| Meeting Minutes |
| ***November, 13, 2001, 7:00 pm - U of R Amnesty Meeting. "The Human Rights Crisis in Afghanistan" Present: There were 24 people present including the speaker, our executive and a representative from the Carelon. 1. Introduction of the Executive 2. Jim Mercer - Jim spoke about the history in Afghanistan going back about 100 years to give us an idea of why the country is in the situation it faces today. He spoke of the human rights abuses going on in the country and the general state of that society including medical services, women and children's rights and the Taleban rule. He showed a slide presentation that outlined the country's terrain and gave viewers and idea of the state that years of war have left the country in. 3. Recommendation a the video "Afghanistan: 12 years of violence" which is being show on TLC throught the last couple months. 4. Letter writing material was passed out. The letter was to Jean Cretien encouraging him to support the refugees and people of Afghanistan. 5. Invitation to December 10th, International Human Rights day event. See the Upcoming or Home page for more information. Watch the Carelon for an article on the meeting!! ***October 3, 2001, 2:30 pm - U of R Amnesty Meeting. Administration-Humanities Building, Room 318 Present: Renee, Vicki, Chris, Tracy, Misty, Marcy, Dwayne, Ashley 1. Introduction of the Executive Chris Ruddick - President Victoria Harnett - Vice President Renee McKenzie - Treasurer We explained that the executive is only for the Student Union so we could get our club status. We emphasized that everyone should feel free to help out with meetings and bring ideas. If other people have ideas for meetings they can run a meeting on their own or approach one of us to research their idea. Misty volunteered to act as our Secretary since we do not yet have one. If anyone else is interested in a position then contact us at aiuregina@hotmail.com 2. What is Amnesty International? Amnesty International is a world wide organization that runs primarily through volunteers and donations. We went over the AI mandate which can be found here. It is made up of different networks. For example: the legal network, medical, letter, urgent action, and women's networks. 3. "A Light in the Darkness" - Video We watched a 40 minutes documentary on Amnesty International and what they are working towards. The documentary contained many moving case studies. If anyone is interested in seeing the video then contact us and we will arrange something. 4. Campaign Against Torture This is a two year campaign being run by AI. The action plan for this campaign has six steps: i) Outlaw Torture Amnesty International is calling on all governments to outlaw torture under all circumstances and to take immediate steps to eliminate torture from their justice systems. ii) Oppose Secrecy Governments must lift the veil of secrecy behind which prisoners are tortured and abused. All places of detention should be open to scrutiny. iii) Bring Torturers to Justice. All allegations of torture must be fully investigated and the torturers brought to justice before an impartial court. Police and judges must be trained to uphold the law impartially regardless of the identities of the victims of torture or their torturers. iv) Fight Discrimination Governments must take action to defend the most vulnerable. Governments should work to eradicate prejudices that lead to certain people being targeted for torture. v) Defend the Defenders of Human Rights Human rights activists must be protected from harassment and intimidation through prompt investigation and prosecution of all complaints and through police protection provided as necessary. vi) Provide Refuge As an ultimate defense against torture, governments must provide refuge to people fleeing violence. This includes people who have fled their homes or communities to escape armed conflict or domestic or communal violence. 5. Meeting Structure The next meetings were announced: Nov 5/01 @ 3:30 pm in CL 345 Dec 3/01 @ 3:30 pm in CL 345 These dates and times are subject to change if the group can collectively decide on a more convenient meeting time. We are also open to having meetings more often if wanted/needed. |