As Human Rights Watch's Deputy Washington Director, Maria McFarland conducts advocacy before the US government on a wide array of global human rights issues, including, in particular, matters related to the Middle East and North Africa, South Asia, and Central Asia.

Previously, as Senior Americas Researcher for Human Rights Watch, she investigated human rights abuses in Latin America, serving as the organization's primary expert on Colombia's internal armed conflict and working on international justice matters, including the extradition and trial of former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori. McFarland has conducted extensive advocacy before the governments of the United States, Canada, and European and Latin American countries; has authored and edited numerous Human Rights Watch reports; has testified before the US Congress and Canadian Parliament, and is a frequent voice in the media.

Before joining Human Rights Watch, McFarland engaged in sovereign litigation as an attorney at an international law firm, taught human rights law, and clerked on the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. She holds a J.D., magna cum laude, from New York University School of Law and did most of her undergraduate studies in Lima, Peru, before completing her B.A., summa cum laude, in philosophy at the University of Texas at Austin. McFarland is a native speaker of both Spanish and English.

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