PEOPLE BEHIND APRRN

APRRN LEADERSHIP

Hafsar Tameesuddin

APRRN Chair

Sitarah Mohammadi

APRRN Deputy Chair

Board

Steering Committee

Chalida Tajaroensuk

FRDP Board President & APRRN Board Member

Yuhanee Jehka

FRDP Board Treasurer & APRRN Board Member

Puttanee Kangkun

FRDP & APRRN Board Member

Ashok Gladston

APRRN Board Member

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.

Paul Power

APRRN Board Member

Hafsar Tameesuddin

APRRN Chair

Sitarah Mohammadi

APRRN Deputy Chair

Hafsar Tameesuddin

APRRN Chair

Sitarah Mohammadi

APRRN Deputy Chair

Elizabeth Young

Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Working Group Chair

Elizabeth Young

Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Working Group Chair

Having worked in Thailand, Myanmar/Burma, Australia and New Zealand, and remotely with those imprisoned on Manus Island and Nauru, Elizabeth has an in-depth understanding of the issues facing people seeking asylum, refugees, internally displaced and stateless people, and other migrants. An experienced executive manager with three degrees and many years’ experience in the refugee and humanitarian sector, Elizabeth is a specialist in the areas of refugee resettlement, human rights and asylum issues. Elizabeth has a specific interest in organisational development, community building, policy and advocating for positive change. Elizabeth believes in innovative and modern workplaces that adapt with the times, supporting people to grow and prepare themselves for both their own future, and that of the communities they serve. She has collaborated at all levels of government in both Aotearoa New Zealand and Australia to implement change that recognises and respects diversity in its many forms. Elizabeth is very active in her community, promoting volunteerism and service. She is the loving caregiver to a 16-year-old rangitahi (young person) in foster care with Oranga Tamariki; she sits on community boards and committees and is also Justice of the Peace for Aotearoa New Zealand. In her voluntary role as a JP, Elizabeth is committed to promoting the civic participation of all New Zealanders, in particular those for whom English is not their mother tongue, where accessing Justice of the Peace services can be confusing and challenging. Elizabeth's personal kaupapa (purpose/values/principles and ideas which act as a base or foundation for action) include social justice, human rights, equality, and equity. It is this kaupapa that has driven Elizabeth to dedicate her professional career and personal life to volunteering and working with refugee communities and displaced people. This mahi/work is extremely important to Elizabeth, feeling more like a calling than a career.

Jean Kim

East Asia Working Group Chair

Hamsa Vijayaraghavan

South Asia Working Group Chair

Julio Castor

Southeast Asia Working Group Chair

Gopal Krishna Siwakoti

Durable Solutions Working Group Chair

Vivienne Chew

Immigration Detention Working Group Chair

Lynette Nam

Legal Aid and Advocacy Working Group Chair

Najeeba Wazefadost

Refugee Leadership and Participation Working Group Chair

David Keegan

Regional Protection Working Group Chair

Lilianne Fan

Rohingya Working Group Chair

Apajok Biar

Women, Gender, and Diversity Working Group Chair

Hayatullah Akbari

Youth Working Group Chair

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Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Working Group Deputy Chair

SATOMI HIYAMA

East Asia Working Group Deputy Chair

WAIS ARIA

South Asia Working Group Deputy Chair

MATHILDA HO

Southeast Asia Working Group Deputy Chair

JOHN ROC

Durable Solutions Working Group Deputy Chair

JOSHUA ERICSSON

Immigration Detention Working Group Deputy Chair

JIRIM KIM

Legal Aid and Advocacy Working Group Deputy Chair

MOHAMMAD BAQIR

Refugee Leadership and Participation Working Group Deputy Chair

OMAR ALKHAMMASH

Regional Protection Working Group Deputy Chair

CHRIS LEWA

Rohingya Working Group Deputy Chair

RYAN FIGUEIREDO

Women, Gender, and Diversity Working Group Deputy Chair

__________________

Youth Working Group Deputy Chair

Working Groups

Geographic

Thematic

Elizabeth Young

Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Working Group Chair

Elizabeth Young

Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Working Group Chair

_________________

Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Working Group Deputy Chair

Jean Kim

East Asia Working Group Chair

Satomi Hiyama

East Asia Working Group Deputy Chair

Hamsa Vijayaraghavan

South Asia Working Group Chair

Wais Aria

South Asia Working Group Deputy Chair

Julio Castor

Southeast Asia Working Group Chair

Mathilda Ho

Southeast Asia Working Group Deputy Chair

Mathilda Ho

Southeast Asia Working Group Deputy Chair

Mathilda Ho is the Founder of Advocates For Refugees - Singapore (AFR-SG), a volunteer-led ground up movement promoting the humane and dignified treatment of refugees and the forcibly displaced through awareness campaigns, research and government engagement and partnerships to support refugee-led organisations and initiatives. She is a Social Service Professional in Singapore and has worked with the elderly and persons with disabilities. Mathilda is also a Civic Engagement Fellow of the 2020 Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative Professional Fellows Program (YSEALI PFP).