Success Stories!

(UA 286/09) Turkmen Environmentalist Evades Five Years' Imprisonment

Andrei Zakota, a 53-year-old male environmentalist, was released on 6 November from a sentence of five years in prison after he paid a fine of 1,000 Manat (about 350 USD). He was arrested on 20 October on charges of "hooliganism" and faced an unfair trial. When the regional court ruled that the city court did not take into account mitigating factors such as his environmental activity, his reputation and his cooperation, his prison sentence was commuted to a fine.
2009-11-12

After 3 Months, Iranian Prisoner of Conscience Released Without Charge (UA 176/09)

Jakarkhon Sheikho, an Iranian prisoner of conscience who was detained incommunicado for nearly three and a half months, was released without charge on October 3. He spent part of his detention in an interrogation center in Damascus that is notorious for torture. It is believed that he was arrested by Military Security because of his activities as a senior member of an unauthorized Kurdish Syrian political party.
2009-10-23

Human Rights Defender Released on Bail in Iran (UA 193/09)

Human rights defender Shadi Sadr was released on bail on July 28 after being abducted on July 17 in Tehran by men believed to be security officials. It is not known what she has been charged with, but she is believed to have been arrested in connection with her human rights activities after the disputed presidential election. A lawyer and a journalist, Shadi Sadr was released after 11 days in custody on bail of 50 million toumans (US$54,000).
2009-07-30

Usra al-Hussein Released from Incommunicado Detention in Syria (UA 261/08)

Usra al-Hussein was released on July 18 after spending nearly a year in incommunicado detention without charge or trial. Her husband, Jehad Diab, has been held without charge or trial as an "enemy combatant" in the U.S. detention center in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, since August 2002. Usra al-Hussein was arrested by State Security officials on July 31, 2008, from her home in al-'Otayba after contacting an international organization regarding the detention conditions of her husband. Since her arrest, she was permitted no contact with the outside world, and her family was given no information by the Syrian authorities as to where she was being held or why she had been arrested. Amnesty International does not yet have information on her treatment during detention.
2009-07-23

Afro-descendant Community of Caracoli in Colombia Not Evicted (UA 154/09)

Local police in the Curvarado region of Colombia were preparing to serve an eviction notice on the community of Caracoli on June 18. However, thanks in part to pressure from the international community, the Colombian Constitutional Court ordered the immediate suspension of the eviction notice and called for the protection of the community, which consists of over 100 people. The eviction notice had been ordered by a local judge despite the central government's repeated recognition that the residents of Caracoli legally own their lands and have a right to remain there. Caracoli is included in a collective land title, owned by the local Afro-descendant community, covering the region of Curvarado and Jiguamiando.
2009-07-20

Ahmed Zuhair Released from Guantanamo (UA 350/08)

Saudi Arabian national Ahmed Zaid Salem Zuhair was released from Guantanamo and flown to Saudi Arabia on June 12. He had been held without charge or trial in Guantanamo since June 2002 and had been on hunger strike and a force feeding regime since August 2005. He was seized in a market in late December 2001 in Lahore, Pakistan, by a dozen men in civilian clothes. He was blindfolded and taken to a house where, he said, he was tortured and otherwise ill-treated. He was transferred to a military facility in the capital, Islamabad, and held incommunicado there for about 10 weeks. In mid-March 2002, he was handed over to U.S. custody and held in Bagram air base in Afghanistan. In June 2002, he was transferred to Kandahar, where he was held for two weeks. He was transported to Guantanamo later that month. He said he was ill-treated while in U.S. custody in Afghanistan. In Saudi Arabia, he will be subject to judicial review before undergoing a rehabilitation program, throughout which he will be under the control of the Saudi government. The U.S. Justice Department emphasized that his transfer, as well as those of two other Saudi Arabian nationals, Khalid Saad Mohammed and Abdalaziz Kareem Salim AL Noofayaee, were the result of the review by the Guantanamo Review Task Force set up under an executive order signed by President Barack Obama on January 22.
2009-06-15

Student Released and in Good Health in United Arab Emirates (UA 142/09)

Khalil Abdul Rahman Abdul Karim al-Janahi, a 38-year-old United Arab Emirates national and a student of Shari'a (Islamic) law in Saudi Arabia, was released this morning and is staying with his relatives in the UAE. He is said to be in good health. Khalil Abdul Rahman Abdul Karim al-Janahi was arrested on April 26, 2007 when he went to the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh to catch a plane to Bahrain where his wife and other relatives live. He was arrested at passport control in the airport and taken to 'Ulaysha Prison in Saudi Arabia where he was held incommunicado for four months. His family was eventually able to visit him on several occasions, but they were not given the reason for his detention. On November 24, 2008, Khalil Abdul Rahman Abdul Karim al-Janahi was deported from Saudi Arabia to the UAE where he was immediately detained and held by members of Amn al-Dawla (State Security), the main security agency. He was held in incommunicado detention, but he was allowed to make a number of very brief phone calls to his wife. Despite repeated queries by his relatives, the UAE authorities refused to allow them to visit or to inform them of the reasons for his arrest and detention.
2009-06-11

UK Nationals Maryam Kallis and Yasser Zahur Ahmed Released in Syria (UA 90/09)

