Amnesty International

Amnesty International (commonly known as Amnesty and AI) is a non-governmental organisation focused on human rights with over 7 million members and supporters around the world. The stated objective of the organisation is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."

Amnesty International was founded in London in 1961, following the publication of the article "The Forgotten Prisoners" in The Observer 28 May 1961, by the lawyer Peter Benenson. Amnesty draws attention to human rights abuses and campaigns for compliance with international laws and standards. It works to mobilise public opinion to put pressure on governments that let abuse take place. The organisation was awarded the 1977 Nobel Peace Prize for its "campaign against torture," and the United Nations Prize in the Field of Human Rights in 1978.

Links To Peel
Amnesty International along with the Salvation Army was two of the two favourite charity organisations that Peel supported. Peel at the Phoenix Festival in 1995 was quoted why he supported Amnesty International:


 * "Amnesty International is an organisation which I have huge respect for. I am not saying that purely because there is a camera in front of me, but because I think that of all the organisations that are worth supporting, and there are a great many of them, Amnesty is definitely the equal of them if not the most important. We all have to do something. When people say that they are not really interested in politics, well, politics has a nasty way of catching up with you. You can look at what is happening in the rest of the world and feel smug and comfortable, but you only have to read the papers and watch the TV to realise how vital organisations like Amnesty International are."

At Peel's funeral in 2004 his family asked for donations to go to two of his favourite charities - the Salvation Army or Amnesty International.