Amnesty International

Amnesty International
Motto It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.[1]
Founded July 1961 (1961-07)
United Kingdom
Founder Peter Benenson
Type Non-profit
INGO
Headquarters London, England, U.K.
Location
  • Global
Services Protecting human rights
Fields Legal advocacy, Media attention, direct-appeal campaigns, research, lobbying
Members
More than 7 million members and supporters[2]
Salil Shetty
Website www.amnesty.org

Amnesty International (commonly known as Amnesty and AI) is a non-governmental organisation focused on human rights with over 7 million members and supporters around the world. The stated objective of the organisation is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."[3]

Amnesty International was founded in London in 1961, following the publication of the article "The Forgotten Prisoners" in The Observer on 28 May 1961,[4] by the lawyer Peter Benenson. Amnesty draws attention to human rights abuses and campaigns for compliance with international laws and standards. It works to mobilise public opinion to put pressure on governments that let abuse take place.[3] The organisation was awarded the 1977 Nobel Peace Prize for its "campaign against torture,"[5] and the United Nations Prize in the Field of Human Rights in 1978.[6]

In the field of international human rights organisations, Amnesty has the second longest history, after the International Federation for Human Rights and broadest name recognition, and is believed by many to set standards for the movement as a whole.[7]

History

1960s

Amnesty International was founded in London in July 1961 by English labour lawyer Peter Benenson.[8] According to his own account, he was travelling in the London Underground on 19 November 1960 when he read that two Portuguese students from Coimbra had been sentenced to seven years of imprisonment in Portugal for allegedly "having drunk a toast to liberty".[a][9] Researchers have never traced the alleged newspaper article in question.[a] In 1960, Portugal was ruled by the Estado Novo government of António de Oliveira Salazar.[10] The government was authoritarian in nature and strongly anti-communist, suppressing enemies of the state as anti-Portuguese. In his significant newspaper article "The Forgotten Prisoners", Benenson later described his reaction as follows:

"Open your newspaper any day of the week and you will find a story from somewhere of someone being imprisoned, tortured or executed because his opinions or religion are unacceptable to his government ... The newspaper reader feels a sickening sense of impotence. Yet if these feelings of disgust could be united into common action, something effective could be done."[4]

Benenson worked with friend Eric Baker. Baker was a member of the Religious Society of Friends who had been involved in funding the British Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament as well as becoming head of Quaker Peace and Social Witness, and in his memoirs Benenson described him as "a partner in the launching of the project".[11] In consultation with other writers, academics and lawyers and, in particular, Alec Digges, they wrote via Louis Blom-Cooper to David Astor, editor of The Observer newspaper, who, on 28 May 1961, published Benenson's article "The Forgotten Prisoners". The article brought the reader's attention to those "imprisoned, tortured or executed because his opinions or religion are unacceptable to his government"[4] or, put another way, to violations, by governments, of articles 18 and 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). The article described these violations occurring, on a global scale, in the context of restrictions to press freedom, to political oppositions, to timely public trial before impartial courts, and to asylum. It marked the launch of "Appeal for Amnesty, 1961", the aim of which was to mobilise public opinion, quickly and widely, in defence of these individuals, whom Benenson named "Prisoners of Conscience". The "Appeal for Amnesty" was reprinted by a large number of international newspapers. In the same year, Benenson had a book published, Persecution 1961, which detailed the cases of nine prisoners of conscience investigated and compiled by Benenson and Baker (Maurice Adin, Ashton Jones, Agostinho Neto, Patrick Duncan, Olga Ivinskaya, Luis Taruc, Constantin Noica, Antonio Amat and Hu Feng).[12] In July 1961 the leadership had decided that the appeal would form the basis of a permanent organisation, Amnesty, with the first meeting taking place in London. Benenson ensured that all three major political parties were represented, enlisting members of parliament from the Labour Party, the Conservative Party, and the Liberal Party.[13] On 30 September 1962, it was officially named "Amnesty International". Between the "Appeal for Amnesty, 1961" and September 1962 the organisation had been known simply as "Amnesty".[14]

What started as a short appeal soon became a permanent international movement working to protect those imprisoned for non-violent expression of their views and to secure worldwide recognition of Articles 18 and 19 of the UDHR. From the very beginning, research and campaigning were present in Amnesty International's work. A library was established for information about prisoners of conscience and a network of local groups, called "THREES" groups, was started. Each group worked on behalf of three prisoners, one from each of the then three main ideological regions of the world: communist, capitalist and developing.

By the mid-1960s Amnesty International's global presence was growing and an International Secretariat and International Executive Committee were established to manage Amnesty International's national organisations, called "Sections", which had appeared in several countries. The international movement was starting to agree on its core principles and techniques. For example, the issue of whether or not to adopt prisoners who had advocated violence, like Nelson Mandela, brought unanimous agreement that it could not give the name of "Prisoner of Conscience" to such prisoners. Aside from the work of the library and groups, Amnesty International's activities were expanding to helping prisoners' families, sending observers to trials, making representations to governments, and finding asylum or overseas employment for prisoners. Its activity and influence were also increasing within intergovernmental organisations; it would be awarded consultative status by the United Nations, the Council of Europe and UNESCO before the decade ended.

In 1967 Peter Benenson resigned after an independent inquiry did not support his claims that AI had been infiltrated by British agents.[15] Later he claimed that the Central Intelligence Agency had become involved in Amnesty.

1970s

Leading Amnesty International in the 1970s were key figures Seán MacBride and Martin Ennals. While continuing to work for prisoners of conscience, Amnesty International's purview widened to include "fair trial" and opposition to long detention without trial (UDHR Article 9), and especially to the torture of prisoners (UDHR Article 5). Amnesty International believed that the reasons underlying torture of prisoners by governments, were either to acquire and obtain information or to quell opposition by the use of terror, or both. Also of concern was the export of more sophisticated torture methods, equipment and teaching by the superpowers to "client states", for example by the United States through some activities of the CIA.