British nationals Maryam Kallis and Yasser Zahur Ahmed were released on June 7 and returned home to their families in the UK. They had been held without charge in a variety of undisclosed locations for almost three months without access to legal assistance or their families. Both were accused of involvement in terrorism. Maryam Kallis was arrested on March 15 by a group of eight or 10 men in civilian clothes while with her eight-year-old son in the Rukna al-Din area of the capital, Damascus. The men took Maryam Kallis and her son back to her sister's apartment, where Maryam Kallis had been staying with her three children since March 5. The men confiscated her passport and those of her children before handcuffing her and taking her away. During her detention, Maryam Kallis was visited by a number of staff members of the British Consulate in Damascus. During a visit on April 23, she is said to have appeared frail and fatigued. According to the authorities detaining her, she was being treated daily by a doctor as an apparently routine measure. Yasser Ahmed was arrested on March 17 at the Abi Noor Language Institute in the Rukna al-Din area of Damascus, where he was in his second year studying Arabic. He had travelled to Syria with his wife and daughter in October 2006. On May 10, a British newspaper reported that Maryam Kallis and Yasser Ahmed were being held on suspicion of connections with a "terrorist organization" related to al-Qaeda. The Syrian authorities claimed that "Ms. Kallis is involved in receiving funds ... and in conveying the funds to [al-Qaeda]." This was the first public statement by the Syrian authorities regarding their detention.
2009-06-09

Issa Palkoubou Released in Chad (UA 12/09)

Issa Palkoubou, a teacher in the Chadian capital, Ndjamena, was released on the morning of May 21, 2009. He was weak and sick and did not know why he had been detained. He had not been seen since he was abducted on September 3, 2008 at the American Language Center in N'djamena, where he teaches English. He was abducted by three men in plain clothes. When challenged, Issa Palkoubou's abductors refused to show any identification. He is now known to have been held in a cell run by the security services in N'Djamena. Issa Palkoubou's enforced disappearance fits a pattern of similar cases in Chad, where people not known to be members of any particular political party are abducted.
2009-05-27

US-Iranian Journalist Released (UA 77/09)

Amnesty International has welcomed the news that the US-Iranian journalist, Roxana Saberi, is to be released from jail in Iran later today (Monday). "We are delighted that justice has been served by the appeal process and that Roxana Saberi is due to be released from prison in Tehran today," said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, Amnesty International's Deputy Director of the Middle East and North Africa region. "She should, however, never have been imprisoned in the first place." Roxana Saberi was convicted of "collaborating with a hostile state" by Tehran's Revolutionary Court, behind closed doors, in April and originally sentenced to eight years in prison. Yesterday, a court heard an appeal against her conviction and commuted the sentence to a suspended two-year term on the charge of "collecting classified information", with a five-year ban on working as a journalist in Iran. "Although Ms Saberi's release is welcome, it should be unconditional," said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui. "We are concerned that she may face travel restrictions, like those imposed this weekend on Narges Mohammadi, an aide to Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Shirin Ebadi, and Soraya Azizpanah, the editor of Rasan magazine, who were banned from attending a conference in Guatemala."We are also calling on the Iranian authorities to release all other prisoners of conscience in Iran, including the Alaie brothers - both doctors - who are imprisoned on similar charges and whom we believe are held solely in relation to their work with international and specifically US institutions in the field of HIV and AIDS prevention and treatment."
2009-05-11

Mohamed Al Mahjoub Released Without Charge in Sudan (UA 101/09)

Mohamed Al Mahjoub, acting director of Amal center for the treatment and rehabilitation of victims of torture in El Fasher, North Darfur, was released without charge on April 17, 2009. He is in good health and has said that he was not tortured. He is not allowed to leave El Fasher. He was arrested on April 11, 2009 and taken into a National Security and Intelligence Services detention center in El Fasher where he spent six days detained incommunicado. While detained he was not permitted any personal visits or given access to a lawyer. He appears to have been detained solely because of his peaceful activities at Amal center.
2009-04-28

Brett Hartmann Receives Stay of Execution in Ohio (UA 76/09)

Brett Hartmann received a stay of execution from the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on 31 March. He was due to be executed in Ohio on 7 April for the murder of Winda Snipes in 1997. Brett Hartmann's lawyers had appealed to the Sixth Circuit to stay the execution and allow them to file a new habeas corpus petition on the grounds that there was new evidence supporting Brett Hartmann's claim of innocence, including their claim that one of the state's key witnesses may have committed perjury when he testified at the trial. The court has stayed the execution at this time, but has not allowed the petition to go ahead under the stringent rules that apply in US federal law to filing successive habeas corpus petitions. The Ohio Parole Board had recommended that Governor Ted Strickland not intervene to stop the execution. The governor, who is not bound by this recommendation, had not made a decision on the case by the time the judicial stay was handed down.
2009-04-15

Husband and Wife Released from Detention in China (UA 85/09)

Human rights lawyer Wei Liangyue and his wife Du Yongjing have been released and returned home after 30 days of detention. Both were released on bail on 30 March 2009 pending further investigation. Wei Liangyue remains under suspicion of "gathering a crowd to disturb social order," and Du Yongjing is still under suspicion of "using a heretical organization to undermine implementation of the law." Wei Liangyue's colleagues told Amnesty International that they were released on bail pending investigation because of insufficient evidence to further the charge. In mid-March, according to sources, the police thought of sending Wei Liangyue to Re-education through Labour, a form of administrative detention imposed without charge, trial or judcial review, but gave up the idea because of insufficient evidence to back up the measure. On 28 February, Wei Liangyue drove to pick up his wife Du Yongjing from a gathering at her friend's home. The police accused them of "attending a Falun Gong meeting" and took them to Nangang District Detention Center in Harbin. Both of them were interrogated repeatedly during the detention. Wei Liangyue was once interrogated throughout the entire night, but was not tortured. Before the detention, Wei Liangyue has been repeatedly warned by the local authorities that he had to stop representing detained Falun Gong practitioners and should stop giving them not guilty defense. Wei Liangyue believes that international attention and pressure contributed to the temporary release of him and his wife, and would like to thank those who have taken actions for them.
2009-03-31

