7 Days For Syria: Starting March 15th

7 Days For Syria: 
Starting March 15th

PicturePhoto Credit: Shaam News Network

The wave of Arab unrest that began with the Tunisian revolution reached Syria on March 15, 2011, when residents of a small southern city took to the streets to protest the torture of students who had put up anti-government graffiti. The government responded with heavy-handed force, and demonstrations quickly spread across much of the country. As we reach the fourth anniversary of the start of the uprising, it is still not too late to push our leaders to take action to help end the conflict, to assist the millions of those displaced from their homes—and to remind the Syrian people that they are not alone.

With that in mind, starting March 15th, I am Syria will be providing “Seven Days for Syria”—a set of small but significant things you can do to help, all easy to do and only a couple of clicks away. We will end our campaign with an exclusive free viewing of the Syria Documentary, Syria: A Fire Within. A film out own Ammar Abdulhamid had a hand in making. We thank you for your support and look forward to making a difference together. The I Am Syria Team

Day 1:

Seven Days for Syria Day One: Play and Share the I Am Syria Video
with your Facebook and Social Media Networks. Doing so might hopefully engage others in the cause, encouraging them to do the same with their networks as well.

Day 2: 

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 Sign the petition   encouraging them to support the Syrian Humanitarian effort More than 200,000 people have been killed and another 11 million have been forced from their homes.

The bottom line in Syria should be a political solution. But immediate action is needed to stop attacks on civilians and address the massive humanitarian crisis.

Day 3:

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Show your solidarity with the Syrian people by holding the attached “I Am Syria” image—then taking a picture of yourself with a webcam. Better yet, include your co-workers or family doing the same near a landmark inyour community. You can also paint your hand green; or, make a short video saying “I Am Syria”—uploading any or all of the above to the I Am Syria Facebook page, encouraging your friends to do the same! We are Syria!

Day 5:

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Sign up for Charity Birthday and instead of receiving gifts for your birthday, donate your birthday to charity and have people donate in your name to the charities of your choice. USA for UNHCR, UNHCR, UNICEF, etc. Sign up Here

Day 4:

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Make a $20.00 donation to the International Recue Committee’s (IRC’s) Fund for Syrian Refugee Relief. The suffering of Syrian civilians is alarming and overwhelming: Nine million Syrians–approaching half of the country’s pre-war population—have fled their homes, with over six and a half million people internally displaced. Of this number, three million are trapped in hard-to-reach or besieged areas, with an estimated 250,000 people cut off from assistance for over a year. Now is our time to help

Day 6:

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Know a teacher who might be interested in making a difference?  Tell them about Teach Syria, a 40 minute Common Core-friendly lesson that provides the background knowledge and materials to engage their students in the issue—and empowers them to take action with a Day of Silence or Walkathon for Syrian refugees.

Day 7:

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We will end our campaign with an exclusive free viewing of the Syria Documentary, Syria: A Fire Within. A film I Am Syria’s President Ammar Abdulhamid had a hand in making. You can watch this powerful film which explores the Syria’s revolution from the vantage point of the seasoned activist and dissident, Ammar Abdulhamid. See the Syrian conflict from a new perspective. Please enter the Passcode: IAmSyria.  We Are Syria!

Instructions;
1. Find documentary at: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/20586

2) Proceed as if you are renting the film, and on the purchase page enter the IAMSYRIA passcode in order to get the discount (which makes it free).

3) Tell us what you think on Twitter and Facebook!

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/SyriaFireWithin
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/syriafirewithin
View his art here:  http://www.syriafirewithin.com/

Almost a Million Demonstrators Marched Against President Rousseff in Brazil

By Delisa Morris

Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

BRASILIA, Brazil — Almost a million demonstrators marched in towns and cities across Brazil Sunday to protest the slumping economy, rising prices and corruption – and to call for the impeachment of left-wing President Dilma Rousseff.

Almost a million Brazilians protested and called for impeachment of President Rousseff on Sunday / image courtesy of CNN.com

The protests in the country come as Brazil struggles to overcome economic and political troubles and recovers from an economic boom that crumbled about the time Rousseff took office in 2011.

Rousseff, who began her second four-year term earlier this year, is unlikely to face the impeachment proceedings called for by her many opponents.  However, a fifth year of economic stagnation and a multi-billion dollar corruption scandal at state-run energy company Petroleo Brasileiro SA, or Petrobras, has fueled their anger.

For a president narrowly re-elected about five months ago, the protests are a sign of a deeply polarized country whose people are increasingly unhappy with the leadership.  Recently, the hard won gains of an economic boom have begun to succumb to an economic slowdown, in addition to recent water shortages.

