Kategorie: Humans

Reacting to the outcome of COP27, Chiara Liguori, Amnesty International’s Climate Justice Adviser said:

“This was a tale of two COPs: joy at the adoption of a Loss and Damage fund but anguish that, despite overwhelming scientific evidence and escalating human rights impacts, the negotiations failed to secure vital commitments on the phasing out of all fossil fuels, which are the number one driver of the climate crisis.

“The establishment of the Loss and Damage fund was the result of a united position presented by global south countries and persistent campaigning by a wide range of groups. It sends a ray of hope to people whose human rights have been harmed by climate change. It will still be a long road before those most impacted can access real financial support but the decision sets in motion a process to redress historical injustices. Now it is up to wealthy countries to step up and ensure the fund is adequately resourced.

“However, demands from a growing number of civil society groups and others including many states to secure agreement on the phasing out of all fossil fuels did not prevail in the face of a powerful fossil fuel lobby, the blatant opposition of fossil-fuel producing countries, and the ambiguous position of some wealthy countries.

“Governments failed to commit to phase out all fossil fuels, including oil and fossil gas (so-called ‘natural gas’), restating instead the pledge from last year’s COP that they would be ‘accelerating efforts towards the phasedown of unabated coal power and phase-out of inefficient fossil fuel subsidies’.

“In light of the extreme climate-driven disasters that we have witnessed in the last year, and the growing catalogue of reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and others documenting both the impacts and the causes of climate change, this failure to progress on fossil fuels represents an enormous abdication of human rights obligations and disregards the rights of all those being affected, and future generations.”

The post COP27: Loss and Damage fund is welcome but failure to deliver on phasing out fossil fuels is a huge setback appeared first on Amnesty International.

Responding to FIFA’s threats to sanction players who planned to wear ‘One Love’ armbands to show support for the LGBTI community, Steve Cockburn, Amnesty International’s Head of Economic and Social Justice said:

“Last minute threats to sanction players for wearing messages in support of human rights and equality is the latest example of FIFA failing to fully uphold its own values and responsibilities. Sport does not happen in a vacuum and these are issues on which FIFA should be leading, not cracking down on. Agreements on armbands, and better protections for LGBTI communities, should have been reached a long time ago.

“We applaud the courage of teams and players who have spoken out about human rights and we hope they continue to do so. Fans, players and FAs want to ensure that football can be a vehicle to promote human rights, and FIFA needs to heed these calls quickly. It must not only encourage messages of equality, but take proactive action to ensure LGBTI people are protected.

“And let’s not forget the migrant workers who made the tournament possible. They must be compensated in full for the unspeakable abuse they suffered.”

The post Qatar: FIFA fails to uphold importance of human rights and equality as players face threats of sanctioning appeared first on Amnesty International.

Responding to Gianni Infantino’s recent comments, Steve Cockburn, Amnesty International’s Head of Economic and Social Justice said:

“In brushing aside legitimate human rights criticisms, Gianni Infantino is dismissing the enormous price paid by migrant workers to make his flagship tournament possible – as well as FIFA’s responsibility for it. Demands for equality, dignity and compensation cannot be treated as some sort of culture war – they are universal human rights that FIFA has committed to respect in its own statutes.

“If there is one tiny glimmer of hope, it is that Infantino announced that FIFA would establish a legacy fund after the World Cup. This cannot be mere window dressing, however. If FIFA is to salvage anything from this tournament, it must announce that it will invest a significant part of the $6 billion the organisation will make from this tournament and make sure this fund is used to compensate workers and their families directly.”

The post Qatar: Amnesty responds to Gianni Infantino’s latest comments appeared first on Amnesty International.

Responding to the USA government’s legal submission calling on a US Court to grant Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman immunity from a lawsuit filed by murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s fiancée, Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General, said: 

“The US government should hang its head in shame. This is nothing more than a sickening, total, deep betrayal. First the evidence of the Crown Prince’s involvement in Jamal Khashoggi’s murder was disregarded by President Trump, then President Biden’s fist bump – it all suggests shady deals made throughout.