Prisoner of Conscience Treated by Doctor and Allowed to Meet with Family (UA 45/09)

Dia el Din Gad was transferred to al-Qota Prison in Giza, on the outskirts of the capital, Cairo, on 24 February, and was able to meet his family and lawyer there on 7 March. He is receiving treatment from the prison doctor. He is not know to have been charged with any offense, and is most probably held under an administrative detention order from the Minister of Interior, under the Emergency Law. Dia el Din Gad was interrogated about his blog, about his participation in protests in solidarity with the people of Gaza during Israel’s recent military campaign there, about Egyptians suspected of having entered Gaza during the conflict, and about whether he has any connections with Hamas. He was also questioned about his involvement with Egyptian protest movements, including the Egyptian Movement for Change, known as Kefaya (Enough), and the 6 April Youth movement.
2009-03-13

President of Political Opposition Group in Burundi released (UA 318/08)

Alexis Sinduhije, President of the political opposition group Movement for Security and Democracy, was released and the charges against him were dropped. He was arrested on 3 November and charged on 11 November with showing "contempt for the Head of the State."
2009-03-11

US Resident Waited Nearly Six Years for Fair Trial (UA 48/09)

Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri, a Qatari national and US resident, was arrested in Illinois in December 2001, but his trial never took place, because on 23 June 2003, President George W. Bush designated him an "enemy combatant." Ali al-Marri was then transferred to the custody of the US Department of Defense and detained in a military facility in Charleston, South Carolina. During the first sixteen months of his military detention, he was held incommunicado and allegedly subjected to torture and other ill-treatment. President Barack Obama has ordered his release from military detention to civilian custody. On 26 February 2009, a federal grand jury in Illinois finally charged Ali al-Marri with a two-count indictment, allowing him to face a fair trial in the US criminal justice system. Amnesty International welcomes the administration's decision to end Ali al-Marri's indefinite military custody and to bring him to trial in an ordinary civilian court. The organization also emphasizes that, presuming that Ali al-Marri is soon transferred for trial, the trial must comply with international standards of fairness and due process, and that under international treaties to which the USA is party, victims of torture and other ill-treatment have the right to redress including rehabilitation and compensation, and victims of unlawful detention have the right to compensation.
2009-03-04

Ma Khin Khin Leh Finally Released!

Ma Khin Khin Leh, a political prisoner in Myanmar, was unexpectedly released on Saturday, February 21, in the first group of 6,313 prisoners the government has agreed to release, including 24 political prisoners. A school teacher and young mother, she was serving a life sentence after being arrested in 1999 because her husband had organized a demonstration in support of the National League for Democracy (NLD). The authorities could not find her husband, and so arrested Ma Khin Khin Leh and the couple's three-year-old daughter, whom they held for five days in prison. Ma Khin Khin Leh was sentenced in December 1999 under vaguely worded security legislation. Her release is great news, and it offers encouragement for all of our members to continue campaigning on behalf of individuals at risk.
2009-02-27

Peccerelli and Family No Longer in Grave Danger in Guatemala (UA 7/09)

Fredy Peccerelli, his family and colleagues, are no longer in immediate danger as a result of the death threat recieved on 8 January. Amnesty International is continuing to monitor their situation, and will take further campaigning action as necessary.
2009-02-13

Death Row Inmate Granted Clemency in Ohio (UA 30/09)

Ohio Governor Ted Strickland granted clemency to Jeffrey Hill on 12 February. He had been due to be executed on 3 March. Jeffrey Hill was sentenced to death in 1992 for the murder of hi mother, Emma Hill, in 1991. In a statment issued on 12 February, Governor Strickland said that, based on his review of the case, including judicial decisions, arguments for and against clemency, and letters and petitions received in the Governor's office, "I concur with the rationale and recommendation of the Ohio Parole Board and have, therefore, decided to commute Mr. Hill's sentece to a term of from 25 years to life." Jeffrey Hill will be eligible for parole in 2017. Responding to the clemency decision, Emma Hill's younger brother said: "Our family's prayers have finally been answered, and we are so grateful to Governor Strickland, the parole board, and all of Jeffrey's supporters for giving him a second chance at life. The Governor's actions today not only respect our wishes, but they also honor the memory of my beloved sister and Jeffrey's mother, Emma Dee Hill, who believed in the power of redemption and the value of all life."
2009-02-13

Women's Stoning Penalties Lessened in Iran (UA 257/06)

Kobra N. has had her sentence of stoning commuted to 100 lashes. Soghra Mola'i, who had been sentenced to 15 years imprisonment for being an accomplice to the murder of her husband Abdollah, and to execution by stoning for adultery, was cleared of the charge of adultery after a reinvestigation of her case that ended in Novermber 2007. She was sentenced to 80 lashes for having "illicit relations." After being flogged, she was transferred to Varamin Prison near Tehran. Fatemeh is beliebed to have had her sentence of stoning, imposed in 2005, overturned. After a retrial, she is said to have been acquitted of the carge of adultery and to have been sentenced to three years imprisonment in connection with the death of a man with whom she is said to have had an affair. Amnesty International does not have details of when the retrial took place. Iran and Khayrieh both remain detained in prisons in Khuzestan province and Abdollah Farivar Moghaddam remains detained in Sari Prison, all under sentence of stoning. Amnesty International will continue to campaign on their behalf.
2009-02-13

