The first woman, the first Asian and the first Muslim to become Secretary General of Amnesty International, Irene Khan is an internationally respected human rights activist

Former Secretary General of Amnesty International
Former United Nations High Commission for Refugees Chief of Mission in India
Director-General of the International Development Law Organization (IDLO)
Consulting editor of The Daily Star (Bangladesh)
Chancellor of the University of Salford

Topics covered include Global Insecurity, Terrorism and Counter-terrorism, Acceptance of diversity and Human Rights.

Speaking Style: Irene Khan is passionate about her work with human rights and associated global concerns and is extremely knowledgeable in this field.

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Topics Covered

Global Insecurity
Terrorism and Counter-terrorism
Acceptance of diversity
Human Rights

Biography

Irene Khan has devoted her career to the protection and implementation of human rights and has previously worked for the United Nations High Commission for Refugees and for Amnesty International, among others.

Early Potential

Irene Zubaida Khan was born in Dhaka on 24th December 1956 to an educated family. She attended St Francis Xavier's Greenherald International School in Mohammadpur, demonstrating exceptional academic capability. When she was a teenager, Khan attended secondary school in Northern Ireland. She went on to study law at the University of Manchester, before specialising in public international law and human rights at the prestigious Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Whilst growing up in Dhaka, Khan was aware of the human rights abuses which occurred whilst Bangladesh (then East Pakistan) was fighting for independence. These early experiences shaped her view of the world, leading her into a career in law and as a human rights activist.

Career in Human Rights

In the 1970s, Khan was among the people who created Concern Universal. The organisation still exists today and works in impoverished areas around the globe to reduce hunger, improve health, improve skills and to educate regarding human rights.

Khan began working with the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) in 1979. The ICJ is an independent organisation, which works to protect and promote human rights around the globe. Just a year later, Khan began working for the United Nations (UN), at the High Commission for Refugees. She remained with the agency for twenty years, acting as the Chief of Mission in India from 1995 onwards.

In 1999, Khan was responsible for the team working in the Republic of Macedonia in the wake of the Kosovo crisis. Following this, she was appointed Deputy Director of International Protection.

In 2001, Khan joined Amnesty International. As Secretary General, Khan was responsible for reforming the way in which the organisation responded to crises. She organised a campaign to have Guantanamo Bay detention camp and one to address violence against women. Khan was also concerned about how human rights abuses keep the poor impoverished and unable to alter their situation, starting the ‘Demand Dignity’ campaign to address this matter.

Khan resigned from Amnesty International in December 2009.

Accolades

Pilkington Woman of the Year Award (2002)
Sydney Peace Prize (2006)
Honorary Doctorate from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London
Honorary Doctorate from St. Andrews University
Honorary Doctorate from the University of Manchester
Honorary Doctorate from Staffordshire University
Honorary doctorate from the University of Edinburgh
Honorary doctorate at the Ghent University (Belgium)
Honorary Doctorate from State University of New York
Honorary Doctorate from the American University of Beirut (Lebanon)
Honorary Doctorate from Ferris University (Japan)

Films and documentaries

Kahn has appeared in:

‘Human Rights’, a documentary by Denis Delestrac (2003)

‘Soldiers of Peace’, a film directed by Tim Wise

Publications

The Unheard Truth: Poverty and Human Rights (2009)

Languages

English