A month ago we launched an appeal asking you to help us buy radios for Burma. The initiative is aimed at harnessing the power of radio already being used to break through media censorship in the country.
An amazing 2,327 of you responded to our appeal. Because of your incredible generosity we have surpassed our target and will be able to distribute thousands of radios throughout Burma. Some of you were even able to dig deep enough to buy the more expensive satellite phone and walkie-talkie kits, providing vital communication tools to people on the ground.
If you didn’t get a chance to buy a radio, but would still like to support our work in Burma you can donate now:
A massive thank you is due to everybody that bought a radio for Burma, helped spread the word and supported the appeal. Once the equipment begins to be distributed, we will keep you updated with photo and video reports from inside Burma to show you how these vital tools are benefiting the communities they reach. Getting such footage out of Burma can be difficult, but as soon as we receive anything, those of you that donated will be the first to know.
Update 12 July: We have reached our target! A great big thank you to everybody that donated and helped spread the word.
Three weeks ago we appealed to you to help fund our Radios for Burma project. Thanks to your overwhelming generosity, we are now able to provide over 4,500 radios to the people of Burma.
Due to this incredible response, we have extended the deadline for funding the first wave of distribution into the country because we believe we can still achieve the target of 5,000 radios for Burma.
If 250 people reading this blog get two people they know to buy a radio, we’ll be there in no time. Spread the word and help break through the wall of censorship.
Our aim is to amplify independent media so we can empower more people, especially in rural and information starved parts of the country to access their rights and learn about issues relevant to their daily lives.
If you haven’t already, please buy a radio for Burma and help break the silence.
If we exceed our target then your donations will go towards achieving our wider campaign objectives which are consistent with the Radios for Burma project
The importance of Radios for Burma was underlined again last week when the exiled media organisation, the Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB), reported that the government have introduced a wave of new censorship rules. Journalists feel they will soon lose all independence as unprecedented levels of censorship become standardised across all publications.
Many thanks to all of you who donated to the campaign and helped spread the word. We really appreciate it. You have made a difference.
Organisations like the DVB beat the blackout by using the radio – they broadcast freely into Burma from outside the country and as radios are not banned this is the most effective way to reach the population. With the new laws limiting printed publications and the elections coming up later this year, this service is now more vital than ever.
A few weeks ago we launched an appeal to buy radios for Burma. Our aim was to raise £50,000 – enough money to distribute 4,000 radios in the country.
The radios we buy will help amplify independent media so that the people of Burma can access their rights and learn about issues relevant to their daily lives. Our project, created in partnership with groups working on the ground, is intended to strengthen and empower people in their initiatives to promote and protect human rights in their own communities.
We were hoping to raise this money by the beginning of July so that we could start distributing radios as soon as possible. Your response has been staggering and thousands of you decided to part with some cash and buy a radio or two to help increase access to uncensored information for people living in one of the most repressive regimes in the world.
Our total is now over £45,000 and the donations are still coming in. If you haven’t donated yet it’s not too late. We want to ensure we can fund 4,000 radios and any donations received will go towards that target. If we exceed our target then your donations will go towards achieving our wider campaign objectives which are consistent with the Radios for Burma project.
As your radios start being purchased, delivered and listened to we will bring you photo and video reports from inside Burma to show you how these vital tools are benefiting the communities they reach. Getting such footage out of Burma can be difficult, but as soon as we receive anything, those of you that donated will be the first to know.
Get more involved
Our campaign in Burma is wider than just this project: Human rights abuses in Burma are widespread and systematic. Around 2,200 people are imprisoned for their peaceful political activism. People are frequently arrested without warrant and torture is common place.
In the lead up to the 2010 elections in Burma, Amnesty supporters around the world will be taking action to demand an end to the violence and repression against ordinary Burmese people who simply want to have a say in how their country is governed.
In May 2008, Khun Bedu, Khun Kawrio and Khun Dee De were arrested for peaceful protest. As leading members of a youth group they had organised local dissidents to release balloons, launch paper boats and spray-paint walls with their peaceful political messages.
For these simple acts of defiance they were sentenced to between 35 and 37 years in prison.
Amnesty International UK
The Human Rights Action Centre
17 – 25 New Inn Yard
London EC2A 3EA
A massive thank you is due to anyone who has taken action so far by donating to our campaign, lobbying the authorities, or simply spreading the word about what’s going on inside Burma. Things will only change if we speak up together and support those campaigning to make their voices heard and their rights respected.
In Burma’s harsh media environment a number of courageous individuals work hard to break through the wall of censorship. Although millions tune into these broadcasts daily, not everybody in Burma has access to the crucial information they provide. With your help we can break the silence for many more.
A massive thank you to all who have already donated — we have raised over £30,000 already, enough to distribute nearly 3,000 radios. We now have just two days to raise enough to reach our target of getting 4,000 radios into the country by the middle of July. If you have any time at all, please help us spread the word by telling your friends and family. Here’s a nifty little tool to make it super easy.
As well as radios people on the ground need other communication tools such as walkie talkies and satellite phones. Each radio costs £12.50 and that includes batteries and getting the radios inside Burma.
They say that knowledge is power, and in the lead up to Burma’s first elections in 20 years the humble radio can play a vital role in empowering the voting public. One radio could help a family or community learn about their rights and show them the international solidarity that Burma’s military regime works so hard to silence. In collaboration with organisations on the ground, we are aiming to get radios and other communication tools distributed far and wide, for as little as possible, to reach the people and places that need it most. A radio opens up a whole world. Help the people of Burma access it
About 12 people will use each radio, so if we reach our target, 50,000 more people inside Burma will have access to independent news broadcasts. Our target is to buy 4,000 radios, 60 walkie-talkie kits and 6 satellite kits. If we raise more than our target, your donations will be spent on helping break the silence in Burma.
DON’T MISS…
To mark opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s 65th birthday the BBC broadcast a special programme about the Nobel Peace Prize winner into Burma. Listen to it now on the BBC website
Yes it’s that time of year again, you know when you’re meant to pull out all the stops and make an effort at love and romance. But, if like me you can’t bear the thought of sitting in a table for two only restaurant, with a crap overpriced set menu and stifled atmosphere then why don’t you cuddle up with your loved one and watch Amnesty’s very own Valentine’s message brought to you by some oh so cute plasticine critters.
Whether you subscribe to Valentine’s Day or not we believe love is a human right and that’s worth celebrating. So, instead of whinging about commercialism, tacky helium balloons and vomit inducing romcoms why not send a card to someone who’ll really appreciate it?
Send a message to the Chinese authorities calling for Hu Jia to be released from prison and renuited with his wife, Zeng Jinyan and their daughter. This young couple have been separated since April purely for speaking about human rights on the internet and to foreign press.
This blog is where we (Amnesty UK’s webteam) will be keeping you up to date with the latest news about ProtectTheHuman.com and our other online activities.
We’ll also be using this blog to discuss our ongoing adventures in using social media for campaigning, so expect stats and insights to be coming this way soon.
A month ago we launched an appeal asking you to help us buy radios for Burma. The initiative is aimed at harnessing the power of radio already being used to break through media censorship in the country.
To mark opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s 65th birthday the BBC broadcast a special programme about the Nobel Peace Prize winner into Burma.