ANNUAL REPORT 2011 the Human Rights Action Centre 17-25 New Inn Yard Amnesty International UK London EC2A 3EA Tel +44 (0) 20 7033 1777 [email protected]

ANNUAL REPORT 2011 the Human Rights Action Centre 17-25 New Inn Yard Amnesty International UK London EC2A 3EA Tel +44 (0) 20 7033 1777 Sct@Amnesty.Org.Uk

Amnesty International UK ANNUAL REPORT 2011 The Human Rights Action Centre 17-25 New Inn Yard Amnesty International UK London EC2A 3EA Tel +44 (0) 20 7033 1777 [email protected]

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CA001 Amnesty International UK is one of 72 national entities that make up the Amnesty International movement. about this report contents Our annual report provides an overview of Amnesty International UK and our work, from 1 January to 31 December 2011. (Our last annual report covering 01 About this report nine months April to December 2010, and published in June 2011, brought 02 Forewords from chair and director our reporting period into line with the global Amnesty International calendar 04 Amnesty International UK: Who we are, how we work year reporting period 1 January to 31 December.) 06 Spotlight 2011 Our annual report aims to show our 08 Our strategic direction stakeholders how our organisation is governed, managed and funded, 10 Our priorities in 2011 the nature of our work and the extent of our impact. The report covers the combined activity of two legal entities: 12 our human rights work Amnesty International United Kingdom Section, a limited company 14 Campaign spectrum registered in England (number 01735872), which undertakes 16 Focus: Amnesty at 50 – A work in progress campaigning work in the UK. 22 Individuals at risk Amnesty International (UK Section) Charitable Trust, a charity registered 24 Focus: Middle East and North Africa with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (number 1051681), 28 Focus: Death penalty in Scotland with the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (number 32 Human rights education SCO39534) and a limited company registered in England (number 35 Raising awareness 03139939), which funds some of the projects undertaken both in the UK 38 Fundraising for human rights and globally.

We refer to these two entities as Amnesty International UK (AIUK). 42 our organisation Amnesty International UK is one of 44 Structure and governance 72 national entities that make up the Amnesty International movement. For 48 Our people, policies and practices information on activity elsewhere in the world, please visit www.amnesty.org 54 Finance

60 More about this report from the chair ready for the challenge

I felt very proud – and awed – flickering in the darkness that helps to become chair of Amnesty the prisoner of conscience – or a International UK on the eve of our whole people – hold their head high. 50th anniversary in May 2011. But things do not always turn out as we might like. As we rejoice at a The year was enormously significant dictator’s fall, elsewhere the forces for Amnesty worldwide, and for of repression tighten their grip. AIUK in particular. It’s amazing to Human rights abuses will always look back to 1961 and consider how occur, and Amnesty will always be a small group of people, inspired there to fight them. by the lawyer Peter Benenson, set out to highlight the plight of political In the year ahead Amnesty’s prisoners across the world; and priorities worldwide must be to how that ‘campaign for amnesty’, encourage and support the flowering intended to last a year, turned this 50th anniversary of Amnesty of freedom in countries such as within months into an international International, that its work will Burma, Libya and Egypt; we must movement that became the world’s continue to be so successful, that achieve a comprehensive and largest non-governmental human there will no longer be any need meaningful Arms Trade Treaty; we rights organisation, with more than for such an organisation.’ Poignant must expand Amnesty’s presence three million supporters in at least words, because she and we knew and effectiveness in the global 150 countries. the scale of oppression in the world South and East – particularly among is such that it is unlikely Amnesty will emerging powers such as Brazil, Even though Amnesty has grown be shutting up shop in our lifetimes. India and China. beyond anything Peter could have In fact, we still need to grow, in imagined in terms of size, global numbers of supporters, in resources, For AIUK this means raising funds reach and areas of concern, the and in influence. to support Amnesty’s worldwide essentials remain the same. Amnesty growth, as well as sustaining our is effective and trusted because When Suu Kyi spoke even she campaigns, advocacy and education we carry out detailed research on cannot have imagined that within a work in the UK at a time of economic the ground, unswayed by national, year hundreds of political prisoners difficulty. I am keen to ensure that political, economic or religious would have been released in we continue to develop our work interests. We work tirelessly for Burma, that her National League around human rights education individuals affected by human for Democracy would have been and that we continue to make rights abuses. Our independence allowed to stand in parliamentary issues around accountability and is underwritten by the fact that our by-elections and win 43 seats, or transparency a priority. funding comes primarily from our that she would be free to travel to members and supporters – the same Europe. Who could have imagined These are challenging times. But, people who democratically control that by the end of the year dictators if the past 50 years have taught us Amnesty and who campaign and such as Ben Ali, Gaddafi and anything, it is that Amnesty is always take action on behalf of those whose Mubarak would have been swept ready for a challenge. Bring it on. human rights are denied. away? Sometimes the pace of change takes everyone by surprise. On 28 May 2011, Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu It demonstrates that hope and Kyi sent Amnesty a recorded persistence can be rewarded against Ciarnan Helferty message. ‘I wish,’ she said, ‘on all the odds. Hope is the candle

2 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 from the director 2011 the year in review

Bahrain. The longer the upheavals about human rights violations. We continued, the more violent the old saw a heartening increase in the regimes became – culminating in number of UK supporters as a result. the bloodbath unleashed by Syrian The saddest news of the year was president Bashar al-Assad. As well the execution in Georgia, USA, on as offering solidarity to peaceful 21 September, of Troy Davis after protesters, Amnesty has sent 20 years on Death Row – despite researchers to bear witness and serious doubts about his guilt. alerted UK politicians and media to The execution caused worldwide what is really going on. The Urgent revulsion and renewed calls for the Action Network has been busy on abolition of the death penalty in behalf of detainees across the region. the USA.

I made three visits to Egypt after In our work success usually comes 2011 was an extraordinary year. the fall of Mubarak, and on each only after years of campaigning For months everyone at Amnesty occasion I heard from human rights effort. But one of our goals this year had been preparing for our 50th defenders there how much they was achieved very quickly indeed. anniversary in May, looking back valued our work. Women’s rights In August more than 10,000 people at an amazing half-century of activists, slum dwellers asserting emailed Royal Bank of Scotland achievement and looking forward their rights to housing, independent chairman Stephen Hester to demand to the challenges ahead. trade unionists – all of them need our that the bank stop investing in continued support to turn the hopes companies producing cluster bombs. As the year dawned, something of Egypt’s revolution into reality. RBS then pledged to do just that. no one had foreseen happened. The ‘Arab Spring’ got under way There were other highlights in an This report describes our in Tunisia in December 2010 and a emotional year. On 28 May I joined performance in the past year, but it month later the dictator Zine hundreds of Amnesty friends aims to do more than that. It seeks al-Abidine Ben Ali fled to Saudi and supporters, including former to give a deeper insight into our Arabia. Across the Middle East and prisoners of conscience, for a 50th work by showing how our strategic North Africa (MENA), people realised birthday party at the church of St directions (page 8) determine our that change was within their grasp. Martin-in-the-Fields. One speaker priorities (page 10), and how these In Egypt, Libya, Yemen, Bahrain and was Wai Hnin Pwint Thon, Burmese inform what we do (see Our Human then Syria, people took to the human rights activist, whose father Rights Work, pages 12-40). Just streets to demand democracy and Ko Mya Aye was serving 65 years for this anniversary year, we have human rights. for taking part in pro-democracy also included a summary of how protests in 2007. The St Martin’s our organisation has changed and On 12 February 10,000 Amnesty event also became a celebration of grown over the past half century supporters gathered in Trafalgar the release two days previously of (page 16). The final section of the Square to show solidarity with Eynulla Fatullayev, the Azerbaijani report (page 42) aims to show how the people of MENA, and in editor for whom we had campaigned we work: our policies and practices, particular the brave protesters in for four years. structure and governance, and how Cairo’s Tahrir Square. The event we spend the money contributed by turned into a celebration of the Around the country, Amnesty groups our supporters. fall of Egypt’s authoritarian ruler in schools, on campuses and in local Hosni Mubarak. It was exhilarating communities organised anniversary Thank you all for continuing to and emotional – but even as we celebrations of their own. They support Amnesty International. celebrated things were taking a contributed to a swell of publicity I hope you enjoy reading this report. darker turn. As demonstrations surrounding the anniversary, and broke out in Libya, Col. Gaddafi together with Amnesty’s reports on made it clear he was prepared to events in MENA, did much to raise use extreme force against protesters public awareness of how ordinary – as were authorities in Yemen and people can do something effective Kate Allen

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 3 amnesty international uk who we are

Amnesty International is a movement the world we work in of ordinary people from across the world standing up for humanity and The death penalty In 2011 human rights. Our purpose is to 20 countries carried out executions (down from 23 in 2010) protect individuals wherever justice, 63 countries imposed death sentences (down from 67 in 2010) fairness, freedom and truth are at least 676 executions took place (up from 527 in 2010) denied. (Amnesty International)

Arms Half a million people die every year as a result of armed violence. our Vision (Amnesty International) A world in which every person enjoys all of the human rights enshrined in International transfers of major conventional weapons were 24 per cent the Universal Declaration of Human up (2007-11). Total arms sales of 100 top companies rose by $14.8 Rights and other international human billion to $400.7 billion (2009). (SIPRI 2011) rights instruments. Displaced people By the end of 2011, 43.7 million people worldwide were forcibly displaced by conflict and persecution. (UNCHR) our mission To undertake research and action Informal settlements Around a third of the urban population in focused on exposing, preventing and developing countries, nearly 1 billion people, now live in slums. ending grave abuses of these rights. (UN Habitat)

Maternal health 287,000 women died in childbirth in 2010, most of our Values them (99 per cent) in developing countries. (WHO) International solidarity Effective action for individuals Freedom of expression In 2011, 66 journalists were killed – 20 in the Global coverage Middle East – compared to 57 the previous year. 1,044 journalists were The universality and indivisibility arrested, nearly double the number in 2010. (Reporters without Borders) of human rights Impartiality and independence Gender inequality In 2011 Democracy and mutual respect only 19 per cent of parliamentary seats were held by women worldwide women comprise two-thirds of the world’s 796 million illiterate adults (UNDP)

Poverty One in four people in the developing world, totalling 1.6 billion, lived on less than $1.25 a day. 925 million people suffer chronic hunger. (2010 World Bank)

Torture People were tortured and otherwise ill-treated in at least 101 countries in 2011. (Amnesty International)

Unfair trials Amnesty investigated unfair trials in 54 countries in 2010.

4 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 how we work

index

relationship

channels

people standing up for justice

support

awareness mobilising raising and funds action support education

standing together for human rights ‘If the feelings of disgust all over the world could be united into common action, something effective could be done.’ Peter Benenson

capacity building

communication

public opinion solidarity media work

pressure research + analysis

moral support

direct lobbying

legal action

pressure

people or people affected organisations with by human rights power action violations

impact

change

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 5 spotlight 2 0 11

nicaragua

Nicaraguan women and girls face disturbingly high levels of sexual violence. Two-thirds of reported rapes are against girls under the age of 17 and the country’s total ban on abortion causes further physical and psychological trauma for rape survivors who become pregnant. Amnesty supporters worldwide sent a petition of 212,165 signatures and more than 50,000 coloured paper butterflies (17,000 of them from the UK) with messages of hope and solidarity to Nicaraguan women’s organisations to use in a demonstration (picture). Following our campaign, four out of five candidates for Nicaragua’s presidential election pledged zero tolerance for violence against women.

the right to asylum eynulla fetullayev

In 2011, evidence we presented at asylum legal cases helped Azerbaijani newspaper editor Eynulla dozens of people secure the right to remain in the UK and protection Fatullayev was jailed for eight and a half years from persecution. Some of these successes will have a wider impact in 2007 on trumped up charges of terrorism, because several cases set important legal precedents. For example, defamation and tax evasion. In 2010 the a European Court of Human Rights European Court of Human Rights ordered judgment that the UK’s forcible his release, but the Azerbaijani authorities return of two Somali refugees was simply fabricated new unlawful was significant for Somali charges against him. refugees across Europe. The court Nevertheless, Amnesty relied on Amnesty evidence in International and the ruling. In another case where other organisations Amnesty submitted evidence, kept up the pressure a High Court judge granted and in May 2011 injunctions against the forcible Eynulla Fatullayev was

eliminating cluster bombs

We persuaded the UK’s biggest investor in cluster munition producers to agree to stop funding companies that make these illegal weapons. RBS initially rejected our appeal, but pressure from Amnesty activists and the threat of a media campaign forced a change of policy. The bank said it would make no new investments in cluster munition producers after its current commitments run out. Cluster munitions dropped from planes or fired as shells shower the ground with bomblets that can lie undetected for decades. They kill more civilians than combatants, and their use and manufacture is banned by an international treaty.

6 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 human rights education

Young people in 54 UK schools set up their own Amnesty groups as the result of a project to expand our youth group network. We encouraged teachers to use our new education pack, on the twin themes freedom of expression and Amnesty’s 50th anniversary, and a short film, I Talk Out Loud, which followed Eastlea School Amnesty youth group’s campaign to end stoning in Iran (more on our work on the death penalty on p28). The film shows how standing up for human rights can transform the lives of campaigners, as well as those they campaign for. women’s rights – afghanistan housing rights

Ahead of a key international conference Pressure from Amnesty helped in Bonn on Afghanistan’s future, Amnesty persuade the Kenyan authorities to called on participating governments let the residents of the Deep Sea to protect Afghan women’s rights, informal settlement rebuild their amid fears they would be traded away community after a devastating fire in attempts to make peace with the in March 2011. Settlements like

Taleban and other insurgent groups. Our © James Oatway / Panos Deep Sea are vulnerable to fires activists appealed directly to Foreign because of the poor construction of Secretary William Hague, urging him to homes, overcrowding and makeshift keep women’s rights high on the agenda electricity connections. Amnesty at Bonn. We also lobbied for women to called for emergency provision for be included in the Afghan delegations. homeless residents after authorities Afghan women made up half the civil society representation, while the failed to react except to block official delegation included 11 women and 39 men – a higher proportion any rebuilding by the residents than in previous such conferences. William Hague did refer to women’s themselves. The intervention rights in his conference statement. was part of Amnesty’s long-term campaign on housing rights. human rights worldwide

Amnesty International UK contributed £7.34 million to the global Amnesty International movement. This included a voluntary contribution of £300,000 – in addition to our existing financial commitment – intended to boost Amnesty’s work in Brazil and India.

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 7 Pursue and achieve human rights change through vibrant, focused and objective-led our campaigns strategic 1 direction Our work over the medium term is framed by our strategic direction 2011- 2016, which is in turn based on the integrated strategic plan of the Amnesty International global movement. For the full text increase net of our strategic directions income in order see www.amnesty.org.uk/ to support accountability Amnesty’s growth in the global south and to maintain key challenges the campaigning The key challenge for the effectiveness global movement is to achieve of AIUK significant and sustainable growth in the global south and east, where Amnesty International’s presence has 2 been too small for too long.

Increase our ability to raise awareness and educate in order to achieve human rights change, within the UK and internationally

8 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 Shape and deliver a more effective global movement 6 Such growth is essential for the organisation’s long-term relevance and human rights impact.

