Educational Integration of Roma Children in Bulgaria

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 08:55:07 -0700

At an estimated 10 million people, Roma are the largest, yet most discriminated-against minority in Europe. In Bulgaria, 70 percent of young Roma, (approximately 30,000 children), attend sub-standard schools in segregated Romani neighborhoods. Inadequate material conditions and the poor quality of education provided by unmotivated teachers contribute to low attendance rates of Roma pupils. Altogether, they alienate Romani children from schools and perpetuate the cycle of illiteracy, unemployment, and poverty.

HIV/AIDS in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 09:11:21 -0700

The silent storm of HIV/AIDS is ravaging communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) where over 2.6 million people are living with HIV/AIDS. Some one hundred thousand people have died of AIDS and more than 700,000 children have lost one or both parents to this preventable disease that, if not tackled directly by government policy, has the potential of evolving into a raging pandemic. To date only 3% of those needing anti-retroviral treatment are receiving it.

Torture and displacement in Northern Uganda

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 09:40:47 -0700

Two decades of armed conflict between the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and the Ugandan government in the Northern Uganda, has caused some nearly two million civilians to be displaced from their homes. Ordered into so-called protected camps, Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) face heightened insecurity, appalling living conditions and the lack the means of subsistence.

Please oppose vigilante groups such as the Minuteman Project

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 10:06:22 -0700

There have long been vigilantes harassing border crossers and communities, but this year has seen an alarming increase in their activity and visibility. For example, in April, a new group called the “Minuteman Project" stepped into the national spotlight when several hundred recruits gathered in Arizona to patrol the border. Only months later, they are expanding their activities into California, Texas and several other states
throughout the country.

Children in the Ranks

Mon, 18 Jun 2007 20:17:09 -0700

Support the Child Soldier Prevention Act of 2007
Limit US Military Assistance to Governments Using Child Soldiers

The Death Penalty

Amnesty International — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 18:22:01 -0700

The death penalty is the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment. It violates the right to life. It is irrevocable and can be inflicted on the innocent. It has never been shown to deter crime more effectively than other punishments.

Amnesty International works for an end to executions and the abolition of the death penalty everywhere.

Progress has been dramatic. In 1977 only 16 countries had abolished the death penalty for all crimes. Today the figure stands at 89.

Support immediate UN Action on Burma's Human Rights and Humanitarian Crisis

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 08:09:22 -0700

Since August 19, 2007 there has been a series of peaceful protests across Burma as monks, activists and ordinary citizens challenge misrule and repression. On September 26, the Burmese military government responded with violence.

End Extraordinary Rendition and Torture in the World Community

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 11:12:57 -0700

Human rights groups and several public inquiries in Europe have found the U.S. government, with the complicity of numerous governments worldwide, to be engaged in the illegal practice of extraordinary rendition, secret detention, and torture. The U.S. government-sponsored program of renditions is an unlawful practice in which numerous persons have been illegally detained and secretly flown to third countries, where they have suffered additional human rights abuses including torture and enforced disappearance.

End Slave Labor in Brazil

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 13:20:48 -0700

Every year, more than 25,000 workers are enslaved by landowners in rural Brazil, mostly in the Amazon region.

Take Action: help Iraqi Refugees

The Hub — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 12:16:22 -0700

More than two million refugees from Iraq have fled to neighboring countries, mostly in Jordan and Syria. Another two million Iraqis are displaced within Iraq due to violence and persecution. The needs of these uprooted people are enormous.

Many fleeing Iraqis have no legal status in nearby countries and desperately need our help. Inside Iraq they need food, medicine, jobs, and a safe place to live.