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News Archives |
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May 11, 2012 - The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI), chaired by California Senator Dianne Feinstein, investigated more than 6 million pieces of information within the last three years and is expected to produce a detailed 4,000 page report on the CIA’s interrogation and detention practices after 9/11. Join us in urging the Senate to release its report on torture. |
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April 13, 2012 - PTV will honor Julie Su, California Labor Commissioner, with the City of Second Chances award at the Human Dignity Awards Dinner on May 31, 2012. |
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March 29, 2012 - PTV will honor Carlos Siderman, humanitarian and business leader, with the Visionary Award at the Human Dignity Awards Dinner on May 31, 2012. |
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March 8, 2012 - PTV is excited to honor Sister Dianna Ortiz with the Human Rights Hero Award at the Human Dignity Awards Dinner on May 31, 2012. |
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February 11, 2012 - There are two simple ways you can give to PTV every time you shop: Ralphs Community Contribution Program and www.iGive.com. Read more to find out how to sign up. |
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January 11, 2012 - On the tenth anniversary of the opening of Guantanamo, PTV joins with organizations across the country to call, once again, for its closure. |
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December 27, 2011- A PTV client writes a letter, sharing her hopes and dreams for the new year. |
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Huffington Post, December 10, 2011 - As the international community celebrated the 61st Annual Human Rights Day on December 10, PTV Executive Director Julie Gutman highlighted some of the most significant human rights events of 2011. |
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November 12, 2011 - PTV Executive Director Julie Gutman spoke at a panel at the Amnesty International Western Regional Conference on how torture is ineffective, immoral, and brutally destroys individuals and communities. Also, the winner of the UN Day raffle is announced. |
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October 24, 2011 - Today on United Nations Day, the international human rights community is celebrating the shared values and ideals of the world we are all trying to create – a world of justice, peace and respect for the dignity of every human being. |
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September 27, 2011 - PTV Board Member Hector Aristizabal writes a powerful letter to former Vice President Dick Cheney.
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September 8, 2011 - Melissa Roxas' appeal to the UN that demanded an investigation into her torture case was highlighted by the Huffington Post. We’re grateful for all those who have signed her petition. Also, to mark Labor Day, Executive Director Julie Gutman reflects in LA Progressive about the richness of LA's labor, human rights and immigrant rights movements, and how they have impacted the character and fabric of the city.
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August 23, 2011 - Godfrey fled his native Uganda after being arrested and tortured for defending the rights of people with disabilities in his country. His story is one of inspiration. Though faced with persecution, he relentlessly continued to fight for justice, and has even started his own non-profit organization, Abilities Talent International, to support children with disabilities all around the world. |
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July 28, 2011 - One survivor from Uganda tells his story and asks supporters to join our online anti-torture community through Facebook. |
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July 1, 2011 - Amid the barbecues and the advertising bombast, how do we connect to the true meaning of July 4? In an opinion piece, "From DC to Damascus," PTV Executive Director Julie Gutman explores the nexus between American democratic values and the effort to rebuild the lives of torture survivors. |
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OpenSalon.com, June 30, 2011- In 1783, seven years after the founding of the American republic, Benjamin Franklin wrote these stirring words: "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." Nearly 230 years later, Franklin's sentiments were echoed by Tahrir Square protester Salem Metwali, who proclaimed, "This is a new day of freedom. I have tasted freedom and I will not turn back." |
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June 9, 2011 - How would you mark Torture Awareness Month--the month of June--if you yourself were a torture survivor? None of us who have been spared the horror of torture could possibly answer this question. But Kyaw, a PTV client and survivor from Burma, can.
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May 14, 2011 - "When Americans defend torture, it is a very sad day for humanity," says Abdoulaye, a torture survivor from Ivory Coast. Read the latest Huffington Post blog entry from PTV Executive Director Julie Gutman where she shares Abdoulaye's response to the latest debate about torture and Osama bin Laden's death.