The unexpectedly large demonstrations also promise to fuel opposition parties and restive allies, including the leaders of both houses of Congress, who are nominally part of Rousseff’s ruling coalition, but are hindering efforts to pass reforms intended to jump-start the economy.

During a press conference Sunday night, two members of Rousseff’s cabinet recognized the rights of protesters, but minimized the importance of the demonstrations, suggesting that they were expressions of discontent by those defeated at the polls.

The press conference also attempted to discredit those who suggested impeachment.  Miguel Rossetto, one of Rousseff’s top aides, criticized what he called the “intolerance” of those opponents and likened their demands to coup efforts.

In a statement posted online Sunday, Aecio Neves, a centrist who was defeated by Rosseff in October, said the demonstrations marked a day when Brazilians “went to the streets to reunite with their virtues, their values and also with their dreams.”

“People feel betrayed”, said Diogo Ortiz, a 32-year-old advertising worker, who called the Petrobras scandal “a national and international disgrace.”

For more information, please see:

CNN – Why are protesters furious with Brazil’s President? – 16 March 2015

Huffington Post – Massive Rallies Across Brazil In Protest Of The President – 16 March 2015

The New York Times – Brazil Leader Facing Turbulence, but Ouster Unlikely – 16 March 2015

Barron’s – Brazil: Rousseff Impeachment Unlikely, Despite Weekend Protests? – 16 March 2015

U.N. Rights Chief Warns Nations Not to Lose Focus on Guarding Human Rights

By Kyle Herda

Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

PARIS, France – U.N. Human Rights Chief Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein recently spoke out against not only terrorism, but also against nations who lowered themselves to the level of the terrorists by employing tactics that violate human rights. “The fight against terror is a struggle to uphold the values of democracy and human rights, not undermine them,” Hussein said. He believes nations fighting terrorism are also restricting and violating the rights of people in the name of ‘national security.’

Hussein criticized terrorism, but also criticized the way that some nations have handled fighting it. (Photo courtesy of Mail & Guardian)

Hussein worries that employing questionable tactics in the fight against terrorism may actually be assisting terrorists. For example, ISIS has already successfully used human rights violations by the US at Guantanamo Bay as a propaganda tool to recruit more members. “Counter-terrorist operations that are non-specific, disproportionate, brutal and inadequately supervised violate the very norms that we seek to defend,” Hussein claimed. Hussein also criticized the US for its use of torture in the name of ‘national security,’ including torture sites throughout Europe.

Hussein was also quick to criticize the terrorists employing brutal tactics to begin with. While world powers may be acting in ways that fuel terrorism, “experiences of humiliation, inequality and discrimination … may drive, though they do not excuse, the urge to destroy.” Many of these violations have occurred over the past year at the hands of ISIS or affiliates of, including at least two terrorist attacks on European targets (Charlie Hebdo in Paris and a Jewish Museum in Brussels).

Also targeted by Hussein was the silencing of opposition to the Kremlin, Boris Nemtsov. First, Nemtsov was killed in Moscow, sparking international demand for an international investigation to ensure Putin is not involved and to bring the right people to jusitce. Since then, detained suspects claimed to be responsible for the killing have been showing signs of torture after being detained, with one, Rustam Yusupov, reportedly missing since detention.

It is precisely the injustices around the world in some leading nations that Hussein believes is fueling terrorism and allowing extreme human rights violations to occur. By eliminating torture, racial insensitivity and inequality, and wrongful silencing of the opposition, Hussein believes leading nations can better preserve human rights while also properly combatting terrorism.

For more information, please see:

Reuters – Suspects in Nemtsov killing probably tortured – Russian rights activist – 11 March 2015

The New York Times – U.N. Rights Chief Criticizes World Powers – 5 March 2015

Mail & Guardian – UN calls on countries to ‘root out’ injustices that fuel extremism – 5 March 2015

UN News Centre – Member States must enforce human rights amid rising tide of extremism – UN rights chief – 5 March 2015

U.S Appeals Ruling On BP Oil Spill

By Lyndsey Kelly
Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

WASHINGTON, D.C., – United States of America – The United States Government is appealing a federal court ruling that reduced the potential penalty BP Plc must pay for the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, the biggest offshore oil discharge in U.S. history, by nearly $4 billion. The Clean Water Act would allow for BP to be fined a maximum of $17.6 billion but Barbier’s ruling on the spill size lowered the fine to $13.7 billion.

 

The aftermath of the Gulf Oil Spill in 2010. (Photo Courtesy of Reuters).

