Schlagwort: Amnesty International

Release Political Prisoners, Respect Right to Peaceful Assembly 

Cameroon’s authorities should ensure accountability for their security forces’ crackdown on opposition leaders, supporters and peaceful protesters in September 2020, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said today. 

They should immediately and unconditionally release all those held for expressing their political views or for exercising their right to peaceful assembly and end the campaign of repression against peaceful protesters and critics.

“Last September, Cameroonians courageously challenged their government over their crackdown on peaceful dissent, and they were met with violence and contempt.

llaria Allegrozzi, Senior Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch.

“Last September, Cameroonians courageously challenged their government over their crackdown on peaceful dissent, and they were met with violence and contempt,” said Ilaria Allegrozzi, senior Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch.

“One year on, the repression continues, with more protests banned and peaceful protesters still behind bars.”

On September 22, 2020 security forces fired teargas and water cannons to disperse peaceful protests across Cameroon. They arrested over 500 people, mainly opposition party members and supporters. The authorities beat many people during those arrests and in custody.

These protests had been organized following calls by the opposition party, Cameroon Renaissance Movement (Mouvement pour la renaissance du Cameroun – MRC), other opposition parties, and civil society organizations to take to the streets over the government’s decision to organize regional elections.

Opposition parties had expressed concerns that the elections could not be conducted freely and fairly without reforming the electoral code and addressing the lack of security in the Anglophone regions.

Maurice Kamto, the MRC leader, was arrested in January 2019 after countrywide peaceful protests and released following a presidential decree in October 2019. He was rearrested on September 20, 2020  and was held under de facto house arrest until  December 8, with heavy security apparatus  outside his residence. The authorities never charged Kamto or provided an explanation for his house arrest.

According to a committee of MRC lawyers, at least 124 MRC members and supporters, including the prominent leaders Olivier Bibou Nissack and Alain Fogue Tedom remain in arbitrary detention, in Yaoundé, Cameroon’s capital; Douala, in Littoral region; Bafoussam, in West region; and Mfou, in Centre region.

In all, 116 face trial before military courts, on charges stemming from their participation in protests or for their activism. Eight have been convicted before a civilian court on similar charges and are serving two-year prison sentences.

On August 3, the prosecutor of the Yaoundé military court dismissed a complaint filed by Alain Fogue Tedom’s lawyers on January 13 alleging that he was tortured in detention between September 22 and November 3, 2020 at the State Defense Secretariat (Secrétariat d’Etat à la défense, SED), a detention facility in Yaoundé. Human Rights Watch has documented routine use of torture at the SED facility.

“It has become abundantly clear that civilians cannot get a fair trial before military courts, which lack independence,” a Cameroonian human rights lawyer, Michelle Ndoki, told Human Rights Watch.

It has become abundantly clear that civilians cannot get a fair trial before military courts, which lack independence.”

Michelle Ndoki, Cameroonian human rights lawyer

“The use of military courts to try civilians violates international law, and Cameroon should once and for all reverse this troubling trend.”

In a statement on September 9, 2, the committee of MRC lawyers declared that it decided “to withdraw from the ongoing legal proceedings,” as “it cannot associate itself with arbitrariness and illegality.”

 In a separate statement, issued the same day, the 124 detainees, calling themselves “Paul Biya’s political hostages,” referring to the country’s president, said they would no longer appear before Cameroonian jurisdictions because they do not want to support “a parody of justice.”

In a separate incident, on September 18, 2020, gendarmes arrested four members of the civil society platform Stand Up for Cameroon who had attended a meeting at the headquarters of the opposition Cameroon People’s Party in Douala.

A year later they remain arbitrarily detained at Douala New Bell prison, facing trial before a military court, on charges of attempted conspiracy, revolution and insurrection. On September 15, the Douala military court adjourned the trial for the sixth time, until October 13.

The Cameroonian authorities have not opened an investigation into the violations by security forces and other government personnel during the September 2020 crackdown, and no one has been held accountable. Indeed, government repression of opposition and dissent continues. Authorities prohibited an MRC demonstration planned for July 25  in Yaoundé, citing concerns around Covid-19 and general public order. On the same day, however, a demonstration by supporters of the ruling party took place in Bertoua, Eastern region.

