will be asking
questions not only of the US government, but also of the detainees' own governments. Focusing on individual detainees may make a difference. ln August 2003, Al launched a web action on behalf of Wazir Mohammad, an Afghan national who had been arrested, labelled a threat to US security, and transferred to Guantánamo. Three months after the launch of the web action. Wazir Mohammad was flown back to Ap-r - Jun 2004 Newsletter
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Afghanistan, where Al delegates met him tr#++fr,ÍñHftrÉ!lttÊÉ " in February 2004. Waz i r lúohamnad É!H4 Ta j l/oharmad åãFE['-* Wazir Mohammad's brother, Taj Mohammad, told Al, "lf your organization ++,ffi tH f,Êi, r !r R )i Ë- lß Ip1+E+t# ât+ È I fre E tH t1 Ê = had not brought my brother's case to the . Ei rã ;È lú Ë zrï E. Ëæ Eã fllt Æ)É li,F- )+ frt æ #J l,î tF I attention of the international community,-,
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he would still be in Guantánamo cannot thank you enough for all the work that you have done on his case..." r', Wazir Mohammad lost more than a year of his life in a legal black hole on the other side of the world. Al has seen no information indicating why this happened, other than that he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. He was never given a chance to challenge
the lawfulness of his detention in a court or to seek legal advice. None of those released from Guantánamo have been charged, including three young children returned to Afghanistan in January 2004. None is known to have been compen-
sated for the time they were detained in legál limbo in US custody. Others have been transferred from Guantánamo to continued detention in their home countries where, in some cases, Al fears they may be at risk of further serious violations. These include four Saudi Arabian nationals and seven men from
the Russian Federation. Having publicly branded the Guantánamo detainees as "terrorists" and "killers", US officials may have increased the dangers repatriated detainees face at the hands of their own governments For those released, their experiences in US custody in Guantánamo and elsewhere are likely to scar the rest of their lives; for some of those transferred to continued detention and for the hundreds still at the base, the future is bleak. Many of the remaining Guantánamo detainees face the prospect of continued indefinite detention without trial, others face inherently unfair trials by military commission with no right to appeal. Even acquittal in such trials may not mean release. Meanwhile, their families back home wait for news. Knowing that Al members around the world share their concerns may bring some degree of solace.
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Myanmar. They are now serving 1S-year prison sentences.
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On 16 January 2003 Ma Than Htay (top), also known by her Buddhist name as Mar Lar Yee, and Ma Tin Tin Oo. also
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progress in the political dialogue between
the military government and the National League for Democracy, the political party that won election in 1990 and Apr - Jun 2004 Newsletter
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VÚ@RLDVÚODE APPEATS Long pr¡son terms for Buddhist nuns a'Ëffiã!trÉrEHtrH onstration in Yangon, the capital of
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Two Buddhist nuns were arrested on 16
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to whom the authoritres failed to transfer power. The authorities stated that the nuns were arrested for distributing "pamphlets to agitate the people to stage demonstrations" and for shouting slogans. Ma Than Htay and Ma Tin Tin Oo were repofiedly sentenced under vaguely worded laws that are frequently used to silence Çþsent in the country and which effectively criminalize peaceful pditical activity. Political prisoners in Myanmar habitually do not receive fair trials, including by having limited or no access to legal counSel. Al considers them to be prisoners of conscience. They are among at least 1,350 political prisoners in the country, many of whom were
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sentenced for peacefully exercising their right to freedom of expression, assembly and association.
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Please write, calling for the two nuns to be immediately and unconditionally released. Pending their release, call for them to be held in conditions which conform to international standards. ãÊlãH+;F= ' ryê-Êfl3Ëffi 44.1'+1#,â9.1früEtlEftf*f+lËi[. " 4=¡*ÊEET+HF=: ' ryã84üf3ffi+Ê\+â)n'ù"'Ê-î+
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Send appeals
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General Khin Nyunt, Prime Minister, State Peace and Development Council, c/o Directorate of Defence Services lntelligence, Ministry of Defence, Signal Pagoda Road, Dagon Post Office, Yangon, Myanmar. Fax lStr , + 95'l 652624 Please send copies of your letters to the Myanmar embassy in your country and to amnestyis@amnesty.org ;Ë
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This 4-page extract is from the Wire, an internationalAl newsletter issued monthly. lt has separate printed'English and Chinese versions. lt is free for Al members and monthly donors but costs $80 ännually for other subscribers. lf you are interested in subscribing it, please complete the following form and send it back to us. The web version is also available on www.amnesty.org " EtH4+fififiHffir ËruH-Éãfl,ËEtH++ffft tiili,ffi-aE HHfiÉ!EtHEErLztñîf. ' " ê.F¡ffiElfÊTä ' ãÊtHæTt|JætålúäE ÊHe.Etr+Ê+LÉ"tfrË*FÊI ' HIþ.=¡Iln1ä,Fl.i $80 +H ^EtJ{ffiÉ'++tÉ[ffiuËFA 6i,r++Æ " +¡[frE_þlìFf 4fr5ât+ÉâÊlEF ( http:/ /v,w¡w.aitaiwan.org. tw/htm/news.htm ) ;#lJ"Æ '
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LGBT One group of people is consistently neglected when it comes to United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC) protection - the Tongzhi community.
