Dissidents and Dictators

Lisa Yasko is a member of Ukrainian Parliament, the Committee on Foreign Affairs and Interparliamentary Cooperation, and the Ukrainian Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. In this episode, recorded at the 2023 Oslo Freedom Forum, Yasko reveals the reality of living in Ukraine during the Russian invasion and the powerful role of being a mother while navigating the war.

Note: This episode is recorded in Uyghur. An Uyghur survivor of China’s concentration camps, Gulbahar Haitiwaji, was tricked into returning to China in 2016 after seeking asylum; she vanished into the camps. When she was finally released in 2019, Haitiwaji publicly shared her account, describing life inside the camps and the brutalities Uyghurs and other Turkic peoples have suffered. Kalbinur Sidik, an Uzbek survivor of China’s genocide and eyewitness to the camps, was forced to work as a Chinese-language instructor in the internment camps in 2017. In this episode, recorded at the 2023 Oslo Freedom Forum, both women joined forces to share their stories of survival.

Félix Maradiaga is a Nicaraguan democracy advocate arrested in 2021 for leading a nonviolent movement against President Daniel Ortega. After being imprisoned for three years, he was forcibly exiled to the United States and saw his citizenship revoked alongside 222 other political prisoners. In this episode, recorded at the 2023 Oslo Freedom Forum, Maradiaga shares his prison experience, his reunion with his wife and daughter, and his ideas on fighting dictatorship.

In this episode, recorded at the 2023 Oslo Freedom Forum, American political scientist and author Francis Fukuyama discusses how democracy can be a resilient tool in denouncing authoritarianism and dissecting the principles of liberalism, the false strength of dictatorships, and what the future holds for democracy.

Ketakandriana Rafitoson is a prominent Madagascan human rights defender, political scientist, and anti-corruption activist. In this episode, recorded at the 2023 Oslo Freedom Forum, Rafitoson addresses the mass corruption within Madagascar and how it impacts ordinary citizens' lives. Russian and other dark sponsors continue to influence the country’s elections, but Rafitoson provides hope in the fight against political corruption.

In Cameroon, while thousands of minority Anglophones have peacefully protested for their rights, Paul Biya’s regime has responded viciously. Cameroonian human rights lawyer and activist, Felix Agbor Nkongho, has fought to bring global attention to the blood-stained crisis. In this episode, recorded at the 2019 Oslo Freedom Forum, Agbor Nkongho speaks about his work transforming cruelty into positive, nonviolent activism.

Thae Yong-Ho is a North Korean defector and the former deputy ambassador of North Korea to the United Kingdom. He is the highest-ranking official to have ever defected from North Korea, fleeing to the South with his wife and two children in 2016. In this episode, recorded at the 2019 Oslo Freedom Forum in New York, Yong-ho speaks about the oppression he experienced inside North Korea, his escape, and his hopes for a united and free Korea.

Arthur Holland Michel is a Peruvian-born writer and researcher focused on artificial intelligence, advanced surveillance technologies, and drones. In this episode, recorded at the 2021 Oslo Freedom Forum, Michel reveals how little the average person knows about modern surveillance technologies and its power.

Wai Hnin Pwint Thon is a Burmese human rights activist. Her father, Ko Mya Aye, is a leader of Burma’s 88 Generation Students Group and is currently detained by the Burmese military. In this episode, recorded at the 2021 Oslo Freedom Forum, Pwint Thon calls out the Burmese military’s violence and urges the international community to support Burma’s struggle for peace and democracy.

Dr. Essam Daod is a psychiatrist, psychotherapist, and co-founder of the mental health aid organization, Humanity Crew. During a 2015 humanitarian rescue mission, Daod provided medical aid to refugees in Greece, triggering his trauma and PTSD. In this episode, recorded at the 2021 Oslo Freedom Forum, we hear Daod’s story, through which we learn that only when we care for our mental health can we care for others.