People were killed for it since the beginning of time, in the name of power: religious (i.e. Inquisition), military (so many empires built on murder) or just the need of feeling superior (i.e. racism).

Having it makes us who we are, opens the gates of creativity, humanity, happiness. Being denied it makes us useless puppets.

It works on every level of society: from basic family relations, to work environment, to globalization of human interactions.

Used properly, it is responsible for our most wonderful creations. If used for the wrong reasons, it is responsible for the worst atrocities ever committed.

Somewhere in this world, there is a 63 year old woman in prison. She was rightfully elected as the president of her country and she won the Nobel Peace Prize for peacefully fighting the military regime that is killing, torturing and abusing her nation. Aung San Suu Kyi is the symbol of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of our days, and she keeps fighting the military regime with nothing but wording her beliefs. Her beliefs that people are born free, and noone has the right to treat them otherwise. She said to the world: “Use your freedom to promote ours!”

Do you know what freedom I’m talking about? Do you know what most of the unhappy people in the world need? Are you using it at it’s best potential, or you are just following others while denying your own right?

Freedom of opinion and expression: individuals’ most powerful weapon, oppressors’ most feared enemy.

My favorite article from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights:
Article 19: FREEDOM OF OPINION AND EXPRESSION ARE GRANTED TO EVERYONE.

What is yours? Do you know what your rights are? Do you take them for granted? Please comment. Express your thoughts! :)

Also, don’t forget to print the UDHR poster (11×17in.- tabloid) (8.5×11in.- lettersize) and share it with everyone today. The world needs people to be aware of their Human Rights, we all need to read it at least once.

Rejection is tough to deal with, so you learn to shut down your emotions and play along. Before you know it, you only care about your well being. You don’t care about how bad you hurt other people, it doesn’t matter that you feel love and kindness, you have to act tough and cold in order to survive the angry mob mentality. Ignorance is celebrated, insensitivity becomes standard.

I was there, I know it’s true. I did my best to not show affection and love and the only consequence was that I hurt other people as well. I made others go through what i went through myself, I knew it and ignored it, and in the end I hurt even more.

Peer pressure is such a bitch! A lot of the human rights violations are the result of peer pressure, if you think about it: not having the strength to tell mean people to go fuck themselves resulted in racism, hate, violence, crimes against humanity. The way we interact with each-other, as society, never ceases to amaze me. We tend to follow others that we consider are cooler / better/ smarter than we are, and we ignore our beliefs and who we really are. Personalities get shifted, feelings are being left out and we don’t care about anyone else but ourselves.

Care. That is what it all comes down to. At what point in our lives we learn to care not about how others see us, but about how truthful we are to who we really are? When do we feel strong enough to do something because we think we should, not because we are expected to or just because other people do it? When will we replace insensitivity and ignorance with care?

Why would you care that some women are being raped and murdered in South-East Asia, when you are so comfortable in this little coffee shop with your laptop and coffee? Why would you care that so many people starve to death in Africa, when you’ll go home and have your nice warm dinner? Why would you care that so many people are being abused and tortured, when you can just have your fun on your nice warm side of the world? Why would you care that so many people don’t have access to basic needs to live, when you want a better car?

Because the more care you bring into the world, the less room there is for hate and sooner or later, this will benefit you as well.

As I write this I can’t help thinking about what will others think of me after reading it. Will I be misjudged and thought of as weak because I care? Thankfully I learned from my mistakes, and I am just doing what I think is right, and that makes me stronger.

There’s no point for freedom when ignorance is celebrated and I am done with being ignorant. Freedom of thought, freedom to be me, freedom to care.

Do you care? We’ll see tomorrow, December 10! :)

I wanted to make something different than ask you to donate money for this cause: to bring awareness. Less than 5% of the worlds’ population heard about the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and probably less than that read it, even though i consider it to be one of the most important documents ever written. Have you read it? Do you know your rights as a human being? I know I haven’t until 4 years ago.

