HRW’s culture of secrecy and the question of military expertise
On April 4, 2010, the Sunday Times published a correction to Jonathan Foreman’s article (“Explosive Territory,” March 28) stating that “Marc Garlasco, the former senior military analyst for HRW, was not the only person in the organisation who had military experience; a number of the HRW staff have military expertise.” (Garlasco’s work experience at the Pentagon has not been independently confirmed.)
NGO Monitor sent an email (April 8, 2010) to HRW attempting to clarify the nature of this “military expertise.” In response to NGO Monitor’s query, HRW’s Director of Communications Emma Daly wrote (April 23, 2010): “We don’t disclose information about our staff beyond the details in the experts’ bios posted online.”
After NGO Monitor’s email, a bio for Arms division senior researcher Mark Hiznay was added to the Arms “Experts” page. Hiznay, who “served as an enlisted infantryman in the US Army and National Guard,” is apparently the only other individual at HRW with military experience. The full nature of Hiznay’s experience (highest rank achieved, capacity of service, general responsibilities as they relate to HRW’s work) remains unknown and the relevance of his military experience to his work at HRW is unclear.
HRW’s refusal to engage in any type of dialogue further undermines the organization’s credibility and strengthens founder Robert Bernstein’s charge that HRW is indeed “lost.”
