What is the political bent of the Human Rights Watch

[LittleClarkie]

http://hrw.org/

I've seen them called right wing. I thought they were either neutral or a bit left, actually.

What is your take?

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

1. Heh heh.

Well, it's quite simple. People are more than happy to hold them up as a paragon if virtue if they happen to agree with their findings, and then bash them for being a bunch of wingnuts whenever they disagree.

[LittleClarkie]

2. Well, that would seem to be the nut of it

But I'd ask anyway.

[Marie26]

3. They're a valid

human rights organization, like Amnesty International. Which means they'd normally be considered pretty neutral - unless they're attacking Chavez (ducking and running).

[JackBeck]

4. I have three friends who work for Human Rights Watch.

The organization is far from right-wing. Some of their major donors are Republicans, though, and when Ken Roth, HRW's ED made a passionate speech denouncing the Iraqi War, he was given a slap on the wrist by some of the board members for taking such a strong stance, as it was seen as a partisan jab at Bush. I've also seen O'Liely try to smack him around on The Factor, but Ken stands his ground and doesn't back down.

But if you were to look at the issues they tackle, I would, in my opinion, say they are a left-leaning organization. One of my friend's wrote a book for them about the abuse that GLBT high school kids get by other students. Obviously, not right-wing at all.

Who has called them right-wing?

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

5. "Who has called them right-wing?"

Mainly rabid supporters of Hugo Chavez who dislike the fact that HRW reports on human rights abuses in Venezuela.

[JackBeck]

7. They also have reported on the Bush administration's policy of torture.

So are we even?

[applegrove]

6. Human Rights organizations look at the world through just that - human

rights.

They don't fall for the "the enemy of my enemy - is my friend" thing. They have been documenting Saddam Hussein's human rights abuses and they have the documents - so their feeling son him will not change.

You do human rights absues - they don't like you. You don't - and they don't care about you - except in your role to combat and put an end to systematic human rights abuses.