Aung San Suu Kyi, sometimes abbreviated to Suu Kyi, is a Burmese politician who served as State Counsellor of Myanmar and Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2016 to 2021. She has served as the general secretary of the National League for Democracy (NLD) since the party's founding in 1988 and was registered as its chairperson while it was a legal party from 2011 to 2023. She played a vital role in Myanmar's transition from military junta to partial democracy in the 2010s.
A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention.
The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, commonly known as the Sakharov Prize, is an honorary award for individuals or groups who have dedicated their lives to the defence of human rights and freedom of thought. Named after Russian scientist and dissident Andrei Sakharov, the prize was established in December 1988 by the European Parliament.
Win Tin was a Burmese journalist, politician and political prisoner. He co-founded the National League for Democracy (NLD). He was imprisoned by the military government for 19 years (1989–2008) for his writings and his leadership position in the NLD.
"Walk On" is a song by Irish rock band U2. It is the fourth track on their tenth studio album, All That You Can't Leave Behind (2000). The song was first released in Canada on 20 February 2001, then was given a UK release in November of the same year; it was the album's second single in Canada and the fourth internationally. The song was written about Burmese academic Aung San Suu Kyi, who was the chairperson of the National League for Democracy and was placed under house arrest from 1989 until 2010 for her pro-democracy activities, which led to the song being banned in Burma. The song won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year at the 2002 ceremony, marking the first time an artist had won the award in consecutive years for songs from the same album.
Honorary Canadian citizenship is an honour bestowed on foreigners of exceptional merit following a joint resolution by both Houses of the Parliament of Canada.
Paw Oo Tun, better known by his alias Min Ko Naing, is a leading democracy activist and dissident from Myanmar. He has spent most of the years since 1988 imprisoned by the state for his opposition activities. The New York Times has described him as Burma's "most influential opposition figure after Daw Aung San Suu Kyi".
The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) is a non-profit organization that focuses on promoting and protecting human rights globally, with an emphasis on closed societies. HRF organizes the Oslo Freedom Forum. The Human Rights Foundation was founded in 2005 by Thor Halvorssen Mendoza, a Venezuelan film producer and human rights advocate. The current chairman is Russian opposition activist Yulia Navalnaya, and Javier El-Hage is the current chief legal officer. The foundation's head office is in the Empire State Building in New York City.
The Freedom of the City of Dublin is awarded by Dublin City Council after approving a person nominated by the Lord Mayor. Eighty-two people have been honoured under the current process introduced in 1876. Most honourees have made a contribution to the life of the city or of Ireland in general, including politicians, public servants, humanitarians, artists and entertainers; others were distinguished members of the Irish diaspora and foreign leaders, honoured visiting Dublin. Honourees sign the roll of freedmen in a ceremony at City Hall or the Mansion House and are presented with an illuminated scroll by the Lord Mayor.
Jack Healey is an American human rights activist, author and the former director of Amnesty International USA. He is best known as the organizer of Amnesty's benefit concerts in the 1980s featuring bands like U2, the Police, Peter Gabriel, Bruce Springsteen, Sting, Sinead O’Connor, Bob Dylan, Santana, Tracy Chapman and others.
The Cinema for Peace Foundation is a registered, non-profit organization based in Berlin, Germany. It supports film-based projects dealing with global humanitarian and environmental issues, and coordinates the Cinema for Peace awards.
Htay Kywe is a repeatedly-imprisoned Burmese pro-democracy activist who was considered a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International. BBC News describes him as a key member of the 8888 Generation movement.
Khun Bedu is an ethnically Karenni Burmese political activist who was imprisoned from 2008 to 2012 for organizing protests against the 2008 Constitutional Referendum. He is the leader of the Karenni Nationalities Defence Force, an armed resistance group participating in the country's ongoing civil war.
The 2011–2015 Myanmar political reforms were a series of political, economic and administrative reforms in Myanmar undertaken by the military-backed government. These reforms include the release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest and subsequent dialogues with her, establishment of the National Human Rights Commission, general amnesties of more than 200 political prisoners, institution of new labour laws that allow labour unions and strikes, relaxation of press censorship, and regulations of currency practices. As a consequence of the reforms, ASEAN has approved Myanmar's bid for the chairmanship in 2014. United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited Myanmar on 1 December 2011, to encourage further progress; it was the first visit by a Secretary of State in more than fifty years. United States President Barack Obama visited one year later, becoming the first US president to visit the country.
Malala Yousafzai is a Pakistani female education activist, film and television producer, and the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize laureate at the age of 17. She is the youngest Nobel Prize laureate in history, the second Pakistani and the only Pashtun to receive a Nobel Prize. Yousafzai is a human rights advocate for the education of women and children in her native homeland, Swat, where the Pakistani Taliban had at times banned girls from attending school. Her advocacy has grown into an international movement, and according to former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, she has become Pakistan's "most prominent citizen."
Bill Shipsey is an Irish human rights activist, barrister (retired), artist event promoter, producer and consultant. He is the founder of Art for Amnesty, Amnesty International's global artist engagement programme, and the co-founder of Art 19. In November 2022 Art for Amnesty changed its name to Art for Human Rights. Shipsey remains its Executive Director. Art for Human Rights brings together artists of all disciplines in a collaborative effort to support human rights organisations including Amnesty International through the medium of the arts.
Václav Havel Prize for Creative Dissent is an award established in 2012 by the New York City-based Human Rights Foundation (HRF). According to HRF President Thor Halvorssen, the prize recognizes individuals "who engage in creative dissent, exhibiting courage and creativity to challenge injustice and live in truth".
Ma Thida (Burmese: မသီတာ; MLCTS: ma. si ta; born 2 September 1966 is a Burmese surgeon, writer, human rights activist and former prisoner of conscience. She has published under the pseudonym Suragamika which means "brave traveler". In Myanmar, Thida is best known as a leading intellectual, whose books deal with the country's political situation. She has worked as an editor at a Burmese monthly youth magazine and a weekly newspaper. She has been a surgeon at Muslim Free Hospital, which provides free services to the poor.
