Mission Statement

Advancing Human Rights (AHR) is an organization dedicated to individual liberty and good governance.

The 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and 1975 Helsinki Final Act counted among their goals free speech, equality for women, the right to pray or not, and open education for all nations.  As human rights organizations have grown more powerful, they have expanded their mandates into the laws of war.  This part of their work has little to do with the basic freedoms outlined in Universal Declaration. 

Advancing Human Rights (AHR) will return to the values of the Universal Declaration with a primary focus on unfree states. We believe that nations that adhere to this magnificent doctrine are less likely to engage in armed conflict and more likely resolve their differences peacefully.  Open societies, unlike closed societies, have means to correct human rights abuses—a free press, active and independent NGOs, vigilant courts and legislatures.  We therefore believe that our time is best spent focusing on authoritarian countries without free speech or corrective mechanisms. 

To achieve our goals, AHR will utilize the Internet to support freedom advocates and give them a platform to exchange ideas.  This arm of AHR is called CyberDissidents.org and it is already at work engaging democratic dissidents in autocratic countries.

The qualifications and methodology human rights organizations have used in judging civilian death in war is highly questionable.  AHR will investigate current procedures and offer new recommendations for an improved understanding of the interplay between war and human rights and the treatment of international humanitarian law by human rights groups.  We will also monitor the work of human rights organizations to encourage accountability, fairness and transparency. 
   
We will engage writers, thinkers, activists and students to help foster freedom of speech, equality for women, the right to pray or not, and open education.  We believe that these freedoms are key to allowing all men and women to achieve their highest potential.