Conscientious Objector Allowed to Remain in Canada (UA 22/09)

Dean Walcott has been allowed to stay in Canada until the country's Federal Court decides whether or not to review his case. It is not yet known when this will be decided. He had been due to be deported to the uSA on 30 January. If deported to the USA, he risks being court-martialed and imprisoned for between for between one and five years and would therefore be a prisoner of conscience. Dean Walcott is seeking refugee status on a number of grounds, including that if returned to his unit in the USA, he would risk being subjected to hazing and other non-judicial punishment. Whilst in Canada, Dean Walcott has spoken out about his objection to the armed conflict in Iraq, and has become a member of a Canadian organization, the War Resisters Support Campaign, which works to lobby the Canadian government to offer sanctuary to US military personnel who go to Canada because of their opposition to the armed conflict in Iraq.
2009-01-29

Larry Swearingen Granted a Stay of Execution (UA 17/09)

On January 26, Larry Swearingen was granted a stay of execution by a three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, the federal court one level below the US Supreme Court with jurisdiction over Texas cases. He was scheduled to be put to death in Texas on the evening of January 27. Swearingen was sentenced to death in 2000 for the murder of Melissa Trotter in 1998. He maintains his innocence of the murder and several forensic experts have provided statements and testimonies that support his claim.
2009-01-28

YUKOS Vice President Released on Bail in Russia

On 31 December 2008, Vasilii Aleksanian was released on bail of 50 million rubles (more that US$1.5 million). The money had been collected during a campaign in his support. Vasilii Aleksanian, a former vice-president of the Russian oil company YUKOS, was detained on 6 April 2006 and accused of embezzlement and tax fraud. In October 2006 he was diagnosed with HIV infection, and subsequently developed AIDS and several other diseases, including lymphatic cancer, tuberculosis and a cataract; he has also developed a tumor in his kidney. Under Russian law, a person diagnosed with such serious health problems should not be kept in pre-trial detention. In mid-November, he had surgery to remove his spleen. Soon afterwards his condition deteriorated, but improved again in late December. Vasilii Aleksanian spent 31 December with his family, including his six-year-old-son, whom he last saw three years ago.
2009-01-21

Indigenous community leader Receives Medical Treatment in Bangladesh

Rang Lai Mro was releaseed on bail on 8 January, on the orders of the Bangladesh High Court. The head of a community of indigenous Mro people, he had been detained since 22 February 2008 charged with possessing a pistol without a license. He was tortured in army custody after his arrest: he was at risk of a heart attack, and his health was deteriorating. His release on bail now allows him to recieve the medical treatment he requires.
2009-01-21

Mother and Children Enter Witness Protection Program in Brazil

After receiving a series of threats, Katia Camargo and her two children entered a witness protection program on 5 January. They are no longer believed to be in grave danger. Katia Camargo had been threatened by people linked to the killers of her husband, investigative journalist Luiz Carlos Barbon. The journalist, who had reported on official corruption, was murdered in May 2007. Their protection was ordered by Sao Paulo's Human Rights Prosecutor. It is unusual for the Prosecutor to act so rapidly on such a case. It is notable that the prosecutor's office acted with impressive speed in this case due in part to Amnesty International's intervention.
2009-01-21

Iranian Political Prisoner Released on Bail

Jamila Nabgan is now free on bail, and is no longer being detained for 14 hours a day by the Ministry of Intelligence. She had been arrested at her family home in Shush, Khuzestan province, on 19 October by Ministry of Intelligence officers. She was released on bail five days later, on condition she reported every morning to the Ministry of Intelligence detention facility in Ahvas, Khuzestan province, where she would be detained from 8 am until 10pm. Her brother, Habib Nabgan, is a prominent member of the outlawed political party Lejnat al-Wefaq (Reconcilitation Committee), which promotes the rights of the Arab minority in Iran. His wife, Ma'soumeh Ka'bi, fled to Syria in May 2008, and the authorities believe she had help from Jamila Nabgan. Jamila Nabgan had been arrested in May 2008 and held for two days of questioning about her sister-in-law's flight to Syria, at the Ministry of Intelligence detention facility in Ahwaz.
2009-01-15

Bu Dongwei

Bu Dongwei was released on July 18, 2008, approximately four months before the end of his term of re-education through labor in China. Bu Dongwei was serving a two-and-a-half year sentence in connection with his activities as a member of the Falun Gong movement, which is banned in China. He believes international attention, including Amnesty International's campaign, protected him during his ordeal, and he thanked all Amnesty International activists who took action on his behalf and on behalf oft human rights in China. During the 2007 Global Write-a-thon, and continuing throughout 2008, Amnesty International activists aggressively campaigned for Bu Dongwei's release.
Read More »
2008-12-08

(c)Private

Uzbek Human Rights Defender Released

Human rights defender Saidzhakhon Zainabitdinov was released on February 4 under a presidential amnesty. He had been serving a seven-year sentence, handed down in January 2006 after what was in effect a secret trial. He was indicted for libel, "information dissemination fomenting the panic" and "terrorism." Prior to his imprisonment, Saidzhakhon Zainabitdinov was monitoring protests in the town of Andizhan which escalated on May 12-13, 2005. During the information blockade that engulfed Uzbekistan in the aftermath of the protests, messages from Saidjahon Zainabitdinov were forwarded to the leading world news agencies, TV channels, radio stations and newspapers.

