Turkey Yes Vote Gives Enormous Power to President
With 51.3 percent of the vote, the “Yes” vote campaign has won Turkey’s historic April 16 referendum on a new political system giving enormous centralized power to the president
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Launched in 2003, the Geneva International Committee includes more than 40 prominent and dedicated members representing various professions such as law, banking, journalism and the arts, and sharing the same interest in promoting human rights in Geneva and within the international community.
The Committee’s goals are:
The Committee has been indispensable in raising the visibility of human rights ideals and the work of Human Rights Watch in Geneva.
A member of the Executive Committee speaks out
Neil Rimer explains how he became a member of the Geneva International Committee:
"As I had the chance to find myself blocked on the tarmac in a little airplane, sitting next to Ken Roth, I could ask him during some hours about the aims of Human Rights Watch, about its functioning and organizational structure, as well as about its budget and fundraising.
During this discussion I understood that Human Rights Watch represents one of the best tools to identify and investigate human rights violations, to make the findings public in order to protect the victims, and to bring the guilty to justice.
In spite of our situation here in Geneva that gives us a privileged standpoint on international affairs and in spite of the flow of information that comes from the media, it is increasingly difficult to remain objective, to erase the biases from all the sides and to know the truth — not ten years later in history books, but immediately, in order to help and to avoid having catastrophes on our consciences. […]
I decided six years ago to become involved with Human Rights Watch, which I see as a formidable opponent of dictators and impunity."
GENEVA COMMITTEE
Fergal Mullen, Président/Chair
Adla El Sayegh, Vice-Présidente/Vice-Chair
Dani Bach
Verena Best
Helena Bjäringer
Leda Braga
Amal Brihi Riachi
Meagan Carnahan
Patrick Chappatte
Suzan Craig
Leila Delarive
Patrick Delarive
Claude Demole
Youssef Dib
Paula Dupraz-Dobias
Loubna Freih
Helena Frick
Keyvan Ghavami
Laura Ghazzaoui
Philip Grant
Kristin Hamilton Becnel
Nadège Hentsch
Denis Houlès
Caitlin Kraft-Buchman
Philippa Layland Vogel
John H. McCall MacBain
Marcy McCall MacBain
Atalanti Moquette
Elianna Moquette Sabbag
Mara Moret
Marc Moret
Angela de Oliveira
Sibylle Pastré
Marina de Planta
Renaud de Planta
Yann Popper
Camille Prezioso
Stephanie Rada Zocco
Neil Rimer
Adam Said
Dalia Said-Hamza
Dina Said Dwyer
Andy Silver
Dimitri Theofilides
Magali Van Overbeke Deconinck
Philippe Ziegler
Roxane Ziegler
Michel Halpérin, Member of the Human Rights Watch Legacies for Justice Society
GENEVA STAFF
Armelle Armstrong, Managing Director
Aurore Sajhau, Geneva Director
Célia Joachim, Manager
Elizabeth Larouer, Senior Coordinator
With 51.3 percent of the vote, the “Yes” vote campaign has won Turkey’s historic April 16 referendum on a new political system giving enormous centralized power to the president