2025 Speeches

27 Videos

Vladimir and Evgenia Kara-Murza

The Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy is a major conference that shines a spotlight on urgent human rights situations that require global attention. It provides human rights heroes, activists and former political prisoners with a unique platform to testify about their personal struggles for democracy and freedom, while building an international community to take on dictatorships. The Summit is held around the main annual session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, when foreign ministers gather in Geneva, to place critical issues onto the international agenda.

2025 Speakers

Russia

Garry Kasparov

Human rights activist, promoter of democracy, and former World Chess Champion

Iran

Reza Pahlavi

Crown Prince of Iran

Eritrea

Betlehem Isaak

Swedish-Eritrean writer and daughter of Dawit Isaak

Venezuela

Edmundo González

President-elect of Venezuela

Hong Kong

Sebastien Lai

Democracy activist and son of imprisoned pro-democracy media entrepreneur Jimmy Lai

Russia

Vladimir Kara-Murza

Russian dissident and politician who survived two poisoning attempts

2025 PROGRAM

MORNING SESSION (Central European Time)

10:00 WELCOME

Hillel Neuer, Executive director of United Nations Watch, on behalf of 30 co-sponsoring NGOs

10:10 OPENING ADDRESS

Garry Kasparov, Vice-President of World Liberty Congress, pro-democracy leader, author, former world chess champion

10:25 SURVIVING PUTIN’S GULAG: THE PRICE OF DISSENT IN RUSSIA

● Evgenia Kara-Murza, Advocacy Director of the Free Russia Foundation, defending anti-war activists, dissidents and political prisoners

● Vladimir Kara-Murza, Russian opposition leader, author, historian, filmmaker, survivor of two poisoning attempts and harsh imprisonment

10:45 STILL NOT FREE: THE FIGHT FOR LIBERALISM IN SAUDI ARABIA

Tirad Badawi, Son of human rights activist Raif Badawi who was imprisoned for 10 years in Saudi Arabia and remains barred from leaving

10:55 MY FATHER’S LEGACY: FIGHTING FOR DEMOCRACY IN CHINA

Times Wang, Human rights lawyer, son of Chinese democracy pioneer Wang Bingzhang who has been imprisoned since 2002

11:05 EMPTY CHAIR: MARIA KALESNIKAVA, POLITICAL PRISONER IN BELARUS

11:10 SACRIFICING EVERYTHING TO SAVE DEMOCRACY IN HONG KONG

Sebastien Lai, Leader of the international #FreeJimmyLai campaign, son of imprisoned pro-democracy newspaper publisher Jimmy Lai

11:20 THE CAMPAIGN TO STOP CHINA’S DESTRUCTION OF THE UYGHURS

Rahima Mahmut, Uyghur human rights activist, translator and singer

11:30 BORDERLESS REPRESSION: THE LONG REACH OF VIETNAM’S REGIME

Van Trang Nguyen, Vietnamese democracy activist, survivor of regime attacks and transnational repression

11:40 EMPTY CHAIR: AHMADREZA DJALALI, SENTENCED TO DEATH IN IRAN ON FALSE CHARGES

11:45 PRESENTATION OF 2025 INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S RIGHTS AWARD

● Dr. Massouda Jalal, Former Afghan Minister of Women’s Affairs and the first woman to run for President of Afghanistan

● Husna Jalal, Exiled Afghan women’s rights activist

AFTERNOON SESSION

14:30 KEYNOTE ADDRESS: THE STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM IN IRAN

Reza Pahlavi, Crown Prince of Iran

14:50 PANEL: THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC’S BRUTALITY AGAINST PROTESTERS

Moderator: Nazanin Afshin-Jam

Mahan Mehrabi, Sister of Iranian political prisoner Mahmoud Mehrabi
Maryam Diyor, Mother of Abolfazl Amir-Ataei, who was killed at age 16 by the regime for protesting
Saman Pouryaghma, Blinded in one eye after being shot while protesting

15:15 A TIBETAN’S BRAVE ESCAPE FROM THE CHINESE REGIME

Namkyi, Exiled Tibetan activist and former political prisoner

15:25 PRESENTATION OF 2025 DEFENDER OF FREEDOM AWARD

Presenter: Vladimir Kara-Murza

Irwin Cotler, International human rights lawyer for political prisoners, legal scholar, former Canadian Minister of Justice and Attorney-General

15:50 SUDAN’S ONGOING NIGHTMARE: PREVENTING FURTHER ATROCITIES

Niemat Ahmadi, Survivor of the Darfur Genocide, Sudanese women’s rights defender, Founder and President of Darfur Women Action Group

16:00 EMPTY CHAIR: RAHILE DAWUT, UYGHUR SCHOLAR DISAPPEARED BY CHINA

16:05 ERITREA AND THE WORLD’S LONGEST IMPRISONED JOURNALIST

Betlehem Isaak, Swedish-Eritrean writer, daughter of journalist Dawit Isaak who has been detained in Eritrean prison without trial for 24 years

16:15 FIGHTING FOR DEMOCRACY AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN LATIN AMERICA

Javier El-Hage, Chief Legal and Policy Officer of Human Rights Foundation

16:20 STORY OF A SURVIVOR

Osiris Puerto Terry, Shot multiple times by Cuban regime for attending pro-democracy protest

16:30 PRESENTATION OF 2025 COURAGE AWARD

Edmundo González, President-elect of Venezuela
María Corina Machado, Venezuelan opposition leader (via video)

16:45 CALL TO ACTION: CARRYING THE TORCH OF HUMAN RIGHTS FORWARD

Brandon Silver, International human rights lawyer, 2024 Magnitsky Award laureate, Director of Policy & Projects at Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights

16:55 CONCLUSION

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2025 Geneva Summit Highlights:

The 17th Geneva Summit was held on February 18, 2025. The event was attended by thousands of dissidents, victims, diplomats, journalists, student leaders and other concerned citizens. Thousands more watched online.

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Leading annual gathering at U.N. European Headquarters of human rights activists and families of political prisoners. Sponsored by 30 NGOs.

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