Martin Ennals: A Giant Human Rights Defender

(article posted in the Martin Ennals Award website)

Martin Ennals (1927-1991) was instrumental to the modern human rights movement. A fiercely devoted activist, he creatively pursued ideas ahead of his time as the first Secretary-General of Amnesty International and was the driving force behind ten other organisations. His deep desire was to see more cooperation and solidarity among NGOs.

"Ironically, I think there is less cynicism about human rights than there was. The work we are doing is part of the overall pattern of human development, whatever the political system, whatever the country, whatever the cultural background, whatever the religion."
Martin Ennals, in an interview in the 70s (seen in the film "Martin Ennals - A Giant Human Rights Defender", Amnesty International, by Willem Offenberg, 1998)

Martin Ennals devoted his whole life to human rights and nothing else. His dynamic dedication may have taken different forms, and may have been channeled through a variety of human rights organisations - whatever the vehicle used, there was always a single orientation: human rights. As a colleague noted: "He moved mountains, doing impossible things. Martin was always ten years ahead of his time."

The enormous creativity of Martin, the pursuing of ideas ahead of his times is best illustrated in Mark Twain’s words: "A crank is a man with an idea..... until it catches on." He was behind the creation or growth of at least ten organisations which span the full spectrum of human rights, each specialising in their own mandate, be it the development of a strong machinery for protecting the rights of individuals through Amnesty International (AI), the prevention and solution of conflicts through International Alert (IA), freedom of expression through Article 19, the use of appropriate information technology through HURIDOCS, or general standard setting within the United Nations.

When Martin became Secretary General of AI in 1968, AI was an organisation with 7 staff and an annual budget of £17'000. Twelve years later, the staff had grown to 150 with an annual budget of £2 million. Martin represented an era where AI became a human rights organisation of global concern, and an international player in the human rights field. It is no coincidence, then, that AI was awarded the Erasmus Prize in 1976, the Nobel Peace Prize in 1977, and the UN Human Rights Award in 1978. But Martin, known for his modesty, had others accept the prizes on behalf of AI.

Martin was convinced of the need for AI to become a strong campaign organisation, not just an organisation that documents human rights violations. Under his leadership, the first campaign on torture took place in 1973 as well as the first campaign against the death penalty in 1977. Martin cited his reasons for leaving AI in 1980: "I thought that no organisation should become identified with one person and that no individual gives his best after a certain period of time in one post." Martin retained close contact with AI during his whole life.

In 1982, at the birth of the HURIDOCS network, Martin wrote: "The rapid increase of interest in human rights coincides with the rapid development of information technology. Unless a common and universal system of communication is evolved, valuable information will be wasted, existing international machinery will not function, and implementation not monitored." This is how he married information technology and human rights protection. Hence it should come as no surprise that HURIDOCS is the home of the MEA. With human rights treaties being available on internet, with many human rights organisations now having a "home page" on the "web", it is perhaps good to recall that the words just quoted were probably typed by Martin on his old, battered portable typewriter which he carried around the globe.

He was active in the creation of both SOS Torture (today the World Organisation Against Torture) and Defence for Children International. From there, he moved to establish Article 19, and his last creation, International Alert (IA). He remarked that it was fitting to go full circle from AI to IA - from an organisation focusing on the individual, to one that emphasises events.

According to colleagues and family, Martin Ennals not only had devotion to human rights work, but he also had a strong love of life, of people, of fun. Martin was always able to tell the woods from the trees, always willing to see the individual distinct from the movement or the cause. He had the ability to put everything human rights defenders are doing in a meaningful global context. This made Martin the quintessential NGO networker.

As the International Federation of Human Rights and the World Organisation Against Torture have pointed out in the context of their joint initiative, the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders: "Around the world, and too often beyond the eyes of the international community, human rights defenders continue to work against incredible odds and in the face of threats, harassment and ever increasing violence. Remove the witness and there is no crime." During the 50th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on 10 December 1998, Secretary-General of AI, Pierre Sané said: "Defending human rights defenders today has to be imperative for all international human rights organisations in order to create the political and social space where the future of all societies can be addressed without fear."

It is with this in mind that the Martin Ennals Foundation is the joint responsibility of a broad range of international human rights NGOs. Ten such organisations have joined hands to make the MEA into an effective tool for the protection of human rights defenders. Martin Ennals, who more than anyone else, wanted to see effective cooperation among human rights activists, would certainly be proud of this joint enterprise.

"Martin’s life and work were inspired by his commitment to human rights, making him a pioneer of the human rights movement… Martin stood at the cradle of many national and international organisations working for human dignity, political freedom, social justice, and peace. He defended human rights at times and in places where human rights were not popular, nor high on anyone’s agenda."
Theo van Boven

"With the death of Martin Ennals, the human rights world has lost a towering champion who displayed unparalleled commitment to the development of a global concern for human rights. There will be many people who will remember Martin, for it is in his relation to people that his true greatness lies: his ability to talk to the victim and to the prince, and to be persistent in the quest for a more humane world with better standards. I know of no other who can measure up to him."
Kumar Rupesinghe