Campaigns Blog

Kristyan Benedict - @KreaseChan “Syria was once known as the ‘Kingdom of silence’. In 2011 it burst into speech – not in one voice but in millions…For a few brief moments the people changed everything. Then the counter-revolutions...

Update 3 December: Last night MPs voted in favour of UK military action against ISIS in Syria, after a 10-hour debate in Parliament. Just hours later, the RAF have begun airstrikes on oil fields under ISIS control. Our call remains the...

Kristyan Benedict - on Twitter as @KreaseChan Civilians in Syria are being subjected to appalling human rights violations committed by the Syrian government and many armed opposition groups. These violations amount to war crimes and in...

'You did me so much harm. And now you will never forget my face.' Cristel Piña, torture survor, to the policeman who tortured her A few weeks ago, I attended one of Mexico’s new ‘spoken’ trials as an observer. It was one of the first...

When I helped organise a protest against Guantánamo Bay in 2007 , I had no idea that I would still be campaigning against it more than eight years later. Or that until today there would still be a British resident held at the notorious...

We found out we were expecting our second child in June 2012. My husband and I were thrilled. We booked an early scan for later that week. They said I was seven weeks pregnant. We were delighted when we found out our baby was due on...

By Kristyan Benedict - Amnesty International UK @KreaseChan On October 6 I spoke on a panel at the Frontline Club about the horrific Caesar photos and the ongoing search for justice and accountability in Syria. Below is a summary...

Over the years the campaign for justice for Shaker Aaker has seemed an almost hopeless one. Turning out with family and supporters to hand-deliver petitions to Downing Street or the US Embassy in London has been a forlorn affair...

by Kristyan Benedict, Amnesty International UK - @KreaseChan Douma, like many besieged and bombed parts of Syria, has slipped out of the mainstream news again. The humanitarian catastrophe there is still very much a reality though and...

‘The pain of torture is unbearable.’ These are the words of torture survivor Moses Akatugba from Nigeria, one of the many individuals we support in their search for justice. The ‘confession’ Moses made, after having his finger and toe...

After 10 years in jail, and over 800,000 messages from activists around the world, Moses’ life has been spared. Here, we speak to Justine Ijeomah, Director of the Human Rights, Social Development and Environmental Foundation (HURSDEF)...

“For to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”  — Nelson Mandela Freedom from fear doesn’t come easy. That’s especially the case in Syria. For over four...

“You feel like a criminal. I am a law-abiding citizen and I felt like I was committing a crime, like I was smuggling drugs across the border.” Cerys, who travelled to England for an abortion after doctors in Ireland confirmed that her...

One year ago today Russia and China vetoed a UN Security Council resolution which would have referred the horrendous situation in Syria to the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court. That callous move compounded the misery for...

UPDATE, 28 MAY 2015: Moses pardoned Emmanuel Uduaghan, the Governor of Delta State, has granted a total pardon to Moses Akatugba, who was sentenced to death by hanging for stealing mobile phones. Thank you to the thousands of you who...

You can clearly see, and smell, the oil that pollutes the waterways near Bodo, as well as the destruction it has caused to the mangrove trees lining the shore. But what shocked me most was the silence of the place. As Africa’s most...

The fourth anniversary of the uprisings in Syria has passed. The reality for most Syrian civilians is as grim as it was on March 15 2015 as it is today. For Syrians hiding from barrel bombs and missiles, there is still no respite. For...

Update, 5 March: Following your actions on Facebook and Twitter, human rights were raised with President Peña Nieto several times during his visit, by both the Deputy PM Nick Clegg , and by David Cameron . Thank you for taking action...

A great reformer and champion of women’s rights has died, apparently. If you didn’t know who world leaders were lining up to express condolences for this weekend, you might think that one of the great civil rights heroes of our time...

Update: 9am, 22 January 2015 Last night, the Salvadorean parliament voted in favour of Guadalupe's pardon. Guadalupe won, by just one vote . This is is fantastic news, and sets a brilliant precedent for the other women criminalised by...