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States in the Americas must prioritize a human rights-based approach to combating the COVID-19 pandemic, which has exposed widespread inequality and discrimination in the region, Amnesty International said in an open letter to the heads of state attending the General Assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS).

“The strategy to combat the COVID-19 pandemic has, in many countries of the Americas, been characterized by repressive measures and the unnecessary use of force. Added to the structural challenges and massive social and economic divides present prior to the pandemic, these measures only combine to perpetuate inequality and discrimination across the continent,” said Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas director at Amnesty International.

Nigerian security forces must immediately end the intimidation, harassment and attacks on peaceful protesters, Amnesty International Nigeria said today, after at least 10 people were killed and hundreds injured during ongoing nationwide protests demanding an end to police brutality and corruption. 

Since 8 October Nigerians have been occupying the streets of major towns and cities across 21 states of the country, demanding an end to police brutality, extrajudicial executions and extortion by the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), a unit of the Nigerian police tasked with fighting violent crimes. 

Amnesty International and Angelina Jolie announced today that they are collaborating on a book for teenagers, informed by children and young people, highlighting the rights contained in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The project has been prompted by a shared concern that children and adults are often unaware of children’s human rights, meaning that children are left vulnerable and without redress when these rights are not upheld. The book was written in consultation with child rights lawyer Geraldine Van Bueren QC, one of the drafters of the landmark convention that gave children their own unique set of rights for the first time.

Know Your Rights (And Claim Them) is being published in September 2021 by Andersen Press in the UK and other publishers internationally. It comes at a time when unprecedented numbers of children are protesting around the world, in the streets and online, against the climate emergency, racism and gender inequality, among other issues. The book’s vision is for all teenagers to know and be able to claim their rights, no matter who they are or where they live.

The Bangladeshi authorities must ensure the protection of Rohingya refugees following violent clashes between armed criminal gangs that have killed at least eight people and injured hundreds of others in camps in Cox’s Bazaar since 4 October, said Amnesty International. 

At least two thousand Rohingya refugees have been forced to flee their shelters to other camps since violence broke out between two rival factions seeking to control the illicit trade of contraband drugs inside the camps. On 7 October, around a dozen shelters in Kutupalong refugee camp were burned to the ground. 

“The situation inside the camps is highly precarious and, unless the authorities take the necessary action to quell the violence and protect refugees, there’s a serious risk of further bloodshed,” said Saad Hammadi, Amnesty International’s South Asia Campaigner.  

Following the acceptance of a new indictment by the Istanbul Heavy Penal Court No.36 against civil society leader Osman Kavala, Amnesty International’s Europe Director Nils Muiznieks said:

“Having been in prison for almost three years, Osman Kavala is now facing a new trial under an absurd new charge of ‘espionage’. With this new indictment, Osman Kavala faces a life sentence without the possibility of parole as well as up to an additional 20 years for ‘espionage’. Kafkaesque is an overused cliché but in the case of Osman Kavala, it is chillingly apt.”

“The European Court of Human Rights ruled last December that Osman Kavala’s prolonged pre-trial detention was unlawful and served an ‘ulterior purpose’. Yet, Turkey refuses to implement the binding judgment and to release him.

“Once again, we call on Turkey to end the shameful injustice that Osman Kavala has been subjected to, by freeing him from prison and dropping these manifestly vindictive proceedings against him.”

The frequent threats, attacks and killings of people defending land, territory and the environment in Colombia have highlighted the government’s failure to address the serious crisis facing the country’s human rights defenders, Amnesty International said in a new report published today.

Why do they want to kill us? The lack of a safe space to defend human rights in Colombia examines the reasons behind the violence against community leaders living in geographically strategic and natural resource-rich areas. The report also analyses the ineffectiveness of the protection measures implemented by the government since the Peace Agreement signed with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) in 2016.

Amnesty International welcomes Canada’s decision to repatriate a Canadian orphan girl who has been stranded in Northeast Syria since March 2019.

“We are thrilled that Canada has finally repatriated this child and reunited her with her family in Canada,” said Ketty Nivyabandi, Secretary General of Amnesty International Canada. “Now, it is incumbent upon Canada to take all necessary measures to repatriate the remaining Canadian children from Northeast Syria in a manner that fully respects the best interests of the child and the principle of family unity,” she added.

With the child having been repatriated, there are 46 documented cases of Canadian citizens who remain in arbitrary detention in Northeast Syria, 25 of whom are children.