Soros gives $100m to rights group

NEW YORK — Billionaire philanthropist George Soros is putting up $100 million, the largest gift ever to a human rights group, to expand Human Rights Watch and help it court more international support.

The financier and major donor to liberal causes said yesterday that it’s become a disadvantage for the group to be primarily funded by Americans because the United States has lost the “moral high ground’’ when it comes to fighting abuses.

The gift, to be distributed over 10 years, is meant as a dramatic start toward major growth for the group, which documents abuses and advocates for human rights in about 90 countries. It is intended to attract enough additional money to let the group expand work in such emerging powers as Brazil and India.


(2010-09-08/boston)