Human Rights International Non-Governmental Organizations and Their Participation in Global Governance

This thesis examines the role of international human rights non-governmental organizations in global governance, utilizing Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch as case studies. The thesis aims to conduct a comparative analysis of the activities of these two organizations in the UN after obtaining consultative status with ECOSOC, focusing on how institutionalization affects their ability to participate in global governance. For this purpose, the thesis employs a qualitative comparative study that enables an evaluation of the differences and similarities in the approaches of both organizations. The theoretical part clarifies the concepts of global governance and human rights, introduces international non-governmental organizations and the possibilities for their involvement in the UN, and explains the principles of neoliberal institutionalism on which the thesis is based. The empirical part focuses on comparing the approaches of Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch to the creation and enforcement of human rights standards within the UN, based on four specific international activities that both organizations have undertaken in this regard. The findings demonstrate that consultative status with ECOSOC has enabled both organizations to contribute to the development and interpretation of...