Schlagwort: Amnesty International

• Spokespeople returned from visiting the border available for interview

Poland must allow entry and provide humanitarian assistance to a group of 32 people from Afghanistan who have been held at the border between Poland and Belarus without food, clean water, shelter and medicine for two weeks after being pushed back from Poland.

Polish and Belarussian border guards have been keeping the group trapped in a small area on the border, as both countries avoid responsibility for the four women, 27 men and one 15-year-old girl.

On 24 August an Amnesty International delegation visited Usnarz Górny, where the group has been held for 15 days. Amnesty International also obtained reports about the use of force and threats of violence by Polish border guards when pushing the group back to Belarus.

“These people are fleeing a desperate situation in Afghanistan. By surrounding them with armed border guards, Poland is showing a callous response to their plight.”

Aleksandra Fertlińska, Campaigner at Amnesty International Poland

Lawyers and health-workers have not been to allowed to access the group to assist them with their asylum claims. Human rights observers have also been denied direct access to them.

There are reports that Belarusian border guards are helping people to cross over into Poland and Lithuania. On 6 July President Alyaksandr Lukashenka of Belarus warned that he would not stop the crossing of people across the border.

Last week the Polish government announced changes to two laws; one on foreigners, and another on granting protection to foreigners. These changes will make it impossible for people crossing the border irregularly to be able to claim asylum in Poland. On 20 August, Poland’s Ministry of Interior issued an order to close its borders to persons entering the country “irregularly” and obliging them to immediately leave the territory of Poland until further notice.

Under EU and international refugee law, Poland is obliged to ensure individual assessment of all asylum claims. Amnesty International calls on Poland’s government to end pushbacks, repeal the amendment about the border closure, and to ensure access to territory to those seeking protection.

“Over the years, brazen violations of the rights of refugees and asylum-seekers have flourished at different EU borders in a climate of impunity. The reality is that pushbacks and fences have become a fundamental tenet of many European country’s migration policies.”

Aleksandra Fertlińska, Campaigner at Amnesty International Poland

“These people are trying to get to safety. The only appropriate response is for Poland and other EU countries at the border with Belarus to start meeting their international obligations, show solidarity and ensure that asylum-seekers have access to territory and asylum procedures.”

For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact:       

Alison Abrahams on alison.abrahams@amnesty.org +32 483 680 812  Or press@amnesty.org +44 20 7413 5566   

The post Poland/Belarus: Protect Afghans stuck at border appeared first on Amnesty International.

Leaked surveillance footage from Evin prison showing appalling abuse of prisoners serves as a chilling reminder of the impunity granted to prison officials in Iran who subject those in their custody to torture and other cruel, inhumane, and degrading treatment, Amnesty International said today.

The organization has analysed 16 leaked video clips, obtained from Iranian independent media outlets, which offer shocking visual evidence of beatings, sexual harassment, and deliberate neglect and ill-treatment of those in need of medical care, which Amnesty International has documented for years. The videos also reaffirm concerns around chronic overcrowding and solitary confinement in cruel and inhumane prison conditions.

“This disturbing footage offers a rare glimpse of the cruelty regularly meted out to prisoners in Iran. It is shocking to see what goes on inside the walls of Evin prison, but sadly the abuse depicted in these leaked video clips is just the tip of the iceberg of Iran’s torture epidemic,” said Heba Morayef, Middle East and North Africa Regional Director at Amnesty International.

Away from public view, Iranian security officials routinely subject men, women and children behind bars to torture or other ill-treatment, particularly when undergoing interrogations in detention centres run by the ministry of intelligence, the Revolutionary Guards, and the investigation unit of Iran’s police (Agahi).

This disturbing footage offers a rare glimpse of the cruelty regularly meted out to prisoners in Iran

Heba Morayef, Amnesty International

Methods of torture in Iran documented by Amnesty International over the past years include floggings, electric shocks, mock executions, waterboarding, sexual violence, suspension, force-feeding of chemical substances, and deliberate deprivation of medical care.

