* Sharia'a means “path” or “pathway to be followed” in Arabic. The Shari'a law consists of legal commands recognised as Islamic law. The Islamic law implementation varies based on cultural, customary, historical, and political factors and, all as local interests. Source: Ahmad, Neven & Pinar Tank (2021) Shari’a Law and Women’s Rights. GPS Centre Gender and Mediation Backgrounder. Oslo: PRIO.
Oslo Breathing Space City
Oslo Breathing Space City is a temporary relocation programme with the aim of creating a breathing space for human rights defenders living in stressful or hostile environments. The pilot project running in 2023 and 2024 is rooted in Norwegian civil society and was initiated by five Norway-based organisations: Amnesty International Norway, Human Rights House Foundation, the Norwegian Helsinki Committee, the Rafto Foundation and The Norwegian Human Rights Fund (NHRF). The NHRF acts as the secretariat. The funding for this pilot project comes from the Oslo municipality, Amnesty International, as well as other donors.
Through this initiative, two human rights defenders from different parts of the world receive the opportunity to come to Oslo each semester for a stay of up to three months. The aim is that this allows them to take a break from their everyday life in stressful and hostile environments, and then return to their home countries with a larger and stronger network, having rested and recovered, and carrying feelings of solidarity and support with them. Breathing Space City is also a tool to educate a wider audience, namely the citizens of Oslo, on human rights work to create solidarity between cities and human rights movements around the world. The programme is tailored to each defender’s needs and wishes and includes elements such as psychosocial support and well-being, enhancing their support network, training in areas of interest, cultural and leisure activities, as well as participation in activities for awareness-raising and advocacy.
Please note that throughout this pilot project, we do not have open calls for applications. In case a call for applications is opened, it will be posted on this website.
Past participants of the programme
Naghma Iqtidar, Pakistan
Spring 2023
“It was great experience both in terms of providing a space to reenergize and rethink and in terms of opportunities of exposure and networking. [...] I got the much-required space for reflection and planning and a lot of learning opportunities. Living 3 months in a different society itself was a learning experience.”
Naghma is a human rights activist from Karachi and currently the General Secretary of the Democratic Youth Front. She has also been General Secretary of the Democratic Students Federation (DSF), a progressive students’ organisation. She works closely with university students and regularly conducts study circles to promote progressive ideas among them. She supports activists and advocates for justice in cases of missing persons in Pakistan. She is part of the Steering Committee of Sindh Human Rights Defenders Network and supports the activities of the network. In addition, she is associated with the women’s movement in Pakistan and is an active member of Pakistan's Women's Working Group and other initiatives.
Intigam Aliyev, Azerbaijan
Spring 2023
"This Program allowed me to relax, recover, meet new interesting people and organizations."
Intigam is a renowned human rights lawyer who has worked for decades to increase respect for human rights and legal principles in his home country of Azerbaijan. He is the author of over a hundred complaints to the European Court of Human Rights and has served for a period as an independent expert for the Council of Europe. Intigam is a principled human rights defender who has been and continues to be a very important mentor and teacher for young lawyers and activists, not only in his home country but in the rest of the region.
Syahrul, Indonesia
Fall 2023
"Oslo is a free and peaceful city, people are caring and helpful. For me, Oslo is the face of a human rights-friendly city."
Syahrul is a human rights defender and lawyer from the Aceh province in Indonesia. He has been the director of Banda Aceh Legal Aid (LBH Banda Aceh) from 2019 to 2024. Syahrul joined the organization in 2014. Since then, he and LBH Banda Aceh have defended marginalised groups from various backgrounds. They include victims and survivors of past atrocities and armed conflicts (1976-2004), political prisoners, and religious minorities who were charged with defamation of religion and social persecution. The organisation also works to defend and protect the LGBTIQ communities, women who suffered from discrimination under the Shari’a Law* and victims of sexual violence and local indigenous communities facing land grabbing and encroachment from large palm oil plantations.
Suren Perera, Sri Lanka
Spring 2024
“This period of closer to three months was the best in my life due to the relaxation, knowledge, experiences, network, and time for self-reflection and planning I had. What a wonderful time!”
Suren is a human rights lawyer working with the Human Rights Office Kandy in Sri Lanka, a long-term grantee partner of the NHRF. He works in the legal team of the organisation, handling cases of victims of rape and torture, families of the disappeared and the family members of prisoners attending to their legal requirements, and others. Suren handles very sensitive cases of gross human rights violations, such as the case of the 2019 Easter attack. He is also a team member for mobile legal clinics, which makes it possible for civil society to be educated on human rights. The Human Rights Office provides holistic assistance to the victims, offering security, legal, and medical assistance and trauma counselling and rehabilitation of the prisoners and the families of the disappeared and all those who are victimised by serious human rights violations.
In this video, Syahrul from Indonesia talks in more detail about his experience in the programme.
In this article by Global Citizen, you can read about the career development of Suren from his first encounter with human rights to his participation in the Breathing Space City programme, about how his stay in Oslo helped him to take better care of himself, and much more.