December, 14 2011, 08:51am EDT
Amnesty International Report Slams Discriminatory Practice In Spain
Human Rights Organization Details Racial Profiling in New Report
WASHINGTON
The Spanish authorities must stop the practice of police selecting individuals for identity checks based on their ethnic or racial characteristics, Amnesty International said in a report released today at a press conference in Madrid.
Stop racism, not people: Racial profiling and immigration control in Spain, exposes the real extent of identity checks by police based on ethnic and racial characteristics and the consequences for ethnic minorities.
''People who do not 'look Spanish' can be stopped by police as often as four times a day, for identity checks, at any time of day or night, in any place or situation,'' said Izza Leghtas, Amnesty International's researcher on Spain. ''This practice is unlawful under Spanish and International law. It affects both foreigners and Spanish nationals from ethnic minorities. It is not only discriminatory and illegal - it also fuels prejudice - as those who witness such stops presume the victims to be engaged in criminal activities.''
According to Spanish law the police can check the identity of people in public places when there is a security concern, for example when a crime has been committed in the area. However, Amnesty International research has revealed that deliberate identity checks on foreigners in the absence of any security concern are widespread.
Certain police stations in Madrid have been given weekly and monthly quotas for the number of irregular migrants they have to detain thus encouraging officers to target people belonging to ethnic minorities.
Racial profiling, when the police stop to question and arrest people because of their skin color does not always amount to discrimination, but is discriminatory and illegal according to international law if it has no reasonable or objective justification.
''The Spanish authorities are using stop and search powers abusively as a way to control migration. Spain has the right to control migration, however that should not be at the expense of the rights of migrants and minorities to equality and protection from discrimination,'' said Leghtas.
Furthermore, people who peacefully observe or document these identity checks, and inform people of their human rights in such situations, are sometimes intimidated and fined.
''Spanish police must provide officers with training on how to conduct identity checks in compliance with the principle of equality and the prohibition of discrimination, and bring to an end the intimidation of those who observe or document the identity checks,'' said Leghtas. ''It is time the authorities acknowledge and condemn the practice of racial profiling as discriminatory and unlawful and take measures to eliminate it.''
Amnesty International also recommends the Spanish government take action to ensure that there are no quotas for detaining irregular migrants and require that police officers record and document all stops.
Regular data on the number of police operations by area and motive should be published, distinguishing between those carried out for immigration control and criminal law enforcement,
''Addressing racial profiling by police is crucial in any serious attempt to combat racism and xenophobia,'' said Leghtas.
Testimonies
A refugee from Cameroon: ''We can't even enjoy being outside for a moment. Every day the police ask to see my documents at the exit of a metro station, inside the station. It makes me feel uncomfortable when I go out... There is a lot of racism in Spain. Sometimes when I sit down in the metro, the person next to me gets up. It's like they don't want me here.''
A Senegalese immigrant: ''Life for migrants here is very hard. It is painful, even if you have your documents in order. The worst is when you're black. Even now when I see police, they ask me for my documents. They can take you out of the train or the metro to check your documents. They say they are looking for criminals. But being black isn't being a criminal.''
Jahid, an immigrant from Bangladesh: ''Sometimes I am stopped three or four times in the same day. I show my documents, but sometimes they check the information to see if it is correct. When I'm on the way to work I'm in a hurry, they don't care, they check them anyway. Being stopped like this makes me feel very bad, like I am not free.''
Babu, an Indian national: ''I think I have been in all the police stations in the city. I have been to the same police station three or four times. All the policemen know me. I want people to know that we, migrants, we are not numbers. We have the same heart, two hands, the same as people who are working all over the world.''
Amnesty International is a global movement of millions of people demanding human rights for all people - no matter who they are or where they are. We are the world's largest grassroots human rights organization.
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US College Students Demonstrate in Solidarity With Palestinians, Columbia Protesters
"Columbia University made a huge mistake calling the cops on student protesters," said one educator. "It has transformed the activism of hundreds of students into a student movement of thousands."
Apr 19, 2024
Undeterred by Columbia University's sanctioning of a crackdown by the New York Police Department in which at least 108 people were arrested on Thursday for protesting Israel's war on Gaza, dozens of students continued to camp out on the campus' West Lawn Friday as solidarity protests cropped up at other schools across the country.
Students at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill (UNC) set up tents at a rally, while the Harvard College Palestine Solidarity Committee announced a walkout to express solidarity with "steadfast Columbia students" and emergency protests were announced at Boston University; Miami University in Oxford, Ohio; and Ohio State University.