For Amnesty International UK, the key challenge is to increase our income to support the movement’s growth in the global south and east, while enabling us to maintain our campaigning work in the UK. We seek to develop a much Build the size, stronger fundraising focus, vibrancy and with the understanding that effectiveness fundraising and campaigning of support for are mutually supportive. amnesty in the UK

The work of Amnesty International UK focuses on six key strategic directions… 5

Become more efficient and effective as an organisation

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 9 our priorities in 2011

AIUK’s priorities for 2011 were we said we would... individuals at risk set out in our Operational Plan Ensure the Nicaraguan government we said we would… as targets for the year based on repeals the complete ban on all Secure positive changes in the lives the six strategic directions (see forms of abortion. of individuals at risk. previous page). current status: in progress. current status: achieved in A global display of solidarity with some cases; others in progress. charting our women and girls in Nicaragua Positive changes include the progress against the demanding an end to the total reduction of a prison sentence 2011 priorities abortion ban helped win support from 10 years to two, the release Some campaigns for human rights from some Nicaraguan politicians, from administrative detention of a change achieve their aims relatively but the ban remains in place. We 14-year-old held without charge for quickly. But sustained change on a continue to campaign on this issue. 10 months, the release of seven large scale often takes years. In many prisoners of conscience in Syria, and cases, Amnesty International keeps a forced evictions the temporary reduction in police campaign going as long as necessary we said we would… threats against a women’s human to achieve that change. And the Prevent three forced evictions, one in rights organisation in Zimbabwe. change, when it comes, is usually the Kenya, one in Nigeria and one in one More on page 22. result of a combined effort – not only other country. of Amnesty International, but also of current status: achieved. women’s human rights partners and allies, including people We prevented two forced evictions we said we would… directly affected by human rights in Ghana, one in Nigeria and one in Launch a new Women’s Human violations. Progress against selected Serbia; at the end of the year, the Rights Programme. key targets is reported here. Kenyan government announced current status: achieved. a halt to all evictions until legal Our new programme’s current measures could be put in place focus is on supporting women’s human rights to make sure residents are not left rights activists in the Middle East change homeless. Our work to prevent and North Africa, and pressing for forced evictions continues. recognition of women’s rights and We adjusted our campaign women’s participation in the peace programme during the year to security and human negotiations in Afghanistan. take account of developments in rights the Middle East and North Africa. we said we would… arms control Popular uprisings across the region Ensure that the UK inquiry into we said we would… opened up huge opportunities for alleged complicity in torture is Ensure that the UK government improvements in human rights, effective, thorough and human rights maintains its support for a meaningful even as attempts to suppress the compliant. Arms Trade Treaty. uprisings resulted in mass human current status: not achieved. current status: achieved. rights violations. Our work on the The Detainee Inquiry panel The UK government made strong region is described on pages 24-27. were willing to consider our statements at the Arms Trade Treaty recommendations and took part Preparatory Committee in February maternal health in a seminar we organised looking 2011, and took a reasonably strong we said we would... into best practice in the conduct of position in the UN General Assembly. Ensure the UK government maintains inquiries into torture and rendition. Later in the year, in the light of US its position as a global leader on However, the terms of the inquiry diplomatic pressure for a weaker ending maternal mortality. failed to comply with the UK’s treaty, we sought and received current status: achieved. international human rights obligations assurances from Foreign Secretary The Secretary of State for International and as a result Amnesty and William Hague that the UK would Development has spoken out on other organisations withdrew their maintain its position. We will sustain the importance of ending maternal cooperation. The postponement of pressure on the UK government until mortality; the UK government’s the inquiry provides an opportunity to the final treaty negotiations in July aims for the next four years include renew our efforts as the next stage. 2012. ‘saving the lives of 50,000 women in pregnancy and childbirth’.

10 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 corporate accountability we said we would… support for amnesty we said we would… Increase income from major donors in the uk Secure UK government support for by 11 per cent. the UN Special Representative’s current status: partly achieved. engage and motivate recommendations to the UN Human Income from individual major donors our supporters Rights Council on business and increased by 15 per cent, but income we said we would… human and rights. from trusts and companies fell. Relaunch the amnesty.org.uk current status: achieved. website. The Human Rights Council adopted current status: not achieved in the UN Special Representative’s education and 2011. See page 37. recommended Guiding Principles awareness-raising in June. The UK Foreign and we said we would… Commonwealth Office asked awareness-raising Develop a new programme of audio- Amnesty International UK to convene we said we would… visual and other content. an NGO forum to consider their Use Amnesty’s 50th birthday to current status: achieved. implementation. motivate and inspire supporters and Amnesty TV was launched in July raise visibility. 2011. See page 36. refugees and asylum current status: achieved. we said we would… Amnesty groups around the UK Through participation in the ‘Still organised hundreds of birthday efficient and Human, Still Here’ coalition, end the events; national and local print effectiVe destitution of refused asylum seekers and broadcast media covered the organisation until they are given permission to anniversary. See page 36. stay or leave the UK. improve our service to current status: in progress. supporters Access to hospital care and the right effectiVe global we said we would… to work have been achieved for some moVement Use our new supporter database categories of refused asylum seekers. effectively across the organisation. global initiatives current status: partly achieved. the death penalty we said we would… The MASCOT database is in use we said we would… Deliver a successful programme of across the organisation, and a Prevent the execution of Troy Davis. international artist activity related to One Stop Shop for supporters is in not achieved. See pages 28-31. our 50th anniversary through the Art development. for Amnesty project. current status: achieved. gender equality increase AIUK managed the global Art for we said we would… net income Amnesty project, whose partnerships Recruit a dedicated staffing resource with artists publicised Amnesty and adopt a strategic training plan. supporter recruitment International’s human rights work to a current status: achieved. we said we would… global audience of millions. A Gender Mainstreaming Manager Increase our supporter base by has been appointed and a new 5 per cent, by recruiting 38,000 new financial contribution gender action plan, development supporters. we said we would… plan and communications plan have current status: partly achieved. Make an additional voluntary been adopted. We recruited 31,596 new supporters contribution to the international during the year. See page 39. movement of £300,000, in addition financial efficiency to the agreed grant contribution of we said we would… income £6.7 million. Bring manageable costs in under we said we would... current status: achieved. budget by £250,000. Generate net income of £15.3 million. current status: achieved. current status: achieved. Our net income for 2011 was £15.6 million.

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 11 O ur Human Rights Work Amnesty International exists to campaign for human rights change that has a direct impact on people’s lives. Our campaigning is backed by education and awareness-raising work seeking to build understanding and support for human rights in a wider society beyond our committed base of supporters.

It is always a challenge to do justice to the full range of Amnesty’s human rights work in an annual report. We take action on a wide array of issues, on dozens of individual cases, and progress in our campaigns rarely comes at neat yearly intervals. This report gives a flavour of the range of our campaigns on pages 14-15, and some examples of our work on individual cases on pages 22-23.

2011 was Amnesty International’s 50th anniversary. We have therefore chosen, for this year’s report, to present a longer view of our human rights work, showing how it has developed in response to changes in the world around us, and how a small group of people campaigning on behalf of prisoners of conscience eventually grew into the world’s biggest non-governmental human rights organisation.

To bring that story up to date, we then focus on two of our key campaigns during 2011: our response to the upheavals in the Middle East and North Africa, where demands for human rights change met with violence and repression, and our long-term campaign to abolish the death penalty worldwide.

Backing demands for human rights in the Middle East and North Africa © Ben Smith

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 13 campaign spectrum

end forced maternal health indiViduals at risk eVictions

Amnesty’s Poverty and Human Pregnancy kills one woman Working with individuals directly Rights work includes campaigning every minute – 95 per cent of affected by human rights abuses against housing rights violations these deaths occur in developing remains at the core of Amnesty’s and supporting victims of forced countries thanks to poverty, work. We campaign tirelessly evictions. In 2011, we took action inequality and discrimination, for prisoners of conscience, in Italy, Serbia, Egypt, Kenya, and almost all are preventable. human rights defenders, the Nigeria and Angola. Amnesty’s campaign holds states ‘disappeared’ and victims of other responsible for reducing maternal abuses, and also tackle the root See Our deaths. causes of human rights violations. Priorities page 10 See Our Priorities page 10 See Our Priorities page 10 See page 22

women’s human amnesty at 50 refugees and rights asylum

Amnesty champions the rights of Amnesty’s 50th anniversary was Amnesty aims to bring about a fair women and girls around the world. an opportunity to tell people and effective asylum system in the In 2011, we had notable campaign about our work, to celebrate UK. Our report into private security successes when the UK and all that we have achieved since contractors using potentially lethal Welsh governments took action 1961, and to reflect on the restraint techniques during enforced to provide greater support for human rights challenges that removals prompted the UK Border survivors of domestic violence. face us today. Agency to improve training. We also helped to prevent the removal of a See Spotlight page 6-7 See page 16 group of refused asylum seekers See Our Priorities page 10 from Iraq.

See Spotlight page 6 See Our Priorities page 11

focus

education and justice for gaza security and awareness-raising and southern israel human rights

Amnesty works with schools Amnesty campaigns for victims Amnesty campaigns against to help young people gain an of the armed conflict in Gaza and human rights violations committed understanding of human rights. southern Israel, where both sides in the name of national security. We We produce an annual education have failed to investigate war welcomed the UK government’s pack for use in the classroom, crimes properly. In 2011, we joined 2011 decision to revert to a 14-day offer speakers for assemblies, a global Amnesty day of action, limit on detention without charge and provide training. Raising calling for the case to be referred (down from 28 days), but the awareness about our work – for to the International Criminal Court. replacement of control riders with example through the media and its new Terrorism Prevention and cultural activities – is another Investigation Measures, failed to key activity. alleviate concerns.

See page 32 See Our Priorities page 10

14 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 corporate burma ending the death accountability penalty

Amnesty helps to hold companies Our Burma campaign focused on In 2011, our campaign to end to account for the human rights the release of political prisoners. capital punishment saw action impact of their actions. In 2011, We also delivered 14,000 radios against death by stoning in Iran we exposed the failure of Vedanta to help people in rural Burma and intensified efforts to stay the Resources to provide accurate access uncensored information. execution of Troy Davis. Although information about the potential By the end of 2011 more than we tragically failed to save effects of its proposed mining 100 political prisoners had been Troy, the campaign generated and refinery projects in India, and released and hundreds more were unprecedented global attention for called on Shell to clean up and freed in January 2012. the anti-death penalty cause. compensate for massive oil leaks in the Niger Delta. See page 28 See Our Priorities page 11

focus raising funds lgbt and scottish uganda gypsy traVellers Everything we do – from Our Lesbian, Gay, Urgent Actions to research and Bisexual and Amnesty has worked campaigning – depends on the Transgender (LGBT) Network since 2009 to tackle discrimination hard work of our fundraisers and exposes human rights abuses and against Scottish Gypsy Travellers. the generosity of our supporters. challenges governments to protect In 2011 we urged the Scottish These funds also support the LGBT people. In 2011, we acted government to take the lead wider Amnesty global movement. to defend LGBT rights in Uganda, in addressing prejudice, and where a new bill sought to punish gathered evidence about local See page 38 ‘aggravated homosexuality’ with authority service provision, for the death penalty. publication in 2012.

arms control human rights: middle east and an election issue north africa

After 20 years of campaigning, During the May 2011 elections to As uprisings unfolded across the Amnesty stepped up its work on the UK’s devolved assemblies, region in 2011, Amnesty helped the Arms Trade Treaty in 2011 Amnesty invited political expose brutality against peaceful ahead of the final negotiations candidates to pledge support for protesters and other civilians, and in 2012. This is a priority in our human rights demands. More than laid the groundwork for lasting ongoing work to prevent the two-thirds of Scottish MSPs gave human rights improvements. We supply of weapons, equipment and their support, as did 63 per cent drafted manifestos for human training to armed forces when there of winning candidates in Wales. rights reform and urged electoral is a substantial risk they will be In Northern Ireland the Amnesty candidates to support them. used to abuse human rights. pledge won support from all parts of the political spectrum. See page 24 for See Our more on our work Priorities in this region page 10

focus

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 15 focus: amnesty at 50 – a work in progress the birth of a moVement Amnesty International has changed phenomenally since it was founded in London by the lawyer Peter Benenson more than 50 years ago.

Its support has grown from a handful of influential British lawyers and journalists to a grassroots organisation with more than three million supporters in more than 150 countries and territories.

It has at its disposal financial and technical resources undreamed of by its founders and has expanded its campaigning to the extent that it is now recognised as the world’s foremost human rights organisation.

Yet, at heart, the modern Amnesty’s principles, purpose and practices remain the same as they were in 1961.

Amnesty’s great strength has always been its activism: individuals standing up for the rights of others across national boundaries and political divides. This remains at the heart of Amnesty’s work.

From the beginning Amnesty has maintained a reputation for meticulous, accurate research, political neutrality and impartiality.

This gives the organisation a moral authority which means it is listened to, even by those who would rather not hear what it has to say. The protection of individual prisoners of conscience has been from the beginning at the forefront of everything it does. In the early years Amnesty quickly branched out into campaigning on specific Burmese activist Wai Hnin Pwint issues, in particular torture and Thou, daughter of prisoner of the death penalty, in recognition of conscience Ko Mya Aye, and Manya Benenson, granddaughter the fact that human rights abuses of Amnesty’s founder, light a candle against individuals would continue to on the 50th anniversary of Amnesty International © AI proliferate until such practices were

16 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 Peter Benenson, founder of Amnesty International

outlawed everywhere. It has since expanded its campaigning to include many other issues which impinge on the human rights of individuals and groups, such as arms control, indigenous rights, poverty and violence against women.

Amnesty’s great strength has always been its activism: individuals standing up for the rights of others across national boundaries and political divides. This remains at the core of Amnesty’s work.

The technology has moved far beyond pen and paper alone, but what proved effective in 1961 is effective now: publicity on behalf of individuals and groups creates pressure on governments and 1961 was the height of the Cold a given country exposed other forms corporations to change their War. Many of the early POCs were of repression facing the people for behaviour. That used to be generated detained in countries of the former whom Amnesty was working. In mostly by activists writing letters; Soviet bloc in Eastern Europe. Many Guatemala, Amnesty’s investigations today they also Tweet, blog, email more were engaged in anti-colonial led to the conclusion that there and Facebook. protests in Africa and Asia. Others were ‘no political prisoners, only were imprisoned by authoritarian political killings’. Pressure created regimes in South America or by Amnesty campaigns occasionally the work apartheid South Africa. backfired. In Malawi, President- In November 1960 Peter Benenson for-Life Hastings Banda promised told friends he’d read a newspaper The first key step to expand this remit to punish any prisoner named by article about two Portuguese was prompted by the case of Nelson Amnesty. students who, in a Lisbon bar one Mandela. At his first trial, Mandela was evening, raised a ‘toast to freedom’. identified and supported as a POC, Amnesty’s response was to produce Under dictator António Salazar’s ‘peacefully expressing his political country reports, without naming regime, they were reported to beliefs’. But he was later convicted individual prisoners. In the longer the authorities and sentenced to of offences including sabotage and term Amnesty expanded its work to seven years in prison. The absurd sentenced to life imprisonment. include related forms of repression response to this so-called offence International pressure helped avert such as extrajudicial executions and moved Benenson to write an article, the death penalty Mandela and his disappearances. From the earliest ‘The Forgotten Prisoners’ which co-accused faced, but Amnesty was days, Amnesty’s annual global was published in The Observer in left with the dilemma of how to deal report has been recognised as an May 1961. It urged readers to write with political prisoners who do not fit authoritative country-by-country letters on behalf of ‘prisoners of the POC definition. Members voted summary of the human rights conscience’(POCs) – a term coined to compromise: Amnesty would work situation around the world. by Benenson to describe those for the unconditional release of POCs imprisoned around the world for only, and for fair trials for all political For much of the first 30 years, peacefully expressing their political, prisoners. Amnesty worked to a mandate which moral or religious beliefs. As well defined the issues and people in its as the protection of persecuted Work on POCs and political remit: campaigning for the release individuals, Benenson said, Amnesty imprisonment led to a broader of POCs and fair trials for political was to stand for the ‘defence of concern with political and social prisoners, against torture and (from freedom of opinion and religion’. context. Investigating conditions in 1977) the death penalty, and, from

