PEOPLE BEHIND APRRN
APRRN LEADERSHIP
DAVID KEEGAN
APRRN Chair
DAVID KEEGAN
APRRN Chair
David is the CEO of HOST which has operations supporting refugee inclusion in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Australia, and New Zealand. He has been the Acting Deputy Chair of APRRN since early 2023 and the chair of the Regional Protection Working Group since 2021. David has been an active member of APRRN for 10 years and has also led a large resettlement program in Australia. David is an experienced not-for-profit director and has extensive program leadership and advocacy experience. He has been integral in leading the strategic planning process and is motivated to support APRRN through the implementation of the plan which includes strengthening inclusive member networks and advancing refugee inclusion as well as bringing focus to our advocacy work.
HOST has been undertaking innovative projects on ATD and community-based protection including advocacy for inclusion in national systems. HOST also delivers employment and settlement programs for refugees including community sponsorship in NZ. HOST also specialises in community inclusion and digital participation. Through HOST, David has promoted the inclusion of refugees and many projects include RLO partners. Therefore David brings a diverse range of experiences across different thematic areas and is able to support APRRN to transition into the next phase of APRRN's development including support for diverse leadership and simplified governance.
LYNETTE NAM
APRRN Deputy Chair
LYNETTE NAM
APRRN Deputy Chair
Lynette is a qualified lawyer with over 10 years of practice experience in immigration and asylum law in the Asia Pacific. She is currently the Executive Director of Justice Centre Hong Kong, where in her prior role as Senior Legal Advisor, she was responsible for designing and implementing legal services and strategies to advance protection and fair systems for refugees and other displaced people in Hong Kong. She has previously worked on legal aid and empowerment projects in Australia, Thailand, and Myanmar. Through the last two years, Lynette has chaired APRRN’s Legal Aid & Advocacy Working Group and contributed to the development of APRRN's incoming strategic plan.
Board
Steering Committee
Piyanut Kotsan
FRDP Board President & APRRN Board Member
Piyanut Kotsan
FRDP Board President & APRRN Board Member
Piyanut Kotsan is a human rights advocate and civic leader with over two decades of experience working with rights-based organizations in Thailand and across Southeast Asia. She currently serves as Board President of the Foundation for the Rights of Disadvantaged Populations (FRDP) and a Board Member of the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN). Previously, she was the Executive Director of Amnesty International Thailand (2016–2025), where she led national and global campaigns, youth engagement initiatives, and human rights movement . Piyanut’s work focuses on grassroots participation, refugee protection, gender justice, and youth leadership. She holds a Master’s degree in Development Studies from the University of Leeds (UK) and brings deep expertise in participatory methodologies, advocacy, and strategic partnerships.
Mic Chawaratt Chawarangkul
FRDP Board Treasurer & APRRN Board Member
Mic Chawaratt Chawarangkul
FRDP Board Treasurer & APRRN Board Member
Mic Chawaratt Chawarangkul is the Asia-Pacific Regional Manager at the International Detention Coalition (IDC). Prior to joining IDC, Mic held various roles within the humanitarian, human rights, and development sectors across Asia and Africa. He co-founded the Coalition for the Rights of Refugees and Stateless Persons (CRSP) and the Thailand Migration Reform Consortium (TMR). Mic played a critical role in shaping Thailand's policy to end the immigration detention of children and in advocating for the establishment of the National Screening Mechanism for refugees in Thailand. He has served as a member of two Parliamentary House Sub-Committees focused on refugees and irregular migration, where he has championed reforms in Thailand's migration governance. Additionally, he advised the Parliamentary Committee on National Security, Border Affairs, National Strategy, and National Reform, offering vital analysis and amendments to the migration legislative framework in Thailand.
Krittaporn Semsantad
FRDP Secretary and APRRN Board Member
Krittaporn Semsantad
FRDP Secretary and APRRN Board Member
Krittaporn Semsantad is a humanitarian and human rights professional with extensive experience in refugee protection, irregular migration, and displacement issues in Thailand and the Mekong region. Currently serving as Program Director at the Peace Rights Foundation, she leads multi-stakeholder initiatives, liaising with government bodies, parliamentarians, donors, and civil society to advance durable solutions and non-refoulement principles. With a background in monitoring, evaluation, and research, she has conducted assessments, designed advocacy strategies, and delivered trainings to officials, partners, and communities. Her advisory roles include contributing to Thailand’s Parliamentary Committee on Legal Affairs, Justice, and Human Rights. Krittaporn combines program management expertise with a strong commitment to rights-based, evidence-driven advocacy for displaced persons and stateless populations.
Paul Power
APRRN Board Member
Paul Power
APRRN Board Member
Refugee Council of Australia
Carolina Gottardo
APRRN Board Member
Carolina Gottardo
APRRN Board Member
Carolina Gottardo is a feminist migrant lawyer and economist who has worked on human rights issues for more than 20 years in different countries and contexts. Her areas of specialisation are migration, asylum and gender. Carolina is the Executive Director of the International Detention Coalition (IDC) advocating to end immigration detention. In the past she was the director of the Jesuit Refugee Service in Australia and the Latin American Women's Rights Service (LAWRS) in London and has been a senior manager at other NGO including the Refugee Council of Australia, the British Institute of Human Rights and the British Red Cross. Carolina has served on a number of boards related to human rights, gender and migration issues in London, Melbourne, Bangkok, Bogota and Brussels. She is currently a member of the board of the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN) and the Global Coalition for Migration (GCM). Carolina is currently a member of the Global UN Women Expert Working Group to address the human rights of women in the GCM, a co-lead of the UN Migration Network Working Group on Alternatives to Detention and a steering Committee Member of the UN Migration Multi Partner Trust Fund. Carolina has a Bachelor of Laws and a Bachelor of Economics from the Universidad de los Andes, as well as a MSc in Development Management from the London School of Economics and Political Science. Carolina is the mother of three boys and enjoys spending time with her family.
Ashok Gladston
APRRN Board Member
Ashok Gladston
APRRN Board Member
OfERR, India
DAVID KEEGAN
APRRN Chair
DAVID KEEGAN
APRRN Chair
David is the CEO of HOST which has operations supporting refugee inclusion in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Australia, and New Zealand. He has been the Acting Deputy Chair of APRRN since early 2023 and the chair of the Regional Protection Working Group since 2021. David has been an active member of APRRN for 10 years and has also led a large resettlement program in Australia. David is an experienced not-for-profit director and has extensive program leadership and advocacy experience. He has been integral in leading the strategic planning process and is motivated to support APRRN through the implementation of the plan which includes strengthening inclusive member networks and advancing refugee inclusion as well as bringing focus to our advocacy work. HOST has been undertaking innovative projects on ATD and community-based protection including advocacy for inclusion in national systems. HOST also delivers employment and settlement programs for refugees including community sponsorship in NZ. HOST also specialises in community inclusion and digital participation. Through HOST, David has promoted the inclusion of refugees and many projects include RLO partners. Therefore David brings a diverse range of experiences across different thematic areas and is able to support APRRN to transition into the next phase of APRRN's development including support for diverse leadership and simplified governance.
