The group had an excellent talk last week By Dr Howard Davis,  lecturer in Public Law at Bournemouth University, about the Human Rights Act (HRA). As we’re sure everyone is aware, the Government plan to replace this act with a new “British ” Bill of Rights.  Howard explained some of the history that led to the creation of the Human Rights Act. He emphasized it is totally separate to the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR), which came into force in 1953 and, somewhat ironically, was largely drafted by the then Conservative government. The ECHR is a convention of the Council of Europe, not the European Union, so would still be in place if we ever left the European Union.

Howard went over some of the reasons why the Government don’t like the HRA and some of the reasons why it has been, in his view, a good law.  In particular it empowers and protects unpopular minorities.  He gave several examples of how it has been effectively used – stories you don’t tend to read about in the Daily Mail!  But he stressed that the Government can repeal the HRA and whilst the concept of a “British” Bill of Rights seems somewhat odd at a time of increased devolution, we have yet to see any plans.

An Amnesty International briefing says the Government will release a consultation document in the Autumn, presumably by the end of November. In the meantime they encourage us to keep the pressure on our MPs and add your name to the petition to the Secretary of State for Justice, Michael Gove at http://keeptheact.uk They have also come up with the…

The Human Rights Challenge!

From the latest HRA briefing
“It’s time to get creative for the Human Rights Act! We are challenging youth, student and local Amnesty groups to come up with the most creative way to visually represent the Human Rights Act. Prizes will be given to the best ones.
You can create any type of content you like but here are a few ideas to get you thinking:
 Hold a HRA-themed AmnesTea bake sale. Ask people to bake cakes based on an article in the HRA (see below for a short version of the HRA).
 Draw a picture or take photos representing a right in the HRA.
 Create a HRA banner and display it somewhere prominent in your school/ college/local community.
 Hold a HRA flashmob in your town/city/on your campus/in your playground.
 Write a short story/poem/song and recite/perform it.
Or think of something completely unique!
We will judge the winners on these criteria:
 Most creative
 Reached out to the most people/engaged new audiences
 Best representation of a HRA right/the act itself!

Winning entries will be used to help promote the campaign.
To enter you need to send us a photo or video of your action or the action itself if it’s a photo or picture. Send your entries to activism@amnesty.org.uk
Deadline: 31st January 2016

Street Collections 2015

Thanks to everyone who took part in the three street collections over the past few months. Altogether we raised £280 – down on previous years, but still a significant amount. When overseas postage now starts at £1, every little helps. So thanks again to all who participated.

Hello

Welcome to the latest news from your local Amnesty Group.
Our next meeting is Thursday, 8th October 2015 at 7.30pm at Moordown Community Centre, Bournemouth. We are delighted to announce that Dr Howard Davis, lecturer in Public Law at Bournemouth University will be giving a talk about the Human Rights Act. Whilst this has gone relatively quiet media wise in recent weeks, its still a Government commitment to replace the HRA with a ” British Bill of Rights”. Hopefully Howard will give us a good grounding on these plans and what we should do to oppose.

Late Autumn Quiz

We’ve had a succession of quiz venues closing down or being refurbished in some way after our events – hopefully this is pure coincidence! But we’ve been welcomed back by the Queen Mary Inn, West Street, Poole for our next quiz on Friday 6th November 2015, 7.30 for 8.00 sharp start.  This will follow the usual format with teams of up to 6 (can be formed on the night) and £5 a head. Sally Hawksworth has agreed to keep everyone in order and politely ask you things you don’t know.  David Rogers has promised to come up with some stunning questions.

Bournemouth Street Collection

We’ve had some difficulties with our Christchurch and Wareham street collections, so its “all hands to the pump” for our final collection of the year in Bournemouth.  Saturday 3rd October is the day we’ve been allocated.  Street collections are a very strange experience – you can get to feel totally invisible without taking anything illicit! You only need turn out for an hour or two and its very much a case of the more the merrier. We would like to get at least £250 on the day – if you are not a regular collector and would like to help, please reply to this newsletter.

