International movement

Amnesty International is a worldwide movement of people who campaign for human rights. It is independent of any government, political ideology, economic interest or religion.

Amnesty International has 2.8 million members, supporters and subscribers in over 150 countries and territories in every region of the world.

Situated in London, the International Secretariat is Amnesty's research headquarters with more than 320 paid staff and over 100 volunteers from over 50 countries. Its work is based on careful research and on the standards agreed by the international community.

International Secretariat Accounts

Amnesty International structure

Amnesty International is governed by an International Executive Committee (IEC) which consists of eight volunteer members elected by the International Council.

Amnesty sections worldwide participate in decision-making by sending representatives to the International Council Meeting - a gathering of representatives from around the world, which meets every two years.

The IEC appoints the Secretary General, who is responsible for the day-to-day conduct of the international affairs of the movement and heads the International Secretariat. The International Secretariat provides professional expertise and support to the movement. It guides the organisation's day-to-day work but is not authorised to make fundamental policy decisions.

Find all Amnesty sections

International Council Meeting

The International Council Meeting (ICM) is the overall decision-making body of Amnesty International. It alone has the authority to amend the movement's statute. It consists of members of the International Executive Committee (IEC) and delegations from sections and structures worldwide.

An ICM is held every two years, on each occasion in a different country at the invitation of one of the movement's sections. The Meeting involves around 500 people and lasts for about 10 days.

The primary functions of the International Council include: Focusing on strategy Setting Amnesty's vision, mission and core values Determining the Integrated Strategic Plan (ISP) including its financial strategy Establishing systems and bodies of governance and delegation for the movement Electing members to governance bodies (which includes the International Executive Committee) Holding governance bodies and their members accountable Evaluating the movement's performance against its agreed strategies and plans Holding sections, structures and other bodies accountable.

These functions are fulfilled at the meetings when the International Council hears reports from the various bodies of the organisation, debates and makes decisions on resolutions which are submitted by the International Executive Committee (IEC) and by sections.

Only representatives of sections and structures have the right to vote at the ICM, and the amount of representatives a section or structure may appoint is in proportion to its size.

Sections and structures may table resolutions, much like our Annual General Meeting (AGM), and decisions are made by a simple majority of votes.

The chair of the international council and an alternate is elected by the preceding international council. If votes are equal the chair of the international council has the casting vote.

The agenda for the ICM is prepared by the International Secretariat under the direction of the chairperson of the IEC.