27/04/2006 – On the eve of the meeting of the JHA Council on 27 and 28 April 2006, Amnesty International and JUSTICE call on the Council to give a new impulse to the negotiations of the proposal for a Council Framework Decision on certain procedural rights in criminal proceedings throughout the European Union.
(Brussels, 20 April 2006) Japan is one of the few industrialized countries which continues to practice the death penalty, says Amnesty International on the day it releases its annual analysis of the use of the death penalty worldwide.
20/04/2006 – The world continued to move closer to the universal abolition of capital punishment during 2005. By the end of the year 86 countries had abolished the death penalty for all crimes. A further 11 countries had abolished it for all but exceptional crimes, such as wartime crimes.
18/04/2006 – On the eve of a visit by a European Parliament’s delegation to India on 15-21 April 2006, Amnesty international together with other NGOs highlights the persistent problem of torture in India.
(Brussels, 5 April 2006) In a new report published today, “USA – Below the radar: Secret flights to torture and ‘disappearance’”, Amnesty International gives comprehensive information concerning rendition flights and describes the conditions under which victims were held.
05/04/2006 – Renditions involve the transfer of people from one country to another in ways that bypass all judicial and administrative due process. In the context of the “war on terror”, this practice has usually been initiated by the USA and carried out with the collaboration, complicity or acquiescence of other governments.
27/03/2006 – Joint letter commenting on the restricted approach to EU human rights policy reflected in the Commission proposal for a Fundamental Rights Agency. Giving the Agency a remit that largely excludes human rights compliance by Member States will effectively bar it from addressing the reality of the state of human rights within the EU’s own borders.
(Paris/Brussels, 24 March 2006) The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and Amnesty International express their disappointment regarding the long-awaited Communication of the European Commission entitled “Implementing the partnership for growth and jobs: making Europe a pole of excellence on Corporate Social Responsibility” published on 22 March 2006.
(Brussels, 16 March 2006) Russia’s deteriorating human rights record must be addressed by the EU, says Amnesty International, as President Barroso prepares to meet with Vladimir Putin in Moscow to define a new strategic partnership with Russia. As Russia’s role in the international community grows, through the presidency of the G8 and as the future chair of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, it is even more important that Russia makes significant steps in improving its human rights record. In a letter to the President of the Commission, Amnesty International pointed out that the EU can be an important catalyst in this process but it can also send the wrong message if it chooses not to confront Russia with its concerns. “Russia’s long-standing problems with human rights violations have persisted and in some respects worsened because Russia has been allowed to get away with it”, says Dick Oosting, Director of Amnesty’s International EU Office. “As its assumes a prominent role in the international community, Russia should be made more accountable and subject to closer scrutiny, not the opposite,” says Oosting. Recently the Russian authorities have taken steps which indicate a lack of acknowledgement of their responsibilities:
16/03/2006 – Summary and overview of current concerns over the enforcement and monitoring of UN arms embargoes.
15/03/2006 – Ahead of presidential elections in Belarus scheduled for 19 March 2006, the authorities are delivering another assault on human rights. Opposition activists are being detained and sentenced for the legitimate expression of their political views while the authorities have tightened up legislation to clamp down on civil society, stifling human rights in the process.