As part of the course “Human Rights and Humanitarianism through the Concepts”, co-taught by Professor Andrew Clapham and Professor Julie Billaud in 2022, students produced high-quality podcasts based on interviews with professionals working in the humanitarian field. Seven of them are presented below.
By Mary Morphew, Pedro Sanchez Llopis, Ishita Bathia and Poorvi Parakh
In line with the name of the course for which this project was created, “Human Rights and Humanitarianism through the Concepts”, this podcast seeks to give a deeper insight into certain concepts related to women’s rights.
The focus emanates from our interest in women’s agency in areas with long histories of conflict and instability. Given the recent shift in regime in Afghanistan, we wanted to focus on the experiences of Afghan women with a view to deconstruct liberal concepts such as “emancipation” or “freedom”. The analysis moves away from Eurocentric and colonial perspectives, and foregrounds history and anthropological insights on shelters for battered women, also known as khan-yi aman, established in the “post-Taliban” period. It discusses their role in the experiences of runaway women in their attempt to reclaim or redefine their position in their families and society at large. We discuss this topic with two experts in the field: Dr Sonia Ahsan-Tirmizi, author of the book Pious Peripheries: Runaway Women in Post-Taliban Afghanistan, and Dr Orzala Ashraf-Nemat, a human rights activist. It is through their knowledge and experiences that we believe we have been able to better understand the condition and situation of Afghan women today.
By Elvire Foua, Fatih Barsak, Simfora Bangasimbo and Claire Inderkummen
In our podcast, we examine how the gendered distribution of aid workers has changed in recent decades and what roles women are more likely to occupy in the sector. We look at the importance of having female representation in the field and how it enables organisations to reach female beneficiaries in certain contexts. We also consider structural and societal barriers that women wishing to work in humanitarianism face. To complement our research, we interview Nelly Staderini, the medical leader of the Women and Children’s Health Unit at Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Genève, and learn how being a woman has impacted her work in different countries and her overall career.
By Alexandre Hünenberger, Cristina Figueira Shah, Humberto Méndez Ramos and Hushitha Nandigam
Our podcast analyses the human rights violations faced by indigenous populations in Brazil during the government of Jair Bolsonaro. The systematic crimes indigenous peoples have endured in the last four years, especially in areas in which mining is profitable, are exposed. We try to understand why the rights of this specific group are violated by the states – which are supposed to protect them – and then focus on the solutions and mechanisms to redress those violations and to implement the rights of indigenous people in Brazil. Concurrently, we reflect on what can be expected from the new government of the recently elected Lula. We interview two experts: Rémi Orsier, Director of the Indigenous Peoples’ Centre for Documentation, Research and Information, and Iami Gerbase, Social Media Expert of Survival International. Orsier gives an account of the history of indigenous peoples’ rights, explains why international regulations do not determine who is indigenous, and discusses the implementation of the UN Declaration for the Rights of Indigenous People. Gerbase focuses on indigenous people’s rights in Brazil in the context of the re-democratisation process.
By Anais Brunier, Moe Shiojiri, Vrishalee Jadhav and Katie Maloan
In this podcast, we use the context of the collapsing healthcare system in Syria as a case study to better understand how human rights and humanitarian organisations differ in their approaches, experiences and constraints. We speak with three different experts about their work in Syria: Johan Erikkson, Media Advisor for the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), working on the Commission of Inquiry on Syria, Christophe Martin, Head of Delegation at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Syria, and Claire San Filippo, former Head of Mission in Syria for Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Belgium. We find that human rights and humanitarian organisations have similar roots, but they function with different goals and approaches. They work within a larger system of international organisations, alliances and national objectives that support populations in crisis and find solutions to the conflicts and challenges that arise.
By Alessandra Leopardi, Maira Cardillo, Brianna Elder and Adriana Ramírez
This podcast explores how human rights fact-finding missions and human rights information documented by NGOs can interact with the international criminal justice system. It looks at the strengths and shortcomings of how fact-finding and human rights information is used, can be used, or even whether or not it should be used for international criminal prosecution. Guiding us through these complex issues are Chiara Gabriele, a Senior Legal Advisor for the Great Lakes programme from the Geneva-based NGO TRIAL International, and Professor Lyal S. Sunga, former Senior Human Rights Officer for the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
By Shilpa Suresh, Marina Romanova, Anina Vogel and Nora Diethelm
Did you know that from 2020 to 2022 alone, around 43,699 people were pushed back from the Greek islands and into Turkish waters, violating their right to seek asylum? In this podcast, we want to amplify the voice of these forgotten refugees in the Aegean Sea and look more closely at the agency in charge of the European border management: Frontex. We interview Laura Salzano, a PhD candidate in international law at the University of Barcelona. She specialises in EU migration law and border control and has gained professional experiences at the Council of Europe as Special Representative on Migration and Refugees, as legal officer at Stop Mare Mortum, and as volunteer at Europe Cares. Together we explore these human rights violations and the failure of the mechanisms in place to ensure that Frontex carries out its mandate lawfully and conscientiously. Furthermore, you will learn about the steps to be taken to restore Frontex’ accountability and protect the human rights of refugees travelling to Europe.
By Rio Otsuka and Elis Castanheira Ribeiro
This podcast features possible differences in protection between Ukrainian and other refugees. It examines how the treatment given to Ukrainian refugees has been different from the one of other migrants by highlighting the experiences of humanitarian workers who have been working with asylum seekers in Switzerland. Our first interviewee is François Wuarin, who has 30 years of experience in the humanitarian field and currently works for the Hospice général – a public assistance office of the Republic and Canton of Geneva which supports socially vulnerable people and refugees. Our second interviewee is Diane Barraud, a pastor working at Point d’Appui. She works alongside asylum seekers whose refugee applications have been rejected, who are mostly from Afghanistan and African countries. This podcast explores the possible reasons for such a discrepancy and discusses whether the experience of Ukrainian refugees could improve the acceptance of other refugees.
