Impact
The Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) fills the gaps in information and knowledge caused by lack of access to Iran. We have earned a reputation as one of the leading organizations providing documented, verified, and comprehensive information on the state of human rights in Iran, and have become an influential advocate on the international stage for the support and advancement of human rights in Iran. Through our research and documentation and our public outreach and advocacy, we challenge the official narrative presented by Iranian authorities regarding human rights, counter the cover-up of human rights violations in Iran, and work to hold the Iranian government accountable, on both the individual and institutional level, to its international obligations.
CHRI has achieved tangible gains. For example, our work has resulted in a notable reduction in secret executions at Mashhad’s Vakilabad Prison, shed light on the underreported extrajudicial killings of border couriers in Iran’s northwestern provinces by Iranian security forces, and spurred universities around the world to provide admission to Iranian students denied education in Iran for their political activities or religious beliefs. We were instrumental in the International Telecommunications Union’s adoption of anti-satellite jamming regulations, and successfully advocated for the decision by private satellite broadcasters to suspend services to governments who engage in signal jamming. CHRI also provided critical support for the creation and renewal of the mandate of the United Nations’ Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran.
On the individual level, we have built relationships based on trust with Iranian human rights defenders and activists, their families, and their lawyers. This trust allows us to bring to the international stage individual cases that would otherwise go unheard, and we are often the source of breaking news regarding critical human rights cases in Iran. Iranian prisoners have told us that officials are sensitive to the information we publish, and that our work has been instrumental in improving their conditions.
On the global stage, CHRI fills the gaps in information and knowledge caused by lack of access to Iran. We have earned a reputation as one of the major organizations providing relevant, verified, and up-to-date information about the human rights situation in Iran. International journalists consult us for background; diplomats heed our briefings. We routinely cooperate with major human rights organizations including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and the Committee to Protect Journalists.
