Bloggers Unite for Human Rights

BlogCatalog.com is partnering with Amnesty International to promote a global campaign to increase awareness of human rights violations throughout the world.

On 15 May, BlogCatalog.com and Amnesty International are asking bloggers to choose any topic with regard to human rights, whether its censorship of information on the Internet, imprisonment of bloggers, or some other topic that deserves more awareness, and post at least one blog post to raise awareness of that issue. The effort is called Bloggers Unite for Human Rights.

There are bloggers who have already received international recognition, such as Cuban blogger Yoani Sanchez, who recently won a digital journalism prize from Spain's newspaper El Pais, for "her 'shrewdness' in overcoming hurdles to freedom of expression in Cuba, her 'vivacious' style and her drive to join the 'global space of citizen journalism.'"

There are just as many countries, however, that still don't understand how social media works or what it can be used from. Last year at this time, Malaysia wanted all bloggers to register so that they could track them. They've since done a complete 180, and are requiring many of their political candidates to have blogs whether they want them or not, most likely because they saw the traction that the opposition party was getting with their blogs.

And there are still countries, like Egypt and Vietnam, where bloggers and internet activists are arrested on a regular basis. Here in the United States, we thought nothing of Scott Beale chronicling the protests as the Olympic torch made its way through San Francisco, but in many countries, not only would the protesters have been arrested, but also anyone attempting to report on the events.

It's not much to ask to post one post on the 15th to raise awareness, especially when it comes to freedom of information, something most of us bloggers take for granted, is it?