Amnesty International, Eastern PA

It is always difficult to post bad news, but often necessary in dealing with death penalty cases. Last weekend, I posted a summary and sample letter for the Urgent Action issued for ‘Aisha Ghalib. Sadly, I just learned moments ago that she was executed on April 19.

From Amnesty’s website:
‘Aisha Ghalib al-Hamzi was executed on 19 April 2009 for the murder of her husband; all seven of her children had refused to pardon her. In cases of Qisas (retribution in kind) the relatives of the victim have the power to seek execution, request compensation or grant a pardon freely.

No further action is requested from the Urgent Action network. Many thanks to all who sent appeals.

On April 18 in Tehran, Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi was convicted of unspecified “espionage” and sentenced to eight years in prison after a brief closed-door trial. (See the Urgent Action file) A reporter for NPR, Roxana Saberi was previously accused of continuing to work as a reporter after her press credentials were revoked. Amnesty has been following her case ever since she was first detained on January 31.

Roxana is one of several individuals with dual citizenship whom authorities in Iran have accused of threatening national security, since the U.S. Congress approved $75 million in funding for “supporting democracy” in Iran.

Amnesty International calls for Roxana Saberi’s immediate release as she is considered a prisoner of conscience.

A sample letter is below. Please send appeals before June 1. Thank you.

Free Roxana Saberi

UPDATE: For another perspective on this case, you can also check out the article from Human Rights Watch.

Today’s action is not a letter to print, but instead can either be sent online via Amnesty’s website or faxed. Please use the link below to ask the governor of Georgia, George Perdue, to commute the death sentence of Troy Davis.

Support clemency for Troy Davis

Last Thursday, the federal appeals court in Atlanta on Thursday rejected Troy’s request for a new trial (Amnesty’s response). He was given a 30-day stay of execution so that he can pursue an appeal before the Supreme Court.

Please act on Troy’s behalf today.

From AIUSA Website:

Troy Davis faces execution for the murder of Police Officer Mark MacPhail in Georgia, despite a strong claim of innocence. 7 out of 9 witnesses have recanted or contradicted their testimony, no murder weapon was found and no physical evidence links Davis to the crime. The Georgia Board of Pardon and Paroles has voted to deny clemency, yet Governor Perdue can still exercise leadership to ensure that his death sentence is commuted. Please urge him to demonstrate respect for fairness and justice by supporting clemency for Troy Davis.

This Urgent Action is regarding 32 families in central Phnom Penh, Cambodia, who are being forced to resettle in May because they are living with HIV and AIDS. Not only is it disturbing that these families are being forced to move, but also the conditions in the proposed resettlement site are abhorrent. The site is on top of a landfill, the houses are too small for an average family, and the site has no clean water, sanitation or electricity. Not only that, but the housing is made of green metal sheets so it looks different from all the nearby housing. Locals are already calling it “Aids Village.”

There has been a steady rise in reports of forced evictions and land-grabs in Cambodia. In 2008, AI received reports of 27 forced evictions, affecting about 23,000 people.

A sample letter is attached. Please send appeals promptly, and contact the Urgent Action office (uan@aiusa.org) if sending a letter after May 21.

Protect families with AIDS from forced eviction

Today I read the Urgent Action concerning the case of ‘Aisha Ghalib. She is awaiting execution in Yemen for the murder of her husband. Amnesty does not have much information about her trial, but AI is concerned about the fairness of trials in Yemen. ‘Aisha Ghalib could be executed as soon as April 19 so please send appeals immediately.

While it is often wrenching to defend someone convicted of murder, Amnesty International opposes the use of the death penalty in all cases, as a violation of human rights. A prisoner who is exonerated can later be freed, but there is no way to right the execution of someone who is later found innocent.

UPDATE: Here is a sample letter for this case.
Aisha Ghalib letter

UPDATE 2: Sadly, ‘Aisha Ghalib was executed on April 19. No further action is requested. Thanks to those who sent appeals.

Even though it’s not New Year’s Day, I have resolved to at least look at Amnesty International USA’s Urgent Action feed once a day. Letter-writing on behalf of prisoners of conscience and others is the heart of why I joined Amnesty. I may not have time to write a letter every day, but I will look at the actions and do the best I can.

Today I read the case of Mohamed Al Mahjoub (this link is to a PDF of the Urgent Action file). He is the director of a center in North Darfur that helps victims of torture. Instead of being allowed to peacefully work to help people there, Mohamed Al Mahjoub was himself arrested and detained on April 11. He has not been allowed access to a lawyer or any others.

Mohamed Al Mahjoub committed no known crime and it’s unclear why he was arrested. Amnesty theorizes that his detention is a part of a pattern of harassment of human rights defenders that has been going on ever since March 4, when the ICC issued a warrant for the arrest of President al Bashir for war crimes.

Attached is a sample letter - please modify and personalize it if you have time, and see the Urgent Action for other addresses to send this appeal.

Mohamed Al Mahjoub sample letter

Here is a sample letter just issued from humanrightsletters.com regarding two Tibetans who could be executed at any time. [It is not on their website because it is such a short-term appeal.] Please send appeals promptly. To receive more ready-made letters like this, please join their mailing list.

Wu Aiying Buzhang
Sifabu
10 Chaoyangmen Nandajie
Chaoyangqu
Beijingshi 100020
PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA

Dear Minister

Please intercede on behalf Lobsang Gyaltsen and Loyar. As you may know, these two Tibetans were sentenced to death on 8 April by the Municipal Intermediate People’s Court in Lhasa. I am concerned that they were not represented by lawyers of their own choosing. I also understand that they have not been allowed to see their families.