Refugee Crisis

We brought your attention to the way Syrian Refugees were being largely absorbed by their neighboring countries a few months ago.  The current Amnesty International advice on the appalling scenes we see every day is to write to your MP. If you go to the main AIUK website, there is an email action to facilitate this.  If you prefer to write, here is a letter your editor recently sent to his MP which you can edit letter to MP

South America Newsletter

The group has long been associated with South America. This year we have worked on two “Individuals at Risk” case Action Files – one from Brasil and one from Venezuela (currently suspended). At the meeting in September we continued working on the Brazilian Action File, sending letters to authorities.

We have posted the latest newsletter from the South American Team, with updates on their work in the region. There are links to current actions you can take.  There is also a link, under Brazil, to a document called “You Killed my Son”.  This highlights the cycle of violence, impunity and fear that dominate the favelas – the poor suburbs – of the Rio de Janeiro – where so many of the killings are at the hands of the police. Do read this, as there are likely to be several actions around this in the run up to next years Olympics in the city.

Torture on Your Doorstep

Unfortunately this newsletter is too late if you wanted to attend last weeks London Arms Fair. At previous events Amnesty have discovered illegal equipment being advertised, as well as representatives from governments that are known human rights abusers.  The organisers got around that problem this year by barring Amnesty’s arms expert!  At our last meeting we wrote letters to Sajid Javid, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, urging him to close the loopholes in the EU laws which prohibit the trade in torture equipment.  You can find that letter here – Sajid Javid,  or send an email via the AIUK page.

Dr ‘Ali ‘Esa Mansoor al-‘Ekri, consultant surgeon, prisoner of conscience

Dr ‘Ali ‘Esa Mansoor al-‘Ekri, a consultant surgeon, is serving a five-year prison sentence in Jaw prison. He is a prisoner of conscience, jailed solely for exercising his rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly. Dr ‘Ali al-‘Ekri was arrested on 17 March 2011 in an operating room at the Salmaniya Medical Complex in Manama, Bahrain.
During interrogation he was tortured and otherwise ill-treated. In a testimony published in October 2011 he said:

“During this period I was subjected to all sorts of torture including: Beatings with metal rods, plastic hoses and wooden planks, kicking, punching and slapping with an emphasis on the head, ears and back. I was made to hear the screams of other people being tortured. I was threatened with police dogs being brought to my cell and they made me imitate the barking of dogs, they made me lick the floor, the soles of their boots and they forced me to eat faeces. I was also sexually molested and threatened with rape … I was deprived of sleep for a week and every time my eyes closed I was woken by loud shouts or cold water being poured on me …“I was forced to ’confess’ to possession of weapons, heading a militia and occupying the hospital. The next day the interrogation continued and a new interrogator was brought in who threatened to kill me with his gun.”

Dr ‘Ali al-‘Ekri initially was not able to meet his lawyer nor family, and then he only briefly met his lawyer on 6 June 2011 when he was brought to the National Safety Court of First Instance, a military court, and was transferred to Dry Dock Prison in Manama, where his torture and other ill-treatment continued. Dr ‘Ali al-‘Ekri is a consultant paediatric orthopaedic surgeon, who trained at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. He was among 48 health professionals arrested in March and April 2011 following widespread protests at the al-Farooq Junction in the capital, Manama.

Amnesty International believes that the real reason for targeting him was his vocal denunciation of the excessive force used by the armed forces against peaceful protesters during the February – March 2011 protests to the international media and exercised their rights to freedom of expression and association during marches and protests. Please send this email, with your name, to Bahrain Government officials.

