For victims of abuse, defending their human rights affirms their dignity. For people privileged to lead lives unmarred by abuse, protecting the rights of others is a way to help relieve human suffering.

Photo by Laurent Van der Stockt.

In the past year or so, we have witnessed a new epidemic of violence – in Chechnya, Colombia, Kosovo, East Timor, Sierra Leone, and several other African countries. At first, the temptation might be to despair, to view such tragedies as unavoidable and beyond repair. But when we look more closely, we see a more promising conclusion.

Through the lens of human rights, we see that, even in the midst of armed conflict, atrocities are not inevitable. They are the result of particular decisions by identifiable people. By highlighting the deliberate choices behind atrocities, this human rights perspective shows how external pressure can help end massacres, rape, and mutilations.

The tools of the human rights movement are straightforward. We shine a spotlight to shame those who commit atrocities. We launch campaigns to cut off their source of arms, revenue, and support. We promote tribunals to prosecute violent abusers and to deter repetition of their crimes.

The human rights cause is empowering people across the globe to surmount injustices that had long been considered a matter of fate. In India, members of the least advantaged caste have launched a campaign for equal rights. In Jordan, women are demanding an end to state-tolerated “honor killings.” Worldwide, a citizens’ movement is insisting on an end to the use of children as soldiers. These civil-society initiatives show the remarkable power of the human rights ideal to inspire hope – to move people to demand an end to their persecution.

We are proud of the central role that Human Rights Watch is playing as a voice for justice in all of these struggles and in the vibrant and growing human rights movement. We are also thankful to you, our many friends and supporters, who have joined us in our cause.