August 2003

On the fourth anniversary of the vote for independence by the people of East Timor, Amnesty International has condemned the Indonesian authorities' refusal to bring the perpetrators of the 1999 violence to justice, and has called on the UN and the international community to intervene. Posted: 29 Aug 2003

Amnesty International has published a new report detailing its concerns about the apparent dramatic increase in the use of the death penalty in Viet Nam, and the high proportion of capital sentences for drug-related crimes. 62 death sentences and 19 executions have been recorded by Amnesty International so far in 2003. Posted: 29 Aug 2003

As new UK asylum statistics were published today Amnesty International condemned the government's preoccupation with target-setting as an insult to those who have fled persecution, torture and possible death. Posted: 28 Aug 2003

A new report today (28 August 2003) by Amnesty International shows that Rio's poor communities continue to suffer extreme levels of violence, most notably at the hands of the police. In the first six months of 2003 alone, 621 civilians were killed by Rio's police. Posted: 28 Aug 2003

The recent detention of around 42 social activists and human rights defenders in Saravena, department of Arauca, 28 of whom remain under arrest, appears to be part of an on-going coordinated campaign to undermine the work of trade unionists and human rights activists and increase the risk of their being attacked by army-backed paramilitaries, Amnesty International said today. Posted: 28 Aug 2003

Today (Thursday 28 August 2003), on the day that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission will present its final report to President Alejandro Toledo, members of Parliament and the judiciary, Amnesty International reiterated its support for the work the Commission has carried out in the last two years. Posted: 28 Aug 2003

Posted: 27 Aug 2003

Posted: 27 Aug 2003

Following reports of a breakdown of peace talks between the government and representatives of the Communist Party of Nepal (CPN) (Maoist), Amnesty International today urged both sides to set up an independent human rights monitoring mechanism. Posted: 27 Aug 2003

At the close of its 26th International Council Meeting in Mexico, Amnesty International leaders from more than 80 countries adopted a plan of action that seeks to globalise justice in response to the pressing problems in the world. Posted: 26 Aug 2003

On the eve of a deadline (27 August 2003) for submission of responses to a planned government restriction of legal aid in asylum cases, Amnesty International is warning that cuts in legal aid could jeopardise the lives of asylum-seekers who may be returned to persecution without a fair hearing in the UK. Posted: 26 Aug 2003

Amnesty International strongly condemns the detention of opposition supporters, violent intimidation and threats in the run-up to Rwanda's first presidential elections (25 August 2003) since the 1994 genocide. Posted: 22 Aug 2003

Reacting to media reports that three children aged between 13 and 15 may shortly be released from Guantánamo Bay Amnesty International UK Media Director Lesley Warner said: "The US should not be trumpeting the possible release of child prisoners, it should be apologising to the world for its shameful detention of them in the first place. If they are now between 13 and 15-years-old, how old were they when they were first detained? Posted: 22 Aug 2003

With United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCR) goodwill ambassador Angelina Jolie currently on a visit to camps for internally displaced Chechens in Russia, Amnesty International has voiced serious concern that Chechens are being forcibly returned from tent camps in Ingushetia to the Chechen Republic. Posted: 22 Aug 2003

On the eve of the annual summit of the Southern African Development Community (Tanzania, 25-26 August), Amnesty International is calling on southern African leaders to seize the opportunity to give the Zimbabwean government a clear sign that its continuing abuse of basic human rights is not acceptable. Posted: 21 Aug 2003

About 1.6 million British tourists will travel abroad on the coming bank holiday weekend from Friday 22nd August. But while they may go prepared with information on weather, currency or language, Amnesty International suspects that only a very few check the human rights situation in their destination of choice. Posted: 20 Aug 2003

Death threats have been made to local leaders of the Oil Workers' Trade Union, Union Sindical Obrera (USO), prompting Amnesty International members around the world to urgently launch a campaign for the Colombian authorities to provide them with immediate protection. Posted: 20 Aug 2003

The attack that killed Sergio Vieira de Mello, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, symbolises an attack on those who promote the principles of justice and human rights, stated Amnesty International's Secretary General Irene Khan. Posted: 20 Aug 2003

"Who is an enemy combatant? Today, it can be anyone the president wants. And that is terrifying." A former judge on the Superior Court of New Jersey. Posted: 19 Aug 2003

It is with a deep feeling of loss that Amnesty International hears the news of Sergio Vieira de Mello's death. His contribution to human rights is universally accepted and we can only send our thoughts to his family and friends. Posted: 19 Aug 2003