179-544: The Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights (RWCHR) is a Canadian non-governmental organization dedicated to pursuing justice through the protection and promotion of human rights . The RWCHR's name and mission is inspired by Raoul Wallenberg's humanitarian legacy. Based in Montreal , the RWCHR pursues justice by mobilizing advocacy and advising foreign policy in Canada and around
358-696: A Member of Parliament , the RWCHR's chair spent significant energy attempting to redress the targeting and forced organ harvesting from Falun Gong practitioners in China . In 2013, he tabled a private member's bill (Bill C-561) to this effect. Now, his efforts have been taken up by Garnett Genuis , a member of the Raoul Wallenberg All-Party Parliamentary Caucus for Human Rights, who has resurrected Bill C-561 in Bill C-350. The RWCHR acts pro bono as international legal counsel to Sun Qian,
537-813: A donor who wants to see the supported project managed by a person from an industrialized country . The expertise of these employees (or volunteers) may be counterbalanced by several factors, such as ; the cost of foreigners is typically higher, they have no grassroots connections in the country, and local expertise may be undervalued. By the end of 1995, Concern Worldwide (an international anti-poverty NGO) employed 174 foreigners and just over 5,000 local staff in Haiti and ten developing countries in Africa and Asia. On average, employees in NGOs earn 11-12% less compared to employees of for-profit organizations and government workers with
716-610: A hierarchical structure; their headquarters are staffed by professionals who plan projects, create budgets, keep accounts, and report to and communicate with operational fieldworkers on projects. They are most often associated with the delivery of services or environmental issues, emergency relief, and public welfare. Operational NGOs may be subdivided into relief or development organizations, service-delivery or participatory, religious or secular, and public or private. Although operational NGOs may be community-based, many are national or international. The defining activity of an operational NGO
895-792: A "litmus test" of the country's human rights violations. During the 6th annual Iran Accountability Week, the RWCHR and RWCHR All-Party Parliamentary Caucus on Human Rights hosted a public panel in Canadian Parliament discussing many of the Islamic Republic of Iran's human rights abuses, with particular focus on the Baha'is. Participants and attendees at the 6th annual Iran Accountability Week included Payam Akhavan , Maziar Bahari , Mark Dubowitz , Corinne Box, Michael Levitt , Judy Sgro and Marilou McPhedran . The RWCHR also participated with Senators and Parliamentarians in panel discussions hosted by
1074-659: A 'Tweetstorm' on the occasion of the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists in 2018, with participants including the likes of J.K Rowling , and Hillel Neuer . The RWCHR has also engaged in many behind-the-scenes diplomatic efforts . In March 2018, when Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman was in Washington, D.C. , the RWCHR's chair handed him a legal brief on Badawi's case based on Islamic and Saudi Arabian law . The Crown Prince said he would consider
1253-467: A Canadian citizen and Falun Gong practitioner who has been detained in China since February, 2018 being subject to mental and physical torture. The RWCHR also acts as international legal counsel to Dr. Wang Bingzhang , a Chinese dissident currently languishing in a Chinese prison for doing nothing other than promoting democracy. To highlight his case, the RWCHR sponsored the screening of "Inside These Walls",
1432-631: A Chinese pro-democracy dissident currently languishing in a Chinese prison; Sun Qian, a Falun Gong practitioner imprisoned for her spiritual faith; Saeed Malekpour , a Canadian permanent resident imprisoned in the notorious Evin Prison in Iran for developing a computer software; Ayatollah Hossein Kazemeyni Boroujerdi , imprisoned in Evin Prison for advocating for separation of religion and government ;
1611-531: A March 2000 report on United Nations reform priorities, former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan favored international humanitarian intervention as the responsibility to protect citizens from ethnic cleansing, genocide, and crimes against humanity. After that report, the Canadian government launched its Responsibility to Protect (R2P) project outlining the issue of humanitarian intervention. The R2P project has wide applications, and among its more controversial has been
1790-594: A body "formed from the class-conscious and best elements of the working classes." All citizens of the Russian republic aged 18 or older were eligible. Its role being the defense "of the Soviet authority, the creation of a basis for the transformation of the standing army into a force deriving its strength from a nation in arms, and, furthermore, the creation of a basis for the support of the coming Socialist Revolution in Europe." Enlistment
1969-487: A collective committee of Vladimir Antonov-Ovseyenko , Pavel Dybenko , and Nikolai Krylenko . At the same time, Nikolay Dukhonin was acting as the Supreme Commander-in-Chief after Alexander Kerensky fled from Russia. On 12 November 1917 the Soviet government appointed Krylenko as the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, and because of an "accident" during the forceful displacement of the commander-in-chief, Dukhonin
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#17328560503592148-550: A common border between Japanese controlled areas and the Soviet Far East and Mongolia . The Soviets and Japanese, including their respective client states of the Mongolian People's Republic and Manchukuo , disputed the boundaries and accused the other side of border violations. This resulted in a series of escalating border skirmishes and punitive expeditions , including the 1938 Battle of Lake Khasan , and culminated in
2327-693: A deep understanding of the issues facing people and to tailor their services to meet the specific needs of each community. NGOs vary by method; some are primarily advocacy groups , and others conduct programs and activities. Oxfam , concerned with poverty alleviation, may provide needy people with the equipment and skills to obtain food and drinking water ; the Forum for Fact-finding Documentation and Advocacy (FFDA) helps provide legal assistance to victims of human-rights abuses. The Afghanistan Information Management Services provide specialized technical products and services to support development activities implemented on
2506-608: A documentary about the plight of Dr. Wang Bingzhang , at Concordia University's Cinema Politica. The RWCHR has called on the Canadian government to use the Magnitsky Act to impose sanctions on Chinese regime officials involved in the aforementioned. In 2021, the Centre released a report in partnership with the Washington, D.C.-based Newlines Institute for Strategy and Policy regarding
2685-658: A documentary which draws parallels between life under Apartheid in South Africa and life for the Baháʼís in today's Iran . An Op-Ed highlighting the plight of the Baháʼí was also written in the National Post by RWCHR staff members. In attempt to sanction the Iranian officials that have perpetrated, and are complicit in rights abuses, in 2016 and 2017 the RWCHR participated in an event for
2864-418: A further 1,836,000 returned from German captivity. Thus the grand total of losses amounted to 8,668,400. This is the official total dead , but other estimates give the number of total dead up to almost 11 million men, including 7.7 million killed or missing in action and 2.6 million prisoners of war (POW) dead (out of 5.2 million total POWs), plus 400,000 paramilitary and Soviet partisan losses. Officials at
3043-473: A hero of humanity who was murdered for his criticism of Putin's corruption and criminality [see above]. In both of these regards, the RWCHR has partnered with Russian dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza , who has been de facto exiled from Russia for his promotion of the Magnitsky Act . The RWCHR has also been engaged with the case of Alexey Pichugin , evidenced by his mention in an Op-Ed in The Hill authored by
3222-498: A hundred times as many tanks . The Red Army, however, had been hindered by Soviet leader Joseph Stalin 's Great Purge of 1937, reducing the army's morale and efficiency shortly before the outbreak of the fighting. With over 30,000 of its army officers executed or imprisoned, most of whom were from the highest ranks, the Red Army in 1939 had many inexperienced senior officers. Because of these factors, and high commitment and morale in
3401-500: A lack of resources. They may be contractors or collaborate with government agencies to reduce the cost of public goods. Capacity-building NGOs affect "culture, structure, projects and daily operations". Advocacy and public-education NGOs aim to modify behavior and ideas through communication, crafting messages to promote social, political, or environmental changes (and as news organisations have cut foreign bureaux, many NGOs have begun to expand into news reporting). Movement NGOs mobilize
3580-450: A major reshuffling took place in the Soviet military administration. On 13 March 1918, the Soviet government accepted the official resignation of Krylenko and the post of Supreme Commander-in-Chief was liquidated. On 14 March 1918, Leon Trotsky replaced Podvoisky as the Narkom of War Affairs. On 16 March 1918, Pavel Dybenko was relieved from the office of Narkom of Marine Affairs. On 8 May 1918,
3759-462: A political prisoner [serves as a] looking glass into the human rights violator country that imprisons them”. The RWCHR serves as international legal counsel to the following political prisoners: Raif Badawi , a Saudi blogger imprisoned for exercising his right to freedom of expression; Leopoldo Lopez , a leader of the Venezuelan democratic opposition currently under house-arrest ; Dr. Wang Bingzhang ,
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#17328560503593938-485: A relatively significant role in helping create the global movement for Magnitsky legislation. The RWCHR's chair ignited a parliamentary process in 2016 to pass Canadian Magnitsky legislation inviting Bill Browder , Vladimir Kara-Murza , and Garry Kasparov to testify before Parliament . This, coupled with a major campaign engaged in by the RWCHR to get the Canadian Foreign Affairs Committee to submit