U.S. District Court Judge Carl Barbier decided the spill size in January, judging it to be 3.2 million barrels. BP appealed the spill-size decision last month. Additionally, Judge Barbier recently rejected claims that the London-based BP was reckless in preparing for a disaster or had acted unreasonably in responding to the spill. However, the U.S. didn’t say which part of the court ruling it was appealing in a notice it filed Friday. The U.S. is seeking a maximum $13.7 billion based on the size of the spill and the finding of gross negligence. BP has countered the U.S’ claim by stating that it did not deserve the maximum fines due to its efforts in responding to the spill and minimizing the impact. Wyn Hornbuckle, a Justice department spokesman, didn’t immediately respond to requested for comment on the substance of the U.S. appeal.

BP has incurred more than $42 billion of costs for the spill, including for clean up, fines and compensation for victims. Approximately 810,000 barrels were collected during the clean up.

For more information, please see the following:

ABC NEWS – BP Ends Attempt to Out Oil Spill Claims Administrator – 6 Mar. 2015.

BLOOMBERG – BP Win Cutting Gulf Spill Tab By $4 Billion Fought by U.S. – 13 Mar. 2015.

REUTERS – U.S. Appeals Ruling On Size of BP Oil Spill – 14 Mar. 2015.

Future Remains Bleak as Syrian Conflict enters 5th year

By Kathryn Maureen Ryan
Managing Editor, Impunity Watch

DAMASCUS, Syria – The future remains bleak for the millions of Syrians displaced by Syria’s prolonged civil war as the conflict enters its fifth year. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) conditions for internationally displaced persons and refugees and the political situation in the country continues to deteriorate as the war rages and the conflicts victims fail to receive international support. “With no political solution to the conflict in sight, most of the 3.9 million Syrian refugees in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt see no prospect of returning home in the near future, and have scant opportunity to restart their lives in exile,” a UNHCR statement released in Geneva said.

for the youngest victems of the Syrian Civil War education has become an opportunity of the past, at least 2.6 million Syrian children are now out of school. (Photo courtesy of the Christian Science Monitor)

“More and more Syrians are losing hope. Thousands have tried to reach Europe by taking often deadly land or sea routes after paying their life savings to smugglers. Many have not made it. Those who do, face rising hostility as refugees are conflated with security concerns in a climate of rising panic,” the UNHCR statement said.

A recent survey of 40,000 Syrian families living as refugees in urban areas of Jordan determined that two-thirds were living below the absolute poverty line. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres said much more must be done to address the plight of Syrian refugees. “After years in exile, refugees’ savings are long depleted and growing numbers are resorting to begging, survival sex and child labor. Middle-class families with children are barely surviving on the streets: one father said life as a refugee was like being stuck in quicksand – every time you move, you sink down further,” he said. “This worst humanitarian crisis of our era should be galvanizing a global outcry of support, but instead help is dwindling. With humanitarian appeals systematically underfunded, there just isn’t enough aid to meet the colossal needs – nor enough development support to the hosting countries creaking under the strain of so many refugees,” Guterres added.

The impact of the Syrian Civil War can now be seen from space. This satellite images posted by #withSyria shows the dramatic drop in lights at night in Syria between 2011 and 2015, at least 83% of Syrians now live without electricity. (Photo courtesy of National Public Radio)

In December, the United Nations began the largest aid appeal ever for $8.4 billion that if fully funded, would provide for the basic needs of refugees. The program would offer support to host communities to bolster their infrastructure and services utilized by refugees escaping a conflict whose end is not in site. “Further abandoning host countries to manage the situation on their own could result in serious regional destabilization, increasing the likelihood of more security concerns elsewhere in the world,” Guterres stressed.

Five years of war have taken a particularly devastating toll on the conflict’s smallest victims, many of whom are too young to remember a time of peace. Approximately 14 million children in Syria and Iraq now live every day in the shadows of war facing extreme violence, the hardships of displacement United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations agency charged with promoting the welfare of the children worldwide. “As the crisis enters its fifth year, this generation of young people is still in danger of being lost to a cycle of violence – replicating in the next generation what they suffered in their own,” said UNICEF director Anthony Lake. More than 2.6 million Syrian children are out of school and many more are now receiving education from extremist groups like the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) which has begun teaching its extremist ideology in local schools and has forced young boys to become child soldiers.

For more information please see:

Al Arabiya – 14 million children suffering from Syria and Iraq wars: UNICEF – 13 March 2015

The Christian Science Monitor – As Syrian civil war enters fifth year, especially hard challenges for children – 13 March 2015

National Public Radio – Drawn-Out Syrian Civil War Spawns A Literal Dark Age – 12 March 2015

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees – UNHCR warns of bleaker future for refugees as Syrian conflict enters 5th year – 12 March 2015