Article Argued for Ending "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

[A]n article in an official military journal argues forcefully this month for repealing the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law that requires homosexuals in the services to keep their sexual orientation secret.

Obama has promised to overturn the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, but so far nothing much has happened. Maybe this is a step forward for Gay Rights in the US. Read on in the New York Times here.

Myanmarese Human Rights Activist at Risk of Torture - ASA 16/005/2009

Kyaw Zaw Lwin, a Myanmarese human rights activist was arrested on 3 September after flying to Yangon, Myanmar. He may be in police custody in Myanmar and is at risk of torture and other ill-treatment. Torture is common in pre-trial detention in Myanmar, where there are more than 2,200 political prisoners.

Read on here: ASA 16/005/2009

Please send appeals as soon as possible, and before 23 October, to:

Minister for Home Affairs
Maung Oo
Ministry of Home Affairs
Office No. 10
Naypyitaw,
Union of Myanmar
(Salutation: Dear Minister)
Fax: +95 67 412 439 (Read this note on sending faxes.)

Minister of Information
Brigadier-General Kyaw Hsan
Ministry of Information
Bldg. (7), Naypyitaw,
Union of Myanmar
(Salutation: Dear Minister)

Minister of Foreign Affairs
Nyan Win
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Naypyitaw,
Union of Myanmar
(Salutation: Dear Minister)

Please send copies to Myanmar's local diplomatic representative.

In Australia:
Embassy of Myanmar
22 Arkana Street, Australia.
Yarralumla
A.C.T 2600
Fax: (02) 6273 3181

My letter below.

Minister for Home Affairs
Maung Oo
Ministry of Home Affairs
Office No. 10
Naypyitaw, Union of Myanmar
Fax: +95 67 412 439

Ole Koksvik
Philosophy, RSSS
The Australian National University ACT 0200
AUSTRALIA 18/09/2009

RE: Arrest of Kyaw Zaw Lwin on the 3rd of September in Yangon

Dear Minister,

My name is Ole Koksvik. I am a Norwegian citizen, an Australian Permanent Resident, a PhD Candidate at the Australian National University.

I am writing to request that the Myanmarese authorities immediately and unconditionally release Kyaw Zaw Lwin (who also known as Nyi Nyi Aung) unless he is charged with a recognisable criminal offence.

I would also urge the authorities to guarantee that Kyaw Zaw Lwin is not tortured or ill-treated while he remains in custody and that he has access to his family, legal counsel, and proper medical care.

Finally, I would like to urge the authorities to provide information on his whereabouts, and the reasons and legal basis for his continued detention.

Thank you for taking the time to read my concerns.

Yours sincerely,

Ole Koksvik

Chinese Human Rights Lawyer Gao Zhisheng in Danger of Torture - ASA 17/052/2009

All the details here: ASA 17/052/2009

Human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng, who has been missing since February, was seen late June or early July, looking thin and weak. In 2007, after publishing an open letter to the US congress, agents came to his home, stripped him and beat him unconscious, took him into illegal detention, during which he was beaten and received repeated electric shocks to his genitals. Lit cigarettes were held close to his eyes for several hours, leaving him partly blind for days afterwards.

He is in grave danger of torture.

Please write immediately, and before October 27, to:

Prime Minister of the People's Republic of China
WEN Jiabao Guojia Zongli
The State Council General Office
2 Fuyoujie, Xichengqu
Beijingshi 100017
People's Republic of China
Fax: +86 10 65961109 (c/o Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
Salutation: Your Excellency

and

Director of the Beijing Public Security Bureau
MA Zhenchuan Juzhang
Beijingshi Gong'anju
9 Dongdajie, Qianmen
Dongchengqu
Beijingshi 100740
People's Republic of China
Fax: +86 10 65242927
Salutation: Dear Director

Both these fax number work.

Send copies to:
Director of the Shaanxi Provincial Department of Public Security
WANG Rui Tingzhang
Shaanxisheng Gong'anting
Xinchengdayuan Donglou
Xi'anshi 710006
Shaanxisheng
People's Republic of China
Email: info@shxga.gov.cn (this address has not worked for me)

Also send a copy to the Chinese foreign mission closest to you (follow the link and look for your country).

