Schlagwort: human rights

In early 2025 photojournalist Marios Lolos was covering a demonstration in Athens about the Tempi rail tragedy when a police officer threw a stun grenade in his direction. It hit the left side of his head, exploding next to him. The impact resulted in him suffering permanent hearing loss and a head injury. 

“Had it exploded in front of my head and not a little bit later, we wouldn’t be speaking at the moment,” Lolos tells me, his voice thick with emotion. 

The veteran journalist and former president of the Greek Press Photo Union believes that the stun grenade was thrown at him intentionally. Footage verified by Amnesty International corroborates his testimony and suggests that he was deliberately targeted. 

Had the stun grenade exploded in front of my head and not a little bit later, we wouldn’t be speaking now

Marios Lolos, journalist and stun grenade survivor

Lolos’ experience is far from unique. In fact, it is part of a wider pattern in which the right to freedom of peaceful assembly in Greece is being blatantly violated both in law and in practice. Journalists frequently find themselves in the firing line alongside peaceful protesters who are arbitrarily detained, criminalized, and subjected to unlawful use of force by police. The physical and psychological injuries they suffer can be life changing.  

Marios Lolos’ testimony – along with over fifty of others – is included in a new report published by Amnesty International today. Our research finds that these disturbing abuses are underpinned by protest legislation that fails to comply with international and regional standards, and a persistent culture of impunity for abuses by law enforcement officials policing demonstrations.   

The report, based on two years of research, includes a series of testimonies describing how Greek police deployed stun grenades often directly at peaceful protesters and journalists, above their heads or at their feet, or at times lobbing them into dense crowds.  

Stun grenades are also known as a disorientation, distraction or pyrotechnic devices, “flash-bangs”, percussion or concussion grenades. They are designed to surprise, temporarily disorientate and blind people through intense exposure to sound and light, among other effects.  

The use of stun grenades, which are military grade devices, routinely cause burns to victims, hearing loss or damage, as well as other blast and fragmentation injuries. Their use against crowds of protesters can spark panic and stampede and they have been known to start fires.  

The type of stun grenade deployed by the Greek police emits a sound intensity of 170 decibels – louder than a jet engine at close quarters. In May 2022, student Giorgos Mavros suffered a perforated eardrum, hearing loss, a head injury as well as wounds and burns after police deployed stun grenades during a peaceful student demonstration in Thessaloniki. When I interviewed him this year, he told me that “the sensation was as if I had been struck by a large iron bar”.  Four years on, he is still suffering from the physical and psychological fallout from the injury. He told me how he gets anxious and fearful at the sound of loud bangs and he has largely stopped taking part in protests.  

The type of stun grenade deployed by the Greek police emits a sound intensity of 170 decibels – louder than a jet engine at close quarters

Amnesty International verified footage of police unlawfully using stun grenades in October 2025 next to a café where people were sitting outside. It came just after police had dispersed a protest in Athens. Bystanders were caught up in the chaos.  

The report also documents the unlawful use of batons by officers striking peaceful demonstrators, chasing protesters in so-called “baton charges”, and beating individuals already under police control. It documents the harmful misuse of chemical irritants and water cannon on protesters, as well as the unlawful use of force during arrest and/or detention and by police motorbike units.   

Despite their suffering, victims often struggle to get justice. Perpetrators often go unpunished, while investigations that are opened can take years to conclude. There are many other factors that can hamper accountability, such as flawed disciplinary investigations, the inability of criminal investigations to find perpetrators, some judicial rulings that risk legitimizing unlawful force and the failure of public order police to display identification numbers. At the same time, Greece’s police oversight mechanism (EMIDIPA), lacks sufficient staff and resources to undertake more of its own investigations. 

Faced with these challenges, Marios Lolos is sceptical about his chances of getting justice for his injury, despite lodging a complaint with EMIDIPA and a criminal investigation having been initiated. The police have also launched a disciplinary investigation into the incident. But Lolos has been here before. In 2012 his skull was broken and he sustained life-threatening head injuries when a riot police officer beat him with a baton during anti-austerity demonstrations. Although administrative courts confirmed the state was responsible for his injuries, not a single officer has been held accountable despite disciplinary and criminal investigations. His experience of police impunity is mirrored by that of many of his colleagues.  

