Human Rights Watch (HRW)

I am an active supporter of Human Rights Watch, an independent
organization of individuals who are intently working to defend and
protect human rights around the world. HRW directs global attention to
human rights violations, empowering the oppressed and holding oppressors
accountable for their transgressions. The organization was founded as
Helsinki Watch in 1978 with the goal of ensuring government compliance
with the 1975 Helsinki Accords in the Soviet Union and Eastern European
regimes. Helsinki Watch achieved its objectives by exposing government
abuse and invoking shame through both media coverage and direct
correspondence with bureaucrats. Due to the success of Helsinki Watch,
Americas Watch was established three years later as a response to the
civil wars plaguing Central America. Working through the sanctions of
international humanitarian law, Americas Watch exposed both the
government’s abuse of power and the rebel war crimes. The organization
also kept a watchful, critical eye on the foreign governments providing
support to abusive regimes. Throughout the 1980s, Asia Watch, Africa
Watch, and Middle East Watch were formed and, in 1988, the all-inclusive
organization adopted the formal name Human Rights Watch.

Throughout the 1990s, Human Rights Watch drew attention to the rights of
women, children, refugees, and migrant workers and focused on human
rights violations relating to domestic violence, trafficking, rape, and
child soldiers. The organization also worked to infiltrate “closed”
societies, including Saudi Arabia and North Korea, in order to
investigate the abuse of basic human rights. In 1997, HRW shared in the
acceptance of a Nobel Peace Prize given for its International Campaign
to Ban Landmines. In the last decade, HRW has bolstered its efforts in
counterterrorism laws and practices and has led new programs devoted to
basic health rights to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS.