By Tshidi Leatswe Yesterday, 25 November, was Madalitso* Zulu’s 36th birthday and his third one behind bars at a Zambian Prison. Madalitso, a health professional, did nothing wrong, but is locked up. He is serving a 15-year prison sentence with hard labour simply because he identifies as gay in a country that wants to dictate…
Reacting to the new prison sentence for Russian activist Aleksei Gorinov, Natalia Zviagina, Amnesty International’s Russia Director, said: “The outrageous new sentence for Aleksei Gorinov, a brave man whose only ‘crime’ is publicly voicing his disdain for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, is a bone-chilling reminder of the lengths to which the Kremlin will go to…
Growing up, Pannir’s childhood was filled with hobbies such as football, running, video games, music, and fashion. We frequently attended church camps and youth activities, creating lasting bonds and memories. I remember Deepavali nights were spent in my auntie’s amazing village, surrounded by fruit trees and rivers, waking up to the sweet sounds of birdsong.…
On international Women Human Rights Defenders Day, a coalition of human rights organizations are launching a new set of guidelines for governments to protect frontline abortion rights defenders, including healthcare providers. Amnesty International, the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), Ipas, MSI Reproductive Choices, the Organisation Pour Le Dialogue Pour L’Avortement Sécurisé (ODAS Centre) and the…
Responding to Russia’s latest large-scale missile and drone assault on Ukraine, Marie Struthers, Amnesty International’s Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, said: “This morning, Russia unleashed one of its most extensive missile attacks on Ukraine in months, alongside numerous drones, making already insufferable conditions even more unbearable. The devastation caused by this and previous…
Amnesty International published new research today exposing the arbitrary detention, torture, ill treatment, and gross violations of the right to a fair trial of six children in Venezuela committed between 29 and 31 July, during the post-electoral crackdown on dissent by Nicolas Maduro’s government. Four months on, at least 198 children remain subjected to either…
Saudi Arabia’s authorities must immediately and unconditionally release people who have been detained and convicted solely for exercising their right to freedom of expression online as the country prepares to host the annual United Nations Internet Governance Forum (IGF), Amnesty International said today. The forum, which runs from 15 to 19 December, includes a focus…
Nigerian police used excessive force against protesters during the nationwide #Endbadgovernance demonstrations between 1-10 August, killing at least 24 people in the states of: Borno, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Jigawa and Niger, Amnesty International said in a briefing published today. “Bloody August: Nigerian Government’s Violent Crackdown on #Endbadgovernance Protests” documents the violent crackdown on peaceful protests…
Philippine authorities are arbitrarily detaining thousands of people in so-called “drug treatment and rehabilitation centres” where they are held against their will and subjected to a range of human rights violations, Amnesty International said today in a new report on the country’s ongoing “war on drugs”. Submit and surrender: The harms of arbitrary drug detention in the Philippines documents…