URGENT ACTION APPEAL
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa33509.pdf
11 December 2009
UA 335/09 - Fear for safety
RUSSIAN FEDERATION Adnan Ibragimov (m)
The lives of Adnan Ibragimov, a 54-year-old man from Chechnya in the Russian Federation, and his family are in danger after he began pursuing a criminal investigation into the apparent enforced disappearance of his nephew, Said-Salekh Ibragimov.
On the morning of 21 October, 19-year old Said-Salekh Ibragimov left his home in the village of Goity in Urus-Martan district, to go to the nearby city of Grozny, the Chechen capital. At around 2pm, security forces personnel, believed to be soldiers and police officers, raided and searched his house. Said-Salekh Ibragimov’s wife and his 80- year old disabled grandmother were in the house at the time. Alerted by other family members, Adnan Ibragimov came to the house from his home in Grozny. Police arrested him and Said-Salekh Ibragimov's mother, accusing them of helping members of illegal armed groups. Police showed them the dead body of an alleged insurgent who, according to the police, had been hiding in their house. Adnan Ibragimov and Said-Salekh Ibragimov's mother claimed that they knew nothing about it. The two were taken to Urus-Martan district police station where they were questioned, before being released several hours later. The house where Said-Salekh Ibragimov lived with his family was burnt down. Villagers alleged that the house started burning when local police officers were nearby.
Later that day, police officers telephoned Adnan Ibragimov, demanding that he return to the police station. When he arrived there, he was taken to the headquarters of one of the police battalions in Grozny, where officers showed him Said-Salekh Ibragimov. According to Adnan Ibragimo's testimony, his nephew had been badly beaten. The police told Adnan Ibragimov that his nephew had been welcoming terrorists into the family home and that his family should disown him. The officers said that Said-Salekh Ibragimov should be killed to avenge the death of security forces personnel who were allegedly killed in the raid on the family home. The police then took Said-Salekh Ibragimov away. His whereabouts remain unknown.
Adnan Ibragimov asked the local Public Prosecutor's office to investigate the apparent enforced disappearance. According to Adnan Ibragimov, the official investigating the case warned him that he was putting himself and his family at risk by pursuing the investigation. The official initially refused to include information about circumstances of his nephew's enforced disappearance in his report. Sources in Grozny believe that the investigation is unlikely to be thorough and impartial.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
On 16 April 2009 the Russian authorities declared an end to the counter-terrorism operation in Chechnya. However, serious human rights violations continue to be committed in a climate of impunity in Chechnya and other parts of the North Caucasus. The civilian population continues to live in an atmosphere of lawlessness that engenders fear and insecurity. Armed opposition groups in the region continue to mount attacks. Law enforcement officials conduct counter-terrorism measures which, in many instances, entail serious human rights violations. A legitimate aim - that of tackling violence by armed groups and bringing stability to the North Caucasus - is still being pursued by means which violate international human rights law.
Relatives of those suspected of being members of armed groups are pressured to persuade their family members to lay down their arms, and in some cases to go and search for them ("in the mountains" or "in the forests") to bring them back. Reportedly, the pressure has included intimidation, arbitrary detention, forced evictions and destruction of houses. In August 2008, President Kadyrov announced on television that "those families whose relatives are in the forest are accomplices in crime. They are terrorists, extremists…" There have been reports of the family homes of those who have joined armed groups being burned down.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- Calling on the authorities to take immediate action to protect Adnan Ibragimov and his family, including enrolling them on a witness protection scheme;
- Calling for an immediate, thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of the arrest, ill-treatment and possible enforced disappearance of Said-Salekh Ibragimov, with all those responsible brought to justice;
- Urging the authorities to conduct an immediate, thorough, independent and impartial investigation into the alleged burning down by police officers of Said-Salekh Ibragimov’s house.
APPEALS TO:
Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation
Yurii Ya. Chaika
Ul.Bolshaia Dmitrovka, 15a
Moscow GSP-3
125993 RUSSIAN FEDERATION
Fax: 011 7 4956 9217 25
Salutation: Dear Prosecutor General
Minister of the Interior of the Russian Federation
Rashid.G.Nurgaliev
Ul. Zhitnaia, 16
Moscow
119049 RUSSIAN FEDERATION
Fax: 011 7 495 605 52 43
Salutation: Dear Minister
COPIES TO:
President of the Russian Federation
Dmitry A.Medvedev
ul. Ilyinka, 23
Moscow
103132 RUSSIAN FEDERATION
Fax: 011 7 495 9102134
Ambassador Sergey I. Kislyak
Embassy of the Russian Federation
2641 Tunlaw Road NW
Washington DC 20007
Phone: 1 202 298 5700
Fax: 1 202 298 5735
Email: russianembassy@mindspring.com
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 22 January 2010.
----------------------------------
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Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement
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Thank you for your help with this appeal.
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Fax: 202.675.8566
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END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Friday, December 4, 2009
Urgent Action 12-4-09
URGENT ACTION APPEAL
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa29609.pdf
Note: Please write on behalf of these persons even though you may not have received the original UA when issued on November 3, 2009. Thanks!
4 December 2009
Further Information on UA 296/09 (3 November 2009) - Death penalty
SINGAPORE Yong Vui Kong (m)
Yong Vui Kong received a stay of execution on 3 December, but is now scheduled for execution on 11 December. His appeal will be heard by the Court of Appeals on 8 December.Yong Vui Kong's lawyer has appealed on the grounds that the mandatory death sentence for drug-trafficking, which is set out in the Misuse of Drugs Act, is unconstitutional, and therefore his case should be referred back to the trial judge for "reconsideration."
The appeal was due to be heard by a three-judge panel at the Court of Appeals on 2 December, but only one judge was present, so the court had to grant a stay of execution. The court, which rejected an earlier appeal against Yong Vui Kong’s death sentence, is now due to hear his latest appeal on 8 December.
The President of Singapore rejected Yong Vui Kong's petition for clemency on 1 December.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The authorities in Singapore do not release any information about the use of the death penalty in the country. At least one person is known to have been hanged so far in 2009, and at least three sentenced to death; in 2008, at least one person was hanged and five sentenced to death. The true figures are likely to be higher. The government has always maintained that the death penalty is not a human rights issue, and consistently lobbied other nations against the abolition of the death penalty.
All capital cases are tried by the High Court; convicted prisoners can appeal, and if they are unsuccessful they can apply to the president for clemency. President Nathan, who has been in power since 1999, is not known to have granted clemency to any condemned prisoner.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- Urging the president to reconsider Yong Vui Kong's clemency petition and commute his death sentence;
- Expressing concern that because the death penalty is mandatory for drug-trafficking offenses, the court that sentenced Yong Vui Kong to death had no discretion to sentence him to an alternative punishment;
- Calling on the president to introduce a moratorium on executions, with a view to complete abolition of the death penalty.
APPEALS TO:
President
His Excellency SR Nathan
Office of the President
Istana, Orchard Road
SINGAPORE 0922
Fax: 011 65 6735 3135
Email: s_r_nathan@istana.gov.sg
Salutation: Your Excellency
COPIES TO:
Newspaper
Editor-in-Chief
The Straits Times
1000 Toa Payoh North
News Centre,
SINGAPORE 318994
Fax: 011 65 6319 8282
Email: stonline@sph.com.sg
Ambassador CHAN Heng Chee
Embassy of the Republic of Singapore
3501 International Place NW
Washington DC 20008
Fax: 1 202 537 0876
Email: singemb_was@sgmfa.gov.sg
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 11 December 2009.
----------------------------------
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Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement
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This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including
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Thank you for your help with this appeal.
Urgent Action Network
Amnesty International USA
600 Pennsylvania Ave SE 5th fl
Washington DC 20003
Email: uan@aiusa.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa29609.pdf
Note: Please write on behalf of these persons even though you may not have received the original UA when issued on November 3, 2009. Thanks!
4 December 2009
Further Information on UA 296/09 (3 November 2009) - Death penalty
SINGAPORE Yong Vui Kong (m)
Yong Vui Kong received a stay of execution on 3 December, but is now scheduled for execution on 11 December. His appeal will be heard by the Court of Appeals on 8 December.Yong Vui Kong's lawyer has appealed on the grounds that the mandatory death sentence for drug-trafficking, which is set out in the Misuse of Drugs Act, is unconstitutional, and therefore his case should be referred back to the trial judge for "reconsideration."
The appeal was due to be heard by a three-judge panel at the Court of Appeals on 2 December, but only one judge was present, so the court had to grant a stay of execution. The court, which rejected an earlier appeal against Yong Vui Kong’s death sentence, is now due to hear his latest appeal on 8 December.
The President of Singapore rejected Yong Vui Kong's petition for clemency on 1 December.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The authorities in Singapore do not release any information about the use of the death penalty in the country. At least one person is known to have been hanged so far in 2009, and at least three sentenced to death; in 2008, at least one person was hanged and five sentenced to death. The true figures are likely to be higher. The government has always maintained that the death penalty is not a human rights issue, and consistently lobbied other nations against the abolition of the death penalty.
All capital cases are tried by the High Court; convicted prisoners can appeal, and if they are unsuccessful they can apply to the president for clemency. President Nathan, who has been in power since 1999, is not known to have granted clemency to any condemned prisoner.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- Urging the president to reconsider Yong Vui Kong's clemency petition and commute his death sentence;
- Expressing concern that because the death penalty is mandatory for drug-trafficking offenses, the court that sentenced Yong Vui Kong to death had no discretion to sentence him to an alternative punishment;
- Calling on the president to introduce a moratorium on executions, with a view to complete abolition of the death penalty.
APPEALS TO:
President
His Excellency SR Nathan
Office of the President
Istana, Orchard Road
SINGAPORE 0922
Fax: 011 65 6735 3135
Email: s_r_nathan@istana.gov.sg
Salutation: Your Excellency
COPIES TO:
Newspaper
Editor-in-Chief
The Straits Times
1000 Toa Payoh North
News Centre,
SINGAPORE 318994
Fax: 011 65 6319 8282
Email: stonline@sph.com.sg
Ambassador CHAN Heng Chee
Embassy of the Republic of Singapore
3501 International Place NW
Washington DC 20008
Fax: 1 202 537 0876
Email: singemb_was@sgmfa.gov.sg
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 11 December 2009.
----------------------------------
Tip of the Month:
Write as soon as you can. Try to write as close as possible
to the date a case is issued.
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Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement
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This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including
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Thank you for your help with this appeal.
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Amnesty International USA
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Email: uan@aiusa.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Urgent Action 11-28-09
URGENT ACTION APPEAL
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa25709.pdf
Note: Please write on behalf of these persons even though you may not have received the original UA when issued on September 25, 2009. Thanks!
