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HELP PROTECT A WOMAN WHO IS AT RISK FOR DEFENDING THE RAINFOREST

BY: Amnesty International Canada
TARGET: Simäo Robison Oliveira Jatene,<br>Governor, Pará State, Brazil
About this Petition
Laísa Santos Sampaio and her family face death threats for protecting the Amazon.

Laísa Santos, a mother of eight and a school teacher, has been at the forefront of her community's opposition to the destruction of the Amazon rain forest in Pará state, Brazil.

With her local women's artisan project (Grupo de Trabalhadoras Artesanais Extrativistas), Laísa promotes sustainable development and advocates against illegal logging in her region. Their opposition to logging has placed project members at considerable risk in a region in which illegal exploitation of the forest is commonplace and where there are continued killings and attacks against those who defend the Amazon.

Laísa and her family has been the target of several death threats and attacks. Between 2011 and 2012, at least 20 people, including Laísa Santos' sister and brother-in-law — Maria and José Cláudio Ribeiro da Silva — were killed because of their campaigning on environmental issues and against illegal logging in the region.

The person accused of ordering their deaths was not arrested and Laísa believes he is one of the people who continue to threaten her.

Support Laísa and her family by urging the Brazilian government to publicly recognize their legitimate human rights work, investigate attacks against them and provide effective protection.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/396/252/896/

SAVE THE TAPAJOS RIVER PEOPLE!

BY: Lynn Hamilton
TARGET: The Federal Government of Brazil
About this Petition
Over two thousand Brazilians will be be negatively impacted if seven new dams are built on the Tapajos River. By far the worst hit will be the Munduriku tribes. Indigenous to the Brazilian Amazon, the Munduriku's ancestral lands will be partly under water by the time the dams are finished. And people won't be the only ones out of a home. The tiny Tapajos Hermit hummingbird is one of 613 fragile bird species that rely on the Tapajos River Valley.

If the dams are so potentially destructive, who do they benefit? Answer: the mining industry. The region is rich in gold and bauxite, two minerals highly sought after in the production of aluminum.

And it is Brazil's own publicly-owned utility Eletrobras that proposes this much damage to its own people and wildlife! Tell Brazil's federal government not to put the interests of the mining industry ahead of native Brazilians!

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/939/424/882/save-the-tapajos-river-people/

SAVE TIGERS AND RHINOS IN CHITWAN NATIONAL PARK

BY: Animal Nepal
TARGET: Prime Minister of Nepal, Minister of Finance, Roads and Forests
About this Petition
Nepal government has announced its plans to construct a Terai Hulaki Highway and East-West Electric Railway in Terai, cutting through Chitwan National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage. The projects threaten tourism and decades of conservation that has rescued the tiger and rhino from the brink of extinction.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/730/921/897/stop-construction-of-highway-and-railway-through-chitwan-national-park/?z00m=20887654#next_action

THE ILLOGICAL RACES - STOP JUMPS AT OAKBANK

BY: Dr Dianne Evans, RSPCA South Australia
TARGET: Mr John Glatz - Chairman, Oakbank Racing Committee
About this Petition
Jumps racing has proven deadly for horses and dangerous for jockeys.

The annual Oakbank Easter Racing Carnival is South Australia’s feature jumps racing carnival. Over the last four years, five horses have died as a result of jumps races at the carnival.

Despite the Select Committee’s recommendation to “phase out the sport” and a body of knowledge outlining the danger jumps racing poses to horses, South Australia and Victoria continue to hold jumps events.

RSPCA South Australia believes this ‘sport’ is inhumane. We’re calling on the Oakbank Racing Club to withdraw jumps racing from their race meetings, and we need public support to send this clear message to the club.  

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/831/330/249/the-illogical-races-stop-jumps-at-oakbank/?z00m=20907209

Demand Animal Planet require animal abuse monitors on set
Sign the Petition to Animal Planet President, Marjorie Kaplan; Senior Vice President, Victoria Lowell; Executive Vice President, Charlie Foley; Executive Vice President, Rick Holzman
Posted By: Stop Animal Cruelty (campaign leader)

Mother Jones, the news outlet that broke the story of Animal Planet's animal abuse, has now  released further evidence of abuse on the network's Call of the Wildman show.

