An accounting firm has been hired to conduct a forensic audit of the troubled Montreal-based human rights organization Rights and Democracy from 2005 to 2009.

The audit, by the firm of Samson Belair/Deloitte & Touche, is being undertaken to ensure full transparency because the institution receives $11 million annually from the federal government, its interim president Jacques Gauthier said in a statement Friday.

Moreover, while neither he nor the board of directors has direct evidence of any individual impropriety, financial reviews have uncovered transactions that require the attention of forensic auditors, Gauthier said.

"We've turned to professionals to give us an accurate picture of certain transactions and contractual arrangements for the past five years," he said.

The auditors' report is expected in three weeks and will be made public as soon as it is accepted by the board of directors, Gauthier said.

The move follows the suspension with pay of three senior managers and the hiring of a private investigation firm at the organization earlier this month.

Created by the Conservative government in 1988 under Brian Mulroney to encourage democracy and monitor human rights around the world, the agency is supposed to operate at arm's length from government. But problems began last year after the Harper government appointed new board members.

The new members challenged grants being made to three human rights organizations known to be critical of Israel's human rights record, especially in the Israeli offensive in Gaza. The three organizations are Al Haq, based in Ramallah in the West Bank; Al Mezan, based in Gaza and B'Tselem, based in Israel.

Federal opposition politicians and the family of former president Rémy Beauregard, who died in January, are calling for an independent inquiry into the organization.

Since Beauregard's death, almost every staff member of Rights and Democracy has signed a letter stating non-confidence in the interim president and two board members.

The forensic audit may raise some eyebrows in the Department of Foreign Affairs, the branch of government that is responsible for Rights and Democracy.

The Department of Foreign Affairs completed its own five-year review of Rights and Democracy in 2008, saying, "The final assessment of the five years in question is a positive one." It also said, "A review of the financial statements for the 2003-08 period did not find any abnormalities. "

Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon has said his department is looking into the situation at Rights and Democracy and will make an announcement as early as Monday.

With files from Leslie MacKinnon