I appeal to you to commute the sentences of Lobsang Gyaltsen and Loyar.

You could also (though less effective) email to: pfmaster@legalinfo.gov.cn

And can send the same letter to:

Wang Shengjun Yuanzhang
Zuigao Renmin Fayuan
27 Dongjiaomin Xiang
Beijingshi 100745
PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA
(”Dear President”)

Qiangba Puncog Zhuren
Xizang Zizhiqu Renmin Zhengfu
1 Kang’angdonglu
Lasashi 850000
Xizang Zizhiqu
PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA
(”Dear Chairman”)

And could send copies to the ambassador in your country:
Wen Zhong Zhou
Embassy of the People’s Republic of China
2300 Connecticut Ave. NW
Washington DC 20008
Email: Chinaembassy_us@fmprc.gov.cn

HE Mrs Fu Ying
Embassy of the People’s Republic of China
49-51 Portland Place
London W1B 4JL

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Lobsang Gyaltsen was found guilty of setting fire to a Lhasa shop in which the owner died on 8 March. Loyar and two others were found guilty of setting fire to a motorcycle dealership on 15 March, which left five people dead. Amnesty is concerned that the men may have been tortured or otherwise ill-treated in custody, and may not have received a fair trial.

This occurred during the unrest in Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) in March at the 50th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising that was crushed in 1959. Lawyers from across China signed an open letter volunteering to defend Tibetans detained during the unrest, but authorities warned them not to take up such cases. Ultimately all death sentences are reviewed by China’s Supreme People’s Court, which has the power to approve, revise or remand death sentences. The two men could be executed within weeks. China executes more people each year than any other country in the world.

On 10 March, which marked the anniversary of the failed Tibetan uprising in 1959, there was a wave of largely peaceful protests in the TAR and other Tibetan-populated areas of China. According to official reports, at least 81 people have received sentenced ranging from three-year prison terms to life imprisonment. Most of them have been sentenced for arson, looting, “picking quarrels and provoking troubles,” “assembling a crowd to storm state organs,” “disrupting public service,” and theft.

Please act now to save the life of Troy Davis. Despite overwhelming evidence questioning his guilt, Troy is scheduled to be executed on September 23. You may take action via the Amnesty website at www.aiusa.org/troydavis or copy the simple letter below and mail it ASAP.

Thanks to our state Death Penalty Abolition Coordinator, Maria, for providing this letter.

Georgia State Board of Pardons and Paroles
2 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, SE
Suite 458, Balcony Level, East Tower
Atlanta, Georgia 30334-4909

Dear Board Members,

I urge you, I implore you, to uphold justice and commute the death sentence of Troy Davis. The Board has stated that it “will not allow an execution to proceed in this State unless and until its members are convinced that there is no doubt as to the guilt of the accused.”

For any reasonable person looking at the facts of the case, there must be overwhelming doubt that Troy Davis is guilty of murdering Officer Mark MacPhail. There was no physical evidence implicating Troy Davis as the murderer, and the murder weapon was never found. Troy Davis was convicted solely on the basis of eyewitness testimony, and seven of the nine eyewitnesses originally accusing Mr. Davis have since recanted or changed their testimony citing police coercion. Further, one of the unrecanting witnesses has been identified by others as the actual killer.

The Board must defend Troy Davis and justice itself from the atrocity of executing an innocent man.

Sincerely,

Turn flowers into power for Native American and Alaska Native women. Tell the incoming Indian Health Service (IHS) Director that we need to ensure that survivors of rape and sexual assault receive the proper healthcare they deserve.

Take Action!

1. Organic Bouquet
   For every ten emails sent, Amnesty International USA will send a flower to Robert G. McSwain, who any day now will step into the official role of IHS Director. Our goal is to fill the IHS office with so many flowers that IHS officials recognize that their actions (and lack thereof) to protect Native American women are being observed by hundreds of dedicated advocates around the country. Take meaningful action and ensure proper healthcare for Native American and Alaska Native women.
2. Get Crafty!
   A fun way to send a message for women’s human rights is to make paper and origami flowers! Get your friends together and get creative. Learn how to make flower-themed crafts and help women’s rights bloom.

A message from Larry Cox, Executive Director, AIUSA

You’ve seen the images on YouTube and in the newspapers…… Chinese security forces brutally attacking unarmed, non-violent protestors, including Buddhist monks, in Tibet.

But, you don’t have to sit idly by and just watch. You can take action right now to help secure the freedom of 15 Tibetan monks who were arrested on March 10 for staging a peaceful protest in Barkhor, Lhasa, the capital of the Tibetan Autonomous Region.

We have no information on the monks’ current whereabouts. We don’t know the nature of the charges brought against them. And, they’re at very high risk of torture or other ill treatment.

What we do know, is that by acting together we can place enormous pressure on the Chinese Government at a moment when they are trying to put their best face forward in the run up to the 2008 Olympic Games. By acting now, we can secure the immediate release of the 15 monks and the other peaceful protestors that were detained with them.

In recent days, Amnesty International has met with Congressional leaders, including Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, and with senior White House officials. We are placing enormous pressure on the Chinese Government to stop the violence, open up the region to foreign reporters and to free peaceful protestors.

But, we need your immediate help to keep the pressure on.

Sign our petition to the President of China demanding the immediate release of the 15 Tibetan Monks and other peaceful protesters.