When a resolution was to be tabled by Brazil at the 60th session of
the UNHRC, it contained nothing
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radical or startling. lt simply confirmed that human rights violations based on
fr.JãEã;*E**'q É'E sexual orientation or gender were of concern to the international commuFfrilY.Ér¡ÊrfirZffi ' nity and belong firmly on the agenda R ÊËãßE å1,I+ItF É & of international human rights. UnforAmnesty lntemational Hong Kongjoined with several prominent sexual minority groups in ,l'+ EU É! lE lÊ ¿E Ë tunately the Organisation of lslamic Hong Kong to stage a lretition cmpaign on Mæh 13, Satùrday to lobby tor public suppod. AIHK also intetrds to appeal to Ch¡na, one ofthe 53 narions to sit ¡n lhis meeting, to lote in States, the Holy See and the religious ^ lËÉEtF-++tÊEã;È' favour olthe resolui¡on. "rightists" in the United States waded ø m*+¡&¡c n atË ø Êffi r;r = rE a t!,r+4' ffi E[ËËtt 3 E 3 E Ëtåifi E¿*t 0+= . ¿g$i1úÊËEt!EtH +\*6À . ãEtltlithâZìfrãti4F E= 53lEFiÊEätlltæz +EÈlßqt+út',*eË* . in on the opposite side of the debate, as a result of which discussion on the É!A+EãËEE . IRT+ resolution has been deferred to the next session in 2005. . H;frlEJ e.t@ât+âQ. F Ë)fx ¿ rþ ' ç
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AIHK has been lobbying hard for support for this
resolution. ln some countries, homosexuality is still punishable by lengthy prison sentences and in some instances death. Even today, lesbians, gays and transgender people face terrible
violence, imprisonment (both physical and psychological), torture, cruelty, humiliation and ill{reatment (including rape and being forced to take medication against their will). Police and other authorities are often complicit in this violence.
For once, China's record on this human rights issue leaves them nothing to fear from the resolution. China has a tradition of tolerance of sexual diversities and there are currently no laws which criminalise homosexuality. Transgender people are recognised legally in their new gender. ln addition, we were very encouraged by the de-listing of homosexuality from the list of mental disorders by the Chinese Psychiatric Society in 2001. "Culture" is invoked more frequently in United Nations debates on sexuality than on any other issue. Yet in reality, practices that are today categorised as homosexual are often reflective of behaviour tolerated or even accepted by a pre-colonial culture. ln many countries, laws prohibiting and penalising homosexuality were introduced by colonising countries. Many of our closest neighbours in Asia - countries such as Singapore, Malaysia and lndia - criminalise same-sex relations as a legacy of their colonial past. As a former British colony, Hong Kong also had laws criminalising male homosexual acts introduced by the colonial administration. Homosexuality was only decriminalised in the SAR in 1991. The LGBT group believes and hopes that with persistent lobbying, the resolution will be tabled at the 61"'session of the UNHRC and will thus generate some fruitful discussion on the issue.
On22 April 2004, Si-si spoke at the Book Talk organized by University of Hong Kong Libraries Reading Club on The Vagina Monologues written by Eve Ensler. The Book Talk was well-attended by around 40 enthusiastic audience. Al's concerns on violence against women and women's sexuality as human rights issues have been raised and discussed. The Book Talk will soon be re-visited online at: http://lib.hku.hk/ f riends/read in g_cl u b/index. html
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United Nations Decade for Human Rights Educat'ion The Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action was adopted by the World Conference on Human Rights in 1993.