27 November 2009
Further information on UA 257/09 (25 September 2009) – Enforced Disappearance/Risk of Torture
SYRIA Berzani Karro (m)
Berzani Karro, a Syrian Kurdish man and possible prisoner of conscience, is reported to have been tortured while being held incommunicado for three months after his forcible return to Syria from Cyprus in June. He is now known to be in ‘Adra prison in Damascus, the capital of Syria.
Berzani Karro, aged 20, was reportedly subjected to prolonged beatings while in the custody of the al-Fayha Political Security Branch in Damascus, after his arrest on 27 June at Damascus airport. Political Security is one of several security services operating in Syria, all of which regularly detain individuals on even the slightest suspicion of opposition to the regime. Towards the end of September, after three months of incommunicado detention, with no access to his family or legal representation, Berzani Karro was moved to ‘Adra prison. His family are being allowed to visit him every two to three weeks.
On 10 November a military court charged Berzani Karro with “attempting to sever part of the Syrian territory and annex it to a foreign state” and involvement in an unauthorized organization. Amnesty International believes that Berzani Karro may be a prisoner of conscience, held due to his perceived political opinion. The charges against him are commonly used against Kurds who are deemed to be politically active and critical of the state.
Prior to his current detention, Berzani Karro was detained for around two and a half months when he was 15 years old. He was accused of attending an unauthorized demonstration and destroying state property, including a statue of President Bashar al-Assad. His family say he was at home at the time of the protest. He was held for at least some of that time in the Military Intelligence-run Palestine Branch detention centre, where detainees are regularly tortured. At the Palestine Branch, he was subjected to the dulab (the tyre), whereby he was forced through a car tire suspended from the ceiling and beaten. There were 10 others detained with him, all of them under 18.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
In Syria anyone perceived as being in any way associated with Kurdish political parties or groups that raise concerns about the treatment of Kurds in Syria are vulnerable to arbitrary arrest and detention and in many cases to torture or other ill-treatment.
Berzani Karro left Syria in October 2006 and traveled to Cyprus where he claimed asylum. His application was rejected and he was detained in September 2008, on the grounds that he had no legal right to remain in the country. On his forcible return to Syria, Cypriot officials escorted him on the plane, and handed him over to the Syrian authorities at Damascus airport. Amnesty International wrote to the Cypriot Ministers of Foreign Affairs in October expressing concern about Berzani Karro’s case and requesting information concerning his access to administrative and judicial proceedings relating to his asylum application and his forcible return to Syria. The organization also asked the Cypriot authorities to seek information from the Syrian authorities as to Berzani Karro’s whereabouts after his arrest and assurances that he was not being tortured or otherwise ill-treated. To date, there has been no response.
Amnesty International has serious concerns about the fairness of trials before military courts in Syria. Cases are often based on vaguely worded charges that are interpreted extremely broadly by the Syrian authorities, and “confessions” obtained through torture or other ill-treatment are frequently accepted as evidence. In addition, the rights of the defendant to attend the trial and to present a defense with or without the assistance of legal representation are often not respected.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- Urging the authorities to release Berzani Karro immediately and unconditionally, if he is held solely due to his perceived political opinion;
- Expressing concern that Berzani Karro faces a trial before a military court, particularly given that trial proceedings before such courts routinely breach international fair standards;
- Calling for an independent investigation into the allegation that Berzani Karro was tortured during incommunicado detention, for the results to be made public and those responsible to be brought to justice.
APPEALS TO:
President
Bashar al-Assad
Presidential Palace
Al-Rashid Street
Damascus
SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC
Fax: 011 963 11 332 3410
Salutation: Your Excellency
Minister of Interior
Major Sa’id Mohammed Sammour Ministry of Interior
‘Abd al-Rahman Shahbandar Street
Damascus
SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC
Fax: 011 963 11 222 3428
Email: somi@net.sy
Salutation: Your Excellency
COPIES TO:
Minister of Defense
Lieutenant-General Ali Ben-Mohammed
Ministry of Defense
Omayyad Square
Damascus
SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC
Fax: 011 963 11 211 9729 OR 011 963 11 223 7842
Salutation: Your Excellency
Ambassador Dr Imad Moustapha
Embassy of the Syrian Arab Republic
2215 Wyoming Ave. NW
Washington DC 20008
Fax: 1 202 234 9548 OR 1 202 265 4585 OR 1 202 232 4357
Email: info@syrembassy.net
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 08 January 2010.
----------------------------------
Tip of the Month:
Write as soon as you can. Try to write as close as possible to the date a case is issued.
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To all other destination countries:
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Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement that promotes and defends human rights.
This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including contact information and stop action date (if applicable). Thank you for your help with this appeal.
Urgent Action Network
Amnesty International USA
600 Pennsylvania Ave SE 5th fl
Washington DC 20003
Email: uan@aiusa.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa25709.pdf
Note: Please write on behalf of these persons even though you may not have received the original UA when issued on September 25, 2009. Thanks!
27 November 2009
Further information on UA 257/09 (25 September 2009) – Enforced Disappearance/Risk of Torture
SYRIA Berzani Karro (m)
Berzani Karro, a Syrian Kurdish man and possible prisoner of conscience, is reported to have been tortured while being held incommunicado for three months after his forcible return to Syria from Cyprus in June. He is now known to be in ‘Adra prison in Damascus, the capital of Syria.
Berzani Karro, aged 20, was reportedly subjected to prolonged beatings while in the custody of the al-Fayha Political Security Branch in Damascus, after his arrest on 27 June at Damascus airport. Political Security is one of several security services operating in Syria, all of which regularly detain individuals on even the slightest suspicion of opposition to the regime. Towards the end of September, after three months of incommunicado detention, with no access to his family or legal representation, Berzani Karro was moved to ‘Adra prison. His family are being allowed to visit him every two to three weeks.
On 10 November a military court charged Berzani Karro with “attempting to sever part of the Syrian territory and annex it to a foreign state” and involvement in an unauthorized organization. Amnesty International believes that Berzani Karro may be a prisoner of conscience, held due to his perceived political opinion. The charges against him are commonly used against Kurds who are deemed to be politically active and critical of the state.
Prior to his current detention, Berzani Karro was detained for around two and a half months when he was 15 years old. He was accused of attending an unauthorized demonstration and destroying state property, including a statue of President Bashar al-Assad. His family say he was at home at the time of the protest. He was held for at least some of that time in the Military Intelligence-run Palestine Branch detention centre, where detainees are regularly tortured. At the Palestine Branch, he was subjected to the dulab (the tyre), whereby he was forced through a car tire suspended from the ceiling and beaten. There were 10 others detained with him, all of them under 18.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
In Syria anyone perceived as being in any way associated with Kurdish political parties or groups that raise concerns about the treatment of Kurds in Syria are vulnerable to arbitrary arrest and detention and in many cases to torture or other ill-treatment.
Berzani Karro left Syria in October 2006 and traveled to Cyprus where he claimed asylum. His application was rejected and he was detained in September 2008, on the grounds that he had no legal right to remain in the country. On his forcible return to Syria, Cypriot officials escorted him on the plane, and handed him over to the Syrian authorities at Damascus airport. Amnesty International wrote to the Cypriot Ministers of Foreign Affairs in October expressing concern about Berzani Karro’s case and requesting information concerning his access to administrative and judicial proceedings relating to his asylum application and his forcible return to Syria. The organization also asked the Cypriot authorities to seek information from the Syrian authorities as to Berzani Karro’s whereabouts after his arrest and assurances that he was not being tortured or otherwise ill-treated. To date, there has been no response.
Amnesty International has serious concerns about the fairness of trials before military courts in Syria. Cases are often based on vaguely worded charges that are interpreted extremely broadly by the Syrian authorities, and “confessions” obtained through torture or other ill-treatment are frequently accepted as evidence. In addition, the rights of the defendant to attend the trial and to present a defense with or without the assistance of legal representation are often not respected.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- Urging the authorities to release Berzani Karro immediately and unconditionally, if he is held solely due to his perceived political opinion;
- Expressing concern that Berzani Karro faces a trial before a military court, particularly given that trial proceedings before such courts routinely breach international fair standards;
- Calling for an independent investigation into the allegation that Berzani Karro was tortured during incommunicado detention, for the results to be made public and those responsible to be brought to justice.
APPEALS TO:
President
Bashar al-Assad
Presidential Palace
Al-Rashid Street
Damascus
SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC
Fax: 011 963 11 332 3410
Salutation: Your Excellency
Minister of Interior
Major Sa’id Mohammed Sammour Ministry of Interior
‘Abd al-Rahman Shahbandar Street
Damascus
SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC
Fax: 011 963 11 222 3428
Email: somi@net.sy
Salutation: Your Excellency
COPIES TO:
Minister of Defense
Lieutenant-General Ali Ben-Mohammed
Ministry of Defense
Omayyad Square
Damascus
SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC
Fax: 011 963 11 211 9729 OR 011 963 11 223 7842
Salutation: Your Excellency
Ambassador Dr Imad Moustapha
Embassy of the Syrian Arab Republic
2215 Wyoming Ave. NW
Washington DC 20008
Fax: 1 202 234 9548 OR 1 202 265 4585 OR 1 202 232 4357
Email: info@syrembassy.net
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 08 January 2010.
----------------------------------
Tip of the Month:
Write as soon as you can. Try to write as close as possible to the date a case is issued.
** POSTAGE RATES **
Within the United States:
$0.28 - Postcards
$0.44 - Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To Canada:
$0.75 - Postcards
$0.75 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To Mexico:
$0.79 - Postcards
$0.79 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To all other destination countries:
$0.98 - Postcards
$0.98 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement that promotes and defends human rights.
This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including contact information and stop action date (if applicable). Thank you for your help with this appeal.
Urgent Action Network
Amnesty International USA
600 Pennsylvania Ave SE 5th fl
Washington DC 20003
Email: uan@aiusa.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Urgent Action 11-25-09
URGENT ACTION APPEAL
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa12809.pdf
Note: Please write on behalf of these persons even though you may not have received the original UA when issued on May 18, 2009. Thanks!
24 November 2009
Further Information on UA 128/09 (18 May 2009) and follow-up (19 August 2009) – Torture/unfair trial
RUSSIAN FEDERATION Aleksei Sokolov (m), human rights defender
Aleksei Sokolov, a male human rights defender, is unlawfully detained in the city of Yekaterinburg, near the Ural Mountains in Russia. The court order to keep him in pre-trial detention expired on 6 November and no further order has been issued. Amnesty International is concerned that the treatment of Aleksei Sokolov is aimed at putting him under pressure to withdraw from his human rights work. He remains at risk of torture or other ill-treatment.
