Amnesty International Write for Rights event at Turner Contemporary

Write for Rights

By Dan Thompson

Inspired by Laurence Abu Hamdan’s work in the Turner Prize, Amnesty International supporters have staged a Write For Rights event at Turner Contemporary.

More than 50 cards and letters were written during the afternoon, organised by the Thanet Amnesty International Group, in support of young people whose human rights have been abused.

They include 14-year-old Jose Adrian who was arrested walking home from school in Mexico, handcuffed, and hung from a wall.

In Greece, Sarah Mardini and Sean Binder were jailed for going to the help of refugees in trouble at sea. And sixteen-year-old Iranian Yasaman Aryani has been imprisoned for 10 years for not wearing a headscarf.

The cards and letters are either sent direct to the person affected to show solidarity, or as an appeal to the country’s authorities.

Laurence Abu Hamdan’s work in the Turner Prize looks at human rights abuses in Syria, using witness testimony from prisoners in Saydnaya. The work was made as part of an audio investigation by Amnesty International and Forensic Architecture.

His work can be seen at Turner Contemporary, which is open every day until the last day of the Turner Prize this Sunday, January 12.

Thanet Amnesty International Group meets every other month to work on local fundraising and awareness raising events and to campaign on various human rights issues. To find out more, visit www.facebook.com/ThanetAmnesty/