tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-76122888418366658332024-03-05T06:12:07.146-08:00AAA Human RightsThe American Anthropological Association has created this blog as a service to our members and the general public. It is a forum to discuss human rights issues in anthropology.AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.comBlogger71125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-20522177161316774242009-04-16T09:42:00.000-07:002009-04-16T12:27:19.427-07:00AAA Debuts New BlogAAA is pleased to announce the debut of our new, unified association blog, available at <a href="http://blog.aaanet.org/">http://blog.aaanet.org</a>. We have created this blog as a service to our members and the general public. It is a forum to discuss topics of debate in anthropology and a space for public commentary on association policies, publications and advocacy issues. We will post select items that we think are of interest to our members and that readers have voiced an interest in. We invite all anthropologists to use this domain to stimulate intellectual discussion, and would be delighted to host guest bloggers who are active in any of anthropology’s four fields.<br /><br />The new AAA blog, available through Wordpress, combines our previous Anthropology News, Public Affairs and Human Rights blogs, with all archived content and comments migrated from Blogger to Wordpress. The updated format enables visitors to easily post comments, link to our Flickr photostream, search content, browse posts by category, find other anthropology blogs, and more. This is a living forum, and we welcome your feedback! Use the “Contact Us” bar at the top of the screen to tell us what you think of this new design and to offer content suggestions.<br /><br />AAA thanks staff members Brian Estes, Lisa Myers and Dinah Winnick, and intern Leo Napper, for their work in developing this online forum. Visit the <a href="http://blog.aaanet.org/">new blog</a> today!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Note: New posts will no longer be added to the original AAA Human Rights blog.</span>AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-15564477602783527322009-04-06T12:05:00.000-07:002009-04-06T12:11:06.992-07:00Same-Sex Marriage VictoriesThe <a href="http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20090403/NEWS/90403010">Iowa Supreme Court</a> recently ruled in favor of gay marriage, making it the third state to allow such unions.<br /><br />The <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/01/sweden-same-sex-marriage_n_181733.html">Swedish Parliament</a> has also approved same-sex marriage by an overwhelming margin.<br /><br />The AAA has released an <a href="http://dev.aaanet.org/issues/policy-advocacy/Statement-on-Marriage-and-the-Family.cfm">official statement</a> in support of such unions.AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-70155760589720716252009-04-06T11:23:00.000-07:002009-04-06T11:37:09.200-07:00Armenian Genocide<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTompwYHOmyGb1YleNTH8l3qMZuWX9AR_FABALJgaOvPow6Qqz5K5TiBC2IcC9EycC91Zz5J5jbG746ityre_K4lNJ8QLC1kg6uUeJ8vnxbqE1nTk9mJzwnWVn7_E5E7prtR22SrERXnjc/s1600-h/1.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTompwYHOmyGb1YleNTH8l3qMZuWX9AR_FABALJgaOvPow6Qqz5K5TiBC2IcC9EycC91Zz5J5jbG746ityre_K4lNJ8QLC1kg6uUeJ8vnxbqE1nTk9mJzwnWVn7_E5E7prtR22SrERXnjc/s200/1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321649257908498050" /></a>The Armenian Genocide Resolution has returned to headlines prior to Obama's visit to Turkey. The resolution labels the deaths of up to 1.5 million Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Empire starting in 1915 as "genocide." According to <span style="font-style:italic;"><a href="http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/obama-encouraged-to-lobby-against-genocide-bill-2009-04-01.html">The Hill</a></span>, past administrations have failed to recognize the World War I-era killings as genocide out of fear of damaging US-Turkey relations. Obama, however, made a campaign pledge to recognize the genocide, saying that the facts documenting the killings are "undeniable" and that "an official policy that calls on diplomats to distort the historical facts is an untenable policy." Of course, campaign promises to Armenians have been broken in the past, and Obama may decide to tread carefully with Turkey.AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-21391673668734633352009-04-06T10:39:00.000-07:002009-04-06T11:45:22.402-07:00US Endorses UN Statement to End DiscriminationIn a reversal of Bush-era decisions, the Obama administration <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/mar/18/homosexuality-un-statement-obama">endorsed</a> the UN Statement on "Human Rights, Sexual Orientation, and Gender Identity." The statement condemns human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity wherever they occur. The US is now the 67th nation of the UN's 192 member states to sign the statement.AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-68434649500834063212009-03-30T12:44:00.000-07:002009-03-30T13:55:21.344-07:00Applying Forensic Anthropology in GuatemalaThe AAA Committee for Human Rights has written to Guatemalan authorities on <a href="http://www.aaanet.org/cmtes/cfhr/index.cfm">numerous occasions</a> regarding the safety of the Guatemalan Forensic Anthropology Team (FAFG), especially its director Fredy Peccerelli who, along with his family, has been the target of several death threats. FAFG exhumes mass graves in an effort to identify