Niall

Some people have got it into their heads that youth activism is on the decline and the days of the young changing the world have passed. Over the last few days I’ve witnessed first hand what complete nonsense that is. Yesterday I was...

Now this year is a little bit special for us at Amnesty International. Why? I hear you ask. Well, it’s the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (try saying that in a snappy way). And tonight sees the launch of...

Big up to the people of Pakistan. We at Amnesty always talk about creating mass movements, but frankly we’ve been dwarfed by what’s happening there. A campaign called Yeh Hum Naheen – This is Not Us – and financed by British and...

Every morning the media team comes together to run through what’s happening in the world. And for the last few weeks I’ve been banging on about India and the unfolding crisis in the northern state of Orissa. Dozens of people have been...

It may well have escaped your attention this morning but the president of Pakistan, Asif Ali Zardari, is here in the UK on a whistle-stop visit. He’s got a face-to-face meeting with Gordon Brown scheduled in his diary today. I’m sure...

Blue Moon, you saw me standing alone… I wonder how much old Thaksin Shinawatra will be singing that famous Manchester City theme tune today. By all accounts, it would be hard for the former Thai Prime minister to feel more marginalised...

It’s a case of education, education, education today. No doubt thousands of students across England and Wales will be dreading the start of the new academic year next week. However, pity the situation of 400 Palestinians who don’t even...

Over the last 12 months, three countries have consistently kept us busy here in the Amnesty press office: Pakistan, Burma and Zimbabwe. And all three are in the news again today – and none of it is particularly positive. In Pakistan...

OK so it’s like that is it! The Chinese authorities may have relented and unblocked our website , but as an organisation we have been banned from China for years, and frankly anyone brave enough to speak out about human rights in the...

This weekend the sun was out, the sky was blue, and your Amnesty press officer was dashing round like a mad thing. The reason? Baha Mousa, the Joint Committee on Human Rights , and a little dash of Iran. For those who don’t remember...

Sometimes you’ve got to love living in the UK – and Saturday was one of those times. I’ll freely admit that I was not feeling all that well when I headed up into London for Pride London – the annual celebration of sexual diversity –...

The next few days will see Amnesty’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender campaign go into overdrive. This Saturday is Pride London , where our float will once again be on the streets of the capital highlighting the problems of...

So what exactly does Heinz meanz these days? Gone it appears are the halcyon days of simple messages about warming cups of soup and the beauty of Tomato Ketchup. Instead the global brand has gone and got itself embroiled in a saucy row...

It’s been all go in the press office these last few days. Last night saw a fantastic gathering of hundreds of Amnesty supporters outside the Chinese embassy to mark the 19th anniversary of the crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in...

Hopefully, it’s not escaped your attention that there is a small sporting event happening in China this summer (aka the Olympic Games), and that we at Amnesty have been keen to use the opportunity to shine a spotlight on the Chinese...

Burma’s public relations department really does need a bit of an overhaul. Their PR was bad enough before Cyclone Nargis devastated the Irrawaddy Delta two weeks ago – and it’s only got worse over the last 14 days. When faced with an...

Great news coming out of the United States last night. The Supreme Court in California has overturned a ban on gay marriage, opening the way to similar moves across the country. Amnesty International has a long running campaign for...

Today its impossible to ignore Burma. Hit by Cyclone Nargis and a subsequent devastating tidal surge which left tens of thousands dead and over a million displaced, the country is in the grips of a full-blown humanitarian crisis. The...

Its Thursday. So it must be Zimbabwe. To the naked eye (and ear) the news filtering out of Harare looks relatively positive. There was the aborted pass-the-parcel game with a shipload of arms from China destined for the land-locked...

Today’s blog comes from behind the placards as Amnesty International UK took to the streets for two very different causes. The day started off in Westminster outside Portcullis House for several Amnesty activists. They were joined by...