Human Rights Watch - Blog for Human Rights

Get Involved, Spread the Word
Become a Blogger for Human Rights
Human Rights Watch has been committed to upholding the right to free expression since its beginnings in the 1970s. The Internet, and blogs in particular, have made it easier for people to express themselves to a potential audience of millions. They have also created an enormous opportunity for disseminating information about, and ending, human rights abuses around the world.

If you are a blogger, you can use your bully pulpit to stand with the victims and activists to prevent discrimination, uphold political freedom, protect people from inhumane treatment in wartime, and campaign to bring offenders to justice. You can expose human rights violations and hold abusers accountable. You can challenge governments and those who hold power to end abusive practices and respect international human rights law.

We can help you. Human Rights Watch offers dozens of RSS feeds on pressing human rights issues, classified according to theme and region. We also offer a host of free e-mail newsletters in several languages. If you find this helpful, show your support for the cause of human rights for all. Display one of the following buttons on your blog and link back to http://www.hrw.org. Please also spread the word about human rights abuses by tagging your posts as related to human rights.


Human Rights Watch - Blog for Human Rights: "Iran
In 2004, more than 20 bloggers and journalists were detained on the orders of Tehran�s chief prosecutor. The detainees were held in solitary confinement and were routinely tortured and forced to make false confessions. The authorities hoped to silence and intimidate activists who rely on the Internet to communicate their viewpoints. Human Rights Watch campaigned actively to expose the ill-treatment of the detainees and called for their immediate release. In December 2004, the detainees were released following intense international protests. However the judiciary continues to persecute bloggers. On Feb. 22, 2004, a well-known blogger, Arash Cigarchi, was sentenced to 14 years in prison for his writings. Charges brought against Cigarchi included �insulting the leader.� He has appealed his sentence. Another blogger, Mojtaba Samii Nezhad, is currently in custody with no charges brought against him. Samii Nezhad has spent more than 88 days in solitary confinement"