Human Rights Action Update August 8-14

Miriam, human rights defender, 1947-2012

Good news to start--One of China's most prominent dissidents, Gao Zhisheng, has been released after three years in jail. His brother said he left the Xinjiang prison on Thursday morning and was now at his father-in-law's home in Urumqi. We have campaigned for him for a long time and welcome his release.

INDONESIA
On 8 August two Papuan students, including a child, were arbitrarily detained for their peaceful political activism in Indonesia’s West Papua province. They are believed to have been tortured or otherwise ill-treated by police. Please act on their behalf.

CHINA
Veteran activists Zhang Xiaoyu and Xu Youchen have been severely beaten by police in Henan Province, China , after they were detained on suspicion of killing a policeman . The authorities are denying them access to lawyers, and they are at grave risk of torture and other ill - treatment. Please act for them.

THAILAND 
A man associated with the “red-shirt” political movement in Thailand has been subjected to enforced disappearance and is at risk of torture and other ill-treatment. While authorities have confirmed he is in military custody, his family and lawyers have not been able to contact him since he was arrested in July. Authorities have confirmed he is in military custody but have refused to provide any information about his whereabouts. Please call upon the Thai authorities to act responsibly.
SWAZILAND
The Prime Minister of Swaziland, Sibusiso Barnabas Dlamini, threatened that the trade union and human rights leaders who attend the African Summit in Washington, D.C. should be strangled upon their return. Please click and send your protest.

Human Rights Action Update August 1-7

Miriam, human rights defender, 1947-2012

MEXICO 
A group of relatives of the disappeared in Querétaro state, including Brenda Rangel Ortiz, have been intimidated for demanding a meeting with state authorities. The authorities are dragging their feet on the investigation of the disappearance of  Héctor Rangel Ortiz, who was forcibly disappeared in the state of Coahuila in November 2009, with the collusion of local police. Please act to support the relatives of the victims.
HAITI
Members of GADES, an organization of women human rights defenders in Haiti, have received threats following the recent sentencing of a police officer for the rape of an underage boy. The organization has been supporting the victim and his family throughout the legal process. The officer was given a ten year sentence and his lawyer threatened  the organization and its coordiantor stating that they would face repercussions if his client was sentenced. The police are not providing protection despite death threats. Please join the protest.

INDIA
Four men and two women are at risk of imminent execution in India after their mercy pleas were rejected by the President. They could be executed at any time. While their crimes are indeed heinous, there is no place in civilized society for the death penalty. Please call for commutation of their sentences to prison terms.

ISRAEL/PALESTINE 
Union busting is going on at the Zarfati garage in Mishor Adumim with the connivance of the police, using trumped up security charges against the chair of the workers' committee.
Please join the protest.

Human Rights Action Update July 25-31

Miriam, human rights defender, 1947-2012

CHINA 
A group of around 29 people, including a one-year-old baby, are at risk of being forcibly returned to North Korea after being detained in China. If returned to North Korea, they would be at serious risk of torture and other ill-treatment, forced labor and death. Please appeal to have their deportation stopped.


AZERBAIJAN
Political activist Faraj Karimov, a dedicated critic of the Azerbaijani government, went missing on 23 July. It was later revealed that police had detained him, but his whereabouts are still not known, and he is at risk of torture and other ill-treatment. His brother Siraj Karimov had been arrested six days earlier. Please act on his behalf.

MEXICO 
A Honduran migrant of Afro-descendent origin has been in prison in Mexico since 2009. He was tortured to falsely implicate himself in criminal activity. As his torture arose from racial discrimination and resulted in his unfounded prosecution, Amnesty International considers him a prisoner of conscience. Please call for his release.

Human Rights Action Update July 17-24

Miriam, human rights defender, 1947-2012

MYANMAR/BURMA
Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD) supports  women human rights defenders and allied movements defending women’s rights in Burma / Myanmar and consequently opposing the Interfaith Marriage Bill. Please open the link and take the requested action including the petition.

Five media workers in Myanmar have been sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment with hard labour in connection with their journalistic activities. All five are prisoners of conscience who must be immediately and unconditionally released. Please act on their behalf.

IRAN













Free jailed trade union leader Reza Shahabi now. Reza Shahabi, treasurer of the Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company, has been in custody in Iran since June 2010 on charges that result solely from the legitimate representation of his union members. This is a click and send. Please give it a second of your time.

GAZA/ISRAEL 
On 14 July 2014, the International Trade Union Confederation, representing 176 million workers around the globe, issued a call for an immediate ceasefire in the fighting between Israel and Palestinians in Gaza. Please support this call.

Human Rights Update July 4-10

Miriam, human rights defender, 1947-2012

There will be no blog next week because we are going to be abroad. We shall be back with you on July 24.

We can start off with a bit of good news.  First a victory for airline mechanics in Peru. We quote their statement:
 
SITALANPE SAYS THANK YOU TO LABOR START SUPPORTERS!

This Tuesday, LAN Peru's mechanics signed a ground-breaking new collective agreement with the company. After years of unequal treatment, and a pay freeze for the last ten years, the workers have reached an agreement with the company which guarantees job security and improved conditions. Highlights of their agreement include:

•       Precarious workers have new fixed term contracts

•       An improved work-life balance, with a more transparent allocation of shifts and rotations

•       An increase in basic salary

Over 6,500 of you supported the mechanics in their pursuit for equality, and this result would not have been possible without you. Thank you for your support for the Peruvian mechanics!

