Sochi Olympics Campaign Kit 2013 revised Nov 18

8/13/2019 Sochi Olympics Campaign Kit 2013 revised Nov 18

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SOCHI WINTER OLYMPICS CAMPAIGN KIT 1

Amnesty International Canada 312 Laurier Ave East Ottawa Ontario K1N 1H9 www.amnesty

FREEDOM UNDER THREATSochi Winter Olympics Action Toolkit


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2 SOCHI WINTER OLYMPICS CAMPAIGN KIT

Ever since Vladimir Putin returned as Russian President, the space for freedom in Rus-

sia has been shrinking. The rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly

have come under increasing attack, despite the fact that these rights are guaranteed by

the Russian Constitution and international human rights treaties joined by Russia.

The Winter Olympic Games are being held in Sochi, Russia from February 7-23, 2014.

Amnesty International believes that hosting the Olympic Games is a privilege and the

respect of rights and freedoms should be demanded of any host country. While the

spotlight is on Russia for the Olympics we want to shine a light on human rights and

demand that Russia respect the right to freedom of expression, association, and assem-bly.

Being out and loud and proud in Russia can land you in prison

On June 30th, Russia passed a law banning "propaganda of non-traditional sexual rela-

tions" which they say could morally corrupt children. As a result of this new law, dis-

crimination, harassment and attacks targeting LGBTI people in Russia have intensified

greatly.

It's getting harder and harder to protest in RussiaThe right to freedom of assembly has been severely restricted by complicated approval

procedures which make it difficult to organize events. Many peaceful protests and gath-

erings have been arbitrarily banned or dispersed, including a group of young people hav-

ing a snowball fight. Defamation was re-criminalized on June 30th, and new laws on

treason, espionage and blasphemy were passed posing chilling threats to people criticiz-

ing government officials or policies.

And it's more difficult than ever to operate an NGO

New restrictions on freedom of association mean that organizations receiving foreignfunding must describe themselves as "foreign agents" if they are considered to be in-

volved in undefined "political activities"--a requirement which is inconsistent with inter-

national human rights standards. If an NGO doesnt register, it faces hefty fines, its

work can be suspended or shut down completely, and its leaders can even face prison

time.

Whats going on in Russia?


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Spread the word. Learn more about Russias human rights record and share this in-

formation with family, friends, and colleagues: www.amnesty.ca/russia.

Go viral! Social media is a great way to shine a spotlight on human rights in Russia,

and its also a great way to get around state media sensors and let activists in Russia

know that we support them. Use hashtags: #Sochi2014, #Olympics, #humanrights,

#RussiaCrackdown, #FreePussyRiot, #LGBTI.

Try this Sample message: @AmnestyNow: #Russia

hosting the #Olympics is a privilege! Respect

#humanrights and freedoms! #RussiaCrackdown bit.ly/

russiarights

Sign our online petition urging President Putin to

stop attacks on civil society: www.amnesty.ca/

russiarightss and gather signatures for the hard copy

petition included in this kit (pg 6).

Sign our online petition demanding that Pussy Riot

be freed: www.amnesty.ca/get-involved/take-action-

now/free-pussy-riot and gather signatures for the hardcopy petition included in this kit (pg 7).

Write for Rights! During Amnestys annual letter-

writing marathon in November-December, one of the cases we will spotlight is that

of opposition protestors arrested for peacefully protesting in Bolotnaya Square, Moscow,

in May 2012, www.amnesty.ca/write-for-rights/cases/the-bolotnaya-three.

Share your message and raise awareness with a store window display. Dress manne-

quins up like Pussy Riot, add Pride flags, and Russian symbols such as Matryoska

dolls. Add a poster with more information from our Flickr page at www.flickr.com/

photos/aicanada/.Have petitions inside the store for curious shoppers to sign.

Calling all sports fans. Set up a table outside a local sporting event with petitions,

postcards and information about the campaign. As people walk by, explain the ongo-

ing crackdown on human rights in Russia and encourage attendees to call on Russia to

Go for Gold in human rights by signing the petition or postcard.

Take action!
http://www.amnesty.ca/russia.http://www.amnesty.ca/russia.http://www.amnesty.ca/write-for-rights/cases/the-bolotnaya-threehttp://www.amnesty.ca/write-for-rights/cases/the-bolotnaya-threehttp://www.flickr.com/photos/aicanada/http://www.flickr.com/photos/aicanada/http://www.flickr.com/photos/aicanada/http://www.flickr.com/photos/aicanada/http://www.flickr.com/photos/aicanada/http://www.amnesty.ca/write-for-rights/cases/the-bolotnaya-threehttp://www.amnesty.ca/russia.


