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Susan Waltz is a Professor Emerita of Public Policy at the Ford School of the University of Michigan. Waltz served on Amnesty International's Executive Committee (IEC) from 1993-1999. As a member of AIUSA, she has been active in local groups in Oakland, CA and Miami, FL and served on the AIUSA Board from 2009-2012. Waltz also served on AIUSA's Committee on International Development and on the Military, Security and Police Transfers Co-Group. She has been active in AI's international work to promote an Arms Trade Treaty.
This collection of papers documents the work of Amnesty International's IEC, IEC Standing Committees, International Council Meetings, materials related to international planning and finances, and papers concerning AI policies and country priorities. Thematic areas of focus include research coverage in AI, crisis response (including Rwanda), impunity and the International Criminal Court, and economic, social and cultural rights.
There are numerous restrictions on access to this collection. Please see the restrictions note in the finding aid (in red). [unprocessed -- for flag only]
Processed by Susan Waltz and Patrick Lawlor
During my years of service in the 1990s, the IEC typically met 4 times a year. Meetings were highly structured, and the agenda packets sent by international mail to all IEC members were quite hefty. Meetings were usually held at or near the International Secretariat; they usually convened on a Friday afternoon and concluded early afternoon on Sunday. On Friday morning, prior to the formal meeting, the IEC Finance Subcommittee and the IEC Employers' Subcommittee held separate meetings, and items of business from these sub-committee meetings were typically addressed toward the end of the main meeting. The IEC's 9 members included 7 members and a treasurer (all elected by ICM delegates), plus one staff member elected by staff at the International Secretariat. The main IEC meetings were attended by these 9 IEC members, all members of the Senior Management Team (SMT), the IEC assistant, and occasionally by IS program managers or invited staff. [Section personnel were categorically excluded from attending IEC meetings, in part so as not to provide the UK section special privilege due to its location.] Meeting papers typically included a main agenda document and numerous items for information or action. Following the meeting, several documents were distributed to AI sections worldwide as part of the Weekly Mailing, although the practice varied over time: an IEC Bulletin written by the IEC Chair, which typically served as a cover note for attached documents (a practice inaugurated in 1993) and eventually included a narrative about main issues discussed in the meeting. This document sometimes included a list of decisions taken during the meeting, in tabular form and without commentary. A "Report" of the meeting, containing a summary of discussions and recorded decisions of IEC meetings.
The IEC meeting cycle was punctuated every two years by an International Council Meeting, which voted on resolutions and elected new members to the IEC. The meeting following an ICM was typically planned as a combination of business and induction (orientation for new members). In non-ICM years the September meeting involved a short meeting and retreat sessions. Meeting papers in these boxes are arranged to include in each Pocket: A single folder containing the relevant IEC Bulletin and summary list of decisions taken at the meeting; and when available, the subsequent "Report of the IEC Meeting" containing approved minutes. Agenda and papers from the meeting. Note that Agenda papers for a given meeting typically included draft Minutes from the previous IEC meeting. An IEC Bulletin written by the IEC Chair, which typically served as a cover note for attached documents (a practice inaugurated in 1993) and eventually included a narrative about main issues discussed in the meeting. This document sometimes included a list of decisions taken during the meeting, in tabular form and without commentary.
A "Report" of the meeting, containing a summary of discussions and recorded decisions of IEC meetings.
The IEC meeting cycle was punctuated every two years by an International Council Meeting, which voted on resolutions and elected new members to the IEC. The meeting following an ICM was typically planned as a combination of business and induction (orientation for new members). In non-ICM years the September meeting involved a short meeting and retreat sessions.