Aleksei Sokolov has been in custody since 13 May, when he was detained on suspicion of robbery. When the Sverdlovsk Regional Court ruled on 31 July that he should be released pending trial, the police charged him with theft and he remained in custody. His pre-trial detention has been extended several times by the Leninskii district court in Yekaterinburg. On 20 October, a judge in the same court ordered that he be detained until 6 November. On 2 November, another judge ruled that Aleksei Sokolov’s case should be transferred to a different district court and upheld a previous order to detain Aleksei Sokolov until 6 November. The judge did not indicate whether the detention should continue after that date. Despite this, Aleksei Sokolov remains in detention in violation of Russian law. The decision on 2 November was made without a defense lawyer being present, which is an additional violation of Russian law. Aleksei Sokolvo is still held in a pre-trial detention center in Yekaterinburg without knowing how long he might be kept there. A further hearing about the lawfulness of his detention will take place on 25 November.
Since Aleksei Sokolov was detained in May, Amnesty International has noted a number of violations of Russian criminal procedural law in this case, including the public being excluded from a hearing and the judge failing to provide sufficient explanation for an extension of his detention. This leads to concerns that he may not receive a fair trial.
Aleksei Sokolov told his lawyer that police had threatened him soon after he was detained in May that they “could not beat him but would know how to torture him”. Aleksei Sokolov also told his lawyer that police said, “You thought you could control us, nobody can control the police. You’ve got what you deserved as a human rights defender.”
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Aleksei Sokolov is the head of the non-governmental organization Pravovaia Osnova (Legal Basis), which campaigns against torture and other ill-treatment of people held in Russia’s prisons and detention centers.
In 2006 Aleksei Sokolov distributed a film about torture and other ill-treatment in prison colony IK-2 in Yekaterinburg. Part of the prison colony had been used as a temporary holding center for people under arrest, and here, according to the film, people were tortured. The film received wide coverage, both in Russia and internationally, and led to the closure of the temporary holding center. The work of Legal Basis brought about several investigations into police and prison colony staff, accused of crimes including the use of torture to force suspects to confess.
On 13 May 2009 Aleksei Sokolov was detained on suspicion that he had taken part in a 2004 robbery. The investigation into this robbery had been closed several times because of failure to identify a suspect. On 23 April 2009 the investigation was reopened yet again: according to police, one suspect, already in prison for another crime, had confessed to committing the robbery together with Aleksei Sokolov.
According to a decision of 29 October 2009 of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, judges should issue orders of detention during investigation only in exceptional cases and only after considering other measures of restraint in order to ensure that the suspect of a crime does not continue to commit crimes or goes into hiding.
Aleksei Sokolov has a wife and a small children, is officially registered in Yekaterinburg. In one decision, justifying his detention, the judge argued that Aleksei Sokolov could use his position as a member of the public commission for the control of of places of detention in order to influence those witnesses in his case, who are already imprisoned. Aleksei Sokolov’s membership of the public commission has been suspendedhalted while he is under investigation and he would have no access to detainees.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- Urging the authorities to release Aleksei Sokolov to await trial, in line with the Supreme Court ruling of 29 October 2009;
- Demanding that they grant Aleksei Sokolov a prompt and fair trial;
- While he is in custody, urging the authorities to ensure that he is not tortured or otherwise ill-treated;
- Calling on them to demonstrate respect for the lawful work of human rights defenders, and ensure they are free to pursue their lawful activities without fear of repercussions.
APPEALS TO:
Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation
Yurii Ya. Chaika
Ul Bolshaia Dmitrovka 15a
Moscow GSP-3
125993 RUSSIAN FEDERATION
Fax: 011 7 495 692 17 25
Salutation: Dear Prosecutor General
Prosecutor of the Sverdlovsk Region
Yurii A. Ponomarev
Ul. Moskovskaia 21
Yekaterinburg
GSP 1036
Sverdlovsk Region
620219 RUSSIAN FEDERATION
Fax: 011 7 343 377 02 41
Salutation: Dear Prosecutor
Ombudsperson for the Russian Federation
Vladimir P. Lukin
ul. Miasnitskaia 47
Moscow
107048 RUSSIAN FEDERATION
Fax: 011 7 495 607 74 70
Salutation: Dear Mr. Lukin
COPIES TO:
Ambassador Sergey I. Kislyak
Embassy of the Russian Federation
2650 Wisconsin Ave NW
Washington DC 20007
Fax: 1 202 298 5735
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 05 January 2010.
----------------------------------
Tip of the Month:
Write as soon as you can. Try to write as close as possible to the date a case is issued.
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Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement that promotes and defends human rights.
This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including contact information and stop action date (if applicable). Thank you for your help with this appeal.
Urgent Action Network
Amnesty International USA
600 Pennsylvania Ave SE 5th fl
Washington DC 20003
Email: uan@aiusa.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa12809.pdf
Note: Please write on behalf of these persons even though you may not have received the original UA when issued on May 18, 2009. Thanks!
24 November 2009
Further Information on UA 128/09 (18 May 2009) and follow-up (19 August 2009) – Torture/unfair trial
RUSSIAN FEDERATION Aleksei Sokolov (m), human rights defender
Aleksei Sokolov, a male human rights defender, is unlawfully detained in the city of Yekaterinburg, near the Ural Mountains in Russia. The court order to keep him in pre-trial detention expired on 6 November and no further order has been issued. Amnesty International is concerned that the treatment of Aleksei Sokolov is aimed at putting him under pressure to withdraw from his human rights work. He remains at risk of torture or other ill-treatment.
Aleksei Sokolov has been in custody since 13 May, when he was detained on suspicion of robbery. When the Sverdlovsk Regional Court ruled on 31 July that he should be released pending trial, the police charged him with theft and he remained in custody. His pre-trial detention has been extended several times by the Leninskii district court in Yekaterinburg. On 20 October, a judge in the same court ordered that he be detained until 6 November. On 2 November, another judge ruled that Aleksei Sokolov’s case should be transferred to a different district court and upheld a previous order to detain Aleksei Sokolov until 6 November. The judge did not indicate whether the detention should continue after that date. Despite this, Aleksei Sokolov remains in detention in violation of Russian law. The decision on 2 November was made without a defense lawyer being present, which is an additional violation of Russian law. Aleksei Sokolvo is still held in a pre-trial detention center in Yekaterinburg without knowing how long he might be kept there. A further hearing about the lawfulness of his detention will take place on 25 November.
Since Aleksei Sokolov was detained in May, Amnesty International has noted a number of violations of Russian criminal procedural law in this case, including the public being excluded from a hearing and the judge failing to provide sufficient explanation for an extension of his detention. This leads to concerns that he may not receive a fair trial.
Aleksei Sokolov told his lawyer that police had threatened him soon after he was detained in May that they “could not beat him but would know how to torture him”. Aleksei Sokolov also told his lawyer that police said, “You thought you could control us, nobody can control the police. You’ve got what you deserved as a human rights defender.”
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Aleksei Sokolov is the head of the non-governmental organization Pravovaia Osnova (Legal Basis), which campaigns against torture and other ill-treatment of people held in Russia’s prisons and detention centers.
In 2006 Aleksei Sokolov distributed a film about torture and other ill-treatment in prison colony IK-2 in Yekaterinburg. Part of the prison colony had been used as a temporary holding center for people under arrest, and here, according to the film, people were tortured. The film received wide coverage, both in Russia and internationally, and led to the closure of the temporary holding center. The work of Legal Basis brought about several investigations into police and prison colony staff, accused of crimes including the use of torture to force suspects to confess.
On 13 May 2009 Aleksei Sokolov was detained on suspicion that he had taken part in a 2004 robbery. The investigation into this robbery had been closed several times because of failure to identify a suspect. On 23 April 2009 the investigation was reopened yet again: according to police, one suspect, already in prison for another crime, had confessed to committing the robbery together with Aleksei Sokolov.
According to a decision of 29 October 2009 of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, judges should issue orders of detention during investigation only in exceptional cases and only after considering other measures of restraint in order to ensure that the suspect of a crime does not continue to commit crimes or goes into hiding.
Aleksei Sokolov has a wife and a small children, is officially registered in Yekaterinburg. In one decision, justifying his detention, the judge argued that Aleksei Sokolov could use his position as a member of the public commission for the control of of places of detention in order to influence those witnesses in his case, who are already imprisoned. Aleksei Sokolov’s membership of the public commission has been suspendedhalted while he is under investigation and he would have no access to detainees.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- Urging the authorities to release Aleksei Sokolov to await trial, in line with the Supreme Court ruling of 29 October 2009;
- Demanding that they grant Aleksei Sokolov a prompt and fair trial;
- While he is in custody, urging the authorities to ensure that he is not tortured or otherwise ill-treated;
- Calling on them to demonstrate respect for the lawful work of human rights defenders, and ensure they are free to pursue their lawful activities without fear of repercussions.
APPEALS TO:
Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation
Yurii Ya. Chaika
Ul Bolshaia Dmitrovka 15a
Moscow GSP-3
125993 RUSSIAN FEDERATION
Fax: 011 7 495 692 17 25
Salutation: Dear Prosecutor General
Prosecutor of the Sverdlovsk Region
Yurii A. Ponomarev
Ul. Moskovskaia 21
Yekaterinburg
GSP 1036
Sverdlovsk Region
620219 RUSSIAN FEDERATION
Fax: 011 7 343 377 02 41
Salutation: Dear Prosecutor
Ombudsperson for the Russian Federation
Vladimir P. Lukin
ul. Miasnitskaia 47
Moscow
107048 RUSSIAN FEDERATION
Fax: 011 7 495 607 74 70
Salutation: Dear Mr. Lukin
COPIES TO:
Ambassador Sergey I. Kislyak
Embassy of the Russian Federation
2650 Wisconsin Ave NW
Washington DC 20007
Fax: 1 202 298 5735
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 05 January 2010.
----------------------------------
Tip of the Month:
Write as soon as you can. Try to write as close as possible to the date a case is issued.
** POSTAGE RATES **
Within the United States:
$0.28 - Postcards
$0.44 - Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To Canada:
$0.75 - Postcards
$0.75 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To Mexico:
$0.79 - Postcards
$0.79 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To all other destination countries:
$0.98 - Postcards
$0.98 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement that promotes and defends human rights.
This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including contact information and stop action date (if applicable). Thank you for your help with this appeal.
