Years ago a friend went to visit a country that shall remain nameless. She returned early, muttering about lies and deceit. Governments that specialise in human rights abuses usually either stay silent or issue statements that attempt...

The genocide in 1994 was severe enough to receive worldwide attention, although not enough action early enough to stop it. The roots of the conflict go far back and here is a timeline from 1918 to 1999. The timeline starts in 1918...

It was a shocking film of course, showing the way that the UN troops were unable to stop the killing and eventually withdrew, letting the killing get even more. The killing was done by machetes. The film is set in a school in Kigali...

Video footage from ProTV in Romania shows one of the line of Tibetan refugees falling suddenly to the snow. It was a 17-year old nun and she was killed. There have been rumours of shootings like this before but this is the first time...

I was sad to hear about conflicts and deaths at the borders of Spanish enclaves in north Africa, especially because I visited one of them, Ceuta, years ago as part of an expedition across Africa. It is right that Amnesty should press...

The motion at the First Committee of the General Assembly of the UN on moving towards an Arms Trade Treaty was co-sponsored by an impressive 116 governments; when it came to a vote on 27 Oct. 2006, 139 countries voted yes, 24 countries...

One chapter of the Alternative Human Rights Report describes a case study of what happened when 200 people publicly raised a flag in peaceful protest. Police advanced on the crowd, firing guns and beating demonstrators with batons...

Six campaigning organisations dealing with human rights in such places as West Papua, Burma, Tibet and the Chagos Islands (in the Indian Ocean) have joined to produce a report on the issues and on the UK government's record of...

The most fundamental right is of course the right to life; without it all other rights are irrelevant. I once read of a tragic shooting of an innocent person and I cannot remember all the details. I think that it was a British tourist...

Amnesty gives details about the crisis in Darfur . Amnesty says there that the government of Sudan is reluctant to allow any outside forces into Darfur and on page 24 of today's Independent there is the headline, "Sudan blocks UN plan...

Anna Funder in her book Stasiland paints a picture of what life was like in East Germany before the Berlin Wall came down. The Stasi were the secret police. It was a very effective police state, with an extensive network of informers...

Mark Thomas has written a book titled 'As Used on the Famous Nelson Mandela: Underground Adventures in the Arms and Torture Trade' which I have started to read. I have seen Mark Thomas on television a few times so I already knew that I...

I have been trying to understand why the government of China tries so hard to suppress Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa. It is a practice involving slow gentle movements and meditation. Three of its key values are truth, compassion...

Amnesty invites you to take action for Ahraf Kalhori , a mother of four children, who faces death by stoning for adultery. A death sentence is in itself cruel and inhumane but then to choose a method that makes the dying slow and...

Writers suffer persecution in many countries of the world. English PEN is part of an international organisation campaigning against this persecution. Other creative people also can fall foul of the authorities, for instance comedians...

In an appendix to his novel 1984, Orwell gives a description of Newspeak. It is a language based on English but it makes discussion or even thought of freedom or rebellion impossible by the removal of words and phrases. The book 1984...

Openness allows everyone to see that things are being done properly and fairly, in accordance with laws. Amnesty International sometimes sends observers to trials but in other cases they may not be allowed. I wonder whether there is...

A peaceful protest ended up with hundreds dead. Amnesty International pressed for an investigation of the fatal violence. The government of Uzbekistan rejected all calls for an independent, international investigation into what...

I am pleased to see that the counter is still going up for the number of people who have joined the Million Faces petition.

MPs highlight loopholes in UK arms legislation:"The MPs have asked the Government to explain why exports of weapons are granted to destinations listed as 'countries of concern' in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's Annual Report on...