Institute for Human Rights, Åbo Akademi University

Conferencing with a tan

People often ask what it's like to do a PhD. Well, sometimes it means interrupting your vacation, packing your suitcase, and heading to a conference.

Grateful to have spent three inspiring days at CINETS 2026 in Leiden in July. This biennial conference was centered on the timely theme "Crimmigration in an Age of Authoritarian Drift." It explored how criminal law and migration law are becoming increasingly intertwined, and what this means for migrants’ rights. It was one of the largest conferences I've attended, with multiple keynote speakers and parallel sessions that made choosing where to go a challenge, often until the very last minute because every session looked fascinating.

The conference was also a special milestone for me, as I presented my academic poster at my very first conference since starting my PhD.

What made it even more memorable was the combination of outstanding academic discussions with artistic exhibitions and film screenings. They brought a human dimension to migration, complementing the legal debates and making complex issues more tangible and accessible.

It was a pleasure to exchange ideas with colleagues from around the world. Many thanks to the organizers for creating such a welcoming and inspiring event, and to Åbo Akademi University and the Swedish Cultural Foundation for making this experience possible.

Leaving sandy feet behind and swapping flip-flops for formal shoes was absolutely worth it. / Adrian

📣 Check out this new article by Mikaela Heikkilä, Maija Mustaniemi-Laakso and Lisa Grans!

📄 The article, written within the ROVU project (https://blogs2.abo.fi/vulnerability/), was recently published (in Finnish) in the journal Oikeus. Focusing on forced marriage as a crime, it discussed genuine consent, coercion and vulnerabilities.

🔗 You can read the article here: https://oikeus.journal.fi/article/view/162390/126374

Pakkoavioliitto rikoksena – keskustelua aidosta suostumuksesta, pakottamisesta ja haavoittuvuudesta

📑 This month the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) published its annual report on fundamental rights in the EU, to which the Institute has contributed!

📝 Katarina Frostell authored a national report on “Housing crisis and people experiencing homelessness”, which was part of the multidisciplinary research network FRANET’s national contribution to the FRA report. FRANET’s report examines the Finnish legal framework on the right to housing, its major developments in 2025, and statistics on the number of ex*****on orders and actual evictions for private households. In addition, Raija Hanski authored a national report on the use of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights at national level (publication forthcoming).

⚖️👥 FRA’s report “Fundamental Rights Report - Challenges and achievements in 2025” focuses on fundamental rights developments and gaps in the EU in 2025. These include:
🔹Europe’s housing crisis
🔹Employment challenges and labour exploitation
🔹Threats to fundamental rights online
🔹The EU’s foundational values

🔗 Find FRANET’s national contribution here:
https://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra_uploads/frr_housing_crisis_report_2025_fi_en.pdf
🔗 Find the full annual report by the FRA here:
https://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra_uploads/fundamental-rights-report_challenges-and-achievements_2025.pdf

fra.europa.eu

📢 How are language politics formed, and what role does the Swedish language play in legislative and policy processes?

💡 “The Position of Swedish in Politics and Legislation: A Legal-Policy Analysis of the Status of the Swedish Language and the Rights of Swedish Speakers in Debates in Finland’s Parliament and in Legislative Materials, 1990–2025” (LAWPOL Språkrätt) is one of the Institute’s newest research projects. The project runs from 2026 to 2029 and aims to investigate the role of the Swedish language in politics and legislation in Finland.

⚖️ The focus is on attitudes towards the Swedish language as expressed in plenary debates in Parliament and in legislative preparatory materials. The project contributes to a deeper understanding of how and on what grounds the status of Swedish has changed over the past 35 years, as well as how language, power, and politics are interconnected in a bilingual society. It also offers insight into language policy trends and the types of arguments used to justify legislative changes affecting linguistic rights.

🔅 The project utilizes tools developed through the LAWPOL research infrastructure, which will continue to be further developed within the project.

👥 The project team is led by Professor Anne Alvesalo-Kuusi from the Faculty of Law at the University of Turku and includes Elina Pirjatanniemi (Åbo Akademi), Kimmo Elo (Turun yliopisto - University of Turku), Marjaana Sjölund (Turun yliopisto - University of Turku), and Frida Bergenwall (Åbo Akademi).

🌟 As one chapter ends, another begins!

🎓 Today marked a milestone for many students studying Public International Law at Åbo Akademi University. At today’s graduation ceremonies, students within the Master’s­ Degree­ Pro­gramme in­­ Inter­national Law­ and­ Human­ Rights, a programme offered by the Institute, attained their Master’s Degrees in Social Sciences or in International and Comparative Law.

🎓 Also, students within the Bachelor’s Programme in Social Sciences and with the main subject of Public International Law, also had their graduation ceremony today. Many will continue with their Master’s studies within the Institute’s programme; congratulations, and see you again this fall!