How much more needs to happen before these television shows are held accountable?

http://links.causes.com/s/clQHH1?r=Qp8q&ctag=32b3d7982910ee8e5f6e73ec7cfa45c292&ctoken=IMdaqxqdwDqO1t0h2pUivY4Jq4zm03MrmmZ75UaGPeLkSAqozorndH-9wXmJpM12MHrBz5hDV5K57WrU7k1tdsF-dbb5UDPR&uid=148804178

Read the evidence; http://links.causes.com/s/clQHQh?r=QEY8&ctag=9e913959a9ceb99a770702eeb7d33b3933&ctoken=lp0-QNsY19nGy-0GJBeL0HQ7W_LtC-9oqIILX4T9UZ-2Yc-hC-6tvdmEj0BMniBu3wVBE-z8XSWBRxyXGHyME_zUck3GTlx-&uid=148804178

Unilever is supporting a dirty industry attempt to continue the destruction of Southeast Asia's rainforests. If it gets its way, orangutans could keep dying in the name of "sustainable" palm oil.

The consumer giant is attempting to ignore scientists' work and rewrite the rules on what counts as forest that should be spared from destruction, backed by the worst palm oil producers. It's a direct challenge to the strong scientific standards that groups from SumOfUs to Kellogg's to Mars have aligned behind. If we don't stop it, this could amount to a license for deforestation in the name of conservation, and undermine the huge progress we've made to save the orangutans.

Unilever is the world's largest palm oil user, and it's done the right thing in the past to support rainforest protection. It can do the right thing again, and we know that it's sensitive to consumer pressure. Right now Unilever thinks it can push this greenwash behind closed doors. But if we can put this into the public light, it won't be worth the risk for Unilever to continue.

Sign the petition now to tell Unilever not to greenwash rainforest destruction.

It doesn't have to be this way. We’ve made tremendous progress in getting big palm oil companies and a dozen of the world’s biggest consumer companies, including giants like Kellogg and Mars, to commit to end deforestation in their supply chains. Every week, more companies are joining up and pledging to do the right thing. Up until now, even Unilever has played a key role in promoting strict criteria for responsible palm oil production.

Crucial to the rainforests' protection is the scientific work that's been done to define what counts as a forest that should be spared from the bulldozers when companies go deforestation free. Specifically, companies have pledged to protect "High Conservation Value" or "High Carbon Stock" forest -- based on a common understanding of what this means. The combined pressure from groups like SumOfUs and other NGOs has worked. Companies from Kellogg's to Mars to Wilmar -- the world's largest palm oil trader -- have accepted this common, strict approach and definition to ensure deforestation-free palm oil.

But now Unilever is participating in an industry attempt to redefine what counts as "High Carbon Stock" forest. Only the worst industry players are participating actively in this greenwash -- companies like IOI and Cargill. If they get their way, companies could keep pushing bulldozers into some of the world's most important rainforests even while claiming to be deforestation free. Even worse, they are refusing to stop any deforestation until the "study" is complete. And now Unilever is joining them.

It's clear that industry will use this exercise to loosen the definition what forest they will spare from the bulldozers. If they do, it could open the door for continued destruction for what they want to call "sustainable" palm oil. It's a desperate attempt to continue business as usual and avoid growing consumer demands for deforestation-free palm oil.

Unilever doesn't have to be a part of this. We need to show Unilever that we won't tolerate this greenwash.

Tell Unilever not to greenwash rainforest destruction and withdraw from the "study" now.

http://action.sumofus.org/a/unilever-palm-oil/?akid=4545.4869670.7Byss4&rd=1&sub=fwd&t=3

A woman in Invercargill, New Zealand owns 40 cats. Her neighbours are complaining that the cats are "swarming" through the streets. But instead of finding good homes for the animals, the Invercargill City Council has given locals permission to trap and kill the cats.