As we write, LAN Argentina's flight attendants are struggling against the company's refusal to negotiate an agreement. We ask you to remain alert and ready for action to support our brothers and sisters in Argentina.

  In solidarity,

  LATAM NETWORK ITF

SWAZILAND  
The three-week strike by the Swaziland Plantation and Agricultural Workers Union (SAPWU) has ended with a settlement bringing workers a 10% wage increase and satisfying the union's non-wage demands, including improved benefits for seasonal workers.
The union's general secretary Archie Sayed has written that "The workers of Ubombo send their gratitude to all who contributed to their struggle and appreciate the spirit of solidarity which has also come as a lesson to them that there no better future for the workers as solidarity and unity."

Thanks to all who supported these labor justice efforts.

PERU/BRAZIL 
We hear from Survival International:Brazil’s Indian Affairs Department has announced that a highly vulnerable group of uncontacted Indians has emerged from the forest on the Peru-Brazil border and made first contact with a settled indigenous community, having fled from rampant logging in Peru. Uncontacted Indians in this region face imminent “tragedy” and “death”, according to experts.

Contact could be disastrous for the Indians, as they lack immunity to common diseases spread by outsiders. They are some of the most vulnerable people on the planet and they depend entirely on their land for their survival. Please act to protect them. It is a simple click and send, so give it a second of your time.


HONG KONG/CHINA 

Photo: Chater Road sit-in before it was dispersed. Protester in center holding up banner reading, "Occupy Central: Only demanding justice, not mercy. Defending our own city, fighting for democracy". © Amnesty International

In the early morning of 2 July, police arrested 511 people, mostly students, who took part in the sit-in at Charter Road. At 8am, the remaining approximately 50 protesters, left according to plan. Some of the 511 detained have complained that they were not provided with food and water and were not given access to legal representation for several hours during detention at the Hong Kong Police College in Wong Chuk Hang.

While the 511 have now all been released, twenty-five protesters who took part in the sit-in, most of them students, remain under investigation for “illegal assembly”, “organizing and assisting in an illegal assembly” and “obstruction in a public place”.

In the morning of 4 July, five members of Civil Human Rights Front, who organized the 1 July march were also arrested for investigation of delays during the march, mainly due to a slow-moving lead vehicle. It is uncertain whether the police will arrest more people for taking part in the protests.

Please join the call to drop all charges against peaceful demonstrators. This just a click and send.

PHILIPPINES WORKERS RIGHTS 
Seafood giant Citra Mina is the Philippines' second largest exporter of tuna, doing billions of dollars in sales to the European, Asian and North American markets under the Philfresh brand. This hugely profitable Group, however, is violating the human rights of its workers.

Please join the protest.

POLAND UNION BUSTING 

Two sets of workers are having their rights violated. The employers are the cheap LIDL supermarket chain, based in Germany, which will be familiar to many of you, and Aelia, which runs shops in airports and is part of the Lagardere Services group, based in France. Please click to support them.

Human Rights Action update Jun. 27-July 3

Miriam, human rights defender, 1947-2012

SOUTH AFRICA ASYLUM SEEKERS
No further attacks have been reported in Mamelodi, Pretoria since 12 June. However hundreds of Somali and Ethiopian refugees and asylum-seekers remain displaced and concern remains for their immediate welfare and their ability to re-integrate back into the community in the long-term. Please act.

BRAZIL

 Half a million girls and boys in Brazil are waking up to a World Cup of tears and cruelty. Instead of being in school, they’re clinging to sheets in hotel rooms, exploited and abused by a child rape trade that is spiraling out of control. Thousands of tourists and football fans are fuelling the booming rape trade while politicians turn a blind eye. This is an AVAAZ click and send. Give it a few seconds.

PERU/ARGENTINA










LAN Peru aviation mechanics, who ensure the safety of LAN and TAM planes are struggling for fair working conditions. Please support them, again a click and send.

Human Rights Action update, June 20-26

Miriam, human rights defender, 1947-2012

We can start off with a bit of good news. 
SUDAN:

Meriam Ibrahim holding her daughter Maya, who was born in prison. Her husband Daniel Wani sits to her right holding their son Martin Photograph: theguardian.com

A Christian woman on death row in a Sudanese prison has been released on the orders of a court in Khartoum following an international outcry over her sentence and treatment.

Meriam Ibrahim, 27, had been sentenced to 100 lashes for adultery and to be hanged for apostasy after refusing to renounce her faith. Her case led to an international campaign, drawing in political and religious leaders, celebrities and human rights organisations. As you can see, there is value to our outcries.

Now to the bad stuff:

TAJIKSTAN PHD STUDENT ARRESTED, HELD INCOMMUNICADO
Tajikistani national Alexander Sodiqov, who is a resident in Canada, was arrested on 16 June in eastern Tajikistan while conducting academic research. There are fears for his safety and concerns that he may face torture or other ill-treatment. Please act on his behalf.

CUBA: JOURNALIST THREATENED AND ATTACKED
 Roberto de Jesús Guerra Pérez, director of the independent news agency Hablemos Press has been receiving threatening telephone calls and was assaulted on the streets of Havana, the capital. He believes these are attempts by the Cuban authorities to dissuade him from continuing his activities as a journalist. Please register your protest over this violation of freedom of the press.

SWAZILAND: STRIKE SUPPRESSION 
Striking Swaziland sugar workers need your support! This is a click and send, so please devote a second or two.