WASHINGTON, DC (RUSHPRNEWS) JULY 24, 2008–China’s leadership recently ordered local governments to go “all out” to prevent civilian protesters from tarnishing the Olympic Games in Beijing next month.Can you help Amnesty International go “all out” to focus world attention on the peaceful activists languishing in Chinese prisons by making a donation to our China Olympics Legacy Campaign today?
Chen Guangcheng is one of the courageous activists Amnesty International is working to free. The blind human rights defender and legal advisor was arrested in 2005 for filing a lawsuit on behalf of thousands of women in Shandong Province who endured forced abortions and sterilizations to meet local birth quotas.
Chen’s wife and lawyers were barred from appearing in court to defend him – and after a 1-day trial he received a 4-year prison sentence. Chen’s situation remains grim, as he’s reportedly been beaten in captivity. He won the Magsaysay award – described as Asia’s Nobel Prize – in July 2007 for defending human rights. But Chinese authorities even prevented Chen’s wife from traveling to the Philippines to accept the prize on his behalf.
The next few weeks are crucial for our China Olympics Legacy Campaign. With your tax-deductible gift today, we will:
Chen Guangcheng
was jailed for
defending women
who were sterilized
against their will.
You can help free him.
Urge President Bush to call for the release of human rights defenders like Chen Guangcheng and others when he meets with Chinese officials during the opening of the Games
Provide American athletes with toolkits to help them speak up – if they choose – about Chinese prisoners of conscience and the government’s human rights record
Encourage corporate sponsors such as Coca-Cola and McDonald’s to use their influence to call for an end to the ongoing abuses
The world needs to know that China has fallen far short of the promise it made in its Olympic bid – to improve its human rights record in the lead-up to the Games.
Please make a tax-deductible contribution to help Amnesty draw worldwide attention to the plight of Chen Guangcheng and so many other peaceful human rights defenders like him.
Together, you and I can send a message that everyone – whether a gold-medal athlete or an ordinary Chinese citizen – is entitled to human rights.
Sincerely,
Larry Cox
Executive Director
Amnesty International USA