History - 1960s: Amnesty becomes international
Amnesty International sent its first fact-finding missions to Ghana, Czechoslovakia and Portugal in 1962. Many other on-the-spot investigative missions have followed. Today, Amnesty carries out some 130 research missions in about 70 countries each year.
Amnesty's first "Annual Report," issued in 1962, noted that 210 "prisoners of conscience" had been "adopted." A year later, Amnesty had adopted more than 1,300 prisoners and reported that 330 had been released.
Within a year of Amnesty's launch, a number of Canadians were lending their support, although Amnesty International Canada was not officially launched until 1973.
>> Click here to read about Amnesty International Canada's history.
By the end of its first decade, Amnesty International members were based in 28 countries, including countries in Latin America, Asia and Africa.
Meanwhile, Amnesty members began to broaden the scope of their work to defend civil and political rights.
They agreed to campaign for fair trials in political cases, and against the torture and ill-treatment of prisoners. Later, they decided to oppose the death penalty in all cases, and to extend this work to include political killings and "disappearances."
From the outset, Amnesty International has also attempted, within its resources, to contribute relief funds and materials to the victims of human rights violations. In 1998-99, Amnesty sent some $600,000 to people with whom it had worked. The organization also sends medical supplies when it can, and on occasion helps pay legal bills.