Since 22 August, independent media outlets based outside Iran have published a growing number of leaked videos received from a group calling itself “Edalat-e Ali” (meaning Ali’s justice), which has hacked the security cameras of Tehran’s Evin Prison.

Senior Iranian officials have confirmed the veracity of footage. In a rare admission of responsibility, the head of Iran’s Prisons Organization, Mohammad Mehdi Haj Mohammadi, said in a tweet on 24 August that he accepts responsibility for the “unacceptable behaviours” shown in the footage and promised to work towards holding those responsible accountable and preventing recurrence.

On 24 August, the head of Iran’s judiciary, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, also issued a written instruction to Iran’s chief prosecutor asking that “the treatment of prisoners by prison officials and/or other prisoners [in Evin prison] are promptly and carefully examined”.

Crisis of impunity

While some officials have denounced the abuses and promised investigations, the head of Iran’s Prisons Organization, Mohammad Mehdi Haj Mohammadi also said he appreciated the efforts of Iran’s “decent” prison guards, suggesting that the exposed abuses at Evin prison were exceptional and the work of a few.

“Torture and other ill-treatment are far too widespread and systemic in Iran’s prisons and detention centres to be presented as the work of a few ‘bad apples’. Brief apologies and general promises of accountability are far from enough to address Iran’s crisis of systemic impunity,” said  Heba Morayef.

“If the Iranian authorities want their promises of accountability to not ring hollow, they must immediately allow international monitors, including the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran, to conduct independent inspections of Evin and other prisons in line with international standards.”

Given the Iranian authorities’ persistent refusal to criminally investigate and prosecute those against whom there is evidence of involvement in crimes under international law including torture, enforced disappearances, extrajudicial executions and other unlawful killings, we reiterate our call for the UN Human Rights Council to establish an investigative and accountability mechanism to collect and analyse evidence of the most serious crimes under international law committed in Iran to facilitate fair criminal proceedings.

Footage of cruelty

Of the 16 video clips reviewed by Amnesty International, seven show prison guards beating or otherwise ill-treating prisoners; three show overcrowded prison rooms; three show incidents of assault against inmates by other inmates; two show incidents of self-harm; and one shows a solitary cell with cruel and inhumane conditions.

In one video dated 31 March 2021, a prison official is seen hitting and punching a prisoner in his face in the presence of a group of prisoners, apparently causing the victim’s nose to bleed. In another dated 21 December 2020, two prison officials are seen pushing, shoving, hitting and kicking a handcuffed prisoner on his head and back in the presence of multiple other officials, and then dragging him on the ground.

Four clips depict an incident on 26 April 2021 where a visibly frail prisoner faints in the prison courtyard after stepping out of a car. Guards are seen recklessly neglecting him and then dragging him semi-conscious along the ground, through the prison and up a staircase. Multiple staff members are seen watching the incident or passing by the injured man in a detached manner.

A clip dated 9 December 2015 shows a man being ordered to strip naked in front of a guard. He is then ordered to crouch down on the floor naked with his face to the wall while a guard sitting behind him on a chair is seen calmly searching his underwear and trousers for prohibited items. 

Three clips dated 11 June 2016, 15 January 2020, and 4 February 2021 show overcrowded prison rooms with triple sleeper bunk beds accommodating between 15 and 18 people squeezed into them.

Another clip, which is undated, shows a tiny bed-less solitary confinement cell, with a squat toilet in the corner.

Amnesty International also reviewed two clips depicting self-harm, dated 4 January 2020 and 23 July 2016, and three clips showing incidents of assault against inmates by other inmates.

The post Iran: Leaked video footage from Evin prison offers rare glimpse of cruelty against prisoners appeared first on Amnesty International.

The enforced disappearance of people is the latest tactic that authorities in Nicaragua have adopted to silence any criticism or dissenting voices, Amnesty International said in a new report released today. Where are they? Enforced Disappearance as a Strategy of Repression in Nicaragua documents the cases of 10 people detained for their activism or for exercising their right to freedom of expression who have been subjected to enforced disappearance, despite being in the custody of the Nicaraguan authorities. 

