Newsroom

Update

The Counter Terror With Justice campaign and Amnesty International volunteers were on the National Mall yesterday, gathering 100 Days petition signatures before the inauguration and wearing orange and holding signs on the parade route. I took this picture of JD with my phone, sorry it's kinda pixely. It was great meeting so many people from around the country who want GTMO closed, torture ended and accountability for abuse. (Reminded me of the GTMO Cell Tour.) We've been hearing for a few days now that President Obama would act quickly to address some of these points, but I didn't think about how I'd…

January 21, 2009

Update

Below is a list of 14 reasons why I think it's important to thoroughly investigate interrogation and detention practices and policies since 9/11/01 and to initiate criminal prosecutions where evidence is developed that warrants prosecution. 1.  President Obama has said he wants to look forward rather than backward.  This implies a false dichotomy between the two.  Without examining the past, we cannot fully understand how to ensure that whether the US government follows the law is not left up to the whim of the current occupant of the White House.  A thorough investigation will provide information needed to determine whether…

January 20, 2009

Update

After weeks of Israeli and Egyptian restrictions, AI finally entered Gaza this past weekend to survey the damages caused by three weeks of Israeli strikes. But because of persistent denials by Israel to let human rights monitors enter, the AI mission was forced to enter through the border crossing of Rafah, a town that was extensively bombed in the recent air strikes. The team entered just hours before Israel's ceasefire and then traveled via road to Gaza city. In a blog entry posted about the experience, they observed: We saw many buildings reduced to rubble. Some had been directly targeted;…

January 19, 2009

Update

I do not know what is more interesting--the fact that U2 leader singer Bono mentioned the word "Palestine" in front of a crowd of a half a million--including President-elect-Barack Obama--or the fact that this very incident is being heralded a major unscripted, even newsworthy part of the concert. Rolling Stone magazine wrote in its blog about the incident: The only other seemingly unscripted moment came during U2’s rendition of “Pride (In the Name of Love),” during which Bono suggested Dr. King’s dream is also an Irish, European, African and Israeli dream, adding, with special emphasis, “It is also a Palestinian…

January 19, 2009

Update

News reports indicate that President-elect Barack Obama is planning to end harsh interrogations of detainees by directing the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to adhere to the U.S. Army Field Manual for interviewing suspects.  If today’s reports are correct, Obama believes that returning the United States to the rule of law is paramount for his administration. It is vital that there be a single standard for all interrogations for all agents and forces of the U.S. government. But there are also worrying signs that the administration is thinking of leaving a loophole for special techniques for the CIA. The military is on…

January 17, 2009

Update

Some weekend reading ahead of the inauguration: Washington Post (January 16, 2009): "Inquiry Into Interrogations Unlikely. Hayden: Obama Does Not Wish to Investigate Waterboarding" Amnesty International (December 4, 2008): "Investigation. Prosecution, Remedy: Accountability for Human Rights Violations in the "war on terror."" All best, Zeke

January 17, 2009

Update

Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley has announced, via a Washington Post article among other places, that he intends to personally sponsor a death penalty repeal bill and will “do ‘everything in [his] power’ to abolish capital punishment in Maryland.” This doesn’t mean ending the death penalty in Maryland will be easy, but a serious investment of that kind of political capital into an issue can only be helpful.  And the Governor’s personal support comes after the Maryland Commission on Capital Punishment issued its final report last month, which also recommended abolition.  In the General Assembly, by most accounts, the votes are…

January 16, 2009

Update

On my way to work this morning, I noticed a brief mention in the paper that Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni will meet with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today. After doing some more research, I realized that Secretary Rice was again not intending to address Israel’s disproportionate attacks on civilians. We sent her a letter today to reiterate our concerns about ongoing human rights violations by both Israel and armed Palestinian groups.   While Amnesty International recognizes Israel's right to defend itself and has also called on Hamas and other Palestinian groups to immediately cease all unlawful attacks,…

January 16, 2009

Update

It's not surprising that with the Olympics come and gone, reports are surfacing of China's cracking down of the Internet, again, and with the help, of course, of Chinese and US companies, including Microsoft and Google. Unfortunately, Amnesty's website is again one of the victims. But when widespread censorship occurs, the "victims" are even more widespread -- it's much more than the author of a site or the person who can't access it which is harmed. According to media reports, Chinese authorities have clamped down on child pornography and vulgur content. (And, who wants to argue the pro-child pornography point?) But, such…

January 15, 2009

Update

You may not have heard about it, but there’s a humanitarian crisis in Sri Lanka right now – over 250,000 civilians are trapped in the war zone between the Sri Lankan Army and the rebel Tamil Tigers and can’t escape.  The army has been steadily encroaching on the Tigers’ territory over recent months.  The civilians caught in the area are running out of safe space.  They can’t simply leave the war zone due to restrictions imposed by the Tigers, who are also using them as an involuntary pool of recruits and laborers.  The civilians are also facing tremendous shortages of…

January 15, 2009

Update

AI's Philip Luther updates the situation in Gaza and Southern Israel from on the ground reports by an Amnesty International delegation.

January 15, 2009

Update

In the next few weeks, the International Criminal Court (ICC) is expected to hand down its decision about indicting Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on charges of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes.  Organizations such as the African Union and the Arab League are lobbying the UN Security Council to implement Article 16 of the Rome Statute, which would suspend any deliberations on the case against Bashir for a year with the possibility of an annual renewal.   We need to be wary of using the possibility of International Criminal Court indictments as a carrot and stick in seeking to…

January 15, 2009