My letter is below:

Prime Minister of the People's Republic of China
WEN Jiabao Guojia Zongli
The State Council General Office
2 Fuyoujie, Xichengqu
Beijingshi 100017
People's Republic of China
Fax: +86 10 65961109

Ole Koksvik
Philosophy, RSSS
The Australian National University ACT 0200
AUSTRALIA 21/09/2009

RE: GAO ZHISHENG
Your Excellency,

My name is Ole Koksvik. I am a Norwegian citizen, an Australian Permanent Resident, a PhD Candidate at the Australian National University.

It has come to my attention that Human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng has been observed looking thin and weak, being accompanied by several officials. I am gravely concerned for his safety. I know that he has been subjected to prolonged illegal detention and torture at the hands of the government of the People’s Republic of China before, and I fear that this is happening again.

I call on you to ensure that Gao Zhisheng is released immediately and unconditionally.

I urge you to ensure that Gao Zhisheng has access to proper medical treatment while he remains in custody, and to guarantee that he is not tortured or ill-treated while he remains in custody.

I furthermore urge you to immediately provide information on his whereabouts, and the reasons and legal basis for his continued detention.



Thank you for taking the time to read my concerns.

Yours sincerely,

Ole Koksvik

Letter Writing Made Easy

Dear All,

The point of this blog is very largely to make it easier for others to write letters for Amnesty. If you have any comments on how it can do that better, please let me know.

I think writing letters on behalf of Amnesty is easy, and it even gets easier as you go. Here are some thoughts to make it even easier.

1. Keep a template. Create a document that has your name and address in the top, and a line or two that work well to finish a letter with at the bottom. (To get an idea of how one might do this, look at any letter posted here, and subtract the content that is specific to the particular action it is about.)
2. Make it personal. Begin your letter with some words about yourself. Part of the impact of the urgent action network is that so many different people react. The recepients of the letters will only know that if you tell them who you are.
   
3. Shamelessly copy and paste. It is perfectly fine to copy text from the Urgent Action into your letter. The main strength of the Urgent Action network is in its numbers, it is wildly unrealistic to think that all the letters get read. You should ensure that your letter is grammatical, and you should write: "I urge you to release so and so immediately", not "urging the authorities to ...", and so on. Aside from that, use copy and paste a lot.
   
4. Grab a friend. If you pool your efforts with a friend, and share your template with her, you can easily double your output with almost no increase in effort. You take one action, your friend another. You create two sets of letters, one for yourself, one for your friend, and your friend does the same.
5. Set a managable target. Aim for a level of activity that you can sustain. It is better to write one letter every two weeks for a year than to write five the first week, and then no more.

If you have thoughts on how to write good Amnesty letters, please post them below.

Damning Report of Israel

The inquiry, headed by a former South African judge, Richard Goldstone, delivered a detailed and damning criticism of the war, accusing both Israel and armed Palestinian groups, notably Hamas, of war crimes and possible crimes against humanity. It was by far the most serious international inquiry into the three-week war, which left 1,400 Palestinians and 13 Israelis dead and which triggered a wave of criticism across the world.

Read on here.

Unsurprisingly, Isreal rejects the findings.

Tsvangirai Ups the Pressure

The Prime Minister in the "power sharing" government of Zimbabwe, Morgan Tsvangirai, is starting to up the pressure on Mugabe. That's good news, presumably, but I hope he can back it up.

"I am not going to stand by while Zanu-PF continue to violate the law, persecute our members of parliament, spread the language of hate, invade our productive farms … ignore our international treaties," the prime minister told thousands of supporters in Bulawayo. "I am not going to stand by and let this happen."

Read on here.

Several Hundred Thousand Tamils Still Held in Prison-like Camps

[L]ess than 5% of the 300,000 Tamils [have been] released from what the United Nations describes as "internment camps". ...

The Sri Lankan authorities recently allowed humanitarian relief workers
into Manik Farm [which is one of the camps]. The immediate criticism was that there were persistent water shortages. Then heavy rains sent rivers of sewage cascading through tents and tin sheds.

