Committee on Human Rights of Scientists

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The Committee on Human Rights of Scientists of the New York Academy of Sciences "was formed in 1978 to pursue the advancement of the basic human rights of scientists throughout the world. The Committee intervenes in cases where scientists, engineers, health professionals and educators are detained, imprisoned, exiled, murdered, "disappeared," or deprived of the rights to pursue science, communicate their findings with their peers and the general public, and travel freely in accordance with established policies of The International Council for Science (ICSU)."^[1][2]

"Throughout its history, the committee has intervened in numerous cases to ameliorate the restricted conditions of individual scientists and to secure for them the protections of the rule of law. Russian physicist Andrei Sakharov and Chinese dissident Fang Lizhi made their first U.S. appearances at the Academy and credited the committee for coordinating the international pressure that led to their releases. The committee marshaled the scientific community on behalf of Wen Ho Lee, the Chinese-American scientist accused of mishandling classified information, and Marta Beatriz Roque Cabello, a Cuban economist jailed for her human rights activities. Other countries where the committee has recently taken action are Belarus, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Kenya, Palestinian Authority, Sudan, Syria, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Vietnam."^[3]