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Human rights defenders / Statements / 2009 / June

Actions realised within the framework of the sponsorship project

[Presentation of the sponsorships]

Up to now, several sponsors have spoken publicly about the situation of “their” human rights defenders during press conferences or through letters they addressed to the relevant authorities, in particular when the situation of some of the human rights defenders taken in charge by the project required an urgent reaction. Several other actions have been carried out and notably:

2013

  • January-March: Dissemination of an urgent appeal and public call for action about the judicial harassment of Russian authorities against Stanislav Dmitrievsky, Chairman of the Russian Chechen Friendship Society (RCFS). On this occasion, a portrait of Stanislav was published and 900 postcards to the attention of the Russian Embassy in Geneva distributed during the Swiss tour clown Dimitri, Stanislav’s sponsor.
  • 29 March: Screening of Amazonian Indians on borrowed time during the World Social Forum in Tunis (26 to 30 March 2013) in the presence of representatives of the OMCT Tunis office of OMCT and Lawyers without borders Brazil.
  • April: Screening of Amazonian Indians on borrowed time in Boa Vista, Brazil, on the occasion of the national Indigenous Peoples Day on 19 April.
  • August: Distribution of 1000 DVD of Amazonian Indians on borrowed time at the 66th edition of the Locarno Film Festival (7 to 17 August 2013).
  • 14 September: Participation of defender Justine Justine Masika Bihamba to a panel on violence against women as part of the OHCHR Open day at Palais Wilson in Geneva. On this occasion, three documentaries produced by OMCT were screened and over 300 DVD of Amazonian Indians on borrowed time were distributed.
  • 16 to 25 September: OMCT Solidarity mission OMCT IN Cambodia to meet land and housing rights defenders. A documentary following the mission is in preparation.
  • 22 November: Publication of a joint press release on the release on bail of Cambodian defender Yorm Bopha, met in prison by OMCT during its solidarity mission in Cambodia.
  • 29 November: Screening of Amazonian Indians on borrowed time at the AMPHIOPÉRA in Lyon (France) during the 7th edition of Documental.

2012

  • November 2012: Screenings of Amazonian Indians on borrowed time in Bern and in Geneva during the Film Festival Filmar en Latin America. This third documentary is now available on DVD for free upon request to parrainagedefenseurs@omct.org.
  • 26 and 28 May 2012: Amazonian Indians on borrowed timewas screened in Buenos Aires during the International film festival on human rights.
  • March 2012: Meetings organised by OMCT for human rights defender Davi Kopenawa during the Human Rights Council session. Davi Kopenawa was able to meet with UN Special Procedures, representatives of the OHCHR, journalists, and delegates of the Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  The third OMCT documentary, Amazonian Indians on borrowed time, on the human rights situation of indigenous peoples was screened in Sion and in Berne followed by debates with human rights defender Davi Kopenawa.
  • 4 March 2012: Screening of "Indiens en sursis" at Alhambra theatre in Geneva during the International film festival and forum on human rights (FIFDH). This documentary produced by Daniel Schweizer for Swiss TV show Temps présent follows the OMCT mission in Brazil. A debate on how indigenous peoples' rights are jeopardized by the economic development was organised in presence of Davi Kopenawa and Noémie Kocher.

Petitions to the Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff were published.

2011

  • November/December 2011: mission of solidarity in Brazil to support indigenous peoples leaders and defenders Megaron and Davi Kopenawa
  • August 2011: Screening of OMCT film Indifference and Impunity on the occasion of a public event on sexual violence against women organized by the Department of Development and Cooperation of the Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the presence of defender Justine Masika Bihamba and her sponsor Swiss clown Dimitri
  • March/April 2011: Mobilisation for the safety of Mrs. Justine Masika Bihamba with the publication of an urgent alert on threats against Mrs. Bihamba and calls from her sponsors Dimitri and Dick Marty to Congolese and Swiss authorities. An audiovisual testimony of Mrs. Bihamba was released and a lunch briefing at OMCT premises in presence of Mrs. Bihamba  organised for representatives of diplomatic missions to sensitize them to the risks faced by Mrs. Bihamba and other Congolese human rights defenders and to call them to take action for their security.

2010

  • Solidarity mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to support human rights defenders helping victims of sexual violence and production of the film Indifference and Impunity.

