Jump to content

Sarah Leah Whitson

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Historicist (talk | contribs) at 13:17, 16 September 2009. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Sarah Leah Whitson is an American human rights activist.


Whitson is a graduate of the University of California(BA, 1988), Berkeley and of Harvard Law School(JD, 1991)[1]. As of 2009 Whitson is director of the Middle East and North Africa division of Human Rights Watch.[2] She was previously employed by Goldman, Sachs & Co., the law firm of Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton, and by the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee.[3] She has also carried out Human rights work for the Center for Economic and Social Rights, Harvard Study Team and International Study Team missions examining the impact of war and sanctions on the Iraqi civilian population, the International Human Rights Law Group's election-monitoring mission in Kurdish-controlled Northern Iraq.[4]

In May of 2009, Whitson drew attention when she led a HRW fund-raising trip to Saudi Arabia during which she emphasized HRW’s record of standing up to “pro-Israel pressure groups.”[5] Jeffrey Goldberg of the Atlantic Monthly looked into the controversy and concluded that "Yes, the director of Human Rights Watch's Middle East division is attempting to raise funds from Saudis, including a member of the Shura Council (which oversees, on behalf of the Saudi monarchy, the imposition in the Kingdom of the strict Wahhabi interpretation of Islamic law) in part by highlighting her organization's investigations of Israel, and its war with Israel's "supporters," who are liars and deceivers. It appears as if Human Rights Watch, in the pursuit of dollars, has compromised its integrity."[6] Human Rights Watch says the allegations that HRW had "compromised its neutrality" by meeting with Saudi donors were based on "misleading assumptions and wrong facts". HRW notes that staffers made two presentations in Saudi Arabia in May 2009 in private homes to people who were interested in Human Rights Watch. Among an estimated 50 guests at a reception in Riyadh, there were three with governmental affiliations, "the spokesperson for the Ministry of Interior; the deputy head of the Human Rights Commission, a governmental organization; and a member of the Shura Council, a government-appointed consultative body."[7] According to HRW, none of those individuals were solicited for funds and HRW never accepts funds from government officials in any country.[8] HRW stated that there is no reason why Saudi citizens cannot legitimately want to support human rights. [8]

In June 2009, Whitson wrote an opinion piece for the Los Angeles Times concerning Israeli settlements in which she argued that their removal is mandated by international law and that the Palestinians should be compensated for their losses.[9]

Mark Regev, spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu stated that "a whole series of individuals who work in the Middle East department of Human Rights Watch have histories in partisan anti-Israeli politics," including Whitson, and said that "This is the real story, because Human Rights Watch is claiming to be objective, professional and credible, yet all the evidence points to the contrary."[10]

NGO Monitor accuses Whitson of using her position at HRW to "promote her anti-Israel political agenda, particularly through support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement." [11] The Israel newspaper Maariv describes Whitson as a supporter of anti-Israel boycotts.[12]

According to NGO Monitor, Whitson has also been involved with "anti-Israel NGOs" and the Center for Economic and Social Rights.[13] She has carried out a fact-finding mission in Southern Lebanon for MADRE, an international women’s human rights organization. [14]

Whitson's reports have caused a rift between Human Rights Watch and Sid Sheinberg, vice-chair of HRW’s board. [15]

References

  1. ^ http://www.harvardarabalumni.org/MENAweekend/speakers.php
  2. ^ HRW website [1]
  3. ^ Jerusalem Post, Aug 30, 2009 21:55, Right of Reply: Isolating Israel through language of human rights, Gerald Steinberg, [2]
  4. ^ http://www.harvardarabalumni.org/MENAweekend/speakers.php
  5. ^ DAvid Bernstein, "Human Rights Watch Goes to Saudi Arabia; Seeking Saudi Money to Counterbalance "Pro-Israel Pressure Groups" , Wall Street Journal, July 15, 2009 [3]
  6. ^ Fundraising Corruption at Human Rights Watch, Jeffrey Goldberg, 15 July, 2009 [4]
  7. ^ Visit to Saudi Arabia and False Allegations of Human Rights Watch 'Bias' [5]
  8. ^ a b "Human Rights Watch Visit to Saudi Arabia". Human Rights Watch.
  9. ^ Whitson, Sarah Leah (2009-06-28). "Israel's settlements are on shaky ground". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2009-09-09.
  10. ^ HRW analyst suspended over Nazi items, E.B. SOLOMONT AND HERB KEINON, Jerusalem Post, Sept. 16, 2009 [6]
  11. ^ Experts or Ideologues: Systematic Analysis of Human Rights Watch, NGO Monitor, September, 2009, p. 15, [7]
  12. ^ Maariv, Sept. 9, 2009, Hebrew [8] google translation "Can of Worms discovered Human Rights Watch," is here [9] translation [10]
  13. ^ Experts or Ideologues: Systematic Analysis of Human Rights Watch, NGO Monitor, September, 2009, p. 21, [11]
  14. ^ http://www.harvardarabalumni.org/MENAweekend/speakers.php
  15. ^ Broken Watch; Does Human Rights Watch have an Israel problem?, Allison Hoffman, Tablet Magazine, Aug. 26, 2009 [12]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sarah_Leah_Whitson&oldid=314337146"