International Service for Human Rights

The International Service for Human Rights (ISHR) "is an international non-governmental organisation (NGO) serving human rights defenders. It was established in 1984 by members of a number of NGOs in Geneva to help defenders access the international human rights system. This remains its distinctive role more than 20 years later.

"ISHR's vision is the development, strengthening, effective use and implementation of international and regional standards and mechanisms for the protection and promotion of human rights. We work towards this vision by providing analytical and practical information on UN human rights mechanisms; training on how to use international and regional norms and procedures; strategic advice for effective lobbying; contributions to standard-setting; and logistical support to enable human rights defenders from around the world to take full advantage of international human rights law and procedures...

"In May 2000, ISHR created the Human Rights Defenders Office (HRDO) to further develop the organisation's long-standing work for more effective protection of human rights activists worldwide. Since its creation, HRDO has worked closely with a wide array of organisations and individuals, both governmental and non-governmental, to improve the protection of human rights defenders...

"Based in Geneva, the Secretariat of ISHR has a staff of 16 persons, headed by the Director, Professor Chris Sidoti. They are regularly assisted by temporary project fellows and interns."

Board (as of June 2005)

 * Birgit Lindsnaes - Chairperson (Denmark);
 * Victor Scheffers - Vice-President (Netherlands);
 * David Hayward - Treasurer (United Kingdom);
 * Robert Archer (United Kingdom);
 * Michel Forst (France);
 * Dr. Stephen Marks (USA);
 * Vitit Muntarbhorn (Thailand)
 * Randa Siniora (Palestine)
 * Margaret Sekaggya (Uganda)
 * Morris Tidball-Binz (Argentina)
 * Nevena Vuckovic Sahovic (Serbia and Montenegro)

Advisory Council (as of March 2004)

 * Reine Alapini-Gansou (Benin)
 * Gudmundur Alfredsson (Iceland)
 * Alejandro Artucio (Uruguay)
 * Khemais Chammari (Tunisia)
 * Radhika Coomaraswamy (Sri Lanka)
 * Victor Dankwa (Ghana)
 * Adama Dieng (Senegal)
 * Roberto Garreton (Chile)
 * Michel Grolleaud (France)
 * Hurst Hannum (USA)
 * Hina Jilani (Pakistan)
 * Louis Joinet (France)
 * Morten Kjaerum (Denmark)
 * Stephanie Kleine-Ahlbrandt (Switzerland)
 * Alexei Korotaev (Russian Federation)
 * Hanny Megally (Egypt)
 * Juan Mendez (Argentina)
 * Alice Mogwe (Botswana)
 * Vitit Muntarbhorn (Thailand)
 * Ann-Marie Bolin Pennegard (Sweden)
 * Monica Pinto (Argentina)
 * Jose Ramos Horta (East Timor)
 * Nigel Rodley (United Kingdom)
 * Andreas Selmeci (Germany)
 * Raji Sourani (Palestine)
 * Theo van Boven (Netherlands)
 * Jacques Vittori (Switzerland)
 * Bacre Waly Ndiaye (Senegal)
 * Pat Walsh (Australia)
 * Renate Weber (Romania)

Secretariat (as of March 2007)
The Secretariat of ISHR is located in Geneva and in a small office in New York. It consists of the following persons:
 * Chris Sidoti (Australia), Director.
 * Musa Yerro Gassama (The Gambia), Deputy-Director of ISHR
 * Eleonore Dziurzynski (Switzerland/Canada), Communication Officer
 * Gareth Sweeney (Ireland) Human Rights Officer
 * Tony Morris (Australia), Principal Trainer
 * Elise Magnenat (Switzerland)
 * Inmaculada Barcia (Spain), Manager of HRDO.
 * Clement Nyaletsossi Voule (Togo), Human Rights Officer
 * Andrea Rocca (Italy), Human Rights Officer
 * Katrine Thomasen (Denmark), Human Rights Officer
 * Barbara Vuagniaux (Switzerland), Administration and Finance Officer
 * Ha Eun Marcellino Seong (Korea), Information Technology Officer

New York Office
 * Dr. Stephen Marks (USA), Representative of ISHR's office in New York;
 * Michelle Evans (United Kingdom), Deputy Representative of ISHR's office in New York.

Contact
Rue Varembe 1 P.O. Box 16 CH-1211, Geneva 20 Switzerland Phone: (+41) 22 919 71 00 Fax: (+41) 22 919 71 25 Web: http://www.ishr.ch

New York Office 777 UN Plaza, 8th floor New York, NY 10017 USA Phone: (+1 212) 490 21 99 Fax: (+1 212) 490 13 96 Email: ishr AT ishrny.org