The Committee of Concerned Scientists has created a petition for the release of Drs. Haberal and Hilmioglu from prison in Turkey. Click here to sign the petition. Help us reach our goal of 1,000 signatures. ... Continue Reading>>
Our Work
Chinese Dissident Released from Prison
Hu Jia, a prominent Chinese dissident whose activism on behalf of the environment and AIDS sufferers landed him in prison for the last three and a half years, was released in the pre-dawn hours Sunday, June 18, and returned to his home in Beijing. CCS has been advocating for his release, supporting his family''s request for medical parole, in view of Hu Jia's serious liver ailment. ... Continue Reading>>
Professor Released from Iranian Prison
CCS also welcomed the release of Professor Emadeddin Baghi, who was released after serving two concurrent one-year jail sentences for "propaganda against the state”. One related to his founding of the Association to Defend Prisoners' Rights and the other to an interview broadcast by the BBC together with the late government critic Grand Ayatollah Hosseinali-Monatazeri. ... Continue Reading>>
Belarusian Professor sentenced to probation
Aleksandr Feduta, a EHU (European Humanities University) lecturer and journalist, was arrested with hundreds of other opposition activists, including 11 EHU students, in the aftermath of the contested Belarusian presidential election on 19 December 2010. ... Continue Reading>>
Acquitted Colombian professor to resume teaching
Miguel Ángel Beltrán Villegas, the Colombian professor who was arrested in Mexico in 2009 and acquitted on Friday of accusations of being a member of the FARC, announced Wednesday he will resume teaching. A city judge decided Friday that Beltrán would be allowed to go free, "given the inconsistencies (of the evidence)," ... Continue Reading>>
Scholar Imprisoned in Belarus
CCS wrote a letter to the President of Belarus, protesting the imprisonment of Alyaksandr Fyaduta, a scholar and journalist. Read the letter: ... Continue Reading>>
CCS Requests a Fair Trial for Colombian Sociology Professor
Dr. Miguel Angel Beltran Villegas, an Associate Professor of Sociology at the Universidad National de Colombia, was arrested in May 2009 on terrorism charges. Academic colleagues in Colombia and abroad believe that Dr. Villegas is a serious researcher of politics and social conflict in Colombia and that the allegations are being made in retaliation for his criticism of the government. They also ... Continue Reading>>
Health Professionals in Bahrain: Arrested and Disappeared
CCS wrote to the Prime Minister of Bahrain to protest the treatment of health professionals in Bahrain. Following their ethical duty to treat protesters, nurses and doctors have been arrested and disappeared. ... Continue Reading>>
French-Algerian Physicist in Preventive Detention in France Since 2009
Adlène Hicheur, a high-energy physicist who has worked on the world’s largest particle collider, has been held in a French prison under suspicion of terrorism for more than a year. CCS wrote a letter to French President Nicolas Sarkozy, urging him to investigate the circumstances of Dr. Hicheur’s detention. ... Continue Reading>>
Good News for Dr. Binayak Sen
The Supreme Court of India granted bail in April, 2011 to Dr. Binayak Sen, observing that no case of sedition was made out against the human rights activist, who was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment by a trial court in Chhattisgarh State. CCS had advocated on behalf of Dr. Sen, who had set up clinics for impoverished and minority people in his province. ... Continue Reading>>