massacre victims of Guatemala's 36-year insurgency, during which an estimated 200,000 people were killed and numerous human rights violations occurred. Fredy and the rest of FAFG are hoping to compile enough evidence to identify and prosecute the perpetrators of these massacres. You can read the full story from <span style="font-style:italic;">Scientific American</span> <a href="http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=anthropologists-study-political-killings">here</a>. And a related <a href="http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N22534737.htm">story</a> on FAFG's most recent efforts.AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-41892303109669877612009-03-19T10:20:00.000-07:002009-03-19T10:21:25.603-07:00CFP: "Health and the Productivity of Human Rights Discourses"<span style="font-weight:bold;">Call for Papers</span><br />Title: Health and the Productivity of Human Rights Discourses<br /><br />Co-sponsor: Committee for Human Rights, American Anthropological Association<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Abstract</span>: <br />This panel brings together ethnographic and theoretical papers to examine the productivity of human rights discourse in the fields of public health, medicine, and anthropology. In our contemporary world, a discourse of health as a human right has played a central role in configuring humanitarian responses to disasters, economic inequality and poverty, and the differential burden of disease. It has also raised methodological, conceptual, and ethical challenges in the field of medical anthropology. We are interested in bringing together critical ethnographic examinations of the mobilization of human rights discourse in informing claims to health by communities, populations, and the state, as well as reflections on how human rights discourse has informed the knowledge and concepts of health and well-being in anthropology. In keeping with the theme of the AAA meetings, we hope to foster discussion about anthropology’s “ends”: how can anthropological modes of knowing inform and help shape responses to global differentials in well-being, health, and life chances that are lived and experienced locally? What critical reflections from the field of health can be brought to bear on the discourse of cultural relativism in anthropology, and what alternative frameworks might we generate from these reflections? <br /><br />By focusing on the productivity of human rights discourse, this panel is particularly interested in the new directions, methods, and concepts that can inform and challenge discursive understandings of health, knowledge, and values. Such new directions may include exploring the instabilities of a language of rights in advancing claims to health, and how local concepts of health and well-being are conditioned by often invisible institutional failures as well as economic insecurity and emergent value systems. How are humanitarian interventions and large-scale public health initiatives informed by regimes of value? How are discourses of human rights enacted by the local to advance claims to health from the state, and how are subjects constituted through this discourse? In examining such interventions and claims predicated on “health as a human right”, what local and trans-local concepts of the human emerge? Refracting such questions back on our own discipline, this panel explores how the language of rights has informed our field’s knowledge production on health, our ethnographic engagements, and our stakes in normative projects. <br /><br />Organizers: Clara Han and Robin Root<br /><br />Please send a 250-word abstract to Robin Root (rroot@nyc.rr.com) and Clara Han (clarahan@jhu.edu) by March 26.AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-53112027038403253082009-03-03T10:09:00.000-08:002009-03-03T10:11:19.027-08:00Awa Indians Murdered<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/americas/02/12/colombia.indians/index.html">CNN reported</a> that guerrilla troops of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) have killed at least 10 more Awa Indians this week, bringing the total to 27 in the last two weeks. FARC targeted the Awa after accusing them of aiding the Colombian government. Earlier this week, Colombian President Alvaro Uribe called the FARC “executioners.” He demonized their bloody action against the indigenous tribe and has ordered his army into the remote areas where the killings took place in order to secure the territory and administer humanitarian aid.<br /><br />~Author: Leo Napper, AAA internAAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-54187097851819987642009-02-12T12:55:00.000-08:002009-02-12T13:02:34.918-08:00Witchcraft & Human Rights Network Forms<a href="http://www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/research?id=3b850c744">UNHCR's Policy Development and Evaluation Service</a> has created a "Witchcraft and Human Rights Network." It is an informal network where information about new developments, research and news related to witchcraft can be shared.<br /><br />The first article shared with the network is an article written in <span style="font-style:italic;">New Issues in Refugee Research </span>by Jill Schnoebelen called "Witchcraft Allegations and Displacement." Readers may download the article [pdf] from <a href="http://www.unhcr.org/research/RESEARCH/4981ca712.pdf">http://www.unhcr.org/research/RESEARCH/4981ca712.pdf</a><br /><br />If you are interested in participating in the network, please inform Maria Riiskjaer at riiskjae@unhcr.org <br /><br />Best regards,<br />The Policy Development and Evaluation Service UNHCR GenevaAAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-81177624848370683832009-02-12T07:43:00.000-08:002009-02-12T13:02:59.606-08:00Anthropologist Exposes Organ Trafficking<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyIbtmw_zit3GeBs23N-PHHtCebdjWjflZ2xqGyaPp5beIymSWRnfYhmhMGD2H3EN47n5LksEy_BcKlFbcrDdhMRp4v27kq9BkXQTeCsGyIYU3M94cPrINTgWYSfEOSzfZ97Tbw1fhpaAE/s1600-h/1.