A new international report is warning that human rights defenders around the world are facing increasing efforts to stifle their actions. That includes in China, where authorities are clamping down on dissent before the Olympics. For VOA, Lisa Bryant has more from Paris.
A report by the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders paints a mixed picture of the fight for fundamental freedom around the world. It says that while the number of human rights defenders is growing - such as lawyers,
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The report,
abercrombie, which looks at human rights abuses in 100 countries around the world, was jointly authored by the Paris-based International Federation for Human Rights and the World Organization Against Torture in Geneva. Antoine Bernard is executive director of the Paris rights federation.
"In particular, what we are very worried about is the development of law as a tool for arbitrariness,
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According to the report, the atmosphere in China is becoming increasingly hostile to human rights and those defending them before the Beijing Olympics. It cites four people who were arrested after protesting the games,
ralph lauren pas cher, including Hu Jia, who was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison in April.
Bernard cites other areas,
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louboutin, the Central African Republic and Chad,
polo ralph lauren pas cher, where those investigating human rights abuses during conflict are increasingly under threat. Women's rights activists are also under attack in a number of countries,
ralph lauren, as are lawyers and other justice officials in places like Iran,
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Bernard says attacks against human rights defenders have stepped up since the 2001 terrorist strikes on the United States.
"The consequences outside the U.S. of such laws as the Patriot Act are tremendous," he added. "We know that in the Arab world, some regimes use them as kind of green lights for arbitrary detention or violations of right to habeas corpus."
The human rights groups are urging the world community to do more to protect those defending human rights in 2008, which marks the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
By Lisa Bryant
Paris
19 June 2008
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