Urgent Action Network
Amnesty International USA
600 Pennsylvania Ave SE 5th fl
Washington DC 20003
Email: uan@aiusa.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Urgent Action 11-11-09
URGENT ACTION APPEAL
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
11 November 2009
Further information on UA 291/09 (29 October 2009) – Imminent execution
USA John Allen Muhammad (m)
John Allen Muhammad was executed in Virginia on the evening of 10 November. He had been convicted in 2003 of capital murder in relation to a series of shootings that occurred across a number of jurisdictions in 2002. He made no final statement before being put to death.
There were a series of 16 shootings between 5 September and 22 October 2002 in Maryland, Alabama, Louisiana, Washington, DC and Virginia, leaving 10 people dead and another six seriously wounded. John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo were arrested by federal agents in Maryland on 24 October 2002. Among the items found in the car was a Bushmaster rifle which was linked to many of the shootings through
ballistics testimony.
After the arrests, which jurisdiction would be best placed to obtain and carry out the death penalty rapidly became a disturbing part of the authorities’ discussions about the case. Then US Attorney General John Ashcroft, an ardent advocate of capital punishment, announced on 7 November 2002 that Virginia should conduct the initial prosecutions. He emphasized at a press conference that it was “imperative that the ultimate sanction be available for those who have committed these crimes”. Virginia was and remains one of the most ‘efficient’ executing jurisdictions, with a reputation for moving cases swiftly through the appeals system. John Muhammad was tried in Virginia in 2003 for the murder of Dean Meyers, who had been shot while fuelling his car at a petrol station in Manassas, Virginia, on 9 October 2002. He was sentenced to death.
On 9 November, the US Supreme Court refused to stay the execution of John Muhammad. However, three of the Court’s judges argued that the case “highlights once again the perversity of executing inmates before their appeals process
has been fully concluded”. They wrote that because Virginia had scheduled the execution to be carried out two weeks before the case would otherwise be reviewed by the Court, “we must resolve the petition on an expedited basis unless we grant a temporary stay”. By denying this stay, the three continued, “we have allowed Virginia to truncate our deliberative process on a matter – involving a death row inmate – that demands the most careful attention”. They did not mention that pursuit of the speediest possible retributive killing was the reason Virginia had been handed the case in the first place.
On 10 November, Virginia’s Governor, Tim Kaine, denied clemency. In a statement, he said: “Muhammad’s trial, verdict, and sentence have been reviewed by state and federal courts, including the Supreme Court of Virginia, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court. Having carefully reviewed the petition for clemency and judicial opinions regarding this case, I find no compelling reason to set aside the sentence that was recommended by the jury and then imposed and affirmed by the courts. Accordingly, I decline to intervene.”
John Muhammad’s lawyers had appealed for clemency on the grounds that he had serious mental impairments, a claim based on expert evidence never heard by the jurors who sentenced him to death. Governor Kaine’s statement denying clemency did not specifically refer to this claim.
There have been 45 executions in the USA this year, bringing to 1,181 the number of people put to death there since judicial killing resumed in 1977. Virginia accounts for 104 of these executions, second only to Texas which also carried out another execution last night.
No further action by the UA Network is requested. Many thanks to all who sent appeals
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
11 November 2009
Further information on UA 291/09 (29 October 2009) – Imminent execution
USA John Allen Muhammad (m)
John Allen Muhammad was executed in Virginia on the evening of 10 November. He had been convicted in 2003 of capital murder in relation to a series of shootings that occurred across a number of jurisdictions in 2002. He made no final statement before being put to death.
There were a series of 16 shootings between 5 September and 22 October 2002 in Maryland, Alabama, Louisiana, Washington, DC and Virginia, leaving 10 people dead and another six seriously wounded. John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo were arrested by federal agents in Maryland on 24 October 2002. Among the items found in the car was a Bushmaster rifle which was linked to many of the shootings through
ballistics testimony.
After the arrests, which jurisdiction would be best placed to obtain and carry out the death penalty rapidly became a disturbing part of the authorities’ discussions about the case. Then US Attorney General John Ashcroft, an ardent advocate of capital punishment, announced on 7 November 2002 that Virginia should conduct the initial prosecutions. He emphasized at a press conference that it was “imperative that the ultimate sanction be available for those who have committed these crimes”. Virginia was and remains one of the most ‘efficient’ executing jurisdictions, with a reputation for moving cases swiftly through the appeals system. John Muhammad was tried in Virginia in 2003 for the murder of Dean Meyers, who had been shot while fuelling his car at a petrol station in Manassas, Virginia, on 9 October 2002. He was sentenced to death.
On 9 November, the US Supreme Court refused to stay the execution of John Muhammad. However, three of the Court’s judges argued that the case “highlights once again the perversity of executing inmates before their appeals process
has been fully concluded”. They wrote that because Virginia had scheduled the execution to be carried out two weeks before the case would otherwise be reviewed by the Court, “we must resolve the petition on an expedited basis unless we grant a temporary stay”. By denying this stay, the three continued, “we have allowed Virginia to truncate our deliberative process on a matter – involving a death row inmate – that demands the most careful attention”. They did not mention that pursuit of the speediest possible retributive killing was the reason Virginia had been handed the case in the first place.
On 10 November, Virginia’s Governor, Tim Kaine, denied clemency. In a statement, he said: “Muhammad’s trial, verdict, and sentence have been reviewed by state and federal courts, including the Supreme Court of Virginia, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court. Having carefully reviewed the petition for clemency and judicial opinions regarding this case, I find no compelling reason to set aside the sentence that was recommended by the jury and then imposed and affirmed by the courts. Accordingly, I decline to intervene.”
John Muhammad’s lawyers had appealed for clemency on the grounds that he had serious mental impairments, a claim based on expert evidence never heard by the jurors who sentenced him to death. Governor Kaine’s statement denying clemency did not specifically refer to this claim.
There have been 45 executions in the USA this year, bringing to 1,181 the number of people put to death there since judicial killing resumed in 1977. Virginia accounts for 104 of these executions, second only to Texas which also carried out another execution last night.
No further action by the UA Network is requested. Many thanks to all who sent appeals
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
Monday, November 9, 2009
Urgent Action 11-9-09
URGENT ACTION APPEAL
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa30109.pdf
9 November 2009
UA 301/09 - Fear for safety
COLOMBIA Ingrid Vergara (f), human rights defender
Cendy Torres Vergara (f), age 14
Female human rights defender Ingrid Vergara has received death threats and her daughter, 14-year-old Cendy Torres Vergara, has been followed by unknown individuals in the city of Sincelejo, northern Colombia. Ingrid Vergara documents and exposes human rights violations committed by paramilitary groups. Her life and that of her daughter may be at risk.
On 26 October at around 1:15pm Cendy Torres noticed a white car with tinted windows and without license plates following her while she was walking to school in Sincelejo. The car slowed down and two children who were walking past went up to it. The children then approached Cendy Torres and told her: "They want you to let your mom know that she must shut up if she wants to reach the new year" (te mandan decir que le digas a tu mama que se quede callada si quiere llegar a ano nuevo). The car then drove away.
Cendy Torres had noticed the same car following her on the afternoon of 19 October, the morning of 20 October and the afternoon of 21 October. On 21 October, neighbors told Ingrid Vergara that a white pick-up truck with tinted windows had driven past her house several times. The vehicle slowed down every time it passed her house.
Ingrid Vergara is a member of the National Movement of Victims of State Crimes (Movimiento Nacional de Victimas de Crimenes de Estado, MOVICE), a coalition of civil society organizations campaigning for truth, justice and reparation for the victims of human rights violations committed during Colombia's long-running armed conflict. Ingrid Vergara is one of the leaders of MOVICE in Sucre department, northern Colombia, and has drawn public attention to enforced disappearances and killings committed by paramilitary forces.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
On 2 April 2008, Cendy Torres was approached outside her school by four unknown men who threatened: "we are going to kill you because of what your mother is doing" (te vamos a matar por lo que tu madre esta haciendo). Ingrid Vergara has suffered a number of death threats and acts of intimidation before. The latest one was an anonymous email that she received on 2 July 2009, inviting her to her own funeral and referring to her as a guerrilla. Although some protection measures have been agreed, the authorities have not fully implemented them. No one has been brought to justice for any of these threats.
During Colombia's 40-year-old armed conflict, members of human rights organizations, trade unions and other social organizations have often been labeled as guerrilla collaborators or supporters by the security forces and paramilitaries. As a result they often suffer threats, enforced disappearance or killings. Guerrilla groups have also threatened or killed human rights defenders they consider to be siding with the enemy.
In September 2009, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Margaret Sekaggya, visited Colombia and concluded that "patterns of harassment and persecution against human rights defenders, and often their families, continue to exist in Colombia… I am in particular deeply concerned about the widespread phenomenon of threats from unknown authors against human rights defenders and their families". She also expressed her "serious concern about the arbitrary arrests and detention (sometimes on a massive scale) of human rights defenders, as well as unfounded criminal proceedings brought against them."
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- Expressing concern for the safety of Ingrid Vergara and Cendy Torres and urging the authorities to guarantee their safety in strict accordance with their wishes;
- Calling on the authorities to carry out a full and impartial investigation into these and previous death threats against Ingrid Vergara and Cendy Torres, to make the results public and bring those responsible to justice;
- Reminding the authorities to adhere to their obligations regarding the situation of human rights defenders, as laid out in the 1998 UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders.
APPEALS TO:
Vice-President of the Republic
Dr. Francisco Santos Calderon
Vicepresidencia de la Republica
Carrera 8A No 7-27
Bogota, COLOMBIA
Fax: 011 57 1 565 7682 (ask: "me da tono de fax por favor")
Salutation: Dear Mr Vice-president/Estimado Sr. Vicepresidente
Acting Attorney General
Dr. Guillermo Mendoza Diago
Fiscal General de la Nacion (e)
Fiscalia General de la Nacion
Diagonal 22B (Av. Luis Carlos Galan No. 52-01) Bloque C
Piso 4, Bogota, COLOMBIA
Fax: 011 57 1 414 9108
Salutation: Dear Attorney General/Estimado Sr. Fiscal General
COPIES:
National Human Rights Organization
Comision Intereclesial de Justicia y Paz
Calle 61A No 17-26
Bogota, COLOMBIA
Ambassador Carolina Barco Isakson
Embassy of Colombia
2118 Leroy Place, NW
Washington DC 20008
Fax: 1 202 232 8643
Email: embassyofcolombia@colombiaemb.org
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 21 December 2009.
----------------------------------
Tip of the Month:
Write as soon as you can. Try to write as close as possible
to the date a case is issued.