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 154px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyIbtmw_zit3GeBs23N-PHHtCebdjWjflZ2xqGyaPp5beIymSWRnfYhmhMGD2H3EN47n5LksEy_BcKlFbcrDdhMRp4v27kq9BkXQTeCsGyIYU3M94cPrINTgWYSfEOSzfZ97Tbw1fhpaAE/s200/1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301941906493900274" /></a>Nancy Scheper-Hughes’ research on global organ trafficking was highlighted in a <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/id/178873">story by Newsweek</a> recently. Hughes acknowledges that her methods, which include misleading some research subjects, bump up against the association’s ethics code. Her research has, however, helped generate awareness about the black market organ trade and the extent to which some US hospitals are complicit in this trade. If you have thoughts on this subject, please leave a comment below.<br /><br />Image from www.mikaelkriisa.com/donate_life1.htmlAAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-41202057086344949312009-02-12T07:41:00.000-08:002009-02-12T07:43:24.647-08:00AAA Responds to Threats against Forensic AnthropologistsAAA President Setha Low and the Committee for Human Rights sent letters to the Guatemalan government requesting additional protection for members of the Guatemalan Forensic Anthropology Foundation who have been receiving death threats for their investigation of massacres that occurred in the 1980s. Vice President Rafael Espada responded to this request by temporarily increasing protection for targeted members. CfHR is working to secure continuous protection for these forensic anthropologists. The letters and Espada’s response (in Spanish) are available on <a href="http://www.aaanet.org/cmtes/cfhr/index.cfm">CfHR's homepage</a>.AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-30220065072974567632009-02-12T07:19:00.000-08:002009-02-12T07:35:19.008-08:00AAA Joins AAAS' Science & Human Rights CoalitionThe AAA recently attended the launch of the American Association for the Advancement of Science's Science and Human Rights Coalition. The coalition aims to increase communication and collaboration between scientific associations, individual researchers, and the human rights community in the pursuit of universal human rights. The January 14th launch opened with three notable speakers, including Mary Robinson, the former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and President of Ireland. The coalition has already been involved in two human rights initiatives organized by AAAS: 1) The Geospatial Technologies and Human Rights Project, which utilizes high-tech mapping tools to gather data on isolated conflicts, environmental destruction, and indigenous rights; and 2) “On-Call” Scientists, a program that connects scientists interested in volunteering their expertise with human rights organizations in need of such expertise. Anthropologists interested in participating in this coalition or volunteering with “On-Call” Scientists can find additional information at <a href="http://shr.aaas.org/coalition/">http://shr.aaas.org/coalition/</a>AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-44813795210209538552009-01-05T11:21:00.000-08:002009-01-05T11:52:36.687-08:00Action Alert: Petition Philippine Government to Halt Attacks on Civil Society Groups<a href="http://www.culturalsurvival.org/help-find-indigenous-activist-james-Balao">Cultural Survival</a> and the <a href="http://www.cpaphils.org/">Cordillera People's Alliance</a> issued action alerts for the disappearance of indigenous activist James Balao. The contents of Cultural Survival's <a href="http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/tell-the-philippines-to-find-indigenous-activist-james-balao">petition</a> are copied below. We encourage our readers to consider signing the petition:<br /><br />Philippine indigenous activist James Balao went missing on Sept. 17th in La Trinidad town in Benguet province. His disappearance could be connected to his work as a defender of human rights among the indigenous people of northern Luzon. Balao is the founder of the Cordillera People's Alliance (CPA). Members of military intelligence and police have been linked to his abduction. He is the second CPA member to disappear since 1987. Two other CPA members were murdered by unidentified assailants two years ago. For more information: <a href="http://www.cpaphils.org/">www.cpaphils.org</a>.<br /><br />Write a letter or send an email urging the government of the Philippines to probe the disappearance of Balao and to observe international covenants on human rights by halting attacks on members of civil society groups.<br />H.E. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo<br />President of the Republic<br />Malacañang Palace,<br />JP Laurel St., San Miguel<br />Manila Philippines<br />E-mail: corres@op.gov.ph / erermita@pop.gov.ph<br /><br />Dear President Macapagal-Arroyo:<br /><br />I am deeply disturbed about the "disappearance" of Cordillera Peoples Alliance co-founder and member James M. Balao on September 17, 2008, following months of surveillance. The circumstances of his abduction suggest that military intelligence agents had a role in it. Since then, his family has had no information regarding his whereabouts.