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 17 amnesty international at 50 continued

the mid-80s, work with refugees and The introduction of ‘promotional The 1990s turned out to be a asylum seekers. work’ on all human rights, as well decade of increasing instability and as ‘oppositional’ work on abuses fragmentation of states. Armed In the 1980s a shift away from against individuals and groups, led to conflicts erupted in the former dictatorship began in Latin America, Amnesty’s first campaign in support USSR. There were mass killings of leading to a reduction in the number of women’s rights, launched in 1994. civilians in the former Yugoslavia and of POCs. People Amnesty had Rwanda. The peoples of Afghanistan campaigned for in the region had The international debt crisis had led and Somalia fell prey to warlords as new pressing human rights concerns: to international financial institutions, states crumbled. searching for the ‘disappeared’, dominated by richer ‘Northern’ achieving justice for past wrongs and countries, forcing poorer ‘Southern’ In the second half of the decade, how to respond to former military governments to slash spending on Amnesty found that imprisonment leaders who sometimes returned to health, education and housing. They of POCs had declined, especially power as civilian politicians. were urged to open up their domestic in Latin America and Eastern markets and remove agricultural Europe, and fewer countries were At the end of the 1980s the sweeping subsidies. At the same time, many resorting to longterm imprisonment political changes in Eastern Europe NGOs and academics argued of POCs. But there was no sign of and the USSR transformed the global that poverty was not a ‘natural’ a let-up in torture and extrajudicial human rights landscape. It led to phenomenon or caused by the executions. Torture, Amnesty found, deeper changes in Amnesty’s work. personal inadequacy of the poor, but was overwhelmingly associated with During the Cold War, the eastern and was the result of policy choices. armed conflict, as were extrajudicial western blocs had traded tit-for-tat executions to a lesser extent. accusations of failures to protect After 1991 Amnesty started Human rights abuses by armed human rights. The West focused on addressing ‘targets’ other than opposition groups, including mass the lack of civil and political rights governments and armed opposition killing and displacement, were on for citizens of the Eastern bloc, groups. This opened the way for the rise, especially where states had while the East accused the West of work on business and human collapsed and conflicts were linked deficiencies in economic, social and rights, pioneered by Amnesty’s UK to ethnic and religious divisions. cultural rights. and Netherlands sections. Initially this took a ‘promotional’ form, In 2001 Amnesty’s scope of With the end of the Cold War, there approaching the representatives work expanded again, to include was an opportunity to revive the of large companies to explain their campaigning to end attacks on vision of the Universal Declaration of human rights responsibilities and civilians in armed conflict; ending Human Rights (UDHR), giving equal warn of the risk to their reputation if impunity for human rights abuses; value to both sets of rights. they continued to operate in places ending forced exile, mass expulsion and in ways which linked them to and the destruction of homes; and In 1991 Amnesty broadened its abuses of human rights. ending abuses against women in the scope further, pledging to promote family. This latter element opened all the rights enshrined in the Concern with finance, business and the way for a six-year Stop Violence UDHR. The 1993 International human rights had been growing since Against Women campaign, which in Conference on Human Rights in the 1980s. The execution in 1995 turn had its roots in Amnesty’s first Vienna reaffirmed the universality of Ken Saro-Wiwa and other Ogoni campaign for women’s rights in 1994. and indivisibility of all human rights. people, who had challenged Shell The conference and preparatory over the impact of its oil operations The 9/11 attacks on the USA brought regional meetings brought together in the Niger Delta, brought these Amnesty’s traditional concerns governments and NGOs. Amnesty issues sharply into focus. Later, as with political repression to the fore had previously been reluctant to work the UN began to consider human once more. In the name of a ‘war with other organisations, but now rights standards for corporations, on terror’, governments around found itself part of a global human Amnesty’s work on business and the world followed the US lead in rights movement in which it was the human rights shifted focus to extending powers to detain suspects largest and probably the best-known campaigning for regulatory standards without trial, reduce the fairness of component. and corporate accountability. trials and torture or collude in the torture of suspects.

18 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 By 2007, Amnesty’s mission covered a full spectrum of human rights. In 2009 Amnesty launched ‘Demand Dignity’ its first global campaign on poverty and human rights. the methods In the 1960s virtually all of Amnesty’s campaigning concerned individual POCs. Today such casework continues alongside a range of campaigns on broader issues, including arms control, maternal health and forced evictions.

Although Amnesty seldom claims sole credit as an organisation for the release of individuals, it is beyond dispute that Amnesty activists have played an important part in the release of thousands of POCs over help secure systemic change in decentralisation the years. human rights. These priority long- Global political change and new term cases would run alongside work communications technology mean As well as directly helping persecuted on urgent cases requiring immediate that it is neither necessary nor individuals, such casework gives response to protect people from desirable for Amnesty International’s a human face to campaign issues. imminent danger. global centre of operations to be It shows ‘human rights’ is about heavily concentrated in London. The real people and not just an abstract Amnesty International UK’s efforts majority of human rights abuses concept. It has remained the to systematise and improve work for are in the global South and East. backbone of Amnesty’s research, individuals at risk helped re-shape Amnesty researchers need to be campaigning, educational and the global movement’s approach closer to the ground. fundraising work, even as the scope to casework. The new approach of the work has broadened and new helped secure positive outcomes for The world is no longer dominated campaigns on countries and issues hundreds of people. But it did not by two superpowers. Emerging were launched. always create significant systemic powers – the so-called ‘Brics’, after change. Amnesty International UK Brazil, Russia, India and China – are By 2005, Amnesty International UK is now developing a programme to growing in international influence. had started to systematise casework, protect and support human rights They can and should have key roles creating an ‘Individuals at Risk’ defenders (HRDs) around the world. in maintaining human rights at home programme and taking a strategic The work of local HRDs is the key to and internationally. approach. It aimed to protect human rights change – as shown by particular individuals by securing developments in the Middle East and De-concentrating Amnesty’s centre improvements in their welfare, while North Africa. But in many places they of operations has been on the tackling the root causes of human are in danger because of their work. agenda for more than a decade, rights abuses that affected many Protecting and supporting people but is now becoming a reality, with other people too. For Amnesty who defend the rights of others has a moves to set up Amnesty ‘hubs’ in International UK this led to the cascading effect that ultimately helps Brazil and India. introduction of more formal criteria protect the rights of many others. for selecting cases. Thirty or forty Looking ahead, this will run alongside cases would be chosen for longterm work on a broad range of cases, led work, becoming ‘emblematic’ cases, by key activists. in which example and publicity could

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 19 amnesty international at 50 continued

the money the wider global movement. Some persuade the UK government, and Financial independence has always feared that close association with the Welsh Assembly government, to been important to Amnesty as trade unions could compromise adopt comprehensive and coherent a guarantor of its reputation for Amnesty’s political impartiality. Would strategies to end all forms of violence impartiality. From the 1960s, a the size of trade union organisations against women. policy was firmly established that swamp Amnesty, and allow it to be Amnesty would take no money dominated? At international level, working in from governments for research or partnership with much smaller campaigning, although it would Such concerns led to the formulation community-based organisations has accept government money for human of constitutional rules to regulate become a key element of Amnesty’s rights education and relief work. As union involvement in policy and limit work on poverty and human rights. a result, fundraising has relied mainly its scope. Affiliated trade unions have Amnesty always sought to discover on membership subscriptions and been part of Amnesty International the views and stories of people donations. UK ever since, working on cases affected by human rights abuse. Now of persecuted trade unionists and it is embedding those stories and The need to raise funds from a range on broader human rights issues. views in its campaign plans. of sources led Amnesty into many Eventually Amnesty International This encouragement of active innovative forms of fundraising, UK helped develop the global participation is a way of ensuring notably Amnesty International UK’s movement’s work on labour rights Amnesty’s accountability to people Secret Policeman’s Balls, a series of and its partnerships with international whose rights it seeks to defend. It comedy and music shows, beginning TU movement. enables them to influence processes in 1976, which helped popularise the and decisions that affect their lives. organisation among a wider public. By the 1990s there were many more human rights organisations The legitimacy of Amnesty’s work Today Amnesty International UK has in existence and many NGOs, still rests partly on its impartiality professionalised fundraising work, especially development agencies, and independence. These are using a range of techniques, from were beginning to develop rights- now supported by a commitment direct mail and street recruitment based approaches to their own work to international human rights to applications to trusts and with individuals and communities. law; a democratic organisation foundations. Fundraising by activists The policy of ‘going it alone’ whose highest decision-making in communities, schools and increasingly seemed potentially body includes members from campuses is a key source of income. counter-productive. Amnesty worked different parts of the world; and the in a coalition of organisations that commitment of individual members successfully campaigned for the to the principles of impartiality and partnerships establishment of an International independence. For many years, Amnesty tried to Criminal Court. The lesson learned guard its independence by working was that joint action with other Today Amnesty’s legitimacy rests alone. It rarely worked jointly with organisations could be valuable and also on accountability to supporters, other organisations and took care to effective. Other joint campaigns partners, the general public, and to distance itself from the beliefs of the followed, such as the international the people whose rights it seeks to prisoners it campaigned for. Control Arms campaign for an defend. international Arms Trade Treaty. An early exception was Amnesty International UK’s work with the trade The Stop Violence Against Women measuring success union movement. In 1979 Amnesty (SVAW) campaign took Amnesty The first Amnesty Annual Report, International UK voted to allow trade International UK’s work with other published in 1962, said: ‘There unions to join as affiliate members organisations in a new direction. are no concrete or tangible terms and launched its trade union This was an area where Amnesty, by which Amnesty can claim network, based on shared opposition despite its size and resources, had success. If a prisoner is released or to suppression and persecution of far less expertise than many women’s a general amnesty proclaimed after trade unionists, and common values organisations. Amnesty helped to some publicity about conditions of solidarity. It was controversial, establish the End Violence Against in a country, we can only note the not only in the UK section but in Women coalition, which went on to coincidence. We cannot say that

20 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 Artists from all over the world have contributed their talent to promote Amnesty’s work, including Pablo Picasso (right). To mark the 50th anniversary, a selection of 50 posters were selected for international exhibition.

Below right: Amnesty International receives the Nobel Peace Prize, 1977 © Norsk Telegrambyra

Amnesty was directly responsible. In the 12 months that Amnesty has been working, however, there have been enough coincidences to make us feel that what we are doing is having some influence.’ Fifty years and thousands of ‘coincidences’ later, are we any nearer to being able to measure and prove success?

People with power are often reluctant to acknowledge that they have been influenced by a campaign. But when a government meets our campaign demands after a sustained lobbying effort (as happened with the UK government in our SVAW campaign), there are reasonable grounds to claim it as an achievement.

Over the years, we have had a number of important indicators of success: • People whose rights we helped to defend, their families and lawyers have said they believed our actions helped them. • Governments complained about our statements and actions – a sign that campaigning was having an effect. • Amnesty’s role has been widely acknowledged by international institutions, including the Nobel Peace Prize (1977).

Amnesty International UK wants to increase its effectiveness for people subjected to human rights abuse, learn more from its experiences, and account to supporters for use of their funds, so we are constantly making efforts at more systematic evaluation of our human rights work. This remains a work in progress.

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 21 indiViduals at risk

From its beginnings, Amnesty International campaigned for people directly affected usa morocco usa - o usa - i s c haun hekib by human rights abuses. Over the past 50 Executions haltedDeath penaltyDeath abolished sentence commuted Released llinois stateh e years, our focus broadened from prisoners of regon state awkins l-k conscience to a much wider range of people, hiari including the victims and survivors of enforced disappearance, torture, forced eviction, violence against women, as well as the activists, lawyers, journalists and trade unionists who put their lives on the line to defend human rights.

We call these people ‘individuals at risk’. meX inés Governmentico took responsibility for rapes f Our work on their behalf aims to end the abuse directed at ernández individuals and communities and provide them with moral o and practical support to help them combat the abuse and rtega & Valentina r overcome its effects.

To achieve this, we use two basic approaches: • Urgent Action (UA) – mobilising activists and supporters osendo to send an appeal immediately to protect someone in

imminent danger of torture, execution or other serious c antú abuse • Long-term casework – sustained campaigning using a range of methods

In 2011, our objectives were: • to mobilise our Urgent Action Network to act on all the urgent cases issued by the International Secretariat, and

to prioritise some of these for additional media exposure paraguay y ake and advocacy; Ancestral lands restored a • to secure positive change in the lives of individuals at risk xa through our long-term casework. indigenous

Over the year, we mobilised the UA Network to respond p eoples to 100 per cent of the Urgent Actions issued by the International Secretariat and took additional action on a number of cases. The network, which grew by 2 per cent in 2011 to almost 10,000 members, took action on 369 new UA cases. See the map for some of the outcomes.

We also saw progress in a number of our long-term cases (see map). Towards the end of the year, to mark Amnesty’s 50th anniversary, we reinforced our annual Greetings Card write for rights 2011 Campaign (intended to raise the spirits of individuals at risk • Appeal-writing events in 83 countries and their families) by combining it with participation in a • Over a million appeal letters sent worldwide global appeal-writing campaign known as Write for Rights. • Over 200 letter-writing events in the UK • More than 123 UK schools took part

22 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 russia n Murderatalia investIgation now targeting police

e stemirova

syria s even Released

p risoners of c

azerbaijan azerbaijan j e abbar ynulla Released Released bangladesh onscience s hampa s f Threats investigated avalan atullayev china g oswami a l Releasedw eiwei

egypt m Releasedohammed

e l s harkawi

iran m Releasedansoureh on bail

india nigeria z burma burma burma affar p b Released z s z atrick ehkish aw u arganar Sentence reduced Released Releaseds Released s h u hafi tet n o way koroafor k h o akeem ko

sudan a Releasedbuzar

a l a min

eQ f ive prisonersuatorial of conscience Released

guinea

angola a Forcedrco eviction stopped iris community zimbabwe w Betteromen treatment of z by prison guards

imbabwe

a rise

It is impossible to give details of all the cases we worked on in 2011 without making this report much

longer. The map shows a selection of casework cases rights where we believe our work made a positive action for difference to the lives of individuals at risk. term For more information about our casework see long- urgent write www.amnesty.org.uk/iar Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 23 focus: middle east and north africa

The largely peaceful protests that erupted in Tunisia in December 2010 and then spread across the Middle East and North Africa in 2011 were born out of years of oppression, human rights violations, misrule and corruption. These uprisings, which attracted global media attention, were met with a violent crackdown from the police and security forces. At least 840 people were killed and more than 6,000 injured in the Egyptian revolution, mostly by security forces and ‘thugs’ hired by the authorities; in Syria, more than 3,800 people, including 200 children, were reported to have died in the crackdown in 2011.

