June, 03 2011, 12:06pm EDT
Amnesty International Urges India to Release Environmental Activists
WASHINGTON
Indian authorities must immediately release two activists arrested apparently for their work to protect local communities from industrial pollution, Amnesty International said today, after one of the men was found chained to a hospital bed while in custody.
Environmental activist Ramesh Agrawal and Harihar Patel, who practices indigenous medicine, were arrested on May 28 in Raigarh town in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh after leading a campaign to protect local Adivasi (Indigenous) communities from pollution caused by industrial projects.
The men have been held at Raigarh prison as a local court denied them bail on June 2. During his detention, Ramesh Agrawal, who suffers from hypertension, was taken for treatment at a state-run hospital where he was chained to a bed.
"Shackling someone who is ill to a hospital bed is inherently cruel and inhumane punishment that should never have been used on a detainee arrested for peaceful activism," said Madhu Malhotra, Amnesty International's Asia-Pacific deputy director. "It appears that Ramesh Agrawal and Dr. Harihar Patel have been targeted for their work to defend the human rights of local communities - we're urging the Chhattisgarh authorities to drop all charges against them and immediately and unconditionally release these activists."
A state police official has told national media that chaining Ramesh Agrawal to a bed was a mistake, but he believes there is sufficient evidence to continue holding the two activists.
Chhattisgarh state police charged the activists with "circulating defamatory material", "disrupting public order" and "causing alarm and panic among the public" during a public consultation held by the state pollution board at Tamnar village on May 8, 2010.
The mandatory consultation was called to discuss plans to expand a coal-fired thermal power plant run by a private firm, Jindal Steel and Power.
The two activists had objected to the proposal, citing concerns that the expansion would lead to the authorities forcibly acquiring land from local communities near the plant. Ramesh Agrawal had also successfully petitioned India's Ministry of Environment and Forests to temporarily suspend the terms of reference for the expansion.
"Instead of arresting those who speak out in defense of local communities' rights, the Chhattisgarh authorities should make sure human rights defenders and environmental activists can carry out their legitimate, peaceful work without fear of harassment and intimidation," said Malhotra.
Amnesty International is a Nobel Peace Prize-winning grassroots activist organization with more than 3 million supporters, activists and volunteers in more than 150 countries campaigning for human rights worldwide. The organization investigates and exposes abuses, educates and mobilizes the public, and works to protect people wherever justice, freedom, truth and dignity are denied.
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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Tens of Thousands in Seoul: 'Stop the Dumping of Radioactive Wastewater'
'It is time for the international community to step in and call out this clear breach of the international law'
Sep 03, 2023
South Koreans have continued a weekend rally against Japan's dumping of Fukushima nuclear plant's contaminated radioactive wastewater into the ocean by holding a large demonstration on Saturday.
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According to The Korea Herald:
Democratic Party of Korea head Rep. Lee Jae-myung, on the fourth day of a hunger strike, said he would call on the international community to join his party’s protests against the Japanese government over the water’s release, in a press conference on Sunday.
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The main opposition leader said he penned a letter to the heads of states and governments of the 86 signatories of the London Convention to collectively rally against the release of the Fukushima wastewater.
Xinhua news reports:
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Lee stressed that it would be absurd to hope that no one would be harmed after dumping the trash into the ocean, urging Tokyo to store the radioactive wastewater on its soil rather than dumping it in the sea.
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Kim raised his strong doubts about the safety of the radioactive wastewater, calling for the South Korean government to take necessary actions including supporting measures for fishermen.
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Han noted that the proper measurement of radiation from Fukushima, involving groundwater flowing in and out of the destroyed reactor, was not carried out, urging the South Korean government to properly measure the radiation in waters off the country from now on.
Following the one-and-a-half-hour rally, the protesters marched about five km in downtown Seoul to the presidential office.
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We are glad to see the Biden administration doing its part to reject the false choice between a good job and a green job. This new policy makes clear to employers that the EV transition must include strong union partnerships with the high pay and safety standards that generations of UAW members have fought for and won.
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