AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL’S QUICKGUIDE TO HUMAN RIGHTS
WHO
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Amnesty International is a worldwide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognized human rights for all. Our supporters are outraged by human rights abuses but inspired by hope for a better world - so we work to improve human rights through campaigning and international solidarity. We have more than 2.2 million members and subscribers in more than 150 countries and regions and we coordinate this support to act for justice on a wide range of issues.
THIS QUICKGUIDE CONTAINS INFORMATION ABOUT: COUNTER TERROR WITH JUSTICE ARMED CONFLICT CONTROL ARMS CHILDREN AND HUMAN RIGHTS DEATH PENALTY DETENTION AND PUNISHMENT DISCRIMINATION THE U.N.
IN INDIA THOUSANDS OF GIRLS GET KILLED JUST BECAUSE THEY’RE GIRLS WWW.AMNESTY.ORG
COUNTER TERROR WITH JUSTICE: A CHECKLIST FOR THE NEXT US PRESIDENT GOVERNMENT RESPONSES TO THE ATTACKS IN THE USA ON 11 SEPTEMBER 2001 AND IN OTHER COUNTRIES SINCE THEN HAVE UNDERMINED THE FRAMEWORK OF HUMAN RIGHTS. MUCH OF THIS ASSAULT ON HUMAN RIGHTS HAS BEEN THE RESULT OF POLICIES AND PRACTICES AUTHORIZED AND JUSTIFIED BY THE US EXECUTIVE, LED BY THE US PRESIDENT. THE NEW US PRESIDENT HAS THE AUTHORITY AND ABILITY TO UNDO SOME OF THE DAMAGE. AMNESTY UNTERNATIONAL IS SETTING A HUMAN RIGHTS CHALLENGE FOR THE FIRST 100 DAYS OF THE NEXT US PRESIDENT’S TERM IN OFFICE. WE ARE CALLING ON HIM TO:
CLOSE GUANTÁNAMO AND ILLEGAL DETENTION Confirm that the USA will permanently close the detention facility at Guantánamo and set a relatively short deadline for the closure.
End trials by military commission and the system of Combatant Status Review Tribunals and Administrative Review Boards.
Announce a plan to promptly charge Guantánamo detainees and send them for trial before US federal courts or to release them with full protection against further violations of their human rights.
Announce a plan to promptly charge Guantánamo detainees and send them for trial before US federal courts or to release them with full protection against further violations of their human rights.
Issue an executive order ending any use of rendition, secret detention or prolonged incommunicado detention by or on behalf of the US authorities anywhere.
Ensure Guantánamo detainees who would be at risk of serious human right violations if returned to their country of origin are offered the opportunity to live in the USA.
Revoke the 20 July 2007 Executive Order which authorized the continuation of the CIA’s programme of secret detention and interrogation.
Commit the US Administration not to arbitrarily deprive anyone of their liberty and immediately en the US government’s opposition to full habeas corpus hearings for detainees in Guantánamo and other similar situations.
ERADICATE TORTURE AND OTHER ILL-TREATMENT
END IMPUNITY
Issue an executive order that the USA will not, under any circumstances, resort to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, as defined under international law.
Ensure that criminal investigations into the programmes of rendition and secret detention operated by or on behalf of the US authorities are initiated.
Announce that the administration will not use any information obtained under torture or other ill-treatment in any proceedings, except against an alleged perpetrator of the abuse.
Reject impunity for crimes under international law such as torture and other ill-treatment of detainees, and enforced disappearance.
Commit to work with Congress to withdraw all reservations and limiting understandings relating to torture and other ill-treatment attached to US ratification of human rights treaties., including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the UN Convention against Torture. Order the declassification of all legal opinions and other documents authorizing or approving interrogation techniques and detention conditions that discuss whether the techniques or conditions are consistent with the national or international prohibition of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
Ensure that an independent commission of inquiry is established into all aspects of the USA’s detention and interrogation practices in the “war on terror�. Make known the name, nationality, present whereabouts, status and circumstances of detention of all those who are or have been detained as part of the programmes of rendition and secret detention. Announce that his administration will work to ensure that victims of human rights violations for which the US authorities may be responsible will have meaningful access to redress and remedy.
ARMED CONFLICT 18 September 2007 In conflicts across the globe, governments and armed groups routinely attack civilians and commit war crimes and terrible abuses of human rights.