(Waltz was elected to the International Executive Committee at the 1993 International Council Meeting in Boston and this retreat/meeting was her first IEC meeting apart from a brief gathering of newly elected IEC members attending the ICM)
(The agenda document and several meeting papers are missing. The summary of topics discussed is primarily derived from ORG 72/01/94, included in Folder 4)
(Also included is a memo from RD (IEC Chair) to Section Directors, 24 July 1994 and an informal list of decisions taken at the June 1994 IEC meeting)
This was a somewhat unusual meeting, organized as a retreat. The IEC met in Madrid and had dinner/reception with the Board of AI Spain. The IEC's formal meeting took place on Thursday. The remainder of the meeting was devoted to work being done via the Standing Committees, and we were joined by Standing Committee chairs. As indicated, the papers from the retreat with Standing Committees are in a separate folder
(Report of the IEC Meeting Held 1-4 December 1994 (72/05/94) – both issued December 6, 1994)
(Including (toward the end) reports and papers from meetings of the IEC Finance Sub-committee and IEC Employers Sub-committee)
Closed until Januery 2026
(With Chair's report, summary of decisions, and international policy schedule. Report of the meeting of the IEC Meeting, March 1995 (ORG 72/01/95), issued June 1995)
(Including reports and papers from meetings of the IEC Finance Sub-committee and IEC Employers Sub-committee)
(With Chair's report, report from the Treasurer, report from the Section Development Committee, and summary of decisions; Report of the meeting of the IEC Meeting, March 1995 (ORG 72/02/95), issued August 1995)
(including reports and papers from meetings of the IEC Finance Sub-committee and IEC Employers Sub-committee)
(Other papers related to the Ljubljana Council are included in Box 20, International Council Meetings.)
(With brief cover note from the IEC Chair and a summary chart of decisions; Report of IEC meetings that took place over the course of the ICM)
(The IEC retreat took place outside of London and included 4 new members of the IEC elected in Ljubljana)
(More comprehensive than usual, with a lengthy letter from the chair and several accompanying documents, including materials on role of the IEC. Report of IEC business conducted at the September 1995 Retreat (ORG 72/01/96) –not circulated until January 1996)
(Also included is a standing document, "Code of Conduct of the International Executive Committee.")
(Report of the meeting of the IEC Meeting, December 1995 (ORG 72/02/96), issued April 1996)
Closed until 2027
(Includes decisions of the IEC meeting, no longer issued as a separate document. This bulletin also contains a letter from RD to sections, with a chronology of events that led to a strike by unionized staff at the Secretariat. [Additional related papers are in Boxes 23 and 24, "Papers related to International Secretariat and International Executive Committee.")
This meeting took place in the lengthening shadow of labor dispute at the Secretariat. The IEC and Standing Committees met jointly in a "retreat" for two days, followed by an IEC business meeting
(Also see Box 23, folders 8 and 9; Box 24, folder 1)
(Issued January 1997. Includes letters from the IEC Chairperson and IEC Treasurer as well as minutes and decisions from the December 1996 IEC meeting)
Closed until January 2028
(With Chair's report, letter from the Treasurer, and minutes/decisions from the IEC meeting)
(Including reports and papers from meetings of the IEC Finance Sub-committee and IEC Employers Sub-committee)
(With Chair's report, letter from the Treasurer, and minutes/decisions from the IEC meeting. (Chair's letter provides update on resolution of labor dispute and other matters.)
(Including reports and papers from meetings of the IEC Finance Sub-committee and IEC Employers Sub-committee)
(With Chair's letter, letter from the Treasurer, and minutes/decisions from the IEC meeting)
(Including reports and papers from meetings of the IEC Finance Sub-committee and IEC Employers Sub-committee)
(With Chair's letter, issued shortly after close of the Capetown ICM)
Closed until January 2029
This abbreviated retreat meeting served as an induction for new IEC members and also as an important opportunity to digest outcomes of the Cape Town ICM (held the previous December) and plot a forward course. This was in many regards a pivotal moment for AI, exploring expansion into work on economic, social, and cultural rights and potential far-reaching amendments to AI's "mandate"; anticipating an overhaul of AI's international decision-making processes; and preparation for AI's second Integrated Strategic Plan. Related ICM papers are included in Boxes17, 18, 19
( with Chair's letter and "Messages from Cape Town" along with an overview of major policy-related projects leading to 1999. This Bulletin also includes annotated guidance on the role of the IEC)
(With the Chair's letter and minutes/decisions of the meeting)
(Including reports and papers from meetings of the IEC Finance Sub-committee and IEC Employers Sub-committee)
(With Chair's letter (including informal account of ICC campaigning in Rome, during World Cup along with highlights of the meeting) together with minutes and decisions)
