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26 March 08:30-09:30Medelhavsmuseet

About the seminar

Three years after the military coup, Myanmar faces a humanitarian and human rights crisis. 2,4 million people have been displaced since the coup and more than 18 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance - one third of the entire population. The military junta wages a war against its own population, often deliberately targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure. Yet people remain determined to resist the illegitimate military takeover.

What is needed to break the vicious cycle of events? What can international actors do to increase pressure on the junta and support the democratic forces in Myanmar? 

These and other questions will be addressed during this seminar that brings together experts, activists, and concerned citizens to discuss the challenges and opportunities in advancing human rights and accountability in Myanmar.  We are joined by Tom Andrews, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar, who will share his insights and perspectives on the current human rights landscape, and Maw Tun Awng, Deputy Minister in the National Unity Government (NUG) of Myanmar, the leading political entity opposing the military junta.

This event will be held in English and will include possibilities to interact and ask questions. Deadline to register for the event is March 24. Sandwiches and tea/coffee will be served from 08:00 and the seminar will start at 08:30.

Welcome!

Speakers

Tom Andrews
Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar

A former member of the US Congress from Maine, Tom Andrews has served as the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar since 2020. He is a Robina Senior Human Rights Fellow at Yale University Law School, an Associate of Harvard University's Asia Center and has a Washington DC based consulting practice, Andrews Strategic Services. He has worked with the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs and parliamentarians, NGOs and political parties in several countries including Cambodia, Indonesia, Algeria, Croatia, Serbia, Ukraine and Yemen. Andrews served as General Secretary of "The Nobel Peace Laureate Campaign for Aung San Suu Kyi and the People of Burma" in 2001 and was a consultant for the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma and the Euro-Burma Network. He has run advocacy NGOs including Win Without War and United to End Genocide, led an education institute at the University of Maine and served in the Maine House of Representatives and the Maine Senate.

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Lapain Maw Tun Awng
Deputy Minister in the National Unity Government

Lapain Maw Tun Awng is the Deputy Minister for Electricity and Energy in the National Unity Government of Myanmar. Prior to joining the NUG, he was working with community development in the civil society field for more than 15 years. His main focus areas were policy development and advocacy regarding indigenous rights, and social and environmental safeguards for local communities. In the 2020 elections, he ran as a political candidate for the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD). Following the coup, he was forced to leave Myanmar and he has been residing in Sweden since 2022.

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Kristina Jelmin
Executive Director, The Swedish Burma Committee

Kristina Jelmin is the Executive Director of the Swedish Burma Committee, an independent organisation working to promote human rights and democracy in Myanmar. The organisation supports local human rights defenders and organisations in Myanmar and is involved in advocacy in Sweden and internationally. Kristina has more than 15 years of experience working in human rights and development cooperation in Southeast Asia and she regularly briefs politicians, government agencies and journalists on the situation of human rights in Myanmar. Before joining the Swedish Burma Committee, Kristina worked at the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida). Among other positions, she was stationed at the Swedish embassy section office in Laos.

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Måns Molander
Nordic Director, Human Rights Watch

Måns Molander is the Nordic Director of Human Rights Watch. Based in Stockholm, he advocates for the Nordic countries to pursue rights-respecting foreign policies. Måns regularly briefs journalists, politicians and government officials, appears on television and radio programs, and speaks at public events. Prior to joining Human Rights Watch in 2015, Måns was the Head of the Human Rights Section at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Sweden, responsible for coordinating human rights in Swedish foreign policy. He has 17 years of experience in governmental affairs, specialising in peace and security, EU affairs and human rights, including diplomatic postings at the Permanent Mission of Sweden to the United Nations in Geneva and the Permanent Representation of Sweden to the Council of Europe in Strasbourg.

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All you need to know

The event will be held at Medelhavsmuseet, Fredsgatan 2, 111 52 Stockholm. The venue provides a wardrobe. Sandwiches and tea/coffee will be served from 08:00 and the seminar will start at 08:30. Please register before March 24. If you have any specific needs or questions, please feel free to reach out to Christina Abdulahad at abdulac@hrw.org.

Register here
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08:00

Check in, coffee and sandwiches

08:30

Panel discussion

09:15

Q&A

09:30

Wrap up and closing

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