4117-686: A report calling for a framework for human rights sanctions created enough momentum for the Canadian Magnitsky legislation, officially titled the Justice for Victims of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act , to unanimously pass in the House of Commons . Following this, the Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland and Bill Browder credited the RWCHR and its chair with the passing of the Canadian Magnitsky legislation. On November 1, 2017,
4296-540: A stable nucleus. By 1925, this system provided 46 of the 77 infantry divisions and one of the eleven cavalry divisions. The remainder consisted of regular officers and enlisted personnel serving two-year terms. The territorial system was finally abolished, with all remaining formations converted to the other cadre divisions, in 1937–1938. The Soviet military received ample funding and was innovative in its technology. An American journalist wrote in 1941: Even in American terms
4475-495: A strong advocate for democracy and the adoption of the Magnitsky Act . The RWCHR has taken steps to commemorate this hero of humanity. On February 8, 2018, the RWCHR co-hosted a screening of the documentary "Nemtsov" at Queen's Park, Toronto, Canada , preceding a discussion with the RWCHR's chair, Vladimir Kara-Murza and Peter MacKay . On March 9, 2016, the RWCHR co-sponsored the first annual Boris Nemtsov Memorial Russia Freedom Forum. The RWCHR has also co-authored an Op-Ed in
4654-509: A surrender the following day although some Japanese units continued to fight for several more days. A proposed Soviet invasion of Hokkaido , the second largest Japanese island, was originally planned to be part of the territory to be taken but it was cancelled. Military administration after the October Revolution was taken over by the People's Commissariat of War and Marine affairs headed by
4833-463: A time when we fail to protest". The RWCHR's chair worked closely with Wiesel for over 50 years helping to, after Wiesel's death on July 2, 2016, create Elie Wiesel Park at the busiest intersection in Côte-St-Luc, Québec . The RWCHR has also written numerous Op-Eds and participated in events and galas dedicated to commemorating this hero of humanity. The RWCHR seeks to prevent atrocities similar to
5012-486: Is delivered in a timely and effective manner. NGOs also play a critical role in driving change by advocating for policies and practices that benefit disadvantaged communities. They often work in partnership with other organizations, including government agencies, to address complex challenges that require a collaborative approach. One of the key strengths of NGOs is their ability to work at the grassroots level and to connect with communities directly. This allows them to gain
5191-461: Is not founded by an international treaty". The role of NGOs and other "major groups" in sustainable development was recognized in Chapter 27 of Agenda 21 . The rise and fall of international NGOs matches contemporary events, waxing in periods of growth and waning in times of crisis. The United Nations gave non-governmental organizations observer status at its assemblies and some meetings. According to
5370-687: Is observed annually on 27 February, was recognised on 17 April 2010 by 12 countries of the IX Baltic Sea NGO Forum at the eighth Summit of the Baltic Sea States in Vilnius , Lithuania. It was internationally recognised on 28 February 2014 in Helsinki , Finland by United Nations Development Programme administrator and former Prime Minister of New Zealand Helen Clark . In the context of NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations), diplomacy refers to
5549-764: Is often used to judge it; less than four percent is considered good. According to the World Association of Non-Governmental Organizations, more than 86 percent should be spent on programs (less than 20 percent on overhead). The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has guidelines of five to seven percent overhead to receive funding; the World Bank typically allows 37 percent. A high percentage of overhead relative to total expenditures can make it more difficult to generate funds. High overhead costs may also generate public criticism. A sole focus on overhead, however, can be counterproductive. Research published by
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5728-536: Is the implementation of projects. Advocacy NGOs or campaigning NGOs seek to "achieve large-scale change promoted indirectly through the influence of the political system". They require an active, efficient group of professional members who can keep supporters informed and motivated. Campaigning NGOs must plan and host demonstrations and events which will attract media, their defining activity. Campaigning NGOs often deal with issues related to human rights, women's rights, and children's rights, and their primary purpose
5907-465: Is to communicate with NGOs about areas of mutual interest. Department of Defense Directive 3000.05, in 2005, required the US Defense Department to regard stability-enhancing activities as equally important as combat. In compliance with international law , the department has developed a capacity to improve essential services in areas of conflict (such as Iraq ) where customary lead agencies like
6086-695: Is to defend (or promote) a specific cause. Non-governmental organisations need healthy public relations in order to meet their goals, and use sophisticated public-relations campaigns to raise funds and deal with governments. Interest groups may be politically important, influencing social and political outcomes. A code of ethics was established in 2002 by the World Association of Non-Governmental Organizations . Some NGOs rely on paid staff while others are based on volunteers . Although many NGOs use international staff in developing countries, others rely on local employees or volunteers. Foreign staff may satisfy
6265-484: Is transnational coordination by non-official members of the government, including epistemic communities and former policymakers or analysts. It aims to help policymakers and policy analysts reach a common solution through unofficial discussions. Unlike official diplomacy, conducted by government officials, diplomats, and elected leaders, Track II diplomacy involves experts, scientists, professors and other figures who are not part of government affairs. World NGO Day, which
6444-670: The National Post and Huffington Post about the lessons of the Rwandan genocide , implementing the lessons of the Holocaust to combat anti-semitism , and the international community's failure to invoke the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) in Syria . The RWCHR hosts, organizes and participates in many events that pertain to the Holocaust and genocides more generally. For example, on March 1, 2018,
6623-775: The Ottawa Citizen urging the Canadian Government to follow the United States and Lithuania's lead in adopting Nemtsov commemorations by doing such things as renaming a park or bridge. Elie Wiesel Elie Wiesel is a Holocaust survivor and Nobel Peace Prize winner who dedicated his life to giving a voice to victims of the Holocaust and speaking out against recent genocides in Rwanda , Cambodia , Bosnia and Darfur . Wiesel famously said, "there may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be
6802-791: The Anglophone crisis , a civil war involving the Southern Cameroons region of Cameroon that started in 2017. The CHRDA had earlier, in August 2018, published a list of 106 villages that had been raided and burnt down by Cameroonian government forces since October 2017 in the context of the Anglophone crisis. Citing eyewitness accounts, videos and photos as evidence, the CHRDA claimed that the 106 villages had been "attacked, burned down partially or completely and deserted either completely or partially". In May 2019,
6981-457: The Baháʼí 7 have been advocated for in this regard. The cases of the political prisoners held in Iran's notorious Evin Prison were also highlighted by the RWCHR in a demonstration conducted on Parliament Hill the day before September 1, 2017, a day of solidarity with political prisoners held in Iran officially remembered due to the 1988 massacre of political prisoners in Iran , an event that Canada
7160-582: The Baháʼí 7 , imprisoned in Evin Prison for practicing their Baháʼí Faith and promulgating religious freedom . In 2017, the RWCHR used Human Rights Day to co-host a press conference with the Raoul Wallenberg All-Party Parliamentary Caucus for Human Rights to highlight the cases of political prisoners. The RWCHR believes that advancing women's rights is essential to achieving a more peaceful and prosperous world built upon principles of justice and dignity. The RWCHR has accordingly begun to host events and engage in public advocacy intended to help women exercise
7339-626: The Eastern Front , it accounted for 75–80% of the casualties that the Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS suffered during the war, and ultimately captured the German capital, Berlin . Up to 34 million soldiers served in the Red Army during World War II, 8 million of which were non-Slavic minorities. Officially, the Red Army lost 6,329,600 killed in action (KIA), 555,400 deaths by disease and 4,559,000 missing in action (MIA) ( mostly captured ). The majority of
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7518-661: The European Convention on the Recognition of the Legal Personality of International Non-Governmental Organisations in Strasbourg in 1986, creating a common legal basis for European NGOs. Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights protects the right to associate, which is fundamental for NGOs. The question whether a public project should be owned by an NGO or by the government has been studied in economics using
7697-530: The Gulag . During the Great Patriotic War, the Red Army conscripted 29,574,900 men in addition to the 4,826,907 in service at the beginning of the war. Of this total of 34,401,807 it lost 6,329,600 killed in action (KIA), 555,400 deaths by disease and 4,559,000 missing in action (MIA) (most captured). Of the 4.5 million missing, 939,700 rejoined the ranks in the subsequently liberated Soviet territory, and
