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

Marielle Franco (picture above), a prominent human rights defender, was assassinated  on 14 March this year in Rio de Janeiro. Many of the circumstances of her murder point to collusion by the police.

Marilelle Franco  joined the Rio state legislature’s Commission for the Defence of Human Rights and Citizenship in 2007. During a decade on the Commission, Marielle supported the families of homicide victims and those of police officers killed in the line of duty, as well as working on other issues such as the right to adequate housing. In 2016, she was elected to the city council with the fifth-highest total of votes in the municipality. As a councillor, she advocated for women, LGBTI people and the black youth of the favelas.

Please click on the following link regarding an online  petition asking  for a thorough investigation into the murder of  Marielle Franco and her driver Anderson and to bring to justice those responsible
https://anistia.org.br/entre-em-acao/email/urgent-justice-marielle/