Human Rights Action Update June 23-29

Miriam, human rights defender, 1947-2012

EMBASSY FINDER 

Survival International provides a useful tool for locating the embassy of any country in your country.
http://embassy.goabroad.com/ You can also find embassies at this link. https://embassy-finder.com/

CHARITY CORNER 

In the wake of the closing of the Titan and Pollyanna blogs, we are continuing the charity corner here.
This week, we are referring you to Reporters without Borders, an international organization devoted to freedom of expression and information around the world. We quote the mission statement:

•     To continuously monitor attacks on freedom of information worldwide;

•     To denounce any such attacks in the media;

•     To act in cooperation with governments to fight censorship and laws aimed at restricting freedom of information;

•     To morally and financially assist persecuted journalists, as well as their families.

•     To offer material assistance to war correspondents in order to enhance their safety.

   
Please go to the site and donate to the extent of your ability.

SPECIAL EMERGENCY CALL 

Mercy Corps are pleading for help with the supply of clean water in the refugee camps in Jordan and Lebanon where those who fled the conflict in Syria are living in terrible conditions in the heat of this summer. Please donate.

Refugee families gather water from a communal water stand at Zaatari camp. Water is only provided once every four days. All photos: Sumaya Agha for Mercy Corps

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

Indigenous tribes do not simply die out. They are killed by the actions of so-called civilized nations. Survival International provides a long list of cases in which a letter from you can and will make a difference. Please open this link and write at least one letter. This link will be a permanent feature on our blog and we would be grateful if you gave it a bit of attention each week. We suggest going down the list in the order given. The letters are pre-written for you. All you need to do is send them. It would be nice also if a donation to Survival International could be forthcoming.
This week we call your attention to the Guarani people of Brazil who suffer at the hands of violent ranchers. For the Guarani, land is the origin of all life. But violent invasions by ranchers have devastated their territory and nearly all of their land has been stolen. Guarani children starve and their leaders have been assassinated.

Guarani children work on the sugar cane fields which now cover much of their people’s ancestral lands in Mato Grosso do Sul state

Hundreds of Guarani men, women and children have committed suicide. Please take the steps recommended at the end of the page.

THE STRUGGLE AGAINST SLAVERY  

We have added a new section to the blog in order to join the struggle against slavery worldwide. We refer you to the site of Walk Free where you can find a large number of campaigns against manifestations of slavery in different countries. The number of people living in slavery is of the order of 35 million, which indicates the extent of the problem. We suggest that you look up the Fair Trade movement in your country and make an effort to avoid buying slave-produced products.
 Look for this logo:

This week we call your attention to the issue of women trafficking in Argentina. A typical story goes like this:
"Aged 23, Carolina was promised a career as an actress after losing her job at a supermarket in Colombia. Instead, when she arrived in Argentina, she found she had been tricked and was trafficked into sexual exploitation." 
Carolina (not her real name) is one of  77,300 people estimated to be trapped in modern slavery in Argentina. The government claims to be about to do something, but despite donations and protests by thousands of women, nothing has been done. Please register your protest.

INDONESIA 

Filipino national Mary Jane Veloso was scheduled for execution for alleged drug smuggling, in April, but was granted a last-minute stay of execution.  Please call upon the President of stop her execution.

MOZAMBIQUE 

Economist Carlos Nuno Castel-Branco and newspaper editor Fernando Mbanze have been charged with crimes against the security of the state in relation to a Facebook post on poor governance in Mozambique. Their trial begins on 3 August. Please call upon the government to drop the charges against them since their only "offense" was use of freedom of expression

GAMBIA 

Alagie Abdoulaye Ceesay, the managing director of the independent Gambian radio station Teranga FM, was rearrested on 17 July by members of the Gambian security forces after being abducted and released earlier on in the month. He has since been held incommunicado without access to his family or a lawyer. Please join the call for his release.

USA CALIFORNIA 

Urge Gov. Jerry Brown to commute Kevin Cooper's death sentence.  There exists great doubt of his guilt in the murder for which he was convicted.

Human Rights Action Update, July 16-22

Miriam, human rights defender, 1947-2012

EMBASSY FINDER 

Survival International provides a useful tool for locating the embassy of any country in your country.
http://embassy.goabroad.com/ You can also find embassies at this link. https://embassy-finder.com/

CHARITY CORNER 

In the wake of the closing of the Titan and Pollyanna blogs, we are continuing the charity corner here.This week, we are referring you to ZanaAfrica. This nonprofit, founded  by American Megan Mukuria,  deals with what some may consider a delicate subject. It has to do with keeping African girls from losing six weeks or more of school each year because of menstruation. The fund is supported by the Gates Foundation, Grand Challenges Canada and other charitable organizations. Please donate what you can. The goal is to provide up to 150,000 sanitary pads to East African girls in 2016. Their mission statement is clear:
We envision a world where every woman and girl is able to access opportunities necessary to thrive:
–confidence from affordable feminine hygiene products;
–health in body and environment;
–knowledge through education;
–dignity through work.

