Civil Rights Defenders
| Founded | 1982 |
|---|---|
| Type | Non-profit NGO Human rights organisation |
| Registration no. | 802011-1442 (Sweden) |
| Focus | Human rights Civil and political rights |
| Headquarters | Östgötagatan 90 Stockholm Sweden |
Area served | Eastern Europe Central Asia Europe Southeast Asia Latin America East Africa |
Key people | Anders Petterson, Executive Director; Benedicte Berner, Chair of the Board; Gerald Nagler, Founder and Honorary Chair of the Board |
| Website | crd |
Formerly called | Swedish Helsinki Committee |
Civil Rights Defenders (Formerly the Swedish Helsinki Committee) is an international non-governmental organisation based in Stockholm, Sweden, that does human rights work with a focus on civil and political rights. They primarily work to support local human rights defenders by providing them with capacity building, training, and funding, as well as security and emergency support for human rights defenders at risk.
Founded in 1982 as the Swedish Helsinki Committee, the original focus of Civil Rights Defenders was to monitor and support the civil rights portion of the Helsinki Accords. In 2009, the organisation changed its name to Civil Rights Defenders and it now works in Sweden, Eastern Europe, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, the Western Balkans, Latin America, and in East & Horn of Africa.