These cats are someone's pets, not wild animals. But the Invercargill City Council Chief has said that residents who had problems with the cats can pick up traps owned by the city and take matters into their own hands. He was even quoted as saying, "We don't make inquiries about what has happened, as long as [the trap] is returned" -- meaning that even if people torture the cats or brutalise them, they likely won't be punished.

It's true that the law only permits people to own three cats maximum. But allowing people to kill them through any means necessary isn't the way to solve the problem. And it's clear that the City Council, with its "anything goes" policy, does not have the cats' welfare in mind at all.

Tell the Invercargill City Council chief to retract his statem ent and implement a humane solution for the city's cat problems.

http://www.care2.com/go/z/e/AHy2y/zOIh/cS7DB

kangaroo court in Egypt just sentenced 528 people to death. This is likely the biggest mass execution ruling this century, but one man can stop the killings.

Egypt’s most important religious figure, Grand Mufti Allam has 10 days to reject the decision. Religious leaders are already condemning the ruling, and as the first Mufti to be elected by his peers, he has a legitimate mandate to be the nation’s moral leader. Let’s create a global plea from people of all religions to provide clemency and block this barbarous ruling.

This was a political show trial -- the military regime is using the firing squad to wipe out the opposition. If the world does not speak up, the consequences for Egypt and the world are beyond dangerous. Sign now to save these lives and stop a spiral of violence -- when one million of us have joined, religious leaders in Egypt will deliver our call for compassion directly to the Mufti:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/stop_mass_execution_loc/?bEOrtgb&v=37970

After the hope of Tahrir Square, where hundreds of thousands took to the streets to overthrow decades of dictatorship, the Egyptian people democratically elected a Muslim Brotherhood government. But last summer the military staged a populist coup, Brotherhood supporters rioted, and then the military declared the party a terrorist organisation and violently cracked down -- 16,000 democracy activists, journalists, and even teenage school girls have been arrested!

The trial was a joke -- on top of charges of rioting and destruction of property, the 528 are all accused of killing one police officer, and defense lawyers were barred from the sentencing session, which lasted less than an hour! But this is not a one off -- the judiciary is repeatedly being used to crackdown on political dissent, while security forces accused of killing hundreds of protesters are rarely held to account. There are real security threats, but as the military authorities' iron fist and intimidation grows, extremism is fuelled.

This is the harshest mass conviction in modern Egyptian history, but what happens next in this case could have repercussions way beyond Egypt. Sign the urgent petition now asking the Grand Mufti not to rubber stamp state-sponsored murder and to provide the ethical leadership Egypt desperately needs:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/stop_mass_execution_loc/?bEOrtgb&v=37970

The world has kept silent as this regime has launched an all out attack against an imperfect but elected government and brought democracy in Egypt to its knees. Global leaders trumpet democracy at every opportunity and strongly condemn anti-democratic plots from Crimea to Caracas. But not in Egypt. Now if the world looks away and allows this cruel mass execution to happen, a dangerous message will resonate across the globe that the world will stand by democracy, except for political Islam. That will empower one small but very dangerous group that can hurt us all: the extremists.

Time and again the Avaaz community has forcefully advocated against brutal injustice and for peaceful, meaningful reconciliation between embittered communities. Right now Egypt’s future hangs in the balance, and a wildly unjust and provocative ruling like the one handed down in Minya could push it over the edge. Let’s bring the people’s voice to this precarious situation and ensure that these 528 lives are saved.

With hope,

Alice, Nick, Oli, Wissam, Bissan, Mais, Emily, Ari, Ricken and the whole Avaaz team


MORE INFORMATION

Hundreds of Egyptians Sentenced to Death in Killing of a Police Officer (New York Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/25/world/middleeast/529-egyptians-sentenced-to-death-in-killing-of-a-police-officer.html

Egypt Opens Another Mass Trial of Islamists (AP)
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/egypt-sentences-529-death-police-attack-23036881

‘Fast’ death penalty for 529 Brotherhood supporters will be appealed: Defence (Ahram)
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/97456/Egypt/Politics-/Fast-and-bizarre-death-penalty-for--Brotherhood-su.aspx

Egyptian court sentences 529 people to death (Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/egypt-sentences-529-to-death/2014/03/24/a4f95692-6992-461e-aaf1-9bc84908a429_story.html

URGE THE COURT IN THE HAGUE TO STOP JAPAN FROM KILLING THE WHALES!

