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The right to say what you think, to get together with your
friends, to know that you are provided with the necessities of
life, are all things we take for granted in Canada. But millions
of people around the world are denied these rights and are
punished for demanding them.
December 10th is International Human Rights Day, the day when
Amnesty International supporters in Canada and around the world
mobilize to write hundreds of thousands of letters that promote
human rights and help protect those who are defending them. You
can join them.
Write for Rights is the world's biggest letter-writing event.
Last year, participants in more than 50 countries wrote more
than 700,000 letters – more than 20,000 of them in Canada - to
help prisoners of conscience, human rights defenders under
threat, and vulnerable communities facing ongoing abuse of their
human rights.
The idea is simple. Every year, on or about December 10th,
Amnesty International selects about 12 cases where individual or
community human rights are being violated. Concerned individuals
write to governments, urging them to stop human rights
violations. They can also write to the individuals who are at
risk, letting them know they are not alone.
Anyone can participate. Many gather with friends, family,
schoolmates, workmates or faith communities to hold events – in
their homes, at school, at cafes and pubs, in their place of
worship, at work on their lunch hour.
Easy to sign up, easy to do
Taking part in Write For Rights can take only a few minutes of
your time. Amnesty International makes it easy by providing
everything you need to act on your own or to hold an event. By
going to www.writeathon.ca,
you can find everything you need – the cases, details of how to
hold an event, how to publicize it if you want to, how to find
an event near you, what others are doing.
Last year, one participant who held a write-a-thon during lunch
at her workplace wrote: “It was simple to organize, and I know
some people were writing letters for the first time. We ordered
pizza, folks read the case files, ate lunch and wrote letters.”
The more than 2,000 people who organized events for last year's
Write For Rights would echo how easy it is. And it can make such
a big difference.
Letter writing works
One of the most rewarding parts of participating in Write For
Rights is knowing your letter made a difference. A popular case
in last year's Write For Rights was Rita Mahato in Nepal, who
was threatened by police because of her work with victims of
sexual violence against women at the Women's Rehabilitation
Centre (WOREC). She recently reported relations with the police
have improved since a new inspector arrived in June. Staff are
now free to register complaints against assaults without fear of
being intimidated and harassed by police.
“I feel happy now that they have given me my liberty,” said
Indigenous prisoner of conscience Raúl Hernández of Mexico as he
walked out of the jail in Ayutla de los Libres, Guerrero. He was
unjustly imprisoned for more than two years on fabricated
charges of having murdered an alleged army informant. The
presiding judge Alfredo Sánchez Sánchez ordered his immediate
and unconditional release on August 27th , stating that Raúl
Hernández “is neither guilty nor judicially responsible for the
murder of Alejandro Feliciando García.” Amnesty members around
the world had campaigned for his release and sent letters of
support directly to Raul during last year's Human Rights Day
Write for Rights event.
Join us
You don't have to be a member of Amnesty International to take
part in Write For Rights. You can invite those who don't want to
write letters to sponsor your letter writing – 10 letters at $1
a letter.
At this time of the year, it is wonderful to take a few minutes
to help someone half a world away. When asked why they
participated in Write For Rights, many people provided us with
moving testimonials. “To defend those that can't defend
themselves,” wrote a participant from Vancouver. “I want to be
active in the demand for all of us to raise our voices, so that
all may be free to demand our right to free expression
throughout the world,”wrote a participant from Hamilton,
Ontario.
They have helped change the world for the good. So can you.
More information on this topic, including sign up, can be found
online at www.writeathon.ca
or toll-free 1-800-Amnesty (1-800-266-3789).
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