New HRF Podcasts: August Recap
Dissidents and Dictators is the Human Rights Foundation (HRF)'s podcast series that serves as a storytelling platform for some of the world's bravest activists, artists, policymakers, business leaders, and technologists. Throughout the month of August, we have released a number of new episodes, including:
Episode #49 - From Rhetoric to Action: Bukele’s Erosion of Democracy in El Salvador
After nearly two decades of democracy, El Salvador’s democratic institutions find themselves under siege. President Bukele has achieved extreme popularity, fueled by populist rhetoric and the adept use of social media. In this episode, El Farojournalist Nelson Rauda discusses how Bukele has abused emergency powers, eroded the independence of the judiciary, and paved the way for his re-election, in direct violation of El Salvador’s constitution.
Episode #50 - #freesadhan
In this episode, recorded at the 2022 Oslo Freedom Forum, we hear from Areej al-Sadhan, a Saudi activist and sister of Red Crescent humanitarian worker Abdulrahman al-Sadhan, who disappeared during a 2018 crackdown on critics and activists in Saudi Arabia. Areej remains outspoken on the ill-treatment of her brother and other activists, and has publicly denounced Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s brutal human rights abuses.
Episode #51 - Rally for Belarus
Since 1994, Alexander Lukashenko has ruled Belarus with an iron fist, turning the country into an authoritarian state where opposition figures and independent journalists are routinely harassed, jailed, and assassinated. In this episode, recorded at the 2022 Oslo Freedom Forum, we hear from three Belarusian activists who have spent years fighting corruption under Lukashenko’s regime and rallying for a free and democratic Belarus. Guests include:
Tatsiana Khomich, Belarusian Activist & Sister of Political Prisoner Maria Kalesnikava
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Leader of democratic Belarus
Veronica Tsepkalo, Chair of Belarus Women's Foundation
Episode #52 - Youth Mobilizing in Exile: Standing Up Against the CCP
Over the past several decades, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has relentlessly attacked fundamental human rights in order to advance its political goals. This episode explores how youth in the diaspora are grappling with the Chinese government’s abuses in their respective homelands, and mobilizing in exile. Guests include:
Mustafa Aksu, Program Manager at the Uyghur Human Rights Project
Babur Ilchi, Program Director at the Campaign for Uyghurs
Tenzin Yangzom, Grassroots Coordinator at Students for a Free Tibet
Anna Kwok, Strategy and Campaign Director at Hong Kong Democracy Council
Episodes are available on all major streaming platforms