Amnesty International drew together reports from countries where torture allegations seemed most persistent and organised an international conference on torture. It sought to influence public opinion to put pressure on national governments by organising a campaign for the "Abolition of Torture" which ran for several years.

Amnesty International's membership increased from 15,000 in 1969[16] to 200,000 by 1979.[17] This growth in resources enabled an expansion of its program, "outside of the prison walls", to include work on "disappearances", the death penalty and the rights of refugees. A new technique, the "Urgent Action", aimed at mobilising the membership into action rapidly was pioneered. The first was issued on 19 March 1973, on behalf of Luiz Basilio Rossi, a Brazilian academic, arrested for political reasons.

At the intergovernmental level Amnesty International pressed for application of the UN's Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners and of existing humanitarian conventions; to secure ratifications of the two UN Covenants on Human Rights in 1976; and was instrumental in obtaining additional instruments and provisions forbidding its practice. Consultative status was granted at the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in 1972.

In 1976 Amnesty's British Section started a series of fund-raising events that came to be known as The Secret Policeman's Balls series. They were staged in London initially as comedy galas featuring what the Daily Telegraph called "the crème de la crème of the British comedy world"[18] including members of comedy troupe Monty Python, and later expanded to also include performances by leading rock musicians. The series was created and developed by Monty Python alumnus John Cleese and entertainment industry executive Martin Lewis working closely with Amnesty staff members Peter Luff (Assistant Director of Amnesty 1974–78) and subsequently with Peter Walker (Amnesty Fund-Raising Officer 1978–82). Cleese, Lewis and Luff worked together on the first two shows (1976 and 1977). Cleese, Lewis and Walker worked together on the 1979 and 1981 shows, the first to carry what the Daily Telegraph described as the "rather brilliantly re-christened" Secret Policeman's Ball title.[18]

The organisation was awarded the 1977 Nobel Peace Prize for its "campaign against torture"[5] and the United Nations Prize in the Field of Human Rights in 1978.[6]

1980s

1986 Faroe postage stamp celebrating Amnesty's 25th anniversary – Painting by 11-year-old Rannvá Kunoy

By 1980 Amnesty International was drawing more criticism from governments. The USSR alleged that Amnesty International conducted espionage, the Moroccan government denounced it as a defender of lawbreakers, and the Argentinian government banned Amnesty International's 1983 annual report.[19]

Throughout the 1980s, Amnesty International continued to campaign against torture, and on behalf of prisoners of conscience. New issues emerged, including extrajudicial killings, military, security and police transfers, political killings, and disappearances.

Towards the end of the decade, the growing number of refugees worldwide was a very visible area of Amnesty International's concern. While many of the world's refugees of the time had been displaced by war and famine, in adherence to its mandate, Amnesty International concentrated on those forced to flee because of the human rights violations it was seeking to prevent. It argued that rather than focusing on new restrictions on entry for asylum-seekers, governments were to address the human rights violations which were forcing people into exile.

Apart from a second campaign on torture during the first half of the decade, two major musical events occurred, designed to increase awareness of Amnesty and of human rights (particularly among younger generations) during the mid- to late-1980s. The 1986 Conspiracy of Hope tour, which played five concerts in the US, and culminated in a daylong show, featuring some thirty-odd acts at Giants Stadium, and the 1988 Human Rights Now! world tour. Human Rights Now!, which was timed to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), played a series of concerts on five continents over six weeks. Both tours featured some of the most famous musicians and bands of the day.

1990s

Throughout the 1990s, Amnesty International continued to grow, to a membership of over 7 million in over 150 countries and territories,[2] led by Senegalese Secretary General Pierre Sané. Amnesty continued to work on a wide range of issues and world events. For example, South African groups joined in 1992 and hosted a visit by Pierre Sané to meet with the apartheid government to press for an investigation into allegations of police abuse, an end to arms sales to the African Great Lakes region and the abolition of the death penalty. In particular, Amnesty International brought attention to violations committed on specific groups, including refugees, racial/ethnic/religious minorities, women and those executed or on Death Row. The death penalty report When the State Kills[20] and the "Human Rights are Women's Rights" campaign were key actions for the latter two issues.

During the 1990s, Amnesty International was forced to react to human rights violations occurring in the context of a proliferation of armed conflict in Angola, East Timor, the Persian Gulf, Rwanda, and the former Yugoslavia. Amnesty International took no position on whether to support or oppose external military interventions in these armed conflicts. It did not reject the use of force, even lethal force, or ask those engaged to lay down their arms. Instead, it questioned the motives behind external intervention and selectivity of international action in relation to the strategic interests of those who sent troops. It argued that action should be taken to prevent human-rights problems from becoming human-rights catastrophes, and that both intervention and inaction represented a failure of the international community.

In 1995, when AI wanted to promote how Shell Oil Company was involved with the execution of an environmental and human-rights activist Ken Saro-Wiwa in Nigeria, it was stopped. Newspapers and advertising companies refused to run AI's ads because Shell Oil was a customer of theirs as well. Shell's main argument was that it was drilling oil in a country that already violated human rights and had no way to enforce human-rights policies. To combat the buzz that AI was trying to create, it immediately publicised how Shell was helping to improve overall life in Nigeria. Salil Shetty, the director of Amnesty, said, "Social media re-energises the idea of the global citizen".[13] James M. Russell notes how the drive for profit from private media sources conflicts with the stories that AI wants to be heard.[21]

Amnesty International was proactive in pushing for recognition of the universality of human rights. The campaign 'Get Up, Sign Up' marked 50 years of the UDHR. Thirteen million pledges were collected in support, and the Decl music concert was held in Paris on 10 December 1998 (Human Rights Day). At the intergovernmental level, Amnesty International argued in favour of creating a United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (established 1993) and an International Criminal Court (established 2002).