Bric-a-Brac

In the past we held many stalls at Trade Union Conferences when they visited Bournemouth, plus we had our own Garden Party.  Times have changed, but as reported above, Ted and May still turn out at a variety of Fairs and Carnivals – such as in Winton, Boscombe.
So if you have any jewellery (even broken), scarves, handbags (particularly evening), books, bric-a-brac or other knick-knacks in any condition that you wish to donate, please let May Stevens know (01202) 510886. They can collect.

 

 

 

This is the most recent newsletter from AIUK’s South American Team. Incidentally “they” consist of three volunteers, who do a tremendous amount of work, as you can see. We do occasional actions at our monthly meeting, but only scratch the surface of all the work that could be followed up. Please follow up whatever actions you can.

Summary

For our featured action this month, we ask you to sign an online petition in support of a change to the law on abortion in Chile. We also draw your attention to developments in Colombia, Brazil, Venezuela, Paraguay and Bolivia. As always, we would welcome any feedback on the actions that you take.

In the last month there have been several Urgent Actions, some of which we have already circulated. We have referred to these under the respective country headings below. These are all still “live” so there is still time to take action on them if you haven’t managed to do so yet.

Our Facebook page continues to build a larger following. We now have 108 followers. If you haven’t already done so, please “like” us and encourage others to do so too:
https://www.facebook.com/amnestyinternationaluksouthamerica.

Chile

For our featured action this month we invite all your group members and supporters to sign an online petition organised by AI Chile urging the Chilean Government to change the law on abortion. At present, all abortion is banned in Chile, even if the mother’s life or health is at risk, if she has been raped or if the foetus is not viable. The Chilean Congress is currently discussing a bill to end this total ban. Amnesty considers that the bill is a welcome move towards the decriminalisation of abortion, but national and international campaigning is crucial to ensure legislation is passed and that Chile makes progress in the recognition of the rights of women and girls in line with international human rights standards. Please sign the petition here and encourage others to do so:
http://amnistia.cl/web/acciononline/call-on-chile-to-end-the-criminalization-of-abortion-in-all-circumstances/
[Read more…]

Hello

Welcome to the latest news from your local Amnesty Group.
Our next meeting is Thursday, 9th July  2015 at 7.30pm at Moordown Community Centre, Bournemouth. There will be a fair amount of planning, particularly relating to the Human Rights Act, as we don’t have a meeting in August. We will send letters relating to our Brazil Action File.

Firstly, a big apology to anyone who turned out last month just to hear Andy Moody, the China Coordinator. He cancelled at the last minute, with work difficulties. Whilst it left us somewhat frustrated (and embarrassed), it does illustrate that Amnesty’s country coordinators,  like Andy, are volunteers who do a huge amount of work to disseminate the mass of information generated in campaigning.

Human Rights Act

There isn’t much to add to last months statement, which we will repeat. There was some relief that The Queens Speech didn’t reveal immediate legislation to change the current Human Rights Act, but the Government still intends to introduce proposals to replace the Human Rights Act with a “British Bill of Rights”. It’s important that as many people as possible understand the implications of replacing this act and take action to ensure it’s saved.

Amnesty International expect that this issue will be debating widely in the press and it is vital that we are able to ensure accessible and accurate information about the about the benefits of the HRA is available to supporters and our wider community.

There is a very good resource page on the HRA here http://amnesty.org.uk/resources/human-rights-act-post-election-campaign-pack  This includes a draft letter to your MP.  Whilst intended to be sent prior to the Queen Speech debate, its not too late to send, edited accordingly.  The more your MP realizes his constituents care about the HRA the more likely they won’t just nod through whatever Mr Gove comes up with. Do include a copy “briefing for MPs” at the bottom of the resources.  Don’t forget to also add your name to the petition Amnesty is sending to Michael Gove   http://savetheact.uk/#signup-form

Free Atena, imprisoned for drawing cartoons in Iran

29-year-old Atena Farghadani is in prison for her art and peaceful activism, after she was found guilty of charges including ‘insulting members of parliament through paintings’.
In June, Iran sentenced Atena to more than 12 years in prison, after a trial that lasted just half an hour – the only ‘evidence’ against her extracted under interrogation. Call on Iran to release her now

Bournemouth Pride

We are supporting Bournemouth Pride on Saturday 11th July. We will have an information stall in the lower gardens from 12.00 to 17.00. We will also participate with a “walking float” in the main parade on Saturday. This lasts about 1 hour (11.00 – 12.00) and goes from East cliff to the Triangle. As you are probably aware, in many countries people are being persecuted for their sexual orientation – being subject to torture, imprisonment and in some cases the death penalty.