LYNETTE NAM
APRRN Deputy Chair
LYNETTE NAM
APRRN Deputy Chair
Lynette is a qualified lawyer with over 10 years of practice experience in immigration and asylum law in the Asia Pacific. She is currently the Executive Director of Justice Centre Hong Kong, where in her prior role as Senior Legal Advisor, she was responsible for designing and implementing legal services and strategies to advance protection and fair systems for refugees and other displaced people in Hong Kong. She has previously worked on legal aid and empowerment projects in Australia, Thailand, and Myanmar. Through the last two years, Lynette has chaired APRRN’s Legal Aid & Advocacy Working Group and contributed to the development of APRRN's incoming strategic plan.
DAVID KEEGAN
APRRN Chair
DAVID KEEGAN
APRRN Chair
David is the CEO of HOST which has operations supporting refugee inclusion in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Australia, and New Zealand. He has been the Acting Deputy Chair of APRRN since early 2023 and the chair of the Regional Protection Working Group since 2021. David has been an active member of APRRN for 10 years and has also led a large resettlement program in Australia. David is an experienced not-for-profit director and has extensive program leadership and advocacy experience. He has been integral in leading the strategic planning process and is motivated to support APRRN through the implementation of the plan which includes strengthening inclusive member networks and advancing refugee inclusion as well as bringing focus to our advocacy work. HOST has been undertaking innovative projects on ATD and community-based protection including advocacy for inclusion in national systems. HOST also delivers employment and settlement programs for refugees including community sponsorship in NZ. HOST also specialises in community inclusion and digital participation. Through HOST, David has promoted the inclusion of refugees and many projects include RLO partners. Therefore David brings a diverse range of experiences across different thematic areas and is able to support APRRN to transition into the next phase of APRRN's development including support for diverse leadership and simplified governance.
LYNETTE NAM
APRRN Deputy Chair
LYNETTE NAM
APRRN Deputy Chair
Lynette is a qualified lawyer with over 10 years of practice experience in immigration and asylum law in the Asia Pacific. She is currently the Executive Director of Justice Centre Hong Kong, where in her prior role as Senior Legal Advisor, she was responsible for designing and implementing legal services and strategies to advance protection and fair systems for refugees and other displaced people in Hong Kong. She has previously worked on legal aid and empowerment projects in Australia, Thailand, and Myanmar. Through the last two years, Lynette has chaired APRRN’s Legal Aid & Advocacy Working Group and contributed to the development of APRRN's incoming strategic plan.
Zaki Haidari
Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Working Group Chair
Zaki Haidari
Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Working Group Chair
The refugee rights campaigner at Amnesty International Australia whose area of campaign is to advocate to the Australian government to respond to the current refugee crisis in our region by increasing the current humanitarian intake. Therefore, Zaki Haidari is really interested in connecting with other NGOs, advocates, and people with lived experience through APRRN. Zaki is a person with lived experience, a refugee from Afghanistan, and has lived under Australia's harsh refugee policies for the past 10 years. He is a national refugee rights campaigner with AIA. Zaki has been an active advocate for the rights of refugees and people seeking asylum since his arrival. He has been in high-level discussions with the minister of immigration and other politicians to advocate for his rights and the rights of refugees and people seeking asylum. He is regularly talking to the media about current refugee and asylum policies. He has a deep understanding of Australia's refugee policies and the politics of the country. He has the support of AIA for this role, which provides his flexibility to dedicate time and resources to attend meetings and participate in the working group. He has worked in different positions at private and none for-profit organisations. Zaki Haidari worked at the Australian National University for four years before moving to the refugee sector and has been working in the refugee sector for the past three years in different capacities.
Jean Kim
East Asia Working Group Chair
Jean Kim
East Asia Working Group Chair
Jeannie is an attorney at law and has represented migrant workers, immigration detainees, and refugees. She has also engaged in legislative advocacy to guarantee their rights as well as in advocacy to implement international human rights treaties and relevant instruments to set forth legal standards and normative principles in the Republic of Korea, including lobbying at the UN. She is a member of the UN regional workstream for promoting alternatives to detention and has engaged in the learning process there. She has a series of advocacy experiences at the international, regional, and national levels, and has knowledge of international law and the Korean law/system relating to the rights of refugees. Last year, she and her team of lawyers won an unconstitutional ruling on the immigration law and also collaborated well with a Taiwanese NGO for that litigation, which would help other East Asia Working Group members to explore collaboration areas and set up outcomes. In the last two years, she's been leading and facilitating the East Asia Working Group at APRRN, and has been providing excellent facilitation and helped members feel comfortable participating in activities. In the next two years, she will lead a greater impact in the East Asia Working Group.
Khair Ullah
South Asia Working Group Chair
Khair Ullah
South Asia Working Group Chair
Khair Ullah is a Rohingya human rights defender, educator, and refugee advocate based in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. With lived experience of forced displacement, he has dedicated his career to amplifying the voices of marginalised communities, particularly the Rohingya, through education, advocacy, research, and artistic expression. Currently serving as Educational Director of the Rohingya Youth Initiative (RYI), the founder of Resilient Refugee Alliance (RRA), which was recently established, Khair Ullah leads programs that empower refugee youth, strengthen community education, and foster leadership development among forcibly displaced populations. Under his guidance, RYI has advanced youth-led initiatives, promoted meaningful participation in policy dialogues, and created platforms for refugee voices in regional and international forums. Khair Ullah has been an active member of the Youth Working Group at the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN) for the past three years, contributing to regional advocacy, strategy development, and youth engagement. He also served as an Advisory Board Member for Meaningful Refugee Participation at APRRN and currently chairs the South Asia Working Group in APRRN’s Steering Committee, consolidating priorities and elevating issues affecting displaced communities across South Asia. Beyond organisational leadership, Khair Ullah is recognised for his extensive work in human rights research, documentation, and artistic advocacy. He has collaborated with international organisations including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Jesuit Refugee Service, Danish Refugee Council, UN OCHA, and APRRN. His projects have included research on Rohingya youth perspectives, health awareness campaigns, arts and writing series, and documentation of humanitarian crises and intersectional discrimination, including the challenges faced by transgender Rohingya. As a visual journalist and creative writer, Khair Ullah has published poetry collections (I’m a Rohingya, Rohingya Dreams), conducted spoken-word performances, and used photography to preserve Rohingya cultural identity and document human rights violations. His work has been featured internationally, including in France 24, Boom Saloon, New Internationalist, and Think. Do. Magazine, De Gruyter Brill, and various youth-led platforms. Khair Ullah’s advocacy extends to legal and policy spheres, contributing to Human Rights Watch reports, Virginia Law Weekly analyses, social media campaigns for the Danish Refugee Council, and expert commentary on international legal accountability for crimes against the Rohingya. He has also delivered opening remarks at UNHCR Regional Consultations, highlighting decades-long persecution, ongoing humanitarian crises, and the importance of meaningful refugee participation in shaping regional policy. Through a combination of lived experience, professional expertise, and creative expression, Khair Ullah bridges grassroots realities with regional and international advocacy, striving to ensure that the voices of displaced communities are heard, respected, and included in decision-making processes.