Now there are growing fears that with monsoon rains due in October, the camps could become a sea of thick mud and slop.

Doctors in the main hospital in Vavuniya, the largest town near the camp, say that more 1,000 people have died since May, mainly due to "malnutrition-related complications", and warn of an impending disaster if conditions do not improve.

Read on in the Guardian here. The Sri Lankan governments excuse is that there may be LTTE rebel soldiers hiding among the civilians, but it is hard to see how that can justify bereaving so many of their human rights in this way.

Recall that Sri Lanka in May managed to manipulate the Human Rights Council of the UN to praise its victory over the LTTE and to and refuse to investigate allegations of war crimes on both sides of the conflict. They managed to get a resolution passed saying that the war was a "domestic matter that doesn't warrant outside interference".

Recall also the earlier action about five doctors being held by the Sri Lankan government, at risk of torture. Four of these have been released, but one is still being held.

Nice News: Brown Apologises to Turing

Gordon Brown issued an unequivocal apology last night on behalf of the government to Alan Turing, the second world war codebreaker who took his own life 55 years ago after being sentenced to chemical castration for being gay.

From the Guardian. Read on here.

Turing played a vital role in the war effort. He also invented the Turing Test, which has been highly influential in thought about artificial intelligence (AI).

Juvenile Offender Faces Execution in Iran

Hossein Haghi is facing imminent execution for a murder committed when he was a 16-year-old boy. Read more here:

UA: 234/09 Index: MDE 13/095/2009

Please send appeals immediately, and before October 15:

• Leader of the Islamic Republic Ayatollah Sayed ‘Ali Khamenei; The Office of the Supreme Leader; Islamic Republic Street – End of Shahid Keshvar Doust Street; Tehran; Islamic Republic of Iran; Send email via website. (Salutation: Your Excellency)
• Head of the Judiciary Ayatollah Sadeqh Larijani; Howzeh Riyasat-e Qoveh Qazaiyeh (Office of the Head of the Judiciary) Pasteur St.; Vali Asr Ave., south of Serah-e Jomhouri; Tehran 1316814737; Islamic Republic of Iran, Send email via website. (First starred box: your given name; second starred box: your family name; third: your email address), (Salutation: Your Excellency)

Please send copies to:

• Director, Human Rights Headquarters of Iran Mohammad Javad Larijani; Howzeh Riassat-e Ghoveh Ghazaiyeh; Pasteur St, Vali Asr Ave.; south of Serah-e Jomhuri; Tehran 1316814737; Islamic Republic of Iran. Fax: +98 21 3390 4986 (please keep trying) Email: fsharafi at bia-judiciary.ir or int_aff at judiciary.ir (In the subject line: FAO Mohammad Javad Larijani)
• Your local diplomatic mission.

My letter is below.

Ayatollah Sayed ‘Ali Khamenei
The Office of the Supreme Leader
Islamic Republic Street – End of Shahid Keshvar Doust Street
Tehran
Islamic Republic of Iran

Ole Koksvik
Philosophy, RSSS
The Australian National University
Canberra ACT 2600
AUSTRALIA Friday, 11 September 2009


RE: Death sentence of Hossein Haghi

Your Excellency,

My name is Ole Koksvik. I am a Norwegian citizen, an Australian Permanent Resident, and a PhD Candidate at the Australian National University. It has come to my attention that Hossein Haghi’s death sentence was approved by Branch 27 of the Supreme Court during the last week of August 2009.

I write to express my concern at this development and I call on you and the authorities in your country to commute this death sentence of Hossein Haghi.

I respectfully remind you that Iran is a state party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), both of which prohibit the use of the death penalty against people convicted of crimes committed when they were under 18.

Thank you for taking the time to read my concerns.

Yours sincerely,


Ole Koksvik

Stop Violence against Evicted Community

The inhabitants of San Antonio Ebulá in Mexico were forcibly evicted, and some were beaten, on 13 August by private security guards aided by police. Although the village was levelled, the inhabitants are planning to return. It is feared that violence may be used by police and private security guards to prevent their return.