I grew up in communism until the age of 10. I remember very well the revolution to overthrow it, because we had to run away from home due to my family being in danger. My father was out there, risking his life to make a difference, while my sister, my mother and I were worried sick about him. When we went home, we had a bodyguard with a big rifle watching over us, and that made us feel very restless, worried and afraid. The presence of a gun around a child is such a wrong thing! Now, being an adult, I can only imagine all the child soldiers out there in Burma and  Darfur, not being protected by guns, but being forced to use them to hurt other people. Their future as adults is already decided, and I’m pretty sure that it  will not be a bright happy one.

I was lucky! Lucky to have had the opportunity to develop in freedom, even though I am sure a lot of the people in my country would disagree with me. Negativism, depression and fear for the future still rule Romanians, consequences of the 40 year long dictatorial regime not respecting the people’s human rights. It will take generations for the attitude of the people to change for the better, but I have faith that it will happen.

There are so many more reasons for me to be involved in promoting human rights, but I told myself I’ll keep this article short, for your sake :)

I know from experience that it is very hard to keep being motivated to fight for this cause. I’m a graphic designer, and never considered myself as an activist. The results come slow, the support is short handed and these can be very frustrating for someone used to getting immediate results from their actions. It is so much easier to donate $5 and sleep better at night because you ‘made a change’, but the real challenge is trying to make other people to believe in the reasons that determined you to donate the $5.

This is my challenge. This is the One Day for Human Rights challenge. If you are reading this it means you came to this website because you already are on my side (well, hopefully at least :)), but I wish that for one day a year, you will try to make someone else aware of the rights we all have as humans, have someone you know or you think they need it to read the UDHR, talk about it, spread the word. For you, as one person, the accomplishments will probably be small, due to the difficulty of getting people out of their comfort zone, but overall I believe that together we can make a difference. If the result we’re going to have is for at least one person to have a better life in this world, then I will declare this cause successful!

This cause was started by me, Anca. Even though I do work with Jack Healey and Human Rights Action Center, One Day for Human Rights is my cause, and I have noone else to support me except you, the people that care about these moral issues. I have no material incentive for you, as I have nothing to gain personally from doing this (well, except sleeping better at night :)), but I need your help and support more than anything. I need you to talk/write about human rights, for one day: December 10.

Will you? Would you? Should you? I believe that you should, as a moral duty to our world, but ‘will you’ and ‘would you’ I can’t answer. I encourage you to tell the rest of the world what are your reasons for supporting human rights in the comments section! Or, you can just write about it on your own blog, on December 10! *wink wink*

Thank you!
Anca

Dear Friends,

Today, Aung San Suu Kyi turns 64 years old. She will spend this birthday in Insein prison, as a prisoner of Than Shwe’s military regime — simply because she has called for democracy and human rights for the people of Burma.

We and our colleagues throughout the world have been doing a ton of work to make sure that she remains in the spotlight.  Over 560 people signed up to host events in their homes through our “Arrest Yourself” campaign!

If you were not able to host an event, we are asking you to make a special donation of $64, $640 or $6,400 today to the U.S. Campaign for Burma in honor of Aung San Suu Kyi, so that we can continue our work to advocate for her freedom, and human rights for everyone in Burma.

Your money will be put to good use.  Here are only a few things we have organized lately:

• This year, through our annual “Arrest Yourself” campaign, over 560 people in every state and 46 countries around the world have pledged to put themselves under self-imposed “house arrest” and to host educational events in solidarity with Aung San Suu Kyi.
• On Moday, U.S. Campaign for Burma Executive Director Aung Din joined other prominent democracy advocates from Burma to personally deliver a petition of over 680,000 signatures calling for the release of all political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi, to Ibrahim Gambari, the UN Secretary-General’s special envoy to Buurma at UN headquarters in New York.
• We helped recruit 112 former Presidents and Prime Ministers from throughout the world  to urge the UN Secretary  General to travel to Burma to seek Suu Kyi’s release.  While he initially resisted, in early May he changed his mind and said he will go in the near future.
• We are currently campaigning for the renewal of the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act, which includes targeted sanctions on Burma’s ruthless leaders that Aung San Suu Kyi has called for. We hope you will join this effort and take a moment to call your Senators.
• Our work has been covered in thousands of news articles, helping to keep Burma on the agenda of world leaders

You can read more about what else we’ve done lately here and, at the bottom of this email you can read about some of the events taking place around the world to honor Aung San Suu Kyi.

