April 2002

Following several incidents in which law enforcement officials on border duties are alleged to have shot and seriously injured unarmed Albanians trying to enter Greece illegally in search of work, Amnesty International has written to Prime Minister Simitis urging him to instruct police, soldiers and coast guards to exercise restraint and limit the use of firearms to situations involving imminent threat of death or serious injury, in line with international standards. Posted: 30 Apr 2002

An Amnesty International high level delegation led by the organisation's Secretary General Irene Khan has confirmed that there is strong evidence indicating that grave breaches of international humanitarian law and violations of human rights in Jenin camp were committed by the Israel Defense Force. Posted: 30 Apr 2002

Senegal now has a unique opportunity to restore its citizens' confidence in the justice system after years of impunity have undermined the foundation of the rule of law, Amnesty International said today in a report entitled: Senegal: Putting an end to impunity: a unique opportunity not to be missed. Posted: 30 Apr 2002

International human rights organisations - Amnesty International, FIDH, Human Rights Watch and International Commission of Jurists - expressed dismay at the Commission on Human Rights' failure to adopt measures to protect human rights in the fight against terror. Posted: 30 Apr 2002

Amnesty International expressed concern that asylum-seekers from Haiti are being subject, as a matter of course, to indefinite detention in the USA without adequate opportunity to present their claims for asylum and in conditions which are unsuitable for refugees. Posted: 30 Apr 2002

Amnesty International condemned the attack on a Shia community meeting in Punjab province which killed 12 women and children and injured dozens of others. Posted: 29 Apr 2002

Amnesty International urged the Hong Kong authorities to exercise restraint and ensure that minimum force is used to control the current protests on the right of abode. Although the organisation cannot take a position on the right to abode issue, it is concerned about reports of the use of excessive force in the recent clearing of protesters from Chater Garden on Hong Kong Island. Posted: 29 Apr 2002

The tit-for-tat killings of civilians must stop. There is no excuse for targeting civilians whether they are in Haifa, Jenin, Tel Aviv, or Hebron," said Irene Khan, Secretary General of Amnesty International. Posted: 29 Apr 2002

Amnesty International's Secretary General Irene Khan, said that she is dismayed by the Israeli Government's continuing refusal to cooperate with the UN fact-finding team, established by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, which had been scheduled to arrive in Jenin on Sunday. Posted: 29 Apr 2002

Amnesty International's Secretary General, Irene Khan, will carry out her first visit to Israel and the Occupied Territories, where she will meet both Palestinian and Israeli victims and their families, human rights defenders and non-governmental organisations this weekend. Posted: 26 Apr 2002

On 27 and 28 April, Amnesty International members around the world will be joining in solidarity people in Israel and the Occupied Territories to mourn all victims of the human rights abuses committed in the region since the start of the second Intifada and to demand justice and respect for human rights. Posted: 26 Apr 2002

Amnesty International commended the commitment shown by those African states that have ratified the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (the African Children's Charter). Posted: 26 Apr 2002

Amnesty International expressed its deep regret at the decision by members of the UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva to vote in favour of a "no-action motion" to avoid a discussion of a draft resolution on Zimbabwe during the 58th session of the UNCHR. Posted: 26 Apr 2002

A crucial vote on a new treaty to prevent torture took place yesterday, Monday 22 April 2002, at the current session of the UN Commission on Human Rights (the Commission). The Commission voted in favour of an important new instrument - the draft Optional Protocol to the UN Convention against Torture. This new treaty aims to help states to implement their existing obligations under the Convention against Torture to prevent torture in places of detention, such as police stations, prisons, and psychiatric institutions. Posted: 24 Apr 2002

On the eve of Henry Kissinger's visit to the United Kingdom, Amnesty International today criticized the reported refusal of the UK Home Office to cooperate with requests by French and Spanish judges to question the former US Secretary of State as a witness concerning widespread and systematic human rights violations - amounting to crimes against humanity - committed in Chile under the military government of Augusto Pinochet. Posted: 24 Apr 2002

Amnesty International welcomes the speed with which the UN Secretary-General has created a fact-finding team, to be headed by Martti Ahtisaari, the former President of Finland, to establish what happened in Jenin refugee camp. The organisation is concerned, however, that unless the team has a clear mandate, powers and all necessary resources to thoroughly investigate alleged abuses of human rights and international humanitarian law, it will be extremely difficult to conduct an authoritative inquiry. Posted: 24 Apr 2002

At a time when countries around the world are increasingly turning their backs on the use of the death penalty, Amnesty International today renewed its call on the English-speaking Caribbean countries to finally rid themselves of this cruel legacy of their colonial past. Posted: 23 Apr 2002

Amnesty International took note of the new political agreement between rival Presidential contenders in Madagascar and expressed its grave concern at recent human rights violations in the country, including the killing of two women by soldiers in the town of Fianarantsoa on 16 April. Posted: 22 Apr 2002

A vigorous response from the Russian authorities to racism is needed to stem the growing tide of attacks against ethnic minorities, Amnesty International said. Posted: 22 Apr 2002

As Algeria and the European Union (EU) prepare to sign a bilateral association agreement next week in Spain, Amnesty International today published a new report calling on the parties to ensure that the agreement's human rights provisions "do not remain token gestures". Posted: 19 Apr 2002