** POSTAGE RATES **
Within the United States:
$0.28 - Postcards
$0.44 - Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To Canada:
$0.75 - Postcards
$0.75 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To Mexico:
$0.79 - Postcards
$0.79 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To all other destination countries:
$0.98 - Postcards
$0.98 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement
that promotes and defends human rights.
This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including
contact information and stop action date (if applicable).
Thank you for your help with this appeal.
Urgent Action Network
Amnesty International USA
600 Pennsylvania Ave SE 5th fl
Washington DC 20003
Email: uan@aiusa.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa30109.pdf
9 November 2009
UA 301/09 - Fear for safety
COLOMBIA Ingrid Vergara (f), human rights defender
Cendy Torres Vergara (f), age 14
Female human rights defender Ingrid Vergara has received death threats and her daughter, 14-year-old Cendy Torres Vergara, has been followed by unknown individuals in the city of Sincelejo, northern Colombia. Ingrid Vergara documents and exposes human rights violations committed by paramilitary groups. Her life and that of her daughter may be at risk.
On 26 October at around 1:15pm Cendy Torres noticed a white car with tinted windows and without license plates following her while she was walking to school in Sincelejo. The car slowed down and two children who were walking past went up to it. The children then approached Cendy Torres and told her: "They want you to let your mom know that she must shut up if she wants to reach the new year" (te mandan decir que le digas a tu mama que se quede callada si quiere llegar a ano nuevo). The car then drove away.
Cendy Torres had noticed the same car following her on the afternoon of 19 October, the morning of 20 October and the afternoon of 21 October. On 21 October, neighbors told Ingrid Vergara that a white pick-up truck with tinted windows had driven past her house several times. The vehicle slowed down every time it passed her house.
Ingrid Vergara is a member of the National Movement of Victims of State Crimes (Movimiento Nacional de Victimas de Crimenes de Estado, MOVICE), a coalition of civil society organizations campaigning for truth, justice and reparation for the victims of human rights violations committed during Colombia's long-running armed conflict. Ingrid Vergara is one of the leaders of MOVICE in Sucre department, northern Colombia, and has drawn public attention to enforced disappearances and killings committed by paramilitary forces.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
On 2 April 2008, Cendy Torres was approached outside her school by four unknown men who threatened: "we are going to kill you because of what your mother is doing" (te vamos a matar por lo que tu madre esta haciendo). Ingrid Vergara has suffered a number of death threats and acts of intimidation before. The latest one was an anonymous email that she received on 2 July 2009, inviting her to her own funeral and referring to her as a guerrilla. Although some protection measures have been agreed, the authorities have not fully implemented them. No one has been brought to justice for any of these threats.
During Colombia's 40-year-old armed conflict, members of human rights organizations, trade unions and other social organizations have often been labeled as guerrilla collaborators or supporters by the security forces and paramilitaries. As a result they often suffer threats, enforced disappearance or killings. Guerrilla groups have also threatened or killed human rights defenders they consider to be siding with the enemy.
In September 2009, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Margaret Sekaggya, visited Colombia and concluded that "patterns of harassment and persecution against human rights defenders, and often their families, continue to exist in Colombia… I am in particular deeply concerned about the widespread phenomenon of threats from unknown authors against human rights defenders and their families". She also expressed her "serious concern about the arbitrary arrests and detention (sometimes on a massive scale) of human rights defenders, as well as unfounded criminal proceedings brought against them."
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- Expressing concern for the safety of Ingrid Vergara and Cendy Torres and urging the authorities to guarantee their safety in strict accordance with their wishes;
- Calling on the authorities to carry out a full and impartial investigation into these and previous death threats against Ingrid Vergara and Cendy Torres, to make the results public and bring those responsible to justice;
- Reminding the authorities to adhere to their obligations regarding the situation of human rights defenders, as laid out in the 1998 UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders.
APPEALS TO:
Vice-President of the Republic
Dr. Francisco Santos Calderon
Vicepresidencia de la Republica
Carrera 8A No 7-27
Bogota, COLOMBIA
Fax: 011 57 1 565 7682 (ask: "me da tono de fax por favor")
Salutation: Dear Mr Vice-president/Estimado Sr. Vicepresidente
Acting Attorney General
Dr. Guillermo Mendoza Diago
Fiscal General de la Nacion (e)
Fiscalia General de la Nacion
Diagonal 22B (Av. Luis Carlos Galan No. 52-01) Bloque C
Piso 4, Bogota, COLOMBIA
Fax: 011 57 1 414 9108
Salutation: Dear Attorney General/Estimado Sr. Fiscal General
COPIES:
National Human Rights Organization
Comision Intereclesial de Justicia y Paz
Calle 61A No 17-26
Bogota, COLOMBIA
Ambassador Carolina Barco Isakson
Embassy of Colombia
2118 Leroy Place, NW
Washington DC 20008
Fax: 1 202 232 8643
Email: embassyofcolombia@colombiaemb.org
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 21 December 2009.
----------------------------------
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----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Urgent Action 11-3-09
URGENT ACTION APPEAL
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa29509.pdf
3 November 2009
UA 295/09 - Fear of torture
TUNISIA Mohammed Soudani (m), student
Male student activist Mohammed Soudani is at risk of torture and other ill-treatment in custody in Tunisia. He was arrested on 22 October after meeting with two French journalists. His family and lawyer have been unable to obtain any information about him. He is believed to be held at the State Security Department of the Ministry of Interior in the capital, Tunis, where torture is common.
Mohammed Soudani was last seen on 22 October in a hotel in Tunis, where he met with two French radio journalists who were covering the presidential and legislative elections that took place in Tunisia on 25 October. Amnesty International believes that they were interviewing Mohammed Soudani because he is an active member within the student movement, the General Union of Tunisian Students (UGET). That evening, Mohammed Soudani phoned his lawyers and friends and told them that there were a number of security officers outside the hotel, and that if they did not hear from him after 10pm it was likely that he had been arrested. A short time later, his mobile phone was switched off.
On 23 October, unable to find out any information on the whereabouts of his client, Mohammed Soudani's lawyer filed a complaint with the Public Prosecutor in Tunis about the enforced disappearance of Mohammed Soudani. Mohammed Soudani's family has not been informed of his arrest or whereabouts as required under Tunisian law and his father was unable to obtain any information on him from police in the city of Mehdia, 200km south of Tunis, where Mohammed Soudani lives.
Mohammed Soudani was expelled from university in 2007 because of his activities within the UGET. He told Amnesty International during a meeting in October 2009 that he was previously arrested on 29 June 2007 and detained for 12 days, during which he said he was tortured, and then sentenced to six month suspended prison sentence. He also said he was again detained for another six days in October 2008, stripped of his clothes and beaten. He has been prosecuted several times, and has served a two-month prison term. He believes that the charges brought against him are related to his activism for the UGET.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Amnesty International has received numerous reports of torture and other ill-treatment by the Tunisian security forces. In virtually all cases, allegations of torture are not investigated and the perpetrators are not brought to justice. Individuals are most at risk of torture when held incommunicado. The most commonly reported methods of torture are beatings on the body, especially the soles of the feet; suspension by the ankles or in contorted positions; electric shocks; and burning with cigarettes. There are also reports of mock executions, sexual abuse, including rape with bottles and sticks, and threats of sexual abuse of female relatives.
As a state party to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, Tunisia is under an obligation to prevent torture and to "ensure that its competent authorities proceed to a prompt and impartial investigation, wherever there is reasonable ground to believe that an act of torture has been committed in any territory under its jurisdiction".
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- urging the authorities to disclose Mohammed Soudani's whereabouts immediately, and give him access to a lawyer of his choice, his family and any medical attention he may require;
- urging them to ensure that he is not tortured or otherwise ill-treated;
- urging them to release Mohammed Soudani immediately and unconditionally, unless he is promptly charged with a recognizably criminal offense and brought to trial in proceedings that meet international standards for fair trial.
APPEALS TO:
Minister of Interior
Rafik Haj Kacem
Ministry of Interior
Avenue Habib Bourguiba
1000 Tunis
TUNISIA
Fax: 011 216 71 340 888
Salutation: Your Excellency
Minister of Justice and Human Rights
Bechir Tekkari
Ministry of Justice and Human Rights
31 Boulevard Bab Benat
1006 Tunis - La Kasbah
TUNISIA
Fax: 011 216 71 568 106
Salutation: Your Excellency
COPIES TO:
Ridha Khemakhem
General Coordinator for Human Rights
Ministry of Justice and Human Rights
31 Boulevard Bab Benat
1006 Tunis - La Kasbah
TUNISIA
Ambassador Hebib Manssour
Embassy of Tunisia
1515 Massachusetts Ave. NW
Washington DC 20005
Fax: 1 202 862 1858
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 15 December 2009.
----------------------------------
Tip of the Month:
Write as soon as you can. Try to write as close as possible
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Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement
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This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including
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Thank you for your help with this appeal.
Urgent Action Network
Amnesty International USA
600 Pennsylvania Ave SE 5th fl
Washington DC 20003
Email: uan@aiusa.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa29509.pdf
3 November 2009
UA 295/09 - Fear of torture
TUNISIA Mohammed Soudani (m), student
Male student activist Mohammed Soudani is at risk of torture and other ill-treatment in custody in Tunisia. He was arrested on 22 October after meeting with two French journalists. His family and lawyer have been unable to obtain any information about him. He is believed to be held at the State Security Department of the Ministry of Interior in the capital, Tunis, where torture is common.
Mohammed Soudani was last seen on 22 October in a hotel in Tunis, where he met with two French radio journalists who were covering the presidential and legislative elections that took place in Tunisia on 25 October. Amnesty International believes that they were interviewing Mohammed Soudani because he is an active member within the student movement, the General Union of Tunisian Students (UGET). That evening, Mohammed Soudani phoned his lawyers and friends and told them that there were a number of security officers outside the hotel, and that if they did not hear from him after 10pm it was likely that he had been arrested. A short time later, his mobile phone was switched off.
On 23 October, unable to find out any information on the whereabouts of his client, Mohammed Soudani's lawyer filed a complaint with the Public Prosecutor in Tunis about the enforced disappearance of Mohammed Soudani. Mohammed Soudani's family has not been informed of his arrest or whereabouts as required under Tunisian law and his father was unable to obtain any information on him from police in the city of Mehdia, 200km south of Tunis, where Mohammed Soudani lives.
