Category Archives: Complaints
Amnesty International leaders offer to resign over bullying culture
Letter from seven staff admits mistakes after report warns of ‘toxic’ work environment
Rebecca Ratcliffe
Amnesty International’s seven-member senior leadership team has offered to resign after a damning report warned of a “toxic” working environment and widespread bullying.
Appeal to Federica Mogherini – High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy
Dear Mrs. Federica Mogherini,
We are, the activists of the civil society of Uzbekistan, gladly learning that concerning your visit to the Republic of Uzbekistan on November 2017, and decided to appeal to you with an urgent request:
We kindly request to you as a high-ranking representative of the European Union, during the meeting with the President of Uzbekistan, raise the issue of releasing numerous human rights defenders, journalists, businessmen, religious figures, refugees, military personnel – people who convicted for political and religious reasons. These people were thrown into the dungeons of the political regime of the country, created by the previous President of Uzbekistan, the late Islam Karimov.
Write Letters to our Friends in Prison!
PS. In May 30, 2017, Bergül Varan who is the sister of Betül Varan, one of the vocalists of Grup Yorum which is one of the leftist music groups, members of which are frequently arrested and concerts of which are cancelled, and was taken into custody during a police raid at Idil Cultural Center in Istanbul, was tortured by her hair being torn out from their roots as it is seen in the photograph, in the action force vehicle where she was kept for two hours.
We, the women activists in Turkey, make a call to the international society to stand in solidarity with our friends in prison. Support us in our joint action by writing open letters to them.
In our letters, we are sharing our memories, stories, thoughts, and wishes about our friends who are detained or arrested, or convicted… They are women rights activists, politicians, journalists, authors, and lawyers… We marched together at every protest with our friends in prison. We organized conferences, panel discussions, festivals. We were side by side when we went to the funerals of femicide victims, when we paid our condolences to their families.
2016 Press Freedom Index: Another turn of the screw in the post-Soviet region
Press release
Media freedom has declined steadily in the post-Soviet states. Nearly two thirds of the region’s countries are ranked around 150th or lower in the Index and their scores keep on falling.
The fact that Russia (148th, up 4) improved its ranking slightly should not raise hopes because its score fell as a result of the persecution of critics, which has reached levels not seen for three decades. And Russia’s behaviour has legitimized the growing repression throughout the region because Moscow acts as a regional “model,” albeit a negative one as regards media freedom.
