Schlagwort: Amnesty International

Reacting to the news that Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger have announced their withdrawal from the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Marceau Sivieude, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for West and Central Africa, said:

“The announcements by Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger that they will withdraw from the ICC are an affront to victims and survivors of the most serious crimes and to all people fighting against impunity in these countries and worldwide.

“Withdrawing from the Rome Statute would not have any impact on the ongoing ICC investigation in Mali, or on the state’s continuing obligations towards the Court. However, once any withdrawal takes effect, it would significantly harm the prospect of victims and survivors of future war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide from these Sahel countries from being able to pursue justice at the ICC if they cannot find justice at home.

“All ICC member states must urgently call on Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger to urgently reconsider their stated decisions to withdraw from the Rome Statute.”

Marceau Sivieude, Amnesty International’s
Regional Director for West and Central Africa

“If these three countries have genuine concerns about selectivity of the ICC, these should be raised as ICC member states through dialogue and constructive engagement within the Assembly of States Parties. Withdrawals will not serve to address concerns, they will only remove the prospect of justice for victims and the protections they are provided by the Rome Statute.

“All ICC member states must urgently call on Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger to urgently reconsider their stated decisions to withdraw from the Rome Statute.”

Background

The process and effect of withdrawal from the Rome Statute is provided in Article 127 of the Rome Statute. Withdrawal takes effect one year after notification is received by the UN treaty office in New York. Currently, 125 States are parties to the Rome Statute establishing the International Criminal Court.

Mali’s withdrawal will not affect the ICC’s ongoing investigation into the situation in Mali, nor Mali’s obligations to the Court, including to cooperate with that investigation, which covers all crimes committed on the territory of Mali since January 2012 to the date that its withdrawal would take effect. There are currently no public ICC investigations in Niger or Burkina Faso.

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Responding to the news that President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has issued a pardon for Egyptian-British activist Alaa Abdel Fattah, along with five other prisoners, Amnesty International’s Senior Director for Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns, Erika Guevara Rosas said:  

“Today’s presidential pardon for Alaa Abdel Fattah and the prospect of him finally being reunited with his family are a welcome, but long overdue, relief.  

“His pardon ends a grave injustice and is a testament to the tireless efforts of his family and lawyers, including his courageous mother, Laila Soueif,  and activists all over the world who have been relentlessly demanding his release over the past six years. We hope that his release will take place soon. 

His pardon ends a grave injustice and is a testament to the tireless efforts of his family and lawyers, including his courageous mother, Laila Soueif,  and activists all over the world who have been relentlessly demanding his release over the past six years

Erika Guevara Rosas, Amnesty International

“Alaa Abdel Fattah is a prisoner of conscience who was targeted for his peaceful activism. His pardon will not erase the ordeal he has endured in detention over the past six years. The Egyptian authorities should follow up on today’s decision by releasing all those solely detained for exercising their human rights and allowing them to reunite with their loved ones.” 

Background: 

Alaa Abdel Fattah is an Egyptian-British activist, writer, and software developer. He rose to prominence during the 2011 Egyptian revolution and has been repeatedly targeted by Egyptian authorities for his peaceful activism and criticism of the government. 

His most recent arrest was on 29 September 2019, amidst a widespread crackdown on protests. In December 2021, he was sentenced to five years in prison by an Emergency State Security Court on spurious charges of “spreading false news,” related to a social media post. Amnesty International and numerous other human rights organizations have consistently declared him a prisoner of conscience, whose detention is solely linked to his exercise of human rights. 

Despite his five-year sentence effectively ending on 29 September 2024 , Egyptian authorities continued to arbitrarily detain him, stating his release date would be in January 2027, violating both international legal norms and Egypt’s own domestic law. During his imprisonment, he faced inhumane conditions, including denial of access to lawyers, consular visits, fresh air, and sunlight. His family has reported serious concerns about his health, particularly at times when he engaged in a prolonged hunger strike to protest his detention. 