“Daniel Ortega’s government of is implementing a new strategy to try to silence those who speak out. By disappearing opponents, activists and journalists, Ortega is showing his fear of criticism and complaints,” said Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas director at Amnesty International.

“The 10 cases we have documented demonstrate a new pattern of detentions followed by enforced disappearances and bear strong similarities to the cases of dozens of others who may be in the same situation. We demand that Daniel Ortega’s government immediately release all those detained for exercising their rights.” 

Since the beginning of the human rights crisis in Nicaragua in April 2018, there has been no end to reports of harassment against people identified as opponents of the government, human rights defenders, journalists, victims of human rights violations and their families.

Daniel Ortega’s government of is implementing a new strategy to try to silence those who speak out

Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas director at Amnesty International

The new phase of the repressive strategy of President Ortega’s government, which is highlighted by the detention of a new group of people identified as opponents of the government, began on 28 May 2021. From then until 2 August, more than 30 people were deprived of their liberty, adding to the more than 100 people who were already in prison just for exercising their human rights.

After analysing the cases of 10 individuals, Amnesty International concluded that – in light of the Nicaraguan state’s international human rights obligations – their detention, followed by the concealment of their whereabouts, constitutes the crime of enforced disappearance. The cases documented were those of Daysi Tamara Dávila, Miguel Mendoza, José Pallais, Suyen Barahona, Víctor Hugo Tinoco, Félix Maradiaga, Ana Margarita Vijil, Violeta Granera, Jorge Hugo Torres and Dora María Téllez.

The 10 documented cases are not isolated cases and occur in a context where there are repeated reports of other situations that have important similarities. Therefore, the cases analysed likely represent just a small sample of a longer list of victims.

In all of the documented cases, as of 2 August (the closing date of the investigation), the authorities had not officially disclosed the exact location of the detainees – a requirement under international law. In most cases, the only information received about their possible location has been provided verbally by police officers at the gate of the Judicial Assistance Directorate Evaristo Vasquez Police Complex (Dirección de Auxilio Judicial Complejo Policial Evaristo Vásquez, DAJ), known as the “New Chipote” (Nuevo Chipote), after family members insisted. However, mere statements by police officers in charge of the entrance of a detention centre are not sufficient, official and credible proof of the whereabouts and conditions of the detainees.

We demand that Daniel Ortega’s government immediately release all those detained for exercising their rights 

Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas director at Amnesty International

Both the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the National Police have issued public statements acknowledging the detentions. However, in none of them do they mention the place of detention. Furthermore, the families have not been able to visit the detainees, their legal teams have not had access to interview them, and the judicial authorities have not responded to calls to authorise the entry of family members and lawyers.

The information available to Amnesty International shows that the families and legal representatives of the 10 detainees submitted more than 40 applications, petitions and appeals to different authorities, requesting access to their files, medical examinations for the detainees, interviews with their lawyers, family visits, and immediate release, among other requests. Unfortunately, these appeals have been ineffective and, in most cases, left unanswered by the authorities.

Enforced disappearance is a crime under international law and one of the most serious human rights violations because it implies the violation of multiple human rights. It is defined as a lawful or unlawful deprivation of a person’s liberty by state agents, or by other actors with the acquiescence or tolerance of the state, without subsequently acknowledging that the detention took place, or, if acknowledged, withholding information about the fate or whereabouts of the person deprived of liberty.

“This week will mark 90 days since the most recent detentions began, but the authorities continue to refuse to provide official information on the whereabouts and conditions of detention,” said Erika Guevara-Rosas. “The families deserve to know for sure if their loved ones are alive and where they are being held. The anguish they’re experiencing is yet another form of punishment under the repressive policies of Daniel Ortega’s government.”

For more information or to arrange an interview, contact Duncan Tucker: duncan.tucker@amnesty.org

The post Nicaragua: Enforced disappearance is the new tactic for repression appeared first on Amnesty International.