Where wars
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follow. Conflict is the breeding
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And yet, even in war there are rules that all sides are legally bound to obey. International humanitarian law (IHL), also known as the laws of armed conflict or the laws of war, has developed in order to mitigate the effects of such conflict. It limits the means and methods of conducting military operations. Its rules oblige combatants to spare civilians and those who no longer participate in hostilities, such as soldiers who have been wounded or have surrendered. IHL applies only during armed conflict; human rights law applies in war and peace.
But powerful nations have shown a sinister willingness to manipulate international institutions or apply double standards, often arming forces known to commit mass abuses while disclaiming responsibility for the carnage. Although international organizations such as the United Nations have advanced in their capacity to monitor and report on human rights in conflict situations, few perpetrators of mass abuses against civilians are held accountable. Continuing violence feeds on unresolved grievances arising from years of destructive conflict and this failure to hold perpetrators of grave abuses to account. Amnesty International does not take sides in conflicts and has no opinion on borders. Our work in situations of armed conflict concentrates on documenting and campaigning against human rights abuses and violations of IHL, no matter who commits them.
INTERNATIONAL CONFLICTS The vast majority of armed conflicts today are internal. Many internal conflicts have persisted for decades, despite significant international efforts to find solutions. These conflicts are often triggered by issues of identity, ethnicity, religion and competition for resources, particularly oil and mineral wealth. In Afghanistan, the escalating conflict has resulted in death and injury to thousands of civilians. War crimes have been committed by all parties to the conflict, including international and Afghan security forces, and the Taleban.
Perpetuating violence In Iraq, security forces are committing rather than preventing sectarian violence. The Iraqi justice system is woefully inadequate and the worst practices of Saddam Hussein’s regime – torture, including rape, extra-judicial executions, unfair trials and capital punishment – continue. There have been frequent allegations of human rights violations by US and UK soldiers but few prosecutions and convictions. At least a dozen countries in Africa have been affected by armed conflict over the last year, despite numerous peace and international mediation processes. In all of them civilians suffered human rights abuses, and the most affected were women, children and elderly people.
What Amnesty International is doing AI calls on all warring parties to respect IHL and human rights, and emphasises to state forces and armed groups that targeting civilians can never be justified. Amnesty International campaigns for an end to impunity for war crimes and crimes against humanity. We are campaigning to curb the proliferation of small arms fuelling conflict and abuses, including lobbying for the adoption of a global Arms Trade Treaty. Amnesty International campaigns for international peacekeepers to protect civilians in Darfur and eastern Chad, and has urged its supporters across the world to write to Sudanese MPs, calling on them to take a stand against the atrocities happening in their country. Amnesty International is also actively campaigning to end the recruitment of child soldiers and to ensure that they are demobilized and reintegrated into society.
UN vote in favour of Arms Trade Treaty. US and Zimbabwe only countries to vote against
Progress on accountability The International Criminal Court (ICC) was established in 2002 to prosecute people accused of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. It offers the hope that some of the perpetrators of the worst crimes committed in armed conflicts will be brought to justice. It has been hailed by governments, legal experts and civil society as the most significant development in international law since the adoption of the United Nations Charter. Amnesty International has been actively involved in all stages of the establishment of the Court. The ICC has issued arrest warrants for people accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in armed conflicts in Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan (Darfur), and Uganda. International tribunals established to try serious crimes committed in Former Yugoslavia, Rwanda, and Sierra Leone have brought to justice leaders who have committed war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. In December 2006, an overwhelming majority of states voted at the UN General Assembly to consider the question of a universal and legally binding Arms Trade Treaty, a landmark step towards greater accountability of the arms trade.
CONTROL ARMS The Arms Trade Treaty process We began the Control Arms campaign in October 2003 and in December 2006, we successfully mobilised an overwhelming majority of governments (153) to vote in favour of an historic United Nations (UN) General Assembly (GA) resolution 61/89 which called for work to begin towards a global Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) covering international transfers of conventional arms. You can see the full results of the vote here. In 2007, there was a UN Secretary General’s (SG) Consultation on the ‘feasibility, scope and draft parameters of an Arms Trade Treaty’. Some 100 States submitted their views to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on the feasibility, scope and draft parameters of an ATT. Most States re-affirmed their respect for the UN Charter as well as international human rights and humanitarian law and recognized the link between responsible arms transfers and sustainable development. A UN Group of Governmental Experts (GGE), mandated to examine the “feasibility, scope and parameters” of an
ATT finished its work in New York on 8 August 2008, after having met three times throughout the year. The group, chaired by an expert from Argentina, was composed of experts from a range of countries including Brazil, China, Egypt, France, Indonesia, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, and the UK. The US, which was the only state to oppose the 2006 UN vote in favour of working towards a treaty, also had an expert at the discussions. The Control Arms campaign closely followed the GGE process. The final agreed report from the group has now been made public and was presented by the UN Secretary General to the General Assembly. You can read the full report here In October 2008, 147 states voted in favour of a second resolution on the ATT. This resolution mandates the UN to establish an Open-Ended Working Group, open to all UN member states to further consider the elements in the GGE report where consensus could be developed for their inclusion in an eventual, legally binding treaty. We will continue to mobilise civil society in support of an effective ATT based on our five “Golden Rules”, and call on governments to quicky start negotiations at the UN
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ALMOST ONE IN THREE PEOPLE HAVE BEEN AFFECTED BY GUN CRIME
Children and Human Rights.