<br /><br />Since the Philippine government implemented its Operation Plan Bantay Laya in 2001, members and leaders of organizations working for Indigenous Peoples' rights, such as the Cordillera Peoples Alliance, have been unjustly labeled communist fronts and terrorist organizations. Their leaders have received death threats, and have been kidnapped and killed.<br /><br />We urgently call for the democratic government of the Philippines to categorically reject the illegal and globally condemned practices of past military dictatorships; and urge you, as the Philippines Commander in Chief, to leave no stone unturned until James Balao's place of detention is identified, those responsible are arrested, and he is returned to his family and community.<br /><br />Sincerely yours,AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-10430316761813696652008-12-30T08:35:00.000-08:002008-12-30T08:39:48.712-08:00CFP: "Human Rights in the USA"<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyC7LEQ5-L1-yRYJnYeNf4Q9TRBt3_I58wx7UrFqiZQkmpVkZu81gmSlU3Iqd-9n4lYGiU3Mu9457kO7M6WD0ZgfhL9JR2gDQ4Hu_WHxWvnBacyfuyzqvdIDGGk0dDf4cxVisbqfd44mFU/s1600-h/1.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyC7LEQ5-L1-yRYJnYeNf4Q9TRBt3_I58wx7UrFqiZQkmpVkZu81gmSlU3Iqd-9n4lYGiU3Mu9457kO7M6WD0ZgfhL9JR2gDQ4Hu_WHxWvnBacyfuyzqvdIDGGk0dDf4cxVisbqfd44mFU/s200/1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5285623737213166546" /></a><span style="font-weight:bold;">CALL FOR PAPERS</span><br /><br />"HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE USA"<br /><br />A Conference at the University of Connecticut <br /><br />October 22-24, 2009.<br /><br />We invite scholars from the Humanities, Social Sciences, and Law to submit abstracts of papers on the application of human rights laws and norms in the USA. Panels will address issues such as children's rights, civil rights, health care, environmental justice, human rights and security since 9/11, domestic violence, gender and sexuality, American literature and human rights, the history of equal rights, immigration, social welfare provision and economic rights. The Human Rights Institute will pay panelists' accommodation and registration expenses.<br /><br />Please submit a one paragraph abstract and one page resume by February 28, 2009.<br /><br />Conference Organizer: Richard A. Wilson, Human Rights Institute, University of Connecticut humanrights@uconn.edu<br /><br />For more details, visit: <a href="http://humanrights.uconn.edu/conferences/2009.php">http://humanrights.uconn.edu/conferences/2009.php</a>AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-15768050920426145212008-12-30T08:15:00.000-08:002008-12-30T08:32:49.944-08:00Petition Calling for Release of Liu Xiaobo Picked Up by MediaThe <span style="font-style:italic;"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/24/world/asia/24china.html?partner=permalink&exprod=permalink">NY Times</a></span> recently reported on a petition to free Liu Xiaobo, one of the main players behind <a href="http://www.nybooks.com/articles/22210">Charter 08</a>. Scholars, anthropologists, Nobel laureates, and others signed the <a href="http://aaahumanrights.blogspot.com/2008/12/petition-in-support-of-charter-08.html">petition</a> calling for Xiaobo's release and the need to preserve the basic civil and human right to express one's views.AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-66949929623207400952008-12-23T09:44:00.000-08:002008-12-23T09:53:04.659-08:00Sixty-six States Support Statement Declaring Equal RightsSixty-six nations of the UN General Assembly supported a statement extending international human rights protections to individuals of all sexual orientations and gender identities. According to <a href="http://www.hrw.org/fr/news/2008/12/18/un-general-assembly-statement-affirms-rights-all?print">Human Rights Watch</a>, "The statement condemned killings, torture, arbitrary arrest, and deprivation of economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to health." The statement won broad support in Europe and Latin America, but was opposed by the US, Russia, China, and others. Homosexuality remains banned in 80 countries, and is punishable by the death penalty in six nations. There is still much work to be done to promote the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people, and the Triple A remains dedicated to protecting human difference in all its forms.AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-60854175067373272592008-12-18T11:36:00.000-08:002008-12-23T09:10:08.810-08:00Petition in Support of Charter 08[Circulated through the human rights listserv:]<br /><br />Dear colleagues,<br /> <br />We, the undersigned, are writing to ask your help.<br /> <br />Appended below is an appeal letter to China's president, Hu Jintao, expressing "deep concern with the ongoing arbitrary detention of literary critic and former professor of literature Liu Xiaobo" and urging for his immediate release. The letter notes that "For the international community to take seriously China's oft-stated commitment to respect human rights and the rule of law, and for China's own citizens to trust the judicial system to redress legitimate grievances, it is urgent that China's central leadership ensure that no one be arrested or harassed simply for the peaceful expression of his or her views."