🎉 To those now leaving Åbo Akademi and starting a new chapter, the whole Institute would like to wish you the very best for what the future may hold for you! Remember to always believe in yourselves, and be confident in your knowledge and competence!

🌻 Congratulations, and also lovely summer to staff, students and alumni!

🇮🇸 Club Åbo in Reykjavík:

⚖️ Club Åbo, is Åbo Akademi University’s and University of Turku’s joint team at Nordiska rättegångstävlingen om de mänskliga rättigheterna (The Nordic Moot Court Competition on Human Rights).

🏅 This year’s competition took place last week in Reykjavík, where the team did very well by winning their own division, and with Frida Sundholm receiving an award for best closing statement in their division as well!

🎉 After a close contest in the semifinal however, the opponent took more points this time. Coach Viljam Engström still says he could not be more proud, and together with the whole Institute congratulates all team members of Club Åbo!

🌏 Update from abroad!

📌 This week Doctoral Researcher Angelica Conti has been all the way to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 🇲🇾, to participate in the Research Conference on Refugee Studies and Forced Displacement. The conference took place from Tuesday to Wednesday and was organized by the ASEAN Research Center (ARC) at the Asia School of Business (ASB) in partnership with UNHCR Malaysia.

📌 Organized every year in close connection with the World Refugee Day (celebrated on June 20), this year, it had an added focus on the situation of stateless persons, which is directly related to Angelica's PhD topic.

📌 In addition to academic papers and poster presentations, the conference provided a safe space to individuals with lived experience of refugeehood, with dedicated workshops and a refugee entrepreneur bazaar.

🔎 Many different topics were addressed, you can find the conference's agenda in the comments below!

📣 Check out Karla Schröter’s book chapter:

📄 “Colonial Fantasies in the European Court of Human Rights” is a chapter that explores why the Court has decided that it is in accordance with the ECHR to ban hijabs and face-veils in public institutions and spaces. Instead of properly scrutinising the bans and looking at the power dynamics at play, the Court seems to retreat into colonial fantasies, recreating narratives that make Muslim women victims, objects of conquest and threats to human rights law.

📄 The chapter traces these fantasies back to their origin in colonial history and violence, showing how they continue to guide and legitimise violence against Muslim women until today, even within a human rights framework.

📖 The chapter is published in the book “Emancipating International Law: Confronting the Violence of Racialized Boundaries”, a book exploring “international law’s complicity with racial hierarchy, systemic oppression, and global white supremacy”, as is described by the editors Mohsen al Attar and Claire Smith.

🔗 Access the chapter via the link below!

Colonial Fantasies in the European Court of Human Rights Abstract. This chapter argues that the European Court of Human Rights applies and legitimizes ontologies based on whiteness and masculinity when assessing

Today we have another update from one of our doctoral researchers! Elina Sagne-Ollikainen started her PhD in 2022 and shares her experience below:

🎓Why did you decide to apply to be a doctoral researcher at the Institute?
My research focus is on identifying Impactful Human Rights work in Finland, and I felt that the Institute for Human Rights at Åbo Akademi University is the best research environment in Finland for this topic.

📚What is your primary area of research?
I am studying different societal levels; the public, private and the culture sector and human rights work within these sectors. This entails Human Rights practices in Finland within and by National Human rights bodies and Ombudsman activities, Business and Human rights, linguistic and cultural rights and the connection between theatre as a societal institution and human rights.

📆What does a normal day as a researcher look like?
Reading, writing, conducting field work, thinking, planning or writing grant applications, and hopefully also coffee breaks with other researchers.

💫What is your favorite part of being a researcher?
The autonomy, the intellectual work and the feeling that research can open up new perspectives and possibilities of the society, the people and the world, and maybe in the long term, change things for the better.

Thank you Elina for sharing your experiences!

🗺️ Alumni update: Vitória Dell'Aringa Rocha

💭 Who are you?
I am Vitória Dell'Aringa Rocha and I come from Brazil. I graduated from the Master’s Degree Programme in International Law and Human Rights at Åbo Akademi University in June 2024.

💭 What do you do today?
Today I work as a Latin America and Human Rights Defenders researcher at an international NGO called Business and Human Rights Centre.

💭 How do you look back at your studies?
It was a life-changing experience, both professionally and personally. I am really grateful to have been able to represent Brazil and Latin America, bringing our perspective to the Finnish environment, deconstructing stereotypes and learning a lot as well.

💭 Any words of wisdom?
Do it with your heart and mind opened. This is the time to challenge everything you thought you knew and to get to know different perspectives and backgrounds. Take advantage of the multicultural environment provided and "pop your bubble". This is essential if you'd like to become a good human rights professional.