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

Indigenous tribes do not simply die out. They are killed by the actions of so-called civilized nations. Survival International provides a long list of cases in which a letter from you can and will make a difference. Please open this link and write at least one letter. This link will be a permanent feature on our blog and we would be grateful if you gave it a bit of attention each week. We suggest going down the list in the order given. The letters are pre-written for you. All you need to do is send them. It would be nice also if a donation to Survival International could be forthcoming.
This week we call your attention to the health problems of the aboriginal people of Australia. We link you to a letter to the Prime Minister calling on him and his government to give the aboriginal people greater control over their lives and health issues.

THE STRUGGLE AGAINST SLAVERY  

We have added a new section to the blog in order to join the struggle against slavery worldwide. We refer you to the site of Walk Free where you can find a large number of campaigns against manifestations of slavery in different countries. The number of people living in slavery is of the order of 35 million, which indicates the extent of the problem. We suggest that you look up the Fair Trade movement in your country and make an effort to avoid buying slave-produced products.
 Look for this logo:




This week we call your attention to the issue of child slavery in crisis situations. In particular, we ask your support for a unique opportunity to help more children living in dangerous areas, such as South Sudan,  access education and find the support they need. A Global Fund for Education in Emergencies has been set up to help provide education to children in emergency areas across the world, supporting children in the very worst situations. Please open the link and call upon world leaders to step forward to support this unique school.

ISRAEL 

Let us start at home this week. The New Israel Fund is calling for people to take a stand against the rising racism in the country. They inform us:
Israel has a serious racism problem that is quickly building to a crisis. Just consider these three tough facts:

   — Since 2009, more than 43 churches, mosques, and monasteries have been torched or desecrated in Israel and the West Bank – without a single perpetrator indicted.

   — According to a recent survey, 70.2% of Israelis believe the government isn’t doing enough to combat racism.

   — Another survey of Israelis found that 35% of Jewish students and 27% of Arab students reported they have never interacted with peers from the other group.
  
   Please add your name to the call for a firm stand and struggle against racism.
  

BURKINA FASO

Please step up to break the barriers to contraception for women and girls in Burkina Faso. Please join the petition to the President of Burkina Faso to to break the barriers to contraception for women and girls by:

-       Making  contraception free for all women and girls in Burkina Faso

-       Improving the accessibility of  sexual health information and services for women and girls

-       Guaranteeing their right to decide if and when to have children and if so, how many

USA 

Sandra Bland  was pulled over  for changing lanes without signaling, a routine traffic stop.   She died in police custody. Go to #JusticeforSandraBland and add your tweet to the protest. You can also sign a petition here. This is a terrible case of police racist brutality and cannot be left for investigation by the perpetrators.

EGYPT 

Mahmoud Hussein is a 19-year-old student languishing in an Egyptian jail for wearing a “Nation Without Torture” t-shirt and a scarf marking the “25 January Revolution”. He was arrested on his way home from a protest against military rule and the Muslim Brotherhood more than 500 days ago, and has not been charged or tried for any offenses. He has been tortured and ill-treated in detention and forced into signing a confession. Please join the call for his release.

SYRIA 

The American journalist Austin Tice disappeared in Syria in 2012. He is alive. Help us to bring him safely home. Please join the protest at #FreeAustinTice and sign the petition.

PANAMA 

Support SABMiller Panama workers on strike for bargaining rights. Please join the fight for basic collective bargaining rights on behalf of workers at  Cervecería Nacional, Panama's beer and soft-drink subsidiary of global brewing giant SABMiller, who have been on indefinite strike since July 10 in a conflict over basic trade union rights.

TURKEY 

Mulberry is a British company that produces luxury goods like leather bags.  It proudly proclaims its commitment to "corporate social responsibility".
On its website you can read that Mulberry insists that its "suppliers should respect the rights of employees to join or form an association of their choosing (such as workers council, union, or workers association)".

Sounds great, doesn't it?

Except that it's not true.

One of Mulberry's key suppliers, SF Leather in Turkey, is now engaged in a campaign of relentless union-busting. Please raise your voice in protest

Human Rights Action Update July 9-15

Miriam, human rights defender, 1947-2012

EMBASSY FINDER 

Survival International provides a useful tool for locating the embassy of any country in your country.
http://embassy.goabroad.com/ You can also find embassies at this link. https://embassy-finder.com/

We wish all our Muslim friends and readers Eid Sa'id for Eid el Fitr that starts Thursday night.