<br /> <br />Please note, we are not seeking signatures from the general public but are confining our request to academics, lawyers, and recognized members of the international human rights community. In short, we want to send a clear message from prominent individuals around the world concerned with the impeded growth of civil society in China. After the appeal is sent to President Hu, it will be made public.<br /> <br />May we add you to the list below of those who have already signed? If so, please send an e-mail to <span style="font-weight:bold;">petition.lxb@gmail.com</span> stating your willingness to do so and including your academic affiliation and your post or other identifying information relevant to your profession. <br />-------------------------<br /><br />December 17, 2008<br /> <br />President Hu Jintao<br />People's Republic of China<br />Zhongnanhai, Xichengqu, Beijing<br />People's Republic of China<br /> <br /><br />Dear President Hu Jintao,<br /> <br />We, the undersigned scholars, writers, lawyers and human rights advocates write to share our deep concern with the ongoing arbitrary detention of literary critic and former professor of literature Liu Xiaobo.<br /> <br />Mr. Liu, a prominent and highly-regarded intellectual both in and outside of China, was taken away from his home in Beijing by public security officers on the evening of December 8. During the accompanying search of his apartment, which lasted for several hours, police seized his computers, mobile phones, and most of his personal papers. <br /> <br />No official reason has been given for Mr. Liu's arrest. In violation of China's own laws and regulations, the police have failed to inform either his relatives or his lawyer of his whereabouts or the reasons for his detention.<br /> <br />Because of the fact that Mr. Liu's arrest came half a day before the publication of a public appeal to promote human rights and democracy in China entitled "Charter 08," and because the police detained and questioned several other "Charter 08" signatories at the same time, the presumption is that Mr. Liu has been arrested solely for exercising his right to freedom of expression, as guaranteed under China's constitution and international law.<br /> <br />Mr. Liu's activities have always been peaceful and according to law. Although he was twice arbitrarily detained for several years for writing articles criticizing the government, he has never been convicted of any crime. In recent years, Mr. Liu's reputation grew as his essays on current affairs in China and his principled defense of human rights and democracy circulated widely. Mr. Liu has consistently opposed recourse to violence. In his articles, he has lauded the amendments to the constitution that stipulate respect for human rights and property rights. He has written strongly in favor of the development of a free civil society in China.<br /> <br />As President of the People's Republic of China, you have yourself often pledged to strengthen China's legal system, stressing recently that "the rule of law is important for the promotion, realization and safeguarding of a harmonious society." We urge you to honor your commitment to ensure the civil rights of citizens who peacefully express their views on public affairs.<br /> <br />For the international community to take seriously China's oft-stated commitment to respect human rights and the rule of law, and for China's own citizens to trust the judicial system to redress legitimate grievances, it is urgent that China's central leadership ensure that no one be arrested or harassed simply for the peaceful expression of his or her views.<br /> <br />It is equally urgent that judicial authorities throughout China cease to use China's anti-subversion law to prosecute peaceful critics such as Mr. Liu Xiaobo, who should be released immediately without conditions.<br /> <br />Sincerely,<br /> <br />The signatories<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">For more information, please contact:</span><br />In Hong Kong, Nicholas Bequelin (English, French, Mandarin): +852-8198-1040 (mobile)<br />In Paris, Jean-Marie Fardeau (English, French, Portuguese): +33-6-45-85-24-87 (mobile)<br />In London, Brad Adams (English) +44-79-0872-8333 (mobile)<br />In New York, Minky Worden (English, Cantonese): +1-917-497-0540 (mobile) or wordenm@hrw.org<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Related Links</span><br />For the full text of the letter and signatories, please visit:<br /><a href="http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2008/12/22/letter-consortium-release-liu-xiaobo-chinas-president-hu-jintao">http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2008/12/22/letter-consortium-release-liu-xiaobo-chinas-president-hu-jintao</a><br /><br />For an English translation of Charter 08, please visit:<br /><a href="http://www.nybooks.com/articles/22210">http://www.nybooks.com/articles/22210</a><br /><br />Human Rights Watch news release, "Nobel Laureates, China Scholars Call for Liu Xiaobo's Release," please visit: <a href="http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2008/12/22/nobel-laureates-china-scholars-call-liu-xiaobo-s-release">http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2008/12/22/nobel-laureates-china-scholars-call-liu-xiaobo-s-release</a><br /><br />Human Rights Watch news release, "China: Retaliation for Signatories of Rights Charter," please visit:<br /><a href="http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2008/12/10/china-retaliation-signatories-rights-charter">http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2008/12/10/china-retaliation-signatories-rights-charter</a>AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-26273882235939118232008-12-17T08:36:00.000-08:002008-12-17T09:13:13.233-08:00Brazil's Tikuna Struggle Against Drugs<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYpWQHFqAHJ-OagTk-kU2yWjFz1BNBLCa0kknsSUTH31rLQkDB6j8t3seCiRHQXo4Sxf-fGG9vOPHBPEUKgrVvLFEWnhlY41yYtaL_xjjBUyr8_aaXXv7f2iTdrEryEf9O5pwD1W2Mc0KI/s1600-h/1.