(Including reports and papers from meetings of the IEC Finance Sub-committee and IEC Employers Sub-committee)
This meeting was held in Oxford (off site) and was structured partially as a retreat and partially as a regular business meeting. Beginning Thursday afternoon, the IEC and SMT met in retreat session to discuss internal arrangements. On Friday the IEC met with SMT in regular meeting format. On Saturday the retreat format was expanded to include Standing Committee chairs. The IEC also met in closed session to elect new officers and discuss internal divisions of labor
(With Chair's letter, including commentary on the 50th Anniversary of the UDHR, along with Treasurer's letter, summary of decisions, and international policy schedule)
This meeting, SW's final meeting as chair, was was relatively short, as it was immediately followed by Human Rights Defenders Summit at Palais de Chaillot, Paris and the UDHR Anniversary concert
(With letter from incoming and outgoing IEC Chair, with notes on the recently concluded UDHR 50th anniversary observance in Paris. Also includes a summary of minutes and decisions along with a letter from the Chair re Human Rights Education funding)
(Including reports and papers from meetings of the IEC Finance Sub-committee and IEC Employers Sub-committee)
Closed until January 2030
Papers from 2009-2012 are only subject to a 10-year restriction
(With letters from the Chair and Treasurer; detailed outline of decisions from the March IEC meeting)
(Including reports and papers from meetings of the IEC Finance Sub-committee and IEC Employers Sub-committee)
(With letters from IEC Chair, Treasurer and Standing Committee reports, along with minutes and decisions from the June 1999 IEC meeting. Also appended is a letter from COC re youth and students and a calendar of international meetings/dates for 1999)
(Including reports and papers from meetings of the IEC Finance Sub-committee and IEC Employers Sub-committee) (Agenda is missing)
(Including reports and papers from meetings of the IEC Finance Sub-committee and IEC Employers Sub-committee) (Agenda is missing)
(With letters from the IEC Chair and Treasurer along with minutes/decisions from the brief IEC meeting)
During my years on the IEC, the IEC's four permanent standing committees were an integral part of the IEC's decision-making process. Authorized by Decision 63 of the 1991 ICM and comprised of leaders and specialists from AI sections around the world, the Standing Committee on the Mandate (SCM), the Standing Committee on Research and Action (SCRA), the Standing Committee on Organizational Development (SCOD), and the Standing Committee on Human Information and Financial Matters (SCHIFM) were intended to assist and advise the IEC. In the 1990s, nearly every study mandated by an ICM decision was referred by the IEC to one or another of the standing committees.
Closed until January 2030
(The IEC Vice Chair had responsibility to ensure that studies mandated by ICM decisions were moving along and early results were shared with AI structures worldwide in advance of the next ICM. A planning meeting in October set this process in motion)
Closed until January 2026
Additional papers related to planning and finances, including reports and financial accounts, etc., may be found with IEC meeting documents
Closed until January 2030
(Based on IEC understandings of 1993 ICM)
Closed until January 2030
Closed until January 2030
(Includes interesting reports on several trips by the SG, including to Davos, the Vatican and to numerous countries)
(Numerous other documents are included with IEC Agenda papers)
Closed until January 2030
(For related papers, also see Box 22, folders 8-10)
[See MIOR policy statement and application forms, Box 25, folders 11 and 12]
(Also see notes on Africa development project, IEC papers in Box 1)
Papers related to the initiation and roll out of AI's High Priority Country initiative (HPCs) are found in BOXES 2-6, as IEC Agenda papers. Also see related papers from SCOD in Boxes 12-15
Contains some strategy papers associated with the High Priority Countries initiative of the late 1990s, but most are included with IEC meeting files in Boxes 7 and 8
(See related documents among IEC agenda papers, Boxes 9-12 and MIOR folder in Box 25, folder 2)
Closed until January 2030
Closed until January 2030
See Glossary and Box 13, folder 10 to Box 14, folder 12
(See Glossary and Box 13, folder 10 to Box 14, folder 12)
Open for use except for materials marked as Closed
Closed until 2038
Closed until 2027
Open for use except for materials marked as Closed
Closed until 2037
Closed until June 2024
Closed until March 2029
Closed until January 2031
(Policy on Asylum Claims)
The phrase used to identify 4-year strategic plans once they had been approved by the Council meeting. These action plans encompassed work to be carried out by Amnesty sections and structures as well as the Secretariat. They were typically named after the location of the Council meeting where they were approved
Group named in 1998 to make recommendations for restructuring AI's international decision-making processes.