2008-02-04

Youth Leader Freed in Belarus

Amnesty International welcomes the release from prison on January 23 of Zmitser Dashkevich, leader of a youth organization that advocates political freedom in Belarus. AI mounted a global campaign to win his release featuring his case in a Global Write-a-thon in December through which thousands of people across the United States appealed for his release. As one of Amnesty International USA's Special Focus Cases, Zmitser Dashkevich's case was a particular focus for action by Amnesty student activists, who joined youth activists around the world in sending 10,000 origami cranes to Belarusian authorities in a symbolic plea for freedom for Mr. Dashkevich and other prisoners of conscience.
2008-01-23

Haleh being interviewed on IRINN TV after her release. © AFP

Dr. Haleh Esfandiari allowed to leave Iran!

Haleh Esfandiari is the Head of the Middle East Program at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington D.C., and is a well-known advocate of dialogue between the U.S. and Iranian governments. She had travelled to visit her elderly mother. While on her way to the airport to return to the USA, her taxi was stopped by armed, masked men, who took both her passports and her belongings. In May Amnesty International activists began a letter-writing action and in June held a rally calling for her release. Many thanks to all who participated on Haleh's behalf.
2007-09-02

Environmental Activist Released!

It is with great joy that we announce the release of Dr Mohamed Jalal Ahmed Hashim, a prominent opponent of the construction of the Kajbar Dam in Sudan, who was arrested on June 16th. He was released from detention on August 25th. He expressed his sincere thanks to Amnesty International, explaining that so many faxes arrived that the security services holding him suspected that he was a very important person with many contacts worldwide. Since several of the faxes mentioned his diabetes, prison medical staff started to check his diabetes every day.
2007-08-25

Professor Mesfin Woldemariam © AI

38 Ethiopian political prisoners freed!

Amnesty International welcomes the release of Mesfin Woldemariam, one of 38 Ethiopian opposition party officials, prominent human rights defenders and journalists who were freed on July 20. Professor Woldemariam is Ethiopia's most prominent human rights defender and one of AIUSA's five special focus cases. Many thanks to all who took action on his behalf.
2007-07-20

Environmental Defender Freed!

Amnesty International is happy to report that Andrei Zatoka was released from jail on January 31. Andrei had been detained on December 17 by local police at the airport in his home city of Dashoguz. There were allegations that he was targeted to punish him for his peaceful work as an environmental activist. He and his supporters are grateful for the appeals sent by AI's Urgent Action network on his behalf.
2007-01-31

Mikalay Astreyka (upper right), Tsimafey Dranchuk (upper left), Enira Branizkaya (lower left), Alyaksandr Shalayka (lower right) © Private

Initiative Partnership Activists

Mikalay Astreyka was conditionally released from prison in November before the end of his sentence. He and 3 other political activists, featured in AIUSA's Summer postcard and Freedom Writer's actions, were arrested in February as they prepared to monitor elections in Belarus. Enira Branizkaya and Alyaksandr Shalayka were freed from prison in August, following completion of their sentences. Amnesty is calling for Astreyka's release to be made unconditional and for Tsimafey Dranchuk to be released as well. Many thanks to all who took action on their behalf.
2006-11-15

Claude Yabanda, a senior member of an opposition political party called the Patriotic Front for Progress, was released from prison on November 11. He had been detained since April 2006 on account of his peaceful political activities. Claude was featured in AIUSA's Holiday Card action. Many thanks to all who send letters of support. Read more »
2006-11-11

Helen Berhane, a well-known Christian evangelical singer, was released from captivity in Eritrea. She had been detained incommunicado without charge or trial for two and a half years. Most of her detention was spent in inhuman and degrading conditions inside a metal shipping container which was used as a prison cell. The authorities reportedly tortured her many times to make her recant her faith. Helen was hospitalized as a result of beatings and is said to be confined to a wheelchair. She refused to abandon her faith despite the threats and ill-treatment.

AIUSA activists sent cards of support and appeals for her release as part of AIUSA's Holiday Card and Easter Actions. We'd also like to thank Music for Human Rights supporters and their fans, including Gwen Stefani, Duran Duran, Coldplay, Sting, Anti-Flag, Incubus, Bright Eyes, Astralwerks Records and Axis of Justice who helped make Helen's release a reality. Read more »
2006-10-31

Murat Kurnaz © Private

Guantánamo detainee, Murat Kurnaz has been released!