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 140px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYpWQHFqAHJ-OagTk-kU2yWjFz1BNBLCa0kknsSUTH31rLQkDB6j8t3seCiRHQXo4Sxf-fGG9vOPHBPEUKgrVvLFEWnhlY41yYtaL_xjjBUyr8_aaXXv7f2iTdrEryEf9O5pwD1W2Mc0KI/s200/1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5280808249267247890" /></a><span style="font-style:italic;"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/07/world/americas/07tikunas.html?partner=permalink&exprod=permalink">The NY Times</a></span> released a story on the struggle of Brazil's Tikuna Indians against increasing drug and alcohol abuse. The Tikuna of Mariaçu, a region of the Amazon that borders Colombia and Peru, are increasingly acting as drug traffickers. Young Tikuna are seduced by the lucrative pay offered to smuggle drugs, and many become addicted to the cocaine they help transport. Tikuna enjoy certain exemptions from Brazilian law, but Mariaçu's two chiefs have asked police to intervene and crack down on traffickers and abusers in their communities. The chiefs are concerned that the young are destroying what is left of traditional Tikuna culture.AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-57617423307190837062008-12-16T13:25:00.000-08:002008-12-16T13:51:04.591-08:00Brazil Votes to Create Indigenous Reserve<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimX0lx2mz6r7spwc8_k6vFXzPKTmHtkYaxKKFQRXJszR-S9EMDDiQtFe10-ZFhksPcpkDja6x0yR_4TUrel8heyeqGjK85ulWltDUtgOXDueBGdmDx_kkWpmZV40Wzp54llOmKJurHO9OL/s1600-h/1.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 135px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimX0lx2mz6r7spwc8_k6vFXzPKTmHtkYaxKKFQRXJszR-S9EMDDiQtFe10-ZFhksPcpkDja6x0yR_4TUrel8heyeqGjK85ulWltDUtgOXDueBGdmDx_kkWpmZV40Wzp54llOmKJurHO9OL/s200/1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5280508464538497426" /></a>After 15 years and a recent vote suspension, a decision has finally been made in favor of the creation of Brazil's Raposa Serra do Sol indigenous reserve. Eight of eleven Supreme Court judges voted in favor of the four million acre reserve. The reserve, soon to be one of the largest of its kind, is nestled in the Amazon and borders Venezuela. Farmers, ranchers, miners, etc. who have occupied the reserve and had violent clashes with its indigenous inhabitants will be evicted. According to the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/12/world/americas/12brazil.html?partner=permalink&exprod=permalink">NY Times</a>, the debate over the reserve "set off a sharp controversy over property rights, the limits of government authority and the rights of Indians to their original lands." The AAA congratulates members and advocates who have worked diligently to support and protect the rights of Brazil's indigenous peoples.AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-64141671803192179932008-12-10T15:14:00.001-08:002008-12-11T13:58:37.330-08:0060th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human RightsYesterday marked the 60th anniversary of the <a href="http://www.un.org/Overview/rights.html">Universal Declaration of Human Rights</a>. Originally drafted on Dec. 10, 1948 by the UN, the declaration established a set of rights and freedoms entitled to all peoples and nations of the world. <br /><br />The American Anthropological Association has developed a <a href="http://www.aaanet.org/stmts/humanrts.htm">Declaration</a> that we believe has universal relevance:<br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><blockquote></blockquote>"People and groups have a generic right to realize their capacity for culture, and to produce, reproduce and change the conditions and forms of their physical, personal and social existence, so long as such activities do not diminish the same capacities of others. Anthropology as an academic discipline studies the bases and the forms of human diversity and unity; anthropology as a practice seeks to apply this knowledge to the solution of human problems.<br /><br />As a professional organization of anthropologists, the AAA has long been, and should continue to be, concerned whenever human difference is made the basis for a denial of basic human rights, where "human" is understood in its full range of cultural, social, linguistic, psychological, and biological senses."<blockquote></blockquote></span><br />The AAA definition reflects a commitment to human rights consistent with international principles but not limited by them. Human rights is not a static concept. Our understanding of human rights is constantly evolving as we come to know more about the human condition. It is therefore incumbent on anthropologists to be involved in the debate on enlarging our understanding of human rights on the basis of anthropological knowledge and research. <br /><br />Of course, there are some who attack the concept of universal rights as a Western construct, <a href="http://www.thenation.com/doc/20081222/crossette">Barbara Crosette wrote in <span style="font-style:italic;">The Nation</span></a>. Louise Arbour, former UN high commissioner for human rights, said, "Probably one of the existential issues in international human rights currently is the rise of cultural relativism and a pushback against the concept of universality." Some note that this view stems from governments in the US and Western Europe that more often observe human rights when it comes to freedom of conscience than to freedom of want.