About this group
Amnesty International Sutton Coldfield and District Local Group is a forum for local Amnesty activists in Sutton Coldfield and the surrounding area to meet and work together to support human rights.
We meet once a month to discuss human rights issues, write letters in support of Amnesty International campaigns, and organise awareness-raising, campaigning and fundraising events.
Monthly Meetings
We meet at 8pm on the second Tuesday of every month (except August) in the Conference Centre, Holy Trinity Catholic Church, 69 Lichfield Road, Sutton Coldfield, B74 2NU.
New members are always given a warm welcome.
Individuals at Risk of Human Rights Abuses
We are currently campaigning on behalf of Juliaca’s Victims Group: Association of Martyrs and Victims of 9 January.
The case concerns the relatives of those who were assassinated and gravely injured during the police repression of protests between 6 January and 9 February 2023 in the city of Juliaca in the Puno region of Peru. They have organised and established the Association of Martyrs and Victims of 9 January in Juliaca. Their principal demand is that the abuses that occurred not remain shrouded in impunity.
Most of the affected families are workers, farmers and merchants who seek justice after having experienced traumatic events. The emotional and psychological injuries continue to run deep, and the scar of that loss continues to be present in the community fabric. The tragedy goes far beyond the lives that were truncated: it also impacts the survivors who are fighting for access to medical attention. Additionally, the persistent racism, stigmatisation and social marginalisation increase their burden.
The survivors of those killed or injured have transformed their pain into motivation for change by becoming involved as activists in human rights defence and social justice.
Following the ousting and arrest of former President Pedro Castillo on 7th December 2022, thousands of people took to the streets to protest. The Peruvian National Police and Army responded with excessive use of force, with the goal of silencing and punishing the protestors. Between December 2022 and February 2023, 49 protesters lost their lives and many were injured (between 6-13 January, 204 were injured). The majority were from indigenous and campesino communities in Peru’s Andean South that have been historically marginalised by the Peruvian authorities. The victims were labelled as ‘terrorists’
Investigations carried out by the Office of the Attorney General have been marked by technical deficiencies and progress has been slow and limited. Amnesty International have documented a number of cases, who are mainly young men and not all of them involved in the protest (e.g. bystanders or shoppers). In May and June 2024 criminal investigative proceedings were finally initiated against dozens of police and military officers implicated in human rights violations, including some commanders. However progress has repeatedly stalled.
The Juliaca’s Victims Group are calling for the investigation to be expedited by the Congress of Republic of Peru. They are asking us to call on the UK Government to support them in this aim.
You can support this appeal by writing to your constituency MP by email and/or letter. Please remember to add your name and address as this is required by MPs in order for them to respond. You can download a letter to send here:
In addition you can sign the petition on Amnesty's website:
Stand with victims of repression in Peru
Campaigns
We are actively involved in current Amnesty International campaigns including Women's Human Rights; Control Arms; Refugees and Asylum and Poverty and Human Rights.