Amnesty’s response to the uprisings was to defend basic civil and political rights, which were under intensified threat from repressive governments, and work to ensure human rights for all, including women and minority groups.

a cycle of repression The uprisings were the result of a number of factors. Political power in the region was concentrated, and in many countries a vicious cycle existed: reform proposals were seen as criticism of the regime and were repressed, which preserved the status quo. International support also helped regimes to stay in power, with countries such as the UK and the USA putting security and economic interests above human rights. Decades of Amnesty research in the region revealed widespread cases of arbitrary detention, torture, enforced disappearances, media censorship, discrimination against women and entrenched gender inequality, repression of human rights defenders, poverty, repression of trade union rights, and discrimination against migrant workers. For example: • From May 1979 to April 1980, Supporting peaceful protesters Amnesty worked on behalf of more in Egypt, Trafalgar Square, February 2011 © Ben Smith than 800 individual prisoners in the

24 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 Demonstration against continued military rule, Tahrir Square, Cairo, November 2011 © AP

region, because of concerns over torture, detention without trial and unfair trials. • In the mid-1990s hundreds of political prisoners were held in Libya, many of them detained for more than a decade without charge or trial. • At the end of 1994 in Bahrain, thousands of men, women and children were arrested and hundreds convicted in unfair trials, following demonstrations calling on the government to restore the National solidarity and victims of repression in a wider range Assembly dissolved in 1975. defiance of countries, including Bahrain, Iraq • In 2004 an Amnesty report revealed As soon as the scale of the unrest and the United Arab Emirates, and that 16 states in the region had sweeping across the Middle East our media work sought to promote opted out of key provisions of the and North Africa became clear, International Secretariat reports that Convention to Eliminate all forms Amnesty International triggered its covered most of the countries in the of Discrimination Against Women, ‘crisis response mode’. This meant region. We set out to create massive thus effectively sustaining gender it could divert additional resources international pressure through the discrimination and denying women to enable the organization to UN and the EU to stop the worst protection from violence. increase its monitoring of human human rights abuses and to ensure • In late 2010 in Egypt, at least 1,200 rights developments in the region accountability for violations already Muslim Brotherhood supporters and step up its campaigning. With committed. We also aimed to promote and parliamentary candidates were developments moving so quickly on freedom of expression, assembly and detained ahead of elections. the ground – including rapid shifts protest, and secure a greater role for • In Tunisia, between 2003 and 2010, in political power and high demand women in public life and the political around 2,000 people were convicted for action on individual cases – it and reform processes. under anti-terrorism laws; many were was not possible to develop an tried and sentenced in absentia in elaborate strategy. In early 2011, More specifically, our objectives trials that failed to meet international we demonstrated – in solidarity with were to: standards. peaceful protesters, particularly • ensure media coverage of human • In Syria a ‘state of emergency’ those demanding an end to poverty, rights violations remained in force for 48 years. It was corruption, discrimination and • push for a strong Arms Trade Treaty only lifted in 2011. repression – campaigned for basic to prevent delivery of weapons, human rights, and exposed and munitions and related equipment to opposed human rights violations used human rights abusers crisis and opportunity to suppress peaceful opposition. As • persuade the UK government to Amnesty has worked on human rights the year progressed, we developed press for the protection of human in the Middle East and North Africa for a comprehensive agenda for change rights across the region, and 50 years. The uprisings demonstrated – outlining the human rights reforms persuade civil society groups, that large numbers of people, young needed in countries whose leaders governments and businesses to people and women in particular, were had been overthrown. Although they prioritise women’s rights prepared to act – at great personal varied slightly from country to country, • ensure referral of Libya and Syria to risk – to achieve change. The removal common points included: the International Criminal Court of longstanding rulers in Tunisia and • security sector reform • convince political parties in Tunisia Egypt opened up space for reform • reining in the security forces and Egypt to include human rights and spurred mass protest in cities and • reform of the justice system principles in their manifestos towns across the region. The demands • combating discrimination • build the capacity of women human of the protesters were for an end to • abolition of the death penalty. rights defenders in Egypt by giving poverty, corruption and unaccountable them a platform at key UK political state power. They were calling for a Our focus was on Egypt, Libya and party conferences and trade union human rights revolution. Syria, but we also campaigned for events.

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 25 middle east and north africa continued

forces for change document and publicise human were ending the death penalty and Peaceful protest – by human rights rights violations in the Middle East respecting women’s rights. defenders, women’s organisations, and North Africa (MENA), and independent trade unions, and lobby governments, international The introduction of a secret Saudi millions of ordinary people – was the organisations and others to take Arabian anti-terror law classifying main driver for change in the region. action. dissent as terrorism was delayed Although armed resistance helped after Amnesty leaked the policy to to oust repressive regimes, it did not Amnesty’s first-hand research helped the international media. necessarily improve human rights. to establish the veracity of claims International pressure and intervention about human rights abuses and However, the UK refused to take had the potential to advance change violations. For example, we revealed in Libyan refugees, and European by deterring a brutal response to the use of cluster bombs and anti- countries offered fewer than 800 protests, or to obstruct it by supporting personnel mines by pro-regime forces resettlement places in total. At least rulers. Diaspora communities also in Libya, and kept a register of names 1,500 people from the MENA region played an important role. of people killed in Syria. Media work are estimated to have drowned by Amnesty UK helped to bring the in 2011 while attempting the sea Engaging with diaspora groups was research to public attention. crossing to Europe. critically important to our emerging strategy in the region. We worked with In February 2011, after lobbying We made limited progress in holding Syrian activists in the UK to meet our from Amnesty and other groups, governments to account for human shared campaigning objectives, take the UK government revoked over rights violations. Libya was referred our human rights message to a wider 50 arms licences for Bahrain and to the International Criminal Court, audience, particularly inside Syria, and Libya and put all arms transfers to but Muammar al-Gaddafi was killed, ensure they were better enabled to the region under review. In the same in circumstances that may have defend their own and others rights. month, the UN Security Council constituted a war crime, rather than voted unanimously to impose an brought to justice. Measures to rein To effect change, Amnesty UK arms embargo on Libya and refer the in the Syrian regime were obstructed worked closely with the International situation to the International Criminal in the UN Security Council. Amnesty Secretariat, Egyptian human rights Court, within days of Amnesty asking specifically targeted Brazil, India defenders, women’s organisations for the measures. However, there was and South Africa, lobbying them and trade unions, Syrian human rights no discussion in the UN or the EU to support tough UN resolutions. defenders and peaceful opposition on sanctions against Bahrain, Saudi However, all three abstained from a groups, and Egyptian, Libyan and Arabia or Yemen, and the UN failed to Security Council vote on the issue in Syrian diaspora organisations in the act effectively on Syria. October 2011. UK. In Egypt, despite our efforts, human We mobilised activists in the UK These relationships have been fruitful rights violations against protesters to show solidarity with peaceful in ensuring we get a range of credible continued after the revolution, and protestors and assisted Egyptian information on the situation in the women were excluded from the women’s rights activists in their search region; also the awareness of who committee formulating amendments for international support. Amnesty’s we are and what we do has spread to the constitution. research and media work encouraged throughout relevant countries. The the international media coverage of support of local activists and an After the October 2011 elections, the region to focus on human rights. awareness of all Amnesty has been Tunisia’s interim president Moncef doing to promote and protect human Marzouki signed the Amnesty News of our plans for a Global Day rights in the region will be an important Manifesto for Change, pledging of Action on February 2011 boosted factor in our future engagement in the to uphold its key human rights the morale of Egyptian activists. In Middle East and North Africa. measures. Tunisia became the the event, it took place the day after 116th State Party to the Rome Hosni Mubarak was ousted, enabling Statute of the International Criminal thousands of people worldwide to what did we achieVe? Court. Egypt’s political parties also publicly celebrate the victories of the We played a key role in the global supported parts of the Manifesto people of Egypt and Tunisia. Amnesty movement’s efforts to for Change: the main sticking points

26 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 Syria Tunisia

tunisia - s mohamed middle east and north africa idi Egypt 2011 bouazizib ouzid Libya TUnISIA: After Mohamed Bahrain Bonazizi, a vegetable seller, set himself on fire in an act of protest, peaceful demonstrations ousted President Ben Ali and the country’s first real multi-party election took place in October 2011.

Libya: After the country slid into armed conflict, international YEMEn: The president’s obstinate intervention tipped the scales refusal until almost the end of the Yemen against the Gaddafi regime. year to stand down, despite mass protests and increasing repression SYRIA: Faced with unprecedented and violence, exacerbated deep demands for change, President social, political and economic Bashar al-Assad unleashed problems. relentless and massive force to crush the protests. BAHRAIn: The rulers, backed by Saudi Arabia, suppressed protests EGYPT: Peaceful protest triumphed by force, but ended the year with a over President Hosni Mubarak, promise of reform, reparation and albeit at heavy human cost. reconciliation.

Our Syria photo stunt and in the United Arab Emirates after for human rights abuses, and greater demonstration helped Syrian activists calling for democracy) were released participation in political processes in UK to show their support for following an Amnesty campaign at particularly from women. demands for peaceful change. We the Edinburgh Festival. also collected more than 165,000 • We will work with activists from signatures on a global petition calling The events of 2011 taught us that the primarily Syria to ensure they are for an end to the bloodshed in Syria. removal of repressive rulers does not empowered and mobilised to meet Amnesty UK worked with Egyptian automatically lead to human rights our shared campaigning objectives, women activists giving them a platform change. We have seen some positive take our human rights messages at UK political party conferences in steps. For example, in Tunisia parties out to a wider audience and will be autumn 2011. We helped to facilitate voted into power in elections could better enabled to defend their own the diaspora organisations British be voted out again, there was more and others rights. Solidarity for Syria and the New Egypt media freedom, and people were • Through our crisis work, we will Foundation, assisting them with able to demonstrate. Libyans enjoyed make visible any human rights organising public events, and also far greater freedom of expression, violations/abuses that occur by any assisted Women for Libya group. and numerous new civil society party to the Syrian crisis as a step organisations, political groups and towards them being held to account. Our work for individuals at risk in the media outlets sprang up. By the end • We will work with human rights region had some success. At least of the year, however, many problems defenders in Egypt to ensure they 16 individuals were released from and human rights concerns remained. are better enabled to practice the detention, including Ayat Alqormozi, right to freedom of expression, who was imprisoned after reading a association, and assembly. poem at a pro-reform rally in Bahrain, neXt steps • We will continue to engage the UK and Maikel Nabil Sanad, an Egyptian For 2012, Amnesty UK planned to government on a range of countries blogger sentenced to three years concentrate on helping to bring about in the region with a particular after a military trial in April 2011. The human rights reform that would lead to emphasis on improving the human ‘UAE 5’ (five men who were detained increased freedoms, real accountability rights situation in Libya.

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 27 focus: death penalty

Amnesty aims to abolish the death penalty worldwide while working to save the lives of individuals under sentence of death.

inhuman, degrading, irreVersible Amnesty opposes the death penalty for many reasons. It violates two fundamental human rights: the right to life and the right not to be subjected to torture, or cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment. The death penalty is irreversible. Innocent people have been executed: since 1973, 140 death row inmates in the USA have been exonerated, and many others executed despite serious doubts about their guilt. The death penalty brutalises those who carry it out, but fails to deter crime any more effectively than other punishments. A New York Times survey in 2000 found the homicide rate during the previous 20 years in US states with the death penalty was 48 to 101 per cent higher than in states without it. In 2008, FBI data showed that all 14 states without the death penalty had homicide rates at or below the national rate.

During more than three decades of research, Amnesty has tracked other problems with the way the death penalty is applied, including racial and ethnic bias. US prosecutors for instance seek the death penalty far more often when a homicide victim is white. In Saudi Arabia, foreign nationals accounted for 830 of 1,695 executions between 1985 and 2008 (809 were Saudi nationals, and 56 were of unknown nationality). Many of those sentenced to death for drugs offences in Iran are foreign nationals or from ethnic or religious minorities.

The death penalty is biased against Student from Eastlea School, the poor, few of whom can afford London, at a demonstration their own legal representation during outside the Iranian embassy © Marie-Anne Ventoura trials. It is imposed after unfair trials

28 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 countries that abolished the death penalty for all crimes

before 1997

1997 to 1980

1980 to 1989

1990 to 1999

2000 to 2009

2010 and after

Countries which retain the death penalty in law, or which have partially abolished it (eg Brazil, Kazakstan)

and in some countries is used as a tough for electoral gain use it as a law and in practice. Its strategy for mandatory punishment – a practice populist response to crime. It is also reaching that goal includes working which fails to take account of the portrayed as a national tradition on the achievement of specific steps. circumstances of the crime or the under attack from foreigners. These include: a reduction in the defendant. Some countries use it number of executions and in the for less serious crimes. Saudi Arabia number of capital crimes; an end to executed more people for non-lethal a core campaign the use of particularly cruel methods offences like assault and robbery Amnesty began working on the of execution such as stoning; and (748) than for murder (621) between death penalty in 1977, as a natural minimum legal and human rights 1990 and 2008. China uses it for extension of our work on prisoners of standards, which would mean, for ‘economic crimes’ while Pakistan conscience and opposition to torture. example, no death penalty where uses it for ‘blasphemy’. The death penalty is the ultimate doubt exists over a defendant’s guilt. denial of human rights and the most It is also used for politically motivated extreme form of cruel, inhuman and Various factors will drive change, not or ideological reasons. Several degrading punishment. We believe least the example set by abolitionist executions have taken place in Iran that the death penalty should and countries. More accurate information each January since the disputed can be abolished. Since Amnesty about and a better understanding 2009 election. They are viewed as a began campaigning there has been of the failings of the death penalty warning to potential protesters ahead steady progress towards abolition. In will influence public debate on the of annual celebrations to mark the 1977 just 16 countries had abolished issue. This is particularly the case in Iranian revolution in February. Seven the death penalty for all crimes – in the USA, where pressure for change countries use the death penalty 2011, that figure was 96 (see map within each state is more effective to punish gay sex. Juveniles are above). than pressure from the outside. also executed, in contravention of But external pressure – such as international law. that applied through international steps towards and regional organisations – has The death penalty persists largely the goal a role to play too. The abolition of because people continue to The ultimate aim of Amnesty’s the death penalty across much of believe that it acts as a deterrent, campaign is complete worldwide Eastern Europe in 1989 resulted and politicians seeking to appear abolition of the death penalty in from it being made a condition for

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 29 death penalty continued

entry to the Council of Europe and the EU. The UK also has particular impact: the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is still the final court of appeal on death penalty cases in some Commonwealth states. what we want to achieVe For 2011, Amnesty identified specific targets that it wanted to achieve through the year. These were: • To increase the number of countries that have abolished the death penalty, in particular Mongolia and Belarus. • To prevent a resumption of executions in the English-speaking parts of the Caribbean. • To increase the number of US clemency appeals for Troy Davis; and 2011, after spending 20 years on states to have abolished the death appeals for a retrial of Hakamada death row. He was arrested in 1989 penalty. Iwao. Our supporters appealed for for the murder of police officer Mark • To see the removal of stoning as a an end to stoning in Iran and the Allen MacPhail and sentenced to punishment from Iran’s Penal Code. Amnesty youth group at Eastlea death in 1991. There were serious • To end the execution of juvenile School held a protest outside the doubts about Troy’s guilt. No physical offenders. Iranian embassy. A film of the group’s evidence ever linked him to the crime. • To prevent the execution of Troy activities was shown at the FCO No murder weapon was ever found. Davis in the US. to mark the World Day Against the The case rested on witness testimony. • To prevent the execution of Death Penalty; the audience included But in 2007 Amnesty International Hakamada Iwao in Japan. ambassadors from countries that published a report detailing a pattern retain capital punishment. We also of police coercion of witnesses made appeals to the Mongolian ahead of Troy’s trial. Seven of the acting in partnership authorities; sent a petition to Belarus; nine non-police witnesses later To meet these objectives, Amnesty and launched Urgent Actions on recanted their testimony. Ten has been working with several numerous cases, ahead of death people meanwhile named one of other organisations and individuals. penalty decisions by the US states of the remaining witnesses as the These include the Foreign and Illinois and Oregon. actual killer. Troy himself maintained Commonwealth Office (FCO), the his innocence throughout. In spite All-Party Parliamentary Group for of all these factors, the US courts the Abolition of the Death Penalty outcomes: troy daVis refused the appeal for a retrial. The (APPG), and Amnesty USA, which Despite a worldwide outcry, our state of Georgia rejected appeals for was leading the work on the US campaign failed to prevent the clemency, and went ahead with Troy’s states and Troy Davis. We have execution of Troy Davis in Georgia, execution by lethal injection. also been working closely with the USA. This tragic outcome showed families of both Troy Davis and the death penalty in all its unfairness Amnesty’s role Hakamada Iwao. and cruelty. The campaign against Amnesty campaigned on Troy’s case Troy’s execution generated since 2007, helping to make it an Actions planned with these partners unprecedented attention for both his emblematic example of the failings included: regular meetings with case and the wider cause. of the death penalty. Troy faced the FCO and the APPG; joining the three execution dates in 2007 and World Day Against the Death Penalty Troy Davis was executed by the 2008. Action by Amnesty on a global 10 October; solidarity actions and state of Georgia on 21 September scale may have contributed to the

