All of the human rights violations that AI has been combating for decades continue to blight people's lives around the planet. In some societies the prison gates have been opened and the prisoners of conscience freed. At least 11 former prisoners of conscience have gone on to become heads of state or government. AI must respond to this changing world by developing new ways of inspiring people to act in defence of human rights and thinking of new ways to approach governments, our communities and other organizations. The principle of international solidarity at the heart of AI makes it different from locally-focused campaigning organizations.
Today there are more links between more countries than ever before.
Some of these result directly from the enormous growth and changes in world trade, others from the breaking down of Cold War barriers. Some are attributable to the rapid development of communications technology and the establishment of global media empires, others to shifting military alliances and relationships. Seeking to take advantage of these growing connections and inter-relationships is one of the challenges increasingly at the heart of AI's work. A major new challenge has been the breakdown in some countries of the established power structures to which AI has traditionally appealed. New technology and global media networks can quickly make these crises dominate public and political consciousness the world over.