Christopher Eades
Southeast Asia Working Group Chair
Christopher Eades
Southeast Asia Working Group Chair
Chris Eades is the Asia Regional Representative of Church World Service (CWS) and is based in Bangkok, Thailand. CWS has six country offices in Asia and works with and for refugees in Indonesia, Japan, and Thailand while supporting programming in a number of other countries. Chris is a US attorney and British lawyer. Previously, Chris served as the Secretary General of APRRN (2021-2023) and in a range of other senior positions including as the Executive Director of St Andrew’s Refugee Services (StARS) in Cairo (2014-2021), as the Director of Legal Services for the Jesuit Refugee Service in Bangkok (2013-14) and as the Director of Legal Programming for AMERA (2012-13). Chris has a particular interest in refugee leadership and inclusion.
Hannah Jambunathan
Immigration Detention Working Group Chair
Hannah Jambunathan
Immigration Detention Working Group Chair
Hannah Jambunathan is the Asia Pacific Programme Officer at the International Detention Coalition (IDC), where she works to drive policy change on immigration detention and ATD across national, regional, and global levels. In Malaysia, she is currently working in close collaboration with civil society and Government stakeholders to develop a community-based ATD policy for children, and she also coordinates a national civil society network to mobilise advocacy towards creating a more open social and political environment towards migrants and refugees. Drawing on her academic research background, Hannah has authored several research reports and policy briefs on the issue of immigration detention and ATD, in particular on the impacts of immigration detention on refugee families and communities, the intersections of gender and immigration detention, and the critical need to reduce the use of immigration detention for children.
Hamsa Vijayaraghavan
Legal Aid and Advocacy Working Group Chair
Hamsa Vijayaraghavan
Legal Aid and Advocacy Working Group Chair
Hamsa is a qualified lawyer who has previously worked as an asylum and immigration adviser in the UK and with the UNHCR field office in India, as well as at the Ministry of Women and Child Development of the Government of India and UNICEF. As the Chief Operating Officer at Migration and Asylum Project, India’s first and only centre for the study of forced migration, her work is centred around advocating for a cohesive movement towards safe migration in the region by making the Rule of Law central to addressing human rights challenges and securing opportunities for rehabilitation for displaced populations. A committed feminist leader, she advocates for inclusive justice systems that recognise gendered harms, intersectional barriers, and the lived realities of displaced communities. She was awarded the Chevening Gurukul Fellowship at the University of Oxford and is a 2024 Asia Peacebuilding Innovators Fellow (Salzburg Global Seminar) and 2024 Fisher Family Fellow (Stanford University). She has previously chaired the South Asia Working Group, and now, as Chair of APRRN’s Legal Aid & Advocacy Working Group, she aims to work to strengthen regional collaboration, amplify community-led legal responses, and advance equitable protection frameworks across the Asia-Pacific.
Kunanyaporn Jirasamatakij (Git)
Legal Aid and Advocacy Working Group Deputy Chair
Kunanyaporn Jirasamatakij (Git)
Legal Aid and Advocacy Working Group Deputy Chair
Git is a human rights advocate with over eight years of experience working on Indigenous rights, enforced disappearances, the anti-torture bill, and digital rights. She also has experience in media engagement, blogging, podcast production, and journalism. Building on this background in rights-based advocacy, she later shifted her focus toward displacement and refugee protection, working on issues that connect human rights, regional policy, and humanitarian response. She currently serves as the Regional Advocacy Focal Point for Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) Asia Pacific, supporting policy development and evidence-based research across eight countries. Her work includes advancing the right to work for refugees, strengthening cross-border Myanmar–Thailand advocacy, and contributing to regional efforts that bring forgotten crises to global attention. Git currently serves as the Deputy Chair of the Legal Aid and Advocacy Working Group within the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN).
Mohammad Nowkhim
Refugee Leadership and Participation Working Group Chair
Mohammad Nowkhim
Refugee Leadership and Participation Working Group Chair
Mohammad is very well connected to RLOs in Bangladesh and has been involved in several initiatives from education to livelihood . He serves on GRF resettlement mega pledge committee and has been travelling to advocate at international conferences like in Singapore and US. He also has mentored other youth across camps in Bangladesh for advocacy and leadership. He is well organised , good financial literacy and strong stakeholder relationships with many other organisations.
Ryan Joseph Figueiredo
Women, Gender and Diversity Leadership Working Group Chair
Ryan Joseph Figueiredo
Women, Gender and Diversity Leadership Working Group Chair
Ryan is the founder and Executive Director of Equal Asia Foundation – a regional LGBTIQ+ non-profit think tank and innovation incubator with offices in Amsterdam and Bangkok. Equal AF’s work is focused on future scoping and future-proofing around issues such as ageing, climate change, mental health, and financial citizenship for LGBTIQ+ communities in Asia. Ryan has worked in the non-profit and management consulting space for over 20 years. At Equal AF, Ryan leads regional and national multi-specialisation initiatives that address deep-seated inequities within the LGBTIQ+ movement. In 2018, Ryan was selected as one of the Human Rights Campaign's Global Innovators. In 2019, Thomson Reuters Foundation named him a Global Changemaker for his work. In 2020, he was recognised as a Global Change accelerator by the Resource Alliance. Ryan sits on several international LGBTIQ+ advisory and mentorship groups. Ryan is a formerly displaced person. He served on the board of the Forcibly Displaced People Network in Australia. He is an alumnus of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences. He has trained in clinical trials at the London School of Tropical Medicine and in population ageing at the University of Oxford.
Rana Ebrahimi
Age, Gender, and Diversity WG Chair
Rana Ebrahimi
Age, Gender, and Diversity WG Chair
Rana Ebrahimi is the National Director of the Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network Australia (MYAN). She leads MYAN to advocate for young people from refugee and migrant backgrounds’ rights and best interests in policy and practice. Rana is an expert in social inclusion and humanitarian ethics. Recently, she has been appointed as the reference group for this Multicultural Framework Review (The Review). Rana is the first Iranian woman to be a National Head of Office for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Iran. She is also President of the Equal Employment Opportunity Network, Director on the board of Australian Youth Affairs Coalition, and member of several advisory groups including Welcoming Australia.
Jason Siwat
Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Working Group Deputy Chair
Jason Siwat
Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Working Group Deputy Chair
Jason Siwat is the Director of the Migrants and Refugees Desk of the Catholic Bishops Conference of PNG & Solomon Islands (CBCPNGSI). The Desk was only established in 2021 and Jason took the direct responsibility of helping to grow its capacity and build its network. Currently, the Desk has operations only in PNG, working mainly with West Papuan refugees, those refugees brought to PNG by Australia, and other spontaneous refugee and asylum seeker cohorts. Jason also represents the Oceania region on the Governing Committee of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) which is headquartered in Geneva and Rome. In this role, Jason reports on the refugee and migrant issues and activities in the Oceania region and strives to bring to the attention of ICMC and the world the challenges facing refugees, migrants, and IDP populations in the region.
