MDU researcher to attend the Nobel Peace Prize Forum as an expert

The 2023 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Narges Mohammadi for her fight for human rights and against the oppression of women in Iran. In connection with the award ceremony, which will take place in Oslo on 11 December, the Nobel Peace Prize Forum will also be held. This year's forum focuses on the fight for human rights and democracy in Iran, with an emphasis on the situation of women. Mehrdad Darvishpour, MDU researcher, has been invited to participate in the forum's roundtable discussions.

Every year, the Nobel Peace Prize Forum brings together a former Nobel Peace Prize laureate and a panel of experts to engage in high-level discussions on a specific topic. The theme of this year's panel discussion External link. is the future of the opposition movement in Iran. This year’s forumLink to another website. hopes to provide participants with an opportunity to learn more about the situation that Iranians, especially women, face daily. Mehrdad Darvishpour, Associate Professor and Researcher at MDU, has been invited to participate in this discussion as an academic, sociologist, and he is active in the Iranian people's struggle for peace and freedom.

“In the discussion, I will give my opinion on how and why women had a leading role in last year's protests in Iran. What is known as the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement was a call for gender equality and a stand against religious fundamentalism in Iran. The motive and vision for change still remain with the people. I wish to highlight how this movement, as a cultural revolution, influences not only the values of the opposition movement but also society’s view on gender equality," says Mehrdad Darvishpour.

This is the eighth Nobel Peace Prize Forum to be held in Oslo. It will be chaired by the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi. Previous keynote speakers have included US President Henry Kissinger, US Vice President Al Gore and the UN Secretary-General António Guterres

About Mehrdad Darvishpour

Mehrdad Darvishpour is a Sociologist, Senior Lecturer and Associate Professor of Social work at Mälardalen University. Since the early nineties, he has been committed to the issue of human rights and solidarity for the Iranian people. Mehrdad has published several books and scholarly articles on Iranian women, gender issues, ethnicity, discrimination and integration in Swedish, English and Persian.