7876-687: The Holocaust by remembering and acting upon the lessons related to it. Accordingly, on May 4, 2016, The RWCHR and the International March of the Living co-chaired the International Nuremberg Symposium at Jagiellonian University in Kraków, Poland on the “Double Entendre of Nuremberg: the Nuremberg of Hate and the Nuremberg of Justice”. The “Never Again” Declaration, which highlights some of
8055-907: The Imperial Japanese Army ), the doctrine was not used. Only in the Second World War did deep operations come into play. The Red Army was involved in armed conflicts in the Republic of China during the Sino-Soviet conflict (1929) , the Soviet invasion of Xinjiang (1934), when it was assisted by White Russian forces, and the Islamic rebellion in Xinjiang (1937) in Northwestern China . The Red Army achieved its objectives; it maintained effective control over
8234-649: The International Criminal Court . Finally, on September 25, 2018, several state parties to the Organization of American States – Argentina, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Paraguay and Peru – jointly referred the situation in Venezuela to the International Criminal Court, marking the first time state parties to the International Criminal Court referred another state party for investigation. The work of
8413-405: The Red Army , was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union . The army was established in January 1918 by Leon Trotsky to oppose the military forces of the new nation's adversaries during the Russian Civil War , especially the various groups collectively known as the White Army . In February 1946, the Red Army (which embodied the main component of
8592-451: The Russian Constituent Assembly (5–6 January 1918) and the Soviet government signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (3 March 1918), removing Russia from the First World War. Freed from international obligations, the Red Army confronted an internecine war against a variety of opposing anti-Bolshevik forces, including the Revolutionary Insurgent Army of Ukraine led by Nestor Makhno , the anti-White and anti-Red Green armies , efforts to restore
8771-420: The Soviet Armed Forces alongside the Soviet Navy ) was renamed the " Soviet Army " – which in turn became the Russian Army on 7 May 1992, following the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The Red Army provided the largest land force in the Allied victory in the European theatre of World War II , and its invasion of Manchuria assisted the unconditional surrender of Imperial Japan . During its operations on
8950-445: The Soviet invasion of Manchuria on 9 August 1945 (three days after the first atomic bombing of Hiroshima and the same day the second atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki , while also being exact three months after the surrender of Germany). It was the largest campaign of the Soviet–Japanese War , which resumed hostilities between the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the Empire of Japan after almost six years of peace following
9129-463: The State Department and USAID have difficulty operating. International Health cultivates collaborative, arm's-length relationships with NGOs, recognizing their independence, expertise, and honest-broker status. International non-governmental organizations date back to at least the late 18th century, and there were an estimated 1,083 NGOs by 1914. International NGOs were important to the anti-slavery and women's suffrage movements, and peaked at
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#17328560503599308-632: The U.S. Helsinki Commission , to examine the implementation of the Magnitsky Act and its impact on the Russian government and members of Putin's inner circle. The RWCHR, with the help of their Raoul Wallenberg All-Party Parliamentary Caucus for Human Rights, have been urging the Canadian government to support the global Magnitsky legislation movement by persuading other countries to adopt similar laws. The RWCHR has also taken matters in their own hands attempting to use their influence to sway other countries to adopt Magnitsky legislation. To this end, two RWCHR lawyers, Irwin Cotler and Brandon Silver, visited
9487-580: The UN Department of Global Communications , an NGO is "a not-for profit , voluntary citizen's group that is organized on a local, national or international level to address issues in support of the public good". The term NGO is used inconsistently, and is sometimes used synonymously with civil society organization (CSO), which is any association founded by citizens. In some countries, NGOs are known as nonprofit organizations while political parties and trade unions are sometimes considered NGOs as well. NGOs are classified by (1) orientation- entailing
9666-797: The United States . In total, the U.S. deliveries to the USSR through Lend-Lease amounted to $ 11 billion in materials ($ 180 billion in the 2020 money value): over 400,000 jeeps and trucks; 12,000 armored vehicles (including 7,000 tanks, about 1,386 of which were M3 Lees and 4,102 M4 Shermans ); 14,015 aircraft (of which 4,719 were Bell P-39 Airacobras , 2,908 were Douglas A-20 Havocs and 2,400 were Bell P-63 Kingcobras ) and 1.75 million tons of food. Soviet soldiers committed mass rapes in occupied territories, especially in Germany . The wartime rapes were followed by decades of silence. According to historian Antony Beevor , whose books were banned in 2015 from some Russian schools and colleges, NKVD (Soviet secret police) files have revealed that
9845-441: The Urban Institute and Stanford University 's Center for Social Innovation have shown that rating agencies create incentives for NGOs to lower (and hide) overhead costs, which may reduce organizational effectiveness by starving organizations of infrastructure to deliver services. An alternative rating system would provide, in addition to financial data, a qualitative evaluation of an organization's transparency and governance: In
10024-540: The Washington Consensus . Twentieth-century globalization increased the importance of NGOs. International treaties and organizations, such as the World Trade Organization , focused on capitalist interests. To counterbalance this trend, NGOs emphasize humanitarian issues , development aid , and sustainable development . An example is the World Social Forum , a rival convention of the World Economic Forum held each January in Davos , Switzerland. The fifth World Social Forum, in Porto Alegre , Brazil in January 2005,
10203-449: The Wehrmacht in combat. The Axis's numeric superiority rendered the combatants' divisional strength approximately equal. A generation of Soviet commanders (notably Georgy Zhukov ) learned from the defeats, and Soviet victories in the Battle of Moscow , at Stalingrad , Kursk and later in Operation Bagration proved decisive. In 1941, the Soviet government raised the bloodied Red Army's esprit de corps with propaganda stressing
10382-502: The Wehrmacht was especially harsh. Per a 1941 Stalin directive , Red Army officers and soldiers were to "fight to the last" rather than surrender; Stalin stated: "There are no Soviet prisoners of war, only traitors". During and after World War II freed POWs went to special " filtration camps ". Of these, by 1944, more than 90% were cleared, and about 8% were arrested or condemned to serve in penal battalions . In 1944, they were sent directly to reserve military formations to be cleared by
10561-517: The brigade and regimental levels. The commissars also had the task of spying on commanders for political incorrectness . In August 1918, Trotsky authorized General Mikhail Tukhachevsky to place blocking units behind politically unreliable Red Army units, to shoot anyone who retreated without permission. In 1942, during the Great Patriotic War (1941–1945) Joseph Stalin reintroduced the blocking policy and penal battalions with Order 227 . The Soviet westward offensive of 1918–1919 occurred at
10740-532: The death penalty . Simultaneously, Trotsky carried out a mass recruitment of officers from the old Imperial Russian Army , who were employed as military advisors ( voenspetsy ). The Bolsheviks occasionally enforced the loyalty of such recruits by holding their families as hostages. As a result of this initiative, in 1918 75% of the officers were former tsarists . By mid-August 1920 the Red Army's former tsarist personnel included 48,000 officers, 10,300 administrators, and 214,000 non-commissioned officers . When
10919-471: The self-determination they are entitled to. Examples include an Op-Ed authored by the RWCHR and published in the Huffington Post on International Women's Day on the need to continue advancing women's rights. On March 20, 2018, the RWCHR co-sponsored an event with UN Watch parallel to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women with the goal of shining a spotlight on the role of women in defending democracy and pursuing justice. Participants of
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#173285605035911098-407: The triumphantly advancing enemy. The Red Guard units are brushed aside like flies. We have no power to stay the enemy; only an immediate signing of the peace treaty will save us from destruction." The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) can be divided into three periods: At the start of the civil war, the Red Army consisted of 299 infantry regiments . The civil war intensified after Lenin dissolved
11277-497: The "Second Soviet-Finnish War") which was a conflict fought by Finland and Germany against the Soviet Union from 1941 to 1944. In accordance with the Soviet-Nazi Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of 23 August 1939, the Red Army invaded Poland on 17 September 1939, after the Nazi invasion on 1 September 1939. On 30 November, the Red Army also attacked Finland, in the Winter War of 1939–1940. By autumn 1940, after conquering its portion of Poland, Nazi Germany shared an extensive border with
11456-417: The 1929 Field Regulations and became codified in the 1936 Provisional Field Regulations (PU-36). The Great Purge of 1937–1939 and the 1941 Red Army Purge removed many leading officers from the Red Army, including Tukhachevsky himself and many of his followers, and the doctrine was abandoned. Thus, at the Battle of Lake Khasan in 1938 and in the Battle of Khalkhin Gol in 1939 ( major border conflicts with
11635-411: The 1932–1939 Soviet–Japanese border conflicts . The Red Army, with support from Mongolian forces, overwhelmed the Japanese Kwantung Army and local Chinese forces supporting them. The Soviets advanced on the continent into the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo , Mengjiang (the northeast section of present-day Inner Mongolia which was part of another puppet state) and via an amphibious operation