Dim Dim Lian
East Asia Working Group Deputy Chair
Dim Dim Lian
East Asia Working Group Deputy Chair
Dim Dim Lian is an advocate specialising in inclusive development, digital empowerment, and refugee participation across Asia and beyond. Originally from Myanmar’s Chin community, she brings lived experience as a refugee in Malaysia and is now resettled in Japan through a third-country resettlement program. Her personal journey through displacement shapes her commitment to building protection systems and participatory structures that uphold stability, dignity, and agency for refugees. In her current position as Analyst for Advocacy and Partnerships at Robo Co-op, a refugee-led digital cooperative, she contributes to advocacy, training, and partnership development that expand remote-work opportunities and digital upskilling for refugees. At the national level, her perspectives have been recognised through her feature in a video by the Prime Minister’s Office of Japan highlighting the country's engagement in third-country resettlement. She also serves as the lead of the Mentorship Working Group of the Connecting and Equipping Refugees to Tertiary Education (CERTE) initiative in Malaysia, supporting access to higher education for displaced learners. Academically, she is a graduate of Waseda University with a Master's in International Relations. She focuses on intra-ethnic dynamics in Myanmar, exploring how internal group relations shape governance in multi-ethnic societies. Drawing from her lived refugee experience, Dim integrates research, advocacy, and practice to promote meaningful refugee participation and refugees’ empowerment across global and local contexts.
Fatemeh Ashrafi
South Asia Working Group Deputy Chair
Fatemeh Ashrafi
South Asia Working Group Deputy Chair
In the capacity of founder and head of trustees of HAMI(Association for Protection of Refugee Women and Children) Dr.Fatemeh Ashrafi (Ph.D. in Public Policy) has been associated with APRRN and refugee protection works for the last more than two decades. She is an Iranian activist who started her humanitarian activities while she was a student at the university by leading a student team to travel to refugee Bosnian camps in Croatia to help Bosnian Refugee Women and Children. According to the geostrategic situation of Iran in Asia because of hosting millions of Afghani and Iraqi refugees over decades, she established the Association for Protection of Refugee Women and Children. HAMI in 1997 to advocate and protect refugee rights in Iran. HAMI started its activities within Afghanistan in 2002 with a focus on Women's and Children's rights, Increasing the capacity and capabilities of women and NGOs, independent media, and other social groups up to 2020. HAMI's hard efforts and effective advocacy in the field of education and health caused serious changes in the government policies in these two very important sectors in 2015 and 2016, which led to the access of refugee children to free education in the formal education system, as well as national health insurance scheme coverage for Vulnerable refugees in Iran. Fatemeh Ashrafi not only is an active expert in the field of refugees and migrants but also has an advisory role in some other fields such as Women's rights, Child rights, and rural issues in Iran in Government and Non-Government sectors.
Husson Ahmad
Southeast Asia Working Group Deputy Chair
Husson Ahmad
Southeast Asia Working Group Deputy Chair
Husson Ahmad is a Consultant and Rohingya Community Advocate with nine years of experience supporting marginalised and refugee communities through advocacy, legal empowerment, and capacity-building initiatives. He is also the Founder of the Rohingya Youths Support Network (RYSN), a youth-led refugee organisation dedicated to advancing education, leadership development, and community engagement among Rohingya young people in Malaysia. Husson has worked with leading humanitarian organisations, including Asylum Access Malaysia, the International Rescue Committee, MERCY Malaysia, Host International, and Health Equity Initiatives, contributing to community outreach, child protection, interpretation, and mixed-migration research. He has also played key roles in research with the Mixed Migration Centre and served as a focal point for academic publications on refugee issues. His advocacy has been featured by UNICEF Malaysia and BBC Vietnamese, highlighting his commitment to refugee rights, social justice, and meaningful community inclusion. Fluent in multiple languages and skilled in cross-sector collaboration, Husson continues to strengthen partnerships between refugee communities, civil society, and international stakeholders to promote protection, dignity, and long-term solutions for displaced populations.
Madiha Ali
Immigration Detention Working Group Deputy Chair
Madiha Ali
Immigration Detention Working Group Deputy Chair
Madiha Ali Changezi is a lawyer at Dixon and Co Lawyers and a former Judges’ Clerk at the High Court in Auckland. With a focus on refugee and human rights law, Madiha brings both professional expertise and lived experience as a former refugee to her advocacy and legal practice. She has contributed to national and international policy development through her roles on the UNHCR Refugee Advisory Group to the CRCP, the New Zealand Refugee Advisory Panel, and the New Zealand National Refugee Youth Council. Madiha holds a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from the University of Waikato. Alongside her academic and legal pursuits, Madiha has worked as a youth worker and community advocate, supporting ethnic youth from migrant and refugee backgrounds. In recognition of her contributions to the community, she received a Civic Award from the Hamilton City Council in 2024. Madiha has shared insights at global forums such as the UNHCR Executive Committee Meeting and the Global Refugee Forum in Geneva, speaking on the importance of refugee self-reliance and lived experience leadership. Madiha brings a thoughtful, intersectional approach to her work and is committed to fostering inclusive systems that reflect the diversity of the communities they serve.
Sabina Dhakal
Legal Aid and Advocacy Working Group Deputy Chair
Sabina Dhakal
Legal Aid and Advocacy Working Group Deputy Chair
Currently, Sabina holds the position of Project Coordinator at International Institute for Human Rights, Environment and Development (INHURED International) and she is entrusted to perform and supervise various refugee-related programs along with pro-bono legal services to forced migrants and other deprived groups of society. In the year 2019, Sabina was selected for the United States Department of State's Fellowship for Professional Leaders based on her work with refugees in Nepal. In the States, she was placed in the Ethiopian Community Development Council for an intensive six-week internship. This experience helped her to learn about the reintegration program for Refugees in the USA in close proximity. In the year 2021, she also initiated her own law firm named Eminent Law Associates in order to give extensive services to people. Through her own practice, she has been assisting underprivileged people by offering free legal assistance to those who cannot afford to pay for these services. In addition, Sabina has attributed paralegal workshops to underprivileged people both refugees and non-refugees, to increase their legal literacy and help them to become empowered in the long run.
Najeeba Wazefadost
Refugee Leadership and Participation Working Group Deputy Chair
Najeeba Wazefadost
Refugee Leadership and Participation Working Group Deputy Chair
Najeeba actively engaged with local refugee communities, understanding their unique challenges, and advocating for their rights. Through grassroots initiatives like the Refugee Leadership Alliance, she has facilitated community engagement with donors and first-time grants made to RLOs by RLOs. Her involvement in national advocacy efforts has equipped her with a deep understanding of policy issues related to refugees and displaced populations. She has actively participated in dialogues with government officials and contributed to the development of refugee-related policies like the ATCR. It was due to their advocacy with other refugees that ATCR has become more inclusive and moved from a Tripartite structure to a multipartite structure and even changed the name to CRCP. Najeeba also has worked with organisations and RLOs operating across borders, she possesses a regional perspective on refugee issues. She has collaborated with regional stakeholders to address challenges like displacement due to conflicts, climate change, and other regional factors. For example, the APSOR ( Asia Pacific Summit of Refugees ) is one platform which other refugee leaders have co-convened to bring RLOs together or now looking to support the empowerment of non-refugee stakeholders in becoming effective allies/champions in refugee participation through a co-designed training by a group of refugee experts across the region specially APRRN. Another example of capacity building is where they collaborated with APRRN and provided skill enhancement courses to 21 RLOs in the region. Lastly, Najeeba has served in leadership roles in civil society actors, where she has honed her governance skills. This experience includes decision-making, strategic planning, and accountability, all of which are vital for any leadership position.
