http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6185 AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL FACTS & BACKGROUND:
* Aims a disproportionate share of its criticism for human rights violations at the United States and Israel * Opposed American invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq * Accuses the U.S. and Israel of war crimes NGO Monitor <http://www.ngo-monitor.org/index.php> has published the results of its quantitative analysis <http://www.ngo-monitor.org/article.php?operation=print&id=1427> of Amnesty International's publications in 2006. AI publishes six types of documents addressing human rights: (a) detailed reports describing events in depth and analyzing them in the context of international law; (b) open letters addressed to an influential body, such as the United <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=7147> Nations or European <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=7205> Union, with the aim of influencing policy; (c) a monthly in-house magazine called The Wire, featuring articles on events that are considered by Amnesty officials to be the worst cases of human rights violations; (d) public statements of AI's official position in response to specific events; (e) press releases that announce newsworthy events and developments; and (f) urgent actions, usually in the form of letter-writing campaigns, designed to provide "an effective and rapid means of preventing some of the most life-threatening human rights violations against individuals." NGO Monitor has found that in 2006, Israel was the subject of 63 such publications, more than any country in the Middle East except Iran. Thirty-seven of the 63 documents about Israel were published by AI after the outbreak of the 2006 Lebanon War where the Israeli military fought against the terror group Hezbollah <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6256> . Thirty of those documents were related to the war and accused Israel of "disproportionate attacks," "war crimes," and "violations of international humanitarian law." Of the 30 documents, 12 were exclusively focused on Israeli actions during the conflict, whereas only 2 focused exclusively on Hezbollah's actions. The 63 AI publications devoted to Israel are significantly more numerous than those focusing on other countries (or on major human-rights-abusing organizations) in the region: Sudan (61 documents), Syria (51), Iraq (29), Hezbollah (20), Algeria (19), Tunisia (15), Egypt (13), Jordan (12), the Palestinian Authority (10), Libya (6), Saudi Arabia (6), and Morocco (5). Amnesty International was founded by the British lawyer and activist Peter Benenson. In March 1961 Benenson, moved by a newspaper report of two Portuguese students incarcerated for criticizing the regime of their nation's dictator Antonio Salazar, published in a London newspaper an editorial titled "The Forgotten Prisoners." In it, Benenson urged readers to join his "Appeal for Amnesty in 1961" campaign to aid political dissidents and prisoners of conscience worldwide. As part of the campaign, groups were organized in several countries, including the United States. At a 1962 conference in Belgium, these groups formally joined as one organization, Amnesty International (AI). Since the time of its founding, AI has presented itself as an ideologically disinterested and apolitical organization. AI maintains that it "does not support or oppose any government or political system, nor does it support or oppose the views of the victims whose rights it seeks to protect. It is concerned solely with the impartial protection of human rights." During the Cold War, however, AI focused scant attention on the human rights abuses committed by the Soviet Union and its satellites via the Warsaw Pact. Only in 1975, fully 13 years after its formation, did the organization finally release a report -- "Prisoners of Conscience in the USSR" -- documenting the plight of political prisoners behind the Iron Curtain. In its own defense, AI maintained that its work was complicated by the lack of access to prisoners in the Communist world, and by the possibility that its activism might trigger retaliation against political prisoners by the ruling authorities. The consequences of this approach were evident in AI's assessment of human rights in Communist Cuba, where throughout the 1970s the organization underestimated the number of political prisoners while offering only mild criticism of the Castro <file:///C:/individualProfile.asp?indid=912> regime's persecution of political opponents. An AI annual report for 1976, for instance, noted that the "persistence of fear, real or imaginary, was primarily responsible for the early excesses in the treatment of political prisoners." This cautiously diplomatic approach to the Castro dictatorship did not prevent AI from being awarded the Nobel Peace <http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6979> Prize the following year. In his acceptance lecture <http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1977/amnesty-lecture.htm l> , Mumtaz Soysal, a little-known professor from Turkey, hailed what he called AI's mission "to spotlight the victims in every society where imprisonment results from political or religious belief ." A grossly disproportionate share of Amnesty International's criticism is reserved for the United States. In the 1980s AI joined leftist non-governmental organizations like the Church World Service and Americas Watch in vocally opposing the Reagan administration's support for the Contra resistance movement against Nicaragua's Communist dictatorship. In recent years, AI has emerged as a vocal critic of the U.S.-led war on terror, opposing especially the American-led invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. AI's University of Oklahoma chapter endorsed <http://www.envirosagainstwar.org/sayno/endorsers.html> a May 1, 2003 document titled "10 Reasons Environmentalists Oppose an Attack on Iraq," which was published by Environmentalists Against War <file:///C:/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6933> . AI has also condemned the U.S.