Across the world children are denied their human rights, including for example, their right to education. They are recruited into armed forces. They are subjected to the death penalty, are disappeared, are punished by cruel and inhumane methods and suffer many other forms of violence.
Child soldiers Worldwide, hundreds of thousands of children under 18 have been affected by armed conflict. They are recruited into government armed forces, paramilitaries, civil militia and a variety of other armed groups. Often they are abducted at school, on the streets or at home. Others enlist “voluntarily”, usually because they see few alternatives. Yet international law prohibits the participation in armed conflict of children aged under 18. It means that in reality girls and boys illegally and under force, participate in combat where frequently they are injured or killed. Others are used as spies, messengers, porters, servants or to lay or clear landmines. Girls are at particular risk of rape and other sexual abuse. Such children are robbed of their childhood and exposed to terrible dangers and to psychological and physical suffering.
Other forms of violence against children Children routinely face other violence - at school, in institutions meant for their protection, in juvenile detention centres and too often in their own homes. A small - and diminishing - number of countries execute those who were children at the time of their offences. Since 2004, only China, Iran, Pakistan and Sudan have put child offenders to death. Ending the execution of child offenders is a major objective in itself and an important step on the road to total abolition of the death penalty.
THE RIGHT TO EDUCATION Everyone has the right to education—which should be available free to all at least at the primary level. Education is also indispensable in realizing other human rights. Across the world many children miss out on their education because: They are made to work, They are recruited into armed forces, They do not have the means to pay for schooling, Discrimination undermine their chance of education, They face violence as they pursue their education. School fees and related costs are a common barrier to education. These charges - which may be called “voluntary” quotas, matriculation fees or examination costs are a greater burden for children from poor families, and they disproportionately affect those who are racial and ethnic minorities, members of Indigenous communities and migrants.
Key facts The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted in 1989 to protect the rights of children, is the most widely ratified human rights treaty in history. It encompasses civil rights and freedoms, family environment, basic health and welfare, education, leisure and cultural activities and special protection measures for children.
Examples of what Amnesty International is doing > © AI
There are estimated to be between 100 million and 150 million street children in the world, and this number is growing. Of those some 5-10% have run away from or been abandoned by their families. Under international law, the participation of children under 18 in armed conflict is generally prohibited, and the recruitment and use of children under 15 is a war crime.
Romani girls at school in Braila, Romania. Many Romani children face long journeys to school, and difficulties in studying or doing homework in cold, overcrowded homes. For children who do go to school, poor clothing marks them out as Roma and as targets for bullying and harassment.
Around 4,500 children are currently in detention in Pakistan. More than 3,000 of them have not been convicted of any offence; their trials have either still yet to start or have not yet been completed.
Success story > On 25 May 2000, the UN General Assembly adopted the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict. This represents a milestone in protecting children from participation in armed conflicts. 107 states were parties to the Protocol including three of the five permanent members of the Security Council (France, UK and USA) but not the Russian Federation and China. Although the Russian Federation has signed the Protocol, it has yet to ratify it and to incorporate it into national law. To mark the sixth anniversary of the Protocol’s adoption, Amnesty International, together with the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers, called on the Russian Federation to ratify it without any further delay.
As a member of the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers, Amnesty International works to end the recruitment of children into armed forces and to reintegrate former child soldiers back into civilian life. Amnesty International has recommended that Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Slovenia take immediate action to prohibit discrimination against Roma in education, and take further steps towards eliminating discrimination against Romani children and promoting equality in education. Around the world, Amnesty International members, including its Youth and Student network, are campaigning to prevent the unnecessary imprisonment of children in Pakistan.