Murat Kurnaz, a Turkish national born in Germany and featured in AIUSA's Holiday Card action, was released on August 24, 2006 from Guantánamo. He had been held for four years and eight months without charge or trial. In January 2005, a U.S. federal judge cited his case as illustrative of the inherent unfairness and fundamental flaws of the administrative review process in Guantánamo.
2006-08-24

Marcelino Miranda (top left), Leonardo Miranda (lower left), and Feliciano Pineda (right). © Private

Marcelino and Leonardo Miranda, and Feliciano Pineda Freed

Leonardo Miranda, the last of three Honduran prisoners of conscience on whose behalf AIUSA has campaigned for the past year through its Special Focus Case project, was freed on August 15, 2006. Leonardo's brother Marcelino was freed on July 12, 2006, following a decision by the Honduran Supreme Court in June that acquitted Marcelino and Leonardo of a 2001 murder for which they were wrongfully imprisoned. On August 15, a lower court commuted Leonardo's sentence on another charge, resulting in his release. Amnesty believed the two brothers and another indigenous rights activist, Feliciano Pineda, were jailed in connection with their efforts to secure communal land titles for their communities in Montaña Verde. Pineda was released from detention in February 2006.
2006-08-15

Hojjatoleslam Ezimi Qedimi. (c) Private

Prisoner of Conscience "Very Grateful" to Urgent Action

Hojjatoleslam Ezimi Qedimi was returned to prison on March 26, 2006 after an appeal against a one-year prison sentence was rejected on February 20, 2006 by Branch 2 of the Special Court for the Clergy. If charged, Hojjatoleslam Ezimi Qedimi could be a prisoner of conscience, held solely on account of his peaceful beliefs and activities on behalf of the Azeri Turk community in Iran.
2006-05-04

Civil society leaders released amid political transition

Prisoners of conscience Krishna Pahadi, Dr Devendra Raj Panday, Dr Mathura Prasad Shrestha and Shyam Shrestha were among hundreds of civil society and political party activists who were released on 25 April amid a historic political transition in Nepal.

On April 24, following nearly three weeks of massive nationwide public protests against palace rule, King Gyanendra announced the reinstatement of Parliament. Since King Gyanendra seized direct control of the government on 1 February 2005, he has used the security forces to spearhead a massive crackdown on dissent. Members of the non-violent political opposition have been arbitrarily detained, beaten, and even shot. In his latest announcement, the King conceded that “Sovereignty of the Kingdom of Nepal is inherent in the people of Nepal” and recognized “the spirit of the ongoing people's movement.”

Krishna Pahadi, a former chair of Amnesty International Nepal and founder of the Human Rights and Peace Society; Dr Devendra Raj Panday, former president of the anti-corruption organization Transparency International-Nepal; Dr Mathura Prasad Shrestha, president of Physicians for Social Responsibility-Nepal; and Shyam Shrestha, editor of the political journal Mulyankan,are all leaders of the Citizens' Movement for Democracy and Peace (CMDP). The CMDP has played a key role in organizing pro-democracy demonstrations over the past year.

Speaking to Amnesty International by phone, Krishna Pahadi thanked all those who sent appeals on behalf of prisoners of conscience in Nepal. He also gave special thanks to members of the AI delegation that visited him and Shyam Shrestha in custody in March 2006.

“Peace and human rights must be the priority now,” Krishna Pahadi said. “The politics of violence must end.”

2006-04-25

Prisoner of Conscience Gurbandurdy Durdykuliev has been released!

Amnesty International welcomes the release of Gurbandurdy Durdykuliev, a 64 year-old prisoner of conscience from Turkmenistan, who was forcibly confined to a psychiatric hospital in 2004, after asking President Niyazov for authorization to hold a peaceful political protest.

Durdykuliev was one of Amnesty International USA's five Special Focus Cases in 2006. AIUSA activists from across the country worked on his behalf. More than 400 AIUSA student groups in the Northeast United States "adopted" Durdykuliev, sending hundreds of letters and petitions to Turkmen authorities calling for his immediate release.

AIUSA also worked with Congress to draw more attention to Durdykuliev's case, both by writing letters and meeting with officials. On April 4, 2006 – partly due to AIUSA's efforts – 54 members of Congress sent a letter to the President of Turkmenistan calling for Durdykuliev's release and condemning the use of forced psychiatric confinement of political dissidents.
2006-04-11

5 Human Rights Defenders Released without Charge by Sudanese Security Forces

Alrayah Ibrahim Eldaw (m), staff member of SUDO
Sayed Abu Bakr (m), SUDO volunteer
Alfaris Ibrahim (m), SUDO staff member
Dawalbeit Kabbur (m), SUDO staff member, and
Osman Ali Ismael (m), SUDO staff member

At 5:30 pm on February 13, the five human rights defenders named above were released without charge by security forces.

The five had been arrested on the morning of February 13 at Ed Dain University in South Darfur as they conducted a training session on human rights monitoring.

2006-02-13

Prisoner of Conscience Cheam Channy Released in Cambodia

Cambodian prisoner of conscience and opposition parliamentarian Cheam Channy was released from Phnom Penh's military prison following a pardon by King Norodom Sihamoni. Amnesty International had been campaigning for his unconditional and immediate release. Read more. »
2006-02-06

Photo by Evens Sanon for AP

Prisoner of Conscience Gérard Jean-Juste has been released!

Gérard Jean Juste, who is reportedly suffering from leukemia, was granted a provisional release from detention on health grounds on January 29. The interim government in Haiti apparently granted his release to allow him to seek treatment abroad, as there are no medical facilities in Haiti able to offer treatment for leukaemia. Father Jean Juste has been allowed to travel to Miami, USA, where he will be treated. Gérard Jean Juste was diagnosed with leukemia in December 2005 by two US doctors, though doctors at the National Penitentiary Annex in Port-au-Prince where he was detained refuted this diagnosis. His health deteriorated recently after he suffered a bout of pneumonia, which apparently was brought on by the conditions in the prison where he was held.
2006-01-29

Mamun al-Humsi has been released!