11814-408: The All-Russian Chief Headquarters was created, headed by Nikolai Stogov and later Alexander Svechin . On 2 September 1918, the Revolutionary Military Council (RMC) was established as the main military administration under Leon Trotsky, the Narkom of War Affairs. On 6 September 1918 alongside the chief headquarters, the Field Headquarters of RMC was created, initially headed by Nikolai Rattel . On
11993-430: The Army. The Council of People's Commissars appointed itself the supreme head of the Red Army, delegating command and administration of the army to the Commissariat for Military Affairs and the Special All-Russian College within this commissariat. Nikolai Krylenko was the supreme commander-in-chief, with Aleksandr Myasnikyan as deputy. Nikolai Podvoisky became the commissar for war, Pavel Dybenko , commissar for
12172-455: The Bolshevik Revolution took place there were few machines in Russia. Marx said Communism must come in a highly industrialized society. The Bolsheviks identified their dreams of socialist happiness with machines which would multiply production and reduce hours of labour until everyone would have everything he needed and would work only as much as he wished. Somehow this has not come about, but the Russians still worship machines, and this helped make
12351-425: The Canadian Coalition Against Torture with RWCHR's chair testifying before the Canadian Senate Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade regarding the need to pass Bill S-219, an Act to deter Iran-sponsored terrorism and human rights violations through the levying of sanctions. In addition to Parliamentary testimony, the RWCHR has used the media to lobby the Canadian and U.S. governments to use
12530-399: The Canadian Friends of a Democratic Iran to discuss, among other things, the persecution of the Baháʼí . On November 22, 2017, the RWCHR, the Raoul Wallenberg All-Party Parliamentary Caucus for Human Rights, the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baháʼís in Canada and the University of Ottawa's Human Rights Research and Education Centre co-hosted a screening of “The Cost of Discrimination”,
12709-555: The Canadian government's use of R2P to justify its intervention in the coup in Haiti. Large corporations have increased their corporate social responsibility departments to preempt NGO campaigns against corporate practices. Collaboration between corporations and NGOs risks co-option of the weaker partner, typically the NGO. In December 2007, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs S. Ward Casscells established an International Health Division of Force Health Protection & Readiness. Part of International Health's mission
12888-721: The Dungan Cavalry Regiment commanded by the Dungan Magaza Masanchi . It also co-operated with armed Bolshevik Party-oriented volunteer units, the Forces of Special Purpose from 1919 to 1925. The slogan "exhortation, organization, and reprisals" expressed the discipline and motivation which helped ensure the Red Army's tactical and strategic success. On campaign, the attached Cheka special punitive brigades conducted summary field court-martial and executions of deserters and slackers. Under Commissar Yan Karlovich Berzin ,
13067-556: The Eastern Front consisted of an estimated 3,604,800 KIA/MIA within the 1937 borders plus 900,000 ethnic Germans and Austrians outside the 1937 border (included in these numbers are men listed as missing in action or unaccounted for after the war) and 3,576,300 men reported captured (total 8,081,100); the losses of the German satellites on the Eastern Front approximated 668,163 KIA/MIA and 799,982 captured (total 1,468,145). Of these 9,549,245,
13246-556: The Fate and Whereabouts of Raoul Wallenberg writing a 1,200-page report which presented “incontrovertible” evidence that Wallenberg did not die in 1947 (as the Soviets claimed), “compelling” evidence that he was alive in the 1950s and 1960s, and “credible” evidence that he lived until the 1970s and 1980s. More recently, the RWCHR joined a legal action to appeal a Russian court ruling that denied Wallenberg's family access to documents that may reveal
13425-567: The Finnish forces, Finland was able to resist the Soviet invasion for much longer than the Soviets expected. Finnish forces inflicted stunning losses on the Red Army for the first three months of the war while suffering very few losses themselves. Hostilities ceased in March 1940 with the signing of the Moscow Peace Treaty . Finland ceded 9% of its pre-war territory and 30% of its economic assets to
13604-544: The Holocaust and Genocide. The RWCHR is dedicated to protecting liberal democracy by fighting against the global resurgence of authoritarianism and illiberal populism that threaten it, and by consequence, human rights . Accordingly, on May 26, 2017, the RWCHR became a signatory to the Prague Appeal for Democratic Renewal, a declaration issued by the International Coalition for Democratic Renewal which calls for
13783-523: The Honourable Göran Persson (Sweden). All of the RWCHR's activity relates to one or more of the below themes. The RWCHR believes that we have a “moral imperative and historic responsibility” to pay tribute to the heroes of humanity who put their livelihoods on the line to defend us. Notable heroes of humanity that the RWCHR has made efforts to commemorate are Raoul Wallenberg , Boris Nemtsov and Elie Wiesel . Raoul Wallenberg According to
13962-773: The Initiative for the Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement in Mauritania (IRA-Mauritania). In December 2018, a few months after the RWCHR announced that they had taken up Biram's case, he was released from prison. Biram has since declared himself a presidential candidate in the June 2019 elections. In 2019, the RWCHR worked together with the Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in Africa (CHRDA) in documenting human rights violations during
14141-629: The Manchurian Chinese Eastern Railway , and successfully installed a pro-Soviet regime in Xinjiang . The Soviet–Japanese border conflicts , also known as the "Soviet–Japanese Border War" or the first "Soviet–Japanese War", was a series of minor and major conflicts fought between the Soviet Union and the Empire of Japan from 1932 to 1939. Japan's expansion into Northeast China created
14320-512: The NKVD. Further, in 1945, about 100 filtration camps were set for repatriated POWs, and other displaced persons , which processed more than 4,000,000 people. By 1946, 80% civilians and 20% of POWs were freed, 5% of civilians, and 43% of POWs were re-drafted, 10% of civilians and 22% of POWs were sent to labor battalions, and 2% of civilians and 15% of the POWs (226,127 out of 1,539,475 total) were transferred to
14499-677: The Netherlands in February to meet with Martijn Van Helvert and other Members of the Foreign Affairs Committee to encourage them to pass Dutch Magnitsky legislation. Much of the RWCHR's work regarding combating human rights violations in Putin's Russia involves promoting the Magnitsky Act , both in Canada and abroad [see above]. The RWCHR also devote significant time to honouring Boris Nemtsov ,
14678-559: The Office of Refugee Resettlement uses to help integrate immigrants to America. Government funding sometimes accounts for the vast majority of overall funding for these NGOs, for example Global Refuge received 180 million dollars of its 207 million dollar budget from federal funding. In recent years, government contracts to non-profits have exploded both in number and size. The Budget for the Office of Refugee Resettlement has increased from 1.8 billion in 2018 to 6.3 billion in 2022. Critics point to
14857-445: The RWCHR and CHRDA together claimed that human rights violations in the Anglophone crisis constituted crimes against humanity . Non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control. NGOs often focus on humanitarian or social issues but can also include clubs and associations offering services to members. Some NGOs, like
15036-757: The RWCHR and its members were central to making this joint referral happen. The RWCHR also serves as legal counsel to Leopoldo Lopez , the leader of Venezuela's democratic opposition. In May 2016, RWCHR's chair received a Special Award by the Standing Committee on Foreign Policy, Sovereignty and Integration of the Venezuelan National Assembly for his work on this matter. In May 2017, the RWCHR spearheaded Leopoldo Lopez's wife's meeting at Canadian Parliament hosted by federal party leaders Justin Trudeau , Rona Ambrose and Tom Mulcair . During his time as
15215-724: The RWCHR co-organized an event with the Montreal Holocaust Museum , the McGill Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism and the Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies featuring a discussion with Payam Akhavan and Bob Rae to raise awareness and discuss the responsibility to protect the Rohingya , victims of mass persecution in Myanmar . On the celebration of the 150th anniversary of Canada's confederation ,
15394-577: The RWCHR endorsed and participated in an event which saw the Armenian, Ukrainian, Jewish, Rwandan and Greek communities of Canada come together at the Armenian Community Centres in Montréal , Toronto and Vancouver to discuss the role Canada should play in human rights today. Other examples include the RWCHR partnering with Vanier College to host the 25thand 26th Annual Vanier Conference on
15573-472: The RWCHR has mounted a public advocacy campaign which has entailed pushing for Badawi to receive honorary Montreal citizenship, leading a rally on the eve of the 5th anniversary of Badawi's imprisonment, and writing Op-Eds in the Huffington Post , Time and The Hill , which were used to point out that Badawi's imprisonment is a violation of Saudi and international law . The RWCHR also organized
15752-457: The RWCHR's chair to an expert panel intended to investigate whether Venezuela should be referred to the International Criminal Court for the possible commission of crimes against humanity . In December, the RWCHR co-hosted a civil society roundtable with several NGOs , academics and Parliamentarians which, according to the Government of Canada , helped inform Canada's strategy in dealing with
