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On the 9th of June officers from the Ministry of Internal Affairs accompanied by the National Security Service personnel raided the Norwegian Helsinki Committee’s office in Kyrgyzstan’s capital Bishkek. -We consider this action a clear violation of international norms, says Bjørn Engesland , right, Secretary General of the Norwegian Helsinki Committee (9-JUNE-08).
 

A Kurdish boy, believed to be 16 or 17 years old, was executed in Islamic Republic of Iran on Tuesday. Mohammad Hassanzadeh was hanged in Sanandaj prison following his conviction for the murder, when aged about 15, of another boy, then aged 10. A 60-year-old man, Rahim Pashabadi, also convicted of murder, was executed alongside him. Amnesty International condemned the execution. (11-JUNE-08)
 

The Norwegian Tibet Committe (DNT) and the Norwegian Council for the Rights of the Kurds (RKR) jointly invites to a seminar addressing the challenges of suppressed and marginalised peoples in their efforts to maintain their cultural heritage and identity. The seminar at the Human Rights House in Oslo on Wednesday 10 June from 10:00 to 15:30 will bring together experts on both the Kurdish and the Tibetan case. (06-JUNE-08)
 

The Norwegian Council for the Rights of the Kurds (RKR) will observe the third anniversary of the murder of Masuq al-Khaznawi, right, with a memorial meeting at the Human Rights House in Oslo tomorrow, Thursday 5 June, at 5 pm. al-Khaznawi was murdered 1 June 2005. (04-JUNE-08) 
 

The Norwegian Council for the Rights of the Kurds invites to an open meeting today at 16.15 at the Human Rights House in Oslo. Keynote speaker at the meeting is Hemen Saidi, who represents KDP and teaches in exile at the University of Arbil. Saidi will give a presentation of the political situation in Islamic Republic of Iran in general, and about the situation for the Kurds in particular. (29-MAY-08)
 

Some time ago, the Norwegian playwright Erling Kittelsen’s, right, play ‘På himmelen’ (‘On the sky’) (2000) was staged in Amman, Jordan. The title, the production and the reception / interpretation all contributed to Kittelsen and his director Bani Hani being subjected to a fatwa. Kittelsen´s response was to write about it, in Jordan, and enter into dialogue with the islamists. He achieved to have the fatwa called off. (28-MAY-08)
 

Today, Burmese autrhorities announced that Aung San Suu Kyi´s, right, house arrest has been renewed for another six months. -This shows the junta´s true face, says Inger Lise Husøy, Director of the Norwegian Burma Committee (NBC) . -They don´t want dialogue and they don´t want transition to democracy. On the contrary, they fear Suu Kyi´s enormous public support, adds Husøy. (27-MAY-08)
 

In recent years, several Afghani journalists, writers, activists and publicly elected leaders have experienced serious threats. Some have been harassed to silence, others have been killed. The Norwegian Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Committee and Norwegian PEN jointly invite to a seminar that addresses the difficult working conditions for working conditions and independent media in Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. Waheed Warasta, author and leader of Afghan PEN, is the keynote speaker. (27-MAY-08)
 

All-Russian Nongovernmental Movement “For Human  Rights,” a coalition of Russuan NGOs, has sent an open letter to the President of the Russian Federation Mr. Dmitry Medvedev, to grant pardon to a number of Russian citizens who have fallen victim to politically motivated persecution. The letter reminds Medvedev of his repeated references to the importance for the Russian Federation to follow the principle of the rule of law. Human Rights House Foundation (HRH F) has added its name to the list of signatories. (22-MAY-08)