Mohammed Soudani was expelled from university in 2007 because of his activities within the UGET. He told Amnesty International during a meeting in October 2009 that he was previously arrested on 29 June 2007 and detained for 12 days, during which he said he was tortured, and then sentenced to six month suspended prison sentence. He also said he was again detained for another six days in October 2008, stripped of his clothes and beaten. He has been prosecuted several times, and has served a two-month prison term. He believes that the charges brought against him are related to his activism for the UGET.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Amnesty International has received numerous reports of torture and other ill-treatment by the Tunisian security forces. In virtually all cases, allegations of torture are not investigated and the perpetrators are not brought to justice. Individuals are most at risk of torture when held incommunicado. The most commonly reported methods of torture are beatings on the body, especially the soles of the feet; suspension by the ankles or in contorted positions; electric shocks; and burning with cigarettes. There are also reports of mock executions, sexual abuse, including rape with bottles and sticks, and threats of sexual abuse of female relatives.
As a state party to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, Tunisia is under an obligation to prevent torture and to "ensure that its competent authorities proceed to a prompt and impartial investigation, wherever there is reasonable ground to believe that an act of torture has been committed in any territory under its jurisdiction".
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- urging the authorities to disclose Mohammed Soudani's whereabouts immediately, and give him access to a lawyer of his choice, his family and any medical attention he may require;
- urging them to ensure that he is not tortured or otherwise ill-treated;
- urging them to release Mohammed Soudani immediately and unconditionally, unless he is promptly charged with a recognizably criminal offense and brought to trial in proceedings that meet international standards for fair trial.
APPEALS TO:
Minister of Interior
Rafik Haj Kacem
Ministry of Interior
Avenue Habib Bourguiba
1000 Tunis
TUNISIA
Fax: 011 216 71 340 888
Salutation: Your Excellency
Minister of Justice and Human Rights
Bechir Tekkari
Ministry of Justice and Human Rights
31 Boulevard Bab Benat
1006 Tunis - La Kasbah
TUNISIA
Fax: 011 216 71 568 106
Salutation: Your Excellency
COPIES TO:
Ridha Khemakhem
General Coordinator for Human Rights
Ministry of Justice and Human Rights
31 Boulevard Bab Benat
1006 Tunis - La Kasbah
TUNISIA
Ambassador Hebib Manssour
Embassy of Tunisia
1515 Massachusetts Ave. NW
Washington DC 20005
Fax: 1 202 862 1858
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 15 December 2009.
----------------------------------
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Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement
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This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including
contact information and stop action date (if applicable).
Thank you for your help with this appeal.
Urgent Action Network
Amnesty International USA
600 Pennsylvania Ave SE 5th fl
Washington DC 20003
Email: uan@aiusa.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
Friday, October 30, 2009
Urgent action 10-29-09
To take action online, click here:
http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/siteapps/advocacy/index.aspx?c=jhKPIXPCIoE&b=2590179&template=x.ascx&action=13291
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa29109.pdf
29 October 2009
UA 291/09 - Imminent execution
USA John Allen Muhammad (m)
John Allen Muhammad is due to be executed in Virginia on 10 November. He was convicted in 2003 of capital murder in relation to a series of shootings in 2002. His lawyers are seeking clemency on the grounds that he suffers from severe mental impairment.
There were a series of 16 shootings between 5 September and 22 October 2002 in Maryland, Alabama, Louisiana, Washington, DC and Virginia, leaving 10 people dead and another six seriously wounded. John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo were arrested by federal agents in Maryland on 24 October 2002, asleep in a car. Among the items found in the car was a Bushmaster rifle which was linked to many of the shootings through ballistics testimony.
John Muhammad was tried in Virginia in 2003 for the murder of Dean Meyers, who had been shot while fueling his car at a gas station in Manassas, Virginia, on 9 October 2002. Initially John Muhammad chose to represent himself at trial despite being warned by the judge that he would be making a "tremendous mistake" given the complexity of the case. Two days later he fired himself and his stand-by counsel took over his representation.
A psychiatric evaluation obtained by his lawyers determined that despite an "ability to sometimes show a superficial brightness," Muhammad did not have "a reasonable degree of rational understanding." The psychiatrist concluded that he "was not competent to stand trial," that his "ability to make decisions and understand the proceedings was impaired," and that his "judgment and ability to think logically were severely compromised." Magnetic Resonance Imaging revealed that John Muhammad's brain had serious abnormalities, including a shrunken cortex, indicating a loss of brain tissue likely to have been caused by a severe injury to the head. Another abnormality found in his brain is sometimes associated with schizophrenia, and two experts retained concluded that Muhammad probably suffered from this serious mental illness. This opinion was consistent with indications that John Muhammad suffered from delusional and bizarre thinking. Other testing indicated that he had severe cognitive impairments.
Because John Muhammad refused to be interviewed by the prosecution's psychiatrist, however, the trial judge ruled that no expert testimony could be introduced, greatly reducing the defense lawyers' ability to protect Muhammad from the death penalty. They had built a mitigation case based around the testimony of a mental health expert. Among other things, according to Muhammad's appeal lawyers, his relatives and others had provided the expert with "heart-wrenching stories of the abuse and neglect Muhammad suffered as a child - beatings with hoses and electrical cords, denial of food, clothing and basic necessities, and suffering on a scale difficult to imagine." Mental health experts have linked this abuse with John Muhammad’s brain dysfunction.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
State and federal officials were divided over where to first prosecute John Muhammad and Lee Malvo, and which jurisdiction would be best placed to obtain and carry out the death penalty became a disturbing part of the decision-making process. Despite the fact that the two suspects were arrested in Maryland and most of the murders had happened there, the prosecutions were handed to Virginia which, unlike Maryland and the federal government, was and remains one of the most "efficient" executing jurisdictions in the USA, second only to Texas in the number of executions carried out since 1977 and with a reputation for moving cases swiftly through the appeals system. On 7 November 2002, US Attorney General John Ashcroft, an ardent advocate of capital punishment, announced that Virginia should conduct the initial prosecutions, emphasizing at a press conference that it was "imperative that the ultimate sanction be available for those who have committed these crimes," even in the case of the teenaged Malvo.
The 2002 sniper shootings were undoubtedly traumatic for the individuals and communities affected by them. Amnesty International does not seek to downplay the seriousness of these crimes or the suffering they have caused. It nevertheless opposes unconditionally the execution of John Allen Muhammad, as it does every execution, regardless of the seriousness of the crime or the culpability of the condemned. To end the death penalty is to abandon a destructive, diversionary and divisive public policy that is not consistent with widely held values. It not only runs the risk of irrevocable error, it is also costly, to the public purse as well as in social and psychological terms. It has not been proven to have a special deterrent effect. It tends to be applied in a discriminatory way, on grounds of race and class. It denies the possibility of reconciliation and rehabilitation. It promotes simplistic responses to complex human problems, rather than pursuing explanations that could inform positive strategies. It prolongs the suffering of murder victims' families, and extends that suffering to the loved ones of the condemned prisoner. It diverts resources that could be better used to work against violent crime and assist those affected by it.
Today, some 139 countries are abolitionist in law or practice. International law is abolitionist in outlook, seeking to have retentionist countries narrow the applicability of the death penalty with a view to ending its use altogether. Consistent with this, even those tried by international tribunals for the most serious crimes of concern to the international community - crimes against humanity, genocide and war crimes - cannot be subjected to the death penalty. In July 2002, a year before John Muhammad was sentenced to death, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court came into force. Under Article 77 of the Statute, the maximum penalty which the Court can impose is life imprisonment, subject to review after 25 years.
Lee Malvo was also tried in Virginia, and was sentenced in December 2003 to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, a sentence which violates international law in the case of an offender convicted for a crime committed when he or she was under 18 years old (see UA 288/03, 9 October 2003, and update, 24 December 2003).
There have been 42 executions in the USA this year, bringing to 1,178 the total number of executions carried out there since judicial killing resumed in 1977.Virginia accounts or 103 of these executions.
See also, USA: The execution of mentally ill offenders, January 2006,
http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/AMR51/003/2006/en.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- Recognizing the serious crimes in this case and the trauma and suffering caused;
- Opposing the execution of John Allen Muhammad;
- Noting expert evidence not heard by the jury that he suffers from brain damage and severe mental illness;
- Calling on Governor Kaine to commute John Muhammad’s death sentence and to work against the death penalty.
APPEALS TO:
Governor Timothy M. Kaine
Patrick Henry Building, 3rd Floor
1111 East Broad Street
Richmond, VA 23219
Fax: 1 804 371 6351
Email: http://www.governor.virginia.gov/AboutTheGovernor/contactGovernor.cfm
Salutation: Dear Governor
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 10 November 2009.
----------------------------------
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Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement
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Thank you for your help with this appeal.
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Email: uan@aiusa.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Urgent Action 10-28-09
URGENT ACTION APPEAL
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa28709.pdf
27 October 2009
UA 287/09 – Torture/ill-treatment
MEXICO
Roselio de la Cruz Gonzalez (m)
Jose Manuel de la Torre Hernandez (m)
Jose Manuel Hernandez Martinez (m)
Two men, both members of a peasant farmers' organization in Chiapas state, southern Mexico, have been tortured in custody after being arrested without a warrant. A third man who is a member of the same organization is being held 2,000km away, where he is unable to see his lawyer and family. All three men are accused of illegal occupying land in 2005.
In the early hours of 24 October the homes in Venustiano Carranza municipality of several members of Organizacion Campesina Emiliano Zapata ("Emiliano Zapata" Peasant Organisation, OCEZ) were searched by state police. When the police entered the home of Roselio de la Cruz Gonzalez, they hit and threatened one of his sons at gunpoint to reveal the whereabouts of his father. Roselio de la Cruz immediately gave himself up. His family saw him being hit in the stomach before being bundled in a police van. On the same night, police entered the nearby home of Jose Manuel de la Torre Hernandez. They hit him and his three children who were trying to stop him being taken away. The police did not show warrants to arrest the men or search their homes. Other homes of OCEZ members in the area were searched, but no one else was arrested. According to a local human rights organization, hundreds of police officers and soldiers remained in the area for at least two days.
Roselio de la Cruz and Jose Manuel de la Torre are currently held in a state prison. Their lawyer said that during interrogation, they were blindfolded, bound and beaten. Roselio de la Cruz was also threatened with death, while officials put a plastic bag over the head of Jose Manuel de la Torre until he was almost suffocating, then he was forced to inhale water till he fainted. Both men were forced to sign papers which they were not allowed to read. Another member of OCEZ who lives in the area, Jose Manuel Hernandez Martinez, was arrested on 30 September. Though he should be held by the Chiapas state authorities, on 16 October he was moved to a federal prison 2,000 km away. This is too far for his family and lawyer to visit him, and so he is effectively held incommunicado.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- To guarantee that that Roselio de la Cruz and Jose Manuel de la Torre will not be tortured or otherwise ill-treated;
- To immediately carry out an impartial investigation into their torture, with those responsible brought to justice;
- To ensure that the two men are either released immediately, or else charged promptly with a recognizably criminal offense and tried fairly according to international standards, with any evidence obtained through torture ruled inadmissible;
- To ensure that Jose Manuel Hernandez Martinez has access to his family and lawyer;
- To end illegal house searches and intimidation of OCEZ supporters and other inhabitants of Venustiano Carranza, and to investigate into the conduct of the police operation.
