Militarisation

3rd September 2015

Staff from WLUML's International Coordination Office in London joined with the Women In Black to hold a vigil drawing attention to the UK government’s complicity in human rights abuses in Sudan, and abuses against women in particular.

 06/17/2015

 Brian Dooley, Director, Human Rights First's Human Rights Defenders Program

Sunday June 21 will mark one year since Egyptian human rights defender Yara Sallam and 22 others were arrested in the Cairo district of Heliopolis. She's been in jail since then, along with six other women who were arrested at the same time in connection with a peaceful protest. Sanaa Seif, sister of prominent jailed activist Alaa Abdel Fattah, is one of these six women. They have all been sentenced to two years in prison.

أن تكون مسافرا بينما بلدك يغلي، ذلك بحد ذاته حزن، وأن تكون عالقا في مطار ما، أو مدينة ما، بسبب حرب تطحن بلدك فذلك أشد حزنا، أما لو كنت عالقا تنتظر أن تصلك رسالة تخبرك عن مقتل أحد أحبائك، فهنا تكون قد صعدت إلى قمة الحزن، ثم وما في قمة الحزن لا يسمى ولا تحكيه الحكايا.

Dear King Salman,

As a loyal subject of the Al Saud royal family, I congratulate you on your ascension to the throne. I join both fellow Saudis and world leaders, including U.S. President Barack Obama, who will be here in Riyadh on Tuesday, in expressing my condolences for the recent death of King Abdullah and sending good wishes to you, our new king.