30 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 Left: Amnesty vigil for Troy Davis outside the US embassy, London, 2011 © AI

stays of execution granted on these more than 500 people attending murder on the basis of a confession occasions. a vigil outside the US embassy in allegedly made under torture. In London at 10pm. In the last few December 2011, public prosecutors The campaign in early 2011 was low days before his death, more than disclosed evidence which was never key, as supporters waited to find 300 events and vigils took place presented at the original trial. Also, awaited the outcome of an appeal worldwide, 16 Amnesty sections took DNA tests from his clothing found against the results of an evidentiary part, and almost one million people no specimens matching the victims’ hearing. In March, after the Supreme took action. US opinion polls taken blood. Court announced its refusal to in the days after Troy’s execution hear the appeal, Amnesty started showed support for the death penalty After Urgent Actions were issued, preparing for a clemency action. dropped several percentage points to three death row prisoners in the Supporters in the UK collected the lowest level for 40 years. USA received stays of execution. 25,000 signatures on a petition Shawn Hawkins in Ohio had his and the Urgent Action Network death sentence commuted to life sent a series of appeals. When the outcomes: abolition imprisonment without parole after September execution date was We saw some progress on our lawyers cast doubt on his conviction announced, the campaign gathered specific targets for 2011, in public for murder. momentum. We asked artists to help policy, activism and mobilisation, and raise the profile. Richard Hughes of for individuals. the rock band Keane, a committed the work ahead supporter of abolition, spoke at In Trinidad and Tobago, the There are major challenges ahead our solidarity vigil outside the US parliament rejected a bill in February for Amnesty’s campaign to abolish embassy on 16 September. 2011 that would have allowed for the death penalty, and important the resumption of executions in the lessons to be learned from the Nearly 80,000 email appeals were Caribbean country. While Amnesty experiences of 2011. Drawing on sent to the Georgia parole board welcomed this move, it regretted Troy Davis’s case, we saw that a through our campaign webpage, that the government of Trinidad state in a supposedly democratic most of them on the day before the and Tobago still insists on retaining country can execute a prisoner, even execution. the death penalty. In the US, Illinois in the face of enormous opposition became the 16th state to abolish and widely known doubts about The flood of emails clearly put the the death penalty, while Oregon the prisoner’s guilt. We learned that Parole Board under pressure. On 20 announced a moratorium on capital when a single case such as Troy’s September, they blocked all emails punishment. is given a deliberately high profile, it from the Amnesty UK server. We can have a huge impact on public adapted the webpage to be able to With Belarus, however, we made no perceptions and on public debate continue the traffic, but the board progress. Amnesty activists helped about the death penalty in general. then blocked all incoming emails. gather some 250,000 signatures Social media was also shown to be around the world for a petition urging particularly effective as part of an Troy’s case got unprecedented Belarus to call a moratorium on the international effort. coverage in the UK media, which death penalty and commute death rarely takes much interest in death sentences as a first step towards Next steps in the campaign include penalty cases unless a UK national abolition. To date, it has had no a specific focus on bringing about is concerned. This boosted the discernible impact on Belarusian abolition in specific US states. campaign in the final hours, with authorities. Alongside this, campaigning on individual cases will continue, including that of Hakamada Iwao and ‘The struggle doesn’t end casework Reggie Clemons. with me. This struggle is Developments in 2011 strengthened for all the Troy Davises grounds for a retrial of Hakamada Iwao, believed to be the world’s who came before me and longest-serving death row inmate. all the ones who will come He has spent 43 years on death row after me.’ Troy Davis in Japan after being convicted of

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 31 human rights education

Human Rights Education gives people knowledge and understanding of human rights, and the skills to stand up for their own rights and those of others. It aims to embed attitudes and behaviour that respect human rights. Educating people about human rights also helps Amnesty to grow.

In 2011 the UN Human Rights Council adopted a Declaration on Human Rights Education and Training. The declaration reaffirms the importance of Human Rights Education in promotion, protection and effective realisation of human rights.

Amnesty International UK has been engaged in Human Rights Education for more than 20 years, focusing on work with schools. If our vision of human rights for all is to become a reality, we have to build up a new generation of people who understand human rights and who promote and protect the rights of others.

Working through schools is an effective way of reaching large numbers of young people at a stage when they are forming their views about the world and how it should work.

Our work in this area is well- known and respected among UK schools and many of the teaching resources we have produced have been translated and adapted by other Amnesty International Sections around the world. Amnesty International UK is one of the few human rights organisations in the UK that supports teachers to deliver Human Rights Education at minimal cost.

32 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 Amnesty Freedom of Expression resources pack for students aged 11-16

the conteXt of provided training for 56 speakers our work during the year. Each of the four nations in the UK has its own national curriculum for • We said we would: provide schools. For the time being, all four teachers with resources and require human rights to be taught, opportunities to engage young but in different ways. people in learning and action for performance human rights. In Scotland, human rights is part of Amnesty’s 50th birthday gave added a cross-curricular theme of Global impetus to our campaign work In addition to a range of lesson Citizenship, which all teachers and inspired youth groups to run plans and resource materials have a responsibility to deliver. hundreds of special events. Notable available through our website, Teachers are looking to NGOs for were letter writing and supporting Amnesty International UK produces help in developing this theme, which women’s rights in Nicaragua, helping a new education pack on a presents Amnesty International with a to generate vast numbers of bright specific human rights theme at good opportunity. butterfly messages. the beginning of each school year. The pack, which is sent to more In Wales, human rights is part of Key objectives for the year, and our than 95 per cent of UK secondary compulsory Personal and Social achievements, are outlined below. schools, provides teachers with the Education and the Welsh Assembly resources to hold assemblies, give Government is encouraging schools • We said we would: work to lessons and run action projects. to teach about the UN Convention on safeguard the place of Human It also encourages schools to the Rights of the Child. Rights Education in the national use a wider range of Amnesty curriculum in all parts of the UK educational resources. Northern Ireland has a flexible curriculum, with space for Human Our efforts to ensure that The theme in 2011 was freedom of Rights Education at primary and Citizenship, including Human expression, linked to Amnesty’s 50 secondary levels. However, human Rights Education, remains a years of campaigning for human rights is a contested issue politically, core subject in the curriculum in rights. A total of 4,779 UK schools and prospects for Human Rights England were carried out as part received the Speak Free pack, with Education can vary with the minister of the Democratic Life coalition, 295 schools in Wales receiving responsible. which Amnesty International UK both English and Welsh language helped to establish in 2010. The versions. We have received a great In England, Human Rights campaign had its parliamentary deal of positive feedback about Education is currently compulsory launch in 2011, and followed this the pack and it has inspired 403 for 11-16-year-olds as part of the up by continued lobbying and teachers to join our TeachRights Citizenship curriculum, but following media publicity on the issue. A teachers network. The pack also the change of government in 2010, government decision is expected resulted in 153 schools running the position of Citizenship education in late 2012. letter writing events as part of the is under threat. Write for Rights campaign, and • We said we would: develop our alongside the new film I Talk Out school speakers programme to Loud it led to the creation of 54 strategy ensure that we reach more young new Amnesty groups in schools The overall aim of our work with people through quality speaking (see page 36). The pack was also schools is to enable them to provide events and workshops, and to used by Amnesty Sections with Human Rights Education to their mobilise new speakers. young people in Zimbabwe, Kenya, students. In 2011, with Human Rights Ghana and Senegal. Education still part of the curriculum Our school speakers programme in all four nations of the UK, our reached at least 51,120 students Another way of stimulating young strategy was to support teachers in 2011, up from 45,090 in the peoples’ interest in human rights is of Citizenship or PSE by providing previous year, and our pool of the Young Human Right Reporter of teaching resources and training, and speakers grew from 141 in January the Year competition. This is a joint building an online teachers’ network. 2011 to 160 by December. We project of Amnesty International

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 33 human rights education continued

UK, the Guardian Teacher Network and Mark Allen Publications, whose primary and secondary education magazines reach schools throughout the UK. In 2010, its first year, the competition attracted 450 entrants. In 2011, with the addition of a new age category for 15-18-year-olds, more than 700 young people aged between seven and 18 entered the competition. The winning articles were published in Guardian Media group and Mark Allen publications, while the older winners were offered journalistic work experience with Secondary Education magazine.

• We said we would: develop more Winners of the 2011 Young Human Rights Reporter competition © Mike Tsang opportunities for Amnesty youth and student activists to learn and support new and experienced This will focus on Amnesty activists more about human rights, and teachers to bring human rights into and partners, as well as the wider to increase the number of active the classroom. public. Amnesty youth groups. The network has grown from 5,101 Our work with schools may need To expand our network of youth members at the end of 2010 to to adapt to new circumstances. If groups, we made a documentary around 6,000 at the end of 2011. Citizenship is removed from the film following the Amnesty group at Network members receive a twice- English national curriculum, we aim Eastlea Academy in East London termly e-zine highlighting new to ensure that our teaching materials as they campaigned to end stoning Human Rights Education projects enable schools to integrate human in Iran, participated in the AIUK and resources. rights across a range of subjects. We Annual General Meeting, and gave will also broaden our training courses their views on taking action for • We said we would: deliver quality to target teachers of subjects with human rights. We asked schools training in Human Rights Education strong links to human rights, such as to show the film to students, for teachers and trainee teachers. Religious Education, English and the follow it up with work using the humanities. We will also be linking Speak Free education pack, We held nine training sessions for our highly-regarded Human Rights and then prepare to take part in working teachers, with a total of 97 Education work to an increased Amnesty’s global Write for Rights teachers participating. We held two focus on fundraising in schools. campaign in December. (Write sessions for a total of 330 trainee for Rights, timed to coincide with teachers. Even if Citizenship is removed from International Human Rights Day on the core curriculum, access to 10 December, aimed to generate Human Rights Education is itself a pressure in the form of appeal neXt steps human right: schools have a duty letters supporting individuals During 2011, we reviewed our to teach about human rights under whose rights had been abused.) Human Rights Education work Article 42 of the UN Convention on As a result, 123 schools organised over the period 2006-2010 and the Rights of the Child. a Write for Rights event and new drew up a new five-year strategy, Amnesty groups were established which envisages continuation of our in 54 schools across the country. work with schools alongside the development of work that we already • We said we would: expand the do in the Active Learning Programme TeachRights network to encourage outside the formal education system.

34 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 raising awareness

Awareness-raising is a way of reaching out to new audiences to show them that human rights in general, and Amnesty’s work, are important, relevant and worth supporting. We do it to bring our concerns to the outside world in a way that attracts attention, arouses interest and captures the imagination. Most often, our awareness-raising work aims to win support for Amnesty, or to move people to action in a campaign, but sometimes it seeks to challenge assumptions and change attitudes.

Awareness-raising is part of most areas of Amnesty’s work, and is integral to both campaigning and fundraising. But given a tough economic climate, stiff competition from other NGOs, and the ambitious plans of the international Amnesty movement to expand in the global South, our awareness-raising strategies are increasingly directed towards fundraising and recruitment.

The audiences we aim to reach through this work go beyond the circle of committed supporters and activists. The public have no obligation to hear, view or read what Amnesty has to say: we have to present our messages and aims in ways that will attract attention and engage people’s interest. Our strategy is therefore to use a wide range of methods, both direct and indirect, to address potential supporters and the wider public. We also work with artists, writers, broadcasters, film-makers and publishers on a range of projects.

Major projects during 2011 included: • using the organisation’s 50th anniversary as a hook to increase visibility, introduce target audiences to Amnesty and deepen existing relationships with supporters; David O’Doherty at Amnesty’s • partnerships with literary and arts comedy show at the Edinburgh Festival © Sandy Young festivals, to boost support for

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 35 Manchester Amnesty marks raising Amnesty’s 50th anniversary awareness with a parade through the city continued centre

selected campaigns and raise Amnesty’s profile; • the 20th annual Amnesty Media Awards; • redeveloping our websites (amnesty.org.uk and protectthehuman.com); • a new online video programme – Amnesty TV – using a mix of satire and human rights messages to engage young people. media work Amnesty International was launched through a newspaper article in 1961 and using the media to reach a wider Amnesty International’s 50th things. This provides Amnesty with an audience has been a key part of anniversary generated considerable opportunity to reach large numbers our work ever since. The quarterly media coverage – 303 items in of people through exhibitions, films, analyses of Amnesty’s media presence May and June alone – including a media coverage and entertainment, in 2011 showed that through print, special edition of the Observer’s New as well as to mobilise large numbers broadcast and online media we Review and a BBC4 documentary. of people behind a single, simple reach about three-quarters of the UK Celebrations organised by Amnesty campaign action. adult population each quarter (the supporters around the country percentage varied from 74 to 78). This generated scores of news items in Amnesty International has a regular is a result of our work with a wide local media. programme of events at the Edinburgh range of media outlets, including Festival, the world’s biggest arts consumer magazines, mid-market and 2011 was also the 20th anniversary festival with a total audience of more tabloid papers as well as the quality of the Amnesty International Media than 2 million. This year we attracted press, radio and television. Awards, an annual celebration of sell-out crowds to our Stand Up the best human rights journalism, for Freedom comedy show and the In the last quarter of the year, for and a public recognition of the annual Amnesty Lecture, delivered example, Amnesty featured in more important role journalists play in this year by Polish activist and former than 2,000 articles or broadcasts, bringing human rights violations to prisoner of conscience Adam Michnik. with 119 mentions in the quality public attention. The 2011 Awards A record 92 theatre productions – press (an average of more than one recognised the achievements of up from 63 in 2010 – entered the a day) and 67 in tabloid and mid- print, broadcast, photographic and Amnesty Freedom of Expression market papers. We also gave 90 TV digital journalists, and introduced Award, which recognises excellence or radio interviews in that period. a new student journalism award. in fringe theatre productions that The awards ceremony gave us an raise awareness about human rights. Much of the media coverage we opportunity to mobilise some of the The increase in entries is a sign that generated in 2011 focused on the UK’s best known journalists to send our strategy of encouraging theatre Middle East and North Africa. It tweets to the President of Azerbaijan to take up human rights issues is highlighted our call for security forces calling for the release of imprisoned working. to stop attacks on peaceful protesters, newspaper editor Eynulla Fatullayev. as well as our reports on the impact He was released two days later. Our Edinburgh Festival campaign of armed violence on civilians in in 2011 was in support of the Libya and Syria, and the ill-treatment ‘UAE Five’ – activists charged with of detainees held by the National festiVals ‘publicly insulting’ officials in the Transitional Council in Libya. However, In any given year, millions of people in United Arab Emirates. The activists both national and regional media the UK go to art, music and literature were released from prison at the end carried stories linked to a wide range festivals, expecting to have fun and of November, after their sentences of Amnesty campaigns and reports. to see and hear new and inspiring were commuted.

36 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 digital Amnesty’s websites and our use of social networking and other forms of digital communication help us to connect with new audiences and boost our campaigning, fundraising and outreach work. Digital technology enables Amnesty to mobilise support for campaigns, encourage people to donate, and raise awareness about our work. Over the past year, there has been a huge growth in the number of people we reach through digital technology. Membership of our online community, protectthehuman. com, grew to 225,000, an increase of 61 per cent. Over 58,000 people ‘liked’ the Amnesty UK Facebook page (up by 69 per cent from 2010), and about 43,000 people followed our Twitter account (up by 92 per cent). More than 2 million people visited Amnesty’s websites in 2011.

Digital activism, for example, played a crucial role in Amnesty’s successful campaign to pressure the Royal Bank of Scotland to stop funding companies that make cluster bombs, the successful campaign to release Eynulla Fatullayev at the media awards and the unprecedented levels of support and action taken to try to stop the execution of Troy Davis.

Amnesty UK’s existing websites have been live since 2005. During those six years web technology has moved on apace and the design of our existing website has made it difficult to make the changes that we need to keep up with our audience’s expectations. Following an extensive consultation process in 2010, in the first half of 2011 we developed a relaunch roadmap for Amnesty’s websites, phased into six development releases over three years. Our old websites will be retired Hay festival-goers contribute by the end of 2012. to a giant butterfly wall, the symbol of Amnesty’s solidarity campaign for women and girls in Nicaragua © Alison Jordan

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 37 fundraising for human rights

the fundraising enVironment For its campaigning, Amnesty International UK relies entirely on voluntary income, the bulk of which is made up of relatively small regular donations from individual members and supporters. We are immensely fortunate to have this strong base of regular supporters and we are extremely grateful for their generosity.