THE
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DEATH PENALTY The death penalty is the ultimate denial of human rights. It is the premeditated and cold-blooded killing of a human being by the state. This cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment is done in the name of justice.
“This increased support solidifies the solid and longstanding trend towards global abolition of the death penalty.” said Martin Macpherson from Amnesty International.
Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases without exception regardless of the nature of the crime, the characteristics of the offender, or the method used by the state to kill the prisoner.
When the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted in 1948, eight countries had abolished the death penalty in law or practice. Sixty years later, as of December 2008, the number stands at 137.
CALLS FOR END TO EXECUTIONS AT UN
More than two thirds of the world have abolished the death penalty and Numbers continue to grow.
18 December 2008
Over one hundred countries voted overwhelmingly in favour of a second resolution on “Moratorium on the use of the death penalty” at the United Nations (UN) on Thursday. The resolution reaffirms last year’s UN General Assembly call for a moratorium on executions. 106 states supported the resolution, 46 voted against and 34 states abstained. In 2007, the vote was 104 in favour, 54 against and 29 abstained.
“The trend towards abolition is unmistakable,” said Martin Macpherson. “This trend can be seen in all regions in the world.” In Central Asia, there is a clear move towards abolition. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Tu rkmenistan and Uzbekistan retained the death penalty when they gained independence in 1991. However, by December 2008, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan had abolished the death penalty.
Europe is a virtually death penalty-free area, the only exception being Belarus. The continent of Africa is largely free of executions, with only seven of the 53 African Union member states known to have carried out , Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Libya, Somalia and Sudan. In November 2008, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (African Commission) adopted a resolution calling on African States to observe a moratorium on the death penalty. It is an important step towards making the African Union (AU) a totally death penalty-free zone. In the Arab League, several states, Bahrain, Jordan, Oman, Mauritania and the United Arab Emirates, abstained rather than voting no. At national level, draft abolitionist laws have been tabled in Algeria, Lebanon and Tunisia.
In Asia, the total number of countries that have now abolished the death penalty in law or practice in the Asia Pacific region has reached 27. On 21 May 2008, the Chinese Ministry of Justice and the Supreme People’s Court (SPC) jointly issued a regulation to outline the defence lawyers’ role in capital cases. In South Korea, there have been no executions since 1998 and a Death Penalty Abolition Bill is under consideration. Viet Nam is reviewing the number of offences punishable by death. The United States of America is turning against the death penalty. The Death Penalty Information Center reported that the annual number of death sentences has dropped by 60% since the 1990s. 37 executions took place in 2008, marking a 14-year low and continuing a downward trend that began in 2000.
“A Mother Visits her Son on Texas Death Row” c- Ken Light
UNITED STATES EXECUTIONS IN 2009 DA TE 1/14/09 1/15/09 1/21/09 1/22/09 1/22/09 1/28/09 1/29/09 2/4/09 2/4/09 2/10/09 2/11/09 2/12/09 2/12/09 2/19/09 2/20/09 3/3/09 3/4/09 3/10/09 3/10/09 3/11/09
N UM BER ST A T E 1137 1138 1139 1140 1141 1142 1143 1144 1145 1146 1147 1148 1149 1150 1151 1152 1153 1154 1155 1156
TX AL TX OK TX TX TX TN TX TX FL AL TX VA SC TX TX TX GA TX
NA ME Curtis Moore 4 James Callahan Frank Moore Darwin Brown Reginald Perkins Virgil Martinez 4 Ricardo Ortiz Steve Henley 5 David Martinez* Dale Scheanette 3 Wayne Tompkins Danny Joe Bradley 4 Johnny Johnson Edward Bell~ 4 Luke Williams 5 Willie Pondexter Kenneth Morris James Edward Martinez 3 Robert Newland Luis Salazar 3
A G E RA C E V IC TIM R A C E 0B 62 49 32 53 1L 46 5W 36 5B 51 9W 51 4B 6W 34 38 4L 65 8L
W B B B 4 L 2 L 1 W 1 B 1 1 B B 2 W 1
3 Black 1 White 2 Black 1 White 1 Black Latino 1 Latino White 2 Latino Black 1 White White 1 Black White Latino 1 White 1 White White 1 White Latino
M ET H O D Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection Lethal Injection
DETENTION AND IMPRISONMENT
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In countries throughout the world people are being detained and imprisoned arbitrarily without a fair trial. In these circumstances many face torture or other forms of ill-treatment. Prisoners and detainees may be subjected to torture or other ill-treatment. They may be held in conditions that are so poor that these amount to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.
the issues According to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights no-one may be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or imprisonment. Detention is seen as ‘arbitrary’ when there is no legal basis for detention or there are grave violations of the right to a fair trial.
to gain information or a confession, as well as to punish, intimidate and threaten prisoners and detainees.
