(2019-02-17). Border Patrol Detained Me for Speaking Spanish in Montana. Then My Town Turned Against Me. commondreams.org "After Mimi and I told the officer that we were born in the U.S., he demanded that we show identification. I didn't feel like I could say no since he was in uniform and armed." (Photo: ACLU) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files……
(2019-02-17). Imagine Pleading Guilty Because You Can't Afford to Call Your Lawyer. truthout.org Imagine paying $20.12 for a 15-minute phone call. That's how much a call from the Jennings Adult Correctional Facility in Missouri costs. | In 2013, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) set price caps on interstate calls from jails, prisons and detention facilities. Now, interstate calls can cost no more than 21 cents per minute (or $3.15 for a 15-minute phone call). Two years later, in 2015, it did the same for intrastate (or in-state) calls, which make up 92 percent of all calls from incarcerated people. Prison phone providers filed lawsuits challenging these restrictions and, in June 2017, a federal…
(2019-02-17). Israeli occupation and Palestinian rights/Letter to Dutch parliament. indybay.org It's an utter scandal, shame and disgrace, that after 52 years, Israel is still | occupying the Palestinian territories, suppressing and terrorizing the Palestinians, | committing warcrimes and crimes against humanity with impunity without any | serious sanctions of the international community. Therefore I have written | the members of Dutch parliament to take action!!
(2019-02-17). The Cost of Civil Rights Violations in Vallejo. indybay.org On February 9, the police in my hometown shot Willie McCoy to death in a Taco Bell drive-through. I hadn't planned to write that when I began this post, which grew out of a dialogue with a neighbor frustrated by the crumbling schools, neglected parks, and casual brutality of this beautiful city.
(2019-02-16). Kamala Harris and the Rest of Us Will Regret Portraying Civil Rights as a National Security Issue. commondreams.org Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) argued recently that civil rights is a matter on national security. (Photo: @SenKamalaHarris) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files……
(2019-02-16). NAACP Restructures to Advance Advocacy Strategy. naacp.org New York (February 16, 2019)—The nation's most prominent civil rights organization announced today during its annual national board meeting in New York, a strategic restructuring which better positions the organization to lead the critical policy advocacy and social justice work needed to ensure the rights of all people. The group also signed series of memoranda […]
(2019-02-16). Locked Inside a Freezing Federal Jail, They United to Protest Their Conditions — Only to Face Reprisals. theintercept.com 
In some units where incarcerated people protested, the toilets were shut off — leaving them sleeping next to their own feces.
(2019-02-16). Trump Sends US Military Aircraft to Deliver 'Aid' to Venezuela's Border. theantimedia.com (ANTIWAR.COM) — The Trump Administration has announced Friday, along with a new round of sanctions against members of the Venezuelan government, that they are dispatching US military aircraft carrying aid to the Venezuelan border. The aid can't get into Venezuela directly, as it is being sent to opposition leader Juan Guaido and with an eye specifically toward endorsing …
(2019-02-15). Public Citizen: Trump's National Emergency Declaration Paves Way for Sweeping Authoritarianism. democracynow.org 
With one day left to pass a government spending bill before today's midnight deadline to avert another government shutdown, both the House and Senate passed the measure Thursday that came out of the bipartisan conference committee earlier this week. The bill includes nearly $1.4 billion to build 55 miles of new border barriers out of steel, far less than the $5.7 billion requested by President Trump. Democrats quickly condemned the news, and consumer rights nonprofit Public Citizen vowed legal action against him. We speak with Public Citizen President Robert Weissman.
(2019-02-15). Venezuela's Foreign Minister: "The US is in Front of the Coup Attempt, not Behind it" therealnews.com 
Interview — in Spanish with English subtitles — with Venezuela's Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza, who speaks about the likelihood of war with the US, the impact of the sanctions, and the way out of the conflict between Venezuela and the US and its allies in the opposition and in the region
(2019-02-15). Immigrants Are Fighting for Their Rights Even Behind Bars. thenation.com Immigrants Are Fighting for Their Rights Even Behind Bars…
(2019-02-15). Black Civil Rights Advocate Takes Control of Neo-Nazi Hate Group the National Socialist Movement. splcenter.org The antisemitic and neo-Nazi group the National Socialist Movement (NSM) is now under the control of a black civil rights advocate from California who once dissolved a notorious Ku Klux Klan chapter in Mississippi.
