The Human Rights Foundation Announces List of Prominent Speakers for the 2021 Oslo Freedom Forum

NEW YORK, Aug. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) announces its first in-person conference since the start of the pandemic with a special edition of the Oslo Freedom Forum (OFF) in Miami on October 4-5, 2021.

"The Oslo Freedom Forum is bad news for dictators, as this immersive event is the place their most effective rivals come together to share their stories, create new partnerships, and refine practices for promoting freedom and democracy," said Thor Halvorssen, HRF president and founder of the Oslo Freedom Forum. "This year, with our theme TRUTH IGNITED, we celebrate the voices of brave individuals from Cuba to Iraq to China, who have sparked outrage, action, and accountability across the world. We know that as long as one person is willing to speak out, justice will prevail, and authoritarian regimes will be defied."

Described by The Economist as the "Davos for human rights," and by The New York Times as an opportunity for "the world's dissidents to have their say," the Oslo Freedom Forum is a transformative international conference that brings together the world's most engaging human rights advocates, journalists, artists, tech entrepreneurs, and world leaders to share their stories and brainstorm ways to expand freedom and unleash human potential across the globe, as well as create new partnerships and collaborations.

Among this year's mainstage programming at the forum will be leading dissidents from authoritarian regimes. Marking the first anniversary of Alexey Navalny's poisoning by Russian officials, HRF has just confirmed a speech authored by the opposition leader will be delivered on his behalf at the conference, while he remains imprisoned on the grounds of a fabricated criminal case.

Other speakers and panelists include a wide range of changemakers from around the world:

Akida Pulat, activist fighting for the release of her mother and millions of Uyghurs detained by the Chinese government;
Ahmed Albasheer, a political satirist whose program humorizes Iraqi politics and began in 2014 as a tool to fight corruption, sectarianism, extremism, and terrorism in Iraq and the surrounding region;
Wai Hnin Pwint Thon, an activist whose father is currently detained by the Burmese military;
Essam Daod, a psychiatrist and co-founder of Humanity Crew, an aid organization specializing in mental health interventions for refugees;
Roya Mahboob, Afghanistan's first female tech CEO and founder of a nonprofit that increases women's technological literacy;
Hatice Cengiz, Turkish activist and fiancée of murdered Saudi Arabian journalist Jamal Khashoggi;
DJ Switch, Nigerian artist and anti-police brutality activist who survived a deadly shooting of a peaceful sit-in;
Arthur Holland Michel, Peruvian-born writer and researcher whose work has focused on surveillance technology and artificial intelligence;
Steve Jurvetson, the co-founder of Future Ventures and a renowned venture capitalist that focuses on cutting-edge projects in technology;
Berta Valle, exiled Nicaraguan journalist and pro-democracy activist campaigning against the Ortega regime's unjust imprisonment of her husband, presidential candidate Félix Maradiaga, and more than 140 other political prisoners;
Alexander Solovyev, Russian opposition politician;
Maziar Bahari, Iranian-Canadian journalist and filmmaker, whose memoir about his imprisonment was adapted into the film "Rosewater" by Jon Stewart;
Evan Mawarire, pastor, and leader of the #ThisFlag movement against corruption, poverty, and abuse of office in Zimbabwe;
Toufah Jallow, Gambian anti-rape activist and survivor;
Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal, Thai pro-democracy student activist challenging the military junta's unjust actions in the country's education system;
Farida Nabourema, Togolese blogger who began her career in activism when she was 13 years old;
Irade Kashgary; Public Advocacy Director of the Uyghur American Association, forced to leave her birthplace after the Ghulja Massacre in 1997;
Abdalaziz Alhamza, citizen journalist exposing the terror tactics of ISIS in Syria;
Vanessa Tsehaye, Eritrean free speech activist who began protesting her country's human rights abuses at 16 when her uncle was imprisoned;
Agnès Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International; and
Fred Bauma, Congolese pro-democracy leader who spent 18 months in prison, where he faced the death penalty for organizing peaceful protests, founder of youth group encouraging political participation.

The conference also includes an array of interactive programming consisting of panel discussions, fireside chats, workshops, and art exhibitions. The topics that will be covered include digital and physical security; Bitcoin as a financial tool for activists and civil society organizations; mental health issues and trauma associated with activism; how the global economy is tied to forced labor; advancing LGBT rights under authoritarian regimes; recording mobilizations for building awareness; ensuring the safety of journalists in crises areas; and amplifying social change campaigns through art.

About the Human Rights Foundation
The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) is a nonpartisan nonprofit organization that promotes and protects human rights globally, with a focus on closed societies. The Oslo Freedom Forum is a global conference series and HRF's flagship event.

For interview requests of further comment, please e-mail [email protected].

SOURCE Human Rights Foundation

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