Hungary: Release Ahmed H and stop abusing terrorism laws

Ahmed has been labelled a terrorist and jailed for 10 years after using a megaphone to call for calm during clashes at the Hungarian border.

In August 2015, Ahmed left his family home in Cyprus to go and help his elderly parents and six other family members flee Syria and find safety in Europe. One month later, they found themselves among hundreds of refugees stranded at the Hungarian border after police fenced off the crossing with Serbia.

Clashes broke out as some refugees attempted to get through. Hungary’s police responded with tear gas and water cannon, injuring dozens. Some people threw stones, including Ahmed. But news footage also clearly shows Ahmed using a megaphone to call on both sides to remain calm.
For this, a Hungarian court found him guilty of an “act of terror”, under Hungary’s extremely vague counter-terrorism laws, and sentenced him to 10 years in prison.

Does this sound like terrorism to you?

Ahmed remains in prison, separated from his wife and young daughters, waiting for an appeal hearing in the hope of being able to return to them in Cyprus.

Tell the Hungarian authorities to:

• Release Ahmed H and stop abusing terrorism laws.
• Stop making statements linking migration and terrorism, which could prejudice the prosecution of Ahmed.
• Coordinate efforts to ensure Ahmed’s swift return to Cyprus as soon as his appeal hearing is finished.

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Defend the brave: release Dr Mudawi Ibrahim Adam

Dr Mudawi bravely spoke up for families fleeing violence in Sudan, as well as on many other human rights issues. Because of this, he is now in prison and is facing the death penalty.

 

Dr Mudawi was arrested for his human rights work and held without charge for almost five months. He has now been charged with six offences, two of which are punishable by life imprisonment, or worse, death.

He is a Professor of Engineering at the University of Khartoum. He also founded and is the former director of the Sudan Social Development Organization. Dr Mudawi won the 2005 Human Rights First award and the 2005 Front Line Award for Human Rights Defenders at Risk, for fighting for the rights of others in Sudan.

Witnesses have stated that Dr Mudawi was tortured in prison including being chained to a pole with his hands cuffed and his legs shackled, as government agents brutally beat him. Dr Mudawi went on hunger strike protesting his imprisonment, and even though he suffers from chronic respiratory and heart complications, he has only been allowed access to a doctor three times since his detention in December. He was only allowed to speak to his lawyer for the first time 77 days after he was imprisoned. 

Help defend the brave and sign the petition to release Dr Mudawi Ibrahim Adam.

We will hand in the signatures to the Sudanese government, demanding they release Dr Mudawi immediately and unconditionally, asking that they ensure he is not tortured or mistreated pending his release and that allegations of torture and ill-treatment in detention are investigated. 

Click here to act now

Free Fomusoh Ivo Feh

Cameroon: Free Fomusoh Ivo Feh

 

Fomusoh Ivo Feh has been sentenced to 10 years in jail for forwarding a joke SMS to friends

 

Fomusoh Ivo Feh had a bright future ahead of him. He was just about to start university in Cameroon, where he lives. But an SMS message changed everything.
One day, Ivo received a text message from a friend, saying: “Boko Haram recruits young people from 14 years old and above. Conditions for recruitment: 4 subjects at GCE, including religion”.
His friend’s message was a comment on how difficult it is to find a good job without being highly qualified – joking that even Boko Haram (an armed group) won’t take you unless you did well in your exams.

Ivo forwarded the message to a friend, who sent it to a friend in secondary school. A teacher saw the text, having confiscated the phone, and showed it to the police. Ivo, his friend and the young student were all arrested sometime between September and December 2014.
On 2 November, a military court sentenced Ivo and his two friends to 10 years in prison for “crimes” related to terrorism. They shouldn’t have to pay with their futures for sharing a private joke.

Sign the petition to the President of the Republic of Cameroon:

 

I urge you to free Fomusoh Ivo Feh and his friends, Afuh Nivelle Nfor and Azah Levis Gob, without delay.They have been sentenced to 10 years in prison – all because they shared a joke SMS message with each other.

Please don’t make them pay with their futures for this.

