Type Archives:

On 10 October, as people around the world mark the World Day Against the Death Penalty, we reiterate our position that there is no convincing evidence that the death penalty has a unique deterrent effect on crime, including for drug-related crimes. This is a join position shared with ELSAM (Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy), …

Continue reading “Indonesia: Time to take steps towards abolishing death penalty”

100 days after Rodrigo Duterte became president of the Philippines, a wave of unlawful killings has already claimed more than 3,000 lives, shattering progress on human rights in the country.  “Rodrigo Duterte’s first 100 days as president have been marked by state-sanctioned violence on a truly shocking scale. His brutal crackdown on those allegedly involved …

Continue reading “Philippines: Duterte’s 100 days of carnage”

Iranian authorities must immediately repeal the conviction and sentence of Golrokh Ebrahimi Iraee, a writer and human rights activist who is due to begin serving six years in prison on charges including “insulting Islamic sanctities” through the writing of an unpublished story about the horrific practice of stoning. “The charges against Golrokh Ebrahimi Iraee are …

Continue reading “Iran: Writer facing imminent imprisonment for story about stoning”

The Afghan government and Taliban forces should urgently facilitate swift and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief into Kunduz, where thousands of civilians are trapped in increasingly dire conditions. Amnesty International has interviewed medical workers and civilians stuck in Kunduz amid fighting after the Taliban launched an assault on 3 October. Kunduz residents have described grim scenes …

Continue reading “Afghanistan: Severe shortages of food and medicine in Kunduz”

On October 2, 2012, the two men are believed to have been arrested at a government-operated checkpoint on their way from Ma’touq’s home in the Damascus suburb of Sahnaya to his office in Damascus.  Despite repeated requests for information to the public prosecutor’s office in Damascus in 2012 and 2013 by family and colleagues, Syrian …

Continue reading “Syria: Renewed calls for Khalil Ma’touq’s release on 4th anniversary of detention”

The order, passed by the District Magistrate of Srinagar and served to the publication on 2 October, states that the newspaper “contains such material and content which tends to incite acts of violence and disturb public peace and tranquillity”. The newspaper has extensively covered the violence in Kashmir in recent months, and reports of human rights …

Continue reading “Closure of Kashmir newspaper a setback to free speech”

Wealthy countries have shown a complete absence of leadership and responsibility, leaving just 10 countries, which account for less than 2.5% of world GDP, to take in 56% of the world’s refugees, said Amnesty International in a comprehensive assessment of the global refugee crisis. The report ‘Tackling the global refugee crisis: From shirking to sharing …

Continue reading “Rich nations’ self-interest means refugee crisis set to get worse, not better”

Responding to news that Turkish authorities have issued arrest warrants for 42 journalists, Amnesty International issued the following quote: “This is the latest alarming development in what is increasingly becoming a brazen purge based on political affiliation,” said Gauri van Gulik, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Europe. “By rounding up journalists the government is failing …

Continue reading “Turkey: Arrest warrants for 42 journalists a brazen attack on press freedom”