Amnesty International has called for an International Day of Action for Kenya on Wednesday, February 27. (See http://www.amnesty.org/en/appeals-for-action/kenya-action). Around the world, Amnesty groups will demonstrate solidarity with the people of Kenya and call on the Kenyan government to protect people from politically-motivated and ethnic violence. Kenyan leaders must end the cycle of impunity that perpetuates the politically motivated violence in Kenya.

In Washington, D.C., we’ll be holding a vigil from 4:30-6:30 outside the Kenyan Embassy, which is located in Dupont Circle at 2249 R St. NW. We’re also in the process of planning events in other cities such as Los Angeles, New York, Seattle, Denver, Minneapolis, Boston, Atlanta, and Houston. We are looking for Amnesty members and others to help organize and attend events around the country.

Amnesty International welcomes the participation of Kenyans living in the US in our International Day of Action. We would like to request, however, that participants refrain from partisan appeals at our events. Amnesty International is a worldwide movement of people who work to protect human rights. We do not support or oppose the views of any government, political ideology, economic interest or religion. The purpose of the International Day of Action is to “reach out for Kenya” and call for respect for the human rights of all Kenyans, regardless of ethnicity or political affiliation. We have also asked people to speak out on behalf of Kenyan human rights defenders who’ve received death threats – you can take action at: http://www.amnestyusa.org/Kenya/Action/page.do?id=YCA0931085000E&n1=3&n2=30&n3=931

We’ve also set up a Facebook group, Reach Out for Kenya (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=8721569146), and a Flickr page for people to post photos of their vigils or personal messages of support (http://www.flickr.com/photos/reachoutforkenya). To upload the photos, send an email to cold27south@photos.flickr.com (use the subject line to give your photo a title and the body to add a description).

If you’d like to be involved or need more information, contact Ann Corbett, AIUSA Kenya Country Specialist (aecorbett@earthlink.net) or Ilona Kelly, Individuals at Risk Campaigner for Africa (ikelly@aiusa.org).

Sincerely,
Ann Corbett
Amnesty International USA
Kenya Country Specialist