(2019-02-15). No Trump Wall! No State of Emergency! fightbacknews.org Fight Back News Service is circulating the following call from the Legalization for All Network and other immigrant rights groups. We urge all progressive organizations to sign on and endorse it. You can do so here: www.facebook.com/notes/legalization-for-… | On the campaign trail, candidate Trump said that Mexico would pay for his wall. President Trump could not get funding for his wall on the U.S./Mexico border even when his Republican Party controlled the House, the Senate and the White House. Then he shut down parts of the Federal Government for…
(2019-02-15). Equatorial Guinea: Rights lawyer faces bogus charges. amnesty.org Grave Concern Detainees Have Been Tortured, Killed | Equatorial Guinea named a French anti-corruption lawyer in an arrest warrant against 16 people, in apparent retaliation for his involvement in a money laundering trial against the president's eldest son, nine human rights and anti-corruption groups said today. | The warrant accuses the 16 targets of laundering money and helping to finance "terrorism and the proliferation of arms trafficking in Central Africa." | Named in the warrant are also people already in police custody accused of participating in a December 2017 coup attempt. They have been unable to commu…
(2019-02-15). Egypt: End the cruel denial of family visits to detainees. amnesty.org Egyptian authorities are flagrantly violating international law by denying family visits to scores of detainees, Amnesty International said today. The organization has examined an official document which confirms there is an open-ended ban on family visits in a number of sections at two major prison complexes in Cairo and Alexandria. | Amnesty International has also recorded at least 61 cases of people who were prevented from receiving family visits for protracted periods — in some cases for up to two years – at Tora prison in Cairo and Borg al-Arab in Alexandria. The total number of detainees barred from r…
(2019-02-15). Further Information: Egypt: Pre-Trial Detention For Human Rights Defender: Ezzat Ghoniem and Azzoz Mahgoub. amnesty.org On 9 February, a judge ordered the pre-trial detention of human rights defender and lawyer Ezzat Ghoniem for 45 days pending investigation. Ezzat Ghoniem and Azzoz Mahgoub were detained on March 1, 2018. The court ordered their release on probation on 4 September 2018, provided they report to a police station twice a week. They were never released, and on September 14 they were forcibly disappeared by the authorities. On 20 October 2018, an arrest warrant was issued against them for not respecting the probational terms — which they could not apply as being forcibly disappeared. Ezzat Ghoniem remained forcib…
(2019-02-15). Indian students demand right to education, jobs. greenleft.org.au 
Up to 20,000 Indian students and their supporters from around the country took to the streets of Delhi on February 7 for the Young India Adhikar [Rights] March. The protest was organised by representatives of 60 student organisations from campuses across the country, to protest the Modi government's attacks on students, and to demand the right to education and employment. | Green Left Weekly spoke to one of the march organisers, Kawalpreet Kaur. Kaur is a student at Delhi University and a representative of the All India Students Association (AISA), one of the organisations that initiated the protest. | GLW: How d…
(2019-02-15). The BBC is Failing Women on Abortion. hrw.org 
| | A promo shot from Season 7 of Call the Midwife | © PBS | People heading to BBC Action Line for information about accessing safe abortion following the death of a character in Call the Midwife — a television drama set in the 1950s which also airs in the US — couldn't find anything. | This failure to provide information about abortion on its resource website appears to derive from some mistaken…
(2019-02-15). UK's ISIS Schoolgirl Case Shows Justice is Key. hrw.org 
| | Renu Begum, eldest sister of Shamima Begum, 15, holds her sister's photo as she is interviewed by the media at New Scotland Yard, London, England, February 22, 2015. | © 2015 Laura Lean/WPA Pool/Getty Images | "All I want to do is come home to Britain." | So says Shamima Begum, a heavily pregnant British teenager, who joined the Islamic State aged 15 but last week fled as IS…
(2019-02-15). Guinea Ecuatorial: Activistas y defensores y defensoras de los derechos humanos pagan un alto precio por alzar su voz. amnesty.org Este documento se ha preparado para el examen periódico universal (EPU) al que se someterá Guinea Ecuatorial en mayo de 2019. Amnistía Internacional evalúa en él la implementación de las recomendaciones formuladas a Guinea Ecuatorial en su anterior EPU, en particular las relativas a la situación de los defensores y defensoras de los derechos humanos.