“For the Saudi government to seek to extend immunity to Mohammed bin Salman simply by declaring him Prime Minister is beyond cynical. It is disappointing that the US government has given effect to this legal ruse. This sends a deplorable message that those in power – be they heads of state, government officials with blood on their hands, generals commanding war crimes, ministers ordering abduction and torture, corrupt executives – are free to operate above the law with total impunity.”

“Mohammed bin Salman must face a court of law to answer these serious allegations and we hold out hope that the US court system will reject the department of justice argument and ensure that the matter proceeds to trial. No one should be assured immunity for such heinous crimes and we, and the international human rights movement as a whole, will not rest until those responsible for Jamal Khashoggi’s murder are brought to justice.”

The post Saudi Arabia: Biden Administration’s attempt to grant immunity to Mohammed Bin Salman is a deep betrayal appeared first on Amnesty International.

Thai authorities should drop charges against child protesters after they took part in mass demonstrations between 2020 and 2022, Amnesty International said today, in the lead-up to World Children’s Day on 20 November. 

Amnesty International has been closely monitoring and documenting the impact of the ongoing, years-long crackdown on child protesters, which has included intimidation, surveillance, and criminalization of their activities.  

The organization has recorded instances of Thai police and other government officials following and monitoring dozens of child protesters, pressuring their family members and school authorities to discourage them from joining protests, and directly threatening to file charges against them and their parents. 

“Many of the people who took part in these unprecedented mass demonstrations starting in 2020 were children at the time, who felt a need to express themselves about matters affecting their futures,” said Katherine Gerson, Thailand campaigner for Amnesty International. 

“Thai authorities must take the opportunity of World Children’s Day to create a safe and enabling environment for freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. We urge authorities to let these young people get on with their lives without unwarranted legal cases hanging over them and impeding their economic, educational and professional opportunities.” 

We urge authorities to let these young people get on with their lives without unwarranted legal cases hanging over them and impeding their economic, educational and professional opportunities.

Katherine Gerson, Amnesty International Thailand Campaigner

Since 2020, an estimated 283 protesters under the age of 18 have been charged with a range of offenses, the majority under an Emergency Decree Act passed during the pandemic that has since been repealed. Others face charges of royal defamation, sedition and the dissemination of what authorities deem to be “false” information. Nearly 200 of these cases are still active. 

“People have been accused of violating a pandemic-related Emergency Decree that no longer exists. This is nonsensical. Thai authorities should immediately drop all charges and refrain from bringing any additional cases against people, including children, for violating this defunct law,” Gerson said. 

On November 22, the Nonthaburi Provincial Juvenile and Family Court will deliver its ruling in the first case of royal defamation involving a child protester named Thanakorn “Petch” Phiraban, an LGBTI+ activist charged for peacefully participating in a protest on 10 September 2020 when they were 17 years old. In this case, Petch faces the maximum sentence of 15 years’ imprisonment.  

“As recent reports in the lead-up to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit held in Bangkok suggest, groups of children are still taking to the streets to peacefully express themselves despite the potential risks involved in exercising their human rights. Thai authorities must refrain from violating the right to protest and take steps to actively facilitate children’s full enjoyment of this right.” 

Background: 

In 2020, tens of thousands of young people took to the streets in mass protests against the military-dominated government led by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha. Peaceful “flash mob” demonstrations began to take place at university campuses and high schools around the country. 

The protest movement rapidly expanded through social media platforms, especially Twitter, where protesters organically coordinated gatherings via hashtags. An overwhelming number of participants at the start of the protests were secondary school students under 18 years old.  

In total, more than 1,800 individuals have been charged for taking part in the protests and expressing their opinions, most of them under the Emergency Decree Act, which was repealed in October 2022.  

Currently, Amnesty International is running the global campaign “Protect the Protest” to ensure people around the world can peacefully demand change without persecution.   

Amnesty International is a global human rights movement, independent of any government, political ideology or economic interest. Raising concerns about human rights violations against individual persons or organizations advocating a particular political position does not imply that Amnesty International supports that person or organization’s platform. 

The post Thailand: Authorities must drop charges against child protesters appeared first on Amnesty International.