APPEALS TO:
Governor of Chiapas
Lic. Juan Sabines Guerrero
Gobernador del Estado de Chiapas
Palacio de Gobierno
Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas
MEXICO
Fax: 011 52 961 6188050 ext. 21122
Email: juansabines@chiapas.gob.mx
Salutation: Dear Governor/Senor Gobernador
Chiapas Attorney General
Mtro. Raciel Lopez Salazar
Procuraduria General de Justicia
Libramiento Norte no.201
Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas
MEXICO
Fax: 011 52 961 6165724
Salutation: Dear Attorney General/ Senor Procurador
Attorney General of the Republic
Lic. Arturo Chavez Chavez
Procuraduria General de la Republica
Av. Paseo de la Reforma no. 211.213
Mexico D.F., C.P. 06500
MEXICO
Fax: 011 52 55 53 460908
Salutation: Dear Attorney General/ Senor Procurador
COPIES TO:
Human Rights NGO
"Fray Bartolome" Human Rights center
Email: accionurgente@frayba.org.mx
Ambassador Arturo Sarukhan Casamitjana
Embassy of Mexico
1911 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington DC 20006
Fax: 1 202 728 1698
Email: mexembusa@sre.gob.mx
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 8 December 2009.
----------------------------------
Tip of the Month:
Write as soon as you can. Try to write as close as possible to the date a case is issued.
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Within the United States:
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To Canada:
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To Mexico:
$0.79 - Postcards
$0.79 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To all other destination countries:
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Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement that promotes and defends human rights.
This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including contact information and stop action date (if applicable). Thank you for your help with this appeal.
Urgent Action Network
Amnesty International USA
600 Pennsylvania Ave SE 5th fl
Washington DC 20003
Email: uan@aiusa.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa28709.pdf
27 October 2009
UA 287/09 – Torture/ill-treatment
MEXICO
Roselio de la Cruz Gonzalez (m)
Jose Manuel de la Torre Hernandez (m)
Jose Manuel Hernandez Martinez (m)
Two men, both members of a peasant farmers' organization in Chiapas state, southern Mexico, have been tortured in custody after being arrested without a warrant. A third man who is a member of the same organization is being held 2,000km away, where he is unable to see his lawyer and family. All three men are accused of illegal occupying land in 2005.
In the early hours of 24 October the homes in Venustiano Carranza municipality of several members of Organizacion Campesina Emiliano Zapata ("Emiliano Zapata" Peasant Organisation, OCEZ) were searched by state police. When the police entered the home of Roselio de la Cruz Gonzalez, they hit and threatened one of his sons at gunpoint to reveal the whereabouts of his father. Roselio de la Cruz immediately gave himself up. His family saw him being hit in the stomach before being bundled in a police van. On the same night, police entered the nearby home of Jose Manuel de la Torre Hernandez. They hit him and his three children who were trying to stop him being taken away. The police did not show warrants to arrest the men or search their homes. Other homes of OCEZ members in the area were searched, but no one else was arrested. According to a local human rights organization, hundreds of police officers and soldiers remained in the area for at least two days.
Roselio de la Cruz and Jose Manuel de la Torre are currently held in a state prison. Their lawyer said that during interrogation, they were blindfolded, bound and beaten. Roselio de la Cruz was also threatened with death, while officials put a plastic bag over the head of Jose Manuel de la Torre until he was almost suffocating, then he was forced to inhale water till he fainted. Both men were forced to sign papers which they were not allowed to read. Another member of OCEZ who lives in the area, Jose Manuel Hernandez Martinez, was arrested on 30 September. Though he should be held by the Chiapas state authorities, on 16 October he was moved to a federal prison 2,000 km away. This is too far for his family and lawyer to visit him, and so he is effectively held incommunicado.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- To guarantee that that Roselio de la Cruz and Jose Manuel de la Torre will not be tortured or otherwise ill-treated;
- To immediately carry out an impartial investigation into their torture, with those responsible brought to justice;
- To ensure that the two men are either released immediately, or else charged promptly with a recognizably criminal offense and tried fairly according to international standards, with any evidence obtained through torture ruled inadmissible;
- To ensure that Jose Manuel Hernandez Martinez has access to his family and lawyer;
- To end illegal house searches and intimidation of OCEZ supporters and other inhabitants of Venustiano Carranza, and to investigate into the conduct of the police operation.
APPEALS TO:
Governor of Chiapas
Lic. Juan Sabines Guerrero
Gobernador del Estado de Chiapas
Palacio de Gobierno
Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas
MEXICO
Fax: 011 52 961 6188050 ext. 21122
Email: juansabines@chiapas.gob.mx
Salutation: Dear Governor/Senor Gobernador
Chiapas Attorney General
Mtro. Raciel Lopez Salazar
Procuraduria General de Justicia
Libramiento Norte no.201
Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas
MEXICO
Fax: 011 52 961 6165724
Salutation: Dear Attorney General/ Senor Procurador
Attorney General of the Republic
Lic. Arturo Chavez Chavez
Procuraduria General de la Republica
Av. Paseo de la Reforma no. 211.213
Mexico D.F., C.P. 06500
MEXICO
Fax: 011 52 55 53 460908
Salutation: Dear Attorney General/ Senor Procurador
COPIES TO:
Human Rights NGO
"Fray Bartolome" Human Rights center
Email: accionurgente@frayba.org.mx
Ambassador Arturo Sarukhan Casamitjana
Embassy of Mexico
1911 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington DC 20006
Fax: 1 202 728 1698
Email: mexembusa@sre.gob.mx
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 8 December 2009.
----------------------------------
Tip of the Month:
Write as soon as you can. Try to write as close as possible to the date a case is issued.
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Within the United States:
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$0.75 - Postcards
$0.75 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To Mexico:
$0.79 - Postcards
$0.79 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To all other destination countries:
$0.98 - Postcards
$0.98 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement that promotes and defends human rights.
This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including contact information and stop action date (if applicable). Thank you for your help with this appeal.
Urgent Action Network
Amnesty International USA
600 Pennsylvania Ave SE 5th fl
Washington DC 20003
Email: uan@aiusa.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Urgent Action 10-22-09
URGENT ACTION APPEAL
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa06009.pdf
Note: Please write on behalf of these persons even though you may not have received the original UA when issued on March 4, 2009. Thanks!
21 October 2009
Further Information on UA 60/09 (4 March 2009) and follow-up (1 April 2009) - Fear of torture and other ill-treatment
IRAN
Sanaz Allahyari (f) ]
Nasim Roshana'i (f) ]
Maryam Sheikh (f) ] All students
Amir Hossein Mohammadi-Far (m) ]
Mohammad Pour Abdollah (m) ]
Mohammad Pour Abdollah, a male student arrested in February in Iran's capital, Tehran, is now on trial, apparently on charges related to national security for his activities in an Iranian student organization. He is still detained in Qezel Hesar Prison near Tehran and is likely to be a prisoner of conscience. Two other members of the same organization arrested in March have been released.
Mohammad Pour Abdollah's trial, believed to be on charges of "gathering and colluding with the aim of harming national security, propaganda against the system and membership of groups opposed to the system" finally began on 12 October after having been postponed on at least three occasions. No verdict has yet been passed. The charges apparently relate to his previous arrest after a student demonstration in Tehran in December 2007, and other charges possibly relating to articles he posted on his blog after his release.
Mohammad Pour Abdollah is a member of the left-wing Iranian students' organization Students for Freedom and Equality. Two other members of the same group, arrested on 1 March by security forces apparently seeking male student activist Amin Ghaza'i, have since been released: Maryam Sheikh was released on bail of 500 million rials (US$50,000) after seven days, while Amin Ghaza'i's wife Nasim Roshana'i (also known as Somayeh) was released after eight days, also on bail of 500 million rials. Another femle member of the student group, Sanaz Allahyari, who was detained for just over two weeks, was sentenced in August to one year's imprisonment, suspended for five years, for participating in an illegal student demonstration on 23 February.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Students for Freedom and Equality is a left-wing student organization that was established around 2006 with objectives including the establishment of a nationwide students' network and an end to a military presence in Iranian universities. It was involved in organizing peaceful demonstrations in December 2007, following which around 70 people were arrested, the majority of whom were members of Students for Freedom and Equality (see UA 331/07 and follow ups). Several were tortured during their detention. For example, one student had his ribs and several of his teeth broken when he refused to be filmed "confessing" to having links with exile groups and attempting to destabilize the country. Another student lost the hearing in his left ear after a hard object was inserted into it and was so traumatized by his torture that he attempted suicide.
At least seven members were arrested in February and March 2009, including those named in this action. Another of those arrested, Ali Reza Davoudi, a 26-year-old man, was arrested on 12 February in Esfahan and was released on bail on 25 April. He was tortured during his detention, including with cigarette burns and beatings. He also told his family he had been suspended from the ceiling for three days. He became depressed following his release and was hospitalized in Esfahan in July. His health improved, but when his aunt called the hospital on 8 August to arrange his discharge, she was told he had died. His family believe his death is suspicious. They were also warned by officials not to publicize his funeral.
The student demonstration on 23 February was held to protest against the burial of unknown soldiers on the campus of a Tehran university, which was widely viewed as a move by the government to seek to control student groups opposed to its policies. Burial of soldiers, called martyrs on account of their sacrifice in fighting against Iraqi forces, appears to enable non-students to enter the campus without being required to show evidence that they are students, a normal requirement for access to university premises. Student groups fear that the presence of the graves would allow unrestricted access to the campuses by security forces, including the volunteer Basij militia who are under the control of the Revolutionary Guards and who have been responsible for human rights violations over many years. Students believe such access would lead to further restrictions on debates and discussions relating to government policy.
