This month we have good news from Uruguay and four Urgent Actions (Colombia 2, Venezuela and Ecuador 1 each). We report on the possible consequences for human rights of the newly elected presidents of Brazil and Colombia and the continued harassment, threats and killings of environmental rights defenders and indigenous people in Colombia, Chile and Ecuador.

COLOMBIA

Amnesty International has issued an Urgent Action on behalf of the Wayúu indigenous people of La Guajra department. The National Indigenous Organization of Colombia reports that on 10 October several threatening pamphlets against Wayúu indigenous organizations defending human rights were found on the streets and railroad tracks of Uribia in the department of La Guajira. The pamphlets state that organizations defending human rights in the department of La Guajira “hinder the development of the country” and threaten that they will be attacked. Please download the UA here and write to the authorities.

AI has also issued an Urgent Action on behalf of Alfamir Castillo, a member of the Committee of Women Sugar Cane Harvesters. In the past 2 weeks she has received death threats. Alfamir is seeking justice into the extrajudicial execution of her son Darbey Mosquera Castillo by members of the Counter Guerrilla Battalion 57 Martires de Puerres of the VIII Brigade of the Colombian army. This extrajudicial execution was part of the Colombian “false positives” scandal, in which members of the armed forces unlawfully killed thousands of civilians, most of whom were presented as “guerrilla killed in combat”. Please write to the authorities in the attachment.

Amnesty welcomes a new decision by the Constitutional Court on abortion rights. Prior to 2006, abortion was illegal in Colombia. Since 2006, abortion in Colombia is legal in the following circumstances:

1. The continuation of the pregnancy constitutes a danger to the life or health of the mother;
2. The existence of life-threatening foetal malformations;
3. The pregnancy is the result of rape, non-consensual artificial insemination or incest.

However, clinics raise barriers to avoid complying with the law. Several organisations, including an amicus curiae brief by Amnesty International, contested this practice. The Constitutional Court maintained its 2006 ruling on abortion, adding that Congress should legislate to eliminate the barriers that some clinics use to prevent legal abortions and to ensure that women have access to the health system for legal abortions. [Read more…]

Welcome to the latest newsletter. The next meeting  is tomorrow,  Thursday 11th October 2017, 7.30pm  at Moordown Community Centre. On the agenda – Quiz night, Castlepoint or Bournemouth Centre?, Write 4 Rights, planning 2019 and letter writing This is now organised for Friday November 16h, 7.30 for 8.00 prompt at the Brunswick Hotel, 199 Malmesbury Park Road, Charminster, Bournemouth BH8 8PX. For those unfamiliar, our quizzes are informal but competitive! Teams of up to 6, entrance £5 a person. Due to popularity, and past overcrowding we are now obliged to limit total numbers to 50 via a “virtual ticket” system. Tickets are not yet “live” – keep an eye on your inbox for the link over the next few days. World Day Against the Death Penalty Today, October 10th, is World Day Against the Death Penalty. Amnesty has released a powerful six-minute video showing the impact of the death penalty on families in Belarus, the only country in Europe that still carries out executions. Read more on our blog. South America Newsletter The October edition of the South America Regional Newsletter is now on the blog. Our group has focused on South America since its inception, which is also reflected in our case files – see below. The 3 volunteers who run the network for AIUK – and produce the newsletter – do a huge amount of work on our behalf. Protect Human Rights Defenders Since January 2012, more than 72 countries have passed laws that are used to restrict basic human rights like free speech and the right to protest. The people standing up for their rights are attacked in the press, harassed, imprisoned and sometimes even face death.Since 1998 at least 3,500 people have been killed for their human rights work. 2017 was the deadliest year yet with the death toll climbing to over 300. Who are human rights defenders? They are ordinary people like you and me. They are mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers. They could be doctors, farmers, admin assistants or unemployed. What unites them is their burning desire to protect their families and communities. They put themselves on the front line to stand up for the rights that many of us take for granted. We need to stand with them and let them know they’re not alone. What are we doing? In 2017 Amnesty International launched a global campaign called BRAVE, with the goal of protecting human rights defenders (HRDs) across the world. We’re fighting for people and communities, connecting activists around the UK and teaching kids about HRDs in schools. We’ve seen some amazing success already. For example, this year Amnesty campaigned for the release of a Cambodian activist called Tep Vanny. As mentioned in the last newsletter, Tep was pardoned and released from prison in August. Another crucial part of this work is asking the UK Government to urgently respond to the unprecedented level of attacks on HRDs by making this a priority for its human rights work abroad. We want our MPs to take action for HRDs by pressing for a better response from the UK government. You can help by emailing your MP today. https://www.amnesty.org.uk/actions/uk-protect-human-rights-defenders

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To coincide with World Day Against the Death Penalty today, Amnesty has released a powerful six-minute video showing the impact of the death penalty on families in Belarus, the only country in Europe that still carries out executions.