After his arrest in London in 1998 by the Metropolitan Police, Amnesty International became involved in the legal battle of Senator Augusto Pinochet, former Chilean dictator, who sought to avoid extradition to Spain to face charges. Lord Hoffman had an indirect connection with Amnesty International, and this led to an important test for the appearance of bias in legal proceedings in UK law. There was a suit[22] against the decision to release Senator Pinochet, taken by the then British Home Secretary Mr Jack Straw, before that decision had actually been taken, in an attempt to prevent the release of Senator Pinochet. The English High Court refused[23] the application, and Senator Pinochet was released and returned to Chile.

2000s

After 2000, Amnesty International's agenda turned to the challenges arising from globalisation and the reaction to the 11 September 2001 attacks in the United States. The issue of globalisation provoked a major shift in Amnesty International policy, as the scope of its work was widened to include economic, social and cultural rights, an area that it had declined to work on in the past. Amnesty International felt this shift was important, not just to give credence to its principle of the indivisibility of rights, but because of what it saw as the growing power of companies and the undermining of many nation states as a result of globalisation.[24]

In the aftermath of 11 September attacks, the new Amnesty International Secretary General, Irene Khan, reported that a senior government official had said to Amnesty International delegates: "Your role collapsed with the collapse of the Twin Towers in New York".[25] In the years following the attacks, some believe that the gains made by human rights organisations over previous decades had possibly been eroded.[26] Amnesty International argued that human rights were the basis for the security of all, not a barrier to it. Criticism came directly from the Bush administration and The Washington Post, when Khan, in 2005, likened the US government's detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to a Soviet Gulag.[27][28]

During the first half of the new decade, Amnesty International turned its attention to violence against women, controls on the world arms trade, concerns surrounding the effectiveness of the UN, and ending torture.[29] With its membership close to two million by 2005,[30] Amnesty continued to work for prisoners of conscience.

In 2007, AI's executive committee decided to support access to abortion "within reasonable gestational limits...for women in cases of rape, incest or violence, or where the pregnancy jeopardizes a mother's life or health".[31][32]

Amnesty International reported, concerning the Iraq War, on 17 March 2008, that despite claims the security situation in Iraq has improved in recent months, the human rights situation is disastrous, after the start of the war five years earlier in 2003.[33]

In 2009 Amnesty International accused Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement of committing war crimes during Israel's January offensive in Gaza, called Operation Cast Lead, that resulted in the deaths of more than 1,400 Palestinians and 13 Israelis.[34] The 117-page Amnesty report charged Israeli forces with killing hundreds of civilians and wanton destruction of thousands of homes. Amnesty found evidence of Israeli soldiers using Palestinian civilians as human shields. A subsequent United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict was carried out; Amnesty stated that its findings were consistent with those of Amnesty's own field investigation, and called on the UN to act promptly to implement the mission's recommendations.[35][36]

2010s

Stockholm Pride 2015 Parade

In February 2010, Amnesty suspended Gita Sahgal, its gender unit head, after she criticised Amnesty for its links with Moazzam Begg, director of Cageprisoners. She said it was "a gross error of judgment" to work with "Britain's most famous supporter of the Taliban".[37][38][39] Amnesty responded that Sahgal was not suspended "for raising these issues internally... [Begg] speaks about his own views ..., not Amnesty International's."[40] Among those who spoke up for Saghal were Salman Rushdie ("Amnesty ... has done its reputation incalculable damage.... It looks very much as if Amnesty's leadership is suffering from a kind of moral bankruptcy, and has lost the ability to distinguish right from wrong"[41]), Member of Parliament Denis MacShane, Joan Smith, Christopher Hitchens, Martin Bright, Melanie Phillips, and Nick Cohen.[42][43][39][44][45][46][47]

In February 2011, Amnesty requested that Swiss authorities start a criminal investigation of former US President George W. Bush and arrest him.[48]

In July 2011, Amnesty International celebrated its 50 years with an animated short film directed by Carlos Lascano, produced by Eallin Motion Art and Dreamlife Studio, with music by Academy Award-winner Hans Zimmer and nominee Lorne Balfe. The film shows that the fight for humanity is not yet over.[49]

In August 2012, Amnesty International's chief executive in India sought an impartial investigation, led by the United Nations, to render justice to those affected by war crimes in Sri Lanka.[50]

On 18 August 2014, in the wake of demonstrations sparked by people protesting the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed 18-year-old man, and subsequent acquittal of Darren Wilson, the officer who shot him, Amnesty International sent a 13-person contingent of human rights activists to seek meetings with officials as well as to train local activists in non-violent protest methods.[51] This was the first time that the organization has deployed such a team to the United States.[52][53][54] In a press release, AI USA director Steven W. Hawkins said, "The U.S. cannot continue to allow those obligated and duty-bound to protect to become those who their community fears most."[55]

In June 2016, Amnesty International has called on the United Nations General Assembly to "immediately suspend" Saudi Arabia from the UN Human Rights Council."[56][57] Richard Bennett, head of Amnesty’s U.N. Office, said: "The credibility of the U.N. Human Rights Council is at stake. Since joining the council, Saudi Arabia’s dire human rights record at home has continued to deteriorate and the coalition it leads has unlawfully killed and injured thousands of civilians in the conflict in Yemen."[58]

Structure

Amnesty International Sections, 2012
The Amnesty Canadian headquarters in Ottawa.