Detention and imprisonment which is lawful under national standards may be considered arbitrary under international standards.
not using a country’s official language
Under international human rights law, all defendants have the right to a fair trial. But in many countries throughout the world, detainees are held without due process and prisoners are convicted in trials where these safeguards have been ignored. In some instances people are held for long periods without trial.
What Amnesty International is calling for
Torture and other forms of ill-treatment are often used alongside detention and imprisonment
independent investigations into deaths in custody
Amnesty International works for the unconditional release of all prisoners of conscience. People can be made prisoners of conscience for many reasons. These include: involvement in non-violent political activities belonging to a minority group struggling for autonomy taking part in trade union activities
refusing to perform military service on grounds of conscience gender or sexual identity
free without condition all prisoners of conscience fair trials within or release for all political prisoners all prisoners to be brought before an independent judicial authority access to relatives, doctors and lawyers for prisoners follow international human rights standards end to long-term confinement in conditions of isolation no solitary confinement for imprisoned children
What Amnesty International is doing
Success story
Campaigning for the release of individual prisoners of conscience around the world has been a longstanding activity for Amnesty International. Our activities on behalf of prisoners of conscience have led to the release of many prisoners throughout the years.
Cuba’s longest serving prisoner of conscience, Francisco Chaviano González, was released on 10 August 2007 after spending 13 years and three months in prison. The president of the unofficial National Council for Civil Rights in Cuba was charged with “revealing state security secrets”.
Amnesty International also calls on governments to make certain that safeguards for a fair trial are fully respected for all prisoners. It demands that national laws and practices conform to international human rights standards to ensure that all prisoners and detainees are treated humanely.
His trial before a military tribunal was believed to have fallen short of fair trial standards by Amnesty International, who declared him a prisoner of conscience.
Amnesty International takes action, often through its Urgent Action and Medical Action networks, for prisoners and detainees whose lives or health are at risk from harsh prison conditions that amount to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
Current campaign: Close Guantánamo It is now more than five years since the USA opened its prison camp for ‘war on terror’ suspects at the US naval base in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. A total of 759 people have been detained there and, despite widespread international condemnation, hundreds of people of more than 30 nationalities remain imprisoned without charge.
ACT NOW Call for Saifullah Paracha to be released from Guantánamo or charged promptly and given a fair that.
Amnesty International, International Secretariat, Peter Benenson House, 1 Easton Street. London WC1x ODW, United Kingdom
Urge that independent medical experts be allowed to visit him to assess his health and treatment needs.
www.amnesty.org/counter-terror-with-justice December 2007 AI Index: AMR 51/179/2007
WRITE TO:
COUNTER TERROR WITH JUSTICE
Rear admiral Mark H. Buzby Commander Joint Task Force Guanánamo Department of Defense, Joint Task Force Guantánamo Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, APO AE 09360 Fax: +1 305 437 1241 Salutation: Dear Rear Admiral
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION Everyone has the right to seek, receive and impart information and ideas without fear or interference. This right is important for the personal development and dignity of every individual and is vital for the fulfilment of other human rights. Amnesty International has campaigned on behalf of thousands of prisoners of conscience – people who are imprisoned because of their political, religious or other conscientiously held beliefs, ethnic origin, sex, colour, language, national or social origin, economic status, birth, sexual orientation or other status. Amnesty International calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all prisoners of conscience.
Throughout the world individuals face harassment and imprisonment as a result of exercising their right to freedom of expression.
Stifling debate Governments have historically used ‘national security’ as an excuse to stifle political opposition and criticism. In recent years, heightened fears about terrorism and security have been invoked to justify increased repression of individuals and groups exercising their right to free expression. The introduction of more restrictive counter-terrorism legislation in most countries in the world is having a serious impact on freedom of expression and other rights. Such measures are short-sighted. Open debate and respect for human rights is the only framework within which security and development can be sustained.
Protecting the right to defend human rights Human rights defenders are individuals, groups of people or organizations who promote and protect human rights through peaceful and non-violent means. Their actions depend on, and fuel, freedom of expression. Because of their activities, human rights defenders can become a target of abuse. Governments, security forces, business interests, armed groups, religious leaders and sometimes even their own families and communities can try and silence their dissenting opinions or actions.
Discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons Everyone has the right to express their sexual orientation, with due regard for the well-being and rights of others, without fear of persecution, denial of liberty or social interference. However, in many countries throughout the world lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people face discrimination, intimidation, harassment and also attacks to their personal safety. Homophobic statements by politicians, religious leaders and other prominent persons can perpetuate a climate of discrimination and intimidation against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons.
New technology, new challenges The internet has opened up new possibilities for individuals and groups to seek and impart information and ideas. Yet, the internet is also a new frontier where freedom of expression is being challenged. For more on Amnesty International’s work on the Internet and Human Rights go to www.irrepressible.info
Key facts Human rights defenders in many countries throughout the world have been subjected to death threats, arbitrary detention and torture and many have even been killed because of their human rights activism. Between 2000 and 2005 Amnesty International issued more than 400 Urgent Actions on behalf of individuals believed to be at immediate risk. Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya was murdered outside her flat in Moscow on 7 October 2006. Seven members of the Moroccan Association for Human Rights were arrested by the police after participating in peaceful demonstrations on 1 May 2007, during which slogans criticising the country’s monarchy were chanted. Lee Si-woo, a photojournalist and peace campaigner, was arrested on 23 April 2007 on charges under the vaguely worded South Korean National Security Law. The charges relate to information he reported as a freelance journalist on the US military presence in South Korea. His news reportage was based on information obtained legally through the government and the military, through Freedom of Information laws.
What Amnesty International is doing Amnesty International supports and protects those who speak up and express their opinions openly and freely around the world. We do a lot of work particularly with those who speak out to defend human rights for example: Journalists exposing human rights violations. Community workers teaching human rights education. Trade unionists defending workers’ rights. Women promoting reproductive rights.
use your freedom to write wrongs. www.amnesty.org
DIS
CRIMINATION
Discrimination is an assault on the very notion of human rights. Discrimination is the systematic denial of certain peoples’ or groups’ full human rights because of who they are or what they believe. It is all too easy to deny a person’s human rights if you consider them as “less than human”.
This is why international human rights law is grounded in the principle of non-discrimination. The drafters of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights stated explicitly that they considered non-discrimination to be the basis of the Declaration.
domestic violence, attacks targeted at people because of their actual or assumed religion or sexual orientation.
Yet discrimination due to factors such as race, ethnicity, nationality, class, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age or health status – or a combination of factors – persists in many forms in every country in the world.
Discrimination in law enforcement can mean that certain groups are viewed by the authorities as ‘’potential criminals’’ and so are more likely to be arrested and imprisoned. It can also mean that they are more likely to suffer harsher treatment, possibly amounting to torture or other forms of ill-treatment, once in criminal justice system.
Them and us: fighting discrimination While the perpetrators of discrimination and settings in which it occurs may vary, at the heart of all forms of discrimination are ignorance and prejudice. Committed within society generally or at the hands of officials discrimination and repression are an abuse of human rights as is the impunity too often enjoyed by those responsible. Some governments go so far as to openly justify some forms of discrimination in the name of morality, religion or ideology. Discrimination enshrined in law – for example, where the law restricts women’s fundamental freedoms or refuses to recognise Indigenous Peoples’ rights – effectively strips away human rights. Violent manifestations of prejudice are often facilitated by official inaction. Discrimination means that certain groups are denied equal protection of the law against violence inflicted on them, such as racist attacks,
Many individuals face discrimination based on more than one element of their identity –Indigenous women face discrimination not only as women, but as Indigenous Peoples. Such multiple factors interact and change individuals’ experience of discrimination.
Injury to dignity Acts of racial discrimination occur every day in every region of the world. According to Amnesty International’s research, many if not most of the victims of police brutality in Europe and the USA are black or members of other ethnic minorities. States have an obligation to prevent racial violence by everyone, not just their own officials.
in custody and in conflict, where rape is often used as a “weapon of war”. Wherever it is inflicted, this violence is intimately linked to women’s subordinate position in society and restrictions on women’s autonomy. Sometimes state officials perpetrate violence. Often they are complicit in the violence of others who may be employers, religious or customary authorities or family members.
Yet in many countries racist ill-treatment is nourished by increasingly xenophobic responses to immigration, discrimination in the criminal justice system, and by parties to armed conflicts.
