Here we have compiled all of our videos from along the way (from the beginning of our trip to the most recent) - for full descriptions and posts please see the "Home Page" and scroll through to the beginning...
"At Her Majesty's Pleasure: Mr. Leung and The Queen's 23"
In 1996 Mr. Leung Yiu Chung, a legislative councilor in Hong Kong, received a letter from 23 prisoners serving indefinite sentences for crimes committed in their youth. These sentences, known as "at Her Majesty's pleasure" are the equivalent of life without parole sentences - these youth had no opportunity for release except for a very rarely granted pardon from the Queen. After organizing the families of those serving and gathering the support of over 2000 people in Hong Kong, legislation was introduced and passed which allowed all of these young people an opportunity to earn their release.
What struck us about this story are the similarities to the battle currently being fought in Louisiana. In 2006, a young man incarcerated for 40 years in a Louisiana prison wrote a piece of legislation to end life without parole sentencing for youth. He sent this legislation to his mother and his mother passed it along to one of her sorority sisters - who also happened to be a State Representative. Although 5 years later the legislation has yet to pass, during this time over 300 family members and friends of the youth incarcerated for life in Louisiana have organized and educated themselves about how to effectively advocate for their loved ones. They have built a coalition of dozens of organizations and are now a part of a national coalition of over a dozens states and hundreds of friends and family members of the incarcerated from across the country dedicated to ending this inhumane practice.
Forced Labor Migration and Human Trafficking In Asia
It is estimated that 800,000 people are trafficked annually – nearly 20,000 of them into the United States alone. This film features three organizations fighting to protect the economically disadvantaged and battle the root causes of these human rights abuses in Asia.
"Help, I Don't Want to Die - Please Don't Kill Me":
Capital Punishment in Asia
Huge strides to end the death penalty have been occurring across Asia over the last several years. South Korea has been execution free for 10 years. On January 1, 2011 Russia's Constitutional Court ordered a stop to all executions. Most recently, on January 5 of this year, after the President of Mongolia declared a moratorium on executions in 2010, the Mongolian Parliament ratified the second optional provision of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. This protocol instructs the ratifying country to cease all executions and take the necessary steps to fully abolish the death penalty. Although the world is moving away from the death penalty, it is estimated that China performed over 5000 executions in 2009. As in the United States, the vast majority of people facing execution in Asia are poor and cannot afford proper legal representation. This film discusses state sanctioned violence and the movement away from this human rights abuse.
The Land of Big Sky:
Life in the Ger District of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
Lessons from a Developing Democracy:
Policing, Protest, Prisons and Public Libraries
Following Mongolia’s break from the Soviet Union in 1990, the country transitioned to a free market democracy. Within a year of this transition the country’s parliament signed and ratified numerous human rights treaties including the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). These treaties and others laid the foundation for the drafting of their national constitution in 1992. Among Mongolia’s other unique qualities is its constitution – the preamble of which explicitly names human rights as one of the government’s top priorities: “We, the people of Mongolia…cherishing human rights and freedoms…hereby proclaim the constitution of Mongolia…” From there, three articles specifically enumerate human rights' protections related to various treaties to which the country has committed itself. To date, Mongolia has ratified 29 international human rights treaties. The United States of America, by comparison, has ratified only six. A Human Rights Commission that operates independently from the government and is in full compliance with United Nations' standards monitors the implementation of these treaties. This commission annually holds a “human rights open day” to promote implementation standards, raise awareness about human rights, train public officials and receive complaints from citizens.
Although Mongolia has laid a foundation for the development of a truly free and functioning democracy, the country is certainly not without its problems – however, where Mongolia has succeeded and continues to progress are equally as important. As the films below reveal human rights issues realted to freedom of assembly (Article 20 UDHR), the United Nation's Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), and freedom of information (Article 19 UDHR) are being widely discussed within Mongolia as it continues its transformation.
Policing in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
Protest in Mongolia
Prisons in Mongolia
Public Libraries in Mongolia
Russia in Winter: From Siberia to The Arctic Circle
We compiled a short film about our journey from Siberia to the Arctic Circle! Special thanks to "Queen" for making it rock...