Our own fundraising results in 2010 were encouraging, in that our supporters remained loyal and income from community fundraising held up. However, we were concerned that recruiting and keeping new supporters was becoming increasingly difficult in the prevailing economic climate.

our fundraising in 2011 – an oVerView This report profiles three areas of fundraising: • Supporter recruitment • Community fundraising • Major donors

Supporter recruitment Continuing economic uncertainty and the fall in real value of UK incomes made 2011 a difficult year to win new supporters, but our existing supporters continued to stick with us, with 87 per cent continuing their support. It is testament to the generosity of our supporters that the average donation rose during the year. Our biggest challenge remains the recruitment and retention of new supporters.

Community fundraising Community Fundraising ended 2011 on a high, passing the three-quarter of a million pound mark (£770,000) for the first time. This represents a 3.8 per cent growth in income despite a very challenging year for Team Amnesty sponsored events, the biggest CFR London to Brighton cycle ride, 2011 income stream. Amnesty’s 50th

38 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 FUNDRAISINg RESULTS BY YEAR, 2007/8 TO 2011 We are members of the Public Fundraising Regulatory Association. 2007-2008 £16.903m This is a charity-led regulatory body covering all types of face-to-face 2008-2009 £16.707m fundraising. We are also members of the Institute of Fundraising. As 2009-2010 £16.935m such, we are bound by the Face-to- 2010 £13.386m Face Activity Code of Fundraising (9 months) Practice, which sets out the Year 2010 £17.848m regulatory requirements and best (annualised) practice standards expected from 2011 £15.6m all those parties involved in face-to- face campaigns. More information: £0 £5.000 £10.000 £15.000 £20.000 www.pfra.org.uk www.institute-of-fundraising.org.uk net income (m)

anniversary year gave Amnesty Amnesty sections to convey these majority of our supporters are local groups a great opportunity to concerns to the IEC, an independent recruited onto direct debit, which campaign and fundraise in their local review conducted by Dame Anne means we can expect these communities and AmnesTea was the Owers, and the resignation of the IEC supporters to continue to give to us chosen fundraiser for supporters to chair helped to restore confidence over a number of years. For all our use for their celebrations. in the organisation. Nevertheless, recruitment channels we expect a 1,000 UK supporters cancelled their minimum of £3.87 million gross profit Major donors support to Amnesty International within five years. Our income from individual major UK because of this issue. For more donors increased by 15 per cent over information see www.amnesty.org. Performance the year, following the reorganisation uk/payments We aimed to recruit 33,000 new of our staff team in 2010 to focus supporters in 2011. This was almost on higher-value gifts. However, our Looking ahead, the costs of our four times as many as we recruited income from trusts and foundations financial commitment to the in April-December 2010, when our fell, which we believe is largely due to international movement are set results were affected by the financial continuing recession. to increase, thus putting greater collapse of a major provider of pressure on us to deliver significant our face-to-face fundraising. New Challenges in 2011 growth in fundraising income in a agencies in the market place together A challenge in all areas of fundraising difficult economic environment. Over with an increase in recruitment was the revelation that Amnesty’s the past two years this income has through door-to-door helped us to International Executive Committee grown at about 2 per cent a year. secure this uplift. (IEC) had made payments of over We are forecasting almost 6 per cent £500,000 to our former secretary income growth in 2012. (Although we By the end of 2011, we had recruited general, and of over £300,000 to do not believe it prudent to budget 31,596 new supporters: below target, her deputy, when they ended their on this basis, this is the target we but considerably better than the employment with the International have set for fundraising.) 10,556 registered for April-December Secretariat. This provoked 2010 and the 18,000 recruited in the understandable concerns among our 12 months of 2009. During the course supporters and fundraisers in the UK supporter of the year, we ceased working with a about the international movement’s recruitment number of face-to-face agencies as it use of donations – concerns that We spent £2.58 million on supporter became evident they were struggling were fully shared by the Board and recruitment in 2011 and, generated to meet their targets. This meant we staff of Amnesty International UK. £598,000 from these supporters had to revise our recruitment targets Swift action by our own and other within the financial year. The vast accordingly.

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 39 fundraising for human rights continued

87 per cent of our supporters stayed with us in 2011 and the average COMMUNITY FUNDRAISINg: NET INCOME BY YEAR 2009/10 TO 2011 contribution per supporter rose to Ratio of income £78.08 in 2011, an increase of £4.56 2009-2010 £652,507 to expenditure* on 2010. However, the retention rate 2010 for supporters within the first year (9 months) £450,274 2011 ...... 8 of recruitment was much lower, at 2010 2010 (annualised) ..6.40 (annualised) £600,365 67.2 per cent compared to 78.5 per 2010 (9 months) ....6.40 Year 2011 cent in 2010 this was in part due to £676,309 the higher proportion of recruitment 2009/10 ...... 7.23 coming from face-to face channels *NOTE: excludes salary where retention is lower. Retention of 0 200,000 400,000 600,000 800,000 and overhead costs face-to-face channels continues to Value £ be a focus for us going forward.

In addition to regular donations, supporters contributed to cash community An estimated 2,000 people appeals and raffles. One appeal, fundraising fundraised through Community asking for donations to fund our This encompasses all the events Fundraising activities in 2011 and work to prevent stoning in Iran was Amnesty supporters organise to raise the team responded to over 3,600 our most successful cash appeal of money in their local communities. enquiries, making or sending over the year, raising over £127,000. Our Growing numbers of supporters take 10,500 calls, letters and emails raffles were less successful than part in our ever-increasing number through the year. usual this year. The reasons are still and variety of sponsored events, unclear, so we plan to test different including marathons, triathlons, Local groups rose to the challenge of approaches in 2012. Our bookshops cycle events and treks. Meanwhile, raising money in a recession and sent and mail order catalogue did well and Amnesty groups Local, Youth and Amnesty £234,000, over £40,000 helped to maintain our income. Student organise a wide range of more than in 2010. They loved the events, as well as CFR projects opportunity that AI50 presented, and Looking ahead such as AmnesTea, Amnesty Hours, attendance was up at the multiple From our experiences in 2011, we Recycling, In Memory Giving etc. fundraising workshops organised concluded that while face-to-face Our programme offers something for activists throughout the year. fundraising methods can attract for everyone to get involved with, for 50th birthday AmnesTeas raised people to Amnesty, their interest people of every age, level of fitness, £40,000 as people raised a cuppa in is becoming increasingly short amount of free time, income and a toast to freedom. The most exciting term. For 2012, therefore, we plan so on. We encourage all Amnesty independent community event was to reduce our recruitment targets members to take part in fundraising, Comedy Night Live and Ungagged, while improving the retention rate and our quarterly fundraising with Tim Minchin and other stars, for new supporters, maintaining the e-newsletter goes to 34,000 people. which raised £17,000. Most improved loyalty of longer-term supporters, was In Memory fundraising which and generating additional income In 2011 we raised, £770,000 against continued to exceed expectations by from cash appeals and sales of a spend of £94,000, giving us a net smashing its £69,000 budget to bring merchandise. We believe this new income of £676,000. With a return in over £95,000 in 2011. balance of activities will yield a better on investment of 8:1, community return on investment. fundraising remains our most Team Amnesty (TA) sponsored events lucrative form of fundraising. is Community Fundraising’s biggest In 2011 more than a quarter of new income stream. This is a changing supporters came to us through the Performance market however, so the range of Internet. In 2012, we aim to develop a For 2011 we set a target of £797,000 events on offer was widened. TA is new network using SMS technology, gross and £674,500 net income from constantly monitored to see whether enabling us to contact supporters via community fundraising. We did not events are working. In 2011 four their mobile phones to ask them to meet our gross predictions, but did newly introduced events raised over take action or donate. manage to exceed our net budget. £40,000 for Amnesty, so that by the

40 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 end of the year 500 people had taken carried out by the International Challenges part in a sponsored event and 8,000 Secretariat or AIUK. As expected, our income from trusts people had sponsored a friend in and foundations was affected by these events. Community Fundraising Our target for 2011 was to raise £1.6 difficulties in the wider economy and also attended many events to support million from major donors, including continued to fall, as trusts protected participants, as well as cycling from individuals £760,000, trusts £445,000 their investments by reducing their London to Brighton and running 5k and corporates £400,000. grants. dressed as Santa! Performance Looking ahead Sponsored events has grown Our focus on higher value donors has During 2011 we laid the foundations in popularity over the last few yielded immediate results. Giving by for increasing the income raised years – but we have had to work individual major donors increased from major donors for Amnesty’s hard as participants have found it by 15 per cent from 2010 to 2011, international work, in particular increasingly difficult to raise their and included four gifts of more than for establishing offices in Brazil fundraising targets. There is no £100,000. Total raised was £782,000 and India. This will continue to shortage of willing runners and from individuals, £22,000 above be a major focus of our work in cyclists and the number of friends target. Expenditure on the individuals 2012. We aim to continue to grow and family sponsoring them has held area was £21,220 before staff costs. the individuals income and bring steady, but for lesser amounts. This trusts back on a more even keel. means encouraging participants The amount we received in restricted Our target is to reach £1 million to organise successful fundraising funds also increased in 2011. from individual donors for the first events and not become overly reliant This included gifts earmarked for time and a further £1.1 million from on JustGiving. international work, for example in trusts and corporates. As part of Sudan. The momentous political this target, we aim to make a first events in the Middle East and successful application to Comic major donors North Africa, with millions of people Relief to support our work on forced A major donor is an individual, trust demanding human rights change, evictions in Kenya. or corporation that donates £5,000 or moved our donors to support more to Amnesty International UK in Amnesty’s work across the region. one year.

The fundraising environment corporate relations policy continues to be challenging with Amnesty International relies on the support of ordinary people as ongoing economic worries. Despite members, activists and financial supporters. We are therefore careful to this, following a benchmarking ensure that we protect our independence to campaign against human exercise, we feel it is possible to rights abuses wherever they occur. achieve growth and we went into 2011 with an ambitious strategy Our formal Corporate Relations Policy limits the proportion of our to increase income and lay the income that comes from corporate relationships to a maximum of 10 per foundations for significant growth cent. A Corporate Relationships Advisory group screens all proposed in 2012 and beyond. corporate relationships valued at over £5,000 (in cash or in kind). In 2011 we received donations of £306,829 amounting to 12.97 per cent of our We were more cautious around our maximum allowable funding from corporate entities. income from trusts and foundations knowing that, overall, giving had Total number of corporate relationships recorded: 77 declined across the sector. Our number of corporate entities donating over £5,000: 4 strategy, therefore, was to focus on Corporation* Type of gift Value £ securing larger gifts from individual The Cooperative Group (inc. the Amnesty credit card) Money 222,093 donors and target new significant GBR Trade & Technology Ltd Money 30,000 grants from funders such as Comic Triodos Bank Money 6,136 Relief. We also aimed to increase Quantum Amalgamations Money 5,000 the proportion of restricted giving, ie income raised for specific activities *All corporate giving above £5,000 is subject to screening by AIUK

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 41 our organisation

42 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 Amnesty International is a movement of ordinary people and is organised as a democratic membership organisation. Founded 50 years ago (1961) Amnesty has grown in size and global reach – and our human rights remit has grown too, adapting and expanding in response to the global human rights context.

From the very beginning, our members have provided the vast majority of our income, and stand behind our campaigns and play a key part in running the organisation.

We are a democratic membership organisation working for humanity and human rights. It is important that this is properly reflected in the way AIUK relates to staff, volunteers and supporters. To become even more effective, we need to maintain truly collaborative and participatory decision-making processes. And we need to work with the rest of the global movement in a concerted and coordinated manner.

Our structure, our constitution and our systems of governance are designed to meet these needs.

2011, our 50th anniversary year, has seen the entire Amnesty International global movement working together more closely, ambitiously and purposefully than ever. This is reflected in our strengthened strategic planning and the alignment of reporting and planning across the movement. We are one of the largest of 52 country sections in 150 countries across the world, with more than 3 million members.

We operate as a collection of autonomous national organisations – but the glue that holds our movement together is our shared vision, mission and values, and abiding by the Statute of Amnesty International.

Amnesty student conference, November 2011 © Brett Roberts / AIUK

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 43 structure and goVernance

As part of the global Amnesty for conducting the daily affairs of in global Amnesty management and International movement, Amnesty the global movement is delegated coordination bodies, takes forward International UK has both global to the International Secretariat. global Amnesty campaigns, and and local layers of governance. Amnesty International UK, like other contributes its skills and knowledge national sections, can influence the to a range of global projects. Our development of policy by participating London office hosts Art for Amnesty, the global moVement and in International Council meetings which raises funds and profile for Amnesty International UK is one and in IEC deliberations. the movement by working globally of 53 national sections of Amnesty to leverage the support of artists International. In 2011 it was the For more on the structures and for Amnesty campaigns. Its biggest second largest section in terms governance of the international project to date was a world tour with of its financial contribution to the movement, see the Amnesty rock band U2 in 2010-11, promoting international movement. Amnesty’s International 2011 Report to INGO our campaign on Poverty and Human country sections operate as Accountability Charter (AI Index IOR Rights. With 66 concerts in 22 autonomous national organisations, 80/001/2012 at www.amnesty.org). countries, the campaign message sharing the same vision, mission and reached an estimated 5 million values and abiding by the statute of Our contribution to the people. Amnesty International. international movement Amnesty International UK supports In future years, our financial The international movement’s the wider movement financially and in contribution to the global movement highest decision-making body other ways, and one of our strategic is destined to rise, in line with is the International Council. It goals is to shape and deliver a more decisions by the International elects the International Executive effective global movement. Council Meeting to increase the Committee (IEC), which sets overall proportion of the movement’s movement-wide policy and defines In addition to making a financial resources going to the international the global governance rules for all contribution to the global movement budget from 30 per cent to 40. For Amnesty organisations. Authority of £7.34 million, AIUK participates Amnesty International UK, this means

amnesty internationaL uk board members AS OF 31 DECEMBER 2011

Ciarnan Emma France Brian Landers Rona Keen Peter James Sarah Sharmila Kar Helferty (Chair) (vice Chair) (Treasurer) Murray O’Grady

Collette Katie McSherry Harrison Littler Hannah Perry Brian Gilda Cris Burson- Anne Crill (nee Boothby) Thomas

44 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 the board at a gLance

6 male, 7 female

FINANCIAL SUPPORT TO THE INTERNATIONAL MOVEMENT AS A PERCENTAgE OF TOTAL INCOME (2011)

11 white, 1 mixed, 1 undisclosed

71% Amnesty International UK fundraising and campaigning activities 29% Paid to the international 2 under 25, 2 25-34, 2 35-44, 2 45-54, 3 55 + , 2 undisclosed movement

that over the next 10 years the Norgrove (Chair), Angela Crack, Special Board sub-committees proportion of our income contributed Stuart Hathaway, Ciarnan Helferty, (composed of Board members, to the global movement will increase Brian Landers, Harrison Littler, Sarah non-Board members and specialist each year, with a target of reaching O’Grady, Grainne Walsh. staff) provide updates, advice and 40 per cent by 2021. guidance on aspects of AIUK’s In addition, AIUK has a subsidiary performance. A formal finance events company, Amnesty Freestyle report is made at each meeting. in the uk Limited, the operations of which are These sub-committees are: i) Active Amnesty International UK is made up included in the consolidated Financial Membership; ii) Finance (which of two legal entities: the UK Section Statements (page 56). also acts as our audit committee); and the Charitable Trust. iii) International Issues; iv) Joint Board of Directors Consultative Committee. See Amnesty International UK Section The Amnesty International Board www.amnesty.org.uk/subcommittees undertakes activities that are deemed of Directors is responsible for the not to be charitable under UK overall performance of Amnesty All Board members are non- charity law, including human rights International UK Section and for executives. Under the AIUK campaigning, as well as fundraising providing strategic direction, effective constitution no staff members or and trading activities. The UK governance and leadership on behalf office-based volunteers may serve on Section is owned and controlled by of our members. the Board. its members. The Board is accountable to the The Board periodically carries out The Amnesty International Charitable AIUK membership through the a skills audit and may decide to Trust is a registered charity, funding Annual General Meeting (AGM), the supplement its skills and expertise Amnesty International activities primary decision-making forum for by co-opting up to three additional globally and elsewhere concerned Amnesty International UK. Board members. with human rights research, monitoring and education, and The Board maintains policies, One of the Board’s priorities in promoting public support for human including a code of conduct, conflicts 2011 was to improve its own rights. Its Board of Trustees as at of interest and treasury policy. performance and accountability 31 December 2011 were: David to the membership. This included

