Iranian Human Rights Documentation Center

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Iran Human Rights Documentation Center
(IHRDC)
logo
legal form non-profit association registered in the USA
founding 2004
Seat New Haven , Connecticut , USA
main emphasis Documents human rights violations in Iran
Website www.iranhrdc.org

The Iranian Human Rights Documentation Center (English. The Iran Human Rights Documentation Center (IHRDC) ) is in New Haven ( Connecticut , USA based) registered nonprofit organization .

IHRDC was founded in 2004 by a group of human rights activists, students and historians to document human rights violations, particularly in Iran . Information is collected on those responsible, responsibility, human rights culture and the role of law in Iran.

Supervisory board members include prominent US lawyers and legal scholars such as Owen Fiss ( Yale ), Lawrence Douglas ( Amherst ), Laura Dickenson ( Arizona State University ) and John G. Simon ( Yale ), as well as writers such as the Iranian-American author Roya Hakakian , who is also the co-founder of the organization. Rod Sanjabi has been managing director of the association since 2014, previously Renee C. Redman.

Goal setting and activities

The main objective of the center is

  • Concise preparation of documents for documentation and processing of the human rights situation in Iran since the 1979 revolution as well as clarification of responsibility for human rights violations.
  • The information collected is to be made available for scientific use and for public education.
  • Responsibility for and guilt for human rights violations should be made public, as should the respect for human rights and the role of the law in Iran.
  • Initiate an informed dialogue on the human rights situation in Iran with the academic and general public inside and outside Iran.

financing

The US State Department has been its main financier with a total of $ 3 million since the association was founded. After the controversial presidential elections in Iran in 2009 , the Canadian government also made funds available. In addition, the center receives support from private foundations and individual donors.

Investigations into the human rights situation in Iran

IHRDC currently operates two agendas:

  1. A program for investigative research, analysis and documentation of human rights and
  2. a document database called Aadel Collection, which is accessible to people within Iran and worldwide.

Aadel collection

The Aadel Collection is a database of documents, photographs and video files related to the human rights situation in Iran since 1979. It is particularly valuable for local human rights lawyers who want to access information that is censored or suppressed by the Iranian government. The database enables researchers within Iran to conduct their own research and thus provide support to other lawyers.

The collection contains documented evidence related to Iranian and international law, as well as testimony resulting from questioning and interviews by IHRDC staff and IHRDS lawyers. Video statements are recorded in Farsi (Persian) with English subtitles, and written statements are published in English and in Farsi. Written statements can be made using a thesaurus and at least key words and keywords, but a full-text search is usually also implemented.

Regular newsletters and reports published by the Center in English and Farsi are the result of thorough primary research, including interviews with witnesses around the world and other evidence. The reports serve as the basis for evaluating incidents for which the Iranian government is responsible. In addition, the target group also includes politicians and other actors who are involved in the violation of civil society principles by the Iranian government.

Reactions from Iran

In response to the centre's activities, IHRDC appeared on a list of 60 organizations and institutions that the Iranian Interior Ministry considers to be subversive. The pro-government, ultra-conservative newspaper Keyhan condemned the center in the fall of 2009.

IHRDC reports

So far the IHRDC has published 14 reports:

See also

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ iranhrdc.org (accessed June 2, 2015)
  2. ↑ a b Farah Stockman: US funds dry up for Iran rights watchdog. In: The Boston Globe. October 6, 2009, accessed December 24, 2009 .
  3. ↑ 60 Subversive Organizations. In: Fars News Agency. January 5, 2010, accessed January 5, 2010 .
  4. ↑ condemning IHRDC. In: Kayhan News. Retrieved October 18, 2009 .