John Patrick Murray
Creative Initiatives in Practice Working Group Chair
John Patrick Murray
Creative Initiatives in Practice Working Group Chair
I come from Brisbane, in Australia, having spent the last 20 years in Bangkok, where I work with Caritas Thailand on migration, specifically migrant worker populations, urban refugees, and Burmese along the border with Myanmar. I am the Director of the National Catholic Commission on Migration and play a pastoral role in reaching out to refugees in Bangkok and beyond. I am here due to my belonging to the Order of St Augustine in the Catholic Church and being a priest. This is because my assignment in the Church is to the pastoral care of refugees and migrants. I am COERR’s focal person with APRRN. I value this connection and network, even if I have not played a high-profile role over the years. My specific passion has been helping urban refugees and Myanmar and its people. We did have a great local network in Bangkok, furthering the plight of urban refugees - BASRAN (Bangkok Asylum Seeker and Refugee Assistance Network). Given the realities of our present world, networking is more important than before, looking to new ways to operate, coordinate, and find resources.
Daniel Gamboa
Age, Gender and Diversity WG Deputy Chair
Daniel Gamboa
Age, Gender and Diversity WG Deputy Chair
Daniel Gamboa is the CEO of the New Zealand National Refugee Youth Council (NZNRYC), the only refugee youth-led organization in New Zealand. Daniel has always aimed to create an inclusive and supportive environment that enables refugee youth to thrive, voice their concerns, and contribute to shaping policies and initiatives that promote their rights and well-being. As a proud member of the rainbow community, he has also led a number of initiatives to support the rainbow refugee community. Daniel and his mother fled Colombia when rebels threatened to kill the then 12-year-old boy Daniel because his mother refused to hide their weapons in her restaurant. They then became refugees in Ecuador where they were violently discriminated against because of being Colombian. In 2012 after living in Ecuador for 6 years, the UNHCR resettled Daniel and his mother to New Zealand. His academic background includes a bachelor's degree in Political Science and Development Studies from Victoria University of Wellington, a leadership diploma from the University of Cambridge, and a certificate in Refugee and Forced Migration Studies from Oxford University. He has held senior roles in the New Zealand government. He has worked as a senior engagement advisor for the NZ Department of Internal Affairs and the New Zealand Royal Commission of Inquiry into State Care Abuse. He is the deputy chair for the youth working group of the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network. He has attended and participated at the 2023 UNHCR Regional Consultations with NGOs in Asia and the Pacific and has been a guest speaker at the following: CRCP working group in Sydney (2024), Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Conference (2016 & 2023), The Annual Tripartite Consultations on Resettlement (2016 & 2017) & Annual consultations with NGOs (2016).
Working Groups
Geographic
Thematic
Zaki Haidari
Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Working Group Chair
Zaki Haidari
Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Working Group Chair
The refugee rights campaigner at Amnesty International Australia whose area of campaign is to advocate to the Australian government to respond to the current refugee crisis in our region by increasing the current humanitarian intake. Therefore, Zaki Haidari is really interested in connecting with other NGOs, advocates, and people with lived experience through APRRN. Zaki is a person with lived experience, a refugee from Afghanistan, and has lived under Australia's harsh refugee policies for the past 10 years. He is a national refugee rights campaigner with AIA. Zaki has been an active advocate for the rights of refugees and people seeking asylum since his arrival. He has been in high-level discussions with the minister of immigration and other politicians to advocate for his rights and the rights of refugees and people seeking asylum. He is regularly talking to the media about current refugee and asylum policies. He has a deep understanding of Australia's refugee policies and the politics of the country. He has the support of AIA for this role, which provides his flexibility to dedicate time and resources to attend meetings and participate in the working group. He has worked in different positions at private and none-profit organizations. Zaki Haidari worked at the Australian National University for four years before moving to the refugee sector and has been working in the refugee sector for the past three years in different capacities.
Khair Ullah
South Asia Working Group Chair
Khair Ullah
South Asia Working Group Chair
Khair Ullah is a Rohingya human rights defender, educator, and refugee advocate based in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. With lived experience of forced displacement, he has dedicated his career to amplifying the voices of marginalised communities, particularly the Rohingya, through education, advocacy, research, and artistic expression. Currently serving as Educational Director of the Rohingya Youth Initiative (RYI), the founder of Resilient Refugee Alliance (RRA), which was recently established, Khair Ullah leads programs that empower refugee youth, strengthen community education, and foster leadership development among forcibly displaced populations. Under his guidance, RYI has advanced youth-led initiatives, promoted meaningful participation in policy dialogues, and created platforms for refugee voices in regional and international forums. Khair Ullah has been an active member of the Youth Working Group at the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN) for the past three years, contributing to regional advocacy, strategy development, and youth engagement. He also served as an Advisory Board Member for Meaningful Refugee Participation at APRRN and currently chairs the South Asia Working Group in APRRN’s Steering Committee, consolidating priorities and elevating issues affecting displaced communities across South Asia. Beyond organisational leadership, Khair Ullah is recognised for his extensive work in human rights research, documentation, and artistic advocacy. He has collaborated with international organisations including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Jesuit Refugee Service, Danish Refugee Council, UN OCHA, and APRRN. His projects have included research on Rohingya youth perspectives, health awareness campaigns, arts and writing series, and documentation of humanitarian crises and intersectional discrimination, including the challenges faced by transgender Rohingya. As a visual journalist and creative writer, Khair Ullah has published poetry collections (I’m a Rohingya, Rohingya Dreams), conducted spoken-word performances, and used photography to preserve Rohingya cultural identity and document human rights violations. His work has been featured internationally, including in France 24, Boom Saloon, New Internationalist, Think Do Magazine, De Gruyter Brill, and various youth-led platforms. Khair Ullah’s advocacy extends to legal and policy spheres, contributing to Human Rights Watch reports, Virginia Law Weekly analyses, social media campaigns for the Danish Refugee Council, and expert commentary on international legal accountability for crimes against the Rohingya. He has also delivered opening remarks at UNHCR Regional Consultations, highlighting decades-long persecution, ongoing humanitarian crises, and the importance of meaningful refugee participation in shaping regional policy. Through a combination of lived experience, professional expertise, and creative expression, Khair Ullah bridges grassroots realities with regional and international advocacy, striving to ensure that the voices of displaced communities are heard, respected, and included in decision-making processes.
