Another Way to Help Amnesty International

This post is destined to piss off some readers, but I really don't care. In addition to what Ted Barlow wrote here, another way to help fund Amnesty International is to get an AI Visa Card. I have one and plan to make a lot of purchases with it this year. A lot.

Comments

[Ted Barlow]

Dang, that's a great idea.

[Miguel]

I like Amnesty International, but their willingness to put partisanship above principle leaves me troubled. Like, would they stop reporting political prisoners if they came from countries we might be about to attack? Stuff like that. I think I'll support the Red Cross, instead. At least until I know whether I can trust Amnesty or not. Sorry.

[Randy Paul]

Like, would they stop reporting political prisoners if they came from countries we might be about to attack?

Any evidence that they have?

[Miguel]

"Any evidence that they have?"

First, it bothers me to hear comparisons to gulags, Nazis, etc. I mean, if things are bad at Gitmo, they should say so, forcefully, truthfully, and consistently. I've no problem w/ that. But making hyperbolic attacks that they've admited were made EXPLICITLY to gain attention, seems to make it seem in poor taste. In the end, they made themselves the story, rather than Gitmo. How does that help their cause? And the report spend so much time focusing on the US, that it barely mentioned other countries (e.g. Sudan).

Second, there were AI people who, leading up to the Iraq war, went out of their way to play down Iraqi attrocities EXPLICITLY because they didn't want to fuel a rush to war. That, again, seems political. I can understand saying "we oppose the war, but yes, Saddam is a brutal tyrant". But they never made comparisons to gulags from that regime, so why Gitmo?

My point is just that an organization I once trusted and respected a lot as above partisan politics, has dirtied itself w/ it. And that makes me sad. Because whereas they had some moral weight to play against moderate Republicans, they seem to've lost that. Which is bad for human rights advocacy. They got some quick headlines, but lost some authority in the process. Was it worth it?

[Randy Paul]

Miguel,

The press release focused on the US, but the annual report which runs to a few hundred pages, focuses on the entire world.

As for AI playing down Saddam's atrocities, I'd like to see some more information. The fact is, AI was protesting vigorously against Saddam's atrocities - back when most of them were happening in the 1980's and 1990's, not years afterwards as those who have jumped on the get-rid-of-Saddam bandwagon have done, while ignoring Rumsfeld's meetings with Saddam. Remember, it was Reagan Saddam recently praised, not AI.