Press releases
Russia must stop persecution of rights activists - 8 December 2009
The Russian authorities must stop persecuting human rights activists and instead channel their efforts into investigating those responsible for their murdersPhilippines : Limit Martial Law and disband paramilitaries - 8 December 2009
The Philippine authorities should immediately establish a clear and short timetable for an end to martial law in the country’s restive Maguindanao province and dismantle armed paramilitary groups throughout the country, Amnesty International said in Manila today. Key human rights, including the right to challenge the legality of detention, must not be violated or restricted under any circumstances.
On 5 December President Gloria M. Arroyo declared martial law in Maguindanao and suspended the writ of habeas corpus in the wake of the massacre of 57 people there, including more than 30 journalists. Andal Ampatuan, Jr., of the powerful Ampatuan clan that has dominated politics in Maguindanao for much of the past decade, was recently arrested and charged with the murders.
Iran: Security forces condemned for protest crackdown - 7 December 2009
Amnesty International condemned the excessive use of force by Iranian security forces that saw scores of protesters beaten and detained during student-led demonstrations on Monday.Sudan must end violent crackdown on protestors - 7 December 2009
Amnesty International has strongly condemned a violent crackdown by Sudanese security forces on political protests in Khartoum on Monday.France must not deport terror suspect to Algeria - 4 December 2009
France must not deport a man convicted of terrorist acts to Algeria where he may be at risk of incommunicado detention and torture or other ill-treatmentIraq: Over 900 people on death row face imminent execution - 4 December 2009
The Iraqi authorities must immediately stop the executions of more than 900 people on death row who have exhausted their legal appeals and could be put to death at any time, Amnesty International said.
The prisoners, who include 17 women, are said to have had their death sentences ratified by the Presidential Council, the final step before executions are carried out.
At least 120 people are known to have been executed in Iraq so far this year.
“In a country which already has one of the highest rates of execution in the world, the prospect that this statistic may rise significantly is disturbing indeed,” said Philip Luther, Deputy Director of Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Programme.
China: Halt death sentences against Uighurs - 3 December 2009
China’s supreme court must carefully review reported death sentences imposed today on five individuals by a court in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR) of northwest China.
Thirteen people were sentenced by the court in the city of Urumqi, in connection with deadly violence that erupted after a police crackdown on Uighur protesters on 5 July.
Five of these were sentenced to death, and another two were sentenced to life imprisonment.
Somalia : Civilian deaths in hotel explosion condemned - 3 December 2009
Amnesty International condemns the unlawful killing of civilians in an explosion today at a student graduation ceremony in Shamo hotel, Mogadishu.
The blast appears to have occurred as people had gathered to celebrate the graduation of medical students from Banadir University in the hotel, in a district of the capital Mogadishu which remains under the control of Somalia’s Transitional Federal Government. No one has claimed responsibility for the blast.