-operated detention facilities in Guantanamo Bay <file:///C:/guideDesc.asp?catid=135&type=issue> , Cuba. In March 2005, Amnesty International-USA's then-Executive Director William <http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/individualProfile.asp?indid=1800> Schulz alleged <http://www.commondreams.org/headlines05/0526-03.htm> that the United States had become "a leading purveyor and practitioner" of torture and urged that senior American officials -- including President Bush, former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, former Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Douglas Feith, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, former Central Intelligence Agency director George Tenet, and high-ranking officers at Guantanamo Bay -- face prosecution by other governments for violations of the Geneva Conventions and the U.N. Convention Against Torture. On May 25, 2005, Schulz announced <http://www.foxnews.com/printer_friendly_story/0,3566,157733,00.html> that his organization "calls on foreign governments to uphold their obligations under international law by investigating all senior U.S. officials involved in the torture scandal." "The apparent high-level architects of torture," he added, "should think twice before planning their next vacation to places like Acapulco or the French Riveria because they may find themselves under arrest as Augusto Pinochet famously did in London in 1998." Schulz's remarks were echoed in May of 2005 by Amnesty International's Secretary General Irene <http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/individualProfile.asp?indid=922> Khan, who charged <http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGPOL100142005> that "Guantanamo [Bay] has become the gulag of our times." In a 2002 report, AI admonished the Immigration and Naturalization Service for its policy, instituted after the 9/11 attacks, of "prolonged detention for minor immigration infractions" -- though it neglected to note that such a policy, had it been in place prior to September 11, 2001, might have exposed the three 9/11 hijackers who were in the United States illegally, including two who already had previous immigration violations). In its report <http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGAMR510442002> , AI placed the word "terrorism" in scare quotes, suggesting that it questioned the serious nature of the phenomenon. In AI's calculus, the PATRIOT <http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/guideDesc.asp%3fcatid=101&type=issue> Act counterterrorism legislation "undermines <http://www.amnestyusa.org/waronterror/patriotact/> the human rights of Americans and non-citizens, and weakens the framework for promoting human rights internationally." In 2004 Irene Khan condemned <http://web.amnesty.org/report2004/message-eng> the "security agenda promulgated by the U.S. Administration," calling it "bankrupt of vision and bereft of principle." Khan further claimed that America had "openly eroded human rights to win the 'war on terror.'" Amnesty International was a signatory to a March 17, 2003 letter <http://www.sla.org/Documents/Patriot_II.htm> exhorting members of the U.S. Congress to oppose Patriot Act II on grounds that it "contain[ed] a multitude of new and sweeping law enforcement and intelligence gathering powers . that would severely dilute, if not undermine, many basic constitutional rights." Fellow signers included the American-Arab <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6173> Anti-Discrimination Committee, the American <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6145> Civil Liberties Union, the American <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6507> Immigration Lawyers Association, the American <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6348> Library Association, the Arab <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6174> American Institute, the Bill of <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6756> Rights Defense Committee, the Center for <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6148> Constitutional Rights, the Immigrant <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6499> Defense Project of the New York State Defenders Association, the Immigrant <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6501> Legal Resource Center, the Lawyers <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6936> ' Committee for Civil Rights, the League of <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6189> United Latin American Citizens, the Mennonite <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=7106> Central Committee, the Mexican <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6156> American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, the National <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6160> Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the National <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=153> Council of La Raza, the National <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6503> Immigration Law Center, the National <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6162> Lawyers Guild, People for <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6400> the American Way, and Women <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6777> Against War. In addition, Amnesty International has given its organizational endorsement to the Community Resolution to Protect Civil Liberties campaign, which tries to influence city councils to pass resolutions of noncompliance with the provisions of the Patriot Act. Moreover, AI endorsed <http://www.rightsworkinggroup.org/files/21LE4003AA%20CLRA%20org%20sign%20fo r%20House%20to%20POST%20-%206-16-04.pdf> the Civil Liberties Restoration Act of 2004, which was designed