Editing Helsinki Committee for Human Rights

{{Short description|Human rights organization}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2023}}
{{Distinguish|Helsinki Commission (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox organization
| name                = Helsinki Committee for Human Rights
| logo                = File:Helsinki_Committee_for_Human_Rights_2_logo.png
| logo_size           = 
| logo_alt            = 
| logo_caption        = Helsinki Committee for Human Rights logo
| abbreviation        = 
| predecessor         = [[International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights]]
| merged              = 
| successor           = 
| founder             = 
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| type                = 
| founded_date        = 
| status              = [[Non-governmental organization]]
| headquarters        = 
| location_city       = 
| location_country    = 
| location_city2      = 
| location_country2   = 
| origins             = 
| region_served       = [[Europe]], [[Central Asia]], [[North America]]
| services            = 
| methods             = [[Advocacy]]
| leader_title        = 
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| website             = 
| focus               = [[Human rights]]
}}
'''Helsinki Committees for Human Rights''' exist in many European countries (and in the wider [[Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe|OSCE]] region) as volunteer, [[non-profit organization]]s devoted to the protection of [[human rights]]. It was presumably named after the [[Helsinki Accords]]. It was formerly organized into the [[International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights]] (IHF), based in [[Vienna]].

==History==
The Helsinki Committees began as [[Helsinki Watch]] groups. The first one was founded in [[Moscow]] in  May 1976, the second in [[Kyiv]] in November 1976, the third in November 1976 in [[Lithuania]], then in 1977 in [[Czechoslovakia]], [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]] and [[Armenia]], the last in 1979 in [[Poland]].
In 1982, representatives of several of these committees held an International Citizens Helsinki Watch Conference and founded the IHF.

In 1992, a [[British Helsinki Human Rights Group]] was established in the [[UK]], but this group was always completely independent of the International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights. The UK's official representative in the IHF is the British Helsinki Subcommittee of the Parliamentary Human Rights Group, established in 1976.

==Country organizations==
* Albania: Albanian Helsinki Committee<ref>[http://www.ahc.org.al/ Albanian Helsinki Committee] ''www.ahc.org.al''</ref><ref>[https://www.civicsolidarity.org/member/148/albanian-helsinki-committee Albanian Helsinki Committee] 11 May 2012, ''www.civicsolidarity.org'', accessed 18 June 2022</ref><ref>[https://www.sigrid-rausing-trust.org/grantee/albanian-helsinki-committee/ Sigrid Rausing Trust: Grantee profile: Albanian Helsinki Committee] ''www.sigrid-rausing-trust.org'', accessed 18 June 2022</ref>
* Armenia: [[Helsinki Committee of Armenia]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://civicsolidarity.org/member/149/helsinki-committee-armenia |title=Helsinki Committee of Armenia |website=civicsolidarity.org |access-date=2023-05-25}}</ref>
* Belarus: [[Belarus Helsinki Committee]]<ref>{{cite web |language = en |url = https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20210714-rights-groups-raided-as-belarus-pursues-crackdown |title = Rights groups raided as Belarus pursues crackdown |publisher = France24 |date = 2021-07-14 |access-date = 2021-08-25 }}</ref>
* Bulgaria: [[Bulgarian Helsinki Committee]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.novinite.com/articles/153921/Bulgarian+Helsinki+Committee+Sends+Open+Letter+to+DW |title=Bulgarian Helsinki Committee Sends Open Letter to DW - Novinite.com - Sofia News Agency |website=www.novinite.com |access-date=2020-01-10}}</ref>
* Croatia: [[Croatian Helsinki Committee]]
* Czech Republic: [[Czech Helsinki Committee]]
* Denmark: [[Danish Helsinki Committee]]
* Hungary: [[Hungarian Helsinki Committee]]
* Lithuania: [[Lithuanian Helsinki Group]]
* Norway: [[Norwegian Helsinki Committee]]
* North Macedonia: Macedonian Helsinki Committee<ref>[https://mhc.org.mk/en/ Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in the Republic of Macedonia] ''mhc.org.mk''</ref>
* The Netherlands: [[Netherlands Helsinki Committee]]
* {{ill|Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights (Poland)|pl|Helsińska Fundacja Praw Człowieka}}<ref>[http://www.hfhr.pl/ Polish Helsinki Foundation website] ''www.hfhr.pl''</ref>
* Romania: Romanian Helsinki Committee<ref>[http://www.apador.org Association for the Defence of Human Rights in Romania the Helsinki Committee] ''www.apador.org''</ref>
* Russia: [[Moscow Helsinki Group]]
* Serbia: [[Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia]]
* Slovakia: [[Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Slovakia]]
* Spain: Helsinki España - Human Dimension
* Sweden: [[Civil Rights Defenders]] (formerly the Swedish Helsinki Committee)
* Switzerland: Swiss Helsinki Committee for democracy, Rule of law and Human Rights
* Turkey: Helsinki Citizens' Assembly
* Turkmenistan: [[Turkmen Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights]]<ref>[http://www.tmhelsinki.org/en/ Turkmenistan Helsinki Foundation website] ''www.tmhelsinki.org''</ref>
* Ukraine: [[Ukrainian Helsinki Group]]

==See also==
{{portal|Europe|Society}}
* [[Helsinki Citizens' Assembly]]
* [[Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights]]
* [[Helsinki Watch]] and its successor, [[Human Rights Watch]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://armhels.com/en/ Helsinki Committee of Armenia]
* [http://www.helsinki.org.rs/ Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110131012613/http://bghelsinki.org/index.php?lg=en Bulgarian Helsinki Committee] 
* [http://www.helcom.cz/cs/en/ Czech Helsinki Committee]
* [http://www.mhc.org.mk/?locale=en Helsinki Committee for Human Rights of the Republic of Macedonia]
* [http://www.ihf-hr.org/ International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights] - close down notice
* [http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/01/09/europe/EU-GEN-Austria-Human-Rights-Fraud.php "Human rights movement active despite fraud scandal, former director says"]

[[Category:Human rights organizations]]


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