Saturday, July 26, 2014

A beautiful moment of reconciliation

As a frequent participant in our online actions
 Dear Tracy,

As a frequent participant in our online actions, we hope you'll appreciate this update on a few of our biggest stories -- from South Sudan to Egypt to Canada.
You can stay in touch this summer by following daily news releases and more ways to take action on our website, and by following us on twitter and facebook.
We're here for you and all supporters at members@amnesty.ca or 1-800-AMNESTY (1-800-266-3789), and welcome your financial support by phone or through our secure website, in keeping with your ability to give as a monhly donor, fundraiser, or making an occasional gift when your heart moves you.

THANK YOU!

A touching moment in South Sudan

197136_south_sudan_armed_conflict_-_ethnic_tensions_300.jpgA beautiful moment of reconciliation was captured when Mary & Ayor -- from two ethnic groups at the centre of the conflict in South Sudan -- insisted on holding hands in a photograph for Amnesty International researchers.

As the women said about the road ahead for this young country, only 3 years old: "It starts right here."

Read accounts from the field by Amnesty International Canada's Secretary General, Alex Neve, who just returned to Canada from Sudan this week.

Read Alex's South Sudan human rights mission blog
 


Help give journalist Mohamed Fahmy his freedom back! 

Mohamed Fahmy_300x.jpgCanadian-Egyptian journalist Mohamed Fahmy remains in detention in Egypt.

Why is he detained? For doing his job: reporting the news, and challenging the "official version" presented by authorities.

Half a year has passed.

Join human rights supporters worldwide who believe journalists like Fahmy and his colleagues, Australian Peter Greste, and Egyptian Baher Mohamed, should never have been detained, and should be released immediately, unconditionally.

Check out Amnesty International's action and send an email message to Egypt's Minister of Justice
 



Meriam's detention while pregnant for "apostasy" has captivated attention like few other human rights stories

Mariam_family_baby_300.jpgMeriam Yehya Ibrahim was jailed in Sudan and sentenced to death for refusing to renounce her religion.

Over 1 million Amnesty supporters spoke up in outrage against the death sentence.
Meriam's baby was born in prison. Then, she was released by Sudanese authorities following massive, unprecedented pressure from around the world. 
When Meriam and her family  tried to leave Sudan, they were detained by officials at the airport. Meriam has now been charged with attempting to travel with false documents. The family is living in the US Embassy in Khartoum while these new charges are addressed. Meriam may be out of prison but she is not yet truly free.

Learn more about this remarkable story


Great News! Historic Supreme Court decision a crucial step for Indigenous peoples in Canada

Northern_Gateway_FB_300.jpgOn June 26, a unanimous decision by the Supreme Court of Canada found that the Tsilhqot’in people continue to hold legal title to some 2000 square kilometres in the heart of their traditional territory in central British Columbia.

Critically, the Court found that development on land owned by Indigenous peoples requires the consent of those nations.

It’s hard to overstate the importance of this historic ruling, both for the Tsilhqot’in people, who first went to court to protect their land rights more than 20 years ago, and for other Indigenous nations across Canada.

Much of the route of the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline crosses territory where there are no treaties with Indigenous peoples and the underlying issue of Indigenous land title has never been resolved. These issues were excluded from the mandate of the public review on which the government says it based its decision to approve Northern Gateway.

Learn more about this historic decision

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