Criticism of Human Rights Watch

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See main article: Human Rights Watch

Human Rights Watch, a United States-based international non-government organisation that conducts research and advocacy on human rights, has been criticised in the form of commentaries from various organisations, journalists, and bloggers.

Greek organisations have accused Human Rights Watch of making, in their 1995 report on the Macedonians in Greece, "appalling propagandistic assault on Hellenism"^[1]

Human Rights Watch has been criticised for not condemning the situation in Haiti strongly enough.^[2]. ZMag has stated that, Human Rights Watch "has assisted the US in its efforts to crush democracy in Latin America."^[3]

Human Rights Watch has been criticised for condemning the use of human shields. ^[4]

According the a report in the Egyptian press, "the government often accuses human rights groups [including Human Rights Watch] of importing a Western agenda that offends local religious and cultural values."^[5] This was in response to a report produced by Human Rights Watch on the perceived torture of homosexuals in Egypt.^[6]

Human Rights Watch has been criticized as having an anti-Israel bias by the Anti-Defamation League, Gerald Steinberg, and Isi Leibler. Human Rights Watch has further been criticized as ignoring anti-Semitic behavior as an issue of importance over other human rights issues by Ana Palacio. Shimon Peres, Anne Bayefsky, and Abraham Cooper also criticized the 2001 World Conference against Racism, which Human Rights Watch attended but moved to distance itself from.

Human Rights Watch has also been condemned for not highlighting human rights abuses in Israel enough. ^[7]

Gerard Steinberg, director of NGO Monitor, had earlier argued ?During the height of the terror attacks against Israel, Human Rights Watch focused one-third of its entire Middle East effort on condemnations directed at Israel.? Steinberg asserted, ?The most infuriating instance of Human Rights Watch?s bias came in 2004, when Roth went to...Jerusalem to promote 'Razing Rafah', a one sided denunciation of Israeli policy. Its contents were based primarily on unsubstantiated reports of Palestinians, selected journalists, and so-called experts on tunneling.? ^[8]

In 2005 Isi Leibler, author of The Case for Israel, wrote an editorial archived at Campus Watch. In his archived editorial, Leibler asserted that Human Rights Watch is among the groups that ?have long track records of bias and employing double standards in relation to Israel.?^[9]

In a 2005 address to the Anti-Defamation League, Ana Palacio, a former Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs in the centre-right People's Party (PP), asserted that Human Rights Watch ignored anti-Semitism as an issue of importance over other human rights issues, such as gay or refugee rights. In this address she stated, ?Disinterested NGOs like Human Rights Watch or Amnesty International pay little attention to anti-Semitism.?^[10]

Anne Bayefsky, a Professor at York University and editor of Eye on the UN, argued that Human Rights Watch allowed anti-Israel and anti-Semitic to occur, based on her participation in the 2001 World Conference against Racism. Bayefsky also wrote, ?When it comes to anti-Semitism and anti-Israel bias, Human Rights Watch still has a lot of explaining to do, notwithstanding Executive Director Ken Roth's umbrage at criticism.? Bayefsky commented, ?As we arrived at our meeting the chief Durban representative of Human Rights Watch, advocacy director Reed Brody, publicly announced that as a representative of a Jewish group I was unwelcome and could not attend.?^[11] Abraham Cooper, Associate Dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center and another participant at the conference, wrote ?Contrary to the May 27 letter by the executive directors of Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International U.S.A., Anne Bayefsky...was correct to criticize those two groups for their roles at the [Durban] conference?. Cooper added regarding the forum document, ?The concerns of one group of victims -- the Jewish people -- were left off that document, with the silent acquiescence of Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.? He also recounted, ?Like many other Jewish delegates at the conference, I was subjected to physical intimidation and threats.?^[12]

In 2001, regarding the World Conference against Racism, which Human Rights Watch moved to distance itself from, CNN cited Shimon Peres, an Israeli politician, as saying, ?[The World Conference against Racism] is an outburst of hate, of anti-Semitism, anti-Zionism without any consideration.?^[13]

See also: Battle of Jenin 2002#Human Rights Watch report

In 2002 the Anti-Defamation League, in response to coverage of the Battle of Jenin, asserted that Human Rights Watch ?pre-judged Israel's behavior.? The Anti-Defamation League further commented, ?Human Rights Watch charged Israel with violations of international law and war crimes. Neither discussed the international law violations involved in arming a refugee camp, or demanded the United Nations be held in any way accountable for its lack of oversight in the camp. While Human Rights Watch acknowledged in a May 3 report that there was no evidence of a massacre and that Palestinian gunmen had contributed to endangering Palestinian civilians, they continued to emphasize that there was prima facie evidence Israel committed war crimes.?^[14]

Contents 1 References 2 See also 3 External links 3.1 References

References

See also

• Human Rights Watch
• Amnesty International
• Human rights groups and the Middle East

External links

• Jonathan Cook: How Human Rights Watch lost its way in Lebanon
  • Response from the Executive Director of the Middle East & North Africa Division of Human Rights Watch;
  • Cook's Response
• Human Rights Watch receives unprecedented public criticism for its attacks on Israeli actions in Lebanon NGO Monitor
• The HRW Report on Gujarat: Another Assassination - by Aseem R. Shukla
• Haiti and Human Rights Watch (Joe Emersberger, ZNet)
• Jonathan Cook: Palestinians are being denied the right of non-violent resistance Would Human Rights Watch have attacked Martin Luther King, too? (CounterPunch, 30 November 2006)
• A Shocking Statement: HRW condemns Palestinians' use of nonviolence to protect homes from destruction (Norman G. Finkelstein)
  • Reader letters w/responses from Sarah Leah Whitson, HRW Middle East director
• Edward S. Herman, David Peterson, George Szamuely: Human Rights Watch in service to the war party Including a review of ?Weighing the evidence: Lessons from the Slobodan Milo?evi? trial? (ZNet, 25 February 2007)

References

• Adapted from the Wikipedia article, "Criticism_of_Human_Rights_Watch" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_Human_Rights_Watch, used under the GNU Free Documentation License