Five articles are about human rights education (HRE). The Declaration proclaimed the following decade that of HRE. The decade will come to an end this year. However, education is an enduring process. lt takes a long time to edu-
cate people in how to build up their basic human rights values. Let's have a look at what we did in the past ten years. We benefited from Al Nonruay's Teaching for Freedom between 1994 and 1999, which helped us to develop our HRE work. At that time, we published exercise books, pic-
ture books, and videos, etc. Unfodunately, we are no longer on their list and we canrt self-finance to update ogr publications despite many schools calling up asking for ffee copies. Our HRE work is much harder. The government's civic education policy is stagnant and can't respond to social developments. For example, schools were lost when the national security legislation was proposed. We and other
NGOs published an educational kit and organised workshops for teachers. However, the budget was limited. lf Oxfam hadn't sponsored it. the educational kit couldn't have
been released. Amnesty lnternational has a straight policy that when applying for government funding, the sum granted can't exceed 10"/" ol our annual budget. Sometimes, these funding schemes don't suit our needs. We couldn't find any funding sources for our recent work on curriculum development for 2 secondary schools. This year Costa Rica will propose the second Decade of the UN Commission on Human Rights Education. As an international city, Hong Kong should grab this chance and comply with the international human rights standards.
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The Lawyers Group of AIHK is a group of legal advocates interested in international human rights issues. The group promotes the agenda of Amnesty lnternational from the legal professional's perspective and offers attorneys a chance to interact and make contact with like-minded individuals in the field.
The group is a forum for communication about legal issues of concern in the region and beyond. Members include barristers, solicitors and academics in the legalfield. lssues of interest to members include the rule of law, the legal rights of individuals and judicial reform. The group may choose to take action on issues by writing letters, drafting press releases, undertaking research, or staging demonstrations, etc. After a period of inactivity, the group is re-establishing itself and recently held a meeting/happy hour at Alibi in Central attended by past members of the group and individuals who expressed an interest in getting involved in the human rights side of their orofession. The next Lawyers Group meeting will be in June and
interested attorneys are strongly encouraged to attend the meeting to socialize and discuss the issues. Communication between meetings is primarily by email. lf you are interested in getting involved with The Lawyers Group, please contact Melissa K. Neher
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- neher@netvigator.com. Apr-Jun 2004Newsletter
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Last June, international pressure from Al and other
4Ì2003+6 F ' lSËEtH++fffifrHîffiþ..E-ft'â!fiHf'tr+*JEf+¡fr organisations proved of ma¡or impoftance in securing release of five Prisoners of Conscience detained without læh14' ,E*Étrl8frtf+iy.Títilgæ;'Iffi+É^ætt+! trialunder Malaysia's lnternalSecurityAct (lSA). This wâs .i'r,¡¡¡ E ' g6¡flròãE' " E#J'E*ÉtrffifteJËiÆÊ\4FÆ " a sreat morale booster forAl's Malaysia cr;;ô is a draconian piece of legislation which allows for detention without trial, with renewal of two-year detention or- ',8 * É H æ i* ( I sA ) Fùt H Ë lE B ;rllãâC+is æ lflpl + ders at the discretion of the country's Home Minister. ^ ^
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years in prison. She is appealing the verdict and is currently out on bail. Her case was taken up by Al in 1996, and we are now awaiting the results of her appeal, when we will launch an action in Hong Kong. The date has not yet been announced, and the Malaysia research team in London believes it will not be for another six months. Amnesty members and staff who have been in contact with lrene and her family report that her strength of purpose is undiminished, but the trial has been a tremendous source of strain on all of them. lrene is in her 50s and her health is not good: let us hope that we can keep her out of jail. Members will be informed of any actions that AIHK intends to underlake in her case.
Apr - Jun 2004 Newsleuer
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4 Jul 2OO4
+@¿äü E ( lEffljFrE)ltiïIiÐ> For exact details and updates of the above activities, please refer to the Notice Board of our web site or contact the AIHK office. âï l+ tr Ll )ÃÉi 21+/Êne.'+fr8frt-É f1' =Êâ Ð É lE F ¿ # zr +F
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Copies of this newsletter can be obtained in the following areas: JTT
TIMES
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2lF- 3lF, Pacific Mansion, 172 Nathan Road, Tsimshatsui
Bookshop
Bloomsbury St. John's
Ê#I.E'ü}T'II'üFJ Hry
2lF, Club Lusitano Building, Duddell Street, Central
Cathedral
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If you would like additional
copies of the ne\rysletter to distribute to your friends, please contact the AIHK office. -rJ#+ üE'&RW. ? ü @ -âT\irß#.' Mü !44 â Ê ffiWi fie "
Unit 83, Best-O-Best Comm. Centre, 32-36Ferry Street, Kowloon, Hong Kong Phone
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: (852)2300
web site ffilåt: www.amnesty.org.hk
Apr - Jun 2004 Newslelter
V!4/;BÈil,
page 12