You saved my life

I joined Amnesty 30 years ago because I was outraged at the abuses committed under the government of Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines. Years later, I met a man who had been imprisoned during that time. He said, "You helped me get out of prison."

That’s powerful. Please read Rebiya's story below and be a champion for human rights by supporting Amnesty.

In solidarity,
Eric Michelsen
Proud Amnesty supporter

	You saved my life Dear Tracy, The last time I heard my son's voice was over the phone. He was screaming as Chinese police beat him and dragged him away in a car. That was eight years ago. I haven't seen my son, Ablikim Abdiriyim, or spoken to him again since that day. My name is Rebiya Kadeer. Nine years ago, Amnesty International supporters like you helped free me when I had been thrown into prison in China. Now, I must turn to you again. Will you help my son? Support Amnesty's work and help them campaign for his release. Make your first donation to Amnesty today. As part of the September Membership Drive, your donation will be matched dollar for dollar through September 30 up to $300,000. Four months ago, I received news from a man who had been held in the same cell as Ablikim. He told me that my son was beaten so badly that he bled from his nose and from his ears. With your help, Amnesty will fight for his release and insist he gets the medical treatment he so urgently needs. My son was managing my business with his siblings after I was imprisoned in 1999. Ablikim witnessed my struggle in prison and the discrimination and harassment that we and other Uighurs - an ethnic minority in China - experienced. He and his siblings were detained in 2006, in an apparent attempt to prevent them from meeting with a United States Congressional delegation. Like me, Ablikim defended the rights of Uighurs. And like me, the Chinese authorities have thrown him in jail. In August 1999, the police accused me of leaking national security information. They interrogated me for two days and threw me into prison. I was in solitary confinement in a dark, feces-filled room for two years. They took me outside once every 45 days. I was not able to speak to another person. Every time I think of my experience, I feel sick inside knowing my son's fate is in the hands of these jailors. He was put on trial and found guilty of trying to turn the public against the government. The court asserted that Ablikim asked the Uighur-language webmaster of Yahoo.com to publish two articles but there is no Uighur-language Yahoo site. Please join Amnesty and help them campaign on behalf of people like my son. I am living proof that Amnesty International saves lives. Because of Amnesty's efforts, the Chinese government freed me. I'm now exiled in the United States, but I must still fight on behalf of my family and my people. Join me. Thank you for your commitment to human rights. Kop rakhmat. Thank you. Sincerely, Rebiya Kadeer Former Prisoner of Conscience P.S. Be part of Amnesty's Annual Membership Drive and your donation will go twice as far to help protect human rights defenders like my son and me.