(2019-02-15). Mozambique: Jornalista detido impedido de receber visitas da família: Amade Abubacar. amnesty.org O jornalista Amade Abubacar foi transferido da prisà£o distrital de Macomia para a prisà£o de Mieze, no distrito de Pemba, capital da província de Cabo Delgado, em 24 de Janeiro. Desde entà£o, as autoridades prisionais têm-lhe negado a visita de familiares. Foi-lhe permitida uma visita supervisionada de membros de uma Comissà£o da Ordem dos Advogados de Moàßambique e do seu advogado em 25 de Janeiro, no decurso da qual Amade alegou que tinha sido vítima de maus-tratos enquanto esteve em detenàßà£o militar.
(2019-02-15). Pakistan Should Address Pashtun Grievances. hrw.org 
| | People walk past shops closed due to a strike to condemn the death of prominent Pashtun rights activist Arman Luni, in Quetta, Pakistan, Monday, Feb. 4, 2019. | © 2019 AP Photo/Arshad Butt | Ethnic Pashtuns in Pakistan have been protesting the death of activist Arman Luni on February 2 as the latest outrage against this beleaguered community. | Luni, a leader of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), a social movement for Pashtun rights, died during a sit-in in Balochistan province's Lorelai district. The police repor…
(2019-02-15). Russia: New Wave of Anti-LGBT Persecution. hrw.org 
| | Igor Kochetkov speaking at the European Parliament about persecution of LGBT people in Chechnya. | © 2018 Tanya Lokshina for Human Rights Watch | Russian authorities should investigate allegations of a new wave of anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) persecution in Chechnya and take steps to protect rights defenders and journalists who expose abuses there, Human Rights Watch said today. | On J…
(2019-02-15). Tunisia: Citizens Testing Right-to-Information Law. hrw.org 
| | The standard form for filing a request for information under Tunisia's 2016 "Right to Access Information Law" (Law No. 2016-22). | (Tunis) — Tunisia's first freedom of information law, approaching its third anniversary, significantly advances the rights of citizens to get information from publicly funded institutions, Human Rights Watch said today. The law's real impact, however, depends on the actual authority of a body created to compel responses fro…
(2019-02-15). Refugee rights activists march on PM's office. greenleft.org.au 
Refugee rights activists protested outside Prime Minister Scott Morrison's Cronulla office on February 9. | They called on parliament to pass the medical evacuation bill and demanded that all refugees be immediately brought to Australia for resettlement. | Speakers celebrated the fact that the movement had forced the government to bring all the children off Nauru. | [More photos on GLW's Facebook page.] | refugee rights …
(2019-02-15). Equatorial Guinea: Rights Lawyer Faces Bogus Charges. hrw.org 
| | William Bourdon | © Private | (Paris)— Equatorial Guinea named a French anti-corruption lawyer in an arrest warrant against 16 people, in apparent retaliation for his involvement in a money laundering trial against the president's eldest son, ten human rights and anti-corruption groups said today. The warrant accuses the 16 targets of laundering money and helping to finance "terrorism and the proliferation of arms trafficking in Central Africa." | Nam…
(2019-02-15). Suspension of Voice TV Highlights Why Thailand must Lift Over-broad Powers to Curtail Press Freedom. amnesty.org Amnesty International calls on Thailand's military authorities, the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), to guarantee media freedom in the country, including by taking the long overdue step of amending or repealing vaguely worded and overly restrictive decrees promulgated in the name of protecting security following the 2015 military coup. | Amnesty International remains concerned that the Thai authorities have, since taking power in a military coup in 2014, consistently targeted individuals and broadcasters expressing political opposition or views deemed critical of authorities with sanctions and crimina…