Read more here: UA 235-09 (pdf file)

Please send appeals, before October 15, to:

• Jorge Carlos Hurtado Valdez; Gobernador del Estado de Campeche; Palacio de Gobierno; Calle 8 entre 61 y Circuito Baluartes S/N; San Fco. de Campeche 24009; MEXICO. Fax: +52 98 1811 4004 (Salutation: Dear Governor), and
• Lic. Carlos Miguel Aysa González; Secretario de Seguridad Pública; Av. López Portillo por Av. Lázaro Cárdenas S/N; Col. Laureles, San Fco. de Campeche; C. P. 24085; MEXICO. Fax: +52 98 1 811 9110 (ask: "me puede dar tono de fax por favor") (Salutation: Dear Governor)

Send copies to:

• And your local diplomatic mission
• Equipo Indignación: informativo at indignacion.org.mx

My letter is below.

Ole Koksvik
Philosophy, RSSS
The Australian National University
Canberra ACT 2600
AUSTRALIA


Jorge Carlos Hurtado Valdez
Gobernador del Estado de Campeche
Palacio de Gobierno, Calle
8 entre 61 y Circuito Baluartes S/N,
San Fco. De Campeche 24009.
MEXICO
Fax: +52 1811 4004

RE: San Antonio Ebulá

My name is Ole Koksvik. I am a Norwegian citizen, an Australian Permanent Resident, and a
PhD Candidate at the Australian National University.

After receiving information regards this matter from Amnesty International, I write to express
my concern about the current situation of the inhabitants of San Antonio Ebulá.

As I understand it, they have been forcibly and violently evicted from their village without
warning or a legal warrant and were not provided with an adequate alternative. I strongly urge, you and your fellow authorities to investigate the allegations of beating and damages against private property and dwellings.

I also ask that you provide the inhabitats of San Antonio Ebulá with protection from further forced eviction of abuses by private security guards or police, should they wish to return to their village pending the outcome of legal proceedings in relationship to the ownership and use of the land. Please make every attempt to promptly resolve the ownership of the land and engage in genuine consultation with the community, including provision of adequate alternative housing with security of tenure and compensation, should this be necessary.

Thank you for taking the time to read my concerns.

Yours sincerely,

Ole Koksvik

Legal Aid Worker at Risk of Torture

Three letters today! (I am a member of a small group who help each other write letters. The letters on this page is the result of our joint effort.)

The first is from China.

Zhuang Lu works for a legal aid and research organisation called the Open Constitution Initiative in Beijing. She has been missing since 22 August, and may be in police custody and is at risk of torture or other ill-treatment.

Read more here: ASA 17/051/2009

Please write before October 13 2009 to:

• Director of the Beijing Public Security Bureau; MA Zhenchuan Juzhang; Beijingshi Gong'anju; 9 Qianmen Dongdajie; Dongchengqu Beijingshi 100740; People's Republic of China; Fax: +86 10 85222320 (Salutation: Dear Director)
• Minister of Public Security of the People's Republic of China; MENG Jianzhu Buzhang; Gong’anbu; 14 Dongchang’anjie; Dongchengqu; Beijingshi 100741; People's Republic of China (Salutation: Your Excellency) Fax: +86 10 63099216

Remember to send a copy to China's diplomatic mission in your local area.

My letter is below.

Ole Koksvik
Philosophy, RSSS
The Australian National University
Canberra ACT 2600
AUSTRALIA


MA Zhenchuan Juzhang
Beijingshi Gong'anju
9 Qianmen Dongdajie
Dongchengqu
Beijingshi 100740
People's Republic of China 11/09/2009
Fax: +86 10 85222320


Dear Director,

My name is Ole Koksvik. I am a Norwegian citizen, an Australian Permanent
Resident, a PhD Candidate at the Australian National University.

It has come to my attention that Zhuang Lu, who is the Finance Secretary of the Open Constitution Initiative (Gongmeng) was detained by police on 29 July and, despite statements from the police that she has been released on August 22, her whereabouts are still unknown. She has not been hear from since 26 August.

