Human rights

April 22, 2008 -- Chicago, IL -- Senator Barack Obama today released the following statement on Equal Pay Day.

"Equal Pay Day is about the fundamental American principle that if you work hard and do a good job, you should be rewarded for your success, regardless of what you look like, where you come from, or what gender you are.

Barack Obama rally: Photo by Barack Obama campaign (CC)

"And yet, many women today are still earning less than men for the same work – making it harder for single mothers to climb out of poverty, and for elderly women to retire with security.    » read more »

In U.S. women, on average, earn 77 cents for every dollar earned by men

April 21, 2008 -- Des Moines – Rachel Scott, division administrator of the Iowa Commission on the Status of Women, and Elisabeth Buck, director of Iowa Workforce Development, will recognize Equal Pay Day at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, April 22 in the Kennedy Conference Room of the Iowa State Capitol with a Governor’s Proclamation and press conference.    » read more »

16 April 2008 -- The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld the most common method of lethal injection used for executions by the federal government and 36 states. The unsuccessful constitutional challenge to the three-drug lethal injection was brought by lawyers representing two men sentenced to die in the state of Kentucky.

Lawyers for the two convicted murderers at the center of the case argued that death by lethal injection amounts to cruel and unusual punishment, which is prohibited by the U.S. constitution. The lawyers argued that the drugs are often administered by untrained officials who sometimes botch the executions, causing extreme pain and suffering.    » read more »

April 16, 2008 -- Lincoln, Neb. - Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman and Attorney General Jon Bruning commented today on a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that upheld lethal injection as a legal method of execution in response to a challenge in another state.

Gov. Heineman said, “I find it encouraging that the United States Supreme Court has ruled Kentucky’s method of lethal injection as a constitutional means of execution.

“The ruling issued today is intricate and complex and I have asked Attorney General Bruning to conduct a careful, thorough and thoughtful review of this case in order to determine an appropriate course of action. I am not eager to call a special session and I will not make a final decision regarding a special session until this review is completed.”    » read more »

April 16, 2008 -- JEFFERSON CITY - Following a U.S. Supreme Court decision rejecting a challenge to lethal injection, Missouri Governor Matt Blunt, a strong supporter of the death penalty, today issued the following statement calling on the Missouri Supreme Court to immediately issue execution orders for all pending death penalty cases:

Lethal injection: Photo by Jessica Stacey (CC)    » read more »

Rome Should Seek Extradition of 26 Americans in Cleric’s Abduction

(Milan, April 16, 2008) – The alleged kidnappers of an Egyptian cleric in 2003 will go on trial in Milan on April 16 in what is the first ever legal challenge to the CIA’s controversial rendition program, Human Rights Watch said today. Human Rights Watch urged the newly-elected Italian government to seek the extradition of 26 American CIA agents implicated in the abduction.

CIA and Italian military intelligence personnel are believed responsible for abducting Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr, who is known as Abu Omar, from a Milan street on February 17, 2003. He was then transferred to Egypt, where, Nasr claims, he was badly tortured in detention.    » read more »

April 14, 2008 -- TRENTON - New Jersey Governor Jon S. Corzine today spoke at the Legislative Abolition of the Death Penalty in New Jersey Conference to reflect on the process of abolishing the death penalty in the state. The conference was held at The Newark Club. The Governor signed legislation in December of 2007 ending the death penalty in New Jersey and today offered the following sentiments.

Electric chair used in Texas until 1954: Photo by Jessica Stacey (CC)    » read more »

April 10, 2008 -- ARLINGTON, VA -- U.S. Senator John McCain today issued the following statement on China and the Olympic Games:

"Our relationship with China is important, and we value our ability to cooperate with the Chinese government on a wide variety of strategic, economic, and diplomatic fronts. But the Chinese government needs to understand that in our modern world, how a nation treats its citizens is a legitimate subject of international concern.

Beijing Olympics protesters in New York: Photo by Avi Flax (CC)    » read more »

13 April 2008 -- The Dalai Lama has threatened to resign as leader of Tibet's exiled government if violence in his homeland spirals out of control.

The Nobel Peace laureate made the comment Sunday at a news conference in Seattle, Washington, where he has been attending a five-day "Seeds of Compassion" conference.

Dalai Lama: Photo by kermitlab (CC)

The exiled Tibetan spiritual leader denied Chinese claims that he has called for Tibet to split from China and that he is behind the recent turmoil. The Dalai Lama said the whole world knows that he is seeking autonomy for the region.    » read more »

April 10, 2008 -- Washington, D.C. – Speaker Nancy Pelosi spoke on the House floor today in support of a new rule that suspends the requirement that the Colombia Free Trade Agreement be considered within 60 legislative days in the House – giving Congress the prerogative in scheduling a vote. Below are her prepared remarks:

Speaker Nancy Pelosi: Photo by Randy Bayne (CC)“Mr. Speaker, the vote of the House today is a vote to put the economic priorities of the American people first.    » read more »

04/09/2008 -- BOSTON – Senator John Kerry sent a letter today to President George Bush, expressing his disappointment that the President sent an incomplete Colombian Free Trade Agreement to Congress for an immediate up or down vote.

“This trade deal is a slap in the face to thousands of people in Colombia who have been killed just trying to exercise the right to organize, and yet President Bush has refused to allow the proper Congressional committees even to have a voice in the process and negotiate improvements,” said Senator Kerry.

Senator John Kerry: Photo by Steve Rhodes (CC)    » read more »

Senators Say Bush's Presence Would Show Tolerance for Human Rights Violations, Disrespect for Spirit of the Olympics

April 9, 2008 -- Washington, DC – Today, as the Olympic torch relay makes its only stop in the United States, U.S. Senators Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Robert Byrd (D-WV) and Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) are officially calling on President Bush not to attend the Opening Ceremonies in Beijing this summer.

Senator Hillary Clinton: Photo by Marc Nozell (CC)

In their letter to Bush the Senators wrote:    » read more »

April 8, 2008 -- Washington, D.C. – Speaker Nancy Pelosi spoke on the House floor tonight to urge the passage of her resolution in support of Tibet, H.R. 1077. Below are the Speaker’s remarks, as prepared:

“Thank you Chairman Howard Berman and Ranking Member Ileana Ros Lehtinen for your bipartisan support in bringing this resolution to the floor this evening.

Mountains in Tibet: Photo by all-i-oli (CC)    » read more »

10 April 2008 -- Amid tight security, runners carried the Olympic torch through San Francisco Wednesday, as protesters called attention to the human rights record of this year's Olympic host, China. San Francisco officials changed the route of the torch run to avoid thousands of demonstrators.

Runners carrying the Olympic flame followed a truncated course that avoided protesters who criticized China's recent crackdown in Tibet, and others who decried China's support of the governments of Sudan and Burma, countries accused of human rights abuses. Yet other demonstrators, some of them members of San Francisco's large Chinese American community, waved Chinese flags in support of China. Many in both groups left without seeing the torch.    » read more »

10 April 2008 -- The president of the International Olympics Committee says the Beijing Games will recover from a "crisis" involving anti-China protests that have marred the international torch relay. Jacques Rogge made the vow Thursday at the opening session of IOC's executive board meeting in the Chinese capital.

San Francisco protesters against the Beijing Summer Olympic Games: Photo by Scott Eaton (CC)

Rogge says the IOC was "saddened" by demonstrations that disrupted the carrying of the torch in London and Paris.    » read more »