Amnesty International USA

ACKNOWLEDGING that the IS has recently stated to members that it has designated 17 countries for Country Action Plans, but has not explicitly stated how this will impact the Annual Report; and

ACKNOWLEDGING that at the 2003 ICM, Decision 17 called for the Minimum Adequate Coverage (MAC) policy to be replaced "with an improved tool to define research, campaigning and development priorities and to implement AI's commitment to global coverage, including both the effective combination of thematic and country research, and country specific research on a substantial number of countries"; and

WHEREAS Amnesty International has recognized that reliable research on human rights abuses within its mission is "the very foundation of AI's credibility, reputation, and authority and an indispensable requirement for the maintenance of the standards the movement has achieved" (ICM 2001 Decision 14); and

WHEREAS AI's Annual Report is universally respected because it is comprehensive, objective and global in its scope; and

WHEREAS AI's Annual Report is widely referenced as a vital resource, and actively used by other human rights organizations, journalists, government officials, and immigration attorneys working for asylum seekers; and

WHEREAS these professionals have stated to the AIUSA Board of Directors, executive staff and volunteer country specialists that because no other organization produces the same kind of comprehensive, accessible summary of human rights abuses organized by country, eliminating the Annual Report or revising it to include only CAPs and/or themes will hinder their global human rights work; and

WHEREAS the IS is currently reviewing the format of the Annual Report to integrate it into the new research strategy and has asked for input from sections;

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that while AIUSA acknowledges that some changes in research focus are positive, it nonetheless asks the IS to continue publishing a comprehensive, global and country-specific Annual Report with the intent of documenting human rights abuses in every country.