The video, based on the case of Gennadii Yakovitskii who was executed in Belarus in 2016, reveals the torment of his family as they struggled to understand what was happening.

Yakovitskii’s daughter Sasha explains that she hadn’t even known that Belarus had capital punishment in its justice system until her father – accused of murder – was actually in court.

Ten months later, Yakovitskii was executed – like all death prisoners in Belarus, shot in the back of the head after being forced to kneel down by prison guards – without either his family or his legal representatives being informed in advance. His family merely received a letter in the post confirming his death. They were also told they would not be able to collect his body and could not know how his body had been disposed of as this was “classified information”.

At least two people have been executed in Belarus so far this year, while four others remain on death row. [Read more…]

Amnesty has issued a new report on public security in Venezuela, the UN Human Rights Council has passed a resolution on the crisis and this year’s Embassy Crawl included a stop at the Venezuelan Embassy.  In Colombia, environmental rights defenders continue to face threats, paramilitary groups are extending their presence, peace negotiations with the ELN have come to a standstill and the arrival of large numbers of Venezuelans fleeing their country is exacerbating tensions between the two governments.

Elections are imminent in Brazil and questions are being asked about the human rights credentials of some of the candidates, including the front-runner for President; there is concern about growing violence in Rio and against Afro-descendants; and Amnesty is unimpressed by the slow progress of the investigation into the murder of Marielle Franco, whose partner recently visited AIUK’s offices.  In Peru, a court ruling is imminent on a bid to reverse the presidential pardon granted to ex-President Fujimori; and charges have been dropped against 16 Human Rights Defenders.

In Chile, Human Rights Defender Karine Riquelme has faced further intimidation.  15 countries have signed the regional Escazú Agreement, which seeks to protect environmental rights; and Amnesty has called on all countries in the region to assume their responsibilities towards Venezuelans seeking to escape the crisis in their country.

VENEZUELA

In a new report, This is no way to live: Public security and the right to life in Venezuela, Amnesty has highlighted the responsibility of the Venezuelan state for violations of the right to life and physical integrity of thousands of people.  Amnesty reports that the state is not only failing to guarantee the life and security of the population in the context of alarming levels of insecurity, but it is also implementing repressive measures using military methods, supposedly to tackle crime. The result has been more than 8,200 extrajudicial executions between 2015 and June 2017.

On 27 September, the United Nations’ Human Rights Council passed a resolution to address the unprecedented human rights crisis unfolding in Venezuela. Amnesty has welcomed the resolution.

On 29 September the annual Embassy Crawl, organised by the Lambeth Group, included a stop at the Venezuelan Embassy to raise the case of Geraldine Chacón, a human rights defender, detained in February and conditionally released four months later.  She must register at a local court every 30 days and is not allowed to leave the country. Amnesty is demanding her unconditional freedom and for her case to be formally closed so that she can carry on with her valuable work as a defender of human rights.  Outside the Embassy and in Graham’s absence, David introduced the case to those taking part in the crawl. [Read more…]

Welcome to the latest newsletter. We hope you enjoyed the summer. The next meeting  is on Thursday 13th September 2018, 7.30pm  at Moordown Community Centre. On the agenda:-  letter writing, planning future events and an update on campaigns.

Some Good News August has been a good month, seeing the release of two of the human rights defenders we featured in this newsletter. Taner Kilic, one of the founding members of Amnesty Turkey and its Chairman, was released on bail on 16 August 2018, after 432 days in jail. Taner was arrested on 6 June 2017 and was sent to jail three days later charged with ‘membership of a terrorist organisation’ – a ridiculous claim made over and over again by the Turkish government to justify its attempt to silence human rights defenders. On 20 August, following a royal pardon, Cambodian human rights defender Tep Vanny  was released from prison having endured two years behind bars (pictured above). Tep is known for her campaigning against the forced eviction of her community from Boeung Kak Lake, Phnom Penh. A construction project on the site has seen thousands of families lose their homes. Very sadly, Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s three-day leave from prison was not extended, however, Amnesty International will continue to fight until she is permanently released. Please take action here… https://www.amnesty.org.uk/actions/help-get-nazanin-zaghari-ratcliffe-home

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