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Leyla Zana, a well know political spokesperson for the Kurds in the Republic of Turkey and the 1994 Rafto Prize Laureate has been sentenced to two years imprisonment by a Turkish Court in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir. The court´s judgment said she violated the Anti-Terrorism Law after a speech she held at a Kurdish Newroz Festival in 2007. (12-APR-08)
 

On 10 April, as part of the Thursday Club, the Association POLIS invited the originators and participants of the undertaking ´Hominem Quaero´ to share their experiences from the implementation of this pro-tolerance project, which was created as an answer to a need of breaking interculutral and interpersonal barriers in a culturally and ethnically homogeneous polish society. (11-APR-08)

Imprisoned Editor-in-Chief of “Realny Azerbaijan” and “Gundalik Azerbayjan” newspapers Eynulla Fatullayev (right) has started a hunger-strike in Prison #12. Eynulla appealed to the prison’s leadership in the written form, informing them about the hunger-strike. Later over 40 journalists, political activists and political prisoners in total joined the hunger-strike. (10-APR-08)
 

On 18 January, a Romanian citizen died at a hospital in Krakow after being transported there from a detention awaiting trial. Doctors stated extreme emaciation of his organism as a result of a four-month-long hunger strike. The 33-year old Claudiu Crulic (1.75 m in height) weighed 40 kg at the time of death. The case was recently described by the weekly ‘Tygodnik Powszechny’. (09-APR-08)

At the World Movement for Democracy (WMD)´s fifth assembly, today, the National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) was honoured on behalf of Somali journalists with the Democracy Courage Tribute. -This tribute comes at a crucial moment for press freedom, human rights and the transitional democratization process in the Republic of Somalia, said NUSOJ´s Secretary General Omar Faruk Osman Nur, right. (09-APR-08)
 

Per-Yngve Monsen, formerly employed by the Norwegian branch of the German multinational company Siemens, has been rewarded for his courage and stamina in reporting on his employer´s corrupt conduct and systematic over-charging in contracts with the public sector and government in Norway. On Freedom of Expression Foundation´s website, Monsen receives praise for his brave use of his ight to freedom of expression. (08-APR-08)
 

Per-Yngve Monsen, formerly employed by the Norwegian branch of the German multinational company Siemens, has been rewarded for his courage and stamina in reporting on his employer´s corrupt conduct and systematic over-charging in contracts with the public sector and government in Norway. On Freedom of Expression Foundation´s website, Monsen receives praise for his brave use of his right to freedom of expression. (08-APR-08)
 

All UN member states are facing a rigorous examination of their human rights records. The inaugural session of the UN Human Rights Council´s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) working group began on Monday. The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a new mechanism of the UN Human Rights Council and, over the next four years, it will regularly review the human rights obligations and commitments of all 192 Member States. Governments themselves will carry out this regular and systematic scrutiny. (08-APR-08)
 

The Rafto Foundation and the European Law Student Association in Bergen invites to the international seminar “Focus: the People´s Republic of China, Human Rights and 2008 Beijing Olympics” on Friday, April 11 from 10:15-15:15. Rebiya Kadeer, right, the 2004 Rafto Prize laureate, is one of the speakers. (07-APR-08)