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By Tharani Thirumalairajan, Youth Intern, Amnesty International Canada, in Ottawa

On June 4th, 2013, Amnesty Canada ran a four day Human Rights College for youth from across the country as part of Amnesty Canada’s Annual General Meeting. The goal of the HRC was to empower and support young activists and to facilitate their active leadership within Amnesty International. We spent the three days building our human rights knowledge, developing skills as activists, preparing for the AGM. Sharing an experience with other individuals who are also committed to standing up against injustice was inspiring.

Text and photographs by Anna Shea, Amnesty International Canada Legal Program Coordinator

I was expecting to have a great vacation in Turkey. I wasn’t expecting to watch history unfold. Fortunately, however, I happened to be in Istanbul between May 26 and June 5. I had rented a room near Taksim Square, and I was in the square or the adjacent Gezi Park for almost 24 hours a day (it’s impossible to stay home when the world seems to be ending…).

For me, the beginning of the protests was the most difficult time, because we all felt forgotten. When I returned to the apartment in the middle of the night on Friday May 31, I anticipated frantic emails and phone messages from my family and friends. But no one had been in touch. This was not surprising, since unless you were directly connected with Turkish protesters on Facebook or Twitter, it was impossible to know what was happening. But the feeling of isolation was nonetheless dreadful. It was such a relief when bloggers and the international media started taking notice. Amnesty – the national office in Turkey and the international secretariat – was one of the first organizations to draw attention to the situation. Simply knowing that people were paying attention – especially people overseas, completely unconnected from the action – was incredibly empowering, much more than I could have imagined.

UPDATE: Beatriz send thanks to those who spoke out for rights, after receiving life-saving treatment during her pregnancy.

By Jacqueline Hansen, Major Campaigns and Women’s Rights Campaigner

Twenty-two-year-old Beatriz from El Salvador waited for 14 weeks to receive life-saving medical treatment, knowing that the fetus growing inside her was missing most of its brain and skull and would not survive, and that her own life was at greater risk each and every day due to medical conditions aggravated by pregnancy.

Beatriz underwent a cesarean section on Monday, June 3, and her infant died not long after delivery. As of midday on June 4, Beatriz remained in hospital in stable condition.

UPDATE: Beatriz send thanks to those who spoke out for rights, after receiving life-saving treatment during her pregnancy.

Seven weeks ago, few people knew who Beatriz was, but over the last weeks the plight of this 22-year-old woman in El Salvador has inundated social media networks and travelled across the globe.

Beatriz, a 22-year-old seriously ill pregnant woman who is six months into a non-viable pregnancy and has been diagnosed with a number of severe illnesses including lupus and kidney problems, has so far being prevented from having medical treatment that could save her life.