This mission, whose aim was to alert the public to the fate of the Congolese human rights defenders struggling against impunity for the perpetrators of sexual violence committed against women in the east of the country, profited from the presence of two Swiss personalities, Mr. Dimitri, one of the greatest clowns of his generation, and Mr. Dick Marty, who has earned international renown for his work in the promotion and protection of human rights and his role as Rapporteur of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, in particular his denunciation of CIA secret prisons, the UN Security Council blacklist, the human rights situation in the North Caucasus and, more recently, his report on trafficking in organs in Kosovo and Albania.

  • The short film, produced by Mr. Daniel Schweizer and recently awarded a prize at the International Film Festival and Forum on Human Rights, premiered in Bern and Geneva where it was accompanied by an exhibition of photographs taken in the field.
  • Kenyan human rights defender Stephen Wetheo Musau, sponsored by Patrick Chappatte, was temporarily relocated in Switzerland following serious threats after he published a report on extrajudicial killings in Kenya.

2009

  • On March 6, 2009, the Swiss clown and actress Ms. Gardi Hutter met the Brazilian defenders Ms. Conçeicao Paganele, at the headquarters of her NGO, the Organisation of Mothers and Friends of Adolescents at Risk (AMAR), in the presence of the Swiss General Consul Mr. Hans Hauser. A fundraising collaboration was decided between AMAR, Gardi Hutter and OMCT.
  • On April 1, 2009, Mr. Rolf Bloch sent a letter to the Dutch authorities, in order to demand the release of Mr. Azer Samedov who was temporarily arrested that same day at the Amsterdam airport. Following international reactions and after the officer in charge learned about the refugee status of Mr. Azer Samedov, he was released from custody the same day. The Dutch authorities subsequently sent a letter to OMCT, and assured that Mr. Samedov was safe in their country and that he would not be sent back to Azerbaijan.
  • The publication of 12 poems written by the Indian human rights defender Ms. Irom Sarmila was to be carried out thanks to the collaboration with her sponsor Mr. Lars Müller. Due to problems with the Indian partner, this publication could unfortunately not come into reality.

2008

  • On February 4, 2008, the entrepreneur and Swiss chocolate seller Mr. Rolf Bloch sent a letter to the Prosecutor General of Georgia, in order to prevent the extradition of Mr. Azer Samedov to Azerbaijan. Following the intervention of the UNHCR and other actors, Mr. Azer Samedov and his family obtained the refugee status in the Netherlands on May 21, 2008.
  • On March 13, 2008, the famous Swiss clown, Dimitri, met Ms. Oksana Chelysheva, colleague of Mr. Stanislas Dmitrievsky, at the time of her stay in Geneva. A press conference was organised on this occasion and Dimitri publicly expressed his support for the journalist and Russian human rights defender. Subsequently, Dimitri sent a letter to President Medvedev on April 4 to remind him the importance of freedom of expression and fundamental rights for Mr. Dmitrievsky.
  • On June 7, 2008, the former National Councillor Mrs. Rosmarie Zapfl sent a letter to the Shanghai prison authorities, asking that Mrs. Mao Hengfeng’s husband be authorized to visit his wife. Moreover, a testimony written by Mrs. Zapfl on her commitment as a sponsor for Mrs. Hengfeng was published in the Tribune de Genève of August 15, 2008, during the Olympic Games of Beijing.
  • Accompanied by a film director, a member of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) and OMCT Secretary General, Ms. Noémie Kocher, actress and sponsor of the Mexican human rights defender Mrs. Marisela Ortiz Rivera, carried out a solidarity mission in Ciudad Juárez (Mexico). This mission was thereafter the subject of a documentary, "la lutte des femmes de Juarez" which was shown for the first time in December 2008. This permitted to raise the awareness of a large public in favour of the cause defended by Mrs. Marisela Ortíz Rivera and, more generally, of the work of human rights defenders. The documentary was furthermore presented at the following occasions:
    • In Paris, during the 10th EU-NGO forum on Human Rights, organised in December 2008 by the French EU Presidency, in the presence of Noémie Kocher and of a representative for OMCT.
    • In April 2009 in Madrid, during the reunion of Lawyers fighting for the defence of the victims of the Feminicide in Ciudad Juárez, in the presence of Mr. Emilio Ginés Santidirán

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Date: June 2, 2009
Activity: Human Rights Defenders
Type: Statements

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    Statements / January 1, 2010

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