2021

The 11th International Sakharov Conference – Copenhagen

International Human Rights Conference – live from the Danish Parliament

The New Democracy Fund and The Andrei Sakharov Center for Democratic Development shared the honor of hosting the 11^th Sakharov Conference – Copenhagen on the December 10, 2021.

The conference was an international event that marked the UN International Day of Human Rights and the centenary of Andrei Sakharov (1921-1989), human rights champion and Nobel Peace Prize laureate.

The conference had two focus areas – “The psychological consequences of state repression” and “Censorship and freedom of speech”. These two important issues was presented and discussed through speeches and panel discussions with selected key-note speakers, including Joachim Gauck, Former President of the Federal Republic of Germany, Jeppe Kofod, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Denmark, and a number of international representatives from expert NGOs and CSOs within the field of Human Rights.

The purpose of the conference was to strengthen awareness of the importance of human rights with a special focus on current challenges in Europe, Russia, and the Eastern Neighbourhood Countries (ENC) Ukraine, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Moldova, Georgia, and Belarus. Current trends and developments in these regions prove in multiple ways that a global dialogue and effort to promote and protect human rights are as important as ever.

The conference commemorated Andrei Sakharov and his unique contribution to the universal cause of human rights. To this day, he is remembered as a scientist, humanist, public figure, human rights champion, and Nobel Peace Prize laureate.

Sakharov openly criticized the Soviet totalitarian system, the threat it presented to international stability, and its systematic gross violations of human rights. Sakharov paid a high price for his stand. He also offered ways to solve the problems the world faces today. The Sakharov Doctrine of the indivisibility of international security, world peace, and human rights, is as relevant as ever.