CHARITY CORNER 

In the wake of the closing of the Titan and Pollyanna blogs, we are continuing the charity corner here.
This week, we are referring you to the Malala Fund. As you all know, Malala Yousafzai was shot by the Taliban for standing up for the right of girls to be educated. She turns 18 this week (born July 12, 1997) and a donation to her fund would be most appropriate. Some statistics--   
62 MILLION Number of girls out of school around the world.    
3 YEARS Average time spent in education by the poorest girls
70 COUNTRIES Where girls have faced violence for trying to go to school.

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

Indigenous tribes do not simply die out. They are killed by the actions of so-called civilized nations. Survival International provides a long list of cases in which a letter from you can and will make a difference. Please open this link and write at least one letter. This link will be a permanent feature on our blog and we would be grateful if you gave it a bit of attention each week. We suggest going down the list in the order given. The letters are pre-written for you. All you need to do is send them. It would be nice also if a donation to Survival International could be forthcoming.

This week we call your attention to the natives of the Amazon valley. They are demanding that their right to remain uncontacted be respected by outsiders. Contact brings diseases to which they have no immunity and the result is death. We quote the experience of Sydney Possuelo, former head of Brazil’s indigenous affairs department FUNAI, who recounts, “I believed it’d be possible to make contact with no pain or deaths, I organized one of the best equipped fronts that FUNAI ever had. I prepared everything… I set up a system with doctors and nurses. I stocked with medicines to combat the epidemics which always follow. I had vehicles, a helicopter, radios and experienced personnel. ‘I won’t let a single Indian die,’ I thought. And the contact came, the diseases arrived, the Indians died.”
Please act as requested in the site.

Uncontacted Indians in Amazonia make their views clear.

© G. Miranda/FUNAI/Survival, 2008

THE STRUGGLE AGAINST SLAVERY  

We have added a new section to the blog in order to join the struggle against slavery worldwide. We refer you to the site of Walk Free where you can find a large number of campaigns against manifestations of slavery in different countries. The number of people living in slavery is of the order of 35 million, which indicates the extent of the problem. We suggest that you look up the Fair Trade movement in your country and make an effort to avoid buying slave-produced products.
 Look for this logo:



This week we call your attention to the UN and   Sustainable Development Goals project. Unbelievably, ending modern slavery is not yet a clear priority in the proposed Sustainable Development Goals — a transformative action plan which will help shape governments’ policies for years to come. Please call on UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to prioritize ending slavery in this project.

USA 

A Senate report on torture revealed a hideous story of torture by the CIA. The Justice Department is keeping the full report sealed away in an envelope, apparently unread – even though it contains information about potential violations of federal and international law. The United States has a duty to investigate and hold those responsible for these crimes accountable. Please sign the petition calling for the Justice Department to read the report and call the perpetrators of the atrocities to account.

RUSSIA 

Yevgeniy Vitishko is a prominent member of the environmental organization, Environmental Watch for the North Caucasus (Ecologicheskaya Vakhta po Severnomu Kavkazu). He and his fellow activists have actively been involved in protests over deforestation, construction and illegal fencing in protected areas in Krasnodar Region. In the run-up to the Sochi Winter Olympics, Yevgeniy Vitishko, as well as other members of his organization, were continuously subjected to a harassment campaign by the Russian authorities, including repeated arrests and brief detentions, personal searches, police questioning of the activists themselves and their close relatives, and unofficial warnings from police and security officials to abstain from protesting during the Sochi Winter Olympics.
He has been repeatedly arrested and imprisoned on ludicrous trumped up charges such as using foul language at a bus stop. giving a piece of his clothing to a cold fellow-prisoner, sleeping at an unauthorized time, and "negligent attitude towards weeding tomatoes". Now his case is coming up before an appeals court with a request for mitigation. Please act on his behalf. Thanks to Guy for bringing this case to our attention.

CHINA

At least 24 human rights lawyers and activists have been detained or are missing in China in an unprecedented nationwide crackdown. Many more have been questioned by police and at least three law firms have also been searched. Please act for them.

IRAN 

Esmail Abdi, a leader of the Iranian Teachers' Trade Association, was arrested on 27 June following his attempt to obtain a visa to attend the 7th Education International World Congress in Ottawa, Canada in late July. He is active in the struggle to improve the status of teachers in Iran, many of whom are paid so poorly that they are below the poverty line. Please join the action for him.