Jean Kim
East Asia Working Group Chair
Jean Kim
East Asia Working Group Chair
Jeannie is an attorney at law and has represented migrant workers, immigration detainees, and refugees. She has also engaged in legislative advocacy to guarantee their rights as well as in advocacy to implement international human rights treaties and relevant instruments to set forth legal standards and normative principles in the Republic of Korea, including lobbying at the UN. She is a member of the UN regional workstream for promoting alternatives to detention and has engaged in the learning process there. She has a series of advocacy experiences at the international, regional, and national levels, and has knowledge of international law and the Korean law/system relating to the rights of refugees. Last year, she and her team of lawyers won an unconstitutional ruling on the immigration law and also collaborated well with a Taiwanese NGO for that litigation, which would help other East Asia Working Group members to explore collaboration areas and set up outcomes. In the last two years, she's been leading and facilitating the East Asia Working Group at APRRN, and has been providing excellent facilitation and helped members feel comfortable participating in activities. In the next two years, she will lead a greater impact in the East Asia Working Group.
Christopher Eades
Southeast Asia Working Group Chair
Christopher Eades
Southeast Asia Working Group Chair
Chris Eades is the Asia Regional Representative of Church World Service (CWS) and is based in Bangkok, Thailand. CWS has six country offices in Asia and works with and for refugees in Indonesia, Japan, and Thailand while supporting programming in a number of other countries. Chris is a US attorney and British lawyer. Previously, Chris served as the Secretary General of APRRN (2021-2023) and in a range of other senior positions including as the Executive Director of St Andrew’s Refugee Services (StARS) in Cairo (2014-2021), as the Director of Legal Services for the Jesuit Refugee Service in Bangkok (2013-14) and as the Director of Legal Programming for AMERA (2012-13). Chris has a particular interest in refugee leadership and inclusion.
Jason Siwat
Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Working Group Deputy Chair
Jason Siwat
Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Working Group Deputy Chair
Jason Siwat is the Director of the Migrants and Refugees Desk of the Catholic Bishops Conference of PNG & Solomon Islands (CBCPNGSI). The Desk was only established in 2021 and Jason took the direct responsibility of helping to grow its capacity and build its network. Currently, the Desk has operations only in PNG, working mainly with West Papuan refugees, those refugees brought to PNG by Australia, and other spontaneous refugee and asylum seeker cohorts. Jason also represents the Oceania region on the Governing Committee of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) which is headquartered in Geneva and Rome. In this role, Jason reports on the refugee and migrant issues and activities in the Oceania region and strives to bring to the attention of ICMC and the world the challenges facing refugees, migrants, and IDP populations in the region.
Fatemeh Ashrafi
South Asia Working Group Deputy Chair
Fatemeh Ashrafi
South Asia Working Group Deputy Chair
In the capacity of founder and head of trustees of HAMI(Association for Protection of Refugee Women and Children) Dr.Fatemeh Ashrafi (Ph.D. in Public Policy) has been associated with APRRN and refugee protection works for the last more than two decades. She is an Iranian activist who started her humanitarian activities while she was a student at the university by leading a student team to travel to refugee Bosnian camps in Croatia to help Bosnian Refugee Women and Children. According to the geostrategic situation of Iran in Asia because of hosting millions of Afghani and Iraqi refugees over decades, she established the Association for Protection of Refugee Women and Children. HAMI in 1997 to advocate and protect refugee rights in Iran. HAMI started its activities within Afghanistan in 2002 with a focus on Women's and Children's rights, Increasing the capacity and capabilities of women and NGOs, independent media, and other social groups up to 2020. HAMI's hard efforts and effective advocacy in the field of education and health caused serious changes in the government policies in these two very important sectors in 2015 and 2016, which led to the access of refugee children to free education in the formal education system, as well as national health insurance scheme coverage for Vulnerable refugees in Iran. Fatemeh Ashrafi not only is an active expert in the field of refugees and migrants but also has an advisory role in some other fields such as Women's rights, Child rights, and rural issues in Iran in Government and Non-Government sectors.
Dim Dim Lian
East Asia Working Group Deputy Chair
Dim Dim Lian
East Asia Working Group Deputy Chair
Dim Dim Lian is an advocate specialising in inclusive development, digital empowerment, and refugee participation across Asia and beyond. Originally from Myanmar’s Chin community, she brings lived experience as a refugee in Malaysia and is now resettled in Japan through a third-country resettlement program. Her personal journey through displacement shapes her commitment to building protection systems and participatory structures that uphold stability, dignity, and agency for refugees. In her current position as Analyst for Advocacy and Partnerships at Robo Co-op, a refugee-led digital cooperative, she contributes to advocacy, training, and partnership development that expand remote-work opportunities and digital upskilling for refugees. At the national level, her perspectives have been recognised through her feature in a video by the Prime Minister’s Office of Japan highlighting the country's engagement in third-country resettlement. She also serves as the lead of the Mentorship Working Group of the Connecting and Equipping Refugees to Tertiary Education (CERTE) initiative in Malaysia, supporting access to higher education for displaced learners. Academically, she is a graduate of Waseda University with, Master's in International Relations. She focuses on intra-ethnic dynamics in Myanmar, exploring how internal group relations shape governance in multi-ethnic societies. Drawing from her lived refugee experience, Dim integrates research, advocacy, and practice to promote meaningful refugee participation, refugees’ empowerment across global and local contexts.
Husson Ahmad
Southeast Asia Working Group Deputy Chair
Husson Ahmad
Southeast Asia Working Group Deputy Chair
Husson Ahmad is a Consultant and Rohingya Community Advocate with nine years of experience supporting marginalised and refugee communities through advocacy, legal empowerment, and capacity-building initiatives. He is also the Founder of the Rohingya Youths Support Network (RYSN), a youth-led refugee organisation dedicated to advancing education, leadership development, and community engagement among Rohingya young people in Malaysia. Husson has worked with leading humanitarian organisations, including Asylum Access Malaysia, the International Rescue Committee, MERCY Malaysia, Host International, and Health Equity Initiatives, contributing to community outreach, child protection, interpretation, and mixed-migration research. He has also played key roles in research with the Mixed Migration Centre and served as a focal point for academic publications on refugee issues. His advocacy has been featured by UNICEF Malaysia and BBC Vietnamese, highlighting his commitment to refugee rights, social justice, and meaningful community inclusion. Fluent in multiple languages and skilled in cross-sector collaboration, Husson continues to strengthen partnerships between refugee communities, civil society, and international stakeholders to promote protection, dignity, and long-term solutions for displaced populations.
Hannah Jambunathan
Immigration Detention Working Group Chair
Hannah Jambunathan
Immigration Detention Working Group Chair
Hannah Jambunathan is the Asia Pacific Programme Officer at the International Detention Coalition (IDC), where she works to drive policy change on immigration detention and ATD across national, regional, and global levels. In Malaysia, she is currently working in close collaboration with civil society and Government stakeholders to develop a community-based ATD policy for children, and she also coordinates a national civil society network to mobilise advocacy towards creating a more open social and political environment towards migrants and refugees. Drawing on her academic research background, Hannah has authored several research reports and policy briefs on the issue of immigration detention and ATD, in particular on the impacts of immigration detention on refugee families and communities, the intersections of gender and immigration detention, and the critical need to reduce the use of immigration detention for children.
Mohammad Nowkhim
Refugee Leadership and Participation Working Group Chair
Mohammad Nowkhim
Refugee Leadership and Participation Working Group Chair
Mohammad is very well connected to RLOs in Bangladesh and has been involved in several initiatives from education to livelihood. He serves on the GRF resettlement mega pledge committee and has been traveling to advocate at international conferences like in Singapore and the US. He also has mentored other youth across camps in Bangladesh for advocacy and leadership. He is well organised , has good financial literacy, and strong stakeholder relationships with many other organisations.
Hamsa Vijayaraghavan
Legal Aid and Advocacy Working Group Chair
Hamsa Vijayaraghavan
Legal Aid and Advocacy Working Group Chair
Hamsa is a qualified lawyer who has previously worked as an asylum and immigration adviser in the UK and with the UNHCR field office in India, as well as at the Ministry of Women and Child Development of the Government of India and UNICEF. As the Chief Operating Officer at Migration and Asylum Project, India’s first and only centre for the study of forced migration, her work is centred around advocating for a cohesive movement towards safe migration in the region by making Rule of Law central to addressing human rights challenges and securing opportunities for rehabilitation for displaced populations. A committed feminist leader, she advocates for inclusive justice systems that recognise gendered harms, intersectional barriers, and the lived realities of displaced communities. She was awarded the Chevening Gurukul Fellowship at the University of Oxford and is a 2024 Asia Peacebuilding Innovators Fellow (Salzburg Global Seminar) and 2024 Fisher Family Fellow (Stanford University). She has previously chaired the South Asia Working Group and now as Chair of APRRN’s Legal Aid & Advocacy Working Group, she aims to work to strengthen regional collaboration, amplify community-led legal responses, and advance equitable protection frameworks across the Asia-Pacific.
Ryan Joseph Figueiredo
Women, Gender and Diversity Leadership Working Group Chair
Ryan Joseph Figueiredo
Women, Gender and Diversity Leadership Working Group Chair
Ryan is the founder and Executive Director of Equal Asia Foundation – a regional LGBTIQ+ non-profit think tank and innovation incubator with offices in Amsterdam and Bangkok. Equal AF’s work is focused on future scoping and future-proofing around issues such as ageing, climate change, mental health, and financial citizenship for LGBTIQ+ communities in Asia. Ryan has worked in the non-profit and management consulting space for over 20 years. At Equal AF, Ryan leads regional and national multi-specialisation initiatives that address deep-seated inequities within the LGBTIQ+ movement. In 2018, Ryan was selected as one of the Human Rights Campaign's Global Innovators. In 2019, Thomson Reuters Foundation named him a Global Changemaker for his work. In 2020, he was recognised as a Global Change accelerator by the Resource Alliance. Ryan sits on several international LGBTIQ+ advisory and mentorship groups. Ryan is a formerly displaced person. He served on the board of the Forcibly Displaced People Network in Australia. He is an alumnus of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences. He has trained in clinical trials at the London School of Tropical Medicine and in population ageing at the University of Oxford.
Rana Ebrahimi
Age, Gender and Diversity Working Group Chair
Rana Ebrahimi
Age, Gender and Diversity Working Group Chair
Rana Ebrahimi is the National Director of the Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network Australia (MYAN). She leads MYAN to advocate for young people from refugee and migrant backgrounds’ rights and best interests in policy and practice. Rana is an expert in social inclusion and humanitarian ethics. Recently, she has been appointed as the reference group for this Multicultural Framework Review (The Review). Rana is the first Iranian woman to be a National Head of Office for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Iran. She is also President of the Equal Employment Opportunity Network, Director on board of Australian Youth Affairs Coalition, and member of several advisory groups including Welcoming Australia.
Madiha Ali
Immigration Detention Working Group Deputy Chair
Madiha Ali
Immigration Detention Working Group Deputy Chair
Madiha Ali Changezi is a lawyer at Dixon and Co Lawyers and a former Judges’ Clerk at the High Court in Auckland. With a focus on refugee and human rights law, Madiha brings both professional expertise and lived experience as a former refugee to her advocacy and legal practice. She has contributed to national and international policy development through her roles on the UNHCR Refugee Advisory Group to the CRCP, the New Zealand Refugee Advisory Panel, and the New Zealand National Refugee Youth Council. Madiha holds a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from the University of Waikato. Alongside her academic and legal pursuits, Madiha has worked as a youth worker and community advocate, supporting ethnic youth from migrant and refugee backgrounds. In recognition of her contributions to the community, she received a Civic Award from the Hamilton City Council in 2024. Madiha has shared insights at global forums such as the UNHCR Executive Committee Meeting and the Global Refugee Forum in Geneva, speaking on the importance of refugee self-reliance and lived experience leadership. Madiha brings a thoughtful, intersectional approach to her work and is committed to fostering inclusive systems that reflect the diversity of the communities they serve.
Najeeba Wazefadost
Refugee Leadership and Participation Working Group Deputy Chair
Najeeba Wazefadost
Refugee Leadership and Participation Working Group Deputy Chair
Najeeba actively engaged with local refugee communities, understanding their unique challenges, and advocating for their rights. Through grassroots initiatives like the Refugee Leadership Alliance, she has facilitated community engagement with donors and first-time grants made to RLOs by RLOs. Her involvement in national advocacy efforts has equipped her with a deep understanding of policy issues related to refugees and displaced populations. She has actively participated in dialogues with government officials and contributed to the development of refugee-related policies like the ATCR. It was due to their advocacy with other refugees that ATCR has become more inclusive and moved from a Tripartite structure to a multipartite structure and even changed the name to CRCP. Najeeba also has worked with organisations and RLOs operating across borders, she possesses a regional perspective on refugee issues. She has collaborated with regional stakeholders to address challenges like displacement due to conflicts, climate change, and other regional factors. For example, the APSOR ( Asia Pacific Summit of Refugees ) is one platform which other refugee leaders have co-convened to bring RLOs together or now looking to support the empowerment of non-refugee stakeholders in becoming effective allies/champions in refugee participation through a co-designed training by a group of refugee experts across the region specially APRRN. Another example of capacity building is where they collaborated with APRRN and provided skill enhancement courses to 21 RLOs in the region. Lastly, Najeeba has served in leadership roles in civil society actors, where she has honed her governance skills. This experience includes decision-making, strategic planning, and accountability, all of which are vital for any leadership position.
Kunanyaporn Jirasamatakij (Git)
Legal Aid and Advocacy Working Group Deputy Chair
Kunanyaporn Jirasamatakij (Git)
Legal Aid and Advocacy Working Group Deputy Chair
Git is a human rights advocate with over eight years of experience working on Indigenous rights, enforced disappearances, the anti-torture bill, and digital rights. She also has experience in media engagement, blogging, podcast production, and journalism. Building on this background in rights-based advocacy, she later shifted her focus toward displacement and refugee protection, working on issues that connect human rights, regional policy, and humanitarian response. She currently serves as the Regional Advocacy Focal Point for Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) Asia Pacific, supporting policy development and evidence-based research across eight countries. Her work includes advancing the right to work for refugees, strengthening cross-border Myanmar–Thailand advocacy, and contributing to regional efforts that bring forgotten crises to global attention. Git currently serves as the Deputy Chair of the Legal Aid and Advocacy Working Group within the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN).