Amnesty International is largely made up of voluntary members, but retains a small number of paid professionals. In countries in which Amnesty International has a strong presence, members are organised as "sections". Sections co-ordinate basic Amnesty International activities normally with a significant number of members, some of whom will form into "groups", and a professional staff. Each have a board of directors. In 2005 there were 52 sections worldwide. "Structures" are aspiring sections. They also co-ordinate basic activities but have a smaller membership and a limited staff. In countries where no section or structure exists, people can become "international members". Two other organisational models exist: "international networks", which promote specific themes or have a specific identity, and "affiliated groups", which do the same work as section groups, but in isolation.[59]

The organisations outlined above are represented by the International Council (IC) which is led by the IC Chairperson. Members of sections and structures have the right to appoint one or more representatives to the Council according to the size of their membership. The IC may invite representatives from International Networks and other individuals to meetings, but only representatives from sections and structures have voting rights. The function of the IC is to appoint and hold accountable internal governing bodies and to determine the direction of the movement. The IC convenes every two years.

The International Board (formerly known as the International Executive Committee [IEC]), led by the International Board Chairperson, consists of eight members and the International Treasurer. It is elected by, and accountable to, the IC, and meets at least two times during any one year and in practice meets at least four times a year. The role of the International Board is to take decisions on behalf of Amnesty International, implement the strategy laid out by the IC, and ensure compliance with the organisation's statutes.

The International Secretariat (IS) is responsible for the conduct and daily affairs of Amnesty International under direction from the International Board.[60] It is run by approximately 500 professional staff members and is headed by a Secretary General. The Secretariat operates several work programmes; International Law and Organisations; Research; Campaigns; Mobilisation; and Communications. Its offices have been located in London since its establishment in the mid-1960s.

Secretary General Office Origin
United Kingdom Peter Benenson 1961–66 Britain
United Kingdom Eric Baker 1966–68 Britain
United Kingdom Martin Ennals 1968–80 Britain
Sweden Thomas Hammarberg 1980–86 Sweden
United Kingdom Ian Martin 1986–92 Britain
Senegal Pierre Sané 1992–2001 Senegal
Bangladesh Irene Khan 2001–10 Bangladesh
India Salil Shetty 2010 – present India

Artists For Amnesty

Amnesty International, through its "Artists For Amnesty" programme has also endorsed various cultural media works for what its leadership often consider accurate or educational treatments of real-world topics that fall within the range of Amnesty's concern:

Charitable status

In the UK Amnesty International has two principal arms, Amnesty International UK and Amnesty International Charity Ltd. Both are UK-based organisations but only the latter is a charity.[62]

Principles

The core principle of Amnesty International is a focus on prisoners of conscience, those persons imprisoned or prevented from expressing any opinion other than violence. Along with this commitment to opposing repression of freedom of expression, Amnesty International's founding principles included non-intervention on political questions and a robust commitment to gathering facts about the various cases.[63]

One key issue in the principles is in regards to those individuals who may advocate or tacitly support resorting to violence in struggles against repression. AI does not judge whether recourse to violence is justified or not. However, AI does not oppose the political use of violence in itself since The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in its preamble, foresees situations in which people could "be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression". If a prisoner is serving a sentence imposed, after a fair trial, for activities involving violence, AI will not ask the government to release the prisoner.

AI neither supports nor condemns the resort to violence by political opposition groups in itself, just as AI neither supports nor condemns a government policy of using military force in fighting against armed opposition movements. However, AI supports minimum humane standards that should be respected by governments and armed opposition groups alike. When an opposition group tortures or kills its captives, takes hostages, or commits deliberate and arbitrary killings, AI condemns these abuses.[64]

Amnesty International opposes capital punishment in all cases, regardless of the crime committed, the circumstances surrounding the individual or the method of execution.[65]

Objectives

“ Amnesty International's vision is of a world in which every person enjoys all of the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights standards.

In pursuit of this vision, Amnesty International's mission is to undertake research and action focused on preventing and ending grave abuses of the rights to physical and mental integrity, freedom of conscience and expression, and freedom from discrimination, within the context of its work to promote all human rights.

 ”
— Statute of Amnesty International, 27th International Council meeting, 2005

Amnesty International primarily targets governments, but also reports on non-governmental bodies and private individuals ("non-state actors").

There are six key areas which Amnesty deals with:

Some specific aims are to: abolish the death penalty, end extra judicial executions and "disappearances," ensure prison conditions meet international human rights standards, ensure prompt and fair trial for all political prisoners, ensure free education to all children worldwide, decriminalise abortion,[66] fight impunity from systems of justice, end the recruitment and use of child soldiers, free all prisoners of conscience, promote economic, social and cultural rights for marginalised communities, protect human rights defenders, promote religious tolerance, protect LGBT rights,[67] stop torture and ill-treatment, stop unlawful killings in armed conflict, uphold the rights of refugees, migrants, and asylum seekers, and protect human dignity.

Amnesty International at the 2009 Marcha Gay in Mexico City, 20 June 2009

To further these aims, Amnesty International has developed several techniques to publicise information and mobilise public opinion. The organisation considers as one of its strengths the publication of impartial and accurate reports. Reports are researched by: interviewing victims and officials, observing trials, working with local human rights activists, and monitoring the media. It aims to issue timely press releases and publishes information in newsletters and on web sites. It also sends official missions to countries to make courteous but insistent inquiries.

Campaigns to mobilise public opinion can take the form of individual, country, or thematic campaigns. Many techniques are deployed, such as direct appeals (for example, letter writing), media and publicity work, and public demonstrations. Often, fund-raising is integrated with campaigning.

In situations which require immediate attention, Amnesty International calls on existing urgent action networks or crisis response networks; for all other matters, it calls on its membership. It considers the large size of its human resources to be another of its key strengths.

