On 12 October 2023, Laurie Wiseberg’s son, Jesse Scoble, informed the world on her passing on 11 October 2023 in Montréal.
“It is with great sadness that I announce the passing of Dr. Laurie Sheila Wiseberg, Laurie to most, Dr. Wiseberg to a few, Libby to her family, Nama to my kids, and mom to me. How does one sum up a life, let alone one as impressive and eventful as hers?
It would take another lifetime to try to capture it. She described herself in simple terms as:
Dr. Laurie S. Wiseberg (project advisor and contributor) was a human rights scholar/advocate who taught and wrote extensively about the work of human rights for non-governmental organizations. She served as Executive Director of a human rights NGO (Human Rights Internet) for 20 years. Dr. Wiseberg spent the following 20 years doing humanitarian work “in the field”, assisting United Nations agencies in providing better protection for persons displaced as a result of conflict or environmental disasters in countries across the globe.
Jesse will write a proper obit for her in the coming days, but wanted us to know that after a year long struggle she left this world on her own terms. “A glass of red wine in her hand“.
I personally have known Laurie almost all of my ‘human rights life’, starting with the creation of HURIDOCS some 40 years ago. Here the first picture i have of her, September 1978 in Cambridge at an Amnesty meeting.
This post was originally published on Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards.