Mamun Al-Humsi and Riad Seif, two former members of Syria's parliament, were freed on January 18 by the Syrian government after spending five years in prison. Mamun al-Humsi was one of Amnesty International's Special Focus Cases. Many thanks to all who took action on his behalf!
2006-01-18

Aminatou Haidar

Human rights defender Aminatou Haidar, featured in our 2005 Holiday Card Action, was released from prison in January 2006. Her colleagues Mohamed El Moutaouakil, Houssein Lidri, Brahim Noumria, Larbi Messaoud, Ali Salem Tamek, and H'mad Hammad were freed two months later. Many thanks to all who took action on their behalf.
2006-01-15

Felipe Arreaga. © AI

Environmental Activist and Prisoner of Conscience Felipe Arreaga Released

Amnesty International has received with pleasure the news of the acquittal of Felipe Arreaga Sánchez, environmental activist, founder of the Peasant Environmentalist Organization of the Sierra de Petatlán (OCESP) and prisoner of conscience. He was released on September 15. However, he, his family and other environmental activists in the region remain in grave danger. After considering his case, Amnesty International believed that the arrest and prosecution of Felipe Arreaga was in retaliation for his peaceful struggle to prevent excessive logging of the region’s forests. Read more. »
2005-09-15

Five Prisoners of Conscience Released from Libyan Jails

Ramadan Shaglouf, Tariq al-Dernawi, Tawfiq al-Jehani, Ali Be'aou and Musa al-Ziwi were released on September 10 and 11 after seven years imprisonment. They were serving prison terms up to life after being convicted of belonging to the Islamic Alliance Movement, a banned political group, but were considered prisoners of conscience by Amnesty International. Read more. »
2005-09-11

'Abdel Rahman al-Shaghouri was released on August 31, 2005, one week after the end of his sentence. He has returned home to his family and is said to be in good health. Amnesty International USA championed 'Abdel Rahman al-Shaghouri's case through the Holiday Action in 2004.
2005-08-31

Néstor Rodríguez Lobaina. (c) Private

Néstor Rodríguez, Prisoner of Conscience, Relased

Prisoner of conscience Néstor Rodríguez Lobaina was released in July 2005, after five years and four months in prison. He had been detained in March 2000 and sentenced to a six year prison term for "disrespect," "public disorder," and "damage."
2005-08-19

Gagan Thapa at Amnesty International's headquarters in London. (c) AI

Student Leader, Gagan Thapa, Thanks Urgent Action

Gagan Thapa appeared before the Special Court in Kathmandu in August 2005, where he was charged with sedition before being released pending trial. He told trial observers that such international attention had been instrumental in ensuring his safety. "If the international community had not been present at the right moment, the action taken against me would have been even more serious... As soon as the international pressure started, the police changed their tone." Gagan Thapa, a student leader and former Secretary General of the Nepal Students Union (NSU), was detained by police in Kathmandu on July 27, 2005. He chose to stay with the other prisoners so as not to appear privileged.
2005-08-15

Prisoner of Conscience Professor Yury Bandazhevsky Is Free!

Amnesty International USA welcomes the good news that Yury Bandazhevsky, a prisoner of conscience and one of AIUSA's Special Focus Cases, was conditionally released on August 5, 2005. A well-respected scientist, Professor Bandazhevsky had clashed with the Belarusian government over his work on the health impact of the Chernobyl nuclear accident of 1986 on the people of Belarus. He served four years of an eight-year sentence on fabricated criminal charges before his release.

Amnesty International activists around the world had called for Prof. Bandazhevsky's release, and AIUSA had campaigned intensively on his behalf through its Special Focus Case project. Since 2004, more than 400 Amnesty student groups in the Northeast have championed his case, and people from across the U.S have sent more than 6,300 actions on his behalf via AIUSA's Online Action Center. Prof. Bandazhevsky's case was featured in AIUSA's annual Holiday Card Action, in its Urgent Action Network, and its Freedom Writers Network. Through AIUSA's Music for Human Rights program, the rock band The Cure promoted action on behalf of Prof. Bandazhevsky during their concerts and via their website. Read more. »
2005-08-05

Ignatius Mahendra Wardhana and Yoyok Eko Widodo were released on August 17 and July 26, 2005, respectively. Both young men had been sentenced for insulting the President and Vice-President in 2003 for their role in a demonstration protesting government policies. Ignatius Mahendra Wardhana and Yoyok Eko Widodo's case featured in AIUSA's Holiday Action special focus cases in 2004.
2005-07-26

Krishna Pahadi.

Former Chair of Amnesty International Nepal Released from Prison

Five months of intense action by Amnesty International activists paid off on July 4 when veteran human rights defender Krishna Pahadi, founding chairman of Nepal's Human Rights and Peace Society, and former chair of AI Nepal, was set free from the Nepali prison where he had been held since February 9. As he was released, a police official gave him a box of more than 200 letters and postcards sent by AI supporters around the world, and told him that hundreds more had been received at the detention center. AIUSA activists alone sent over 37,400 appeals on his behalf! Krisha Pahadi's case has been a major focus of AIUSA's work and is a great victory!
2005-07-05

Rebiya Kadeer – Special Focus Case

Amnesty International is happy to report that Rebiya Kadeer was released from prison on March 17. Rebiya Kadeer is a successful businesswoman who was jailed for her efforts to publicize discrimination and human rights violations against China's Uighur minority. Read more »
2005-03-17

Prisoner of Conscience, Camilo Mejía Castillo, released!