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 45 s upporting amnesty international uk in 2011 reviewing how the Board operates, the remit and functioning of Board 227,459 supporters contributed money sub committees, the priorities for its own work and how it communicates them to the wider membership. Of these, 146,200 were members paying a The Board was supported by the regular membership subscription Centre of Charity Effectiveness from CASS Business School from City thousands of people took action individually University, London, to ensure that in one or more of our campaigns external expertise and challenge in governance issues was brought into the process. 241 local groups brought Amnesty’s concerns and campaigns to their local, media, politicians and public, For more about the Board and and raised funds for the organisation the AGM, see www.amnesty.org.uk/ board 111 student groups took part in our campaigns and raised funds stakehoLders AIUK has a wide range of 529 youth groups, most based in schools, took action stakeholder groups including: people and raised funds whose rights we seek to protect; members; supporters; activists; 200 trade union affiliates backed Amnesty campaigns, campaign and coalition partners; including those on workers’ rights suppliers; staff; volunteers; the media; government and regulatory bodies; the UK general public. 11,741 people stood up for women’s rights through our Women’s Action Network We work to engage rights-holders in each campaign area. In most cases 10,733 people stood up for children’s rights through our stakeholders are determined by our Children’s Rights Network our research work; others include partner organisations selected on the basis of shared campaign goals. 4,116 people stood up for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights through our LGBT network

ACTIVISTS, MEMBERS 50 volunteer country coordinators supported networks AnD SUPPORTERS and local groups on country campaigns and casework Amnesty International is a membership organisation. Our members provide most of our 13 volunteer regional representatives helped coordinate funding. They stand behind all of our local Amnesty work, 6 Student Action Network and campaigns. Ultimately, it is they who 18 Youth Advisory supporters helped coordinate make the difference. We encourage student and youth groups work our members and supporters to take an active, participative role in the work of Amnesty International both 56 volunteer trainers ran workshops for local groups in the UK and worldwide. and at regional conferences

46 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 uk map showing amnesty activist groups Local groups Student groups Youth groups

greater London region

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 47 our people, policies and practices

our staff 2011 we assisted in the costs for four As of 31 December 2011, 15 per Amnesty International UK has 211 people studying for their MAs, three cent of our staff were from a black or paid staff (full-time equivalent 182.6) of which were in human rights, and minority ethnic (BME) background, based in our four offices (in London, three for CIMA and CIPD professional which compares with 11 per cent for Belfast, Edinburgh and Cardiff) and in qualifications. the UK charity sector. There was a four of our six bookshops. small rise in the proportion of BME We believe that engaging and The annual training programme job applicants during the year (24 developing these people is crucial to covers a broad range of knowledge per cent, compared to 21 per cent our success. and skills, including people and in April-December 2010), but the management, health and safety, proportion of BME applicants among In 2011 our human resources and equality and diversity. In 2011 those appointed was 17 per cent. objectives centred on six key areas: we made a particular effort to Our aim remains to increase the • Learning and development promote learning in performance proportion of our BME staff to better • Equality and diversity management, running two-day reflect the population of Greater • Human resources service delivery courses for managers and workshops London and the South East. • Well-being for staff. We also strengthened • Partnership our Management Development The number of staff who declare that • Organisational development programme which is now accredited they have a disability has increased by the Institute of Leadership and again to 5 per cent (4.1 per cent last Learning and development Management as a professional level year). This is higher than the sector In 2011 we spent an average of 5 qualification. We continued with average of 2.6 per cent (Source: £534 per employee on training and training on the prevention of bullying People Count, Third Sector 2011). development, a similar amount and harassment. This shows not only that we are to 2010 when the figures were recruiting more disabled staff but also annualised (£400 per employee on Equality and diversity existing staff are more comfortable training in April-December 2010). Amnesty International UK values declaring a disability. diversity in our staff, volunteers The average number of training and Board and strives to be a fair In 2011 we appointed a gender hours per employee was 9.8, (2010 employer. In our 2011 staff survey, mainstreaming manager to help the annualised figure was 10.1 hours). 94 per cent of staff said they were organisation move towards greater This figure does not include staff treated with fairness and respect. gender equality in all areas of its work undertaking further education and in (see page 50).

AVERAgE ANNUAL TRAININg AND DEVELOPMENT STAFF NUMBERS IN AMNESTY ExPENDITURE PER EMPLOYEE INTERNATIONAL UK (full-time equivalent)

Campaigns Directorate UK voluntary and community Corporate Services Marketing sector £322 2.2

UK average £513 2011 57 35.1 88.3

2.2 AIUK 2011 £534

Year 2010 59.9 29.9 78

0 100 200 300 400 500 600 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Average expenditure Percentage Source: People Count Third Sector 2011

48 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 Human resources service work. Although not all staff are union Progress made delivery members, all are covered by terms The number of full-time equivalent and conditions negotiated through Bullying staff rose by 7 per cent in 2011, a collective bargaining agreement The challenge… In 2011, 6 per in line with our medium-term with the Unite trade union and any cent of AIUK staff reported they had growth strategy to generate more significant operational changes experienced bullying or harassment by income, strengthening our in-house are implemented in consultation another staff member in the previous fundraising team. Staff turnover fell with union representatives. For 12 months. This is an improvement again during 2011 to 11.3 per cent, in more about union-management on the 2009 figure of 10 per cent, and line with the national average for all communication channels, see Annex. much better than the national average sectors of the economy. (The figure of one in four (National Bullying includes end of fixed-term contracts Organisational development Helpline), but it is not acceptable to us. as well as unplanned turnover.) In 2011 AIUK published six revised Further action… We continue our The average length of service of an or new human resources policies: a efforts to reduce bullying through employee is five years and eight fixed term contract and a retirement staff training, and we have a team of months; the UK average is four years, policy were new, and we revised our independent advisers to guide and while the average for the voluntary expenses, equality and diversity, support staff affected. sector is two years and 10 months. redundancy and job security, and childcare and dependents policies. IT resources Wellbeing All were the subject of consultation The challenge… In 2011, 24 As in 2010, we endeavoured to and agreed with the union. per cent of our workforce did not reduce the level of absence relating In 2011 Amnesty International UK consider they had access to the to stress and mental health, using once again received Target Jobs IT resources they needed to work the services of an occupational ‘Most Popular Graduate Recruiter’ effectively. This is better than the 41 health provider and a counselling award in the Charity and Not for per cent registered in 2009, but there service. After the success in 2010 Profit sector and we were a finalist in is clearly room for improvement. we participated in National Stress the Third Sector Excellence Awards Further action... In 2011 we set Awareness Day again, running events for Best Employer 2011. up an IT Steering Group to move and talks to promote awareness our IT resources and support to a of our stress policy and stress in Staff engagement: staff and more proactive partnership role. We general. Reported sickness absence volunteer surveys also continued the PC replacement due to stress, depression or other AIUK conducts regular staff and programme, reviewed our telephony psychiatric illness decreased, from volunteer surveys, with good and brought in enhanced technology 24.7 per cent of working days lost response rates – 75 per cent for the and training for our IT resources. to sickness absence in 2010 to 18.3 most recent survey, in April 2011. per cent in 2011. Reported sickness The 2011 survey confirmed some Performance management absence in 2011 was low, with an positive factors with 89 per cent of The challenge… In 2009 43 per cent average of 1.3 days per employee staff saying they were proud to work of staff said they felt that Amnesty over the year, compared to a UK for AIUK and 95 per cent saying International UK did not manage average for the year of 9.1. We were they were committed to AIUK’s poor performance effectively. By shortlisted for the Chartered Institute goals. The survey also showed that 2011 this had dropped to 30 per of Personnel and Development’s some progress had been made with cent, but only 22 per cent of staff People Management Awards in the challenges identified in the 2009 felt that the organisation’s approach Health and Wellbeing category. survey but revealed new and existing to performance management had areas of concern. improved over the past year. Partnership Further action… In 2011 we worked AIUK has a long history of working in with an external partner (Roffey Park) partnership with trade unions, both to design and deliver workshops for internally and in our campaigning managers and staff on performance

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 49 our people, policies and practices continued

management, improved the quality exist at global and local level, and implemented from the start of 2012, and quantity of individual annual we seek to do so in both our human aims to make Amnesty International personal development plans and rights work and in developing our UK a leader in the gender equality strengthened our management own organisation. Our approach field over the next five years. We will development programme. is one of gender and diversity demonstrate how gender inequalities mainstreaming: the pursuit of gender that exist in wider society are being Senior management equality as part of everything we do challenged in our own organisation leadership including employment, fundraising, on a daily basis. The challenge… In 2009 less than campaigning, marketing, publishing, half the staff felt that the senior events, procurement and facilities In practice, this means creating a management team provided effective management. culture and systems that promote leadership or direction, and this was equality. Key elements of this include, still the case in 2011. Our aim in 2011 was to make for example: Further action... In 2011 we focused decisive progress in our gender • building gender and diversity on the effective management of mainstreaming work by recruiting a analysis into all our policies, change and SMT worked with gender mainstreaming manager and strategies, projects, and evaluation external support to do this. adopting a strategic training plan. methods; • making the centrality of gender and new areas for action The manager was appointed in July diversity to our mission more visible Communication 2011 and a gender mainstreaming in our campaigns, fundraising, The challenge… The 2011 survey strategy was drawn up by the end of digital and print publications, media showed that less than half the the year. work and events; workforce felt involved in the • research to understand the formulation of AIUK’s operational and The initial focus of this work – and the composition of our supporter base strategic plans, or felt they had the basis of the strategy – was to assess and identify any gender-related opportunity to contribute their views our strengths and weaknesses. We barriers to participation in Amnesty; before changes were made. also talked to similar organisatons to • boosting staff and volunteers’ Our response… We agreed and learn from their experiences. Areas confidence, commitment and implemented a new team planning we identified as strengths were: competence by providing a range process. We started work on an • our women’s human rights of opportunities to learn about internal communications strategy. programme, which specifically gender mainstreaming and put it addresses gender inequality; into practice. Our volunteers • provision for flexible working hours, We rely heavily on volunteers which enables staff of both sexes Feedback contribution alongside our staff. At to meet caring responsibilities; and Amnesty International UK values the end of 2011 we had 93 office • equal pay. the views of its stakeholders, both volunteers (down from 110 in 2010) positive and negative. We have and 215 bookshop volunteers. Areas where further work is needed operated a policy of inviting and include: recording feedback since July 2009. Volunteers contribute on many levels. • building thinking about gender and We estimate that volunteers in our diversity into our systems, eg the Feedback is reviewed and offices and bookshops gave over way we design projects; assessed by a Feedback Oversight 128,000 hours in 2011, worth over • creating a strong learning culture Panel (comprising a member of £1 million (assuming the London where both men and women the Board, the UK director, the Living Wage in 2011 of £8.30). can thrive; director of marketing, director of • building the confidence and corporate services, and manager of competence of our staff to transparency and accountability). The our policies and mainstream gender and diversity Panel identifies and recommends practices from the start; actions to the senior management • helping women in our workforce team where appropriate. Gender mainstreaming to progress. We are committed to tackling the In 2011, Amnesty International gender and other inequalities that Our gender mainstreaming strategy, UK received 2,629 recorded

50 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 pieces of feedback – more than 10 Complaints are distinguished from resulted in change or action. The submissions for every weekday, feedback (which is the expression panel’s proposals for improving and an increase of 15 per cent on of satisfaction or dissatisfaction) the complaints procedure will be the number received in 2010. in that they involve a more formal considered in 2012. claim that AIUK has failed to meet an Positive comments organisational commitment. We received 320 favourable enVironmental comments about our work, In 2011 we received 1,467 impact predominantly about: complaints, almost double the Environmental protection and • our campaigns – especially the number for 2010. The majority (57 climate change have significant campaigns on Troy Davis (page 30) per cent) of complaints received in implications for human rights. and on cluster munitions (page 6), 2011 concerned the payments to Amnesty International believes that and the Urgent Actions on Iranian the former Secretary General. The the failure to act effectively on refugees at Camp Ashraf in Iraq (a remainder were about: climate change, for example, could campaign supported by an Iranian • our campaigns, notably our result in widespread violations of the exile group); opposition to the forced eviction at rights to life, to health, to water, to • events – mainly AmnesTea Dale Farm in Essex and our support food and to housing. fundraising events; for sexual and reproductive rights; • the content of our materials – • our fundraising (street fundraising, The Human Rights Action Centre in mainly our educational resources. telemarketing and sending too London, the base for 93 per cent of many mailings); our staff and venue for public events, We also received comments • content of our materials, especially is the largest physical ‘footprint’ of expressing general approval of a cash appeal featuring stoning in our activities. We are committed to our work. Iran; measuring, assessing and reporting • events – predominantly about on its environmental impact. negative comments a public meeting held in our We received 613 items of negative London offices by two external In 2011 we said we would: feedback, predominantly about: organisations, the Palestinian • reduce use of gas and electricity by • our campaigns, including our work Solidarity Campaign and Middle 5 per cent; on the Middle East and North East Monitor Online (MEMO). • improve recycling facilities in our Africa (page 24) and our support A blog published in the Daily public spaces; for sexual and reproductive rights Telegraph in April 2011 asked • increase re-use and recycling; (page 6); readers to call Amnesty and ask • measure carbon emissions of our • the decision by Amnesty’s why we hosted the meeting. business travel. International Executive Council to award large payments to former Learning from feedback Stronger monitoring of temperature Secretary General Irene Khan and As well as responding to comments, settings enabled us to reduce our her deputy (page 39); suggestions and complaints, use of gas and electricity in 2011. We • the content of our materials, Amnesty International UK strives also improved recycling facilities and including raffle promotion materials to learn from them. The Feedback started to record our business travel. and our website; Oversight Panel analyses feedback The results were: • general administration, mainly patterns, and where appropriate • We reduced our energy use by 4.4

on the handling of financial and recommends changes in how we tonnes of CO2 equivalent emissions

administrative transactions such as operate. For example, in response from 2010, giving total CO2 changes in direct debits; to a series of complaints about equivalent emissions for the year of • fundraising, including street fundraising practices, we took action 278.6 tonnes. fundraising, telemarketing and to ensure courteous behaviour by • We sent 59 per cent of our waste to sending too many mailings to our street fundraisers. The panel be recycled in 2011, compared to supporters (pages 38-41). also identified a weakness in how 48 per cent in 2010. Amnesty International UK deals with • We learned that our business travel

Complaints complaints: although all complaints caused 51 tonnes of C02 equivalent Amnesty International UK also are recorded and receive a response, emissions. receives and records complaints. there was little evidence that they

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 51 finance

where our money comes from – and where it goes

In the 12 months to 31 December 2011 AIUK spent £26.4 million to carry out its work. These funds were applied to the work and campaigns that we have briefly touched on in this report.

Most of our expenditure (two thirds) is allocated to campaigning and research that sustains our campaigning work.

where our money comes from

Actual % Annual 12 mths 12 mths 2011 2010 £m £m Members and Supporters 16.5 69.6% 16.5 Legacies 2.6 11.0% 2.1 Gift Aid 1.4 5.9% 1.6 Appeals and raffles 0.9 3.8% 1.1 Community fundraising 0.8 3.4% 0.7 Shops and catalogue 0.6 2.5% 0.7 Corporate 0.3 1.3% 0.4 Foundations and Trusts 0.3 1.3% 0.5 Other 0.3 1.3% 0.1 Total 23.7 100% 23.7

Our income remained constant for organisations have suffered reduced remember Amnesty in their wills 2011. We are fortunate that almost income during the economic and our legacy income has formed 70 per cent of our income comes downturn and we are immensely around 10 per cent of our income in from members and supporters grateful to our supporters for recent years. The other 20 per cent mainly in the form of regular monthly sustaining us during this time. comes from a range of fundraising donations. We know that many We are also grateful to those who initiatives.