Stop Torture

Amnesty International research shows that torture in Mexico has increased by 600% since 2003. Despite making the right noises, the Mexican authorities have failed to properly tackle the issue. Claims of torture are rarely properly investigated, and scant few perpetrators are ever brought to justice. Prompt and impartial forensic medical examinations are a key step towards justice for victims.

It took a year for the authorities to offer to examine Claudia Medina Tamariz. They were due to assess her claim that she was violently beaten by marines — her bruised body providing key evidence against her torturers. But bruises heal, and torture victims like Claudia are being badly let down by medical examinations that come too late. Tell Mexico it’s time for reform. Claudia is not alone. Such examinations rarely happen and when they do, they are often years after the claims of torture — by which point many physical wounds have healed, and the experts often fail to document the psychological signs of torture.

Please take action; send this email to the Mexican Attorney General

Dr ‘Ali ‘Esa Mansoor al-‘Ekri, consultant surgeon, prisoner of conscience

Dr ‘Ali ‘Esa Mansoor al-‘Ekri, a consultant surgeon, is serving a five-year prison sentence in Jaw prison. He is a prisoner of conscience, jailed solely for exercising his rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly. Dr ‘Ali al-‘Ekri was arrested on 17 March 2011 in an operating room at the Salmaniya Medical Complex in Manama, Bahrain.
During interrogation he was tortured and otherwise ill-treated. In a testimony published in October 2011 he said:

“During this period I was subjected to all sorts of torture including: Beatings with metal rods, plastic hoses and wooden planks, kicking, punching and slapping with an emphasis on the head, ears and back. I was made to hear the screams of other people being tortured. I was threatened with police dogs being brought to my cell and they made me imitate the barking of dogs, they made me lick the floor, the soles of their boots and they forced me to eat faeces. I was also sexually molested and threatened with rape … I was deprived of sleep for a week and every time my eyes closed I was woken by loud shouts or cold water being poured on me …“I was forced to ’confess’ to possession of weapons, heading a militia and occupying the hospital. The next day the interrogation continued and a new interrogator was brought in who threatened to kill me with his gun.”

Dr ‘Ali al-‘Ekri was not able to meet his lawyer and family and he only briefly met his lawyer, on 6 June 2011 when he was brought to the National Safety Court of First Instance, a military court, and was transferred to Dry Dock Prison in Manama, where his torture and other ill-treatment continued. Dr ‘Ali al-‘Ekri is a consultant paediatric orthopaedic surgeon, who trained at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. He was among 48 health professionals arrested in March and April 2011 following widespread protests at the al-Farooq Junction in the capital, Manama.

Amnesty International believes that the real reason for targeting him was his vocal denunciation of the excessive force used by the armed forces against peaceful protesters during the February – March 2011 protests to the international media and exercised their rights to freedom of expression and association during marches and protests. Please send this email, with your name, to Bahrain Government officials.

Bric-a-Brac

In the past we held many stalls at Trade Union Conferences when they visited Bournemouth, plus we had our own Garden Party.  Times have changed, but as reported above, Ted and May still turn out at a variety of Fairs and Carnivals – such as in Winton, Boscombe and now Muscliff Funday!
So if you have any jewellery (even broken), scarves, handbags (particularly evening), books, bric-a-brac or other knick-knacks in any condition that you wish to donate, please let May Stevens know (01202) 510886. They can collect.