15931-799: The RWCHR's chair. In 2013, the RWCHR's chair launched Iran Accountability Week, a major advocacy initiative held annually in the first week of May by the Canadian Subcommittee on International Human Rights to highlight the domestic repression and rights-abuses perpetrated by Khamenei's Iran. A centrepiece of Iran Accountability Week is the Global Iranian Political Prisoner Advocacy Project whereby Parliamentarians and Senators “adopt” political prisoners and engage in sustained public advocacy , partly by co-authoring an Op-Ed , on their behalf. The cases of Saeed Malekpour , Ayatollah Hossein Kazemeyni Boroujerdi and
16110-463: The RWCHR, Raoul Wallenberg , a Swedish non-Jew diplomat who saved 100,000 Hungarian Jews during the Holocaust , represents how one man with the 'compassion to care and the courage to act' can save more lives than the entire international bystander community. Wallenberg can also be said, according to the RWCHR, to have foreshadowed the foundational principles of international human rights and humanitarian law . Further, Wallenberg serves to highlight
16289-466: The RWCHR, along with Bill Browder and other Parliamentarians held a press conference with Nikita and Natalia Magnitsky, the son and wife of the late Sergei Magnitsky , to celebrate the passing of Magnitsky legislation in Canada. On December 14, 2017, Bill Browder , Garry Kasparov and the RWCHR's chair testified in Washington before the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe , also known as
16468-680: The Red Army finally achieving a Soviet-Mongolian victory over Japan and Manchukuo at the Battles of Khalkhin Gol in September 1939. The Soviet Union and Japan agreed to a ceasefire. Later the two sides signed the Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact on 13 April 1941, which resolved the dispute and returned the borders to status quo ante bellum . The Winter War ( Finnish : talvisota , Swedish : finska vinterkriget , Russian: Зи́мняя война́ )
16647-593: The Red Army numbered some 6.5 million men, many of whom the Army had difficulty supporting, around 581,000 in the two operational fronts, western and southwestern. Around 2.5 million men and women were mobilized in the interior as part of reserve armies. The XI Congress of the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks) (RCP (b)) adopted a resolution on the strengthening of the Red Army. It decided to establish strictly organized military, educational and economic conditions in
16826-404: The Red Army was composed mainly of peasants, the families of those who served were guaranteed rations and assistance with farm work. Some peasants who remained at home yearned to join the Army; men, along with some women, flooded the recruitment centres. If they were turned away, they would collect scrap metal and prepare care-packages. In some cases, the money they earned would go towards tanks for
17005-569: The Red Army with an initial Red Guard organization and a core soldiery of Red Guard militiamen and the Cheka secret police. Conscription began in June 1918, and opposition to it was violently suppressed. To control the multi-ethnic and multi-cultural Red Army soldiery, the Cheka operated special punitive brigades which suppressed anti-communists , deserters , and " enemies of the state ". The Red Army used special regiments for ethnic minorities, such as
17184-581: The Red Army's defeat of Pyotr Wrangel in the south in 1920 allowed the foundation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in December 1922. Historian John Erickson sees 1 February 1924, when Mikhail Frunze became head of the Red Army staff, as marking the ascent of the general staff , which came to dominate Soviet military planning and operations. By 1 October 1924 the Red Army's strength had diminished to 530,000. The list of Soviet divisions 1917–1945 details
17363-411: The Red Army's strength was 401 divisions. The Soviet forces were apparently unprepared despite numerous warnings from a variety of sources. They suffered much damage in the field because of mediocre officers, partial mobilization, and an incomplete reorganization. The hasty pre-war forces expansion and the over-promotion of inexperienced officers (owing to the purging of experienced officers) favored
17542-556: The Russian Central Defense Ministry Archive (CDMA) maintain that their database lists the names of roughly 14 million dead and missing service personnel. The majority of the losses, excluding POWs, were ethnic Russians (5,756,000), followed by ethnic Ukrainians (1,377,400). As many as 8 million of the 34 million mobilized were non-Slavic minority soldiers, and around 45 divisions formed from national minorities served from 1941 to 1943. The German losses on
17721-418: The Russian Central Defense Ministry Archive (CDMA) maintain that their database lists the names of roughly 14 million dead and missing service personnel. In September 1917, Vladimir Lenin wrote: "There is only one way to prevent the restoration of the police, and that is to create a people's militia and to fuse it with the army (the standing army to be replaced by the arming of the entire people)." At
17900-678: The Soviet Union made Red Army logistical support difficult because many depots (and most of the USSR's industrial manufacturing base) lay in the country's invaded western areas, obliging their re-establishment east of the Ural Mountains. Lend-Lease trucks and jeeps from the United States began appearing in large numbers in 1942. Until then, the Red Army was often required to improvise or go without weapons, vehicles, and other equipment. The 1941 decision to physically move their manufacturing capacity east of
18079-522: The Soviet Union. Soviet losses on the front were heavy, and the country's international reputation suffered. The Soviet forces did not accomplish their objective of the total conquest of Finland but did receive territory in Karelia , Petsamo , and Salla . The Finns retained their sovereignty and improved their international reputation, which bolstered their morale in the Continuation War (also known as
18258-436: The Soviet defence budget was large. In 1940 it was the equivalent of $ 11,000,000,000, and represented one-third of the national expenditure. Measure this against the fact that the infinitely richer United States will approximate the expenditure of that much yearly only in 1942 after two years of its greatest defence effort. Most of the money spent on the Red Army and Air Force went for machines of war. Twenty-three years ago when
18437-486: The Soviets released 3,572,600 from captivity after the war, thus the grand total of the Axis losses came to an estimated 5,976,645. Regarding POWs, both sides captured large numbers and had many die in captivity – one recent British figure says 3.6 of 6 million Soviet POWs died in German camps, while 300,000 of 3 million German POWs died in Soviet hands. In 1941, the rapid progress of the initial German air and land attacks into
18616-498: The UN, an NGO is a private, not-for-profit organization which is independent of government control and is not merely an opposition political party . The rapid development of the non-governmental sector occurred in Western countries as a result of the restructuring of the welfare state . Globalization of that process occurred after the fall of the communist system, and was an important part of
18795-654: The USSR, with whom it remained neutrally bound by their non-aggression pact and trade agreements . Another consequence of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact was the Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina , carried out by the Southern Front in June–July 1940 and Soviet occupation of the Baltic states . These conquests also added to the border the Soviet Union shared with Nazi-controlled areas. For Adolf Hitler ,
18974-422: The Ural Mountains kept the main Soviet support system out of German reach. In the later stages of the war, the Red Army fielded some excellent weaponry, especially artillery and tanks. The Red Army's heavy KV-1 and medium T-34 tanks outclassed most Wehrmacht armor, but in 1941 most Soviet tank units used older and inferior models. The Red Army was financially and materially assisted in its wartime effort by
19153-669: The World Economic Forum, may also act as lobby groups for corporations. Unlike international organizations (IOs), which directly interact with sovereign states and governments, NGOs are independent from them. The term as it is used today was first introduced in Article 71 of the newly formed United Nations' Charter in 1945. While there is no fixed or formal definition for what NGOs are, they are generally defined as nonprofit entities that are independent of governmental influence—although they may receive government funding . According to
19332-551: The World NGO Day, we celebrate the key civil society's contribution to public space and their unique ability to give voice to those who would have went [sic] otherwise unheard. European Commission Vice-President Federica Mogherini , commemorating the 2017 World NGO Day in Brussels Service-delivery NGOs provide public goods and services which governments of developing countries are unable to provide due to
19511-552: The activities of the Chinese state in Xinjiang, concluding that the Chinese government is responsible for an ongoing genocide against the Uyghur people . The report details evidence that a genocide is occurring, including arbitrary detention, forced abortions and sterilization, the forcible transfer of children to other [non-Uyghur] groups, killings, and creating conditions inconducive to the free expression and practice of minority culture. In
19690-621: The army. However, it was recognized that an army of 1,600,000 would be burdensome. By the end of 1922, after the Congress, the Party Central Committee decided to reduce the Red Army to 800,000. This reduction necessitated the reorganization of the Red Army's structure. The supreme military unit became corps of two or three divisions. Divisions consisted of three regiments. Brigades as independent units were abolished. The formation of departments' rifle corps began. After four years of warfare,
19869-619: The beginning of its existence, the Red Army functioned as a voluntary formation, without ranks or insignia. Democratic elections selected the officers. However, a decree on 29 May 1918 imposed obligatory military service for men of ages 18 to 40. To service the massive draft, the Bolsheviks formed regional military commissariats ( voyennyy komissariat , abbr. voyenkomat ), which as of 2023 still exist in Russia in this function and under this name. Military commissariats, however, should not be confused with
