The International Society for Human Rights (ISHR) is an international

non-governmental A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in ...

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

organization with Participative Status with the Council of Europe and is a member of the Liaison Committee of the Non-Governmental Organisations at the Council of Europe. The ISHR has observer status with the African Commission of Human and Peoples' Rights. It has associate status with the Department of Public Information of the United Nations and Roster Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (

ECOSOC The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC; french: links=no, Conseil économique et social des Nations unies, ) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations, responsible for coordinating the economic and social fields ...

). The ISHR is seated in

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, and was founded in West Germany in 1972 as the Gesellschaft für Menschenrechte (GfM), with the aim of promoting international understanding and tolerance in all areas of culture and society and so was committed from its inception to only support individuals who share this principle and, consequently, strive non-violently for their rights. The initiator was Iwan I. Agrusow, a former Russian forced laborer, who had decided to stay in West Germany after World War II due to the treatment of former forced labourers in the Soviet Union (many of them were sent to

Gulag The Gulag, an acronym for , , "chief administration of the camps". The original name given to the system of camps controlled by the GPU was the Main Administration of Corrective Labor Camps (, )., name=, group= was the government agency in ...

upon returning). The society became the International Society for Human Rights in 1982, with the founding of branches in Austria, Switzerland, the UK and France. Since then it has grown to include 47 National Sections, National Groups, Regional Committees and Affiliated Organisations worldwide. Well known members of ISHR include West German Chancellor Ludwig Erhard, former Austro-Hungarian Crown Prince

Otto von Habsburg Otto von Habsburg (german: Franz Joseph Otto Robert Maria Anton Karl Max Heinrich Sixtus Xaver Felix Renatus Ludwig Gaetan Pius Ignatius, hu, Ferenc József Ottó Róbert Mária Antal Károly Max Heinrich Sixtus Xaver Felix Renatus Lajos Gaetan ...

, former Attorney General of Germany

Ludwig Martin Markus Ludwig Martin (25 April 1909 – 31 March 2010) was a German lawyer. He served as Attorney General of Germany from 7 April 1963 until 30 April 1974. Early life and education Born in Waltenhofen as the son of a dairy worker, Martin was abl ...

and Chinese human rights activist

Harry Wu Harry Wu (; February 8, 1937 – April 26, 2016) was a Chinese-American human rights activist. Wu spent 19 years in Chinese labor camps, and he became a resident and citizen of the United States. In 1992, he founded the Laogai Research Fou ...

. During the Cold War, the International Society for Human Rights focused mostly on human rights violations in the states of the Eastern bloc. The

German Democratic Republic German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **G ...

(East Germany) declared the International Society for Human Rights an “enemy of the state” in 1975, and the Stasi launched a campaign against the human rights organisation, attempting to discredit it. Recently, the ISHR has focused on

freedom of religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freed ...

and

freedom of press Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic media, especially published materials, should be considered a right to be exerc ...

issues in countries such as

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

and China. The Society publishes its own periodical Newsletter (in English) and in German “Menschenrechte”. The president of the International Council of the ISHR is Prof Dr Dr

Thomas Schirrmacher Thomas Paul Schirrmacher is a German Christian moral philosopher and a specialist in the Sociology of Religion and religious freedom. He is known as a global human rights activist and holds a chair in Theology (Ethics, Missiology, World Religions). ...

. Karl Hafen is treasurer, Marie Gerrard, Dr René Gomez, Dr Liubov Nemcinova, Dr Haydee Marin, Simone Schlegel and Prof Dr Andrey Sukhorukov are vice-presidents.About the ISHR.
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References

External links

The Official Website of the International Society for Human Rights (ISHR)
{{DEFAULTSORT:International Society For Human Rights International non-profit organizations International human rights organizations Non-profit organisations based in Hesse Organizations established in 1972