- Thomas Hammarberg
Thomas Hammarberg (born 1942 in
Örnsköldsvik ) is a Swedishdiplomat andhuman rights activist.He is currently the
Commissioner for Human Rights at theCouncil of Europe in Strasbourg. He took up his position on 1 April 2006, succeeding the first Commissioner,Álvaro Gil-Robles .Prior to his appointment, Hammarberg had spent several decades working on the advancement of human rights in Europe and worldwide. He had been Secretary General of the Stockholm-based
Olof Palme International Center (2002-05), Ambassador of the Swedish Government on Humanitarian Affairs (1994-2002), the Secretary General of Swedish NGO "Save the Children" (1986-92), and Secretary General ofAmnesty International (1980-86).Between 2001-03, Thomas Hammarberg acted as Regional Adviser for Europe, Central Asia and the Caucuses for the
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights . For several years, he was the Swedish Prime Minister's Personal Representative for the UN Special Session in Children, as well as the Convener of the Aspen Institute Roundtables on "Human Rights in Peace Missions". Between 1996 and 2000, he was Kofi Annan's appointed representative (SRSG) for human rights in Cambodia. He also participated in the work of the Refugee Working Group of the multilateral Middle East Peace Process.For 25 years, Hammarberg has published widely on various human rights issues, and particularly on the rights of the child, refugee policy, minority issues, xenophobia, Roma rights as well as international affairs and security. He is also well known for his presentations and lectures on human rights at various governmental and academic institutions.
In late April, 2008, Hammarberg visited Russia's Caucasian republics. After wrapping up the week long visit, he said he observed a number of positive developments in Chechnya, and that there was "obvious progress". He also noted that the
judicial system in Chechnya was beginning to function properly.President Putin responded to his comments, saying that the visit was of "great significance", and that Russia will take into account what the council had to say. [ [http://www.coe.int/t/commissioner/Activities/news2008/080425Putin_en.asp Commissioner Hammarberg meets Putin and Medvedev] Retrieved: 8-26-08] [ [http://russiatoday.ru/news/news/23950 Russian Caucasus ‘stabilising’: EU Commissioner] Retrieved: 8-26-08] [ [http://russiatoday.ru/news/news/23832 Thousands still missing in Chechnya] Retrieved: 8-26-08]Read more here about the mandate of the Council of Europe
Commissioner for Human Rights .References
External links
* [http://www.coe.int/t/commissioner Commissioner for Human Rights, Council of Europe]
* [http://www.palmecenter.se/ PalmeCenter.se]
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