20048-563: The brief. The RWCHR has also heavily criticized the Canadian government's decision to sell billions of dollars of militarized armoured vehicles to Saudi Arabia . The RWCHR's chair authored an Op-Ed in the Montreal Gazette criticizing the Canadian government for saying that the sale was "consistent with Canada's foreign and defence policies, including human rights" given the "appalling state of human rights in Saudi Arabia". The RWCHR
20227-472: The brigades took hostages from the villages of deserters to compel their surrender; one in ten of those returning was executed. The same tactic also suppressed peasant rebellions in areas controlled by the Red Army, the biggest of these being the Tambov Rebellion . The Soviets enforced the loyalty of the various political, ethnic, and national groups in the Red Army through political commissars attached at
20406-665: The circumstance was no dilemma, because the Drang nach Osten ("Drive towards the East") policy secretly remained in force, culminating on 18 December 1940 with Directive No. 21, Operation Barbarossa , approved on 3 February 1941, and scheduled for mid-May 1941. When Germany invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941, in Operation Barbarossa, the Red Army's ground forces had 303 divisions and 22 separate brigades (5.5 million soldiers) including 166 divisions and brigades (2.6 million) garrisoned in
20585-420: The civil war ended in 1922, ex-tsarists constituted 83% of the Red Army's divisional and corps commanders. In 1919, 612 "hardcore" deserters of the total 837,000 draft dodgers and deserters were executed following Trotsky's draconian measures. According to Figes, "a majority of deserters (most registered as "weak-willed") were handed back to the military authorities, and formed into units for transfer to one of
20764-595: The crisis, especially regarding the government's approach to the Lima Group . In April 2018, Brandon Silver, a member of RWCHR's legal team, attended a roundtable discussion with Canadian Parliamentarians and government officials submitting constructive proposals for dealing with the Venezuelan crisis . On May 30, 2018, the RWCHR held a press conference in Ottawa with an all-party group of Parliamentarians and Senators to discuss
20943-575: The danger of state-sanctioned incitement to hate, the danger of the bystander community and the danger of silence and indifference in the face of evil, the responsibility to act, prevent, protect and intervene, the responsibility to pay tribute to the rescuers, and the responsibility to respect the legacy of survivors. The RWHCR has mounted an advocacy campaign to highlight these universal lessons. Accordingly, numerous Op-Eds have been written by RWCHR staff members relating these universal lessons to past and contemporary atrocities. Examples include articles in
21122-509: The day Wallenberg was captured by the Red Army . The RWCHR also co-sponsors the annual International Raoul Wallenberg Roundtable. Boris Nemtsov Boris Nemtsov , a Russian liberal politician that vehemently opposed Vladimir Putin , was assassinated on February 27, 2015 in central Moscow weeks after expressing concern that Putin would try to assassinate him. Nemtsov was a harsh critic of Putin's corruption and his annexation of Crimea and
21301-721: The defeated Provisional Government, monarchists, but mainly the White Movement of several different anti-socialist military confederations. "Red Army Day", 23 February 1918, has a two-fold historical significance: it was the first day of conscription (in Petrograd and Moscow), and the first day of combat against the occupying Imperial German Army . The Red Army controlled by the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic also against independence movements, invading and annexing newly independent states of
21480-532: The defense of Motherland and nation, employing historic exemplars of Russian courage and bravery against foreign aggressors. The anti-Nazi Great Patriotic War was conflated with the Patriotic War of 1812 against Napoleon , and historical Russian military heroes, such as Alexander Nevsky and Mikhail Kutuzov , appeared. Repression of the Russian Orthodox Church temporarily ceased, and priests revived
21659-499: The depth of the enemy's ground forces, inducing catastrophic defensive failure. The deep-battle doctrine relies upon aviation and armor advances with the expectation that maneuver warfare offers quick, efficient, and decisive victory. Marshal Tukhachevsky said that aerial warfare must be "employed against targets beyond the range of infantry , artillery , and other arms. For maximum tactical effect aircraft should be employed en masse , concentrated in time and space, against targets of
21838-431: The event included Wai Wai Nu , Mahnaz Afkhami , Maria Corina Machado and Ketty Niviyabandi. The Magnitsky legislation is a series of laws that give governments the power to levy sanctions on corrupt officials who have grossly violated internationally recognized human rights . The legislation is named after Sergei Magnitsky , a Russian tax accountant who was imprisoned, and later murdered, for uncovering and reporting
22017-456: The fields of humanitarian assistance and poverty alleviation. Funding sources include membership dues, the sale of goods and services, grants from international institutions or national governments, corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds and private donations. Although the term "non-governmental organization" implies independence from governments, many NGOs depend on government funding; one-fourth of Oxfam 's US$ 162 million 1998 income
22196-512: The fleet. Proshyan, Samoisky, Steinberg were also specified as people's commissars as well as Vladimir Bonch-Bruyevich from the Bureau of Commissars. At a joint meeting of Bolsheviks and Left Socialist-Revolutionaries , held on 22 February 1918, Krylenko remarked: "We have no army. The demoralized soldiers are fleeing, panic-stricken, as soon as they see a German helmet appear on the horizon, abandoning their artillery, convoys and all war material to
22375-458: The following universal lessons, was unanimously adopted at the Symposium: the danger of forgetting and the responsibility to remember, the danger of genocide denial and the responsibility to speak truth to power and repudiate false witness, the danger of impunity and the responsibility to bring war criminals to justice, the danger of the betrayal of the elites, the danger of assaults on the vulnerable,
22554-521: The following ways;: Similar terms include third-sector organization (TSO), nonprofit organization (NPO), voluntary organization (VO), civil society organization (CSO), grassroots organization (GO), social movement organization (SMO), private voluntary organization (PVO), self-help organization (SHO), and non-state actors (NSAs). Numerous variations exist for the NGO acronym, either due to language, region, or specificity. Some Romance languages use
22733-477: The forces that controlled them, whatever the governments concerned might think about the matter." Some NGOs, such as Greenpeace , do not accept funding from governments or intergovernmental organizations. The 1999 budget of the American Association of Retired Persons ( AARP ) was over $ 540 million. In America, government funding of NGOs relating to immigration is common, and is one of the stated methods
22912-561: The formations of the Red Army in that time. In the late 1920s and throughout the 1930s, Soviet military theoreticians – led by Marshal Mikhail Tukhachevsky – developed the deep operation doctrine, a direct consequence of their experiences in the Polish–Soviet War and in the Russian Civil War. To achieve victory, deep operations envisage simultaneous corps - and army-size unit maneuvers of simultaneous parallel attacks throughout
23091-449: The former Russian Empire. This included three military campaigns against the army of the Ukrainian People's Republic , in January–February 1918, January–February 1919, and May–October 1920. Conquered nations were subsequently incorporated into the Soviet Union. In June 1918, Leon Trotsky abolished workers' control over the Red Army, replacing the election of officers with traditional army hierarchies and criminalizing dissent with
23270-422: The good intentions of NGO leaders and activists, he is critical of the "objective effects of actions, regardless of their intentions". According to Shivji, the rise of NGOs is part of a neoliberal paradigm and not motivated purely by altruism; NGOs want to change the world without understanding it, continuing an imperial relationship. Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army , often shortened to
23449-824: The ground by other organizations. Management techniques are crucial to project success. The World Bank classifies NGO activity into two general categories: NGOs may also conduct both activities: operational NGOs will use campaigning techniques if they face issues in the field, which could be remedied by policy change, and campaigning NGOs (such as human-rights organizations ) often have programs which assist individual victims for whom they are trying to advocate. Operational NGOs seek to "achieve small-scale change directly through projects", mobilizing financial resources, materials, and volunteers to create local programs. They hold large-scale fundraising events and may apply to governments and organizations for grants or contracts to raise money for projects. Operational NGOs often have
23628-429: The hero's fate. The RWCHR's team has also authored recent Op-Eds , like the ones in The Times of Israel and The Jerusalem Post , on the need to remember this hero of humanity. According to Canadian Senator Sheila Finestone and House of Commons proceedings, the RWCHR's chair was consequential in getting the Canadian Government to adopt a Raoul Wallenberg Commemorative Day, which is held annually on January 17,
23807-407: The highest tactical importance." "To the Red army, Stalin has dealt a fearful blow. As a result of the latest judicial frameup, it has fallen several cubits in stature. The interests of the Soviet defense have been sacrificed in the interests of the self-preservation of the ruling clique." Trotsky on the Red Army purges of 1937. Red Army deep operations found their first formal expression in
