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A jailed Syrian lawyer, who has defended leading opposition figures in his homeland, has won Martin Ennals price – an international award for human rights defenders. Muhannad al-Hassani, detained since July, is the second laureate from Syria in five years to be awarded the Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders.

Rebiya Kadeer, Uyghur human rights defender, the 2004 Rafto Prize laureate, and Lidia Yusupova, Chechen human rights advocate, the 2005 Rafto Prize laureate, were among the speakers at the Oslo Freedom Forum from 26-29 April, an annual conference that brings together human rights defenders to share their experience and expertise.

Almost four weeks have already passed since six of seven Saharawi human rights activists, held at the Moroccan prison of Sale, began their open hunger strike. They were arrested and detained, on 8 October 2009, on their return from a family visit to the Saharawi refugees camps in South West of Algeria. The Moroccan government intends to bring them before a military court on account of that trip.

Kariane Westrheim, right, Associate Professor at the University of Bergen, was detained by the police at the airport in Istanbul on 24 April. Westrheim is a former member of the Rafto Foundation’s Board and the Rafto Prize Committee.

Spring campaign is all about security and human rights, with particular emphasis on the illegal arrests and disappearances. Come to our stand outside of Silver Mountain in Stavanger on Thursday at the 29 April 15.00, and sign our petition, you too! We also need person to keep the stand!

Amnesty International has condemned as ‘absurd’ a legal hearing aiming to revoke the legal licences of two Chinese human rights lawyers for having, among other things, in the framework of their professional duties, defended migrants, Falun Gong practitioners, dispossessed peasants, HIV victims and the parents of children contaminated by tampered milk.

The President of Western Sahara, Mohammed Abdelaziz, in a strongly worded letter to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon complains about his poor leadership and unwillingness to fulfil the UN’s mandate in the Moroccan-occupied territory. Mr Abdelaziz demands changes to the UN peacekeeping mission.

Kurdish Leyla Zana, the 1994 Rafto Prize laureate, was sentenced to three years imprisonment by Diyarbakir Court in the Republic of Turkey on 8 April, reports the EU Republic of Turkey Civic Commission.

European countries must reject once and for all the dangerous practice of relying on “no torture” promises from governments with proven records of torture, Amnesty International said in a new report released on 12 March 2010.