CARRY THE TORCH FOR DARFUR

WHEN ISN'T JUSTICE THE MOST IMPORTANT THING?

EVEN WHILE CELEBRATING THE OLYMPICS?


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Report on Darfur
From: AlJazeeraEnglish
The text from the Youtube upload:
The United Nations African Mission in Darfur has been touted as the largest peacekeeping operation the UN has ever undertaken.

But six months after forming, the joint force is suffering from a shortage of troops and a lack of equipment.

Furthermore, authorities are threatening to expel them if the International Criminal Court indicts Omar al-Bashir, the Sudanese president, for alleged crimes committed in Darfur.

Mohammed Adow joined a group of peacekeepers on patrol in Southern Darfur.

The following text is from Amnesty International:

Torture. Long-term detentions without charge or trial. Censorship of the internet and media. Does this sound like a country that’s trying to improve its human rights record?

Ye Guozhu, a human rights defender in Beijing, was sentenced to four years' imprisonment for taking action against forced evictions related to the Olympics. Amnesty International fears he has been tortured while in detention. He was due to be released on Saturday, July 26 but will now remain imprisoned until October, after the end of the 2008 Olympic Games.

Chinese authorities have stepped up their repression of human rights defenders in order to “clean up” Beijing. With the Olympics only 10 days away, take action and urge China to create a positive human rights legacy.

In 2001 China made a promise to improve its human rights record if given the honor of hosting the Olympic Games. Instead, China has become increasingly repressive with crackdowns on dissent and the rounding up and arrest of human rights defenders. Citing "security", China has imprisoned individuals for doing nothing more than drawing international attention to ongoing human rights violations.

President Bush will attend the opening ceremonies of the Games on August 8. Before he leaves for Beijing, tell President Bush to make a public statement condemning the human rights violations perpetrated in preparation for the Olympics.

Dear President Bush,

Your visit to the Olympics Games this summer is a historic moment for you to promote human rights in China, and we urge you to express concern about the increase of repression in the run-up to the Games to the Chinese authorities. As the leader of the United States, your support for human rights would send a clear message to China and the world that Americans are fully committed to the preservation of human dignity - one of the "Fundamental Principles of Olympism".

When applying to the International Olympic Committee in 2001, the Chinese government suggested the Games would act as a catalyst for human rights developments in the country. Unfortunately, as China prepares for the Games, its human rights record has deteriorated. Human right defenders have been arrested, journalists were harassed, “re-education through labor” programs proliferate, and executions continue.

Mr. President, please use your position as leader of the United States to push the Chinese towards upholding their human rights commitments, thus ensuring a positive Olympic legacy.

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