"Columbia University made a huge mistake calling the cops on student protesters," said Jairo I. Fúnez-Flores, a faculty member at Texas Tech University. "It has transformed the activism of hundreds of students into a student movement of thousands with millions around the world watching."
National Students for Justice in Palestine, whose Columbia University chapter was shut down late last year after members protested against the institution's investments in Israeli companies and partnership with Tel Aviv University, called on all of its chapters across college campuses to join in solidarity actions.
"The supposed power of these administrators pales in comparison to the combined strength of the students, staff, and faculty committed to realizing justice and upholding Palestinian liberation on campus," said the national group.
At the impromptu rally at UNC, students chanted, "No justice, no peace!"
The solidarity actions came a day after Columbia president Minouche Shafik authorized the police to dismantle an encampment set up by dozens of students. Shafik testified before a Republican-controlled U.S. House committee on Wednesday where the focus was antisemitism on the school's campus, and admitted she has not witnessed anti-Jewish protests at Columbia since Israel began its assault on Gaza last October.
After the students were arrested Thursday, one student Barnard College—which is part of Columbia—posted on social media an email she had received from vice president and dean Leslie Grinage about the suspension of several students.
The students were forced to leave their housing and have had their access to all campus facilities revoked during the suspension.
Several members of the press reported being denied entry to Columbia's campus on Thursday and Friday, prompting the university's journalism school to offer its assistance and reiterate its support for a free press.
Barnaby Raine, an historian earning his Ph.D. at Columbia, urged fellow educators at the Ivy League school to demonstrate solidarity with the student-led protests.
"As my employer, Columbia University, calls armed riot police into campus to smash a peaceful protest against a genocide, we must all speak out," said Raine. "My former students have been arrested. I'm proud of you. History will be too."
Actor, activist, and former New York gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon, who graduated from Barnard, condemned the administrators' response to the protests.
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Apr 19, 2024
Friday is Indigenous Peoples Day in Brazil, and tribal leaders and activists used the occasion to criticize the left-wing government of Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva for falling short on promises to safeguard native land rights.
On Thursday, the Brazilian government announced the demarcation of Aldeia Velha, land of the Pataxó people, in the northeastern state of Bahia, as well as the territory of the Karajá people in Cacique Fontoura, Mato Grosso.
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However, Indigenous peoples were anticipating the demarcation of six new territories. Lula acknowledged their disappointment.
"I know you are apprehensive and expected the demarcation of six Indigenous lands. But now we only announce two. And I'm being real with you," he said.
"Some of this missing land is occupied either by farmers or peasants," the president explained. "We cannot arrive without giving these people an alternative. Some governors asked for time to resolve, in a negotiated manner, the eviction of these territories so that we can demarcate them."
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Criticism of Lula's demarcation process and the Brazilian government's Indigenous rights record came from outside Brazil as well.
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Apr 19, 2024
This is a developing story... Please check back for possible updates...
Law enforcement officials confirmed to CNN that someone lit themself on fire Friday outside the New York City courthouse where former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, is on trial for allegedly falsifying business records.
"The man walked into the park across the street from the courthouse, throwing flyers into the air," the network reported, citing law enforcement. "He then pulled something out of a backpack—it was not immediately clear what the item was—and lit himself on fire."
Journalists were in the area for the historic trial and CNN anchor Laura Coates was among those who described the scene live on-air as New York Police Department officers and emergency responders worked to extinguish the fire.
Police were "slow to respond in part because of barricades around park," Politico's Emily Ngo explained, sharing photos and videos from the scene on social media. There is "only one way to get into park outside the courthouse without jumping the fence. It's been barricaded in anticipation of protests. And since there hasn't been much in the way of protests, police presence is light. Police had to run all the way around to get to the man."
The person who self-immolated "was responsive when he was removed but he is very, very badly burned. Body charred," Ngo said.
CNN reported that the flyers featured allegations of wrongdoings against New York University and said, "NYU is a mob front."
A self-identified citizen journalist named Jack shared on social media a photo of a booklet the person reportedly left in the dirt.
An unverified Substack post says in part: "My name is Max Azzarello, and I am an investigative researcher who has set himself on fire outside of the Trump trial in Manhattan. This extreme act of protest is to draw attention to an urgent and important discovery: We are victims of a totalitarian con, and our own government (along with many of their allies) is about to hit us with an apocalyptic fascist world coup."
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