52 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 how we spent our money – the top line

Actual % Annual 12 mths 12 mths 2011 2010 £000s £000s Campaigning, raising awareness and educating 8,565 32% 8,200 Research 6,984 26% 6,825 Encouraging more people to become activists 2,258 9% 1,637 Recruiting, retaining and communicating with our supporters 5,843 22% 4,316 Raising additional funds 2,266 9% 1,505 Sustaining our systems of governance 484 2% 447 Total 26,400 100% 22,930

Our expenditures for 2011 reflected for Amnesty to have more effective priority was the development of a the challenge set by the global human rights impact in the global new website to allow supporters and Amnesty movement to increase south and east. As a result we made activists to interact with Amnesty our total income by 35 per cent additional investments in recruiting more effectively. This is a long- by 2016. This is a difficult target, new supporters and activists, term development project and will but it is one we want to tackle which was funded from surplus continue until 2014. because we recognise the need reserves. Another expenditure

growth in human rights work

Actual Annual 12 mths 12 mths 12 mths 12 mths 2011 2010 09/10 08/09 £000s £000s £000s £000s Human rights campaigning 8,565 8,200 7,932 8,254 Research: human rights violations 6,984 6,825 6,790 6,117 Investment in activist recruitment 2,258 1,637 1,789 1,936 Total 17,807 16,662 16,511 16,307

In 2011 we were able to increase increases of this level but our other fundraising initiatives, is the our expenditures in these areas by commitments to ongoing investment driver that helps us to fund greater £1.15 million, or almost 7 per cent. in recruitment and retention of expenditures on human rights work We cannot always expect to sustain Amnesty supporters, as well as in future years.

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 53 finance continuedfinancial commentary

what we planned performance during reflected in the current year because for the year ended the year including many new recruits only make their 31 december 2011 major eVents and first financial contribution early in The main financial component of our Variances 2012. In addition, we did not meet all strategic plans from 2011 to 2016 Although our target of recruiting at of our recruitment targets. This is one is to accept the challenge set by least 38,000 new supporters was factor in our income for 2011 being the global Amnesty movement to deliberately ambitious, we made identical (pro-rata) to that for 2010. increase our total income by 35 per good progress during 2011. We Legacy income was substantially cent. This is a difficult target, but it operated a range of recruitment higher than the amount we budgeted is one we want to tackle because initiatives and performance against for. Other income sources which we recognise the need for Amnesty plan was closely monitored during performed well included community to have more effective human rights the year by Amnesty’s senior fundraising initiatives, and there impact in the global south and east. management team and at regular was improved performance on our We intend to achieve our financial meetings of the Board’s finance supporter appeals. However our commitments to the movement committee. Close management grant and major donor income was without undermining our ability to of the programme allowed us to down compared to the previous maintain effective campaigning work channel our investment towards the period. The bulk of our income in the UK. Board meetings agreed best performing initiatives. Despite comes from on-going subscriptions significant investments in three main the economic headwind, and the and donations from individual areas: capacity of the recruitment agencies supporters and members. Despite that we used, we were pleased with difficult economic conditions this • A budget of up to £4.3 million (an a final total of just over 32,000 new income was comparable to 2010; initial £3.8 million and a further supporters. Although the recruitment we are very grateful to all who £0.5 million held in reserve) for programme was weighted towards contributed for their continuing the recruitment of new Amnesty the second half of the year, around support. International supporters and 60 per cent of those new supporters activists. This was based on the began making financial contributions Although we committed to investing desire to grow our support base to Amnesty during 2011. some of our surplus reserves to which in turn allows us to increase grow our supporter base, we have our future funding of human rights We made good progress on the also been able to increase the campaigning work throughout the substantial redevelopment of our resources allocated to human rights global Amnesty movement. website. Most of the planned costs research, campaigning and activism. • An allocation of £635,000 for the were incurred and we are excited During 2011 we increased these continuing development of a new at the prospect of beginning to roll expenditures by over £1 million website to allow supporters and out the new functionality in various compared to the pro rata-ed prior activists to interact with Amnesty phases during 2012. This will make nine-month period. more effectively. a major contribution to improved • An additional voluntary contribution interaction between Amnesty and its Overall, we budgeted for a deficit of £300,000 to the global Amnesty activists and supporters. of £3.8 million during 2011: the movement with this being allocated outcome was a deficit of £2.7 towards initiatives in the ‘BRICS’ We were also able to fund the million. The main variance was countries. planned additional contributions to an underspend on our ambitious the global Amnesty movement in recruitment programme because As a result the Board agreed a order to develop Amnesty’s presence we streamlined our investments budget deficit of £3.8 million for 2011 in the global south and east. during the year to focus on the most funded from surplus reserves of £4.8 profitable initiatives. million held at the start of the year. Much of the income benefit from the 2011 recruitment programme are not

54 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 budget 2012 and reserVes targets • We have insurance cover for beyond As at 31 December 2011 our most business risks, including During 2012 we will continue to unrestricted free reserves stood at property and equipment, business implement the plans based on £5.1 million. interruption, personal accident and our strategic direction for 2011- travel, charity trustees indemnity, 2016. This includes the substantial The target free reserves are calculated employers’ liability cover, public challenge set by the global Amnesty on the basis of the financial impact liability cover. movement to increase our total and probability of the significant risks • We maintain policies to manage income by 35 per cent in order to identified in the risk assessment, and normal day-to-day risks, including allocate more resources to the global amount to £3.7 million. child protection, health and safety, south and east. As we intend to corporate relations, procurement, achieve our financial commitments to travel. the movement without undermining surplus of reserVes • AIUK has contingency plans for our ability to maintain effective aboVe reQuirement business continuity and crisis campaigning work in the UK, we will The surplus of free reserves above response. continue to allocate a similar amount target at 31 December 2011 stood • Control systems include a Project of resources to that work. at £1.4 million. (The UK Section Initiation Panel with oversight held surplus reserves of £1.5 million of proposed project work and In 2011 we increased our grants to and the UK Trust held a deficit on budgets; a Content Approval Panel the global Amnesty movement from a reserves of £100,000). responsible for communications pro-rata figure of £6.8 million in 2010 and creative work; plus financial to £7 million in 2011. For 2012 we controls and approval processes. plan to increase this to around £7.75 risk management million although most of this increase Amnesty International UK works in We asked our internal auditors, will depend on our ability to increase an ever-changing environment and Sayer Vincent LLP, to undertake our income from foundations, the organisation faces fast-moving a comprehensive review of our trusts and major donors. Overall opportunities – and risks. approach to risk management. we have set our fundraising team a The objectives of the review were: demanding target of increasing our For a long period Amnesty total income by about 5 per cent. International UK has maintained a • to develop a risk policy that Our major investment in supporter detailed formal risk register that is describes our attitude to risks; recruitment in 2011 is not sustainable overseen and monitored by our Board. • prepare a risk register that provides but we still plan to recruit almost In building on existing operational risk our governance structure with a 16,000 new financial supporters. management procedures, we seek to: useful tool for understanding and • strengthen the analysis of external monitoring the strategic risks; The Board noted the forecast risks and strategic risks; • provide a framework for risk reduction in our deficit for 2011 in • build stronger assurances management activities by agreeing a budget deficit of £1.5 throughout the organisation about departments and teams that million for 2012. While we have risk management; enables them to manage, monitor endeavoured to use our surplus • integrate risk management into and report on operational risks. reserves to fund growth and maintain our core planning and reporting our campaigning work in the UK, processes. During 2011 Sayer Vincent reported we recognise the need to bring our on their recommendations and finances back into balance from 2013 Our main risk management strategies we plan to implement those onwards and we will need to review combine planning, monitoring and recommendations during 2012 our resource allocations during 2012. review, and are overseen by the throughout AIUK. Finance Subcommittee of the AIUK Section Board.

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 55 financial statements

independent auditors’ respective basis of opinion statement to the boards responsibilities of the of amnesty international boards and auditors We conducted our work in united kingdom accordance with Bulletin 2008/3 The Boards are responsible for ‘The auditors’ statement on summary We have examined the summarised preparing the summarised combined financial statement in the United pro forma combined financial annual report in accordance with the Kingdom’ issued by the Auditing statements of the following entities basis of accounting and accounting Practices Board. Our report on for the year ended 31 December policies included in the full pro forma the organisation’s full pro forma 2011: combined financial statements. combined financial statements describes the basis of our opinion • Amnesty International United Our responsibility is to report to you on those financial statements and Kingdom Section our opinion on the consistency of the combined Boards Report. • Amnesty International (United summarised pro forma combined Kingdom Section) Charitable Trust financial statements within the • Amnesty Freestyle Limited summarised annual report with the opinion full pro forma combined financial This report is made solely to the statements and Boards Report. In our opinion the summarised pro Boards of Amnesty International We also read the other information forma combined financial statements United Kingdom. To the fullest extent contained in the summarised annual are consistent with the full combined permitted by law, we do not accept report and consider the implications pro forma financial statements and or assume responsibility to anyone for our report if we become aware combined Boards report of the other than the Boards as a body, for of any apparent misstatements or entities as listed above for the year this report. material inconsistencies with the ended 31 December 2011. summarised pro-forma combined financial statements.

Our report has been prepared in accordance with the terms of our engagement letter and for no other purpose. Don Bawtree (senior statutory officer) For and on behalf of bdo LLP, statutory auditor Gatwick United Kingdom 22 May 2012

BDO LLP is a limited liability partnership registered in England and Wales (with registered number OC305127).

56 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 combined statement of financial actiVities for the year ended 31 december 2011 Unrestricted Restricted Endowment Total Total Funds Funds Funds Funds Funds 9 mths Dec 2011 Dec 2011 Dec 2011 Dec 2011 Dec 2010 £000s £000s £000s £000s £000s

Incoming resources from generated funds Voluntary income Subscriptions amd donations from members and supporters 16,205 249 16,454 12,375 Legacies 2,635 - 2,635 1,553 Gift Aid 1,366 - 1,366 1,169 Grants - 189 189 278 Total voluntary income 20,206 438 20,644 15,375 Activities for generating funds 2,760 - 2,760 2,112 Income from pursuit of objectives 253 - 253 200 Investment and other income 38 - 38 65

Total incoming resources 23,257 438 - 23,695 17,752

Expenditure Cost of generating voluntary income 5,843 - 5,843 3,237 Activities for generating funds 2,266 - 2,266 1,129 Total cost of generating funds 8,109 - 8,109 4,366

Expenditure in pursuit of objectives Human rights campaigning 8,108 457 8,565 6,150 Research: human rights violations 6,984 - 6,984 5,119 Investment in activist recruitment 2,258 - 2,258 1,228 Total expenditure in pursuit of objectives 17,350 457 17,807 12,497 Governance costs 484 - 484 335

Total resources expended 25,943 457 - 26,400 17,198 net (deficit)/surplus for the year before revaluation (2,686) (19) - (2,705) 554 Unrealised gain/(loss) on revaluation on investment asset - - 4 4 (4) net movement on funds (2,686) (19) 4 (2,701) 550

Total funds brought forward 15,982 365 220 16,567 16,017

Total funds carried forward 13,296 346 224 13,866 16,56

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 57 combined balance sheet at 31 december 2011

Dec 2011 Dec 2011 Dec 2010 Dec 2010 £000s £000s £000s £000s Fixed assets Tangible fixed assets 10,459 10,768 Investments 31 220 10,490 10,988 Current assets Debtors 1,968 2,160 Cash at bank and in hand 4,557 8,041 6,525 10,201

Creditors: amounts falling due within one year (791) (1,233)

net current assets 5,734 8,968

Creditors: amounts falling due after more than one year (2,358) (3,389)

Total net assets 13,866 16,567

Reserves

Restricted Endowment 224 220 Grants 346 365 570 585 Unrestricted Undesignated 5,195 8,554 Designated 8,101 7,428 13,296 15,982

Total reserves 13,866 16,567

These financial statements are now approved by the Board and authorised for issue on 19 May 2012

brian Landers, treasurer

58 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 combined cash flow statement for the year ended 31 december 2011

Dec 2011 Dec 2011 Dec 2010 Dec 2010 £000s £000s £000s £000s net cash (outflow)/inflow from operating activities (2,434) 74

Returns on investment and servicing of finance Interest received 38 35 Interest paid (138) (149) net cash outflow from return on investments and servicing of finance (100) (114)

Taxation Corporation tax paid - -

Capital expenditure and financial investment Maturing fixed asset investments 193 - Payments to acquire tangible fixed assets (112) (9) net cash inflow/(outflow) from capital expenditure and financial investment 81 (9)

Financing Decrease in long term debt (1,031) (165)

Decrease in cash (3,484) 214

Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 59 more about this report

ingo accountability with peers and track progression and have been defined by an Editorial charter improvement. This report has been Board drawn from Amnesty Amnesty International is a signatory of assessed against the GRI application International UK staff. For further the International NGO Accountability levels and assessed as meeting information about this report Charter, which outlines a common Application Level B. please contact our Transparency commitment to enhance transparency and Accountability Manager on and accountability among various The detailed GRI Content Index [email protected] non-governmental organisations. For supporting our Report Application more information on the charter see Level B is included as an Annex to www.ingoaccountabilitycharter.org our Online Annual report (see cost of this report www.amnesty.org.uk/annualreport) This report was written, designed and produced internally by staff and global reporting AIUK’s policy is to apply the GRI volunteers at Amnesty International initiatiVe (gri) indicators and protocols as specified. UK Section and cost £4.72 to print Our report seeks to meet the terms Other than the external assurance based on a print run of 1,000 copies of the INGO Accountability Charter, provided by our auditors in respect following a competitive tender. and to comply with the principles of of the financial statements and the the Global Reporting Initiative, and the Application Level check conducted The paper used for this report is G3 guidelines. We have used these by GRI, AIUK has not sought 100 per cent post-consumer paper, guidelines as they provide a framework additional external assurance in certified EcoLogo, Processed for reporting on social, environmental respect of the GRI framework. Chlorine Free, FSC Recycled, and and governance matters, and help manufactured using biogas energy. organisations to compare themselves The report’s content and structure

Statement GRI Application Level Check

GRI hereby states that Amnesty International UK has presented its report “Annual Report 2011” to GRI’s Report Services which have concluded that the report fulfills the requirement of Application Level B. GRI Application Levels communicate the extent to which the content of the G3 Guidelines has been used in the submitted sustainability reporting. The Check confirms that the required set and number of disclosures for that Application Level have been addressed in the reporting and that the GRI Content Index demonstrates a valid representation of the required disclosures, as described in the GRI G3 Guidelines. Application Levels do not provide an opinion on the sustainability performance of the reporter nor the quality of the information in the report. Amsterdam, 14 September 2012

Nelmara Arbex, Deputy Chief Executive, Global Reporting Initiative The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) is a network-based organization that has pioneered the development of the world’s most widely used sustainability reporting framework and is committed to its continuous improvement and application worldwide. The GRI Guidelines set out the principles and indicators that organizations can use to measure and report their economic, environmental, and social performance. www. globalreporting.org Disclaimer: Where the relevant sustainability reporting includes external links, including to audio visual material, this statement only concerns material submitted to GRI at the time of the Check on 12 September 2012. GRI explicitly excludes the statement being applied to any later changes to such material.

60 Amnesty International UK Annual Report 2011 Amnesty International UK is one of 72 national entities that make up the Amnesty International movement. contact us

Amnesty International UK ANNUAL REPORT 2011 The Human Rights Action Centre 17-25 New Inn Yard Amnesty International UK London EC2A 3EA Tel +44 (0) 20 7033 1777 [email protected]

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If you require this document in an alternative format please contact: Tel 020 7033 1777 Textphone 020 7033 1664 Email [email protected]

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