Physicians for Human Rights
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| Founded | 1986 |
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| Type | Non Profit |
| Focus | Human rights |
| Location |
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Key people
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Donna McKay (Executive Director) Vincent Iacopino, MD, PhD (Medical Director) |
| Website | phr.org |
Donna McKay (Executive Director)
Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) is a US-based not-for-profit human rights NGO that uses medicine and science to document and advocate against mass atrocities and severe human rights violations around the world. PHR headquarters are in New York City, with offices in Boston and Washington, D.C. It was established in 1986 to use the unique skills and credibility of health professionals to advocate for persecuted health workers, prevent torture, document mass atrocities, and hold those who violate human rights accountable.
In 1981, Dr. Jonathan Fine, a primary care physician in Boston, was asked to fly to Chile on short notice and lead a delegation seeking the release of three prominent physicians by General Augusto Pinochet’s regime. The three Chilean doctors were released five weeks after Dr. Fine's visit.
In 1986, recognizing the impact physicians could have in the human rights field, Dr. Fine co-founded Physicians for Human Rights with Dr. Jane Green Schaller, Dr. Robert Lawrence, Dr. Jack Geiger, and Dr. Carola Eisenberg.
Since the organization’s founding, PHR teams have exposed the use of chemical weapons against civilians in Iraq, exhumed mass graves in Bosnia and Rwanda for international tribunals, and provided evidence for criminal investigations into torture and extrajudicial executions in countries such as Colombia, Honduras, Libya, Mexico, Peru, and Sierra Leone. In 1997, the organization shared the Nobel Peace Prize for medically documenting landmine injuries and serving as a leader in the International Campaign to Ban Landmines.
PHR has also been at the forefront in developing standards for human rights abuse documentation: staff member Dr. Vincent Iacopino played a lead role in developing the , the recognized international standard for documenting torture and ill treatment. Governments, United Nations agencies, international and national courts, and other human rights organizations have all sought PHR’s forensic and research expertise. The organization’s work has contributed to landmark decisions such as the 2016 conviction of Radovan Karadžić.
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