The role of Amnesty International has an immense impact on getting citizens onboard(sic) with focusing on human rights issues. These groups influence countries and governments to give their people justice with pressure and in manpower. An example of Amnesty International's work, which began in the 1960s, is writing letters to free imprisoned people that were put there for non-violent expressions. The group now has power, attends sessions, and became a source of information for the U.N. The increase in participation of non-governmental organisations changes how we live today. Felix Dodds states in a recent document: "In 1972 there were 39 democratic countries in the world; by 2002, there were 139." This shows that non-governmental organisations make enormous leaps within a short period of time for human rights.

Country focus

Protesting Israel's policy against African refugees, Tel Aviv, 9 December 2011

Amnesty reports disproportionately on relatively more democratic and open countries,[68] arguing that its intention is not to produce a range of reports which statistically represents the world's human rights abuses, but rather to apply the pressure of public opinion to encourage improvements. The demonstration effect of the behaviour of both key Western governments and major non-Western states is an important factor: as one former Amnesty Secretary-General pointed out, "for many countries and a large number of people, the United States is a model," and according to one Amnesty manager, "large countries influence small countries."[7] In addition, with the end of the Cold War, Amnesty felt that a greater emphasis on human rights in the North was needed to improve its credibility with its Southern critics by demonstrating its willingness to report on human rights issues in a truly global manner.[7]

According to one academic study, as a result of these considerations the frequency of Amnesty's reports is influenced by a number of factors, besides the frequency and severity of human rights abuses. For example, Amnesty reports significantly more (than predicted by human rights abuses) on more economically powerful states; and on countries which receive US military aid, on the basis that this Western complicity in abuses increases the likelihood of public pressure being able to make a difference.[7] In addition, around 1993–94, Amnesty consciously developed its media relations, producing fewer background reports and more press releases, to increase the impact of its reports. Press releases are partly driven by news coverage, to use existing news coverage as leverage to discuss Amnesty's human rights concerns. This increases Amnesty's focus on the countries the media is more interested in.[7]

In 2012, Kristyan Benedict, Amnesty UK's campaign manager, listed several countries as "regimes who abuse peoples' basic universal rights": Burma, Iran, Israel, North Korea and Sudan.[69]

Amnesty's country focus is similar to that of some other comparable NGOs, notably Human Rights Watch: between 1991 and 2000, Amnesty and HRW shared eight of ten countries in their "top ten" (by Amnesty press releases; 7 for Amnesty reports).[7] In addition, six of the 10 countries most reported on by Human Rights Watch in the 1990s also made The Economist's and Newsweek's "most covered" lists during that time.[7]

Funding

Amnesty International is financed largely by fees and donations from its worldwide membership. It says that it does not accept donations from governments or governmental organisations. According to the AI website, "these personal and unaffiliated donations allow AI to maintain full independence from any and all governments, political ideologies, economic interests or religions. We neither seek nor accept any funds for human rights research from governments or political parties and we accept support only from businesses that have been carefully vetted. By way of ethical fundraising leading to donations from individuals, we are able to stand firm and unwavering in our defence of universal and indivisible human rights."[70]

However, AI did receive grants from the UK Department for International Development,[71] the European Commission,[72] the United States State Department.[73][74] and other governments[75][76]

AI(USA) was also funded by the Rockefeller Foundation.[77]

Criticism

Criticism of Amnesty International includes claims of excessive pay for management, underprotection of overseas staff, associating with organisations with a dubious record on human rights protection, selection bias, ideological/foreign policy bias against either non-Western countries[78] or Western-supported countries, and criticism of Amnesty's policies relating to abortion.[79][80]

Governments and their supporters have criticised Amnesty's criticism of their policies, including those of Australia,[81] Canada,[82] Czech Republic,[83] China,[84] Democratic Republic of the Congo,[85] India, Iran, Israel,[86] Qatar,[87] Saudi Arabia,[88] Vietnam,[89] Russia[90] and the United States,[91] for what they assert is one-sided reporting or a failure to treat threats to security as a mitigating factor. The actions of these governments — and of other governments critical of Amnesty International — have been the subject of human rights concerns voiced by Amnesty.

Pay controversy

In February 2011, newspaper stories in the UK revealed that Irene Khan had received a payment of UK£533,103 from Amnesty International following her resignation from the organisation on 31 December 2009,[92] a fact pointed to from Amnesty's records for the 2009–2010 financial year. The sum paid to her was in excess of four times her annual salary of £132,490.[92] The deputy secretary general, Kate Gilmore – who also resigned in December 2009 – received an ex-gratia payment of £320,000.[92][93] Peter Pack, the chairman of Amnesty's International Executive Committee (IEC), initially stated on 19 February 2011: "The payments to outgoing secretary general Irene Khan shown in the accounts of AI (Amnesty International) Ltd for the year ending 31 March 2010 include payments made as part of a confidential agreement between AI Ltd and Irene Khan"[93] and that "It is a term of this agreement that no further comment on it will be made by either party."[92]

The payment and AI's initial response to its leakage to the press led to considerable outcry. Philip Davies, the Conservative MP for Shipley, decried the payment, telling the Daily Express: "I am sure people making donations to Amnesty, in the belief they are alleviating poverty, never dreamed they were subsidising a fat cat payout. This will disillusion many benefactors."[93] On 21 February Peter Pack issued a further statement, in which he said that the payment was a "unique situation" that was "in the best interest of Amnesty's work" and that there would be no repetition of it.[92] He stated that "the new secretary general, with the full support of the IEC, has initiated a process to review our employment policies and procedures to ensure that such a situation does not happen again."[92] Pack also stated that Amnesty was "fully committed to applying all the resources that we receive from our millions of supporters to the fight for human rights".[92] On 25 February, Pack issued a letter to Amnesty members and staff. In summary, it states that the IEC in 2008 had decided not to prolong Khan's contract for a third term. In the following months, IEC discovered that due to British employment law, it had to choose between the three options of either offering Khan a third term, discontinuing her post and, in their judgement, risking legal consequences, or signing a confidential agreement and issuing a pay compensation.[94]

Awards and honours

In 1984 Amnesty International received the Four Freedom award for the Freedom of Speech[95] In 1977, Amnesty International was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for "having contributed to securing the ground for freedom, for justice, and thereby also for peace in the world".