(2019-02-15). Qatar: Promises yet to be fulfilled: AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL SUBMISSION FOR THE UN UNIVERSAL PERIODIC REVIEW, 33RD SESSION OF THE UPR WORKING GROUP, MAY 2019. amnesty.org This submission was prepared for the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Qatar in May 2019. In it, Amnesty International evaluates the implementation of recommendations made to Qatar in its previous UPR, including in relation to freedom of expression, migrant workers' rights, international human rights framework. Regrettably, some of the accepted recommendations remain non-implemented, particularly those related to freedom of expression and migrants' rights. | Amnesty International welcomes Qatar's ratification of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Ec…
(2019-02-15). LGBTI groups call for Eurovision boycott. greenleft.org.au 
Campaigners for gay, lesbian and transgender rights have urged a boycott of this year's Eurovision Song Contest in Tel Aviv in May. | More than 60 LGBTI groups from around the world have joined a new call to demonstrate solidarity with Palestinians. In a statement, the groups accuse Israel of "shamelessly using the Eurovision competition" to distract from war crimes. | The organisation a…
(2019-02-15). Trump's National Emergency? Think Again. hrw.org 
| | President Donald Trump walks out to begin speaking at an event in the Rose Garden at the White House to declare a national emergency in order to build a wall along the southern border | © AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais | President Donald Trump announced that he will sign the bill to fund the government, including US$1.375 billion for 55 miles of steel-post fencing on the southern border, but will simultaneously declare a national emergency, the very threat he had wielded if Congress had failed to meet his demand…
(2019-02-15). More than 60 human rights groups back Eurovision boycott. greenleft.org.au 
More than 60 international NGOs have added their voices in protest against the plan to hold the finals of the Eurovision Song Contest in Tel Aviv this year. They are now part of what is quickly becoming an international campaign by civil society groups seeking to move the event, which is scheduled for May, from Israel. | It came after 50 British artists urged the BBC to boycott the Eurovision citing "Israel's systematic violation of Palestinian human rights". They said that the BBC was not exempt from…
(2019-02-15). Sudan uprising: 'This is a people's revolution'. greenleft.org.au 
In Sudan, a multifaceted civil opposition is posing a serious threat to the continued existence of Bashir's dictatorial regime after weeks of protests, writes Mohammed Elnaiem. | If a hospital is not a sanctuary for an injured person, what is? And what level of hatred, what kind of viciousness can be satisfied by the attempt to ensure that a protester die twice? On January 9, riot police, plain-clothed Bashir loyalists, and security forces fired tear gas and live bullets into the Omdurman Teaching Hospital in Sudan after wounded protesters were taken there during the biggest protest to date demanding the downfall…
(2019-02-15). Myanmar: Ko Ni murder verdict leaves questions unanswered. amnesty.org Responding to the conviction of four people in connection with the assassination of prominent lawyer Ko Ni in Myanmar, Amnesty International's Director of Crisis Response, Tirana Hassan, said: | | "Despite today's verdict, serious questions remain about whether all those responsible have been brought to justice. Myanmar's authorities have shown time and…