Please Act Now

Egyptian photojournalist at risk of death penalty

Photojournalist, Mahmoud Abu Zeid (known as Shawkan), is passionate about taking pictures. He is now paying the price for his peaceful work and is on trial. He risks the death penalty.

On 26 March 2016, at a Cairo court hearing, an official from the public prosecution directed nine phony charges against Shawkan. Before the trial, Shawkan’s lawyers were denied access to key documents related to the case, including the charges sheet.
When Shawkan was arrested in 2013, it was believed he was at risk of life imprisonment. Now, his fate could be much worse as he risks the death penalty. Shawkan was arrested while simply doing his job. He was photographing security forces’ violent behaviour in Cairo’s street protests. He has been in detention for more than two years, in violation of Egyptian law. He is the only Egyptian journalist to have been held beyond this two-year cap. His health is deteriorating and he has been denied access to medication, despite suffering from Hepatitis C.
Shawkan should never have been arrested in the first place and should be free to peacefully practice his work as a photojournalist, guaranteed by his right to freedom of expression.
Please take action to tell the Egyptian authorities loud and clear that Shawkan’s peaceful journalism is not a crime.

Sign our petition today. Tell Egypt to free Shawkan.

 

Thank you for taking action! You’re helping to protect people suffering human rights abuses across the world.

Please share this action with as many people as possible, and together we can make change happen.

Demand the release of bloggers detained for tweeting

Two prominent bloggers are detained by Chinese authorities for releasing information about protests on social media. The couple are at risk of torture and ill-treatment.

Lu Yuyu and his girlfriend Li Tingyu, managed a blog and twitter account which they updated daily with information about mass protests in China.

The couple disappeared in June and were later found detained by authorities for ‘picking quarrels and provoking trouble’.

The protests that the couple reported on ranged from workers’ strikes to demonstrations over land grabs. Lu maintains that the information publicised on the blog was always objective and factual.

The bloggers have endured ongoing intimidation by police for their social media project. Li explains that on 15 June 2016, several unidentified men put a black hood over her head and forced her into an unmarked car.

Both Li and Lu are now at risk of torture and other ill-treatment while in prison.

Demand their safety and tell the Chinese authorities that freedom of expression is not a crime.

 Act Now ♥

 

Young student leader facing 9 years in prison

In early 2015, student leader Phyoe Phyoe Aung helped to organize a march against a new law in Myanmar, which students said limited academic freedom. In March, as the protesters got closer to Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city, they were blocked by police who beat them with batons.

Phyoe Phyoe Aung and more than 100 other student activists – many of them injured – were arrested and charged with a range of questionable criminal offenses. Many have been locked up ever since, with some held in solitary confinement and with limited access to lawyers. Some, including Phyoe Phyoe Aung, could face more than nine years in prison.

Act now 

Update: Good news: Myanmar activist Phyoe Phyoe Aung released :)
http://www.amnesty.org.au/news/comments/41550/

Help Narges return to her children

Narges Mohammadi is a human rights activist who has been a vocal advocate against the death penalty in Iran. She’s a prisoner of conscience, held solely for peacefully exercising her right to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly.

On 1 August 2015, she suffered partial paralysis and was taken to Taleghani Hospital. Doctors advised that she needed to be examined by a specialist, however the next day she was returned to prison.
She was also taken to hospital on 27 July 2015 and returned to prison without receiving treatment for a possible blood clot in her lungs. The next day, prison officials refused to take her to another medical appointment.
As well as being denied urgent medical care, Narges Mohammadi is not allowed to make phone calls to her children, eight-year old twins who recently moved to live with their father, a refugee abroad, as they had no caregiver in Iran.

Tell Iran to release Narges Mohammadi immediately and unconditionally, and in the interim grant her access to medical care, regular visits and phone calls.

Update 15/02/16: Narges Mohammadi’s hearing, which was to be held on 9 January, was once again postponed without any explanation. This is the third time that her trial has been delayed. According to her husband, Narges has not been provided regularly with her prescribed medication and this is putting her health at serious risk which can result in seizures and temporary partial paralysis. Please keep taking action.

Please sign the petition here.