Amnesty International has today issued an “update” to its December report on the risks faced by human rights activists in China.  The original report was released in the lead-up to the last EU-China summit. (see: People’s Republic of China: Human Rights Defenders at Risk, December 2004).

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL EU OFFICE PRESS RELEASE Embargo Date: Monday 6 December 2004 08:00 GMT (09.00 Brussels)

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Amnesty International is urging the Irish EU Presidency to insert stronger language on the protection of human rights defenders into the conclusions of the EU-Latin America summit in Mexico today (28 May) and make this issue a priority in discussions with regional leaders in particular from Mexico and Colombia.

COLOMBIAN GOVERNMENT NOT GIVING THE WHOLE STORY SAYS AMNESTY: HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS AND CIVILIANS STILL UNDER THREAT

(Dublin/Brussels 12 January 2004) As the Irish Taoiseach Bertie Ahern prepares to address the European Parliament this week on how Ireland intends to guide the EU through the next six months, Amnesty International is calling for serious improvements in EU human rights policy inside Europe.

Amnesty International has today released a Memorandum to the European Union and EU member states (available see 1 & 2 at end of page) calling for the EU’s urgent attention to the plight of human rights defenders, during a series of meetings with Latin American and Caribbean ministers this week.

Amnesty International Memorandum to the European Union and EU Member States: addressing dangers and difficulties faced by human rights defenders in Latin America and Caribbean States.

25/03/2003 – Amnesty International Memorandum to the European Union and EU Member States: addressing dangers and difficulties faced by human rights defenders in Latin America and Caribbean States.

On the eve of the summit in Copenhagen between European Union leaders and the Chinese prime minister Zhu Rongji, Amnesty International calls on the EU to put an end to the situation where the so-called dialogue on human rights is in effect a monologue which China ignores. Amnesty International urges the Danish EU Presidency to convey to the Chinese leadership that it will no longer accept a dialogue that produces no results whatsoever.