23986-404: The humanitarian crisis caused by the turn to authoritarianism in Burundi by inviting Pierre-Claver Mbonimpa to Ottawa for a press conference and meeting with Parliamentarians. The RWCHR mobilizes international advocacy in concert with other international human rights bodies, governments and NGOs to defend political prisoners around the world. According to the RWCHR's chair, the “plight of
24165-429: The hundreds of thousands, and possibly as many as two million. While the Soviets considered the surrender of Germany to be the end of the "Great Patriotic War", at the earlier Yalta Conference the Soviet Union agreed to enter the Pacific Theater portion of World War II within three months of the end of the war in Europe . This promise was reaffirmed at the Potsdam Conference held in July 1945. The Red Army began
24344-416: The imprisonment of Nasrin Sotoudeh , Ayatollah Hossein Kazemeyni Boroujerdi and the Baháʼí 7 respectively. Iran Accountability Week also pays particular attention to the state sanctioned persecution of Baháʼís in Iran. During the 5th annual Iran Accountability Week, the RWCHR's chair personally testified before the Subcommittee on International Human Rights calling the persecution of the Baháʼís in Iran
24523-426: The institution of military political commissars . In the mid-1920s, the territorial principle of manning the Red Army was introduced. In each region, able-bodied men were called up for a limited period of active duty in territorial units, which constituted about half the army's strength, each year, for five years. The first call-up period was for three months, with one month a year thereafter. A regular cadre provided
24702-417: The leadership knew what was happening, but did little to stop it. It was often rear echelon units who committed the rapes. According to professor Oleg Rzheshevsky, "4,148 Red Army officers and many privates were punished for committing atrocities". The exact number of German women and girls raped by Soviet troops during the war and occupation is uncertain, but historians estimate their numbers are likely in
24881-423: The life of any soldier and (almost any) officer of the unit to which he was attached. In 1942, Stalin established the penal battalions composed of gulag inmates, Soviet PoWs, disgraced soldiers, and deserters, for hazardous front-line duty as tramplers clearing Nazi minefields, et cetera. Given the dangers, the maximum sentence was three months. Likewise, the Soviet treatment of Red Army personnel captured by
25060-440: The losses, excluding POWs, were ethnic Russians (5,756,000), followed by ethnic Ukrainians (1,377,400). Of the 4.5 million missing, 939,700 rejoined the ranks in liberated Soviet territory, and a further 1,836,000 returned from German captivity. The official grand total of losses amounted to 8,668,400. This is the official total dead , but other estimates give the number of total dead up to almost 11 million. Officials at
25239-467: The million-dollar salaries of CEOS and the use of funds for "music therapy" and "pet therapy" as a worrying sign that the money might not be appropriated to help the migrant crisis, but rather as a political move to keep wealthy backers loyal. Overhead is the amount of money spent on running an NGO, rather than on projects. It includes office expenses, salaries, and banking and bookkeeping costs. An NGO's percentage of its overall budget spent on overhead
25418-404: The mobilization of a coalition of conscience in defence of democracy. The RWCHR is also a major sponsor of the Magnitsky Act [see below]. The RWCHR hosts, organizes and participates in many events that pertain to the protection of democracy. Since 2016, the RWCHR has been a co-sponsor of the Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy . At the 10th Annual Geneva Summit , the RWCHR's chair gave
25597-407: The northern portion of Korea . Other Red Army operations included the Soviet invasion of South Sakhalin , which was the Japanese portion of Sakhalin Island (and Russia had lost to Japan in 1905 in the aftermath of the Russo-Japanese War ), and the invasion of the Kuril Islands . Emperor Hirohito announced the surrender of Japan on 15 August. The commanding general of the Kwantung Army ordered
25776-500: The number of the country's primary schools and health centers. The United States, by comparison, has approximately 1.5 million NGOs. NGOs further the social goals of their members (or founders): improving the natural environment , encouraging the observance of human rights , improving the welfare of the disadvantaged, or representing a corporate agenda. Their goals cover a wide range of issues. They may fund local NGOs, institutions and projects, and implement projects. NGOs can be in
25955-455: The party with the larger valuation need not be optimal when the public good is partially excludable, when both NGO and government may be indispensable, or when the NGO and the government have different bargaining powers. Moreover, the investment technology can matter for the optimal ownership structure when there are bargaining frictions, when the parties interact repeatedly or when the parties are asymmetrically informed. Today we celebrate
26134-478: The party with the more important investment task should be owner. Yet, Besley and Ghatak have argued that in the context of public projects the investment technology does not matter. Specifically, even when the government is the key investor, ownership by an NGO is optimal if and only if the NGO has a larger valuation of the project than the government. However, the general validity of this argument has been questioned by follow-up research. In particular, ownership by
26313-417: The plight of political prisoners because once the Red Army arrived to liberate Hungary , Wallenberg , a liberator himself, was imprisoned never to be heard from again. Wallenberg's fate remains unknown due to Russia's unwillingness to reveal KGB archives. Determined to uncover the fate of this hero of humanity, the RWCHR's chair, Irwin Cotler , served as the chair of the International Commission on
26492-406: The power vested in the Magnitsky Act to sanction Iranian officials complicit in rights abuses. Much of the RWCHR's work regarding human rights in Saudi Arabia relate to Raif Badawi , a prisoner of conscience sentenced to 10,000 lashes and 10 years in prison for exercising his right to freedom of expression . The RWCHR serves as Raif Badawi's international legal counsel. To secure his freedom,
26671-1135: The practice of building and maintaining partnerships with other organizations, stakeholders, and governments to achieve common objectives related to social or environmental issues. NGOs often work in complex environments, where multiple stakeholders have different interests and goals. Diplomacy allows NGOs to navigate these complex environments and engage in constructive dialogue with different actors to promote understanding, build consensus, and facilitate cooperation. Effective NGO diplomacy involves building trust, fostering dialogue, and promoting transparency and accountability. NGOs may engage in diplomacy through various means such as including advocacy, lobbying, partnerships, and negotiations. By working collaboratively with other organizations and stakeholders, NGOs can achieve greater impact and reach their goals more effectively. Tanzanian author and academic Issa G. Shivji has criticised NGOs in two essays: "Silences in NGO discourse: The role and future of NGOs in Africa" and "Reflections on NGOs in Tanzania: What we are, what we are not and what we ought to be". Shivji writes that despite
26850-447: The public and coordinate large-scale collective activities to advance an activist agenda. Since the end of the Cold War , more NGOs in developed countries have pursued international outreach. By being involved in local and national social resistance, they have influenced domestic policy change in the developing world. Specialized NGOs have forged partnerships, built networks, and found policy niches. Track II diplomacy (or dialogue)
27029-438: The pursuit of justice. The RWCHR's mission statement is organized around five themes, each of which reflects Raoul Wallenberg's humanitarian legacy. Each theme is co-chaired by a leading jurist/parliamentarian/advocate/citizen in the country of Wallenberg's Honorary Citizenship. The honorary co-chairs are Elie Wiesel (US – in memoriam), the Honourable Justice Rosalie Abella (Canada), the Honourable Meir Shamgar (Israel) and
27208-425: The rear armies or directly to the front". Even those registered as "malicious" deserters were returned to the ranks when the demand for reinforcements became desperate". Forges also noted that the Red Army instituted amnesty weeks to prohibit punitive measures against desertion which encouraged the voluntary return of 98,000–132,000 deserters to the army. In September 1918, the Bolshevik militias consolidated under
27387-445: The remaining troops as numbering 10 million. While the Imperial Russian Army was being taken apart, "it became apparent that the rag-tag Red Guard units and elements of the imperial army who had gone over the side of the Bolsheviks were quite inadequate to the task of defending the new government against external foes." Therefore, the Council of People's Commissars decided to form the Red Army on 28 January 1918. They envisioned
27566-410: The report, which did indeed find the Maduro regime to have committed crimes against humanity since 2014. To intensify the advocacy against the Maduro regime , on April 2, 2018, Brandon Silver, published an article in The Hill Times calling out the regime's human rights abuses. On June 21, 2018, the RWCHR's chair testified before the European Parliament to discuss the need to refer Venezuela to
27745-439: The same day the office of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces was created, and initially assigned to Jukums Vācietis (and from July 1919 to Sergey Kamenev ). The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces existed until April 1924, the end of Russian Civil War . In November 1923, after the establishment of the Soviet Union, the Russian Narkom of War Affairs was transformed into the Soviet Narkom of War and Marine Affairs. At
27924-478: The same number of qualifications . However, in many cases NGOs employees receive more fringe benefits. NGOs are usually funded by donations, but some avoid formal funding and are run by volunteers. NGOs may have charitable status, or may be tax-exempt in recognition of their social purposes. Others may be fronts for political, religious, or other interests. Since the end of World War II , NGOs have had an increased role in international development , particularly in
