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Sty Inrternat I 0 NAL. ,/U/Y 2000 L'o Arnne sty INrTERNAT I 0 NAL. ,/u/y 2000 l'o/. No.4 N EWS ISRAEL/LEBANON A prisoner learns of his imminent release from Khiam ejoceph Barrak/AFP KHIAM DETENTION CENTRE'S DOORS FORCED OPEN n FOR TEH FIRST TIME IN MY LIFE, I Then, in the wake of Israel's with- of Israeli soldiers — including airforce 1eel I am alive... For the first Irom south Lebanon, the vil- navigator Ron Arad — missing after time since her detention. I lagers of Khiani stormed the detent- capture by armed groups during the talked to (:osette. For the first time in ion centre, freeing the prisoners. 1,ehanese war. It was only in 1995 that INSIDE ow life I believed that Suleiman These limments when detainees the hostages began to receive letters Immacul&e 2 Ramadan is still alive.., for the first walk from darkness into the sun are from the Al groups who had been Birhaheka time in Inv life, the tears falling now what AI is all about. For years, Al writing for three years and were cam- receives htunan from my eves are tears of jt)y..." gomps and thotisands of its members paigning for their release. rights award Uhina Nahlawi, a volunteer for the wrote to the detainees of Khiam; not AI delegates who visited Lebanon I,ebanese Font 'RV U p Committee for one of their letters was ever passed on in May were overjoyed to meet many Iran 2 the Support of Lebanese DetaMees in to am' of the prisoners. For seven of these fOrmer hostages with their Israeli Prisons, posted these words on years, until 1995, detainees were even families. "We now feel wc have friends WORLDWIDE a Khiam internet discussion site on denied visits from families and from in many places", said Ahmad Taleb, APPEALS 23 May. Earlier that day the gates of the International (:ommittee of the one of- those who, during 13 years' Khiam Detention Centre had at last Red Cross (I(RC). detention ni Israel, was never charged Honduras been Nwced open and 144 prisoners. - rhe freedom of the Khiam with or tried for any offence. Myanmar men and women, iliost of whom had detainees was the culmination of At the time of the fall of Khiam, Guinea languished there for years, were finally other releases of Lebanese from other IA-bancse continued to be held Mexico released. Israeli ,jails: 13 Lebanese hostages in Israel, including Mustafa al-Dirani, Suleiman Ramadan spent nearly 15 were released on 19 April after spend- severely tortured after his arrest in Malaysia 8 years in Khiam from the time of his ing almost 14 years detained ill Israel. 1994 and held without even access to arrest at the age of 20. lie is said to Some, like the detainees of Khiam. the ICRC. have spent three years in solitary con- had never been carged or tried: AI calls for the release of all those finement and had a leg amputated others had been held for up to 12 Lebanese nationals still held as while he was in prison. The detention years after the expiry of their sen- hostages M Israel. The organization of Cosette Ibrahim, a journalist, in tences. Around 1990, some were told also continues to campaign on behalf September 1999 sparked worldwide that thev were being held as "bargain- of the missing Israeli nationals. protests and demonstrations. ing chips" ni exchange for the return IMMACULEE BIRHAHEKA RECEIVES MARTIN ENNALS AWARD T HISuman YEAR'S Rights MARTIN Defenders ENNALS was given AWARD to FOR linmacuIC:e Birhaheka, Director of Promotion and Support of: Women's Initiatives (PAIF) in the Democratic: Republic of the (:ongo. Immaculde Birhaheka has worked for many years to inform Congolese W0111(11 of their rights and to empower them to deal with the :authorities and the gender discrimination in the legal system. She has taught them self-help methods, initiated commutnty- funded projects, and helped women resist illegal taxes and extortion. She was one of the few with the courage to con- front the authorities on sensitive issues such as rape. In 1995 she and her col- leagues began producing a weekly radio program M Kiswahili on women's rights. In recent Years Immaculee Birhaheka Immaculee Birhaheka (lift) and IRAN has spliken out strongly against human Mary Robinson rights abuses occurring in her country, CLAMPDOWN ON FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION not hesitating to publicly denounce mass N A PERIOD OF HIGH POLITICAL TENSIONFree): Ezzatollah Sahabi, publisher of killings and ethnic intolerance. As a as the second round of parliamentary Farda (Tomorrt/IV's Iran) and result she has received increasing threats elections took place in Iran, journalists, Alireza Alavitabar, editor of Sobh-e Emrouz from both rebel groups and the intellectuals, a student leader nid (This Morning). All three were detained, Rwandesc military ill Goma. On 16 human rights advocates were arrested, interrogated and later released on bail. January 2000, she was arrested and held and at least 13 newspapers — mans: per- jamileh hadivar, a