Amnesty International Australia
Defending Human Rights
The Queensland Government has this afternoon admitted a delay in the process of moving 17-year-olds currently held in adult facilities to youth detention centres. In response, Roxanne Moore, Indigenous Rights Campaigner at Amnesty International Australia, said: “This is an unacceptable delay by the Queensland Government. This legislation was passed in 2016 and the Government has …
Continue reading “Queensland: Unacceptable delay in moving 17 yr-olds out of harsh adult prisons”
Amnesty International has welcomed today’s commitments from the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) and the Opposition to a national change to our youth justice system. These commitments followed the Federal Government’s response to the Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory. “The COAG’s First Ministers acknowledgement that the Royal …
Responding to news that the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) will open a preliminary examination into the “war on drugs” in the Philippines, James Gomez, Amnesty International’s Director of Southeast Asia and the Pacific said: “This announcement marks a crucial moment for justice and accountability in the Philippines and offers a glimmer of …
Prime Minister Turnbull has wilfully ignored the cries of hundreds of children still being abused in Australian youth prisons outside the NT, by failing to show national leadership in the response to the Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory. “The Federal Government’s response has supported in principle its …
“An arms embargo and targeted sanctions are urgently needed to send a message that these violations will not be tolerated. There is also an urgent need for unfettered and sustained humanitarian access throughout northern Rakhine State.” – Matthew Wells, Senior Crisis Advisor at Amnesty International The Myanmar security forces’ devastating campaign against the Rohingya population …
Reacting to the news that the Cambodian Supreme Court today upheld the conviction and a 30 months’ prison sentence for land rights activist Tep Vanny, James Gomez, Amnesty International’s Director for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, said: “With today’s ruling, Cambodia’s judiciary has once again failed to prove that it can act independently, choosing to …
The Syrian government’s use of internationally banned chemical weapons was laid bare once again on 4 February when a chlorine gas attack on the town of Saraqeb left 11 people in need of emergency treatment, according to testimony gathered by Amnesty International. The Syria Civil Defence said that barrel bombs containing chlorine gas had …
Continue reading “Syria: Witness testimony reveals details of illegal chemical attack on Saraqeb”
New research by Amnesty International has revealed the alarming impact that abuse and harassment on social media are having on women in Australia, with women reporting stress, anxiety, or panic attacks as a result of these harmful online experiences. The organisation commissioned an Ipsos MORI online poll which looked at the experiences of 502 women …
Continue reading “Australia: Poll reveals alarming impact of online abuse against women”
Responding to the attacks in the media and online of Tarneen Onus-Williams, Amnesty International’s Director of Communications and External Affairs Claire O’Rourke said: “Amnesty International is concerned that the nature of the abuse levelled at young Yigar Gunditjmara and Bindal woman Tarneen Onus-Williams, regarding a phrase in her speech on 26 January, has been of …
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New centres offer less protection than previous camp New centres do not meet refugees’ basic needs Refugees live with constant fear of violence Australia must end policy of cruelty and neglect The Australian government’s abandonment of hundreds of refugees and asylum seekers in Papua New Guinea is a form of prolonged punishment, Amnesty International said …
Continue reading “Manus Island: Australia abandons refugees to a life of danger”