National sections

Country/Territory Local website
Amnesty International Algeria www.amnestyalgerie.org
Amnesty International Ghana www.amnestyghana.org
Amnesty International Argentina www.amnistia.org.ar
Amnesty International Australia www.amnesty.org.au
Amnesty International Austria www.amnesty.at
(Amnesty International Belgium)
Amnesty International Flanders
Amnesty International Francophone Belgium
www.aivl.be
www.amnestyinternational.be
Amnesty International Benin www.aibenin.org
Amnesty International Bermuda www.amnestybermuda.org
Amnesty International Brazil www.anistia.org.br
Amnesty International Burkina Faso www.amnestyburkina.org
Amnesty International Canada (English)
Amnistie internationale Canada (Francophone)		 www.amnesty.ca
www.amnistie.ca
Amnesty International Chile www.amnistia.cl
Amnesty International Czech Republic www.amnesty.cz
Amnesty International Denmark www.amnesty.dk
Amnesty International Faroe Islands www.amnesty.fo
Amnesty International Finland www.amnesty.fi
Amnesty International France www.amnesty.fr
Amnesty International Germany www.amnesty.de
Amnesty International Greece www.amnesty.org.gr
Amnesty International Hong Kong www.amnesty.org.hk
Amnesty International Hungary www.amnesty.hu
Amnesty International Iceland www.amnesty.is
Amnesty International India www.amnesty.org.in
Amnesty International Ireland www.amnesty.ie
Amnesty International Israel www.amnesty.org.il
Amnesty International Italy www.amnesty.it
Amnesty International Japan www.amnesty.or.jp
Amnesty International Jersey www.amnesty.org.je
Amnesty International Luxembourg www.amnesty.lu
Amnesty International Malaysia amnesty.my
Amnesty International Mauritius www.amnestymauritius.org
Amnesty International Mexico www.amnistia.org.mx
Amnesty International Moldova www.amnesty.md
Amnesty International Mongolia www.amnesty.mn
Amnesty International Morocco www.amnesty.ma
Amnesty International Nepal www.amnestynepal.org
Amnesty International Netherlands www.amnesty.nl
Amnesty International New Zealand www.amnesty.org.nz
Amnesty International Norway www.amnesty.no
Amnesty International Paraguay www.amnistia.org.py
Amnesty International Peru www.amnistia.org.pe
Amnesty International Philippines www.amnesty.org.ph
Amnesty International Poland www.amnesty.org.pl
Amnesty International Portugal www.amnistia.pt
Amnesty International Puerto Rico www.amnistiapr.org
Amnesty International Russia www.amnesty.org.ru
Amnesty International Senegal www.amnesty.sn
Amnesty International Slovak Republic www.amnesty.sk
Amnesty International Slovenia www.amnesty.si
Amnesty International South Africa www.amnesty.org.za
Amnesty International South Korea www.amnesty.or.kr
Amnesty International Spain www.es.amnesty.org
Amnesty International Sweden www.amnesty.se
Amnesty International Switzerland www.amnesty.ch
Amnesty International Taiwan www.amnesty.tw
Amnesty International Thailand www.amnesty.or.th
Amnesty International Togo www.amnesty.tg
Amnesty International Tunisia www.amnesty-tunisie.org/
Amnesty International Turkey www.amnesty.org.tr
Amnesty International UK www.amnesty.org.uk
Amnesty International Ukraine www.amnesty.org.ua
Amnesty International Uruguay www.amnistia.org.uy
Amnesty International USA www.amnestyusa.org
Amnesty International Venezuela www.amnistia.me

See also

Notes

a. ^ Anthropologist Linda Rabben refers to the origin of Amnesty as a "creation myth" with a "kernel of truth": "The immediate impetus to form Amnesty did come from Peter Benenson's righteous indignation while reading a newspaper in the London tube on 19 November 1960."[96] Historian Tom Buchanan traced the origins story to a radio broadcast by Peter Benenson in 1962. The 4 March 1962 BBC news story did not refer to a "toast to liberty", but Benenson said his tube ride was on 19 December 1960. Buchanan was unable to find the newspaper article about the Portuguese students in The Daily Telegraph for either month. Buchanan found many news stories reporting on the repressive Portuguese political arrests in The Times for November 1960.[97]

