Amnesty International USA Group 48Newsletter8.152Te heat wave cannot dampen the enthusiasm of this years Kristof Fellow3UNITED ARABEMIRATES: Urgent Action - Egyptian Man Kept In Prison Afer Sentence5IRAN: Urgent Action - Prominent Trade Unionist Unlawfully Detained7Death Penalty 2015: Te Good and the Bad8CHINA: Urgent Action - Dozens Of Lawyers Targeted In CrackdownAmnesty International USA Statement on Anniversary of Killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MOAugust 7, 2015As the nation marks the one-year anni-versary on Sunday of unarmed teenager Michael Browns death at the hands of Ferguson, MO police ofcer Darren Wilson, Amnesty International USA executive director Steven W. Hawkins released the following statement:Michael Browns death and similar tragic incidents around the nation highlight a disturbing pattern of use of lethal force and racially discriminatory conduct by law enforcement ofcers. One year later, there is still a pressing need for reform at the local, state and federal levels.Legislators in Missouri and around the country must bring laws concerning the use of lethal force in line with interna-tional standards, limited to instances in which it is necessary to protect life. Our own research found that the laws of ev-ery state in the country fail to meet this standard. In the wake of Browns killing and the militarized response to street protests, a Justice Department investi-gation found widespread misconduct and racial bias in the Ferguson police department.President Obama and the Department of Justice should support the creation of a national commission to conduct a nationwide review of police use of lethal force laws, policies, training and practice to bring them in line with international standards, said Hawkins. Te department should also revise its guidance to law enforcement ofcials to include a comprehensive ban on racial James Ward Stock.XchngAIUSA-Group 48 http://aipdx.org 503-227-1878 Next Meeting:Friday August 14th First Unitarian Church 1011 SW 12th Ave 7:00pm informal gathering 7:30pm meeting startsNewsLetter Designed By Michelle Whitlock MichelleWhitlock.comAIUSA group 48 Newsletter August 2015 Pg 2profling by federal and state law enforcement agencies, and ensure the collection and publication of nationwide statistics on police shootings.Michael Browns death and the Ferguson protests kicked of a national conversation about race and policing. Its clear on the one-year anniversary that the conversation is far from over. The heat wave cannot dampen the enthusiasm of this years Kristof FellowBy Max White, Group 48 memberknow Kriss story, see the links at the end. Tose unable to be there missed Janes delightful account of how she met Ladis and failed as a matchmaker trying to set him up with her college roommate. Speaking of the origin of Group 48, Jane surprised Cornelia Cerf, another original member, with a birthday cake atop which were two candles: 9 and 4 (or maybe 4 and 9 I saw them only afer they had been removed). Tank you, Jane, for hosting us; thank you Gerry for inspiring us; Happy Birthday Cornelia! About Ladis Kristof: http://www.oregonlive.com/educa-tion/index.ssf/2010/06/kris_kristof_concentration_cam.html and http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/20/opinion/ 20kristof.htmlOn the frst day of August a scorcher a dozen Group 48 members went to Jane Kristof s Yamhill farm for a potluck and to meet Gerry Rivadeneira, this years Ladis Kristof Fel-lowship winner. Ms. Rivadeneira was accompanied by Mary Tam from the AIUSA Western Regional ofce. (For Gerrys story, go to http://goo.gl/ob9NjQ) Gerry described her life afer moving to the US from Ecuador when she was seven, learning about Amnesty International in high school and later becoming Student Area Coordinator in Massachusetts and now a Posse Scholar at Mount Holyoke College. For AIUSA, Gerry is currently working on a project focusing on human rights problems encountered by im-migrants in the the US and other countries. Her enthusiasm and responses to questions prompted a lively discussion of immigrant experiences and other human rights issues. Jane and Joanne Lau, Group 48 coordinator, invited a discus-sion of Ladis Kristof s inspiring life swimming the Danube to escape Soviets, surviving imprisonment by Nazis and a Soviet work camp, arriving in the US ending as a brilliant academic in Oregon (and one of the founding members of Group 48). It is too much to summarize, but if you dont Our local group gives thanks to Tom Dwyer Au-tomotive Services for their generous donation.Dwyer Automotive Services has a Reference Reward Program where they donate to non-proft organizations when customers refer new clients to their services.For any new clients who mention Amnesty Inter-national as a referral, Dwyer Automotive will do-nate 20% of their frst invoice up to $50.00.The offer excludes tires, batteries and oil changes.This is an excellent avenue to support a local business who wants to support our