October 31, 2005 Source: University of Alberta:
http://www.expressnews.ualberta.ca/newsreleases.cfm?id=7066 Amnesty International leader to shed light on people in dark corners October 31, 2005 - The first woman, the first Asian and the first Muslim to lead the world's largest human rights organization, Irene Khan, secretary general of Amnesty International, will deliver the University of Alberta Visiting Lectureship in Human Rights on Wednesday October 26, 2005 at 7:30 p.m. in the U of A Myer Horowitz Theatre. Always keen to draw attention to hidden human rights violations wherever they occur, Khan has dedicated her life to working directly with people to improve their lives. After more than twenty years of working in the field of international law and human rights, Khan was named the seventh secretary general of Amnesty International in 2001, its 40th anniversary. "As advocates for justice, equality and human dignity, Amnesty International is an important and vital organization for all the world's citizens, and I look forward to hearing the wisdom that Irene Khan will share with us," said U of A Provost and Vice President (Academic) Dr. Carl Amrhein. Independent of any government, political ideology, economic interest or religion, Amnesty International is a worldwide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognized human rights. Amnesty International's mission is to undertake research and action to prevent abuses of the rights to physical and mental integrity, freedom of conscience and expression, and freedom from discrimination. In her first year in office, Khan reformed Amnesty International's response to crisis situations, personally leading high level missions to Pakistan during the bombing of Afghanistan. Deeply concerned about violence against women, Khan has initiated a process of consultations with women activists to design a global campaign against violence on women. She is an outspoken critic of terrorist activities and also condemns the rights abuses perpetrated by those purportedly working to prevent terrorism. Khan believes in the power of individuals coming together to create change for a better world. Khan will be the eighth speaker in the annual U of A Visiting Lectureship in Human Rights. Established in 1998, the lectureship has brought many leading human rights advocates to campus, including Archbishop Desmond Tutu and 2003 Nobel Peace Prize recipient Shirin Ebadi. Tickets for the lecture are $10 and available through Ticketmaster. Sign language interpreting and real-time captioning services will be provided. For more information visit http://www.ualberta.ca/~lecture/ or contact: Ryan Smith Public Affairs, University of Alberta (780) 492-0436 or ryan.smith@ualberta.ca File No: 33 October 26, 2005
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