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Extra, extra read all about it!Russia Makes the Headlines!Lets put Russia in the headlines for something other than the Olympics! On the front

page of a newspaper make and paste your own front page. Use the title RUSSIA TO-

DAY and include headlines about the discriminatory new laws in Russia that we want

to eliminate. (Contact us if you would like samples of headlines to include.)

Lets make Russias dismal

human rights record famous!

Upload your photos to Facebook,

Twitter, Flickr and other social me-

dia sites.

Do you have questions about the

campaign, pictures or action ideas

youd like to share?

Contact: [email protected] or

[email protected]

Get others involved!The more people the better. In

a busy public space get peopleto freeze in pose reading the

newspaper and take photos.

Check out these photos from a flash

mob action held on November 16,

2013 in Toronto.


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Q: Why is Amnesty launching this campaign now?

A: While Russia gears up for the Winter Olympic Games, set to take place in Sochi from

February 7-23, 2014, the countrys human rights situation is worsening. While all eyes

are on Russia we will shine a light on the countrys dismal human rights record and

raise awareness about the human rights violations occurring in Russia.

Q: How long is this campaign and will it carry on throughout the Olym-

pic Games?

A: The campaign will run from October 7, 2013 to February 3, 2014ending three

days before the Olympics begin. Amnesty will not continue campaigning during the

Olympics so to not interfere with or distract media attention from the sporting events.

Q: Is Amnesty boycotting the Olympics?

A: Amnesty is not boycotting the Olympics, calling for relocation of the Olympics, or

asking the International Olympic Committee to take actions in relation to Russia. No

boycott is necessary as this campaign focuses on the ongoing violations of freedom of

expression, association and assembly in Russia rather than on human rights abuses re-

sulting directly from the organization of the Olympics in Russia. We are for humanrights, not against the Olympics.

Q: Is Amnesty approaching Olympic athletes to join in the campaign?

A: Amnesty is not approaching Olympic athletes to join this campaign. Olympic ath-

letes are governed by Rule 50 of the Olympic Charter which sets out restrictions regard-

ing their involvement in advertising, demonstrations and propaganda. Amnesty fully

respects the Olympic Charter and the sensitivities surrounding athlete involvement in

our campaigning.

Q: Id like to create some images of my own for the campaign. Can I

use Olympic symbols?

A: Please do not use images like the Olympic rings or the Olympic torch because of

copyright laws. Using the Olympic symbols might give the wrong messageremember

we are for human rights, not against the Olympics. Contact us if youd like some crea-

tive ideas for images.

Q&A


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ResourcesFor a general overview of the human rights situation in Russia read Am-

nesty Internationals report, Freedom Under Threat Clampdown on Free-doms of Expression Assembly and Association in Russia bit.ly/16lSaapNo Room to Breathe The Wire, http://bit.ly/HQfyBl

The Bolotnaya Three Write For Rights Case file http://www.amnesty.ca/write-for-rights/cases/the-bolotnaya-three

Lifesaver: Russia Protect Freedom of Expression http://bit.ly/1fGydM3Are We Really Foreign Agents? Blog Post, http://bit.ly/1a5ITCp

G2 leaders must reject Russias homophobic law, News Updates,http://bit.ly/17hxv5i

Russiaa dark day for freedom of expression, News Updates, http://bit.ly/15UZW6k
http://localhost/var/www/apps/conversion/tmp/scratch_4/bit.ly/16lSaaphttp://localhost/var/www/apps/conversion/tmp/scratch_4/bit.ly/16lSaaphttp://bit.ly/HQfyBlhttp://bit.ly/HQfyBlhttp://www.amnesty.ca/write-for-rights/cases/the-bolotnaya-threehttp://www.amnesty.ca/write-for-rights/cases/the-bolotnaya-threehttp://www.amnesty.ca/write-for-rights/cases/the-bolotnaya-threehttp://bit.ly/1fGydM3http://bit.ly/1fGydM3http://bit.ly/1a5ITCphttp://bit.ly/1a5ITCphttp://bit.ly/17hxv5ihttp://bit.ly/17hxv5ihttp://bit.ly/15UZW6khttp://bit.ly/15UZW6khttp://bit.ly/15UZW6khttp://bit.ly/15UZW6khttp://bit.ly/15UZW6khttp://bit.ly/17hxv5ihttp://bit.ly/1a5ITCphttp://bit.ly/1fGydM3http://www.amnesty.ca/write-for-rights/cases/the-bolotnaya-threehttp://www.amnesty.ca/write-for-rights/cases/the-bolotnaya-threehttp://bit.ly/HQfyBlhttp://localhost/var/www/apps/conversion/tmp/scratch_4/bit.ly/16lSaap

Sochi Olympics Campaign Kit 2013 revised Nov 18

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