Human Rights Action Update, July 2-8

Miriam, human rights defender, 1947-2012

EMBASSY FINDER 

Survival International provides a useful tool for locating the embassy of any country in your country.
http://embassy.goabroad.com/ You can also find embassies at this link. https://embassy-finder.com/

CHARITY CORNER 

In the wake of the closing of the Titan and Pollyanna blogs, we are continuing the charity corner here.  This week, we are referring you to Keep a Child Alive whose aim is to realize the end of AIDS for children and their families, by combating the physical, social and economic impacts of HIV. The full mission statement:
Keep a Child Alive is dedicated to providing life-saving anti-retroviral treatment, care and support services to children and families whose lives have been affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa and India by directly engaging the global public in the fight against AIDS. What started as a very personal incident between two mothers has become a tremendous initiative for change. With over 4,000 children and family members on ARV treatment, over 250,000 people under our care, three orphanages receiving funding, and major clinic sites in expansion, Keep a Child Alive is making a direct impact in the lives of so many who need help.
It has a high rating from Charity Navigator. Please donate whatever you can.

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

Indigenous tribes do not simply die out. They are killed by the actions of so-called civilized nations. Survival International provides a long list of cases in which a letter from you can and will make a difference. Please open this link and write at least one letter. This link will be a permanent feature on our blog and we would be grateful if you gave it a bit of attention each week. We suggest going down the list in the order given. The letters are pre-written for you. All you need to do is send them. It would be nice also if a donation to Survival International could be forthcoming.
This week we call your attention to the Matses. There are around 2,200 Matsés living on the Peru-Brazil frontier in the Amazon rainforest. The Yaquerana river runs through the heart of their land, marking the international border that separates their home. But to the Matsés, the streams, floodplains, and white-sand forests make up an ancestral territory that is shared by the entire tribe. They are now under threat from a Canadian oil company. In 2012, Canadian oil company Pacific Rubiales began to explore for oil on land inhabited by the Matsés and neighboring uncontacted Indians.

The company’s oil block ‘135’ lies directly over an area that has been proposed as a reserve to protect the uncontacted tribes.

The $36 million project will see hundreds of seismic lines cut through 700km2 of forest and wells drilled in search of oil, affecting the headwaters of three major rivers that are essential to the Matsés’ livelihoods.


Though the Matsés have repeatedly opposed the company’s work on their land, their protests have been ignored.

A second block ‘137’ has been drawn up directly over the Matsés’ land title. Despite the Indians’ protests, Pacific Rubiales is putting huge pressure on the tribe to begin work. Please act to help them as shown at the end of the page on the Matses.

THE STRUGGLE AGAINST SLAVERY  We have added a new section to the blog in order to join the struggle against slavery worldwide. We refer you to the site of Walk Free where you can find a large number of campaigns against manifestations of slavery in different countries. The number of people living in slavery is of the order of 35 million, which indicates the extent of the problem. We suggest that you look up the Fair Trade movement in your country and make an effort to avoid buying slave-produced products.  Look for this logo:


This week we ask you to stand in support of an antislavery activist. Andy Hall is a British campaigner with a special focus on the rights of migrant workers. Two years ago he undertook an investigation on behalf of Finnwatch into potential labor abuses at Natural Fruit, part of NatGroup, a Thai company that processes pineapples and supplies retailers around the world.

Andy Hall

Instead of addressing the allegations published in Finnwatch’s report, Natural Fruit decided to try and silence Andy with lawsuits. He could now face 7 years in prison and $10 million in legal damages for his investigations. Please join the call for justice for Andy Hall. His case could open a floodgate of abuses of Thai workers.

COLOMBIA 

Journalist and human rights defender Ms Claudia Julieta Duque has been subjected to intensifying levels of intimidation and harassment in advance of the trial that began on 24 June 2015 in her case against members of the now dissolved Departamento Administrativo de Seguridad – DAS (Administrative Department of Security). Former high-ranking members of the DAS will stand trial accused of the aggravated psychological torture of the human rights defender. - Read  more. More information is available in a statement of the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights foundation. Please write to President Santos at the address given in the AWID page. A template letter is also provided there.

CHINA 

Human rights activist Liu Shaoming is being held by police, and the authorities have prevented his lawyer from meeting with him. He is at risk of torture and other ill-treatment. Liu Shaoming was detained shortly after publishing a piece online about his experience during the Tiananmen crackdown in 1989 and his work as a labor rights activist in China. Please act to gain his freedom.

INDIA 

Two young men were arrested on 13 June in Tamil Nadu, India, after protesting the arrest of five people for offenses including allegedly belonging to a banned Maoist armed group. They are now being held under the same charge, which carries a possible sentence of life imprisonment. They were denied bail on 26 June and continue to be held in judicial custody. Please protest this violation of human rights and free expression.