{"id":6743,"date":"2026-10-07T16:56:52","date_gmt":"2026-10-07T09:56:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.amnesty.or.th\/en\/?p=6743"},"modified":"2026-10-07T17:16:45","modified_gmt":"2026-10-07T10:16:45","slug":"as-write-for-rights-turns-25","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.amnesty.or.th\/en\/blog\/2026\/10\/as-write-for-rights-turns-25\/","title":{"rendered":"As Write for Rights turns 25, here are seven times it helped to deliver justice"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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This year marks the 25th anniversary of Amnesty International\u2019s global Write for Rights campaign, which has supported more than 200 people and groups.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s 25 years of people taking action against injustice, writing letters and signing petitions in support of people whose human rights have been denied. Some have been imprisoned for peacefully expressing their views. Others have been targeted because of who they are or who they love. Some have been criminalized simply because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

More than 50 million actions have been taken – in the form of letters, emails, cards, petition signatures, social media posts and more – since Write for Rights started in 2001. Amnesty\u2019s brilliant supporters have written letters both to those whose rights are being violated, and the person in authority who can make change happen.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

People have taken action because they believe hope and humanity can win over fear.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a result, over 100 people featured in our Write for Rights campaign have seen a positive outcome in their situation. People unlawfully detained have been released, families have been reunited and justice achieved. Just as important – individuals have been reminded that they have not been forgotten.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are the stories of a few of them, whose lives have changed \u2013 and even been saved – thanks to the support of people like you\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Germain Rukuki – Burundi<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
\u00a9 Alexandra Bertels<\/span><\/div><\/div>
Human rights defender Germain Rukuki was arrested in July 2017 and was serving a 32-year prison sentence after he was convicted of \u201crebellion\u201d amongst other things. During Amnesty International\u2019s global Write for Rights campaign, supporters in 37 countries took action and called for his immediate and unconditional release. He was released from prison on 30 June 2021.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On 30 June 2021, Burundian human rights defender Germain Rukuki was released from prison four years into a 32-year sentence. He had been found guilty of a number of sham charges relating to his human rights work. He was jailed before getting a chance to hold his youngest child, born just weeks after he was arrested in July 2017.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through Write for Rights 2020, hundreds of thousands of people around the world demanded Germain\u2019s release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI am so grateful for the support I received from human rights organizations during my arbitrary detention and since my release from prison. Being part of Amnesty International\u2019s Write for Rights campaign was incredible and the waves of messages and letters from its supporters around the world gave me strength and courage and reinforced my commitment to defending human rights.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yves and Fred \u2013 Democratic Republic of Congo<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Youth activists Yves Makwambala and Fred Bauma were released at the end of August<\/a> 2016 in the Democratic Republic of Congo. An amazing 170,000 people took action for the pair as part of Write for Rights 2015<\/a>. \u201cEvery letter, every visit, every word has strengthened us and reinforced our determination in this long but just struggle for freedom and democracy,\u201d said Yves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Se\u00e1n Binder – Greece<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\u00a9 Amnesty International<\/span><\/div><\/div>
After more than seven long years, Se\u00e1n Binder and all 23 defendants were been cleared of all charges in Greece relating to their humanitarian rescue work on Lesvos.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In January 2026, human rights defender Se\u00e1n Binder and 23 others<\/a> connected to a search and rescue NGO were acquitted of all charges in Greece. After years on trial, Se\u00e1n no longer faces the possibility of a 20-year prison sentence for helping refugees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His humanitarian work saved lives, yet like many others across Greece, Se\u00e1n was criminalized for helping people in need. Amnesty International had been campaigning for the charges against him to be dropped since 2018<\/a>.  In 2019, Se\u00e1n became a Write for Rights case, and hundreds of thousands of people around the world took action in support of him. They wrote letters, sent messages and demanded justice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eight years after Amnesty first called for the charges to be dropped, Se\u00e1n was finally acquitted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is a huge relief that I will not spend the next 20 years in a prison cell,\u201d Se\u00e1n said. \u201cBut at the same time, it is troubling that this should ever have been a possibility.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Se\u00e1n\u2019s story is a powerful reminder of what collective action can achieve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moses Akatugba – Nigeria<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\u00a9 Photo: Miikka Pirinen \/ Amnesty Finland<\/span><\/div><\/div>
