http://thereport.amnesty.org/eng/report-08-at-a-glance

1948 Promise:
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights
2008 Reality:
In the first half of 2007 nearly 250 women were killed by violent husbands or family members in Egypt and on average 2 women were raped there every hour.

1948 Promise:
Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person
2008 Reality:
1,252 people were known to have been executed by their state in 2007 in 24 countries; 104 countries however voted for a global moratorium on the death penalty.

ARTICLE 5

1948 Promise:
No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
2008 Reality:
Amnesty International documented cases of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment in more than 81 countries in 2007.

1948 Promise:
All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law
2008 Reality:
Amnesty International's report highlights at least 23 countries with laws discriminating against women, at least 15 with laws discriminating against migrants and at least 14 with laws discriminating against minorities.

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ARTICLE 9

1948 Promise:
Noone shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile
2008 Reality:
At the end of 2007, there were more than 600 people detained without charge, trial or judicial review of their detentions at the US airbase in Bagram, Afghanistan, and 25,000 held by the Multinational Force in Iraq.

1948 Promise:
Everyone charged with a crime is entitled equally to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal
2008 Reality:
54 countries were recorded in the Amnesty International Report 2008 as conducting unfair trials.

1948 Promise:
Everyone has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law
2008 Reality:
Amnesty International figures show that around 800 people have been held at Guantánamo Bay since the detention facility opened in January 2002, some 270 are still being held there in 2008 without charge or due legal process.

1948 Promise:
Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state
2008 Reality:
In 2007, there were more than 550 Israeli military checkpoints and blockades restricting or preventing the movement of Palestinians between towns and villages in the West Bank.

1948 Promise:
Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion
2008 Reality:
Amnesty International has documented 45 countries as detaining Prisoners of Conscience.

1948 Promise:
Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression, and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers
2008 Reality:
77 countries were restricting freedom of expression and the press according to the Amnesty International Report 2008.

1948 Promise:
Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
2008 Reality:
Thousands of people are believed to have been arrested during the crackdown on protests in Myanmar in 2007, Amnesty International estimates that around 700 remain in detention.

1948 Promise:
Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to fair and equal pay, and to form and join trade unions
2008 Reality:
At least 39 trade unionists were killed in Colombia in 2007, 22 have died in the first 4 months of this year.

ARTICLE 25

1948 Promise:
Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for their health and well-being, especially mothers and children
2008 Reality:
14% of Malawi's population was living with HIV/AIDS in 2007, only 3% of them had access to free anti-retroviral drugs, 1 million children were orphaned there by HIV/AIDS related deaths.

(All figures from Amnesty International Report 2008)

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What a great job you did here. I salute you

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http://thereport.amnesty.org/global-themes/stop-violence-against-women

Homepage » Global Themes »

Stop Violence Against Women

The Amnesty International Report 2008 shows how failure of leadership has betrayed the promise of the Declaration for at least half the world’s population – women. It documents, for example, at least 23 countries with laws specifically discriminating against women. As well as countless others where discrimination is embedded into every day life.

The report also highlights the issue of domestic violence. In just one example, in Egypt in 2007 nearly 250 women were killed by violent husbands or family members in the first six months and two women were raped every hour.

The experience or threat of violence affects the lives of women everywhere – in every region of the world: Africa, the Americas, Asia-Pacific, Europe and Central Asia, the Middle East and North Africa.

Women and girls suffer disproportionately from violence in peacetime and in conflict, at the hands of the state, the community and the family. They are beaten, raped, mutilated and killed with impunity. Such violence comes as a direct result of endemic gender discrimination perpetuated by social and political institutions.

Women experience unequal access to education, training and employment, perpetuating a cycle of poverty and marginalization. It is extremely difficult for women living in poverty to escape abusive situations, obtain protection or access the criminal justice system.

Nation states are obligated to prevent violence against women, yet the issue is frequently met with silence or apathy. This failure to create non-discriminatory environments has life-long, and unsustainable, consequences.

Violence against women impoverishes society economically, politically and culturally. It limits the crucial role that women should make in the development of their communities.

• Join the Stop Violence Against Women campaign.

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Shocking indeed, Davida...

And it's not only authorities, "family man" etc. Most religions in the world openly discriminate women, based on paternal deity images being a reflection of traditional conservative societal structures and role patterns, based on sin,fear, guilt and sexual related issues...

Not to mention other religiously inspired discrimination and violence against other minorities: ethnic groups, gays, lesbians, child abuse by clergy...

Dirk S.

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Homepage » Global Themes » UDHR60

http://thereport.amnesty.org/global-themes/udhr60

2008 marks the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The momentous vision of justice and dignity initially recognized by governments, has today become the common goal of people everywhere; fought for tirelessly by human rights defenders.

The Declaration reaffirms that human rights are for everyone, everywhere. But 60 years after its adoption, the sad truth is that human rights violations know no boundaries. Based on research from thousands of individual testimonies and visits, the Amnesty International Report 2008 documents torture and other ill-treatment in at least 81 countries, unfair trials in 54, and crackdowns on freedom of expression in at least 77. It shows how a failure to provide global leadership on health has left one million children orphaned by HIV/AIDS-related deaths in Malawi alone.

Six decades on, the promise of the Declaration’s 30 articles – to be free from fear as well as from want – is unrealized for millions of us.

The Declaration was the first time rights and freedoms for all human beings were recognized in an international instrument – from the right to life to the right to freedom of conscience, opinion, expression and association. From the right to life itself, to the right to enjoy that life with health, education and to earn a living; from the right to live in dignity, to the right not to suffer cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment.

It recognized the equality of every single human life – whatever our gender, race, ethnic origin or birthplace. It clarified that these rights are not only universal but indivisible – you betray one, you betray them all.

These rights are innate in all of us - that is the essence of our humanity. Each of us has the duty to stand up, not just for our own rights, but also for those of others.

Vibrant social-movements are gaining strength around the globe to make the rights enshrined in the Declaration a reality. Amnesty International is proud to be a part of this movement and dedicates this Amnesty International Report 2008 to all human rights defenders everywhere.

• Read about the current state of human rights around the world
• Find out about the UDHR60 Passport
• Find out how you can join the campaign to make the promise of universal, indivisible human rights a reality for all
• See the full text of the Declaration
• The full Declaration is available in 36 languages

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