local group.Tom Dwyer Automotive Services is located at 539 SE Tenino St in Portland and can be reached at (503) 230-2300.Thanks for your support! Reference Referral Program Benefts Group 48by Marty FromerAIUSA group 48 Newsletter August 2015 Pg 3UNITED ARAB EMIRATES: Urgent Action - Egyptian Man Kept In PrisonAfter SentenceSameh Bassiouni Abdullah Alam (m)In a call to his wife on August 4th Sameh Bassiouni Abdullah Alam, who sufers from several medical conditions, including diabetes, high blood pressure and poorly functioning kidneys, told her he had not been receiving medication, had lost about 40kg since he was arrested and was in solitary confnement in a basement cell. Since his arrest he has been allowed to make occasional, short phone calls to his wife: a call he made in June was cut of as he was about to tell her where he was being detained. His wife returned to Egypt in early June with their children due to the fnancial hardship she has faced since his detention.Sameh Bassiouni Abdullah Alams brother-in-law, Islam al-Makawi, is one of 24 people on trial for the February 2014 killing of a member of the team of policemen guarding the home of Hussein Kandil, one of the judges in Mohamed Mor-sis trial, in the city of Mansoura, north of Cairo. On July 9th 2015, 10 of the accused were sentenced to death. Te verdict on the remaining 14, including Islam al-Makawi, is expected to be issued in September.Amnesty International believes that the arrest and detention of Sameh Bassiouni Abdullah Alam might be connected to the trial of his brother-in-law.Te UAE authorities have arrested dozens of foreign nationals, including Egyptians, in recent years. Many have been subject-ed to enforced disappearance, held in secret locations by of-fcials who refused to acknowledge their detention or give any information to their families such as the reasons for their imprisonment, where they were being held and in what con-ditions. Te authorities have also denied them access to legal counsel. Such conditions breach the UAEs obligations under international law. Many of those arrested have been held in solitary confnement and have claimed they were tortured or otherwise ill-treated while under interrogation.Since 2012, dozens of Egyptian nationals have also been sub-jected to enforced disappearance in the UAE. In November 2013, 20 Egyptian nationals who had been held for months Egyptian national Sameh Bassiouni Abdullah Alam was arrested on February 11th in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE). He was sentenced to one month in prison in April for falsely reporting a crime but has not yet been released. His whereabouts are unknown and he is at risk of torture and other ill-treatment.Sameh Bassiouni Abdullah Alam, an Egyptian national who has lived in Oman for the past 13 years, was arrested on February 11th, 2015 in Dubai where he had traveled to by car. Te arresting ofcials confscated his phone, which contained the details of the trial of his brother-in-law in Egypt. Sameh Bassiouni Abdullah Alams brother-in-law, Islam al-Makawi, is one of 24 people on trial in Egypt in connection with the killing of the security guard of one of the judges hearing a trial of ousted president Mohamed Morsi. Sameh Bassiouni Abdullah Alam may have been detained because of the trial of his brother-in-law.During interrogation at the al-Muraqabat police station in Dubai, he signed a confession to calling the police to report, falsely, that a member of his wifes family was a member of the Muslim Brotherhood. Te lawyer appointed for his de-fense was not allowed to meet him. A Misdemeanour Court in Dubai found him guilty, on April 20th, of falsely reporting a crime to the authorities he knew had not taken place, and sentenced him to one month in prison, which he has already served.Borge Bjelland Stock.XchngAIUSA group 48 Newsletter August 2015 Pg 4in unknown locations were taken out of secret detention to face trial before the State Security Chamber of the Federal Supreme Court on charges including establishing an inter-national branch of Egypts Muslim Brotherhood organiza-tion and stealing and distributing secret state documents. In court, many of the defendants complained that State Security ofcials had subjected them to torture and other ill-treatment during their lengthy pre-trial detention in secret locations, when they were held incommunicado. Ofcers had tortured and otherwise ill-treated them to force them to sign confes-sions, which they repudiated in court. However, despite the seriousness of their allegations, the presiding judge failed to order an investigation, and accepted as evidence the confes-sions they had repudiated and said interrogators had extract-ed from them through torture or other coercion.Amnesty International documented some cases of Egyptian nationals detained in its November 2014 report, Tere is no freedom here Silencing dissent in the United Arab Emir-ates, which is available here: http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/MDE25/018/2014/en.Action Please write immediately in Arabic, English or your own language: Urging the UAE authorities to reveal, immediately, the whereabouts of Sameh Bassiouni Abdullah Alam and asking why he is still detained, stressing that keeping him in deten-tion afer he has served his sentence is forbidden in interna-tional law; Calling on them to ensure that he is protected from torture and other ill-treatment and given prompt access to his family, a lawyer of his choosing, and any medical attention he may require; Urging them not to deport him to Egypt when he is released, as he would be at risk of torture and other ill-treat-ment.Appeals To PLEASE SEND APPEALS BEFORE SEPTEMBER 15th, 2015 TO: Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan Crown Prince Court King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud Street, P.O. Box: 124 Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates Fax: 011 971 2 668 6622 Burundian authorities repressed demonstrations as if they were an insurrection, and now the country appears to be on the verge of confict, Amnesty International warned in a new report(http://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/fles/burundi_report_-_fnal.pdf), "Braving Bullets Excessive force in policing demonstrations in Burundi", released today.Amnesty Internationals investigation in May and June 2015 found that Burundian police used excessive lethal force, including against women and children, to silence those opposed to Presi-dent Pierre Nkurunzizas bid for a third-term.It is a tragedy that demonstrators had to brave bullets to try to have their voices heard, said Sarah Jackson, Amnesty Internationals Deputy Regional Director for East Africa, the Horn and the Great Lakes.The Burundian authorities must urgently, thor-oughly and transparently investigate the use of excessive lethal force against largely peace-ful demonstrators and bring to justice anyone found to be responsible. This is absolutely important to restore confdence in security ser-vices and reduce the risk of people fnding more violent ways to express political grievances. New Amnesty International Report on Burundi: Excessive lethal force used to crush demonstrations July 23, 2015AIUSA group 48 Newsletter August 2015 Pg 5Twitter: @MBZNews Salutation: Your HighnessVice-President and Prime Minister HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid al-Maktoum Prime Ministers Ofce PO Box: 212000 Dubai, United Arab Emirates Fax: 011 971 4 330 4044 Email: info@primeminister.ae Twitter: @HHShkMoh Salutation: Your HighnessCopies ToPresident Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan Ministry of Presidential Afairs Corniche Road Abu Dhabi, PO Box 280 United Arab Emirates Fax: 011 971 2 622 2228 Email: ihtimam@mopa.aeAmbassador Yousef Al OtaibaEmbassy of the United Arab Emirates 3522 International Court NW Suite #400Washington, DC 20008 Fax: 1 202 243 2432Email: info@uaeembassy-usa.orgPlease let us know if you took action so that we can track our impact! Send a short email to uan@aiusa.org with UA 172/15 in the subject line, and include in the body of the email the number of letters and/or emails you sent.IRAN: Urgent Action - Prominent Trade Unionist Unlawfully DetainedIsmail Abdi (m)nal Procedures which restricts access to legal counsel during the investigative phase, for people facing national-security-related charges, to only a list of lawyers approved by the Head of the Judiciary.Ismail Abdi has said the interrogators accused him of orga-nizing and participating in illegal gatherings, which is not an ofense under Iranian law. Te gatherings were a number of peaceful demonstrations held in recent months by teachers and members of the ITTA, a legally constituted entity in Iran, in protest at poor wages, low education budget and imprison-ment of teacher trade unionists.If the legal process that has begun against Ismail Abdi leads to a conviction, he risks facing over a decade in jail because a suspended 10-year sentence he received following a 2010 arrest and subsequent conviction related to his trade union activities would also be implemented. Action Please write immediately in English, Persian, Spanish, French or your own language: Calling on the Iranian authorities to release Ismail Abdi immediately and unconditionally and drop all charges against him as he is a prisoner of conscience held solely for his peace-ful trade union activities;Ismail Abdi, Secretary General of Irans Teachers Trade As-sociation (ITTA), has been detained in Tehrans Evin Prison since June 27th for organizing and participating in illegal gatherings for his legitimate trade unionist activities. He is a prisoner of conscience.Ismail (Esmail) Abdi was arrested on June 27th afer he went to the Prosecutors Ofce at Evin Prison to inquire about the travel ban placed on him. He had been prevented from traveling to Armenia to apply for a visa to attend the seventh Education International World