Dozens of countries still have laws which criminalize homosexuality. Such discriminatory laws not only deprive a sector of the population of their human rights, they may also act as a licence to torture or ill-treat those detained.
Violence against Indigenous Peoples, especially in the context of land rights disputes, is a continuing legacy of centuries of subjugation. Indigenous Peoples are disproportionately represented among the poorest in both developed and developing countries.
However, such concerns are not limited to countries where homosexuality is illegal. Institutionalized prejudice means that lesbians, bisexuals, gay men and transgender people who come into contact with the law for other reasons may be targeted for abuse.
This pervasive poverty has its roots in the history of colonization and in the continuing systemic discrimination and non-recognition of Indigenous Peoples’ individual and collective rights, including dispossession of their ancestral lands, loss of control over their natural resources and Indigenous knowledge, and their forced assimilation into the mainstream society and integration in the market economy.
Key facts
There are numerous laws and practices restricting women’s fundamental freedoms – including freedom of movement and of expression. From infancy, girls face worse treatment than boys in such forms as selective malnutrition and denial of equal access to education and health services. Women who are not married face many obstacles such as obtaining housing and credit; but married women or widows may also be treated as minors before the law. Violence is used to terrorise women in the home, at work,
International law guarantees human rights to all without distinctions based on race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Expert bodies of the United Nations have affirmed that this principle includes discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. The thinking behind the principle is that it violates international human rights principles to be deprived of one’s rights because of a characteristic that one cannot change – such as one’s race or ethnicity – or because of a characteristic that is so central to one’s being that one should not be forced to change it, such as religion. Direct discrimination is the less favourable or detrimental treatment of an individual or group of individuals on the basis of a prohibited characteristic or ground.
UNITED
NATIONS>
The protection of human rights, alongside peace and security, and economic and social development has been one of the three pillars of UN’s work since its creation. Since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 – one of the UN landmark documents – the UN has developed a broad range of international human rights standards. It has also established a range of mechanisms to promote and protect these rights and to assist governments in meeting their human rights obligations.
The Human Rights Council was created by the General Assembly in 2006 as the principal human rights political body of the UN. The Council is composed of 47 elected Member States that must uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights. The Council meets in sessions throughout the year and can address both thematic and country-based human rights issues and make recommendations to States. The Council also undertakes a review of the fulfilment of the human rights obligations of every UN Member State through the Universal Periodic Review.
The General Assembly is the main deliberative body of the UN where all192 Member States are represented and each has one vote. It meets once a year for three months The United Nations (UN) is the and covers a very wide range In pursuit of this end, world’s biggest, most important of issues, including the Amnesty International has situation of human rights in and only universal International worked many years at the UN particular countries, violence Organization with a membership and has contributed to many against women, and torture of 192 countries. important developments in and ill-treatment. The Genhuman rights protection, eral Assembly adopts around including: 300 resolutions each year. These are not legally binding on governments, but repre adoption of the UN Convention against Torture; sent the moral authority of the world community. Amnesty International campaigns for the adoption of strong and establishment of the High Commissioner for Human Rights; progressive resolutions on key human rights issues and their full and prompt implementation. creation of the Human Rights Council. The Security Council is the most powerful body of the Amnesty International works with different parts of the UN. It has the primary responsibility for maintaining UN system to help achieve its human rights objectives: international peace and security and is the only body of the UN that can authorize the use of force (including in Human Rights Council the context of peace-keeping operations). The Council General Assembly has fifteen members: five of these - China, France, the Russian Federation, the UK and the USA - are permanent Security Council members. The non-permanent members are elected by Treaty Bodies the General Assembly. Some decisions of the Council are Amnesty International’s vision is of a world in which every person enjoys all the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
legally binding on all UN Member States. Amnesty International campaigns for human rights to be an essential part of the Security Council work and follows its actions on countries such as Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kosovo, and Sudan, and on thematic issues such as counter-terrorism measures, women, peace and security. The Treaty Bodies are committees of independent human rights experts mandated to monitor the compliance by States with the international human rights treaties to which they are a party. At the moment there are eight committees in place including the Human Rights Committee and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Governments must submit periodic reports to the Treaty Bodies which in turn make recommendations to further the State party’s implementation of the treaty. Some of the committees can also consider individual cases and carry out confidential enquiries. Amnesty International prepares country submissions and regularly attends sessions. The Special Procedures are independent human rights experts mandated by the Human Rights Council to monitor a particular country or thematic issue. Currently there are around 40 procedures such as the Special Rapporteurs on Violence against Women, on the Right to Food, and on Sudan, and the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. The Special Procedures work in a number of ways: they can send urgent appeals and communications to governments on allegations on human rights violations; they carry out studies on key human rights issues and also undertake fact-finding country missions. Amnesty International makes regular submissions of information relevant to the mandates of Special Procedures based on its research and including individual cases. The UN Secretariat is the civil service of the United Nations. It is headed by the UN Secretary-General (currently
Ban Ki Moon) and its main office is in New York. The UN human rights programme is led by the High Commissioner for Human Rights (currently Louise Arbour) whose office is in Geneva.