(2019-02-14). Rep. Ilhan Omar Grills Elliott Abrams on Support for Central American Genocide. therealnews.com 
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D) of Minnesota presented Elliott Abrams with uncomfortable facts about his past illegal activities and asked him whether he would pursue similar human rights violating policies against Venezuela as he did against Latin America in the 1980's
(2019-02-14). Border Patrol Detained Me for Speaking Spanish in Montana. Then My Town Turned Against Me. aclu.org 
Customs and Border Protection violated our rights as U.S. citizens just for speaking Spanish in a grocery store. | I moved to Havre, Montana — near the U.S.-Canada border — in 2014 with my husband and our two young children. Home to around 10,000 people, I've always found Havre to be a friendly town, one where I felt good about raising my kids. But that all changed last May when my friend and I were illegally targeted and detained by a Customs and Border Protection agent, just for speaking Spanish to each other in a convenience store. | I didn't think it was possible for one incident to change our liv…
(2019-02-14). U.S. Border Patrol Detained U.S. Citizens for Speaking Spanish in Montana. aclu.org Illegal arrests and seizures reflect an out-of-control agency emboldened by Trump's anti-immigrant agenda. | For Ana Suda and Martha "Mimi" Hernandez, May 16, 2018, began like any other in Havre, Montana: work, school, and a trip to the gym once their kids were in bed. They stopped by Town Pump — a local convenience store — to pick up groceries. While in line, the friends were chatting in Spanish, just two people having an ordinary conversation. But the Customs and Border Protection agent standing in line behind them did not see it that way. | He demanded to know where Ana and Mimi were born. After t…
(2019-02-14). Rapper, 21 Savage, released after being held by ICE. peoplesworld.org 
After spending more than a week in immigration customs detention, rapper 21 Savage was released on bail Wednesday. The 26-year-old rapper was arrested Feb. 3 by immigration officials after allegedly overstaying his visa. The musician, whose real name is Sha Yaa Bin Abraham-Joseph, was brought to the United States at the age of seven and …
(2019-02-14). No EU cost for Israeli 'apartheid' in West Bank. bdsmovement.net 
No EU cost for Israeli 'apartheid' in West Bank: In the NewsBy Andrew Rettman Sanctions and governmentsFebruary 14, 2019 | By: | | euobserver
(2019-02-14). Ilhan Omar Grills Trump's Venezuela Envoy Elliott Abrams on His Role in US-Backed Genocide in 1980s. democracynow.org 
The new U.S. special envoy to Venezuela, Elliott Abrams, testified on Capitol Hill Wednesday on U.S. efforts to oust Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Abrams spoke three weeks after the U.S. recognized opposition leader Juan Guaidó as Venezuela's new president. Since then, the U.S. has placed sweeping sanctions on Venezuela's state-run oil company and rejected calls for an international dialogue to resolve the crisis. Elliott Abrams is a right-wing hawk who was convicted in 1991 for lying to Congress during the Iran-Contra scandal, but he was later pardoned by President George H.W. Bush. Abrams defended Guatem…
(2019-02-14). Trump Administration Is Illegally Forcing Asylum Seekers Out of the United States. aclu.org The administration is once again breaking the law in order to shut the door on immigrants. | Last September, Bianca* was forced to flee Honduras because her partner's father threatened to kill her for being a lesbian. Bianca could not go to the police in Honduras because they do not protect LGBTQ people from harm. So she left home to save her life. | After traveling through Guatemala and Mexico, Bianca reached Tijuana, where she got in line to enter the United States through the border station and ask for asylum.
