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On 11 May, the Belarusian Helsinki Committee (BHC) held its annual convention. Lawyer Aleh Hulak was elected the new chairperson of the organization. “The BHC is ready to assist governmental agencies, organizations and officials in democratization and the protection of human rights.”  It is also going to monitor upcoming parliamentary elections. (15-MAY-08)
 

One by one, they come. They talk about the incessant beatings, the water that was poured over their nose and throat until they couldn’t breathe and the bricks that were tied to their testicles. One says a soldier cocked a gun in his mouth and said “Now you’re dead.” Another recounts how a bagful of chopped, fresh red pepper was pulled over his head, how his eyes and skin felt like they were on fire and he couldn’t breathe. A young man says dead bodies were dropped off in his room, and he was ordered to clean off the blood. Right, demonstration of torture in Karamoja. (15-MAY-08)
 

Security agents have arrested an unknown number of students and subjected at least one of them to beatings following unrest at al-Bahr al-Ahmar University in Port Republic of the Sudan, Red Sea State. A human rights defender who tried to assist the detainees has also been targeted. (15-MAY-08)
 

An American-Vietnamese political activist was sentenced to six months jail in a one-day trial, but he will be deported at the weekend as he had already served the time, U.S. embassy officials and his party said on Tuesday. Nguyen Quoc Quan, right, 54, an engineer from Sacramento, California, was arrested last November along with several other activists of the Viet Tan (Vietnam Reform Party) who were preparing to distribute leaflets opposed to one-party rule. (13-MAY-08)
 

Jolanta Kramarz, a blind person, has been using a guide dog for several years. Because of the dog, she has not been allowed to enter various public institutions, stores or restaurants. She has also been asked to leave the subway and city buses, despite the existence of the Warsaw City Council resolution, which excludes guide dogs from under all restrictions.(14-MAY-08)

Today, the Norwegian Helsinki Committee (NHC) presents a report documenting that the situation in the Russian parts of Northern Caucasus remains the worst human rights crisis in Europe. A Regional System of Torture, Forced Confessions and Fabricated Trials shows how Russian authorities abuse the court system in their ongoing anti-terror operation. (14-MAY-08)
 

The African Commission on Human and Peoples´ Rights (ACHPR) has released a newsletter published by the Commission´s Special Rapporteur for Human Rights Defenders Reine Alapini-Gansou, right, highlighting the importance of the right to freedom of association.  The newsletter includes articles on the contribution of associations in the promotion and protection of human rights in Africa, current international law on the topic of freedom of association, and examples of the implementation of this right at the national level in Africa. (13-MAY-08) 
 

International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) condemn the violations of human rights committed by Republic of Kenya army members in Mount Elgon, Western Republic of Kenya. According to a report released last month by the Kenyan NGO Independent Medico-Legal Unit (IMLU), the military operation resulted in mass arrests, subsequent prosecution of over twelve hundred persons, and torture. (13-MAY-08)
 

An American-Vietnamese political activist was sentenced to six months jail in a one-day trial, but he will be deported at the weekend as he had already served the time, U.S. embassy officials and his party said on Tuesday. Nguyen Quoc Quan, right, 54, an engineer from Sacramento, California, was arrested last November along with several other activists of the Viet Tan (Vietnam Reform Party) who were preparing to distribute leaflets opposed to one-party rule. (13-MAY-08)
 

Former Polish President Lech Walesa has been awarded a gilded pigeon statuette, funded on the 60th anniversary of adopting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations General Assembly. Lech Walesa received the award on account of his contributions to human rights issues. (12-MAY-08)

Former Polish President Lech Walesa has been awarded a gilded pigeon statuette, funded on the 60th anniversary of adopting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations General Assembly. Lech Walesa received the award on account of his contributions to human rights issues. (12-MAY-08)
 

-Despite the tragedy that hit Burma a week ago, the junta has been determined to carry through the national referendum on the constitution as planned, today. Only the hardest hit areas will instead cast their vote on 24 May. Exile media report that the turnout was low, and that many who actually showed up to vote were told that they had already been voted for and that the punishment for voting against the junta’s proposition is three years’ imprisonment, says Inger Lise Husøy, right, Director of the Norwegian Burma Committee (NBC) (10-MAY-08)