March 2006

As the Foreign Secretary Jack Straw accompanies US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today in the north-west of England, Amnesty International called on Mr Straw to use the opportunity to raise key human rights concerns with the American politician. Posted: 31 Mar 2006

Amnesty International has revealed that large numbers of children, some aged as young as 12, are once again being recruited to serve as fighters in the conflict province of North-Kivu, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Posted: 31 Mar 2006

Amnesty International and Rape Crisis welcomed the government's announcement today of possible new measures to raise conviction rates in rape cases but warned that much more needs to be done. Posted: 29 Mar 2006

As the Policing Board meet to decide on the deployment of electro-shock 'taser' weapons to the PSNI, a new report from Amnesty International reveals a significant year-on-year increase in deaths related to tasers in the USA. Posted: 28 Mar 2006

A new report from Amnesty International today (28 March) reveals a significant year-on-year increase in deaths related to electro-shock 'Taser' weapons in the USA. In the UK, over three-quarters of police forces have recently deployed tasers to firearms officers and some parts of the police have already called for wider deployment to all officers. Posted: 28 Mar 2006

Amnesty International renews call for public inquiry on eve of Nicholas Blake's Deepcut report. Posted: 28 Mar 2006

Reacting to today's reports that former Liberian president Charles Taylor has "escaped" from his home in Calabar, Nigeria, Amnesty International said "any country in which he is found has a responsibility to arrest and surrender Charles Taylor immediately to the Special Court in Sierra Leone." Posted: 28 Mar 2006

Tomorrow (28 March), the US Supreme Court will begin to hear arguments in the case of Salim Ahmed Hamdan regarding the legality of trials before military commissions at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Posted: 27 Mar 2006

New report from the Control Arms Campaign: Oxfam International, Amnesty International and International Action Network on Small Arms (IANSA). UN arms embargoes are systematically violated and must be urgently strengthened if they are to stop weapons fuelling human rights abuses, according to a report 1 being presented to the UN Security Council today (Thursday). Posted: 16 Mar 2006

Ahead of presidential elections in Belarus scheduled for 19 March 2006, the authorities are delivering another assault on human rights. Opposition activists are being detained and sentenced for the legitimate expression of their political views while the authorities have tightened up legislation to clamp down on civil society, stifling human rights in the process. Posted: 16 Mar 2006

Amnesty International welcomes the overwhelming vote by the UN General Assembly today in favour of establishing a new Human Rights Council. Posted: 15 Mar 2006

Amnesty International is deeply concerned about the safety of Palestinian detainees in Jericho Prison. The prison is currently surrounded by Israeli forces who have threatened to kill detainees who refuse to surrender to them. Posted: 14 Mar 2006

Sexual violence organisations have applauded the shift in focus away from the victim and their behaviour towards the behaviour of men who commit sexual offences, heralded by today's launch of magazine and radio advertisements from the Home Office, promoting the issue of consent. Posted: 14 Mar 2006

Amnesty International is calling on men who work with young men and boys to help tackle violence against women, at a nationwide series of new events entitled Involving Men. The London event takes place on 1 April at Amnesty's Human Rights Action Centre, with further events in Scotland (30 March), Northern Ireland (3 April) and Wales (5 April). Posted: 13 Mar 2006

Amnesty International today (10 March) called for action from the US authorities in response to an open letter from leading medical experts that condemns force-feeding of prisoners at the US detention centre in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Posted: 10 Mar 2006

Reacting to the news of Merseyside Police dawn raids in Greater Manchester and North Wales, Amnesty International UK Director Kate Allen said: Amnesty welcomes the police crackdown on traffickers and their vicious trade in women who are held prisoner and forced to work as prostitutes. Posted: 10 Mar 2006

Belfast-born consultant Dr David Nicholl is the man behind a remarkable open letter from leading international medical experts that condemns force-feeding of prisoners at the US detention centre in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Posted: 10 Mar 2006

Amnesty International utterly condemns the multiple bombings that took place on Monday 7 March in the north Indian city of Varanasi, claiming 21 lives and injuring more than 60 others. Posted: 9 Mar 2006

Amnesty International expresses grave concern about the recent escalation of violence in a remote forest region of Chattisgarh, central India. On 28 February, suspected Maoists belonging to the People's War Group (PWG) set off a landmine in the Dantewada/Bastar region of the state. As a result, a truck carrying civilians was blown up, killing 26 people and seriously injuring 30 others. Posted: 8 Mar 2006

As the Policing Board reveal the Chief Constable of PSNI's plans for the introduction of electro-shock 'Tasers', Amnesty International issued the following briefing detailing its concerns that Tasers are potentially lethal and inherently open to abuse. Posted: 8 Mar 2006