References

  1. ↑ "History – The Meaning of the Amnesty Candle". Amnesty International. Archived from the original on 18 June 2008. Retrieved 4 June 2008.
  2. 1 2 "Who we are". Amnesty International. Retrieved 16 March 2015.
  3. 1 2 "About Amnesty International". Amnesty International. Retrieved 20 July 2008.
  4. 1 2 3 Benenson, Peter, "The Forgotten Prisoners", The Observer, 28 May 1961. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  5. 1 2 "The Nobel Peace Prize 1977 - Presentation Speech".
  6. 1 2 "United Nations Prize in the field of Human Rights" (PDF).
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 James Ronand, Howard Ramos, Kathleen Rodgers (2005), "Transnational Information Politics: NGO Human Rights Reporting, 1986–2000" Archived 18 March 2009 at the Wayback Machine., International Studies Quarterly (2005) 49, 557–587.
  8. ↑ Childs, Peter; Storry, Mike, eds. (2002). "Amnesty International". Encyclopedia of Contemporary British Culture. London: Routledge. pp. 22–23.
  9. ↑ Elizabeth Keane (2006). An Irish Statesman and Revolutionary: The Nationalist and Internationalist Politics of Sean MacBride. I.B.Tauris. ISBN 978-1-84511-125-0.
  10. ↑ Douglas L. Wheeler, Walter C. Opello (2010). Historical Dictionary of Portugal. p.xxvi. Scarecrow Press, 2010
  11. ↑ Benenson, P. (1983). Memoir
  12. ↑ Buchanan, T. (2002). "The Truth Will Set You Free': The Making of Amnesty International". Journal of Contemporary History. 37 (4): 575–97. doi:10.1177/00220094020370040501. JSTOR 3180761.
  13. 1 2 Tracy McVeigh (29 May 2011). "Amnesty International marks 50 years of fighting for free speech". The Observer. London.
  14. ↑ Amnesty International Report 1962. Amnesty International. 1963.
  15. ↑ "Peter Benenson". moreorless. 11 March 2005.
  16. ↑ Amnesty International Report 1968-69. Amnesty International. 1969.
  17. ↑ Amnesty International Report 1979. Amnesty International. 1980.
  18. 1 2 Monahan, Mark (4 October 2008). "Hot ticket: The Secret Policeman's Ball at the Royal Albert Hall, London". The Daily Telegraph. UK.
  19. ↑ Amnesty International is accused of espionage Archived 25 March 2009 at the Wayback Machine.
  20. ↑ When the State Kills: The Death Penalty Vs. Human Rights, Amnesty International, 1989 (ISBN 978-0862101640).
  21. ↑ Russell, James M. (2002). "The Ambivalence about the Globalization of Telecommunications: The Story of Amnesty International, Shell Oil Company and Nigeria". Journal of Human Rights. 1.3: 405; 416. Retrieved 3 March 2013.
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  25. ↑ Amnesty International Report 2002. Amnesty International. 2003.
  26. ↑ Saunders, Joe (19 November 2001). "Revisiting Humanitarian Intervention: Post-September 11". Carnegie Council for Ethics in international Affairs. Carnegie Council workshop report 27 November 2001. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
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  29. ↑ "endtorture.org International Campaign against Torture" (PDF).
  30. ↑ Amnesty International Report 2005: the state of the world's human rights. Amnesty International. 2004. ISBN 978-1-887204-42-2.
  31. ↑ "Amnesty International Becomes a Pro-Choice Organization". Archive.newsmax.com. 21 August 2007. Retrieved 18 March 2010.
  32. ↑ "Women's Rights" (PDF). Amnesty International USA.
  33. ↑ "Reports: 'Disastrous' Iraqi humanitarian crisis". CNN. 17 March 2008. Archived from the original on 21 March 2008. Retrieved 17 March 2008.
  34. ↑ Koutsoukis, Jason (3 July 2009). "Israel used human shields: Amnesty". Melbourne: Fairfax Digital. Retrieved 3 July 2009.
  35. ↑ "UN must ensure Goldstone inquiry recommendations are implemented". Amnesty International. 15 September 2009.
  36. ↑ "Turkmenistan".
  37. ↑ "Amnesty chief suspended after attacking group's links to 'Britain's most famous Taliban supporter'". Daily Mail. London. 9 February 2010. Retrieved 18 March 2010.
  38. ↑ Bright, Martin (7 February 2010). "Gita Sahgal: A Statement". The Spectator. Retrieved 18 March 2010.
  39. 1 2 Smith, Joan, "Joan Smith: Amnesty shouldn't support men like Moazzam Begg; A prisoner of conscience can turn into an apologist for extremism", The Independent, 11 February 2010. Retrieved 17 February 2010.
  40. ↑ "Amnesty International on its work with Moazzam Begg and Cageprisoners". Amnesty International. 11 February 2010. Retrieved 18 March 2010.
  41. ↑ "Salman Rushdie's statement on Amnesty International", The Sunday Times, 21 February 2010.
  42. ↑ MacShane, Denis (10 February 2010). "Letter To Amnesty International from Denis MacShane, Member of British Parliament". Archived from the original on 16 February 2010. Retrieved 17 February 2010.
  43. ↑ Phillips, Melanie (14 February 2010). "The human wrongs industry spits out one of its own". The Spectator. UK. Retrieved 23 February 2010.
  44. ↑ Plait, Phil. "Amnesty International loses sight of its original purpose". Slate Magazine.
  45. ↑ Bright, Martin, "Amnesty International, Moazzam Begg and the Bravery of Gita Sahgal" Archived 11 February 2010 at the Wayback Machine., The Spectator, 7 February 2010.
  46. ↑ "Misalliance; Amnesty has lent spurious legitimacy to extremists who spurn its values", The Times, 12 February 2010. Retrieved 17 February 2010.
  47. ↑ Cohen, Nick, "We abhor torture – but that requires paying a price; Spineless judges, third-rate politicians and Amnesty prefer an easy life to fighting for liberty", The Observer, 14 February 2010. Retrieved 17 February 2010.
  48. ↑ "President Bush cancels visit to Switzerland". Amnesty International. 6 February 2011. Retrieved 8 February 2011.
  49. ↑ "AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL – 50 years on Vimeo". Vimeo.com. 23 May 2011.
  50. ↑ Kumar, S. Vijay (11 August 2012). "Amnesty wants U.N. probe into Sri Lanka war crimes". The Hindu. Chennai, India.