Please help us to continue our vital work by making a contribution to our campaign today.

Sincerely,

Jeremy Woodrum
Director
U.S. Campaign for Burma

People around the world are rallying behind Aung San Suu Kyi.  However, we need to do more. Burma and Aung San Suu Kyi are now the feature of one of the world’s leading news stories.  It looks like the Burmese military regime will try and sentence Aung San Suu Kyi this coming Monday.

To make matters more difficult, the regime just “disbarred” one of her attorneys, effectively revoking his law license.

Yet, with your support, we and many allied organizations around the world have pressed governments to speak up and form a united call for change in Burma.   We are starting to see many activities come together to press for change:

1) There is a worldwide effort to collect 888,888 signatures on a petition to UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon calling for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and all political prisonsers in Burma. If you haven’t signed already, please do so today.

2) On Monday, May 18th, demonstrations will be held in support of Aung San Suu Kyi around the world including in Singapore, Thailand, Spain, and the United States. Below is a list of locations in the U.S.

3) Many of you, as well as some great members of Congress, have weighed in with the Obama administration urging him to keep sanctions on Burma. Great news – yesterday President Obama announced that he will continue U.S. sanctions on Burma.

4) We now have over 460 people throughout the country signed up to “arrest themselves” in solidarity with Aung San Suu Kyi in the coming months. If you haven’t signed up yet, be sure to do so today.   It is a simple yet very effective way to contribute to the movement to free Burma.

5) Leaders throughout the world, including some from Asia, are demanding the release of Aung San Suu Kyi. See a very brief list below. We are glad that Singpaore, Thailand, Indonesia, and Japan are all calling for Aung San Suu Kyi’s release.  Yet, China has remained silent. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said she will raise the issue with China. We will need to make sure she keeps her promise. As a world leader, China must to more for international justice.

6) Many countries are criticizing the arrest, but not proposing specific action. Yesterday, we started to bring some focus to next steps, calling for a global arms embargo on Burma and the creation of a commission of inquiry at the United Nations to investigate war crimes and crimes against humanity in Burma.

We are going to be calling on you for a great deal of help this coming week, so please stay tuned…

Best regards,
Jeremy Woodrum

US EMBASSY DEMONSTRATIONS:

Friday, May 15th (concluded):
New York

Monday, May 18th:

Boston
4:30pm, Harvard Sq. Kiosk
Contact: samantha.allen93@gmail.com

Washington, DC
12:30pm, Military Attache Office of Burmese Embassy, 2300 California St, NW
Contact: mike@uscampaignforburma.org

San Fransisco
11:30pm-1:30pm, United Nations Plaza, Civic Center, San Francisco. Market St @ 7th St
Contact: nyuntthan@gmail.com,  http://www.badasf.org/

NEWS ARTICLES

United Nations

United Nations and International Community UN rights chief calls for Aung San Suu Kyi’s immediate release

Myanmar: UN Security Council should demand Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s

Pressure on Yangon to Free Suu Kyi

Intl community irate over Suu Kyi’s legal plight

United States

United States Top US senators warn Myanmar over Aung San Suu Kyi

Senators alarmed by treatment of Nobel recipient

Advocacy group, celebrities urge release of Myanmar’s Suu Kyi

Clinton ‘deeply troubled’ by Aung San Suu Kyi charges

Europe

Europe Sakharov Network calls for immediate release of Aung San Suu Kyi, Sakharov Prize laureate 1990

Aung San Suu Kyi Should Be Released And Treated Properly

Aung San Suu Kyi detention infuriates EU ahead of ministers’ talks

Asia

ASEAN and Asian Countries Asian leaders call for release of Aung San Suu Kyi

Asian nations under fire for Suu Kyi inaction

Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone of Japan, one of Myanmar’s major international donors, voiced “deep concern”

USCB’s new “We Can Do It” t-shirts, featuring Aung San Suu Kyi, have just arrived in our freedom store – check them out today and wear one with pride.

