WYMD Talks

In this episode of the World Youth Movement for Democracy podcast, WYMDTalks we will have the opportunity to hear more about dealing with the past, transitional justice, and youth activism in the Balkans, the region that was once, during the 1990s, heavily affected by the war. We have the pleasure of talking to Branka Vierda, Coordinator of Justice and Reconciliation Program at the Youth Initiative for Human Rights Croatia.

In this episode of WYMD Talks Hasan Hasanović, a Srebrenica genocide survivor, shares his story with the youth across the world. Hasan was only 19 years old when forces of the Republika Srpska army killed more than 8000 people in Srebrenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina, in July of 1995. Today, he works at the Srebrenica Memorial Center and is the author of two books: Surviving Srebrenica [https://www.amazon.com/Surviving-Srebrenica/dp/0992746884] and Voices from Srebrenica: Survivor Narratives of the Bosnian Genocide [https://www.amazon.com/Voices-Srebrenica-Survivor-Narratives-Genocide/dp/1476683344]. His story is not against anyone, but it is for everyone - to empathize, to learn, and to remember.

After the United States started withdrawing from Afghanistan, during the first days of August the Taliban swiftly took over cities and provinces. Finally, on August 15 2021 the Taliban have entered Kabul, Afghanistan’s capital city. In this episode of WYMD Talks, we talked with Spouzhmai Akbarzai, a feminist and an activist from Afghanistan. We discussed the events that have occurred during the Taliban’s first rule in the 1990s, the arrival and withdrawal of international forces, and the impact that the latest Taliban takeover may once again have on women, girls, civil society representatives, and journalists. Join us in raising our voices and speaking up about the deteriorating state of human rights in Afghanistan.

We got on a live podcast with activist Nandini Tanya Lallmon to speak about her activism and the challenges the LGBTIQA+ community faces in Mauritius. Nandini Tanya Lallmon, from Mauritius, is a social justice activist advocating for sustainable development at the intersection of gender, technology and human rights, who was also appointed as the African Youth Charter Hustler for Mauritius by the African Union Office of the Youth Envoy. Since 2019, she has been the legal lead of the #reform53 advocacy campaign of the Commonwealth Youth Gender and Equality Network aimed at lobbying Heads of Government to commit to reform laws that discriminate against LGBTQI people. Throughout the podcast, she shares the story of her activism and tips on how to stay motivated and inspired in the struggle for social justice.

We are joined by Bonolo Magowe of Democracy Works Foundation [https://democracyworks.org.za/] and Dumiso Gatsha of Success Capital [https://successcapital.africa/], who are both African Union Youth Charter Hustlers [https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=125419806093220] for Botswana. Join us as we explore how a year of on-again off-again lockdowns and related restrictive measures aiming to reduce the spread of COVID-19 have affected human rights and democracy in Botswana, how civil society is navigating the situation, and what is needed for marginalized communities to be better protected by the government.