(2019-02-14). New Hampshire Is Trying to Stop College Students From Registering to Vote. aclu.org Voting is my right. I shouldn't have to jump through hoops to exercise it. | Growing up, my parents taught me that voting is not only a right, but a privilege. They voted in every local, midterm, and presidential election, and every time they did so they were sure to show me their "I voted" sticker. | As I grew older, they discussed propositions or candidates with me, asking me what I thought and even providing me with sample ballots. My dad and I would talk about why our opinions were the same or different, and what information we were basing those votes on. When 2016 rolled around, I still wasn't old enough to…
(2019-02-14). Is the refugee rights movement at a turning point? greenleft.org.au 
Children are off Nauru, Hakeem is back in Australia and parliament has passed the medical evacuation bill. For what feels like the first time in forever, the refugee rights movement is making gains. | True, these gains are small and limited — but they are gains, nonetheless. | The passing of the Home Affairs Legislation Amendment (Miscellaneous Measures) Bill 2018, better known as the medivac bill, was met with celebrations on Manus Island and Nauru as well as within the refugee rights movement. | People have died because of the federal government's refusal to evacuate refugees from offshore detention centr…
(2019-02-14). Thailand: New lawsuits brought by Thammakaset Company Limited against Human Rights Defenders. amnesty.org The 89 undersigned organizations write to express our deep concern regarding recent spurious complaints brought by Thammakaset Company Limited against several human rights defenders in Thailand. We respectfully urge the Thai government to take immediate action to oppose and seek the dismissal of cases filed by Thammakaset that run counter to your government's proclaimed policy to support business and human rights as well as Thailand's interests, legal obligations, and international human rights law commitments.
(2019-02-14). Turkey Calls Out China's Repression of Uyghurs. hrw.org 
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(2019-02-14). "I don't need a Prince Charming to find love" amnesty.org 
Teacher, model and romantic, Alan Costa is a performance artist blazing a unique trail across Salvador, Brazil. Together with his collective Afrobapho, the 28-year-old human rights activist is using fashion, photography and art to spark conversations about what it means to be LGBTI and black in Brazil. | I've never been in love. I've never received love. In fact, I've never experienced a non-abusive relationship. | I used to believe in romantic relationships, but it just hasn't happened for me. As a black, queer man, my body is seen as some kind of masculine ideal, yet there's a distance around the way people thi…
(2019-02-14). Global Sports Groups New Human Rights Ally in Bahrain? hrw.org 
| | Hakeem al-Araibi | © 2019 | Today marks the eighth anniversary of the mass protests in Bahrain during the 2011 Arab Uprisings, when thousands demonstrated against the ruling al-Khalifa family's tight grip on power. The government's ensuing crackdown left about 30 people dead and hundreds injured. | For the last eight years, the Bahraini authorities…
(2019-02-14). DR Congo: Post-Election Killings Test New President. hrw.org 
| | Police charge supporters of opposition presidential candidate Martin Fayulu who had gathered outside the constitutional court in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, January 12, 2019. | © 2019 Tony Karumba/AFP/Getty Images) | (Kinshasa) — The Democratic Republic of Congo's new administration should demonstrate its human rights commitment by impartially investigating and prosecuting the killing of at least 10 people by security forces during…
(2019-02-14). An Emirati Woman's Ordeal to Seek Protection from Abuse. hrw.org 
| | © Hind Albolooki/Twitter | Hind Albolooki fled the United Arab Emirates (UAE) after receiving threats from family members for wanting to divorce an abusive husband. | "I am a mother of four children," she said. "No mother would leave her children just like this. But I had to leave my kids. I had no other choice." Her decision to flee says much about the lack of protection available to women in the UAE. | Hind sought asylum in North Macedoni…
(2019-02-14). Deadly US Applications of Artificial Intelligence. hrw.org 
| | In the United States and around the world, public concern is rising at the prospect of weapons systems that would select and attack targets without human intervention. | © 2018 Campaign to Stop Killer Robots | As the United States Department of Defense releases a strategy on artificial intelligence (AI), questions loom about whether the US government intends to accelerate its investments in weapo…
(2019-02-14). UAE arms fair showcases Belgian weapon in use by Yemeni militias. amnesty.org A type of Belgian machine gun known to be wielded by a Yemeni militia in the Hodeidah offensive is among the weaponry set to be showcased this weekend at one of the Middle East's largest arms fairs in Abu Dhabi, Amnesty International said today. | According to promotional materials for the UAE's IDEX2019 arms fair, the Minimi will be among the thousands of types of weapons available for sale. Manufactured in Belgium's Wallonia region by FN Herstal, it is among an array of arms transferred by the Belgian Walloon authorities to the Saudi Arabia/UAE-led coalition in recent years for use in the armed conflict in Yeme…