This morning Nobel Peace Prize Recipient Aung San Suu Kyi was moved from her Rangoon home to Burma’s notorious Insein Prison, where she will face trial on Monday for supposedly violating the terms of her house arrest by hosting an unauthorized visitor after an American man swam uninvited to her compound and refused to leave.

Aung San Suu Kyi has been under house arrest continuously since 2003 and for a total of over 13 of the past 19 years.  According to the State Protection Law, under which she has been held, she can be detained for a maximum of six years.  This period was due to expire in less than two weeks, on May 27th, 2009.  Now, the military junta is using trumped up charges stemming from the incident of the American swimmer to extend her detention.  Suu Kyi was the victim, not the perpetrator, of this crime. For more information, please read USCB’s press release from earlier today.

The crime for which Aung San Suu Kyi is now being tried carries a minimum prison sentence of three years.  This is a critical time for the military regime in Burma, which has faced great difficulty in gaining support for its plan to host elections based on a sham constitution in 2010.  We must take action to ensure that the regime continues to feel pressure from the international community.

Take Action Now:

1.) Email UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and urge him to send his envoy to Burma and to take a stand for Aung San Suu Kyi’s security and freedom.  Click here to send an email to the Secretary General.

2.) Plan a Demonstration
Burma groups around the world have called for demonstrations in support of Aung San Suu Kyi to be held at Burmese embassies on Monday, May 18th.

US Campaign for Burma has organized a demonstration in Washington, DC at 12:30pm on Monday, May 18th, in front of the Burmese military attache (2300 California St. NW, near Dupont Circle). For more information contact Mike Haack at mike@uscampaignforburma.org.  If you are interested in organizing one in your home town, email Mike with the details and he will notify Burma supporters in your area.

3.) “Arrest Yourself” for Aung San Suu Kyi and Host a House Arrest Party to Educate Your Friends
Participate in Arrest Yourself 2009 and show your solidarity with Aung San Suu Kyi: uscampaignforburma.org/arrestyourself2009.

Learn More:

The world is giving more and more attention to Aung San Suu Kyi’s cause.  You can learn more about the regime’s detention of Aung San Suu Kyi on the news section of our website, or by reading these articles from CNN International, BBC, Al Jazeera, Agence France Presse, and Straight Times.

Thank you for taking action for Aung San Suu Kyi and Burma,

Jeremy Woodrum
Director
U.S. Campaign for Burma Support 1991 Nobel Peace Prize recipient Aung San Suu Kyi and the struggle for freedom and democracy in Burma:

Become a member of the U.S. Campaign for Burma.

      MythBusters:
      Water Torture

It was recently revealed to the American public that the waterboarding method had been used 266 times on two separate individuals at Guantanamo Bay. This is a hotly debated method of “harsh interrogation techniques” solely because it is unclear whether or not it falls into the rubric of what we consider torture to be, and whether or not we gain any useful information in the process.

Many in the government, and citizens as well for that matter, refer to many similar methods as “harsh interrogation techniques” since we as Americans are afraid to use the word torture as that is simply something that we do not do. However, according to the rules of the Geneva Convention, almost every technique used by the C.I.A. fell into the umbrella of torture; not to say that this wasn’t a good method or a suitable retaliation against many Al Qaeda members, simply that we remain afraid to call it as such. Waterboarding comes into that “iffy” category, and has emerged as a political issue recently because of the confessions of many CIA operatives over the quantity of times these two Al Qaeda inmates had been subjected to it. This in turn adds to the question of waterboarding’s effectiveness: why would the procedure have been performed so many times if it was found to work the first few times?

This method also brings into play the basic human rights which are awarded to every citizen of the world, as stated by the Geneva Convention. During times of international war, prisoners of war are to be treated with the same respect as they would have been treated otherwise. This may not always be the case for many nondemocratic, developing nations, but states such as the U.S. should be one of the forerunners of this charter. As we come out of the twentieth century, the lone superpower, other developing nations look toward us for guidance, and what message are we relaying by shunning international charters? It is true that our citizens are not treated with the same respect in other nations across the world, but by succumbing to these harsh interrogation methods, we are harming our respectability on an international level, especially when these practices do not yield positive results.