28103-412: The same time as the general Soviet move into the areas abandoned by the Ober Ost garrisons that were being withdrawn to Germany in the aftermath of World War I . This merged into the 1919–1921 Polish–Soviet War , in which the Red Army invaded Poland, reaching the central part of the country in 1920, but then suffered a resounding defeat in Warsaw , which put an end to the war. During the Polish Campaign
28282-588: The summit's closing remarks and presented Vladimir Kara-Murza with the Geneva Summit 2018 Courage Award. The RWCHR also participated in the 2017 Oslo Freedom Forum discussing "Democracy and the Rule of Law". In May 2017, the RWCHR joined forces with the Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies , Amnesty International Canada and the United Committee of Armenian Organizations of Quebec to host Rights City/Montréal, ville des droits humains , which comprises three major events to celebrate Montreal's role in advancing human rights and democracy. To discuss
28461-516: The supreme command of the Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic ( Russian : Революционный Военный Совет , romanized : Revolyutsionny Voyenny Sovyet (Revvoyensoviet) ). The first chairman was Trotsky, and the first commander-in-chief was Jukums Vācietis of the Latvian Riflemen ; in July 1919 he was replaced by Sergey Kamenev . Soon afterwards Trotsky established the GRU (military intelligence) to provide political and military intelligence to Red Army commanders. Trotsky founded
28640-499: The synonymous abbreviation ONG ; for example: Other acronyms that are typically used to describe non-governmental organizations include: Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) play a vital role in improving the lives of people who have been affected by natural disasters or are facing other challenges. NGOs can act as implementers, catalysts, and partners to provide essential goods and services to those in need. They work to mobilize resources, both financial and human, to ensure that aid
28819-426: The theft of $ 230-million by Russian state officials. The U.S. Magnitsky Act was originally intended to sanction the corrupt Russian officials involved in the wrongful imprisonment and murder of Sergei Magnitsky , it began a global movement to pass similar sanction laws that supports human rights advocates by combating a globally pervasive culture of corruption, criminality and impunity. The RWCHR and its chair played
28998-401: The threat illiberal populism and authoritarianism pose to academic freedom, the RWCHR and its chair participated in the Canadian Science Policy Conference in Ottawa alongside Home Hoodfar and Viviana Fernandez. In August 2017, the RWCHR helped host Vietnamplify , a conference that highlights the fight for human rights in Vietnam . On October 7, 2017, the RWCHR played a role in highlighting
29177-468: The time of the 1932–1934 World Disarmament Conference . The term became popular with the 1945 founding of the United Nations in 1945; Article 71 in Chapter X of its charter stipulated consultative status for organizations which are neither governments nor member states. An international NGO was first defined in resolution 288 (X) of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) on February 27, 1950, as "any international organization that
29356-499: The time, the Imperial Russian Army had started to collapse. Approximately 23% (about 19 million) of the male population of the Russian Empire were mobilized; however, most of them were not equipped with any weapons and had support roles such as maintaining the lines of communication and the base areas. The Tsarist general Nikolay Dukhonin estimated that there had been 2 million deserters, 1.8 million dead, 5 million wounded and 2 million prisoners. He estimated
29535-449: The tools of the incomplete contracting theory. According to this theory, not every detail of a relationship between decision makers can be contractually specified. Hence, in the future, the parties will bargain with each other to adapt their relationship to changing circumstances. Ownership matters because it determines the parties' willingness to make non-contractible investments. In the context of private firms, Oliver Hart has shown that
29714-475: The tradition of blessing arms before battle. To encourage the initiative of Red Army commanders, the CPSU temporarily abolished political commissars , reintroduced formal military ranks and decorations, and introduced the Guards unit concept. Exceptionally heroic or high-performing units earned the Guards title (for example 1st Guards Special Rifle Corps , 6th Guards Tank Army ), an elite designation denoting superior training, materiel, and pay. Punishment also
29893-441: The type of activities an NGO undertakes, such as activities involving human rights , consumer protection , environmentalism , health , or development; and (2) level of operation, which indicates the scale at which an organization works: local, regional, national, or international. Russia had about 277,000 NGOs in 2008. India is estimated to have had about 2 million NGOs in 2009 (approximately one per 600 Indians), many more than
30072-568: The western military districts. The Axis forces deployed on the Eastern Front consisted of 181 divisions and 18 brigades (3 million soldiers). Three Fronts, the Northwestern , Western , and Southwestern conducted the defense of the western borders of the USSR. In the first weeks of the Great Patriotic War (as it is known in Russia), the Wehrmacht defeated many Red Army units. The Red Army lost millions of men as prisoners and lost much of its pre-war matériel. Stalin increased mobilization, and by 1 August 1941, despite 46 divisions lost in combat,
30251-399: The words of the RWCHR's chair and executive director, Irwin Cotler and Judith Abitan respectively, "Although Mauritania claims that it has abolished slavery, it actually remains one of the world’s only bastions of slavery." Accordingly, the RWCHR acts pro bono as international legal counsel to Biram Dah Abeid , a leader of the international anti-slavery movement and founder and president of
30430-411: The world. The first Raoul Wallenberg All-Party Parliamentary Caucus for Human Rights was launched in Canada in 2017. The RWCHR was founded by international human rights lawyer and former Canadian Minister of Justice Irwin Cotler in 2015. The RWCHR's mission is to mobilize a "unique international consortium" of academics, activists, lawyers, jurists, Parliamentarians, NGOs, citizens and students in
30609-434: Was a war between the Soviet Union and Finland . It began with a Soviet offensive on 30 November 1939 – three months after the start of World War II and the Soviet invasion of Poland . The League of Nations deemed the attack illegal and expelled the Soviet Union on 14 December 1939. The Soviet forces led by Semyon Timoshenko had three times as many soldiers as the Finns, thirty times as many aircraft, and
30788-406: Was adamant in saying that the arms deal, which the Saudi government said was awarded to Canada to cement the friendship between the two countries, should have been leveraged to secure the release of Raif Badawi who has a strong connection to Canada given that his family resides in Sherbrooke, Quebec . In September 2017, the Secretary General of the Organization of American States appointed
30967-440: Was attended by representatives of over 1,000 NGOs. The 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro , attended by about 2,400 representatives, was the first to demonstrate the power of international NGOs in environmental issues and sustainable development. Transnational NGO networking has become extensive. Although NGOs are subject to national laws and practices, four main groups may be found worldwide: The Council of Europe drafted
31146-412: Was conditional upon "guarantees being given by a military or civil committee functioning within the territory of the Soviet Power, or by party or trade union committees or, in extreme cases, by two persons belonging to one of the above organizations." In the event of an entire unit wanting to join the Red Army, a "collective guarantee and the affirmative vote of all its members would be necessary." Because
31325-489: Was donated by the British government and the EU, and World Vision United States collected $ 55 million worth of goods in 1998 from the American government. Several EU grants provide funds accessible to NGOs. Government funding of NGOs is controversial, since "the whole point of humanitarian intervention was precise that NGOs and civil society had both a right and an obligation to respond with acts of aid and solidarity to people in need or being subjected to repression or want by
31504-440: Was further highlighted by the RWCHR in 2017 when staff members spoke alongside Homa Hoodfar and Alex Neve at an event held at the University of Toronto . The RWCHR also uses the media to mount their public advocacy campaign authoring numerous Op-Eds intended to bring attention to the particular cases of political prisoners. For example, Op-Eds written by the RWCHR in the Huffington Post and The Jerusalem Post discuss
31683-419: Was killed on 20 November 1917. Nikolai Podvoisky was appointed as the Narkom of War Affairs, leaving Dybenko in charge of the Narkom of Marine Affairs and Ovseyenko – the expeditionary forces to the Southern Russia on 28 November 1917. The Bolsheviks also sent out their own representatives to replace front commanders of the Russian Imperial Army . After the signing of Treaty of Brest-Litovsk on 3 March 1918,
31862-471: Was the first to recognize as a crime against humanity thanks to the leadership of Irwin Cotler , amongst other individuals. At the gathering, RWCHR's chair reminded everyone that there is no statute of limitations for crimes against humanity and that, as a result, Canada should push to establish an international tribunal, such as the ones created in response to the Rwandan and Bosnian genocides , to bring perpetrators to justice. The case of Saeed Malekpour
32041-402: Was used; slackers, malingerers, those avoiding combat with self-inflicted wounds cowards, thieves, and deserters were disciplined with beatings, demotions, undesirable/dangerous duties, and summary execution by NKVD punitive detachments. At the same time, the osobist (NKVD military counter-intelligence officers) became a key Red Army figure with the power to condemn to death and to spare
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