The harm inflicted by Greek police in their unlawful use of force in protests, combined with shocking levels of impunity for police abuses, threaten to have a chilling effect on the right to peaceful protest, yet Lolos and other victims refuse to be stunned into silence.  

Military-grade devices have no place in the policing of protests in Greece or anywhere in the world

Nevertheless, participating in or reporting on peaceful protests should not require people to run the gauntlet or risk life and limb. Protest laws in Greece must be reformed and abusive policing practices and impunity must end. The use of stun grenades should be reserved only for high-risk special operations, such as hostage situations. They must be banned for use in the policing of demonstrations and other public assemblies. Military-grade devices have no place in the policing of protests in Greece or anywhere in the world. 

Kondylia Gogou, Amnesty International’s Regional Researcher for Europe.

This artice was first published here by EU Observer.

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Responding to the news that Egyptian activist and writer Ahmed Douma has been convicted and sentenced to one year in prison following an unfair trial, Amnesty International’s Regional Researcher, Mahmoud Shalaby said:  

“The renewed unjust imprisonment after an unfair trial of Ahmed Douma is a devastating assault on the right to freedom of expression.  The weaponization of the criminal justice system against Ahmed Douma and other activists lays bare president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s government’s relentless campaign to crush peaceful dissent and restrict civic space.  

“Having already spent a decade in arbitrary detention under cruel and inhuman conditions, Ahmed Douma is being penalized yet again under the guise of bogus ‘false news’ charges, solely for publishing an article and a social media post criticizing detention conditions. His renewed detention is emblematic of the Egyptian authorities’ ongoing misuse of the criminal justice system to punish and deter peaceful dissent, destroying the lives of thousands of people and their families.  

Ahmed Douma has been targeted solely for peacefully exercising his human rights. Egyptian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release him, quash this politically motivated sentence, and end their persistent misuse of the criminal judicial system against him. 

Mahmoud Shalaby, Amnesty International’s Regional Researcher

“Ahmed Douma has been targeted solely for peacefully exercising his human rights. Egyptian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release him, quash this politically motivated sentence, and end their persistent misuse of the criminal judicial system against him. 

“Ahmed Douma’s trial was marred by gross fair trial violations. The court rejected defence requests for the court to examine the prison conditions that he had written about and to hear testimony from defence witnesses and experts. The trial was held behind closed doors and was inaccessible to the public. 

“This sentence exposes the hollow reality of the presidential pardons Ahmed Douma and others received in 2023 and signals that activists released from prolonged unjust detention are not safe from re-arrest.”   

Background 

Ahmed Douma is a prominent Egyptian poet, writer, and activist who played a leading role in the 25 January 2011 revolution. He spent nearly 10 years in prison following a politically motivated trial before being released via a presidential pardon in August 2023. Since his release, the authorities have continued to abuse the criminal justice system to target him, including seven separate investigations by the Supreme State Security Prosecution (SSSP), an arbitrary travel ban, and restrictions on enrolling in postgraduate studies.   

His latest conviction and sentencing to one year in prison stem from an article published on 25 March 2026 in Al-Araby Al-Jadeed concerning the impact of unjust imprisonment on state stability, as well as a social media post criticizing detention conditions. Since 6 April, he had been held in pretrial detention at the 10th of Ramadan prison under restrictive conditions, including receiving fewer visits than permitted under Egyptian prison regulations and being continuously exposed to intense light in his cell. His complaints, made during an online hearing before the judge at the Badr Misdemeanor Court’s pretrial detention review chamber, about being subjected to constant light bombardment in his cell were never investigated.  

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In response to the announcement of the death of Brooklyn Rivera, Miskitu Indigenous leader and prisoner of conscience, Ana Piquer, Americas Director at Amnesty International, said:

“Brooklyn Rivera should not have died in the custody of the Nicaraguan state. His death followed the deterioration of his health while he was being arbitrarily detained. During this time, the authorities held him without confirming his whereabouts, without access to his family or to trusted legal counsel, and without independent oversight to verify his situation. Amnesty International repeatedly warned that these circumstances placed his personal integrity and life at risk. Today, those warnings have materialized into a death that the state must explain.” 