Congress in Ottawa, Canada in July 2015. Ismail Abdi was transferred to Section 2A of Evin Prison, which is run by the intelligence unit of Irans Revolutionary Guards, and subjected to at least 17 days of interrogation, without access to his family or lawyer. It seems the authorities have denied Ismail Abdi the right of access to his lawyer based on a provision in Irans new Code of Crimi-Fabio Bueno Stock.XchngAIUSA group 48 Newsletter August 2015 Pg 6 Urging them to ensure that he is granted regular access to an independent lawyer of his own choosing; Reminding them that Iran has ratifed the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which recognizes the right of everyone to form and join trade unions of their choice for the promotion and protection of their economic and social interests.Appeals To PLEASE SEND APPEALS BEFORE SEPTEMBER 15th 2015 TO: Leader of the Islamic Republic Ayatollah Sayed Ali Khamenei Te Ofce of the Supreme Leader Islamic Republic Street- End of Shahid Keshvar Doust Street Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran Email: via website http://www.leader.ir/langs/en/index.php? p=letter Twitter: @khamenei_ir (English) @Khamenei_es (Spanish) Salutation: Your ExcellencyHead of the Judiciary Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani c/o Public Relations Ofce Number 4, 2 Azizi Street intersection Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran Email: info@humanrights-iran.ir Salutation: Your ExcellencyCopies To President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Hassan RouhaniTe Presidency Pasteur Street, Pasteur Square Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran Twitter: @HassanRouhani (English) @Rouhani_ir (Persian) Iran does not presently have an embassy in the United States. Instead, please send copies to:Iranian Interests Section 2209 Wisconsin Ave NW, Washington, DC 20007 Fax: 1 202 965 1073 Email: info@dafar.orgPlease let us know if you took action so that we can track our impact! Send a short email to uan@aiusa.org with UA 171/15 in the subject line, and include in the body of the email the number of letters and/or emails you sent.Additional Information Before he was arrested on June 27th, intelligence ofcials had summoned Ismail Abdi for interrogation many times, and pressured him to resign from his post as ITTA General Secre-tary and cancel planned nationwide demonstrations that the ITTA had helped organize. During these interrogation ses-sions, which were frequently accompanied by foul language and insults, intelligence ofcials also warned Ismail Abdi against associating with international teachers trade unions, including Education International, and said his participation in their international gatherings was a red line.On May 3rd, 2015, one day afer the National Iranian Teach-ers Day and four days before the scheduled date of a nation-wide protest, intelligence ofcials summoned Ismail Abdi and threatened that a suspended 10-year sentence from 2010 would be immediately implemented unless he made a formal announcement on Facebook that he was resigning from his ITTA post and not taking part in any upcoming demonstra-tions. Ismail Abdi made the announcement under pressure, but the ITTA did not accept his resignation. Te protest was also held as planned, with thousands of teachers gathering in front of the parliament in Tehran and outside the ofces of the Ministry of Education in diferent cities.Ismail Abdis suspended sentence following his 2010 arrest resulted from him being convicted of assembly and collud-ing against the state and participation in illegal trade union gatherings.On July 22nd, thousands of teachers attempted to gather in front of the Parliament in Tehran to protest against the Within the United States $0.35 - Postcards $0.49 - Letters and Cards up to 1 oz.To all international destinations $1.20- Postcards $1.20 - Airmail Letters and Cards up to 1 oz.Postage RatesAIUSA group 48 Newsletter August 2015 Pg 7harassment and abuse of trade unionist teachers and demand Ismail Abdis release. Security forces stationed around parlia-ment from early morning, however, disrupted the gathering and arrested scores of protesting teachers. According to an announcement by Irans Minister of Education and Develop-ment on July 27th, all the teachers arrested during the protest have since been released. At least four other teachers in Iran are serving prison sentenc-es in connection with their legitimate trade union activities, including Sayed Mohammad Bagheri, Ali Akbar Baghani, Alireza Hashemi and Rasoul Bodaghi (see UA 130/10, https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde13/027/2012/en/).Iran is a State Party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, of which Article 22 (1) states: Everyone shall have the right to freedom of association with others, including the right to form and join trade unions for the pro-tection of his interests. Iran is also a state party to the