On  August 9,  gendarmes arbitrarily arrested the prominent  tech entrepreneur and vocal critic of President Biya, Rebecca Enonchong, in Douala. She was detained   for “contempt of a magistrate,” until August 13, then  was released  and all charges against her were dropped. She had previously supported human rights campaigns and denounced violations by government forces.

The European Union noted that “civil and political rights continue to be subject to limitations” in Cameroon, in a statement to the Human Rights Council on September14.

“One year after violently quashing peaceful demonstrations, Cameroonian authorities are still resorting to their old repressive tactics,” said Fabien Offner, Amnesty International’s Central Africa researcher.

“The African Union, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the Economic Community of Central African States, and Cameroon’s other regional and international partners should press the government to ensure accountability for security forces’ violations and demand the immediate and unconditional release of all those arbitrarily detained and the respect of free speech and peaceful assembly.”

One year after violently quashing peaceful demonstrations, Cameroonian authorities are still resorting to their old repressive tactics.”

Fabien Offner, Amnesty International’s Central Africa researcher.

The post Cameroon: Repression marks crackdown anniversary appeared first on Amnesty International.

• AstraZeneca, BioNTech, Johnson & Johnson, Moderna, Novavax and Pfizer refused to participate in initiatives to boost global vaccine supply
• Less than 1% of people in low-income countries are fully vaccinated, compared to 55% in rich countries
• BioNTech, Moderna and Pfizer set to earn US$130 billion by the end of 2022
• Ahead of President Biden’s global Covid-19 summit, Amnesty International throws down gauntlet and calls for 2 billion vaccines to be delivered to low and lower-middle income countries before end of the year

Six companies at the helm of the Covid-19 vaccine roll-out are fuelling an unprecedented human rights crisis through their refusal to waive intellectual property rights and share vaccine technology, with most failing to prioritise vaccine deliveries to poorer countries, Amnesty International said today.

In a new report, A Double Dose of Inequality: Pharma companies and the Covid-19 vaccines crisis, the organization assessed six of the companies that hold the fate of billions of people in their hands: AstraZeneca plc, BioNTech SE, Johnson & Johnson, Moderna, Inc., Novavax, Inc. and Pfizer, Inc. It paints a dismal picture of an industry that is woefully failing to respect human rights.

“Vaccinating the world is our only pathway out of this crisis. It should be time to hail these companies, who created vaccines so quickly, as heroes. But instead, to their shame and our collective grief, Big Pharma’s intentional blocking of knowledge transfer and their wheeling and dealing in favor of wealthy states has brewed an utterly predictable and utterly devastating vaccine scarcity for so many others” said Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General.

“Its plunging parts of Latin America, Africa and Asia into renewed crises, pushing weakened health systems to the very brink and causing tens of thousands of preventable deaths every week. In many low-income countries not even health workers and people at-risk have received the vaccine.”  

“Against the backdrop of these gross inequalities BioNTech, Moderna and Pfizer are set to make US$130 billion combined by the end of 2022. Profits should never come before lives.”

Failing to meet human rights responsibilities

In order to assess their response to the crisis, Amnesty International reviewed each company’s human rights policy, vaccine pricing structure, their records on intellectual property, knowledge and technology sharing, the fair allocation of available vaccine doses, and transparency. It found that to differing degrees, the six vaccine developers had failed to meet their human rights responsibilities.

Out of 5.76 billion doses administered worldwide, a paltry 0.3% have gone to low-income countries with over 79% going to upper-middle and high-income countries. Despite calls to prioritise and collaborate with COVAX Facility, the international instrument aiming to ensure a fair global vaccine allocation, some of the assessed companies have continued to stock up vaccine supplies for states known to be hoarding the vaccine.

All the companies assessed have so far refused to take part in internationally coordinated initiatives designed to boost global supply by sharing knowledge and technology. They have also opposed proposals to temporarily lift intellectual property rights, such as the World Trade Organization Trade Related Intellectual Property Rules (TRIPS) Waiver proposed by India and South Africa.