Brooklyn Rivera should not have died in the custody of the Nicaraguan state. His death followed the deterioration of his health while he was being arbitrarily detained. During this time, the authorities held him without confirming his whereabouts, without access to his family or to trusted legal counsel, and without independent oversight to verify his situation.” 

Ana Piquer, Americas Director at Amnesty International

“This grave event cannot be met with silence or impunity. Under international human rights standards, all deaths in state custody must be investigated, as they may constitute unlawful deaths and, therefore, a violation of the right to life. We urgently call on governments in the region and international protection mechanisms to demand accountability from the Nicaraguan state and to call for a prompt, effective, thorough, independent, impartial and transparent investigation to clarify the circumstances of this potentially unlawful death. Now more than ever, they must also intensify their efforts on behalf of those who remain imprisoned for political reasons under conditions similar to those to which Rivera was subjected. Their lives are in grave danger.”

“The Nicaraguan authorities have an obligation to provide Brooklyn Rivera’s family with immediate and unrestricted access to all information related to his detention, the conditions in which he was deprived of his liberty, and the circumstances of his death. They must also ensure the dignified return of his remains so that he may be laid to rest in accordance with his wishes, respecting his identity as a Miskitu Indigenous leader and the traditions of his people. Any delay, concealment of information or reprisal against his family would further aggravate the state’s responsibility in this matter. Brooklyn Rivera’s family has the right to truth.”

The Nicaraguan authorities must ensure the dignified return of his remains so that he may be laid to rest in accordance with his wishes, respecting his identity as a Miskitu Indigenous leader and the traditions of his people. Brooklyn Rivera’s family has the right to truth.”

Ana Piquer, Americas Director at Amnesty International.

For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact press@amnesty.org

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As a result of Venezuelan victims’ fight for justice under universal jurisdiction in Argentina, manifested by filing complaints before Argentine courts, and responding to recent reports of an extradition request from Argentine to Spanish authorities, Ana Piquer, Americas Director at Amnesty International, stated today:

“Crimes against humanity, such as those committed in Venezuela, must stir the conscience of the entire international community and lead to tangible action towards protecting victims against past and future human rights violations and crimes under international law.”

Crimes against humanity, such as those committed in Venezuela, must stir the conscience of the entire international community and lead to tangible action towards protecting victims against past and future human rights violations and crimes under international law.”

Ana Piquer, Americas Director at Amnesty International.

Avenues for international justice have been opened and are sustained by courageous victims, including the investigation by the Office of the Prosecutor in the International Criminal Court – the first of its kind for a situation in the Americas-, and cases of universal jurisdiction.

Since 2023, we have closely monitored the case filed by the surviving relatives of victims of extrajudicial executions before Argentine courts and supported the jurisdiction of the local courts. News that this case and related criminal investigations are progressing, and an extradition request has been formally filed before Spanish authorities is a welcome step. We call on Spanish authorities to cooperate promptly and fully with this and any potential future requests, in view of contributing to justice and accountability for the crimes committed in Venezuela.

Victims, communities, and their representatives face continued risks in Venezuela. Their safety and rights, including, crucially, their right to truth, justice, reparations, and guarantees of non-repetition, must be a paramount priority for Venezuelan authorities moving forward. Amnesty International calls for the immediate dismantling of the state’s policy of repression, including the unconditional release of all those arbitrarily detained for political reasons, and for the overhaul of the justice system.

“Amnesty International’s research on universal jurisdiction underscores that states worldwide have both the authority and responsibility to act against crimes under international law, lending weight to current efforts for justice in Venezuela.”

Amnesty International’s research on universal jurisdiction underscores that states worldwide have both the authority and responsibility to act against crimes under international law, lending weight to current efforts for justice in Venezuela.”

Ana Piquer, Americas Director at Amnesty International.

For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact press@amnesty.org

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The Russian authorities are denying children their right to quality education by using propaganda-filled textbooks and lectures to indoctrinate children and justify Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, while suppressing free expression, independent thinking and access to information, Amnesty International said today.

A new briefing, “Only Official Sources”: Indoctrination in the Russian Educational System, documents how children across Russia and Russian-occupied Ukraine are being subjected to oppressive state ideology via a centrally controlled curriculum. It also details how teachers are instructed to monitor their students online, collect files with information about their opinions and report dissenting views on political and social issues to the authorities.