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Related Articles</span><br /><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/dec/10/human-rights-universal-declaration">The Price of Rights</a> <br /><br /><a href="http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N09275325.htm">UN Rights Chief Says World Hopes Pinned on Obama</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/1210/p07s01-wogn.html">In Europe, Same-Sex Showdown Moves to UN</a>AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-85825798973718421342008-12-10T11:11:00.000-08:002008-12-10T12:05:17.803-08:00Climate Change Predicted to Uproot Millions<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9BhdgcOMZTmdxDbO06Mj6fZmmNgimt0U-iUOwpkZNPkwAgFHZAa4ppppaHfaZr-4AH0LRkW-VpHg1NDIK8kUhLlXfOETy0UGPSnHMGvk7IVxCI390cYKyH-OE5zOTEPchDlYRVgtePetE/s1600-h/1.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 190px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9BhdgcOMZTmdxDbO06Mj6fZmmNgimt0U-iUOwpkZNPkwAgFHZAa4ppppaHfaZr-4AH0LRkW-VpHg1NDIK8kUhLlXfOETy0UGPSnHMGvk7IVxCI390cYKyH-OE5zOTEPchDlYRVgtePetE/s200/1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278254976930106450" /></a><a href="http://alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/B362707.htm">According to a top U.N. official</a>, climate change could uproot almost six million people annually and the effects of global warming might displace 200-250 million people by mid-century. Steps to adapt to and reduce climate change, while important, will not prevent a rise in weather-related disasters and conflict over scarce resources. The world's most underprivileged populations are often the first to feel the impact of climate change, but they are unable to fully prepare for these impending crises. The U.N. Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees claimed that aid agencies will need to increase their relief supplies 10- or 20-fold in order to respond to future catastrophes.<br /><br />University of Washington anthropologist Holly Barker provides insight into this dilemma in her CounterPunch op-ed, "<a href="http://www.counterpunch.org/barker11042008.html">The Inequities of Climate Change and the Small Island Experience</a>."AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-89095113925454108952008-11-13T14:11:00.000-08:002008-11-13T14:23:17.876-08:00CfHR & MESA Respond to Arrest of Grad Student in IranAAA's Committee for Human Rights signed onto a <a href="http://www.aaanet.org/cmtes/cfhr/upload/Iran-MESA-Esha-Momeni-Letter-110508.pdf">letter [pdf]</a> by the Committee on Academic Freedom of the Middle East Studies Association of North America expressing concern about the recent <a href="http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-esha24-2008oct24,0,2787094.story">arrest of Esha Momeni</a> by Iranian police. Momeni, a graduate student in journalism and media studies at California State University--Northridge, was arrested in Tehran following a minor traffic violation. She was not charged with a crime during her arrest, but has since been charged with "acting against national security" and "propagating against the system," the <a href="http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-esha11-2008nov11,0,2721563.story">LA Times reported</a>. Police searched Momeni's property and confiscated many of her belongings, including her computer, videotapes, books, and writings. AAA and MESA are concerned that her arrest is related to her research on the women's movement in Iran. According to Amnesty International, she videotaped interviews with members of Change for Equality, a nonprofit organization that aims to improve the status of women in Iran by training them in civil disobedience. Momeni has been released on bail, but may not leave the country and will soon stand before a tribunal to face the charges against her.AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-16043531568079161022008-11-03T13:16:00.000-08:002008-11-04T07:39:04.287-08:00Edited Volume Released: Reparations & Human Rights<span style="font-style:italic;">Waging War, Making Peace - Reparations and Human Rights</span> will be formally launched by Left Coast Press at this years AAA meetings.<br /><br />This book is subtitled "A Report from the American Anthropological Association, Committee for Human Rights, Reparations Task Force" and is developed from a 2006 CfHR-sponsored session at the AAA's and subsequent task force work. The book was developed as an interdisciplinary reader -- meant to communicate anthropological insights and experiences to a broader public and academic audience.<br /><br />Click <a href="http://www.lcoastpress.com/book.php?id=147">here</a> for additional information.