member of parlia- in a military detention centre where she ceived to he allied to reformist candid- ment, was also summoned and WaS was humiliated and beaten. Shc was ates — were closed down. I.C1)0F1C(Ily SchedlIksd to appear before released the same day, but has received Among those detained were two the Revolutionary Court shortly there- further threats from rebel soldiers. women — Mehrangit Kar, .1 lawyer. and aller. The UN High Commissioner for Shahla I aitit. a publisher. They were ini- Ali Afshari, a representative of the sun Human Rights. Mary Robinson, pres- tially held incommunicado, and thought dent organization Dallar-e Tabk0n-c ented the award at a ceremony in to be at risk ot ill-treatment. Shahla %UMW, and Akbar Ganji, a well-kninvn Geneva. Swityerland, on 13 April, saying: Ahiji has a history of health problems. journalist, were also arrested after the - I have a real sense of the need for the Both are campaigners for women's mid conference. Akbar Gariji reportedly kind of commitment Immaculee other human rights. They were arrested faced 10 charges relating to articles he Birhaheka has shown, and I know from on 20 April, shortly after taking part in wrote implicating senior Iranian politi- our offices in Kinshasa and in Goma an academic and cultural conference in cal figures in the 1998 killnigs of a num- how important that work adding: Berlin. Germany, where political and ber of intellectuals and writers, and to 'When the Declaration on Htunan social reform in Iran Were publicly debat- statements he made at the Berlin confer- Rights Defenders was adopted in ed. At the Mile of writing, their lawyer, ence. lie Was believed to be at risk of ill- December 1998. we all knew that it was Shirin Hradi, also a well-known human treatment OF even torture. not enough. and that a practical meas- rights advocate, had not been Ahnyed to ure is now needed to ensure that human see them. Both women were refused hail. • WHAT YOU CAN DO: rights defenders have adequate protec- 'Hie Berlin conference was inter- Please write, calling for the inimediate tion and support... I lupe the step will rupted by strong protests by Iranian and unconditional release of Mehrangiz he taken for a Special Rapporteur on political groups in exile. It received kar, Shahla Lahiji, Ali Afshari and Akbar human rights defenders.- enormous publicity within Iran, and Ganji as prisoners of conscience if they The Martin Ennals Award fin- Human some religious figures reportedly continue to be detained. Write to: Rights Defenders. created in 1993, is a accused sonic of (hose who attended of Leader of the Islamic Republic, his result of a collaboration of 10 leading apostasy, or turning away from Islam. Excellency Ayatollah Saved 'Ali human rights organizations, including Some members of the Iranian.judiciars: Khamenei. The Presidency, Palestine Al. It is granted annually to someone apparently considered attendance at the Avenue, Azerbaijan Intersection, Tehran, who has demonstrated an exceptional conference to have been -harmful to Islamic Republic of Iran, and to: Head of record of combating human rights abuses national StTlIFity. Other people arrested Judiciary, Ilis Excellency Ayatollah by courageous and innovative means. following their participation ;it the con- Niahnumd Hashemi-Shahrudi, Ministry The prize is CSS17,000, and is aimed to ference nicluded Hamid Reza.lalaipour, oLlustice, Park-e Shahr, Tehran, Islamic encourage human rights defenders who a journalist for ,A.ti-e Azatlegan (Era of the Republic of Iran. are in need of: protectitm. (From WOMehrangiz Kar, Shahla Lahiji, Akbar Ganji, Mi Afshari and Jamileh Kadivar © Heinrich Boll Foundation i, - - v ,.6 0 July 2000 Vol. 30 No.4 AMNESTY INTFRN.ATION11. NEWS Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines. G OVERNMENTSingapore, MINISTERS Thailand FROM and BRUNEI, Viet Nam CAMBODIA, will converge on Bangkok. Thailand, on 24 July 2000 for the annual meeting of ,Association Of South-East Asian Nations — ASEAN. They will also be,joined Ily a range of dialogue partners inchiding Australia, Canada, the European Union (EU), Japan, New Zealand and the USA to discuss issues of regional and interna- tional concern. One issue which AI will press to be put high on the agenda will bc that of controlling the arms and security trade. This meeting brings together several of the world's leading arms manufacturing and exporting states, together with a number of Asian states which have imported (or manu- factured their own) military and security equipment which have been used to violate human rights. The meeting pro- vides an ideal opportunity to combat the trade in repression in Asia. It is almost a Year since the world looked on in horror as armed militia groups, assisted by the Indonesian security forces, unleashed a wave of violence and unlawfUl killings against the East Timorese people who were seeking independ- ence.
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