“Russian schools are being converted from temples of knowledge into factories of compliance. It is the Russian state itself which defines what children must learn about Russia, its neighbours, and the rest of the world. While using schools for political propaganda is not unique to Russia, the intensity and scale of the Kremlin’s efforts to put indoctrination at the centre of the education system are systemic,” said Marie Struthers, Amnesty International’s Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia.

While using schools for political propaganda is not unique to Russia, the intensity and scale of the Kremlin’s efforts to put indoctrination at the centre of the education system are systemic

Marie Struthers, Amnesty International’s Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia

“Russian textbooks present a single view of history, which justifies any decision taken in Moscow to use force against its neighbours. They portray Russia’s ongoing aggression against Ukraine as an historic necessity and a matter of national survival, while any alternative opinions are vilified as ‘hostile’ or ‘destructive’,”

One worldview, uniform teaching

Since 2023, the Russian Ministry of Education has introduced a single mandatory set of history textbooks and teaching materials which portray Russia akin to a “besieged fortress,” deny or diminish Ukrainian identity and statehood, and present all Soviet and Russian military interventions as necessary or legitimate.

Education cannot meet human rights law and standards when it is designed to deprive children of the opportunity to form their own opinions and learn independent, critical thinking at a formative age. Russia’s approach  violates its  obligations under a number of international human rights treaties including the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which requires education to be directed to “the development of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms” and to prepare children for responsible life in a free society, in the spirit of “understanding, peace, tolerance, equality of sexes, and friendship among all peoples.”

Russia’s attempts to groom an obedient, unquestioning student population are reinforced through coercion, monitoring and profiling.

“Russian authorities are introducing so-called ‘profilaktika’ measures that involve not only spreading propaganda but also constant clandestine monitoring of students, both in and out of schools, including online. While it is done ostensibly to prevent ‘extremism’, ‘terrorism’ and ‘destructive ideologies’, in practice these guidelines encourage screening of children’s political, religious and personal views,” said Marie Struthers.

From safeguarding to surveillance

Schools are being encouraged to identify students and staff members whose opinions, online activity and associations express or disloyalty or susceptibility to “destructive” influences – which are so broadly defined that they include peaceful opposition and civil society groups. Among them are the late Aleksei Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation, the youth protest movement Vesna and the non-existent “International LGBT movement” – an invented legal construct used to criminalize LGBTI activism, – which have all been criminalized solely for speaking up for human rights.

Even exhibiting forms of dissent not formally prohibited in Russia, such as discussing the war in Ukraine’s negative impact on living standards, may be viewed as a red flag that leads to students being labelled “at risk” with their views on the war, “traditional values” and state policy recorded and referred to school administrations, police or security services.

“Russian authorities have shown no limit to the lengths they will go to impose their deeply politicized, ideological narrative on the next generation, and to ensure those who do not comply are detected and disciplined. This violates children’s rights to privacy, freedom of expression and association, and undermines trust within schools and robs children of their individuality,” said Marie Struthers.

“A child’s mind is not the state’s property. Nonetheless, the Russian authorities appear to be treating classrooms as soil to be inspected for the first shoots of civic dissent, so that they can be uprooted before they grow.”

A child’s mind is not the state’s property. Nonetheless, the Russian authorities appear to be treating classrooms as soil to be inspected for the first shoots of civic dissent, so that they can be uprooted before they grow

Marie Struthers, Amnesty International’s Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia

Amnesty International is calling on the Russian authorities to ensure that the school curriculum, textbooks and other educational material do not stifle or prevent free expression and free exchange of views, contain disinformation or undermine respect for human rights. Students and teachers must be given access to a broad range of sources and be able to freely discuss history and current events without fear of reprisal.

Authorities must repeal laws and regulations that punish peaceful expression or exclude dissenting voices from education; immediately stop unlawful monitoring and profiling of children and educators, destroy unlawfully collected data, provide effective remedies and reparation to those affected, and bring those responsible for violations to account.

Amnesty International also calls on the international community to raise these issues with Russian authorities in all forums; support independent civil society’s work combating propaganda and persecution in education; help those facing such persecution, including by providing them visas where necessary; and ensure that development assistance is not used to perpetuate these violations.

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