Emerson

Imagine spending the majority of your adult life in a space not much bigger than your bathroom. Two paces wide by three deep. For 23 hours a day, every day. This has been the reality for Herman Wallace (and his friend Albert Woodfox)...

Imagine a government agency that adopts human rights standards that don’t apply to a majority of its transactions. Imagine a government agency that systematically ignores the recommendations of Parliamentary Committees that have...

In May, thousands of you took action to help Beatriz, co-signing our petition through Pocket Protest, and adding more pressure with our global twitter action. Finally, after months of waiting, Beatriz got the life-saving treatment she...

Over the past few months Amnesty groups all around Europe have been gathering signatures, calling on the EU to intervene where governments are breaching anti-dscirmination laws by abusing Romani people's rights. Many thousand of you...

As Belarus marks Independence Day today, three men have been left wondering if it will be their last. Belarus is the only European country that continues to use the death penalty. In 2012 the Belarusian government executed at least...

On a recent visit to a camp near Atmeh, just inside Syria near the Turkish border, some 21,000 people were sheltering amid hellish conditions. Heavy rain leaked into the tents and had turned the clay soil into thick slippery mud, raw...

It's Refugee Week - a celebration of the positive impact refugees have had on our culture and heritage. America might have the easily recognisable lines "give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free"...

Great news! Amnesty has just been awarded £100,000 from Google to develop our Panic Button app which could become a lifeline for human rights activists working in risky situations. On Monday our team pitched the project to a panel that...

“They’re playing Russian Roulette with our lives. Our lives have no value.” John Thompson, exonerated after 14 years on death row Whenever I talk to someone about the death penalty, and my belief that it has no place in society, I’ll...

Last month, we asked for your help to release three women being held hostage in Papua New Guinea accused of ‘sorcery’ . We were deeply concerned for their safety, following the beheading days earlier of teacher and women’s rights...

Okay, confession time - I’m a Guinness World Record holder. I was part of the world’s largest coconut orchestra in Trafalgar Square in 2007, and along with 5,566 other people, clip-clopped my way into the record books with a rendition...

Our report on the use of the death penalty in 2012 is out, and although the global trend to abolition continues, 2012 saw a disappointing resumption of executions by some countries. Get the full report and figures , and take action to...

Ever find yourself watching a politician talk and wishing they were saying something completely different? It's a feeling we've had a few times with President Obama - on Guantanamo, on drones, and now on the Arms Trade. Thankfully for...

Update, 5.15pm: Thanks for sending your questions to Minister Burt. He gave some very welcome answers, including confirming that the UK Government wants to strengthen the human rights protections in the Treaty. He also said that...

At least 1,500 men, women and children die every day due to armed violence and conflict. And about 80% of them are civilians. But the global arms trade remains unregulated, allowing governments to authorise the transfer and trade of...

Eleven years ago today, Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp opened . Shortly after, British resident Shaker Aamer was transfered to the camp, having been captured in Afghanistan in November 2001. Shaker has always maintained that he was in...

What a year 2012 has been. We've seen astounding courage from peaceful protesters in Syria and from individuals like Malala Yousufzai, continuing to call for education for girls despite the dangers. We've seen a punk band stand up to...

Next week, MPs will debate the Government’s Justice and Security Bill in the House of Commons for the first time. The Government says the Bill is necessary to protect national security, we say it’s unnecessary and a risk to one of our...

Update: Thank you for all your messages! Our volunteer translators created 70 postcards in Russian, which we'll post to Mehman so that he can read your messages - see photos of your messages . We can longer translate your message if...

Imagine meeting someone, falling in love, wanting to start a life together. But knowing that doing this could mean being imprisoned for life. Because the person you love is the same sex as you. This could be the future for anyone...