to roll back, in the name of protecting civil liberties, vital national-security policies that had been adopted after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Local chapters of AI were signatories to a February 20, 2002 document <http://www.refuseandresist.org/imm/012502ndsami.html> , composed by C. <http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/individualProfile.asp?indid=1386> Clark Kissinger's radical group Refuse <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6165> & Resist (a front organization for the Revolutionary <http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6197> Communist Party), condemning military tribunals and the detention of immigrants apprehended in connection with post-9/11 terrorism investigations. The document charged that the U.S. government had indiscriminately "rounded up" and incarcerated without cause more than 1,500 Arabs, Muslims, and South Asians. AI was a signatory to a November 1, 2001 document <http://www.crlp.org/pr_01_1101ngos.html> characterizing the 9/11 attacks as a legal matter to be addressed by criminal-justice procedures rather than by military retribution. Suggesting that the hijackers were motivated chiefly by a desire to draw attention to global injustices perpetrated by the United States, this document explained that similar future calamities could be averted only if America would finally begin to "promote fundamental rights around the world." AI is an opponent, in all cases, of the death penalty, which it regards as the "ultimate form of cruel and inhuman punishment," and has repeatedly urged Congress to abolish it. Because the death penalty is currently a legally permitted punishment in the United States, a 2003 AI report characterized the U.S. as part of the "axis of executioners" along with China and Iran. Another recurring target of disproportionate criticism from Amnesty International is Israel. For example, AI rushed <http://www.adl.org/Israel/jenin/> to denounce Israel's April 2002 military campaign in the Jenin refugee camp <http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6443> . A November 2002 AI report <http://web.amnesty.org/library/index/ENGMDE151432002> on the events -- bearing the title "Israel and the Occupied Territories, Shielded from Scrutiny: IDF Violations in Jenin and Nablus" -- accused Israel of "serious violations of international human rights or humanitarian law." Among other criticisms, AI reproached Israel's allegedly ongoing "occupation" of Jenin, though control of the city had in fact been ceded by Israel to the Palestinian Authority <file:///C:/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6213> in 1996. The AI report additionally accused the Israeli Defense Forces of using Palestinian civilians as "human shields," though it was later demonstrated that Palestinian terrorists, rather than Israeli soldiers, had exploited the camp's residents as shields against incoming fire. In 2004 Irene Khan singled out Israel -- along with Colombia, Indonesia and Pakistan -- as a state exhibiting an "appalling human rights record." In the summer of 2006, AI issued a de-contextualized censure of Israel's retaliatory military campaign against the Lebanese-based terror group Hezbollah <http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6256> . In an August report <http://www.amnestyusa.org/countries/lebanon/document.do?id=ENGMDE180072006> , AI accused Israeli forces of engaging in "war crimes" such as the "deliberate destruction" of civilian infrastructure in Southern Lebanon, omitting to note that Hezbollah terrorists had initiated the conflict and then intentionally sought refuge amid residential areas. The current Executive Director of Amnesty International is Larry Cox, who succeeded William Schulz in January 2006. AI has received funding from dozens of foundations, including the Columbia <http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/administration/tiny_mce/funderprofile.asp ?fndid=5286&category=79> Foundation, the Ford <http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/administration/tiny_mce/funderprofile.asp ?fndid=5176&category=79> Foundation, the Geraldine <http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/funderprofile.asp?fndid=5194&category=79> R. Dodge Foundation, the JEHT <http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/funderprofile.asp?fndid=5267&category=79> Foundation, the John <http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/administration/tiny_mce/funderprofile.asp ?fndid=5223&category=79> D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Minneapolis <http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/funderprofile.asp?fndid=5180&category=79> Foundation, the Agape <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/funderprofile.asp?fndid=5351&category=79 > Foundation, the Bank <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/funderprofile.asp?fndid=5346&category=78 > of America Foundation, the Open <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/funderprofile.asp?fndid=5181&category=79 > Society Institute, the Rockefeller <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/funderprofile.asp?fndid=5322&category=79 > Brothers Fund, the Stewart <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/funderprofile.asp?fndid=5262&category=79 > R. Mott Charitable Trust, the Vanguard <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/funderprofile.asp?fndid=5289&category=79 > Public Foundation, the William <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/funderprofile.asp?fndid=5337&category=79 > and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and the Rockefeller <http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/administration/tiny_mce/funderprofile.asp ?fndid=5210&category=79> Foundation. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: osint@yahoogroups.com Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. 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