What Amnesty International is doing at the UN Amnesty International regularly campaigns on selected country and thematic issues and organizes lobbying of governments, in capitals and through their permanent missions in Geneva, New York and Brussels, to get human rights concerns included in the work at the main UN bodies, e.g. at the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Human Rights Council and ensure effective action on urgent human rights issues. Amnesty International also makes regular submissions of information and briefings on both country specific and thematic issues, e.g. to Special Procedures, Treaty Bodies and the Human Rights Council. Amnesty International campaigns for the universal ratification and effective implementation of international human rights treaties and standards as well as campaigning for new ones. Amnesty International is also active in lobbying for institutional reform of the UN to achieve a strong and effective UN for the promotion and protection of human rights, e.g. reform of the Treaty Bodies and Special Procedures, institution-building of the Human Rights Council, and a stronger UN agency on women’s rights. Amnesty international’s work at the UN is carried out by Amnesty International’s membership in more than 35 countries as well as by its representatives to the UN in New York and Geneva.
ACT NOW FOR MOHAMMED ODAINI
MOHAMMED MOHAMMED HASSAN ODAINI YEMENI NATIONAL
‘For all he knows, he could be there for the rest of his life.’ Mohammed Odaini’s lawyer
Mohammed Mohammed Hassan Odaini has been deemed eligible for release from Guantánamo. The Yemeni authorities say he can return home safely. He has not been interrogated for two years. Yet he is still in Guantánamo. Mohammed Odaini, aged 24 and from Ta’iz in Yemen, has said that he went to Pakistan in 2000 to study Islamic law at Salafi University in Faisalabad. In March 2002 Pakistani police raided a house where he was dining with 14 other Yemeni nationals. All 15 were handed overto US authorities and later transferred to Guantánamo. Mohammed Odaini was cleared for transfer in June 2006. The reason for his continued detention is unclear.
ACT NOW Call for Saifullah Paracha to be released from Guantánamo or charged promptly and given a fair that. Urge that independent medical experts be allowed to visit him to assess his health and treatment needs. WRITE TO: Rear admiral Mark H. Buzby Commander Joint Task Force Guanánamo Department of Defense, Joint Task Force Guantánamo Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, APO AE 09360 Fax: +1 305 437 1241 Salutation: Dear Rear Admiral
Amnesty International, International Secretariat, Peter Benenson House, 1 Easton Street. London WC1x ODW, United Kingdom www.amnesty.org/counter-terror-with-justice December 2007 AI Index: AMR 51/179/2007
COUNTER TERROR WITH JUSTICE
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
About Amnesty International Amnesty International is a worldwide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognized human rights to be respected and protected for everyone. We believe human rights abuses anywhere are the concern of people everywhere. So, outraged by human rights abuses but inspired by hope for a better world, we work to improve people’s lives through campaigning and international solidarity. Our mission is to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated. Our members and supporters exert influence on governments, political bodies, companies and intergovernmental groups. Activists take human rights issues by mobilizing public pressure through mass demonstrations, vigils and direct lobbying as well as online and offline campaigning.
CAMPAIGNING FOR THOSE WHO NEED HELP “They carried guns all the time. I was afraid of the guns. Actually, I was in constant fear.” Fereh Musu Conteh, 13 years old, abducted by a group in Sierra Leone
Our campaigning remains firmly rooted in the power of individuals working in support of others who need protection or support. Working with and for individuals the world over, we campaign so that every person may enjoy all of the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. We undertake research and take action aimed at preventing and ending grave abuses of these rights, demanding that all governments and other powerful entities respect the rule of law. It means we campaign globally and locally where ever we can make a difference.
Contact us International Secretariat The International Secretariat is responsible for the majority of the organization’s research and leads our campaigning work, based in London, UK.
Telephone: +44-20-74135500 Fax number: +44-20-79561157 Address: 1 Easton Street London WC1X 0DW, UK