I call on you to release Zhuang Lu immediately and unconditionally unless she is charged with an internationally recognizable offence.

I urge you to guarantee that she is not tortured or ill-treated while she remains in custody, and to immediately provide information on her whereabouts, and the reasons and legal basis for her continued detention.

Thank you for taking the time to read this letter and to consider my concerns.


Sincerely yours,
Ole Koksvik

On Faxing

I want to encourage all readers to use fax as much as possible when writing letters on behalf of Amnesty International. It is harder to dismiss a piece of paper than it is to dismiss an email; thus letters and faxes are better than emails, I think. But it is also important that the action reach quickly, and so faxes are the better choice of those two.

You may not be aware that you can fax without having a fax machine. There are many providers that let you send an email, with what you want faxed in an attachment, and they will send the fax for you. We use Ozefax, and this has proved a reliable and cheap service so far.

So, please consider sending faxes!

Travis Bishop, soldier imprisoned as conscientious objector in USA

AMR 51/093/2009

Sargent Travis Bishop is serving a one-year prison sentence over his refusal to serve in Afghanistan, a refusal caused by his religious beliefs. AI considers him a prisoner of conscience. Click above for full details.

Please write to:
Commanding Officer of Travis Bishop's Unit

• Lieutenant General Rick Lynch; Commanding General; III Corps HQ; 1001 761st Tank Battalion Ave.; Bldg. 1001, Room W105; Fort Hood, TX 76544-5005; USA (Salutation: Dear Commanding General), and
• Military Commander Colonel James H. Jenkins III; Headquarters, 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade; Building 10053, Battalion Avenue; Fort Hood, TX 76544-5068; USA

before 05 October.

Send copies to your local diplomatic mission for the US, as well as to Travis's lawyer
Travis Bishop’s lawyer

• James M. Branum; 3334 W. Main St., PMB #412; Norman, OK 73072; USA

My letter is below.

Lieutenant General Rick Lynch
Ole Koksvik
Philosophy, RSSS
The Australian National University
Canberra ACT 2600
AUSTRALIA

Commanding General
III Corps HQ
1001 761st Tank Battalion Ave.
Bldg. 1001, Room W105
Fort Hood, TX 76544-5005
USA


Dear Commanding General,

RE: Travis Bishop

My name is Ole Koksvik. I am a Norwegian citizen, an Australian Permanent Resident and a PhD Candidate at the Australian National University.

I wish to draw your attention to the fact that Amnesty International considers Travis Bishop to be a prisoner of conscience, imprisoned solely for his conscientious objection to participate in war.

I understand that Bishop went absent without leave, however he did so to complete an application for conscientious objector status and seek legal advice, thereafter returning to his unit to submit the application.

I strongly urge the authorities to release Travis Bishop immediately and unconditionally.

Thank you for taking the time to read my concerns.

Yours sincerely,


Ole Koksvik

Police Killings in Venezuela: 900 a Year!

From the Guardian again:

Human rights group estimate that during the past decade there has been an average of 900 killings a year. "Extra-judicial executions are extremely widespread. It's a habitual practice," said Pablo Fernandez, of the Support Network for Justice and Peace, an advocacy group that tracks human rights abuses.

Read the whole article here.

Doctors Participated in Torture, Committed Illegal Research

First of all, I'm tired of the BS of calling what CIA did "harsh techniques", or "rough interrogation" or similar euphemisms. What the CIA (and others) have done is torture, pure and simple. Waterboarding is torture. Slamming someone's head against the wall is torture. Keeping someone awake for prolonged periods of time is torture. The list goes on. So, this is an allegation by a watchdog that doctors participated in torture.

From the Guardian:

Doctors and psychologists the CIA employed to monitor its "enhanced interrogation" of terror suspects came close to, and may even have committed, unlawful human experimentation, a medical ethics watchdog has alleged. ...

PHR [Physicians for Human Rights] says health professionals participated at every stage in the development, implementation and legal justification of what it calls the CIA's secret "torture programme".

Read on here.