History - Changing world: new directions for Amnesty
Amnesty International was launched in 1961 to free prisoners of conscience. We set out to stop a particular kind of widespread and grave human rights violation at a specific stage of history. We developed what were then unique tactics and actions - and kept up the pressure until individual prisoners were released.
Amnesty has developed in this spirit - constantly renewing its work in response to changing human rights challenges and opportunities.
- We watch for shifts in patterns of human rights violations.
- We study changes in the social, political and economic forces that may cause violations - or open up new opportunities to stop violations.
- We develop new tactics and forms of action to stop violations as they exist today.
To remain effective, Amnesty International changes in a changing world. Here are a few examples.
- In response to the emergence of globalization, Amnesty members decided in 1999 to strengthen their work on the relations between business and human rights. This area of work, still in its early stages, is now a priority for Amnesty International Canada.
>> Learn more. - Amnesty members now place a high priority on protecting human rights defenders. These are activists - community development workers, teachers, environmentalists, legal aid providers and others - who defend human rights, often at great personal risk and with extraordinary courage. Critical to their work, their safety and their spirits is the solidarity and advocacy of people around the world.
>> Learn more. - Amnesty has widened its focus beyond freedom of opinion. Today we oppose human rights abuses based on discrimination: "identity-based" abuses. Amnesty members now work for people who are targeted because of how they are seen - in discriminatory ways - by others. Examples include lesbian and gay people, Indigenous people and women.
Today, Amnesty International's research headquarters remains in London, supported by some 350 staff and 100 volunteers from 50 countries. But Amnesty is also re-locating itself out into the world. Now there are offices in Beirut, Costa Rica, Geneva, Hong Kong, Kampala, New York and Paris. Each office has distinct responsibilities, such as:
- Acting as watchdogs over international agencies.
- Supporting regional activism and human rights education programs.
- Maintaining an independent eye on human rights in their region.