HRF in vogue: daughters of the revolution

It is fascinating to see how experience unites people, even when they come from three continents, from countries as different as Cuba, Venezuela, Russia and Ukraine, and from different backgrounds: seven young women of varied origins united by political persecution simply for being the daughter of someone. For this group of women activists, some of them not yet 20, the natural conversation is about the political situation in their countries, their difficult experiences at home simply for being the daughters of dissidents, and their work as tireless activists. Brave and untiring voices for human rights and for democracy come together at the Oslo Freedom Forum organised by the Human Rights Foundation.

Wai Wai Nu, at just 18, spent seven years imprisoned as a result of a 17 year sentence handed down because she was the daughter of an opposition leader. Grace Jo, originally from North Korea, has since the age of five lived a long and difficult odyssey that included going hungry, 15 months in prison and a period as a refugee in China. Grace Zhisheng, daughter of the Chinese lawyer and activist Gao Zhisheng, imprisoned since 2008 for offering free legal services to people seeking justice, has been the victim of abuse, humiliation and enforced isolation. Ti-anna Wang is the daughter of the founder of the Overseas Chinese Democracy Movement, who was abducted by the Chinese government in Vietnam and repatriated to be arrested and given a life sentence. All have suffered great personal and family injustice, and at the same time have turned those experiences into the driving force behind their work for democratic change and human rights.

Sophia Yushchenko, daughter of the Ukrainian president Viktor Yushchenko, who led the Orange Revolution, has been an activist in her own right since she was 15. Now 18 and starting university, she is fully committed to changing the system in her country. Zhanna, daughter of the Russian activist Boris Nemtsov, who was murdered outside the Kremlin in 2015, continues her father's work for a democratic Russia.

From Latin America, the forum was attended by Rosa María Payá, daughter of the late Cuban activist and five times Nobel Peace Prize nominee Oswaldo Payá. A brave and tireless pro democracy activist and civil society leader in Cuba since 2009, she works to promote solidarity in her country as well as seeking justice after her father's death. Also present was the Venezuelan Antonietta Ledezma, daughter of the mayor of Caracas and political prisoner since 2015, Antonio Ledezma. Another example of a tireless woman committed to her country and her values, she has used exile to take a master's degree that supports her work for democracy and human rights at home. She sees her situation as a privilege, because it allows her to say that her father has sacrificed his freedom so that she can have a free Venezuela.

All these women are proof that adversity is a powerful catalyst, one with which they have created important organisations and movements and won numerous awards for their humanitarian work. All take part in global forums ranging from the United Nations to social media campaigns, sharing their message and keeping alive the memory of their fathers, or fighting for their freedom. Three continents, six countries and very different backgrounds, and all of them are visionary, proactive and brave. Without looking back in bitterness or sorrow, they are responsible for significant action to change the political situation in their countries and improve the living conditions of many.