  51. ↑ Wulfhorst, Ellen. "National Guard called to Missouri town roiled by police shooting of teen". Reuters. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  52. ↑ Geidner, Chris (14 August 2014). "Amnesty International Takes "Unprecedented" U.S. Action In Ferguson". Buzzfeed.com. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  53. ↑ Pearce, Matt, Molly Hennessy-Fiske and Tina Susman (16 August 2014). "Some warn that Gov. Jay Nixon's curfew for Ferguson, Mo., may backfire". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  54. ↑ Reilly, Mollie (17 August 2014). "Amnesty International Calls For Investigation Of Ferguson Police Tactics". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  55. ↑ "Amnesty International Sends Human Rights Delegation to Ferguson, Missouri". Amnesty International. Retrieved 19 August 2014.
  56. ↑ "Suspend Saudi Arabia from UN Human Rights Council". Amnesty International. 29 June 2016.
  57. ↑ "UN: Shameful pandering to Saudi Arabia over children killed in Yemen conflict". Amnesty International. 7 June 2016.
  58. ↑ "Rights groups: Suspend Saudi Arabia from U.N. Human Rights Council over war crimes". Salon. June 29, 2016.
  59. ↑ "STATUTE OF AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL". amnesty.org. Amnesty International.
  60. ↑ "AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL: Founding, Structure, and Lost Vision". ngo-monitor.org. NGO Monitor. Retrieved 4 December 2014.
  61. ↑ "''About this film'' – Blood Diamond". Amnestyusa.org.
  62. ↑ Ainsworth, David (2011), "Amnesty issues public apology over golden handshakes", Third Sector Online, 1 March 2011. Retrieved August 201).
  63. ↑ Clarke, Anne Marie (2001). Diplomacy of Conscience: Amnesty International and Changing Human Rights Norms. Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0-691-05743-9.
  64. ↑ "AI's Focus". Amnesty-volunteer.org.
  65. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 2013-09-13.
  66. ↑ "Amnesty International defends access to abortion for women at risk". 14 June 2007. Archived from the original on 12 October 2007.
  67. ↑ "Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity | Amnesty International". Amnesty.org.
  68. ↑ "Colombia: Amnesty International response to Andrés Ballesteros et al.", AMR 23/006/2007, 21 February 2007. Retrieved on 20 January 2012.
  69. ↑ Dysch, Marcus (19 July 2012). "Amnesty International defends official accused of anti-Israel bias". Amnesty International. Retrieved 27 February 2013.
  70. ↑ "Who finances Amnesty International's work?". Amnesty.org. 28 May 1961.
  71. ↑ Amnesty International Charity Limited Report and financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2011 Archived 16 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine., p. 8, Paragraph 10.
  72. ↑ "Amnesty International Limited and Amnesty International Charity Limited Report and financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2007" (PDF). p. 45, Note 17.
  73. ↑ "Report of Government Foreign Funding, in Hebrew, 2009" (PDF).
  74. ↑ "Report of Government Foreign Funding, in Hebrew, 2008" (PDF).
  75. ↑ "Amnesty International 2010 Report,Page 10, Indicator 8" (PDF).
  76. ↑ "Amnesty International – INGO Accountability Charter Global Compliance Report 2009, Page 3" (PDF).
  77. ↑ http://rockpa.org/document.doc?id=14, page 16
  78. ↑ Bernstein, Dennis (2002). "Interview: Amnesty on Jenin – Dennis Bernstein and Dr. Francis Boyle Discuss the Politics of Human Rights". Covert Action Quarterly. Archived from the original on 5 August 2009. Retrieved 5 August 2009.
  79. ↑ Crary, David (27 July 2007). "Furor Over Amnesty's Abortion Stance". USA Today. Retrieved 25 May 2010.
  80. ↑ Gidon Shaviv (6 June 2012). "Amnesty's credibility problem". Y Net News. Retrieved 27 February 2013.
  81. ↑ "Australia rejects Amnesty's bribery allegations as 'slur' on border police", Deutsche Welle. 29 October 2015.
  82. ↑ "Response to Open Letter from Amnesty International". Jasonkenney.ca. 9 August 2011.
  83. ↑ "The Amnesty International 2015 Report alleging discrimination in primary schools is unfounded but not criminal says the Czech prosecutor", New Europe. 11 March 2016.
  84. ↑ The U.S. and China This Week, U.S.-China Policy Foundation, 16 February 2001. Retrieved 15 May 2006.
  85. ↑ "DR Congo blasts Amnesty International report on repression", The Namibian, 14 January 2000. Retrieved 15 May 2006.
  86. ↑ Peretz, Martin (26 August 2010). "Amnesty International Official Calls Israel A 'Scum State'". The New Republic. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  87. ↑ "Qatar rejects rights group report on 'rampant' labour abuse". Reuters. 2 December 2015.
  88. ↑ "Saudi Arabia outraged by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch’s criticism". Ya Libnan. 1 July 2016.
  89. ↑ "The Cream of The Diplomatic Crop from Ha Noi", THIÊN LÝ BỬU TÒA. Retrieved 15 May 2006.
  90. ↑ "Russian official blasts Amnesty International over Chechnya refugees", Human Rights Violations in Chechnya, 22 August 2003. Retrieved 15 May 2006.
  91. ↑ Press Briefing By Scott McClellan, The White House, 25 May 2005. Retrieved 30 May 2006.
  92. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Mason, Tania, "Charity Commission has 'no jurisdiction' over board member's payment from Amnesty", civilsociety.co.uk, 21 February 2011. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
  93. 1 2 3 Chapman, John, "Amnesty boss gets secret £500,000 payout", Daily Express, 19 February 2011. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
  94. ↑ Pack, Peter. "A letter to all AI members and staff from the International Executive Committee." (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 9 December 2012. Retrieved 25 January 2012.
  95. ↑ "Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Awards - Roosevelt Institute". 29 September 2015.
  96. ↑ Rabben, Linda (2001). "Amnesty International: Myth and Reality". AGNI. Boston, Massachusetts: Boston University (54). Archived from the original on 12 October 2008. Retrieved 25 September 2008.
  97. ↑ Buchanan, Tom (October 2002). "'The Truth Will Set You Free': The Making of Amnesty International". Journal of Contemporary History. 37 (4): 575–597. doi:10.1177/00220094020370040501. JSTOR 3180761. Retrieved 25 September 2008

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