John Patrick Murray
Creative Initiatives in Practice Working Group Chair
John Patrick Murray
Creative Initiatives in Practice Working Group Chair
I come from Brisbane, in Australia, having spent the last 20 years in Bangkok, where I work with Caritas Thailand on migration, specifically migrant worker populations, urban refugees and Burmese along the border with Myanmar. I am the Director of the National Catholic Commission on Migration and play a pastoral role in reaching out to refugees in Bangkok and beyond. I am here due to my belonging to the Order of St Augustine in the Catholic Church and being a priest. This is because my assignment in the Church is to pastoral care of refugees and migrants. I am COERR’s focal person with APRRN. I value this connection and network, even if I have not played a high profile role over the years. My specific passion has been helping urban refugees and Myanmar and its people. We did have a great local network in Bangkok, furthering the plight of urban refugees - BASRAN (Bangkok Asylum Seeker and Refugee Assistance Network). Given the realities of our present world, networking is more important than before, looking to new ways to operate, coordinate and find resources.
Daniel Gamboa
Age, Gender and Diversity Working Group Deputy Chair
Daniel Gamboa
Age, Gender and Diversity Working Group Deputy Chair
Daniel Gamboa is the CEO of the New Zealand National Refugee Youth Council (NZNRYC), the only refugee youth-led organization in New Zealand. Daniel has always aimed to create an inclusive and supportive environment that enables refugee youth to thrive, voice their concerns, and contribute to shaping policies and initiatives that promote their rights and well-being. As a proud member of the rainbow community, he has also led a number of initiatives to support the rainbow refugee community. Daniel and his mother fled Colombia when rebels threatened to kill the then 12-year-old boy Daniel because his mother refused to hide their weapons in her restaurant. They then became refugees in Ecuador where they were violently discriminated against because of being Colombian. In 2012 after living in Ecuador for 6 years, the UNHCR resettled Daniel and his mother to New Zealand. His academic background includes a bachelor's degree in Political Science and Development Studies from Victoria University of Wellington, a leadership diploma from the University of Cambridge, and a certificate in Refugee and Forced Migration Studies from Oxford University. He has held senior roles in the New Zealand government. He has worked as a senior engagement advisor for the NZ Department of Internal Affairs and the New Zealand Royal Commission of Inquiry into State Care Abuse. He is the deputy chair for the youth working group of the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network. He has attended and participated at the 2023 UNHCR Regional Consultations with NGOs in Asia and the Pacific and has been a guest speaker at the following: CRCP working group in Sydney (2024), Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Conference (2016 & 2023), The Annual Tripartite Consultations on Resettlement (2016 & 2017) & Annual consultations with NGOs (2016).
Members
SECRETARIAT
Hafsar Tameesuddin
Co-Secretary General
Hafsar Tameesuddin
Co-Secretary General
Hafsar is a social worker, human rights defender, and Rohingya activist. They advocate for gender equality, child marriage, LGBTQI, refugees, and statelessness with more than a decade of experience working with refugee communities, INGOs, and NGOs. They are an advisory member of the Global Movement of Statelessness and served as an interim Advisory member of the UNHCR Advisory Group. Their expertise includes understanding the ground realities of challenges faced by refugees, statelessness, and LGBTQ+ communities as someone with lived experience. They passionately advocate for the power shift, inclusion, and diversity within the systems. Their work and advocacy are centered on the improved prevention and response measures to SGBV, to promote and protect the rights of refugees, stateless people, asylum seekers, and LGBTQ+ communities in the Asia Pacific Region and beyond.
Klaus Dik Nielsen
Co-Secretary General
Klaus Dik Nielsen
Co-Secretary General
Klaus is an international human rights advocate and partnership builder with more than 20 years of practical experience in bringing about positive change for minorities and marginalised people by designing and driving influencing, partnership, mobilisation, and capacity-building strategies. Advocating for rights, social justice, and meaningful inclusion and participation behind closed doors and campaigning in public, Klaus works with civil society, government, funders, the private sector, UN agencies, and other stakeholders. He has worked with Amnesty International (International Secretariat) and the Open Society Foundations and consulted with ActionAid Thailand, the People’s Empowerment Foundation, APCOM, OHCHR, and UNICEF.
Lars Stenger
Network Coordinator
Ali Reza Yawari
Membership Support & Communication Consultant
Ali Reza Yawari
Membership Support & Communication Consultant
Ali Reza Yawari is a Hazara refugee from Afghanistan and a multifaceted advocate, filmmaker, and published author currently based in Indonesia. Having experienced displacement as a refugee himself and his subsequent involvement in various initiatives that have driven positive social impact, his journey has been marked by a deep commitment to addressing the challenges faced by forcibly displaced communities. As the founder and leading director of a Refugee-led Learning Community and a Youth-led Initiative, he envisions a future where all people of disadvantaged communities can have access to education and meaningful participation in society. Despite the complexities of his situation, his profound interest in IT, Media, and Communication, along with carrying out related training, workshops, research, and projects, has allowed him to continue advancing in his areas of expertise. Ali's extensive skill set encompasses his commitment to storytelling through documentary filmmaking and writing as a means of advocating for the rights of refugees, inclusion, and their meaningful participation. His works are dedicated to shedding light on critical issues such as migration, human trafficking, and refugee rights. Ali's work stands as a commitment to dispelling misconceptions about refugee communities while championing their rights.
Murtaza haidari (Mobin)
IT Officer
Murtaza haidari (Mobin)
IT Officer
As an IT Consultant and Service Provider for APRRN, Mobin advises and manages the organization's IT systems. His role involves understanding the organization's needs, analyzing existing systems, and providing recommendations for improvements to optimize the IT infrastructure and systems. He ensures that the systems are up-to-date and secure, while also providing technical support and assistance to the team. Mobin's diverse expertise and tailored solutions support the organization's goals and enhance its operations.
Amrita Paul
Programme Officer
Amrita Paul
Programme Officer
Amrita Paul brings a decade of experience in the non-profit sector, specializing in the assessment and refinement of access to justice frameworks for individuals in custody. Her primary focus is on protection concerns vis-à-vis detained refugees and asylum seekers in non-signatory states in the region. Her work encompasses critical aspects such as identification, registration, and facilitating access to legal representation, all aimed at reducing prolonged detention, preventing unnecessary incarcerations, and ensuring effective legal aid for refugees and foreign nationals. Amrita's approach includes research, advocacy, and close collaboration with state entities to develop and implement practical and effective solutions. Prior to her current role, she played a role in advocating for access to justice initiatives at the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI).
Emma Goldie
Learning Lead Consultant
Emma Goldie
Learning Lead Consultant
Emma Goldie has, for the last ten years, worked for multiple refugee-led organisations, leading, evaluating, and providing strategic oversight to refugee-led projects, that promote meaningful change and refugee and migrant voices. She has collaborated with numerous refugee-led initiatives, and with a focus on the meaningful participation of those with lived experience has brought together management, community leaders, and service users to design, reflect, and feedback on their projects and organisations. Her most recent evaluation for Saint Andrews Refugee Services in Cairo contributed to the wider movement led by the Resourcing Refugee Leadership Initiative that is providing growing evidence of the capabilities, strengths, needs, and urgency for refugee-led organisations in the refugee response.
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