Further findings included:

• Pfizer and BioNTech have so far delivered nine times more vaccines to Sweden alone than to all low-income countries combined – less than 1% of their production so far. High prices mean the companies are set to earn over $86 billion in revenues by the end of 2022.
• Moderna has not yet delivered a single vaccine dose to a low-income country, has provided just 12% of its vaccines to lower-middle income countries, and will not deliver the vast majority of its orders for COVAX until 2022. Higher prices mean it is set to earn over $47bn in revenues by the end of 2022
• Johnson & Johnson has developed the world’s only single dose vaccine and sells at cost price, yet it will not deliver the vast majority of its commitments to COVAX and the African Union until 2022. They have also refused to grant a license to a Canadian manufacturer offering to manufacture millions more doses.
• Astrazeneca has delivered the most vaccines to lower income countries, sells at cost price, and has issued some voluntary licenses to other manufacturers. However, it has refused to openly share its knowledge and technology with WHO initiatives and has opposed the TRIPS Waiver.
• Novavax has yet to be approved for use, but currently plans to provide almost two-thirds of its production to supply COVAX. However, like others, it has refused to share its knowledge and technology and has opposed the TRIPS Waiver.

Despite most companies receiving billions of dollars in government funding and advance orders, vaccine developers have monopolized intellectual property, blocked technology transfers, and lobbied aggressively against measures that would expand the global manufacturing of these vaccines. Their continued inaction has caused human rights harms suffered by the billions of people still unable to access a lifesaving Covid-19 vaccine.

100-day countdown

“Today marks 100 days until the end of the year. We’re calling on states and pharmaceutical companies to drastically change course and to do everything needed to deliver 2 billion vaccines to low and lower-middle income countries starting now. No one should spend another year suffering and living in fear,” said Agnès Callamard.

“Today marks 100 days until the end of the year. We’re calling on states and pharmaceutical companies to drastically change course and to do everything needed to deliver 2 billion vaccines to low and lower-middle income countries starting now.”

Agnès Callamard, Secretary General

To coincide with the publication of today’s report, Amnesty International is launching a global campaign – backed by the World Health Organisation and High Commissioner for Human Rights – to hold states and big pharma to account. The 100 Day Countdown: 2 billion Covid-19 vaccines now! is demanding that the World Health Organisation’s target of vaccinating 40% of the population of low and lower-middle income countries by the end of the year is met. We are calling upon states to urgently redistribute the hundreds of millions of excess doses currently sitting idle and for vaccine developers to ensure that at least 50% of doses produced go to these countries. If states and pharma companies continue down their current path, there will be no end in sight for Covid-19.

“Armed with billions of dollars of tax-payers money and expertise from research institutions, pharmaceutical companies have played a pivotal role in developing life-saving vaccines. But now they must take immediate action to provide billions more people with the chance to be inoculated. To achieve a fair and rapid roll-out, vaccine developers must prioritise deliveries to countries that need them most and suspend their intellectual property rights, share their knowledge and technology and train qualified manufacturers to ramp-up production of Covid-19 vaccines,” said Agnès Callamard.

As President Biden is set to announce new commitments to fight the coronavirus pandemic including fully vaccinating 70 percent of the world’s population by next September, at a summit today (22^nd Sept), Agnès Callamard said:

“Covid-19 vaccines must be readily available and accessible for all. It is up to governments and pharma companies to make this a reality. We need leaders like President Biden, to put billions of doses on the table and deliver the goods, otherwise this is just another empty gesture and lives will continue to be lost.”

Amnesty International is also calling on states to ensure that health facilities and medicines, are available, accessible, acceptable and of good quality to everyone. They must adopt laws and policies to ensure pharmaceutical companies conform with human rights standards.

Amnesty International wrote to each company before publication. Five companies – AstraZeneca, Moderna, Pfizer, BioNTech and Johnson & Johnson – responded. The companies acknowledge that fair and equitable distribution, particularly in low-income countries, is essential, but all companies have failed to meet these aspirations and fulfil their human rights responsibilities.

Background

Amnesty International’s report did not assess in detail the Russian and Chinese companies that are producing billions of doses, as these companies disclose less corporate information. This lack of transparency makes it impossible to conduct a full assessment. However, like all companies, they also have human rights responsibilities. They, too, have not distributed their vaccines equitably, reserving the majority of doses for domestic consumption, and failed to join knowledge and technology sharing pools.

Data on the distribution of vaccines, projected production and revenue forecasts for each company was drawn from Airfinity, a data science company. Data on vaccination rates in different countries was taken from Our World In Data.