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Responding to reports that Chinese journalist Zhang Zhan has been convicted of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” and sentenced to four years in prison, Amnesty International’s China Director Sarah Brooks said:

“This second conviction for Zhang Zhan is a betrayal of China’s stated priority of upholding the rule of law. Like lawyer Yu Wensheng and so many others, Zhang’s commitment to defending human rights and her consistent refusal to keep silent – even after a prison sentence that put her health and life at risk – have made her a target.

“Until the Chinese authorities are pressured to change vague and overly broad laws and held accountable for systematically depriving human rights defenders of their liberty, the future for human rights in the country remains grim.

“Zhang’s baseless conviction should be quashed, and she should be immediately released. Pending release, she must be provided with access to counsel, her family and adequate healthcare.

“Chinese authorities must end their decades-long misuse of the criminal charge  of ‘picking quarrels and provoking trouble’.  And the international community, including China’s bilateral partners, must make it a priority to not merely call for the release of Zhang and others unjustly detained, but actively use its leverage to ensure they will be freed.” 

Background

Chinese journalist and activist Zhang Zhan was reportedly convicted of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” and sentenced to four years in jail following her trial on Friday 19 September at the Pudong New District People’s Procuratorate.

Prior reports indicated that Zhang has gone on hunger strike while in detention and has shown signs of having been forcibly fed. Her family and lawyer have been subjected to harassment and intimidation by authorities and are unable to share detailed updates about her situation. As a result, very little is known about her current health condition and other aspects of her case.

Zhang Zhan was previously jailed on the same charge for reporting on the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic in Wuhan. A former lawyer, she travelled to Wuhan in February 2020 to provide on-the-ground information about what was happening there. She posted on social media about how government officials had detained independent reporters and harassed families of Covid-19 patients.

She went missing in Wuhan in May 2020. It later emerged that she had been taken by the Chinese authorities and detained in Shanghai, where she was convicted of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” after a sham trial. Zhang Zhan was released on 13 May 2024 after completing a four-year prison sentence.

However, she was subjected to strict surveillance and continuous harassment by the authorities after her release, and she was detained again less than four months later. Her arrest came shortly after she reportedly travelled to the northwestern province of Gansu to show solidarity with other human rights defenders.

During her previous imprisonment, she went on a hunger strike that led to multiple hospitalizations and her weight dropped drastically to just 37 kilograms — half of what she weighed prior to her deprivation of liberty.

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Responding to the US veto of a UN Security Council draft resolution that would have demanded an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, the lifting of all restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid and ensuring its safe distribution, and immediate unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups, Amnesty International’s Secretary General, Agnès Callamard, said: 

“For the sixth time, the United States has vetoed a UN Security Council resolution aimed at ending the unbearable suffering of over 2 million Palestinians in Gaza struggling to survive Israel’s genocide that has been cruelly unfolding, before the world’s eyes. It is morally reprehensible that instead of using its leverage to halt the endless catalogue of horrors, the USA has – yet again – abused its veto rights to effectively further greenlight Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. The results of the vote, 14 in favor and only one against, show that the USA stands alone on this issue. It is now up to the General Assembly to take decisive action.

“The implications of this veto are especially devastating for Palestinians in Gaza City, where Israel has unleashed an unprecedented campaign of annihilation that is brutally pushing hundreds of thousands of residents out of the city to unsafe and unfit areas in the south of the Gaza Strip. Israel’s relentless onslaught is accelerating the erasure of the ancient city, its heritage and Palestinian identity. That this veto comes just two days after the Independent UN Commission of Inquiry (COI) published a report concluding that Israeli authorities and forces are committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, makes it all the more reprehensible. 

“From continuing to provide Israel with the massive military support that has enabled the commission and continuation of the genocide, to unconditional political and diplomatic backing, including through casting this latest veto, the US government has shown a deadly disregard for the survival of Palestinians in Gaza. This also endangers the lives of the remaining Israeli hostages, whose lives are at stake.  

“History will not forgive the USA for standing alone against the international community, emboldening Israel in its ongoing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, and further eroding a fragile global legal system meant to protect human rights, but which has seen its norms and very legitimacy crushed by pervasive impunity and contempt for international law.