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April 22, 2011 - On April 12, PTV marked its 30th anniversary with the first annual Human Dignity Awards Dinner. More than 550 people attended, filling the downtown Center at Cathedral Plaza ballroom to capacity. |
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March 19, 2011 - With the Human Dignity Awards Dinner just a few weeks away, Executive Director Julie Gutman will appear on CNN Headline News Local Edition to discuss PTV's work and the upcoming 30th anniversary celebration. |
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March 10, 2011 - Leontine Lanza survived torture in Congo. An Honorary Committee Co-Chair of the 2011 Human Dignity Awards Dinner, Leontine asks others to support PTV. |
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February 24, 2011 - What does it take for people who endure torture to rebuild their lives? Find out tonight when Univision continues its three-part series on PTV and three of our clients.
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February 1, 2011 - PTV and its upcoming Human Dignity Awards Dinner were featured last week on the Huffington Post. Also, read about Dr. Megan Berthold, PTV's director of research and evaluation, as she shares her story in the cover article of Newsforum, the official publication of the esteemed UCLA School of Public Affairs. |
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January 12, 2011 - In a major victory for anti-torture activists, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights has ruled against Mexico in a closely watched case involving two ecologists, one of whom was treated by PTV staff. |
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January 12, 2011 - In a major victory for anti-torture activists, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights has ruled against Mexico in a closely watched case involving two ecologists, one of whom was treated by PTV staff. |
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December 15, 2011 - Ten of the best human rights stories of 2010 and remembering Shirley Roberts, an outspoken champion for human rights. |
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Huffington Post, December 10, 2010 - PTV Executive Director Julie Gutman compiled ten of the best human rights stories of 2010 for the Huffington Post. Here you will find inspiring examples from across the globe of how activists, against great odds, are fighting - and winning - the battle for human dignity. |
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Huffington Post, September 5, 2010 - In a Labor Day opinion piece in the Huffington Post, PTV's executive director Julie Gutman reaffirms the relationship between workers rights and human rights. |
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October 1, 2010- Highlights from PTV's night at the Geffen Playhouse for Pulitzer Prize-winning play "Ruined." |
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September 9, 2010 - Join PTV for an incredible night of theater. PTV will be selling tickets to "Ruined" at the Geffen Theater. Also, read Julie Gutman's op-ed in the Huffington Post. |
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August 27, 2010 - At PTV's Healing Club, Leontine, a survivor from Democratic Republic of Congo, talks about how PTV has empowered her. Also, don't miss the La Vida Music Festival highlighting PTV's work.
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It has been a remarkable month at Program for Torture Victims. Since the launch of our Profits for Peace campaign on UN International Day in Support of Torture Victims, so many of you have generously responded by patronizing participating businesses. Our goal is to raise $10,000 by the end of July and we are almost there. You can help us reach the finish line. |
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On June 25, torture survivors met with Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa as the Program for Torture Victims was officially honored by the City of Los Angeles for its 30-year record of work on behalf of torture survivors. In addition to adopting Councilmember Jan Perry's resolution honoring PTV and condemning torture, the Council declared June 26 Victims of Torture Day in Los Angeles.