Inter-national Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Article 8 of which guarantees both the right of everyone to form trade unions and join the trade union of his choice and the right of trade unions to function freely subject to no limitations other than those prescribed by law and which are necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security or public order or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.Even though the right to freedom of association and peace-ful assembly are recognized under Articles 26 and 27 of the Iranian Constitution, they are restricted with Islamic qualif-cations such as public gatherings are not detrimental to the fundamental principles of Islam. Death Penalty 2015: The Good and the BadJuly 27, 20153. Indonesia and Pakistan used crime and terror-ism as an excuse to bring back executions. Both Indonesia and Pakistan justifed bringing back the death pen-alty by claiming it is an efective response to crime and terror-ism. But there is no evidence to show that the death penalty is more efective at addressing crime than a prison term, nor does abolition lead to a sharp increase in crime, as some fear.4. Iran looks set to surpass its execution fgures for 2014. Iran has so far this year executed nearly 700 people many of these executions were not ofcially ac-knowledged. In 2014, Amnesty recordedat least 743 execu-tions in Iran over 12 months. Tat the country put more than 600 people to death just six months into this year is deeply troubling.5. Saudi Arabia has already executed more people than it did in 2014. Amnesty has recorded 102 executions in Saudi Arabia so far this year, exceeding the total number of executions (at least 90) for 2014. Almost half of these execu-tions were for drug-related ofenses.THE GOOD 1. Three countries abolished the death penalty in the frst three months of 2015. In January Madagascar abolished the death penalty for all crimes. Fiji followed suit in February. And in March, the South American State of Surina-The frst six months of 2015 have seen starkly contrasting developments on the death penalty. While the bad news has been very bad, the good news has been very good.THE BAD 1. Indonesia resumed executions. Te year began on a tragic note when Indonesia, ignoring pleas from around the world, put six people to death for drug trafcking. Te execu-tions were the frst in Indonesia since 2013.2. Pakistan may soon be counted among the worlds top executioners. Pakistan is edging closer to membership of the unenviable club of the worlds top execu-tioners (China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and USA). At least 150 people have been put to death since a freeze on execu-tions was lifed in December 2014, following aTaliban attack-on a school in Peshawar.Csaba J. Szabo Stock.XchngAIUSA group 48 Newsletter August 2015 Pg 8me also removed the death penalty from its legal books. Te abolition of the death penalty in three countries in the space of three months gives further momentum to a trend that has been evident for decades the world is consigning capital punishment to history.2. Another three countries are close to abol-ishing the death penalty. Te Mongolian Parliament is considering a draf penal code abolishing the death penalty. Burkina Faso and South Korea are also considering similar draf laws.3. The trend towards abolition in the USA is pick-ing up steam. One more US state, Nebraska, has abolished the death penalty, becoming the 19thabolitionist state in the USA. And in February, Pennsylvanias governor announced a suspension of all executions.4. Those countries that execute are in the minority. Over the last fve years, the average number of countries that have carried out executions each year stands at 22.5. More than half the worlds countries have abolished the death penalty. In total, 101 countries have completely abolished the death penalty thats more than half the countries in the world. Another 33 countries are abolitionist in practice meaning they have not executed anyone for at least 10 years and have a long-standing policy of not executing. Despite the sharp rise in executions in some countries, abolitionist countries still represent the clear global majority. CHINA: Urgent Action - Dozens Of Lawyers Targeted In CrackdownWang Yu (f), Zhou Shifeng (m), Sui Muqing (m), Li Heping (m), Bao Longjun (m), Bao Zhuoxuan (m), Wang Fang (f), Li Shuyun (f)emerged of lawyers across the country being targeted, includ-ing in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. Among those miss-ing are prominent human rights lawyers Zhou Shifeng, Sui Muqing and Li Heping.An article published on July 12th in Te People's Daily, an ofcial newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party, said that the Ministry of Public Security had launched an operation to destroy a major criminal gang that was using the Fengrui Law frm in Beijing to draw attention to sensitive cases. Te article also claimed to expose the severe harm that a group of rights