Entries Tagged 'Amnesty International' ↓

Habeas Funeral (White House),
originally uploaded by kspidel.

We did! Here are some photos from our White House action today. Find out more and take action http://86days.amnestyusa.org

100_0852,
originally uploaded by kspidel.

If you want to know more about the work I do within Amnesty…. go see this movie this weekend. We had the privilege of meeting two of the actors for a screening on the Hill this week with members of Congress. It was an impressive film and right on as far as the issue is concerned. Please go watch this film this weekend. Send me your thought on the comment section of this post after you watch it. - paz, ks

One year ago today, Congress passed the Military Commissions Act. With it, founding principles of the U.S. Constitution were discarded in the name of fighting terror. The Act made it lawful to hold prisoners indefinitely without charge or trial, to assume guilt before innocence, to blur the definition of torture, and to use information obtained through brutal treatment as “evidence.” Other governments, including the British during America’s founding, have tried to exert control in similar ways. It didn’t work then and it doesn’t work now.

Is America safer when we undo the Constitution? Those with first-hand experience of torture, such as Senator John McCain, believe it is not only wrong but counter-productive. This and other abuses erode America’s moral standing in the world. Strong evidence suggests that they even serve as a recruiting tool for those using terror and provide convenient cover for anyone else abusing human rights.

Making the world a safer place requires consistent and universal respect for human rights. Join Amnesty International in insisting that Congress return America to its core constitutional principles of justice by overturning the Military Commissions Act, granting fair and timely trials, treating detainees humanely and reinstating habeas corpus - the right to challenge one’s detention in court.

Strengthen America’s commitment to human rights and the rule of law. It’s up to people like us to demand it. Take action at http://www.amnestyusa.org

Pissed? Do something!

Your help needed to gain four more Senator’s support!
The Senate held a cloture vote today on the Leahy-Specter amendment to restore habeas corpus. We needed 60 votes for cloture, and while we fell short (the vote was 56 Yeas to 43 Nays) we picked up additional Senators this time. (The vote to retain habeas during the passage of the Military Commissions Act had been 51-48.) The House should continue forward with it’s efforts to restore habeas, and we can continue to ask Reps to support that effort, as we work to pick up the extra 4 Senators that we need for restoration in the Senate.

The vote count:
All Democrats and Bernie Sanders (I-VT) voted yes to advance the Leahy-Specter habeas amendment as did six Republicans: Specter (PA), Sunnunu (NH), Smith (OR), Hagel (NE), Lugar (IN) and Snowe (ME).

Senator Liberman (I-CT) voted “No” as did all the remaining Republicans, with the exception of Senator Chambliss (GA) who did not vote. (You can look up your Senators here)

Please express your thanks to the Senators who supported the Leahy-Specter Amendment to restore habeas corpus, and express your disapointment to your Senators if they voted against restoring this fundamental safeguard. You can call their office at 202 224-3121. Please be accurate, brief, and courteous when speaking to them!

Continue reading →

Thank you Bryan for helping edit this.

I have been on the road this weekend and into this week working on “War on Terror” issues related to torture. This weekend I was presenting a workshop on how to talk torture as well how to talk about these issues with audiences that tend not to prioritize these issues as concerns of theirs. The workshop was attended by international students from the United World College as well as New Mexico Amnesty activists. The key note speech was made by Larry Cox and was very powerfully received by a welcoming audience.

From there I hit the road with Michael Otterman of “American Torture” and Raj and Tom from Citizens for Global Solutions. Here we are talking torture at a few key stops and wrapping in our campaign activities with each stop.

This morning the team had an early morning breakfast at a café that also doubles as a radio show. Indeed odd, but very cool. Here is the interview from this morning’s show.

Cross post from Miami Herald. This might be the steps toward President Bush attempting to close Gitmo his way. We need to monitor this closely.

With plans scrapped for a massive war-crimes legal compound that might have cost $125 million, the Pentagon is now building a more modest tent city.

The Pentagon is building a $10 million military tent city on an abandoned air field at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, to hold the first war-crimes trials since World War II, a senior military official said Wednesday.

The plan has been dramatically scaled back from an earlier blueprint that envisioned a huge legal compound at the remote Naval base in southeast Cuba — housing for 1,200, dining facilities for 800, a 100-car motor pool and conference center with projected costs of up to $125 million. That plan was abandoned amid controversy about the costs.

The new blueprints feature hurricane-resistant, air-conditioned tents that look like small aircraft hangars to accommodate service members and civilians working on the trials — including media and legal observers. Continue reading →

On September 29th, Amnesty Arizona with have its statewide meeting on the West Campus of Arizona State University from 10AM to 4PM.

The morning will be devoted largely to training on making visit to members of Congress built around Amnesty’s priority in the “Denounce Torture” campaign. Kevin Spidel, Amnesty’s staff person for the campaign and Julissa Gomez, Amnesty’s field organizer from the regional office will facilitate.

The afternoon will focus on event planning. Our focus is Amnesty’s report - Maze of Injustice: The failure to protect Indigenous women from sexual violence in the USA. Alisa Roadcup, Arizona’s Stop Violence Against Women Campaign Coordinator will coordinate the activity. We will have a guest talk about the issues in the report and participate together in a hands-on project.

Lunch will be devoted to short vignettes on activities of interest - Banned Books Week, Child Soldiers, Iraqi and Sudanese refugees, and update on Eritrea, concert tours, the regional conference and anything else that you would like to learn about.

The day will end with groups planning together and collaboratively with other groups with plans for the upcoming semester.

More details as they develop. Stay tuned.

Cheers,
Joe Watkins
Area Coordinator, Amnesty International, USA