The process of shrinking the role of the London-based International Secretariat, by devolving certain functions to Amnesty sections or structures. The creation of quasi-independent translation units is an example of decentralization See Deconcentration
Term used within Amnesty International to refer to the expansion of membership structures. (Not to be confused with fundraising)
Amnesty's internal audit mechanism, with members elected by the ICM
An effort in the 1990s to enhance section-to-section communications by convening a meeting of representatives from A1 sections/structures in a given region (ie, a grouping) to discuss AI policy questions.
A 1990s initiative to select a relatively small number of countries for concerted effort to cultivate Amnesty membership and develop Amnesty structures
A permanent international court established in 2002 to prosecute perpetrators of the most serious crimes of concern to the international community, including genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity
AI's highest organizational decisionmaking body. Held every two years, during the 1990s the ICM brought together approximately 500 members and staff for the purposes of planning and reviewing the direction of Amnesty International's human rights work. The ICM also elected the International Executive Committee (IEC).
A nine-person elected body that served as the organization's international governing board (since renamed International Board)
Organizations whose members are nation states—such as the United Nations, the European Union, and the Organization of American States
Based in London, UK, it is responsible for the majority of the organization's research and campaigning work. Around 2013 some of its work was redistributed to hubs around the world in an initiative known as "Closer to the Ground," so that the footprint in London is smaller today than it was in the 1990s
An initiative in the 1990s intended to bring together an A1 section's leadership, relevant IS staff, and the IEC to review performance indicators and set common expectations about a wide range of activities and international support for the Amnesty section
Meetings attended by representatives of A1 sections and a select number of international staff, often convened on an ad hoc basis (and hosted by a large section) to discuss an emerging issue. Although they had no decision-making authority, such meetings often clarified concerns and offered advice
1995 Ljubljana Action Plan. See Action Plans
For many years, an internal "mandate" limited Amnesty International's work to a relatively small number of issues, including the release of prisoners of conscience, fair trials for political prisoners, opposition to torture, disappearances and the death penalty. The mandate was amended several times and was ultimately replaced in 2002 with a broader mission statement linking AI's work to the full spectrum of rights enshrined in the UDHR
A statutory body allowing AI sections to appeal decisions of the IEC. Activated for the first time in 1998
See also "strategic coverage"
1999 Morocco action plan, replaced by TAP
A decision of the 1993 ICM to cover the basic annual operational costs of small sections from the central budget, effectively redistributing income (assessment fees) from the larger AI sections
The term used by AI in the 1990s to refer to ethnic and other identity diversity. It was applied to both employment (cultural diversity among staff) and to AI sections (acknowledging cultural differences within AI's diverse membership, including linguistic diversity)
Refers to AI's policy discussions regarding in-house interpretation and translation of AI materials
By contrast to strategic plans, operational plans contained more precise performance targets, were for a shorter duration and in general applied only to work carried out by the International Secretariat
AI's executive director of worldwide operations and head of the International Secretariat
See Standing Committees
See Standing Committees
A term collectively referring to AI's membership. Sections, according to the Statute, were registered with the Secretariat as national or territorial entities that had demonstrated their ability to organize and carry out basic Amnesty activities. AI groups active in countries without a full-fledged AI section were referred to as "structures."
A committee charged to allocate funds from the central budget to small sections. The committee reported to the IEC (through SCOD) and its members were drawn from AI sections worldwide
From 1991, four standing committees with members drawn from AI sections worldwide, worked to assist and advise the IEC. See SCHIFM, SCM, SCOD, and SCRA
General term for policy (and discussion) regarding the extent of AI's research and reporting on given countries and issues
AI's senior leadership at the IS, including the Secretary General and deputies
See Action Plans
Refers to the operational plan put in place in 1994, immediately following adoption of the first integrated strategic plan in 1993
Effectively the "No work on own country rule," an internal rule that for many years generally prohibited AI members from working for the release of prisoners of conscience in their own countries. The rule was modified in 1995