Amnesty ‘regret’ over JK Rowling sex assault centre criticism

Amnesty International UK has said it regrets publishing a report which classed a sexual violence support centre set up by JK Rowling in Edinburgh as “anti-rights”.

Beira’s Place was established in 2022 by the Harry Potter author and other campaigners who claimed it fulfilled an unmet need for women-only support in the city.

The facility was listed as a gender critical organisation in a briefing issued last week by Amnesty entitled “A Growing Threat: The Anti-Rights Movement in the UK”.

The human rights charity now says the briefing was uploaded without going through the normal checks, and it has been temporarily withdrawn while an internal review takes place.

In a statement it said: “We regret that this briefing was uploaded to our website without going through the established internal review processes that are in place to ensure consistency, accuracy and alignment with Amnesty International UK’s positions.

“Its use of language does not reflect the position of Amnesty International UK which is why it was promptly removed.

“We remain committed to defending human rights, including both the rights of women and the rights of trans people.”