It is understandable that waterboarding is a method that always teeters on the edge of harsh interrogation and torture; it is much less invasive and painful than many other methods that have been used across the board. This has become a topic of national interest because there are limits to the amount of water to be used in waterboarding, according to C.I.A. guidelines. Additionally, the fact that these documents were released internationally has allowed our enemies to read about the methods we have used on their countrymen, probably further infuriating them. While some methods may have proven effective, it has yet to be confirmed whether or not waterboarding has yielded any positive information in relation to impending terrorist attacks.

This post was contributed by Heidi Taylor, who writes about the top online universities. She welcomes your feedback at HeidiLTaylor006 at gmail.com

Yesterday, the UN made a groundbreaking decision on Burma.

For the first time ever, a body of the United Nations — the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (UNWGAD)– declared that the continued imprisonment of Burma’s democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, is illegal under Burma’s own domestic laws.

Through this ruling, the UN has shown that not only does Than Shwe’s military junta operate with a thorough disregard for international law, but they have also firmly entrenched a system of impunity for violating their own laws inside Burma.  

After the ruling, the United Nations called on Burma’s military regime to release Aung San Suu Kyi immediately and without conditions.  This is another example of mounting international pressure against Burma’s regime.

Watch this video to learn how you can help Aung San Suu Kyi to regain her freedom by participating in

Arrest Yourself 2009, a global campaign for Aung San Suu Kyi.

The U.S. Campaign for Burma is working hard to ensure that Aung San Suu Kyi’s freedom, and the freedom of all 2,100 courageous political prisoners in Burma, remains a priority for the international community.

Participating in Arrest Yourself 2009 is a unique way for you to spend time with family and friends while spreading awareness about Aung San Suu Kyi and supporting her struggle for freedom. Sign-up today to host an Arrest Yourself 2009 event.

You can learn more about the UNWGAD’s decision on Aung San Suu Kyi’s illegal detention in the following articles:

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7960506.stm

www.irrawaddy.org/highlight.php.

Thank you for all your hard work,

Mike Haack
Campaigns Coordinator
U.S. Campaign for Burma

December 10 – HUMAN RIGHTS DAY passed.

People blogged about it, more than i was expecting, actually! OneDayforHumanRights.org had 2311 referrals…which explains a little bit why I haven’t gone through and make my own list promoting people who blogged about Human Rights on December 10! However, you can find a link list on the December 10 – Show YOUR Support for Human Rights page, posted by the bloggers themselves. :)

Due to its success, I am planning to keep this website and ask people to blog about it again the following years. It will not be as special as this year, because it won’t be the 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, but the Human Rights are something we need to keep promoting and make everybody aware of.

So to wrap up the statistics, here is the final update for the Human Rights Day 2008:

- 1849 signatures for the Petition to print the UDHR in passports

Please keep signing and spread the word about the petition! I will keep promoting it until January, when Jack will try and talk to the new elect-president Barack Obama and get the Universal Declaration of Human Rights printed in the US passports!

- 1535 followers on Twitter

- 387 people became members of the “One Day For Human Rights” Facebook Group.

- i have also created a One Day for Human Rights FACEBOOK CAUSE that now has 178 members.

- 37 people accepted the invitation to join the “One Day for Human Rights” FLICKR Group.

Out of these, only 4 people created Art for Human Rights. Billion thanks to Andrew, Tanya, Fred and Bill for supporting our tiny Flickr group! They did an awesome job! :)

THANK YOU all so much for your support and for taking action to promote Human Rights!

As of now, I am considering to create a forum for this website, as a means to create and make possible a live discussion on the subject of Human Rights and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Things would probably get heated a lot on it, hence my tiny bit of holding back. What do you guys think? Should I do it? Please let me know your opinion in the comments section. :)

Thank you again! *huge hugs*

Love,

Anca