URGENT: Stop The Execution Of Farzad Kamangar

"On 25 February 2008, the Tehran Revolutionary Court sentenced Farzad Kamangar to death on charges of "endangering national security" and "enmity against God" (moharebe). The death penalty was confirmed by the Supreme Court on 11 July. "

A teacher, former member of a Kurdish teacher's union (until outlawed) and human right's activist, Farzad Kamangar was scheduled to be executed today! Thankfully, according to one source (International Campaign For Human Rights In Iran), he was not, although 10 others (including a woman) were, and there is still the likelihood that Kamangar will be hanged, at some point.

In a letter from prison, Kamangar describes the details of his arrest, and the torture he has endured while incarcerated:

In July of 2006 I came to Tehran to follow upon my brother's medical treatments. My brother is a Kurdish political activist. Upon my arrival in Tehran I was arrested and taken to an unknown place, it was a very small, dark basement. The cells in this place were empty, there were no blankets or rugs or sheets. They took me to a room and as they were interviewing me they asked me about my ethnicity. When I told them that I was of the Kurdish Ethnicity they lashed my entire body. They also lashed me because of the Kurdish music which I had saved on my mobile phone. They would tie my hands, make me sit on a chair and put pressure on the sensitive areas of my body. They would also strip me naked and threaten me with rape by various objects such as wood.

His trial was a farce. According to Khalil Bahramian, Farzad’s lawyer:

“Nothing in Kamangar’s judicial files and records demonstrates any links to the charges brought against him.” He described the trial as “lasting no more than five minutes, with the judge issuing his sentence without any explanation and then promptly leaving the room.” {snip} the closed-door trial violated the Iranian legal requirements that such cases must be tried publicly and in the presence of a jury.

Please send an email to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad requesting, at the very least, that Kamangar get a fair trial. You can email him directly at: dr-ahmadinejad@president.ir

or via the Education International website by clicking here, which has a pre-written letter

Being sentenced to death for being Kurdish, a human right's activist or trade union member, or all of the above, is outrageous.

Please take a moment to do this. That moment could save an innocent man's life.

Bloggers Unite For Human Rights: The Junta and The Dying People of Burma

What is happening in Burma is unconscionable! Cyclone Nargis made landfall on May 2, carving a path of destruction throughout the country, and yet here we are 13 days later, and little has been done. The Burmese people are starving, disease is now setting in, the world is trying desperately to help, and yet a corrupt government, that failed to warn its people of the impending disaster, is refusing most help. With tens of thousands dead, as many missing, and over a million displaced persons (which could result in even more deaths), the perverse Myanmar regime, continues to thwart the global community's efforts to bring desperately needed aid to the people. Why? Politics, greed and paranoia.

Horror stories abound. The little aid that is being allowed into the country is being confiscated by the military, more than likely for their own use. The food that is being distributed is usually rotten, and most are not receiving anything at all. People are being forced to leave the monasteries, where they have sought refuge and received help, even though they have no place to go. Foreign aid food, rather than being given to the people free of charge, is being sold at commercial prices, as are zinc sheets for roofing. Supplies are being given in return for "yes" votes in the national referendum. Child traffickers are targeting children in the refugee camps.

The useless U.N. keeps begging, but getting no results, because countries like China refuse to meddle in what they believe to be internal domestic affairs.

This week, Beijing blocked a proposal to have the U.N. humanitarian chief brief the Security Council on Myanmar, saying governments should not politicize the issue.

I wouldn't expect any other response from China. They don't want other countries meddling in their affairs, considering their blemished record on human rights, so why would they deign to interfere with Burma?

So, we sit in the comfort of our living rooms, watching a group of people die before our very eyes; the result of a sick government's gross negligence. A people whose rights were violated prior to the tropical cyclone, and whose lives are being threatened now. We sit silent and mute, doing nothing, perhaps reaching for our checkbooks knowing full well that what we donate will probably wind up filling the coffers of the military generals rather than aiding those in need.

And there are many who feel the same way as the Chinese government. But I ask you this:

If your neighbour was abusing his wife and children, would you call the police or allow the abuse to continue because you refuse to meddle in their domestic affairs?

Failure to act, on a global level, has led to much unnecessary death in the past few centuries. WWII, Darfur, Rwanda. And the sad and pathetic thing about Burma is that much of the death was and is avoidable. What harm is there in allowing the world to help your country? Any reasonable nation would have welcomed the help, and Burma would be well on its way to recovery. But, government officials are far too preoccupied with profiting from this disaster than helping their citizens. In fact, there is another storm on its way, and the populace has not been warned, yet. More devastation and more inaction.

We are all brothers and sisters. We are each other's caretakers.

Why don't we act as if!


Burmese Bloggers with out Borders.

Bloggers Unite For Human Rights!

When I witness the many horrors perpetrated against innocents in far off lands, I am filled with a tragic sense of impotence, knowing there is absolutely nothing I can do, as an individual, to prevent such injustices.

However, there are things we can do to help. We can donate to charities, we can educate others, we can continue pressuring groups like the U.N. to make a difference, and as bloggers we can make our collective voices heard above the lazy, politically correct, apathetic fray, by bringing those injustices to light, by blogging about them.

Tomorrow, May 15th, blogcatalog is sponsoring Bloggers Unite For Human Rights. Take a moment to write something. Anything.

And May 21st is Cuba Solidarity Day.

Let us speak out for those less fortunate, who have no choice!

Blessed Be,
Democracy!!