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Amnesty International Report 2008 - Includes Summary Video
27 May 2008
Amnesty
International today challenged world leaders to apologize for six decades of
human rights failure and re-commit themselves to deliver concrete improvements.
“The human rights flashpoints in Darfur, Zimbabwe, Gaza, Iraq and Myanmar
demand immediate action,” said Irene Khan, Secretary General of Amnesty
International, launching AI Report 2008: State of the World’s Human Rights.
“Injustice, inequality and impunity are the hallmarks of our world today.
Governments must act now to close the yawning gap between promise and
performance.”
Amnesty International’s Report 2008, shows that sixty years after the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the United Nations, people are still
tortured or ill-treated in at least 81 countries, face unfair trials in at
least 54 countries and are not allowed to speak freely in at least 77
countries.
“2007 was characterised by the impotence of Western governments and the
ambivalence or reluctance of emerging powers to tackle some of the world’s
worst human rights crises, ranging from entrenched conflicts to growing
inequalities which are leaving millions of people behind,” said Ms Khan.
Amnesty International cautioned that the biggest threat to the future of human
rights is the absence of a shared vision and collective leadership.
“2008 presents an unprecedented opportunity for new leaders coming to power and
countries emerging on the world stage to set a new direction and reject the
myopic policies and practices that in recent years have made the world a more
dangerous and divided place,” said Ms Khan.
Amnesty International challenged governments to set a new paradigm for
collective leadership based on the principles of the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights.
“The most powerful must lead by example,” said Ms Khan.
Ms
Khan warned: “World leaders are in a state of denial but their failure to act
has a high cost. As Iraq and Afghanistan show, human rights problems are not
isolated tragedies, but are like viruses that can infect and spread rapidly,
endangering all of us.”
“Governments today must show the same degree of vision, courage and commitment
that led the United Nations to adopt the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
sixty years ago.”
“There is a growing demand from people for justice, freedom and equality.”
Some of the most striking images of 2007 were of monks in Myanmar, lawyers in
Pakistan, and women activists in Iran.
“Restless and angry, people will not be silenced, and leaders ignore them at
their own peril,” said Ms Khan.
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