“By continuing to back and arm Israel as it carries out its relentless campaign of annihilation in Gaza, the risk of US complicity in war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide is mounting. All states must exert far more pressure on Israel, including through banning, with immediate effect, the direct and indirect supply, sale or transfer to Israel of all arms and surveillance equipment as well as all trade or investment relations that contribute to, or are directly linked to Israel’s international crimes.”

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Rwandan authorities must immediately release opposition politician and president of Development and Liberty for All (DALFA-Umurinzi) political party, Victoire Ingabire, Amnesty International said today.

The Rwanda Investigations Bureau (RIB) has linked her arrest in June to alleged subversion for communicating with nine others who were arrested October and December 2021 and are facing charges of attempting to overthrow the government.

Amnesty International also called for the immediate release of the nine. They include eight members of DALFA and Journalist Théoneste Nsengimana.  All nine are awaiting the end of their trial which started in November 2024 after three years of pre-trial detention. 

Ingabire was arrested at her home in the capital Kigali on 19 June by the RIB. The next day, in a tweet confirming the arrest, the RIB stated it had launched an investigation against Ingabire, at the request of the Public Prosecutor, linked to the case of the DALFA members arrested in 2021.

Ingabire is accused of, among other charges, “establishing or joining a criminal organization, conspiring to commit crimes against the government, and inciting unrest or disorder among the population.” She has denied these charges. If convicted, she could face up to life in prison. The prosecutor has relied on the testimony of a former aide and voice recordings purporting Ingabire shared ideas on non-violent actions against the government with the group.

“Three months since the arrest of Victoire Ingabire and almost four years since the arrest of nine others, eight of whom are members of Ingabire’s unregistered political party, Rwandan authorities continue to send a clear message that political opposition in the country will not be tolerated,” said Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa.

Ingabire remains in detention following a court ruling in July denying her bail on the grounds that she was a flight risk. She was previously imprisoned in 2010 and sentenced to 15 years in prison on charges including “divisionism” but received a presidential pardon in 2018 and was released under conditions requiring monthly check-ins with a local prosecutor and prior authorization before travelling abroad. In 2017, the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (AfCHPR) ruled that Rwanda had violated her rights to freedom of expression and a fair trial. 

Three months since the arrest of Victoire Ingabire and almost four years since the arrest of nine others, eight of whom are members of Ingabire’s unregistered political party, Rwandan authorities continue to send a clear message that political opposition in the country will not be tolerated.

Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa

Amnesty International documented the case of the eight DALFA members and journalist Théoneste Nsengimana. The prosecutor is seeking a 10-year sentence for the journalist, and for the others, sentences ranging from 20 years to life imprisonment for planning and attending a workshop on peaceful resistance to authoritarian practices. The workshop was based on the book, by Srda Popovic. Amnesty International believes that the charges against them have no legal grounds and violate Rwanda’s Constitution as well as the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which the country is a state party.   

“Rwanda’s persistent political persecution of those with differing opinions has gone on for too long. Peaceful dissent and the right to freedom of association should not be criminalized. Authorities must immediately end the authoritarian practices, and facilitate, ensure and uphold media freedom, and the rights to freedom of expression and association for everyone in the country without any reprisals or risk of arrest or judicial harassment,” said Tigere Chagutah.

Rwanda’s persistent political persecution of those with differing opinions has gone on for too long. Authorities must immediately end the authoritarian practices, and facilitate, ensure and uphold media freedom, and the rights to freedom of expression and association for everyone in the country without any reprisals or risk of arrest or judicial harassment.

Tigere Chagutah.

Background

Victoire Ingabire returned to Rwanda from exile in the Netherlands in January 2010 to participate in the country’s presidential elections. Ingabire was barred from the election and arrested on charges including “genocide ideology” and “divisionism”. 

On 10 September 2025, a European Union Parliament resolution said the arrest is part of a broader crackdown on political opposition, journalists, and civil society. Since 2017, at least five members of Ingabire’s former party, FDU-Inkingi, have died or forcibly disappeared. The opposition, civil society and media operate under severe restrictions on their rights to freedom of expression and association, alongside threats, arbitrary detention, prosecution on trumped-up charges, killings, and enforced disappearances. Independent civil society and the media also face attacks, intimidation, harassment and other reprisals for their work.

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