Helsinki Watch Group
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Helsinki Watch was a private American
non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...
established by Robert L. Bernstein in 1978, designed to monitor the former
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
's compliance with the 1975
Helsinki Accords The Helsinki Final Act, also known as Helsinki Accords or Helsinki Declaration, was the document signed at the closing meeting of the third phase of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE) held in Helsinki, Finland, betwee ...
. Expanding in size and scope, Helsinki Watch began using media coverage to document human-rights violations committed by abusive governments. Since its inception, it produced several other watch committees dedicated to monitoring human rights in other parts of the world. In 1988, Helsinki Watch and its companion watch committees combined to form
Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Headquartered in New York City, the group investigates and reports on issues including War crime, war crimes, crim ...
.


History


Beginnings

Following the multinational agreement establishing the Helsinki Accords in 1975, the Helsinki Watch was established to ensure Eastern Bloc countries undergoing severe civil conflict comply with the provisions originally established in the
Helsinki Accords The Helsinki Final Act, also known as Helsinki Accords or Helsinki Declaration, was the document signed at the closing meeting of the third phase of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE) held in Helsinki, Finland, betwee ...
. This was the result of an emergence of pressing requests on behalf of organizations located in
Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
,
Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
, and
Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...
who were tasked with monitoring the Soviet Union and regions of Eastern Europe to ensure their compliance in facilitating various human rights pledges made throughout the Accords, many of which were arrested by Soviet authorities in early 1977. One of the primary objectives of Helsinki Watch was to serve as an instrument of advocacy for freeing the imprisoned monitors arrested by Soviet officials, but its most noteworthy accomplishments was predicated on promoting civil and political freedoms in the Soviet Union and regions of Eastern Europe. Helsinki Watch developed a means of identifying the corrupt actions of governments by publicly acknowledging unethical behaviour carried out by different governmental bodies through media coverage and directly through policymakers on an international scale.


Transition to Human Rights Watch

As tensions built between the United States and the Soviet Union, the Americas Watch was created in 1981 in attempt to discredit criticism of double standards and covert geopolitical mission. The Americas Watch set out to observe and acknowledge abuses carried out by governmental bodies situated in Central America, and most notably criticized governments such as the United States for their involvement in providing arms and support to dangerous regimes situated in the Americas. The establishment of other similar organizations rapidly increased through their classification as "The Watch Committees" with the creation of Asia Watch (1985), Africa Watch (1986), and Middle East Watch (1989). In 1988, these committees formally adopted the overarching title of The Human Rights Watch.


Funding

The establishment of the Helsinki Watch was made possible by a $400,000 grant donated by the
Ford Foundation The Ford Foundation is an American private foundation with the stated goal of advancing human welfare. Created in 1936 by Edsel Ford and his father Henry Ford, it was originally funded by a $25,000 (about $550,000 in 2023) gift from Edsel Ford. ...
.


Timeline

Source: *1978 - Creation of Helsinki Watch *1981 - Creation of Americas Watch *1985 - Creation of Asia Watch *1988 - Creation of Africa Watch *1988 - Creation of Human Rights Watch *1989 - Creation of Middle East Watch


Effectiveness

Upon its establishment, Helsinki Watch immediately became a major organization with significant leverage internationally.Thomas, D. C. (2011). ''The Helsinki effect: International norms, human rights, and the demise of communism.'' Princeton (N.J.: Princeton University Press. Initially, Helsinki Watch would directly appeal to communist leaders by creating petitions and publicly "naming and shaming" abusive governments. When this method proved to be ineffective, they quickly graduated to using political influence from important Western and European politicians to further their mission of influencing government policy both directly and indirectly. As Helsinki Watch grew, it continued to build its reputation for providing accurate and reliable information on human rights violations in Eastern Europe and the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
. The Helsinki Watch is said to have played an important role in shaping human rights in the 1980s.


Criticism

Helsinki Watch attracted some allegations of bias during its early days. It was criticized for narrowing its scope to human-rights violations committed by the Soviet bloc while ignoring human-rights violations that were occurring in other parts of the world. Many suggested that its strategy of enlisting the help of Europeans to denounce the Soviet Union reflected this. It was specifically criticized for being lopsided in its mission, as in its early days it neglected to recognize abuses taking place within
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. In response to such criticism, the founders of Helsinki Watch created a new division called Americas Watch. From there the organization expanded rapidly, establishing Watches to cover other parts of the world. In 1988, all of the Helsinki Watch's separate divisions were amalgamated into one unit called the
Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Headquartered in New York City, the group investigates and reports on issues including War crime, war crimes, crim ...
.


Major publications

Published in 1991, major publications of Helsinki Watch include:Falgiano, L., & LeMaire, K. (November 1992). "Review: Helsinki Watch publications". ''Human Rights Quarterly'', 14(4), 640-645. . . * ''Destroying Ethnic Identity: The Persecution of Gypsies in Romania'': Helsinki Watch conducted an interview with regard to eleven attacks on the Romanian
Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnic groups * Romani people, or Roma, an ethnic group of Indo-Aryan origin ** Romani language, an Indo-Aryan macrolanguage of the Romani communities ** Romanichal, Romani subgroup in the United Kingdom * Romanians (Romanian ...
. * ''Glasnost in Jeopardy: Human Rights in the USSR'': An overview of the legal, social and governmental institutions and ways they have created difficulties for the development of human rights in the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
. The book describes the former president of the USSR
Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet and Russian politician who served as the last leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...
's attempt to reestablish law and order within the Soviet Union. * ''Human Rights in Northern Ireland'': This book reports the issues surrounding
the Troubles The Troubles () were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted for about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it began in the late 1960s and is usually deemed t ...
within Northern Ireland and helps readers better understand the legal aspects of fighting among parties. * ''Since the Revolution: Human Rights in Romania'': This publication shows the attempt of new political culture after the revolution in 1989.


References

{{Authority control Human Rights Watch Organizations established in 1978 1978 establishments in the United States Non-profit organizations based in Washington, D.C.