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Table of Contents</span><br /><br />1. WAGING WAR, MAKING PEACE: THE ANTHROPOLOGY OF REPARATIONS ~ JOHNSTON, Barbara Rose (Ctr. For Political Ecology)<br />2. REPARATIONS AND THE ILLUSIVE MEANING OF JUSTICE IN GUATEMALA ~ DILL, Kathleeen (Latin American Studies Institute, University of Texas, Austin) and Barbara Rose Johnston (Ctr. For Political Ecology)<br />3. FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE: IMPLEMENTING REPARATIONS IN POST TRUTH COMMISSION PERU ~ LAPLANTE, Lisa J. (Praxis: An Institute for Social Justice)<br />4. REPARATION: NICARAGUA ~ PHILLIPS, James (Southern Oregon University)<br />5. CALCULATING THE DAMAGES OF HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES: REPARATIONS MODELS AND THE PEOPLE OF DIEGO GARCIA ~ VINE, David (American Univ), Philip HARVEY (Rutgers) S. WOJCIECH SOKOLOWSKI (Johns Hopkins)<br />6. VICTIM REPARATIONS AND PERPETRATOR IMMUNITY: THE CASE OF ALGERIA AND MOROCCO ~ SLYOMOVICS, Susan (MIT)<br />7. THE INNOCENT VICTIM' BEFORE CAPITAL PUNISHMENT ~ DI BELLA, Maria Pia (CNRS-GTMS-EHESS, Paris)<br />8. THE PIECES OF PEACE: LAWFARE IN THE NEW CYPRUS ~ BRYANT, Rebecca (George Mason University)<br />9. BEYOND RECOGNITION: STAGGERED LIMITED RETURN OF PALESTINIANS INTO ISRAEL ~ RABINOWITZ, Dan (Tel-Aviv University)<br />10. THE ETHICAL DIMENSIONS OF PEACE ~ SCHAFFT, Gretchen (American University)<br />11. REPARATIONS AND HUMAN RIGHTS ~ RENTLEN, Alison Dundes (USC) <br />IndexAAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-14848724341588073342008-10-28T10:02:00.000-07:002008-10-28T10:28:00.566-07:00400 Academics Write to Senator Obama<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGpyGBcyhVNndZR15Uf6m62B9dXUIBRt9WBPah-bRBwA9Ir9FD4k5ijo72rK4JeMua3vAaALbwRz-0xYS8iTxGjqSOGHiOhQe04rNREUTkRUcaywCs4FnYUdOcSs7QjXnT6hoSCD8OZLYA/s1600-h/1.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 133px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGpyGBcyhVNndZR15Uf6m62B9dXUIBRt9WBPah-bRBwA9Ir9FD4k5ijo72rK4JeMua3vAaALbwRz-0xYS8iTxGjqSOGHiOhQe04rNREUTkRUcaywCs4FnYUdOcSs7QjXnT6hoSCD8OZLYA/s200/1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5262257132542704226" /></a>Anticipating a democratic victory in the November 4 presidential elections, four-hundred academics specializing in Latin America urge Senator Barack Obama to become a partner, rather than an adversary, concerning to the changes already under way in Latin America. Above all, they ask Senator Obama to understand the current impetus for progressive change in many of the region’s countries: the rejection of the “free-market” model of economic growth that has been imposed in most countries since the early 1980s, and the adoption of more socially just and environmentally sustainable development styles. The group expresses the hope that an Obama administration will embrace the opportunity to inaugurate a new period of hemispheric understanding and collaboration for the welfare of the entire Hemisphere. Most of those signing are members of the Latin American Studies Association, the largest and most influential professional association of its kind in the world. <br /><br />Thanks go to Arturo Escobar, professor of anthropology at UNC-Chapel Hill, for developing the petition, as well as all those involved in drafting the final version.<br /><br />AAA has posted the letter along with signatories <a href="http://www.aaanet.org/issues/policy-advocacy/upload/OpenLetterToSenatorObamaWithSignatures.pdf"><span style="font-weight:bold;">here</span></a> [pdf].AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-82367173522459070592008-10-23T10:20:00.001-07:002008-10-23T10:20:39.429-07:00CfHR Responds to US Census BureauLast month, the AAA's <a href="http://www.aaanet.org/cmtes/cfhr/index.cfm">Committee for Human Rights</a> wrote to the <a href="http://www.aaanet.org/cmtes/cfhr/upload/Census-letter-lacy-clay.pdf">House Subcommittee on Information Policy, Census, and National Archives [pdf]</a> and the <a href="http://www.aaanet.org/cmtes/cfhr/upload/Dingell-Census-Letter-092408.pdf">House Committee on Energy and Commerce [pdf]</a> urging them to "take appropriate legislative action to (1) pressure the U.S. Census Bureau to refrain from classifying any speakers as 'linguistically isolated' due to its inaccurate and discriminatory nature, and (2) to add a question concerning proficiency in languages other than English to the national census in order to arrive at a more accurate picture of language in the U.S.A." Comprehensive language information will allow our nation's institutions to better implement and tailor programs to meet local needs. CfHR will follow up with House Representatives to ensure that their concerns are addressed.AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7612288841836665833.post-21970635250549269502008-10-06T13:30:00.000-07:002008-10-06T13:47:44.354-07:00Child Soldiers Accountability Act is Signed by President Bush<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTMaUKbHe1cr7AE5eD4ruTo6IaWIPEWW4n154gaZO1WZDGmRLtKyZhg1HziumIK1xOPsvrYCL-D51SUMeBY4h1zvxtGulhOUhmc2rPUwhKta_NSqiY4LxKmIxzJZ4SwzXe3hGgJ3VPxm2i/s1600-h/1.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTMaUKbHe1cr7AE5eD4ruTo6IaWIPEWW4n154gaZO1WZDGmRLtKyZhg1HziumIK1xOPsvrYCL-D51SUMeBY4h1zvxtGulhOUhmc2rPUwhKta_NSqiY4LxKmIxzJZ4SwzXe3hGgJ3VPxm2i/s200/1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5254144905529218162" /></a> <a href="http://hrw.org/english/docs/2008/10/03/usint19912.htm"><span style="font-weight:bold;">Human Rights Watch</span></a> reported that the <a href="http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s110-2135">Child Soldiers Accountability Act of 2007</a> has been signed by President Bush. The bill allows the US to arrest, prosecute, deport, and deny entry to individuals who have recruited and used children in armed conflicts. In 1998, the International Criminal Court declared the recruitment and use of children as soldiers a war crime. Despite efforts to curb recruitment, children are currently used as combatants in at least 17 countries, including Iraq and Afghanistan.AAAadminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01736033637340446424noreply@blogger.com0