Internal Affairs: How the Structure of NGOs Transforms Human Rights by Wendy H. Wong

Author:Wendy H. Wong
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub
Tags: Human Rights, Sociology, Social Science, General, NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations), Political Science
ISBN: 9780801466069
Publisher: Cornell University Press
Published: 2012-07-11T10:14:08+00:00

The Role of Organizational Structure

The distribution of the three dimensions of agenda-setting, proposal, enforcement, and implementation powers, can vary from NGO to NGO quite dramatically. This becomes especially apparent when we distinguish between informal and formal ways to distribute agenda setting. Given the importance of organizational structure in shaping NGO influence over international norms, I do want to discuss some caveats. First, it is probably fair to say that those international NGOs that did not start out as international—that is, the “international” aspect came about after at least one of the members had already reached prominence on its own—tend to have a greater number of formal rules as a function of the need to define new roles after creating a transnational organization. It also has something to do with organizational values, about which I do not go into much detail here. Some organizations desire dissent, whereas others seek conciliation. Some are concerned about defining a unified front, whereas other NGOs might not see that as an absolute need while simultaneously recognizing that coherence in advocacy does have its merits for influencing international policy.

Furthermore, when comparing advocacy NGOs, especially those that are not explicitly “human rights” groups, it is important to state that there is variation in how much NGOs want to frame their work as advocacy. Some organizations, such as MSF, tread carefully when speaking of their advocacy work, believing that an overemphasis on “political” work might compromise its humanitarian operations. This stands in contradiction to its founding charge against the International Committee of the Red Cross’s refusal to speak out against the government’s abuses of civilians during the Nigerian civil war (1967–70). Other NGOs are less reluctant to admit their roles in changing human rights, or in generating change in the political salience of certain types of rights that they argue human beings need.

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