Others from Students for Freedom and Equality were arrested during the unrest following the disputed Iranian presidential election in June. Female student Bita Samimizad was arrested in the street in Tehran and released after two weeks and is due to stand trial in October. A male journalist and student at Mayboud University, Amir Mohsen Mohammadi, was arrested in Esfahan on 15 June after being summoned by Intelligence Ministry officials. According to Human Rights Activists in Iran, an Iranian human rights group, he was accused of organizing the election unrest, and was released on bail on 16 August. He had previously been arrested in Esfahan on 6 October 2008 and held for about 12 days. Mohammad Sayyadi, a student at the Bou Ali Sina University in Hamedan, was detained on 25 June 2009. He had previously been detained for three days in September 2008, when he was held in a Ministry of Intelligence detention center where he was ill-treated. Released on bail, he was tried in December 2008, without a lawyer, and sentenced in January 2009 to six-and-a-half years in prison, on charges including "illegal formation and direction of a group for the purpose of overthrowing the system", "propaganda against the system", and "insulting Ayatollah Khomeini" (Articles 498, 500 and 514 of the Penal Code). The sentence was reduced on appeal to two years. He is believed to be held in Alvand Prison in Hamedan, although it is not clear to Amnesty International whether he is serving his prison sentence, or is facing new charges.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- Calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Mohammad Pour Abdollah if, as appears to be the case, he is held solely for the peaceful expression of his right to freedom of expression and association;
- Calling for him to be protected from torture and other ill-treatment while in detention;
- Urging the authorities to review the suspended sentence of Sanaz Allahyari, as if detained she would be a prisoner of conscience, held solely for the peaceful expression of her right to freedom of assembly, and to drop any charges against other members of Students for Freedom and Equality related solely to the peaceful exercise of their rights to freedom of expression, assembly and association.
APPEALS TO:
Head of the Judiciary
Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi
Howzeh Riyasat-e Qoveh Qazaiyeh/Office of the Head of the Judiciary
Pasteur St., Vali Asr Ave., south of Serah-e Jomhouri
Tehran 1316814737
ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN
Email: Via website: http://www.dadiran.ir/tabid/81/Default.aspx
1st starred box: your given name; 2sd starred box: your family name; 3rd: your email address
Salutation: Your Excellency
Leader of the Islamic Republic
Ayatollah Sayed 'Ali Khamenei
Office of the Supreme Leader
Islamic Republic Street –
End of Shahid Keshvar Doust Street
Tehran, ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN
Email: via website:
www.leader.ir/langs/en/index.php?p=letter (English)
www.leader.ir/langs/fa/index.php?p=letter (Persian)
Salutation: Your Excellency
COPIES TO:
Speaker of Parliament
His Excellency Ali Larijani
Majles-e Shoura-ye Eslami
Baharestan Square
Tehran
ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN
Fax: 011 98 21 3355 6408
Salutation: Dear Mr Larijani
Iran does not presently have an embassy in the United States. Instead, please send copies to:
Iranian Interests Section
Embassy of Pakistan
2209 Wisconsin Ave NW
Washington DC 20007
Phone: 202 965 4990
Fax: 202 965 1073
Email: requests@daftar.org
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 2 December, 2009.
----------------------------------
Tip of the Month:
Write as soon as you can. Try to write as close as possible
to the date a case is issued.
** POSTAGE RATES **
Within the United States:
$0.28 - Postcards
$0.44 - Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To Canada:
$0.75 - Postcards
$0.75 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To Mexico:
$0.79 - Postcards
$0.79 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To all other destination countries:
$0.98 - Postcards
$0.98 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement
that promotes and defends human rights.
This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including
contact information and stop action date (if applicable).
Thank you for your help with this appeal.
Urgent Action Network
Amnesty International USA
600 Pennsylvania Ave SE 5th fl
Washington DC 20003
Email: uan@aiusa.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa06009.pdf
Note: Please write on behalf of these persons even though you may not have received the original UA when issued on March 4, 2009. Thanks!
21 October 2009
Further Information on UA 60/09 (4 March 2009) and follow-up (1 April 2009) - Fear of torture and other ill-treatment
IRAN
Sanaz Allahyari (f) ]
Nasim Roshana'i (f) ]
Maryam Sheikh (f) ] All students
Amir Hossein Mohammadi-Far (m) ]
Mohammad Pour Abdollah (m) ]
Mohammad Pour Abdollah, a male student arrested in February in Iran's capital, Tehran, is now on trial, apparently on charges related to national security for his activities in an Iranian student organization. He is still detained in Qezel Hesar Prison near Tehran and is likely to be a prisoner of conscience. Two other members of the same organization arrested in March have been released.
Mohammad Pour Abdollah's trial, believed to be on charges of "gathering and colluding with the aim of harming national security, propaganda against the system and membership of groups opposed to the system" finally began on 12 October after having been postponed on at least three occasions. No verdict has yet been passed. The charges apparently relate to his previous arrest after a student demonstration in Tehran in December 2007, and other charges possibly relating to articles he posted on his blog after his release.
Mohammad Pour Abdollah is a member of the left-wing Iranian students' organization Students for Freedom and Equality. Two other members of the same group, arrested on 1 March by security forces apparently seeking male student activist Amin Ghaza'i, have since been released: Maryam Sheikh was released on bail of 500 million rials (US$50,000) after seven days, while Amin Ghaza'i's wife Nasim Roshana'i (also known as Somayeh) was released after eight days, also on bail of 500 million rials. Another femle member of the student group, Sanaz Allahyari, who was detained for just over two weeks, was sentenced in August to one year's imprisonment, suspended for five years, for participating in an illegal student demonstration on 23 February.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Students for Freedom and Equality is a left-wing student organization that was established around 2006 with objectives including the establishment of a nationwide students' network and an end to a military presence in Iranian universities. It was involved in organizing peaceful demonstrations in December 2007, following which around 70 people were arrested, the majority of whom were members of Students for Freedom and Equality (see UA 331/07 and follow ups). Several were tortured during their detention. For example, one student had his ribs and several of his teeth broken when he refused to be filmed "confessing" to having links with exile groups and attempting to destabilize the country. Another student lost the hearing in his left ear after a hard object was inserted into it and was so traumatized by his torture that he attempted suicide.
At least seven members were arrested in February and March 2009, including those named in this action. Another of those arrested, Ali Reza Davoudi, a 26-year-old man, was arrested on 12 February in Esfahan and was released on bail on 25 April. He was tortured during his detention, including with cigarette burns and beatings. He also told his family he had been suspended from the ceiling for three days. He became depressed following his release and was hospitalized in Esfahan in July. His health improved, but when his aunt called the hospital on 8 August to arrange his discharge, she was told he had died. His family believe his death is suspicious. They were also warned by officials not to publicize his funeral.
The student demonstration on 23 February was held to protest against the burial of unknown soldiers on the campus of a Tehran university, which was widely viewed as a move by the government to seek to control student groups opposed to its policies. Burial of soldiers, called martyrs on account of their sacrifice in fighting against Iraqi forces, appears to enable non-students to enter the campus without being required to show evidence that they are students, a normal requirement for access to university premises. Student groups fear that the presence of the graves would allow unrestricted access to the campuses by security forces, including the volunteer Basij militia who are under the control of the Revolutionary Guards and who have been responsible for human rights violations over many years. Students believe such access would lead to further restrictions on debates and discussions relating to government policy.
Others from Students for Freedom and Equality were arrested during the unrest following the disputed Iranian presidential election in June. Female student Bita Samimizad was arrested in the street in Tehran and released after two weeks and is due to stand trial in October. A male journalist and student at Mayboud University, Amir Mohsen Mohammadi, was arrested in Esfahan on 15 June after being summoned by Intelligence Ministry officials. According to Human Rights Activists in Iran, an Iranian human rights group, he was accused of organizing the election unrest, and was released on bail on 16 August. He had previously been arrested in Esfahan on 6 October 2008 and held for about 12 days. Mohammad Sayyadi, a student at the Bou Ali Sina University in Hamedan, was detained on 25 June 2009. He had previously been detained for three days in September 2008, when he was held in a Ministry of Intelligence detention center where he was ill-treated. Released on bail, he was tried in December 2008, without a lawyer, and sentenced in January 2009 to six-and-a-half years in prison, on charges including "illegal formation and direction of a group for the purpose of overthrowing the system", "propaganda against the system", and "insulting Ayatollah Khomeini" (Articles 498, 500 and 514 of the Penal Code). The sentence was reduced on appeal to two years. He is believed to be held in Alvand Prison in Hamedan, although it is not clear to Amnesty International whether he is serving his prison sentence, or is facing new charges.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- Calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Mohammad Pour Abdollah if, as appears to be the case, he is held solely for the peaceful expression of his right to freedom of expression and association;
- Calling for him to be protected from torture and other ill-treatment while in detention;
- Urging the authorities to review the suspended sentence of Sanaz Allahyari, as if detained she would be a prisoner of conscience, held solely for the peaceful expression of her right to freedom of assembly, and to drop any charges against other members of Students for Freedom and Equality related solely to the peaceful exercise of their rights to freedom of expression, assembly and association.
APPEALS TO:
Head of the Judiciary
Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi
Howzeh Riyasat-e Qoveh Qazaiyeh/Office of the Head of the Judiciary
Pasteur St., Vali Asr Ave., south of Serah-e Jomhouri
Tehran 1316814737
ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN
Email: Via website: http://www.dadiran.ir/tabid/81/Default.aspx
1st starred box: your given name; 2sd starred box: your family name; 3rd: your email address
Salutation: Your Excellency
Leader of the Islamic Republic
Ayatollah Sayed 'Ali Khamenei
Office of the Supreme Leader
Islamic Republic Street –
End of Shahid Keshvar Doust Street
Tehran, ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN
Email: via website:
www.leader.ir/langs/en/index.php?p=letter (English)
www.leader.ir/langs/fa/index.php?p=letter (Persian)
Salutation: Your Excellency
COPIES TO:
Speaker of Parliament
His Excellency Ali Larijani
Majles-e Shoura-ye Eslami
Baharestan Square
Tehran
ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN
Fax: 011 98 21 3355 6408
Salutation: Dear Mr Larijani
Iran does not presently have an embassy in the United States. Instead, please send copies to:
Iranian Interests Section
Embassy of Pakistan
2209 Wisconsin Ave NW
Washington DC 20007
Phone: 202 965 4990
Fax: 202 965 1073
Email: requests@daftar.org
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 2 December, 2009.
----------------------------------
Tip of the Month:
Write as soon as you can. Try to write as close as possible
to the date a case is issued.
** POSTAGE RATES **
Within the United States:
$0.28 - Postcards
$0.44 - Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To Canada:
$0.75 - Postcards
$0.75 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To Mexico:
$0.79 - Postcards
$0.79 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To all other destination countries:
$0.98 - Postcards
$0.98 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement
that promotes and defends human rights.
This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including
contact information and stop action date (if applicable).
Thank you for your help with this appeal.
Urgent Action Network
Amnesty International USA
600 Pennsylvania Ave SE 5th fl
Washington DC 20003
Email: uan@aiusa.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566
----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------
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