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From Witness to Advocate

Witnesses to Human Rights Abuses Speak to Canadians

Six men and women from across Canada who have been jailed, tortured, witness to massacres, and/or forced to flee their countries, will speak out on the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Montréal, April 21, 1998 Six men and women from across Canada who have been jailed, tortured, witness to massacres, and/or forced to flee their countries, will speak out on the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in a programme entitled "From Witness to Advocate". Their first-hand testimonies will bring the words of this Declaration to life and their courage will inspire people across Canada to work to protect the human rights of people everywhere.

1. 
   
Nathaniel Bimba is a 36 year old man from Liberia who is living in Edmonton, Alberta. In 1990 in Liberia, he was arrested by rebels, accused of spying and threatened with death, after organizing to distribute food to civilians whose communities had been destroyed by armed dissidents. He suffered six weeks of torture and interrogations until he was finally released because of pressure from church groups and international organizations.


2. 
   
Rudhramoorthy Cheran is a 37 year old man from Sri Lanka who lives in Toronto. As a poet and journalist, Cheran was critical of both the majority government and the Tamil militants who are fighting for a separate homeland in Sri Lanka. He was arrested in 1985 at the offices of an English language weekly, and detained for a week at the Guranagar Army Camp where he was interrogated and tortured. After two attempts on his life, Cheran left the country. He is now at York University where he continues to write in exile and struggle for human rights.


3. 
   
Nora Lopez is a 42 year old woman from Honduras who lives in Hamilton, Ontario. Her husband, Eduardo, was a free-lance journalist and human rights worker in Honduras. In 1981, he was abducted and tortured by security forces and only released as a result of Nora's courageous interventions. In 1983, he applied to Canada for refugee protection but was rejected for not having a well-founded fear of persecution and was forced to return to Honduras. On Christmas eve in 1984, he was abducted and killed. Nora suffered two attempts on her life and had to flee Honduras with her three children.


4. 
   
Zepheniah Emie Otuki is a 37 year old man from Uganda who now lives in New Brunswick. In 1986, while working as a Ugandan customs officer on the border of Kenya, he was arrested by the military who accused him of collaborating with anti-government elements. He suffered torture, malnutrition, intimidation, cramped and unsanitary cell conditions, and witnessed the torture of many other prisoners. After four days, he was released when his wife paid off the authorities. He fled to Kenya and when his home was set on fire, his wife and children joined him. They spent six years in refugee camps before they came to Canada.


5. 
   
Ms. Win Than is a 51 year old doctor from Burma now living in British Columbia. In 1988, she witnessed the massacre of peaceful student and civilian demonstrators calling for change in the government of Burma. She later worked with refugees in the camps on the Burmese-Thai border where she treated many Burmese who were forced by the government to carry heavy ammunition and act as human mine sweepers. She became known as a "rebel doctor" and had to claim refugee status and come to Canada.


6. 
   
Tran Trieu Quan is a 46 year old Canadian businessman originally from Vietnam who lives in Qu?bec City. In 1992, Tran's company became the intermediary between a small American company and a Vietnamese state company in an international transaction of cotton. After paying $1 million, the Vietnamese never received the cotton and the American company mysteriously disappeared. Tran was subsequently arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment without a fair trial. In Quebec, a journalist's investigation uncovered details proving the injustice in Tran's case. 125,000 people signed a petition, which was supported by the Canadian Chambers of Commerce and the House of Commons. Tran was released in 1997 after much international pressure.

On December 10, 1948, in response to the horrors of the Second World War, the Universal Declaration was adopted by the United Nations. Countries now have to answer for their actions to the international community. Fifty years later, the world moves closer to obtaining this universal standard and millions of people are active in the human rights movement. Yet, horrendous acts of human rights violations continue the world over. And they are not just happening to people in faraway places: they have happened to the people who live next door.

These six extraordinary individuals were selected for the program: From Witness to Advocate, sponsored by the International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development, in collaboration with the Canadian Council for Refugees. Organizers are inviting Canadian groups and associations of all kinds to mark the 50th anniversary of this important Declaration by having one or more of these men and women speak at their annual meeting or local event. Canadians are being asked to take 30 minutes of their time to witness these stories and to think about the ways that the rights and freedoms of the Universal Declaration can become a reality for all.