defense lawyers had brought to society.Many of those detained were part of a group of over 100 law-yers and rights activists who signed a public statement on July 9th condemning Wang Yus disappearance. Several of those who have been brought in for questioning by police have said that the authorities particularly focused on the statement and wanted to know whether they were involved.Action Please write immediately in Chinese, English or your own language: Demanding the authorities immediately confrm the where-abouts and legal status of all the lawyers currently missing, in-At least 24 human rights lawyers and activists have been detained or are missing in China in an unprecedented nation-wide crackdown. Many more have been questioned by police and at least three law frms have also been searched.In the early hours of July 9th, human rights lawyer Wang Yu went missing afer sending a text message to friends saying that her internet and electricity had been cut of and people were trying to break into her home. Many more reports then Ove Tpfer Stock.XchngAIUSA group 48 Newsletter August 2015 Pg 9Group CoordinatorJoanne Laujlau@aipdx.orgTreasurerTena Hoketena.hoke@gmail.comNewsletter EditorDan Webbwrite_to_dan@yahoo.comDarfur (Sudan)Marty Fromermartyfromer@gmail.comIndonesiaMax Whitemaxw33@comcast.netPrisoners CasesJane Kristofkristofj@pdx.eduMegan Harringtonmegan.harrington @gmail.comConcert TablingWill Wareww_ware@yahoo.comCentral Africa/OR State DeathPenalty AbolitionTerrie Rodellotarodello@igc.orgAIUSA Group 48 Contact Informationcluding Wang Yu, Zhou Shifeng, Li Heping and Sui Muqing; Calling on them to ensure that if detained, they all have regular, unrestricted access to their lawyers and family and are protected from torture and other ill-treatment.Appeals To PLEASE SEND APPEALS BEFORE AUGUST 24th 2015 TO: Minister of Public Security Guo Shengkun Ministry of Public Security No.14, Donchanganjie, Dongchengqu, Beijing 100741 Peoples Republic of China Email: gabzfwz@mps.gov.cn Salutation: Your ExcellencyTe President Xi Jinping Te State Council General Ofce 2 Fuyoujie Xichengqu Beijingshi 100017 Peoples Republic of China Salutation: Your ExcellencyCopies To President Wang Junfeng All China Lawyers Association 5/F., Qinglan Plaza No. 24, Dongsishitiao, Dongchengqu, Beijing 100007 Peoples Republic of China Fax: 011 86 10 84020216Ambassador Cui Tiankai Embassy of the People's Republic of China 3505 International Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 Fax: 1 202 495 2138 Phone: 1 202 495 2266 Email: chinaembpress_us@mfa.gov.cnAdditional Information At around 3am on July 9th, Wang Yu, a human rights lawyer with the Fengrui Law frm in Beijing, sent a text message to friends saying that her internet and electricity had been cut of. At 4:17am she sent another message saying that there were people trying to break into her home. Later that morn-ing, friends were unable to reach her and she was not at home when a group of activists went to check on her. Wang Yus husband Bao Longjun is also missing. Teir 16-year-old son Bao Zhuoxuan was handed over to his aunt by police on 10 July. Wang Yu has taken on many important human rights cases that the government has deemed sensitive in recent years, including: the defense of Cao Shunli, the Jiansanjiang case, the defense of prominent Uighur scholar Ilham Tohti, the Fan Mugen forced eviction case.At around 7am on July 10th, lawyer Zhou Shifeng, director of the Fengrui Law Firm, was witnessed being taken away from his hotel room in Beijing with a black hood over his head by three unidentifed people. Te law frms fnancial director Wang Fang has not been heard from since he lef his home to go to the ofce the same morning.Te sister of Li Shuyun, another lawyer at the frm, reported that at 11am on July 10th approximately ten plain-clothes po-lice ofcers took her away from her home. One of the ofcers said that she was being taken away in relation to the investi-gation of a criminal case. PostageAIUSA group 48 Newsletter August 2015 Pg 10AIUSA group 48 Newsletter August 2015Group 48 MembershipNote: Group 48 is not a registered 501(c)(3) nonproft organization.Donations to Group 48 are not tax-deductible.Please add my email addressto the Group 48 email list.$15 Regular membership$25 Family membership$50 Generous donor$100 Amnesty Angel$5 Limited incomeGroup 48's membership fee is due every January. If you join Group 48 afer January in any given year, we appreciate you pay the full membership fee at the time you join us or you have the choice to pay in January of the following year. Please send a check or money order payable to Amnesty International Group 48 and the form below to our treasurer: Tena Hoke, 5026 SE 46th Ave, Portland OR 97206. None of your contact information will be shared with any other organization.If you wish to pay online, go to: http://aipdx.org/donate/Name __________________Address _________________City/State/Zip _____________Phone ____________Email _____________