Spotlight
Many Beijing residents were displaced to clear space for Olympic venue construction. Photo Satbir (Flickr)
Human rights abuse a legacy of “exceptional” Games
Jacques Rogge, President of the IOC, said yesterday at the closing of the Beijing Olympics,"these were truly exceptional Games". It's not likely that he was referring to the Chinese Government's forced displacement of people to make way for Olympic infrastructure, the detention of people legally applying for permission to protest in designated protest zones, the ongoing torture of people in detention or of the censorship of media and internet.
Guantánamo Bay visits US elections
From 25 to 28 August, the Amnesty Guantánamo Bay cell replica is at the US Democratic Convention in Denver, USA. Its message to Presidential nominee Barack Obama and his democratic party is that the world rejects the illegal imprisonment of alleged enemy combatants as part of the War on Terror. Next stop in the cell’s tour: the Republican Convention in Minneapolis-Saint Paul from 1 to 4 September.
See the latest updates, videos, pictures and an interactive view of the inside of the cell.
The 2008 Freedom Art Union Raffle is back
Buy tickets for Freedom for your chance to win a Stylish Citroën C4 Hatch, plus three other sensational holidays!
Movie ticket giveaway to The Visitor
The Visitor is a moving film, about a disillusioned Connecticut economics professor, whose life is transformed by a chance encounter with a refugee couple in New York City. We have in-season double passes for the first 120 people who calls us on 02 8396 7670. Tickets are valid for all states but Tasmania and Northern Territory.
Campaign blogs
Chinese net users on the BBC
The BBC's news pages (in English only) have been available to Chinese internet users and the comments are starting to flow as people in China take the opportunity to read what 'the West has to say'.
Leaving fear behind in Tibet
Amateur filmmaker Dhondup Wangchen wanted the world to know what Tibetans thought about the Olympics. Now he and his assistant, Buddhist monk Golog Jigme, are in jail.
Rights advocate safely home after Games detention
Human rights activist Zeng Jinyan, who with her baby daughter disappeared the day before the Olympics opened, returned home over the weekend.
Continue reading Rights advocate safely home after Games detention
Journalists still struggle to enter Tibet
Five months after the violent unrest in the Tibetan capital of Lhasa, the region's still difficult to access if you are a foreign journalist. So France24's reporter went in as a tourist.
China in the headlines – 27 August 2008
In the latest wrap-up from news outlets and bloggers across the globe:
The Olympics were a great success in organisational terms, but they were full of falsehoods from the start.
Well-known Tibetan blogger Woeser is arrested by police.
A group of US protestors say Chinese authorities accused them of having ties with the US government, deprived them of sleep and interrogated them for hours.
Plus …
Act now
Free Shi Tao
On 20 April 2004, while working for the Dangdai Shangbao (Contemporary Trade News) in Hunan Province, Shi Tao attended a meeting about a Central Propaganda Department communique. Seven months later he was in detention for illegally providing state secrets to foreign entities. Call on the Chinese authorities to immediately and unconditionally release him.
take action regarding “Free Shi Tao”
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During their bid to host the Olympic Games the Chinese authorities promised to improve human rights. This promise has not been kept.
© Kin Cheung, AP Photo.
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News
Iran must free women’s rights defenders
In Iran, detention and harrassment of women’s rights defenders who organise peaceful and legal protest activities is commonplace. Amnesty International renews its call for authorities to cease this discrimination.
IOC must incorporate human rights values
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has failed to prevent human rights abuses surrounding the Beijing Games. Amnesty International calls on the IOC to prioritise human rights values in all future Olympic events.
Call to account for 1988 “prison massacre”
On 29 August 1988, Iranian authorities began a wave of mass executions that left between 4,500 and 5,000 people dead. Twenty years later, Amnesty International renews its calls for justice for the victims of the "prison massacre" and their families.
Civilians under threat in Philippines
Tens of thousands of civilians who have already suffered from the renewal of violence in Mindanao could be at even greater risk if the Philippine government supports the creation of untrained and unaccountable civilian militias, Amnesty International said on 21 August.
Belarusian prisoner of conscience released
Amnesty International welcomes the early release of Belarusian prisoner of conscience Alyaksandr Kazulin. The former opposition presidential candidate was pardoned by a presidential decree on 16 August.
Our mission
Amnesty International Australia works with people in Australia and our region to demand respect for human rights and protect people facing abuse. We mobilise people, campaign, conduct research and raise money for our work. We promote a culture where human rights are embraced, valued and protected.