Moses was waiting for the results of his secondary school exams when he was arrested by the Nigerian army in 2005, shot in the hand and beaten. After eight years in prison, he was sentenced to death by hanging. Activists including many young people and Amnesty International demonstrated outside their country\u2019s Nigerian embassies his behalf. Moses was freed in 2019.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Moses<\/a> Akatugba was a 16-year-old student when he was arrested in 2005 by police in southern Nigeria, on suspicion of armed robbery and stealing three telephones. He was tortured by police during their interrogations, beaten and suspended upside down from a ceiling fan for hours. His nails were pulled out with pliers to coerce him into signing a \u201cconfession\u201d – the only basis for his death sentence eight years later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After 10 years in detention and 800,000 letters from people all over the world through Write for Rights 2014, Moses was granted pardon by the governor of the Niger Delta State on 28 May 2015. Thanks to this outpouring of solidarity he can now tell his story.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI am overwhelmed. I thank Amnesty International and their activists for the great support that made me a conqueror in this situation. Amnesty International members and activist are my heroes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rita Mahato<\/strong> – Nepal <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\u00a9 Dixie<\/span><\/div><\/div>
Rita Mahato Chamar is a human rights defender from Nepal.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In 2009, human rights defender Rita Mahato was threatened with death, rape and kidnapping for helping women in Nepal who had suffered acts of violence. She was a health adviser at the Women\u2019s Rehabilitation Centre (WOREC), a leading NGO in Nepal, yet police failed to provide Rita with protection or to investigate the threats. After Amnesty took up her case for Write for Rights 2009, schools, campuses and other institutions around the world started sending letters, postcards and other materials in support of her. The publicity and posters became so widespread that the police and local authorities began calling Rita to provide support, making her feel less alone. While the harassment has ended, Rita still stands up for what she believes in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEven today, I continue to work for human rights and women\u2019s rights, and I will continue to do so. \u201cWorking for human rights is not easy. Understanding the importance and responsibility of human rights work, and through collaboration and collective efforts, I will continue to raise the voices of those who are unheard, with courage, inspiration and determination. Things have become easier for me because I know that I am not alone.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aleksandra (Sacha) Skochilenko – Russia<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\u00a9 Amnesty International<\/span><\/div><\/div>
Aleksandra (Sasha) Skochilenko, visits Amnesty in the Netherlands, Amsterdam, to thank them from for their support.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Russian artist Aleksandra \u201cSacha\u201d Skochilenko was arrested for protesting Russia\u2019s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In March 2022, she replaced price tags at a supermarket with paper labels that contained information censored by Russian state-run media. She was charged with \u201cdissemination of knowingly false information about Russian Armed Forces\u201d and sentenced to seven years in December 2023. In 2024, thanks in part to international pressure from Write for Rights 2022, Sacha was finally released as part of a huge prisoner swap, involving Russia and Belarus, who agreed to a swap with the United States, Germany, Norway, Poland, and Slovenia.  Sacha now lives in exile in Germany.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThank you for all the support that you gave me back there when I was in prison, because it helped me to survive. Helped me to believe in some miracles. Because of your support I\u2019m here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/span>
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Join Write for Rights 2026<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Germain Rukuki – Burundi On 30 June 2021, Burundian human rights defender Germain Rukuki was released from prison four years into a 32-year sentence. He had been found guilty of a number of sham charges relating to his human rights work. He was jailed before getting a chance to hold his youngest child, born just […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":6749,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image-id":0,"_yoast_wpseo_twitter-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image-id":0,"_hero_title":"","_hero_content":"","_hero_cta_text":"","_hero_cta_link":"","_hero_alignment":"","_hero_background":"","_hero_size":"","_hero_show":"","_hero_type":"","_hero_embed":"","_hero_video_id":0,"_hero_hide_image_caption":true,"_hero_hide_image_copyright":false,"_nav_style":"","_disable_share_icons":false,"_disable_sidebar":false,"_display_author_info":false,"_hide_featured_image":false,"_hide_featured_image_caption":true,"_maximize_post_content":false,"_reduce_content_width":false,"_sidebar_id":0,"_stretch_thumbnail":false,"byline_context":"","byline_entity":"","byline_is_author":false,"disable_related_content":false,"download_id":0,"download_text":"","show_published_date":true,"show_updated_date":true,"term_slider":"","amnesty_index_number":"","recipients":"","recipients_refresh":"","recipients_refreshed":"","amnesty_umbraco_data":"","document_ref":"","amnesty_updated":"","footnotes":""},"category":[1584],"location":[1589],"resourceType":[],"topic":[1659],"class_list":["post-6743","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","location-world","topic-write4rights"],"datePosted":"October 7, 2026","mlpRelationships":{"1":19157,"2":6743},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amnesty.or.th\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6743","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amnesty.or.th\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amnesty.or.th\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amnesty.or.th\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amnesty.or.th\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6743"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.amnesty.or.th\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6743\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amnesty.or.th\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6749"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amnesty.or.th\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6743"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amnesty.or.th\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/category?post=6743"},{"taxonomy":"location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amnesty.or.th\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/location?post=6743"},{"taxonomy":"resource-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amnesty.or.th\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/resourceType?post=6743"},{"taxonomy":"topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amnesty.or.th\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topic?post=6743"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}