Newsroom

Update

Just as it seemed everyone knew about Blackwater and its laundry list of scandals, the company pulled an all-too-common move of ducking a public-relations battering and organization-level accountability by changing it's name. Poof. No more "Blackwater", no more problem. Now, there's just Xe (the company's new name) and the "U.S. Training Center". I, for one, think we should instead refer to the firm as the "company formerly known as Blackwater", at least until there's evidence of real changes in its way of operating. And, by real changes, I don't just mean that Erik Prince isn't CEO anymore. Will the company formerly known…

March 4, 2009

Update

The Obama Administration has already taken several laudable steps to separate itself from illegal policies and practices of its predecessor, and I applaud them for it.  I'm glad Attorney General Holder released some of the shocking legal memoranda prepared by the Bush Office of Legal Counsel, which authorized blatantly unlawful and unconstitutional acts by the executive branch.  But I choked a bit on Mr. Holder's statement that "Americans deserve a government that operates with transparency and openness."  I agree wholeheartedly, but I find this sentiment glaringly at odds with some of the Justice Department's own recent actions. In several pending court…

March 4, 2009

Update

The ICC's pre-trial chamber has issued an arrest warrant for Omar al-Bashir, the head of state of Sudan. Already, the government in Khartoum has rejected the court's decision. The government of Sudan must comply with the arrest warrant. The ICC case against al-Bashir and already-issued arrest warrants against Ahmed Haroun and Janjaweed leader Ali Muhammad Ali Abd al-Rahman must proceed without delay. The United States--no traditional friend of the ICC--joins the ranks this morning of states and peoples around the world who demand justice for violations of the most inviolable prescriptions of international law. Irene Khan, the Secretary General of Amnesty International…

March 4, 2009

Update

The Maryland Senate this morning voted for a “compromise” on the bill formerly known as the repeal bill.  In this compromise legislation, the death penalty would be restricted to cases where there is either biological or DNA evidence or some type of video evidence (either a video-taped confession or video of the crime itself).  Death sentences could not be obtained solely on the basis of eye-witness testimony.  Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee Chair Frosh, who supports repeal, endorsed this legislation, saying that it would “move the ball forward in the right direction.”  These restrictions, of course, don’t apply retroactively, and Maryland…

March 4, 2009

Update

I welcome today's history-making announcement of an arrest warrant for Sudanese President Bashir.  Since 2003 I have been part of Amnesty International's global quest to put an end to Bashir's policies that have hurt hundreds of thousands of Darfuri civilians.  Since 2005 Bashir has prevented Amnesty from entering Darfur - but still we found a way to pull of this attempt at a blindfold over our eyes- by taking  to the skies to tell the stories and exposing the truth.  Now one day Bashir will tell his own story in the Hague. For the Darfuri victims of widespread rape, murder,…

March 4, 2009

Update

The women of Atenco, Mexico, have been waiting more than two years for justice. On May 3-4, 2006, nearly 3,000 federal, state, and municipal police responded to protests by a local peasant organization. They arrested over 200 people – more than 45 of them women – without explanation. En route to the Santiaguito prison, many of the women were beaten and raped by the officers who arrested them. At least 26 women filed complaints, yet they still wait for an adequate response from the Mexican authorities. On Thursday, March 5, from 4-6pm, Claudia Hernández, a survivor of the events at…

March 3, 2009

Update

By procedural votes of 25-22 and then 24-23, the Maryland Senate brought the death penalty repeal bill to the floor where, sometime this afternoon or evening, it will be debated and amendments will be offered.  After this morning’s voting it was decided that they would “play it by ear,” so there is no formal time for the debate to resume.  Audio of Senate proceedings is available online.

March 3, 2009

Update

This afternoon, the Maryland death penalty repeal bill was amended on the Senate floor, by a 25-22 vote, so that the death penalty would still be available, except in cases that rely exclusively on witness testimony (as in Troy Davis' case).  A second amendment to restrict the death penalty to cases with DNA evidence or taped confessions also passed.  Thus, the death penalty abolition bill became a death penalty restriction bill. Then, confusion began to take over.  Amendments to the original bill continued to be proposed, even though they did not seem to fit with the new version.  An amendment which…

March 3, 2009

Update

As International Women’s Day approaches on March 8th, it’s time to recognize the struggles and achievements of women’s rights activists around the world.  One of the most vibrant women’s rights movements is in Iran, where every day courageous women risk their freedom and safety to fight for their rights.  While most use peaceful means to end discriminatory treatment of women in Iranian family law, they face increasing persecution from the Iranian government: Women are routinely arrested, imprisoned, threatened and banned from traveling abroad. Even the most prominent women’s rights activist in Iran, lawyer and 2003 Nobel Laureate Shirin Ebadi, is…

March 2, 2009

Update

Tonight just after 10 pm EST, Condoleeza Rice's former history professor will argue in a debate with Colorado State Senator Shawn Mitchell that the former Secretary of State should be tried as a war criminal. The webcast debate will follow a showing of the documentary film Courting Condi, which follows Ms. Rice's path from a childhood in segregated Birmingham, Alabama to her former post as U.S. Secretary of State. The film depicts Rice's defense of Guantanamo and the invasion of Iraq, and her apparent approval of the use of torture of detainees, but also revisits a host of other debacles including her role…

March 2, 2009

Update

Former President Jimmy Carter is the latest to weigh in on the death penalty repeal debate going on in New Mexico.  The AP reported that he and his wife Rosalyn wrote a letter to New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson encouraging him to back abolition of the death penalty.  Referring to the package of legislation that pairs a death penalty repeal bill with two bills to support victims’ families, the letter encourages Governor Bill Richardson to endorse “this comprehensive and visionary approach.”  According to a press release issued by the Carter Center, the letter praises “New Mexico's leadership regarding the death…

March 2, 2009

Update

Jenni Williams, founder and activist in the human rights organization Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) faces trial next week for her role in a protest on October 16, 2008. Jenni was arrested and detained for "disturbing the peace" even though the protest was a peaceful demonstration demanding that the government provide necessary food aid. Police used excessive force to break up the peaceful protest of over 200 people, and Jenni was arbitrarily arrested with Magodonga Mahlangu, another WOZA activist. After being granted bail and released on November 6, 2008, Jenni's trial has been postponed three times, leaving her in a…

March 1, 2009