Camilo Mejía Castillo, a U.S. National Guardsman jailed for refusing to return to service in Iraq for reasons of conscience, was released from prison on February 15, 2005, before the completion of his one-year sentence. Castillo's case formed part of AIUSA's holiday action focus cases in 2004.
2005-02-05

Father Ly – Special Focus Case

Amnesty International is happy to report that Father Ly was released from prison on February 1, 2005, as part of a general amnesty to mark Tet, the Lunar New Year. More than 8,000 prisoners were reportedly included in the amnesty, although few political prisoners benefited from it. In addition to Father Ly, Amnesty International has confirmed the release of three other prisoners of conscience -- Dr. Nguyen Dan Que, Thich Thien Minh, and Nguyen Dinh Huy. Each of these men had been the subject of action by AIUSA.
2005-02-01

ZIMBABWE - Women of Zimbabwe Arise! (WOZA)

Jenni Williams' case was one of the focus cases for Amnesty International 2004 Holiday Action.
2005-01-01

Rehab holding an Urgent Action appeal letter (© Private)

Amnesty International has learned that Rehab Abdel Bagi Mohamed Ali, aged 30, was released from prison in Sudan on 24 September. Appeals sent by Amnesty International members are said to have been instrumental in securing her release.
2004-09-24

"I can tell you that these letters work".

Thanks to all who joined AI in calling for the release of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim. He was freed on September 2, 2004. Ibrahim had been arrested after policy disagreements with then prime minister Mahathir Mohamad. He was charged with "abuse of power" and sodomy.
Learn More »
2004-09-02

The Blue Diamond Society

The 39 metis (male transvestites) arrested in Kathmandu on 9 August were released on bail on 20 August. The Blue Diamond Society, a local organization which campaigns for the rights of sexual minorities, has sent its "sincere and grateful thanks" for the work done on behalf of the 39, all of whom are members of the Society. They were arrested on the street and in bars and nightclubs. All were apparently told that they were being taken to a meeting, and to an identity parade to pick out the man who had attacked another meti on 7 August. All 39 were reportedly kept together in a very small and overcrowded cell. Police are alleged to have beaten two of the men severely, and verbally abused all of them, saying that acid should be thrown in their faces and they did not deserve to live. Many of the 39 are illiterate, and were reportedly forced to sign statements they could not read, while others, who could read, were not allowed to see the documents they signed.
2004-08-20

Journalist Ruslan Sharipov has been moved from prison to house arrest

On 13 March he was reportedly transferred to a detention centre in Tashkent region best described as an "open" prison (koloniya-poseleniye, a "penal colony settlement"). He has reportedly been allowed to live with a relative, who lives close by, so he is effectively under house arrest. He has to report daily to the prison authorities and must not undertake any public activities such as attending meetings or writing articles for publication. If he breaks these conditions he could be sent back to a stricter regime penal colony to serve the remainder of his sentence. Under a December 2003 presidential amnesty his sentence was reduced to three years, one month and 17 days. According to at least one official statement from the Uzbek Ministry of Foreign Affairs he could qualify for early release after he has served a third of his sentence, which would be on 11 June 2004.
2004-06-11

Leyla Zana – Special Focus Case

Leyla Zana and three other parliamentarians were released from prison on June 9, 2004 by order of a Turkish appeals court. Amnesty International USA championed Leyla Zana's case through the Casework Program's Special Focus Case project. More than 400 AIUSA groups in the Northeast Region, and many others around the country, have campaigned intensively for the release of Zana and her colleagues. » Read more
2004-06-09

Former prisoner of conscience Zouheir Yahiaoui

Tunisian Prisoner of Conscience Released

Following a relentless national and international campaign, Tunisian prisoner of conscience Zouheir Yahiaoui was conditionally released from prison on November 18, 2003. When he returned home, he found out from his family and through the internet that he had received immense international support.

Prisoner of conscience Zouheir Yahiaoui had been on hunger strike in protest at his continued detention. He is the former operator of TUNeZINE, an independent Internet website. He was arrested on June 4, 2002 in Ben Arous in the outskirts of Tunis and taken to the Ministry of the Interior, where he was allegedly tortured by security officers. He was convicted on charges of "spreading false information" and "misuse of telecommunication lines" and sentenced to two years' imprisonment in July 2002.
2004-01-09

Sanar Yurdatapan, a leading composer and performer of contemporary music, had been the subject of an Urgent Action when he was arrested and held incommunicado for a time in Metris Prison in Istanbul.
2004-01-01

Five Political Leaders in Gabon Thank AI Members

Hughes Bessacque, Brice Obanda, Gervais Amogo, Abdul Allogo Mintsa, and Pascal Nkoulou, five members of the Gabonese opposition party Bongo Doit Partir (BDP), Bongo Must Go (or BDP-Gabon Nouveau), were released on October 1, 2003, after three months of detention. They have been reunited with their families and are generally in good health, although they did suffer some health problems during their imprisonment. They had been charged with threatening state security and insulting the head of state. Most, if not all, of them were released without charge. In a press release BDP-Gabon Nouveau's leader thanked members of Amnesty International and others for having put pressure on the government, as this was a factor in their release.
2003-10-16

Zouhayer Makhlouf holding copies of the Urgent Actions issued on his behalf. (© Private)

The authorities arrested Zouhayer Makhlouf on September 4, 2002. He was detained at the Ministry of Interior in the capital Tunis and questioned by the State Security Department after being arrested without warrant and held in incommunicado detention for four days. Both men were released without charge on 8 February; two days after the initial UA had been issued.
2002-09-04