Mark Gibney is the Carol Belk Distinguished Professor of Humanities and Political Science at the University of North Carolina at Asheville and the Affiliate Professor at RWI. In this episode, Professor Gibney challenges us to rethink how countries are held accountable — not just within their borders, but on a global scale. We’ll discuss his groundbreaking Political Terror Scale, which tracks government oppression in over 185 countries, and explore how a reimagined sense of responsibility could transform the way governments uphold justice and protect human rights. The episode is moderated by Daniella Fetko, a Communication Intern at the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law.

Ambassador Olof Skoog, since March 2024, has been the EU Special Representative for Human Rights. He is a Swedish diplomat with extensive experience represen­ting both Sweden and the European Union. Most recently he was EU Ambassador to the UN in New York. Last month, he was with us in Lund to deliver the 2024 annual Anna Lindh Lecture under the title “The Strategy of Human Rights”. The episode is moderated by Edwina Magnus, a Library Assistant at the Raoul Wallenberg Institute's Human Rights Library. Edwina is currently pursuing an LL.M in International Human Rights Law at Lund University and serves as President of The Association of Foreign Affairs (UPF) Lund.

Ambassador Olof Skoog, EU Special Representative for Human Rights, delivered the 2024 annual Anna Lindh Lecture on 19 November on the theme of “The Strategy of Human Rights.” This podcast episode is a live recording of the lecture as it was delivered at Lund University Hall.

Maliha Shirzay-Research Fellow, RWI Afghanistan Programme in 2024 is collaborating with other research fellows to support the mandate of the Special Rapporteur Richard Bennett on Human Rights in Afghanistan. More specifically, in this episode dedicated tshe shares insights from her research on investigating the rights of Afghan women, particularly focusing on education and empowerment. Maliha delves into the marginalized position of ethnic groups, specifically the Uzbek women in Afghanistan, and the obstacles encountered by Muslim women. Her research delves into the intricate nature of intersecting identities and the vulnerabilities experienced by these women.

Hamid A. Formuli is a human rights practitioner, former career diplomat and a Research Fellow with RWI's Afghanistan program in 2024. His tenure at the Afghan foreign service spans over 8 years, boasting an impactful career across various roles, starting from a consular associate, law and treaties officer to special aide to the deputy foreign minister for economic cooperation. Hamid previously served as the Head of the Human Rights Section of the Permanent Mission of Afghanistan to the UN in Geneva, and alternative permanent representative to the Human Rights Council during Afghanistan’s first ever membership of the body and as an expert at its Bureau during Afghanistan’s vice–presidency in 2020. Since 2022 Hamid Formuli has been a founding member and Senior Fellow at the Center for Dialogue and Progress – Geneva, where he leads activities on human rights monitoring and advocacy through research, legal analysis, and events organization. Academically, he holds a Bachelors in Law and Political Science from Kabul University and earned a Master (Summa Cum Laude) of International Studies from Seoul National University, South Korea, focusing on International Development Cooperation Policy and Global Governance. His research interests include nexus between conflict and development, International and UN-mandated accountability mechanisms, politics of international human rights action, and management of diversity in pluricultural societies.

Palwasha Mirbacha is a Research Fellow with RWI Afghanistan Programme in 2024. With over a decade of extensive experience, Palwasha Mirbacha has played a pivotal role in planning, designing, implementing, and monitoring education projects, collaborating with renowned international education institutions. As an expert in the field of education, she has successfully managed the execution of multi-sectoral, multi-million, and generational projects. Palwasha’s background encompasses the management of both developmental and humanitarian education programs, with a profound understanding of the economics of education facilitated by education background coupled with her intensive engagement in robust research, writing, and analysis of the sector. She employs both qualitative and quantitative methods, underscored by the publication of multiple analytical works in the field. Furthermore, Palwasha’s professional journey reflects a commitment to social entrepreneurship and community work in Afghanistan, evident in her instrumental role in establishing and sustaining a grassroots education initiative, the Boume Dana Foundation, focused on the publication and dissemination of indigenous and contextually relevant children’s literature for Afghan children.

Humaira Rasuli is an Afghan human rights lawyer, women empowerment activist and the Co-Founder and Director of Women for Justice Organization in Afghanistan (WJO). She has been with RWI in 2024 as a Research Fellow with the Afghanistan Program. In 2018, Humaira Rasuli co-founded Woman for Justice Organization (WJO) to better safeguard women’s rights by strengthening the state’s institutional response and accountability to violence against women using legal strategies, pushing for law reform, training the emerging advocates and conducting peace advocacy. Humaira performed as a leading lawyer in investigating and trying some of the most high-profile sex-crime cases in Afghanistan.

Mitra Tanomand, Research Fellow with RWI Afghanistan Programme is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Global Development with a focus on Education in the UK. Her project is focusing on researching human rights issues in Afghanistan, focusing on girls’ education and “Unveiling the post-2021 Realities within Women’s Protection Shelters in Afghanistan: Navigating Challenges Amidst Socio-Political Shifts”.

Kobra Moradi is Research Fellow with RWI's Afghanistan Programme and in this episode is sharing insights from her research on Afghan communities access to information regarding the International Criminal Court investigation on the human rights violations in Afghanistan. Kobra Moradi is a lawyer with a focus on human rights and international law. She has previously worked on international criminal accountability at the Australian Centre for International Justice, Afghanistan Human Rights and Democracy Organization, UN Assistance to the Khmer Rouge Trials, and Clooney Foundation for Justice. Kobra is a law and international relations graduate. She also holds a Master’s degree in International Law and Diplomacy from the Australian National University, where she wrote her research dissertation on victim-centered transitional justice and Islamic law.

Haroun Rahimi is an affiliate associate professor at UW School of Law. Concurrently, Rahimi is an Associate Professor of Law and the chair of the Law Department at the American University of Afghanistan. Rahimi is also a Global Academy Scholar at the Middle East Studies Association (MESA) and a Research Fellow at The Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law (RWI). Rahimi's research focuses on economic laws, institutional reform, Islamic finance, Islamic law, and ethics.

Anna Bruce, Senior Researcher at RWI, shares insights from her participation in the review of Sweden by the CRPD Committee and her work on Sweden's current implementation of the CRPD. -Work in progress version of book chapter in Swedish: Bruce, A, Funktionsrättskonventionen: Fördragskonform tolkning i norm(dis)harmoni, Lind, A-S, Thorburn Stern, R. & Österdahl, I. (red.) (2024). Folkrätten i svensk rätt. Ett nytt decennium. Lund: Studentlitteratur : https://rwi.lu.se/pyramid-publications/funktionsrattskonventionen/ -Reports by the students in the Lund Disability Human Rights Clinic on Access to Justice: https://rwi.lu.se/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/From-comittment-to-reality_Acess-to-justice-in-Sweden-for-persons-with-disabilities.pdf -The recorded dialogue between the CRPD Committee and the Swedish delegation: https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k1d/k1df2kmul9 https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k1v/k1vc0oy5na -Closing statement from the CRPD Committee after the dialogue between the CRPD Committee and the Swedish delegation: https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=INT%2FCRPD%2FOCR%2FSWE%2F30th%2F36586&Lang=en -Concluding observation by the CRPD Committee after the dialogue between the CRPD Committee and the Swedish delegation: https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=CRPD%2FC%2FSWE%2FCO%2F2-3&Lang=en