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June 24th, 2010- Starting June 26, participating restaurants and businesses will contribute a portion of their proceeds to PTV for a day, a week, a month, or a year. Others, including the L.A. institution Pink's Hot Dogs, have made generous contributions to support this initiative. |
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I started my journey as executive director of PTV last month, and each passing day deepens my sense that this is where I belong. Perhaps it was listening to Rossana, who fled El Salvador after being beaten and raped by death squads. "I had no job, no home, no family," said Rossana. "I wanted to die. PTV saved my life, and I am now able to help others in Los Angeles without fear I will be tortured." |
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06/24/2010 - Los Angeles Mayor Villaraigosa, Councilmember Jan Perry, and Assembly Speaker John Perez are endorsing PTV's Profits for Peace campaign. The campaign will raise funds for the Program for Torture Victims to kick off its 30th anniversary year on United Nations Day in Support of Victims of Torture, observed on June 26 by human rights groups across the world. Participating businesses will contribute a portion of their profits to PTV for a day, a week, a month or a year. |
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06/18/2010 - This year the Program for Torture Victims (PTV) commemorates 30 years of service to survivors of torture. To raise awareness about the problem of torture and our work with survivors here in Los Angeles, PTV will be hosting an number of events in honor of our 30th year. |
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4/16/2010 - LOS ANGELES - Mayor Villaraigosa issued the following statement on Julie Gutman, Vice-President of the City of Los Angeles Board of Public Works Commission and Senior Labor Advisor, being named Executive Director of the Program for Torture Victims, the first human rights organization of its kind in the country. |
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4/16/2010 - Julie Gutman, Commissioner and Senior Advisor to Major Villaraigosa, named Executive Director of the Program for Torture Victims, the first human rights organization of its kind in the country. |
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03/29/2010 - Despite some difficult compromises, the annual resolution relating to torture and ill-treatment of the Human Rights Council, approved on March 26, has a number of positive elements, which can be built on in future years. Mirroring last years resolution on the role of health professionals, this years resolution focused on how judges, prosecutors and lawyers can contribute to the prevention of torture. |
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3/15/2010 - WASHINGTON - Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Monday introduced legislation to strengthen the country's commitment to protecting refugees fleeing persecution or torture. The Refugee Protection Action of 2010 will help to improve protections for refugees and asylum seekers with bona fide claims. The legislation is cosponsored by Senator Carl Levin (D-Mich.). |
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03/07/2010 - Washington D.C. - This Supreme Court justice has a history of dismissing prisoner brutality. And it's his former law clerk who was investigated for authorizing harsh interrogation tactics as a Justice Department lawyer. According to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, a prisoner who was slammed to a concrete floor and punched and kicked by a guard after asking for a grievance form -- but suffered neither serious nor permanent harm -- has no claim that his constitutional rights were violated. |
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A previously unreleased internal Department of Defense (DoD) memo, summarizing a review of the Navy SERE program in late February - early March 2007, reveals that there was fierce criticism within the DoD of the Navy SERE school in North Island, San Diego, for being the only SERE facility to still use waterboarding in its training program. |
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03/09/2010 - On 9 March, the IRCT and WMA jointly hosted the side event Exploring Sustainable Systems to Document Torture � The Role of Health Professionals at the 13th session of the UN Human Rights Council. Moderated by UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Manfred Nowak, the event was attended by some 50 representatives from governments, NGOs, the academic community, UN agencies and health professional organizations. |
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03/03/2010 - Letters to the Editor regarding: Torture Lawyers, AND Doctors Without Morals
One survivor from Uganda tells his story and asks supporters to join our online anti-torture community through Facebook. |
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03/01/2010 - Last week, the American Psychological Association (APA) finally revised its ethics code so that it no longer contained the so-called Nuremberg Defense, allowing dispensing with professional ethics when they conflicted with law, regulations, other governing legal authority. This clause was added in 2002, at the heyday of the Bush administration. APA dissidents, retired military personnel, ethicists,and human rights advocates have long pushed for its removal. |
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03/01/2010 - After five years of investigation, the Justice Department has released its findings regarding the government lawyers who authorized waterboarding and other forms of torture during the interrogation of suspected terrorists at Guantanamo Bay and elsewhere... In contrast, the government doctors and psychologists who participated in and authorized the torture of detainees have escaped discipline, accountability or even internal investigation... |
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02/24/2010 - Is this really the state of ethics in the American legal profession? Government lawyers who abused their offices to give the president license to get away with torture did nothing that merits a review by the bar? |
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December 16, 2009 - WASHINGTON - The Obama administration said Wednesday it will stop detaining asylum seekers who have a credible fear of persecution in their home countries. To be released into the U.S., the asylum seekers will have to establish the credible fear and their identities and show they are not dangerous or a flight risk, said John Morton, Department of Human Services assistant secretary overseeing Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
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November 19, 2008 - Senate Joint Resolution 19, resolution to stop California doctors and nurses from participating in torture passes through the Assembly.
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April 7, 2009 - Medical officers who oversaw interrogations of terrorism suspects in CIA secret prisons committed gross violations of medical ethics and in some cases essentially participated in torture, the International Committee of the Red Cross concluded in a confidential report that labeled the CIA program "inhuman." |
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