BY: Jelena Radovanovic
TARGET: International Court of Justice in The Hague
About this Petition
March 2014: The future of Japan's whaling activities in the Antarctic could be reviewed as the International Court of Justice in The Hague has announced that it will deliver its preliminary judgment in the case between Australia and Japan at the end of the month.

In the summer of 2013, the Australian government took Japan to the ICJ, the principal judicial arm of the United Nations, in a bid to expose the true nature Japanese scientific research programme under which it has previously killed over 7,000 in the Antarctic region. For despite an international whaling moratorium in force since 1986, Japan continues to catch whales in the Antarctic under the 1946 treaty that allows unlimited whaling for scientific research.

Yet critics say this is just a smokescreen and they are really being hunted for their meat, which is eaten by many Japanese consumers who consider it a delicacy.

During the hearing, representatives from the Australian Government outlined how useless Japanese whaling is in scientific terms, stating that the "research" programme only makes use of a small part of the whale, whilst the rest is turned into edible products and a third discarded - thus confirming that these hunts are effectively commercial whaling in disguise and just an excuse for Japanese whalers to get around the current international ban on such hunts.

The Australian legal team also pointed out to the court that Japan has never explained why it needs to kill thousands of minke whales, also undermining the claim that it's in the name of research. But speaking during the second week of hearings, Japan's deputy foreign minister, Koji Tsuruoka, said his country had the right to hunt and kill the marine mammals for scientific research.

"Japan is conducting a comprehensive scientific research programme because it wishes to resume commercial whaling, based on science, in a sustainable manner," he said.

Both countries have promised to abide by the court's decision and you can watch highlights from the court case on the United Nations web tv site.

Watch Part 1: http://webtv.un.org/search/part-12-icj-hears-australia-v.-japan-case/2509622749001?term=whaling

and Part 2: http://webtv.un.org/search/part-22-icj-hears-australia-v.-japan-case/2509681962001?term=whaling

RAKUTEN IN JAPAN – STOP SELLING IVORY AND WHALE MEAT! SAVE THESE ANIMALS FROM DEMISE!!

BY: SUE LEE
TARGET: Japanese E-Commerce Company Rakuten
About this Petition
Please sign and share this petition worldwide to encourage the Japanese e-commerce company, Rakuten to stop selling elephant ivory and whale meat. They are one of the biggest retailers of these products and the UK-based Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) and the Humane Society International (HSI) called on Japan's biggest online retailer to stop selling the items.            

Many of the products this company sells derive from the demise of species of whale that have been protected since 1986 under the moratorium on commercial whaling established by the International Whaling Commission. The species receive the highest level of protection by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, which prohibits international trade. Rakuten headquarters in Japan is asked to ban all ads offering ivory and whale products immediately. However, the company is not responding to demands and continues to promote these products of protected species.

Rakuten says they are committed to protecting the environment yet they also say that the sale of whale meat and ivory cast doubt on their commitment to sustainability. They are affecting the environment by demanding the demise of these animals that are threatened and endangered in order to get the ivory from elephants and the whale meat to sell for monetary gain!!

Let us stop poachers from killing the elephants and save whales from harpoons just to keep this company in business. We must act immediately to ban all ads selling elephant and whale products, or its global brand will be irrevocably tainted with the ongoing mass slaughter of these species. Please sign and share this petition worldwide to encourage the Japanese e-commerce company, Rakuten to stop selling elephant ivory and whale meat. They are one of the biggest retailers of these products and the UK-based Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) and the Humane Society International (HSI) called on Japan's biggest online retailer to stop selling the items.            

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/693/778/413/rakuten-you-need-to-stop-selling-ivory-and-whale-meat-save-these-animals-from-demise/