Our Sixth Form Amnesty International Club organised a Write For Rights campaign over lunchtime on Wednesday 10th December in support of Human Rights Day. By making letters available for members of the school to sign they have collected petitions for the release of individuals unfairly detained or unjustly treated in Honduras, Equador, Myanmar, Indonesia, Norway and Madgascar.
Amnesty International Club member, Riccardo (Upper Sixth) explained: “I think it’s nice that students get to know about the wider the world and how other people’s lives are impacted by governments and by people in power. It’s nice to be able to come together as a community and to fight for one common goal even though we are all coming from different countries, different cultures and different ways of life.”
Fellow club member, Beatrix (Lower Sixth) agreed: “I think it is really important to learn more about human rights and to be more aware of what’s happening in the world. Even if it is not affecting you, it is affecting so many other people in different countries so it’s important to be aware and to know what you want to do to make a difference.”
The signed letters will be posted by the group to the local governments in the countries where the individuals are being detained or where justice is being sought. Our Amnesty International Club have undertaken this initiative for the second year running following attendance at the Amnesty Youth Conference in November.
As Amnesty’s website explains, the Write for Rights campaign brings people from around the world together to fight for justice and dignity and to build a shared future. It features people on the front lines of climate change and environmental destruction, fighting to protect their communities from droughts, gas flares, development projects and pollution. This year’s individuals include an indigenous reindeer herder fighting to protect her community’s land in Norway, a photojournalist jailed for reporting on a cyclone in Myanmar, and a little boy who lost his life after falling into a pit toilet at his pre-school in South Africa, all these people are connected because their human rights have been violated. By writing letters, signing petitions and sharing stories, our Amnesty International group are helping to make change happen. Write for Rights has a real impact. People have been freed, achieved justice, and have felt the solidarity from others around the world through difficult periods of their lives.
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