Using data from these sources, Amnesty has calculated that an additional 1.2 billion people in low and lower-middle income countries would need to be vaccinated by the end of the year to meet the WHO’s target of vaccinating 40% of the population in these countries. This would require over 2 billion vaccines. If just 50% of the world’s projected vaccine production until the end of the year was distributed to low and lower-middle income countries, it would provide 2.6 billion vaccines.

Take action today

The post New report shows leading Covid-19 vaccine pharma companies fuelling unprecedented human rights crisis appeared first on Amnesty International.

Idris Hasan has been detained at China’s request for two months

“I fear that if my husband is sent back to China, I will never see him again” – Zaynura Hasan

The Moroccan authorities must not transfer Idris Hasan, an ethnic Uyghur who was detained in the country, to China where he is at risk of torture, Amnesty International said ahead of his extradition hearing tomorrow (Wednesday 22 September).

Hasan, a 33-year-old father of three and a computer designer, was arrested at Casablanca airport on 19 July after flying to Morocco from Turkey, and was taken to a prison near the town of Tiflet.

Hasan holds Chinese nationality and a Turkish residency permit. Amnesty International believes he is at real risk of arbitrary detention and torture if he is forcibly transferred to China.

“The plight of Idris Hasan is indicative of China’s efforts to control the Uyghur diaspora community,” said Joanne Mariner, Amnesty International’s Crisis Response Director.

“The threat to extradite or otherwise remove Uyghurs creates an atmosphere of fear that dissuades people overseas from speaking out.

“For Morocco to send Idris Hasan to China – where Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities are facing a horrifying campaign of mass internment, persecution and torture – would violate the country’s obligations under international law.”

The principle of non-refoulement guarantees that no one should be returned to a country where they would face a real risk of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, and other serious human rights violations.

It would also utterly contradict Morocco’s commitments as one of the Convention against Torture Initiative Core States, whose aspiration is “to reduce and prevent the risks of torture and ill-treatment”.

Family pleas

Idris Hasan has been living in Turkey since 2012, with his wife Zaynura and their three children. His wife and children have permanent residency permits in Turkey, but his own residency permit is categorized as “humanitarian”.

Zaynura told Amnesty International: “I fear that if my husband is sent back to China, I will never see him again. Now that he is not here … my middle daughter wakes up every day saying that she dreamed of her dad, and she often cries loud for no reason.

“Now my children have started school, I am feeling the absence of my husband more and more. He used to take them to and from school, help them do their homework, play with them.

“My husband is counting the days, hoping that he will be released very soon. It will be a big setback for us all if he is not released.”

Background

Hasan was arrested on the basis of an Interpol red notice after landing in Casablanca. Interpol has since cancelled the red notice issued in Hasan’s case, based on new information its secretariat received.

China ratified an extradition treaty with Morocco in 2017, one of several such treaties that it has entered into in recent years.

The Chinese government reportedly considers Hasan a “terrorist”, because of work he has previously done for Uyghur organizations. Chinese law defines “terrorism” and “extremism” in an overly broad and vague manner, and has been used to crack down on Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities.

In June 2021, Amnesty International published a report revealing how hundreds of thousands of Muslim men and women in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region are being subjected to arbitrary mass detention, indoctrination and torture.

In the report, ‘Like We Were Enemies in a War’: China’s Mass Internment, Torture, and Persecution of Muslims in Xinjiang, Amnesty International’s Crisis Response team released dozens of new testimonies from former detainees detailing the extreme measures taken by Chinese authorities since 2017 to essentially root out Islamic religious beliefs and traditions, as well as the cultural practices and local languages of the region’s Muslim ethnic groups.

Carried out under the guise of fighting “terrorism”, these crimes have targeted ethnic Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Hui, Kyrgyz, Uzbeks and Tajiks.

Amnesty International also launched an international campaign calling for the closure of the internment camps, with more than 60 detailed casefiles on some of those thought to be currently detained. As of September 2021, more than 300,000 signatures have been collected from all over the world to demand of President Xi Jinping and others that the Chinese authorities release all those currently detained in internment camps and prisons in Xinjiang.

The post Morocco: Detained Uyghur must not be transferred to China appeared first on Amnesty International.